A signature always reveals a man's character - and sometimes even his name.

Goodnight Brain…
It feels like my brain needs a nap. It’s just sluggishly dragging itself around today. The Brain is taking minutes to answer questions that normally take seconds. Mundane repetitive tasks require a pause and step by step think thru to get things moving again. In short my brain needs a kick in the ass, but being that I don’t (and hope) my brain does not HAVE an ass, or ass section, since most things in the brain seems to be in sections, I’m not sure where to direct my kicking motion…

If you build it, they will tax you.
So I’m already sick of this whole Sarpy County Stadium debate here in Omaha. While I think it would be fun to have a Haymarket Park type of picnic thing going on, could we get a better team than the Royals? One actually worth watching? I remember we used to go to this Fourth of July family thing the first couple years we lived in Nebraska and my mom worked on base, and we always had to plan an activity for during the game, because the Royals were that bad. I actually cannot remember watching a game. I have pictures of Kathy reading a book and Jesse playing with walkie-talkies. Pretty much we were there for the fireworks and whatever world record attempt was going to get us into the Guinness Book of World Records (Of which I am in both for biggest crowd playing a kazoo to the tune of “take me out to the ball game” and biggest crowd doing the YMCA-booyah!) So unless this new stadium can not raise my property taxes or any other taxes and will have the WORLD’S Largest Fireworks show-you won’t get my support. Or maybe if they give everyone whose names are Carrie free tickets. I also think there are better things to spend money on, like hospitals and schools. One guy on the news last night said something really striking to me, "We don't build factories for manufacturers. We don't build warehouses for distributors. We don't build stores for retailers so why would we build a stadium for a sports franchise?" SO TRUE. Anyway moving on…

Grand Ole Idol
American Idol last night was…snooooozzzzeeee. I of course, as planned voted for Scott because I laughed at Randy Travis and his awkward “go in for the hug, oh he’s blind he can’t see the hugging so we’ll do a handshake moment”. I rolled my eyes at Danny Gokey’s “Jesus take the wheel” (predictable) and got uncomfortable with Adam’s “Ring of Fire” which was super strange. I really wanted to be like, “Dear Adam-you aren’t Jim Morrison yet, please refrain from freaking out America until after you get arrested the first time for indecent exposure. Thanks, Carrie” I get he was trying to pull a David Cook and do it “his way” but seriously, he all but took off his pants and sang about his man junk while he pointed to it and thrusting it inappropriately. Everyone else was pretty much forgettable except Matt G-who can play a piano like nobody’s business. He even shows up the blind guy-who whined about getting bad hat picks, I’m sure he will go home tonite because AI is rigged and NO ONE spills the secrets of AI.

Weekend cooking plans
This weekend I’m going to attempt to make ricotta cheese on my own. I’m very nervous. This could go horribly wrong with a quickness. And I could waste 6 dollars of milk, buttermilk, and half and half. And also about 2 hours of my life. Let’s keep our fingers crossed though and hope for the best. Because if I can MAKE CHEESE, the world would be a BRILLANT place. My dream is to make something so awesome and unique that my friends and family stop asking me for the recipe and just start begging me to make it for them and bring it to parties. Kind of like my Dad’s guacamole recipe. I also have a lovely cheese stuffed chicken recipe from A year in the kitchen I’m going to try.

Wake me up, before you go-go-oh wait don’t.
I woke up this morning to a headache. A headache is like the fifth worse thing to wake up to. The first being blood of any sort, second a stranger in your bed/room, third cat butt in your face, fourth the sudden urge to vomit. So needless to say, didn’t start off this day well, but at least its overcast and moody, kind of like myself today. If it was bright and sunny I’d be even more crabby, because we all know how I feel about sunshine.

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens
Speaking of overcast days, you know what my favorite thing in the world is? Curling up under a duvet on the couch, with a really good book, and a cuddly kitten or two, and reading three sentences of the book and falling asleep-this is the best thing ever. This scenario can also have cuddly kittens substituted for a cuddly husband and the book substituted for a boring football game.

A conversation between Mr. and Mrs. Hellbusch:

Me: So I was reading this stuff today about circumcision-
Husband: -oh great.
Me: Let me finish-so anyway apparently some women don’t get their baby boys circumcised because there is this big movement because it’s really unhealthy or something I don’t know.
Husband: We are getting our son circumcised-end of discussion.
Me: Well why? I mean, I don’t care about our kids foreskin one way or another, I just want to know why you are so adamant about it.
Husband: Because that’s the kid that gets picked on in school, the kid with the weird wanger. He goes to the pool and we all made fun of him. (Continues long story about the boy he knew his whole life that had hippie parents and was uncircumcised and how horrible his life was with foreskin.)
Me: You looked at boys wangers at the pool and pointed and laughed?
Husband: Well when you are a kid, you look, you know, at the pool.
Me: Uh no, I wasn’t allowed to look at boys wangers at the pool. What pool did YOU go to? Let’s not send our kids there.
Husband: *exasperated sigh* No, no circumcision.
Me: Oh I don’t even care about that anymore, I’m worried about my boy looking at other boys wangers now…
Husband:…*crashes truck into tree*

Hope you all have a great Hump Day! We are almost there-hold on people!
Love, (anything that involves a duvet)
Carrie

Is sloppiness in speech caused by ignorance or apathy? I don't know and I don't care

Hi All! Ugh, it’s Monday again. There is nothing worse than a Monday. Unless it is a holiday, and then it’s alright. I am really tired today for some reason and I haven’t shaken it yet.
Weekend Review
Our weekend was pretty productive, we got a lot of work done on the house. I finally got to put my living room furniture (well most of it anyway) back in place which was a HUGE relief. We saw “Watchmen” and I thought it was pretty good. Although I didn’t have an expectations going in, I was just there for an afternoon date! We went and saw it at the Rave theater, which was exciting because we saw it on one of their bigger screens-so it was super cool and sharp. I really do notice a difference with those DLP screens. In other weekend news, I learned how to use a detail sander. Cheeto and Whit came over to watch a movie which is always fun. My Dad came for dinner and my mom came over for dessert. Janet and Neil came to get our door trim to stain for us. I straighten up the office and cleaned the bathrooms. The Kid-ten’s got a new water fountain bowel and they LOVE it and I love not having to wait for the cat before I can use the toilet. Seth had football practice and didn’t feel too much like an old man. The weather was stunning. All and all a pretty productive weekend.
Cooking with Carrie
This weekend I made Gordon Ramsey’s Shepherds Pie and I am pleased as punch to say it was met with rave reviews by my Dad and Seth. It was a bigger pain in the ass then I expected. I always thought Shepherds pie was one of those throw together dishes, but I forgot I was making a Ramsey dish so it was very involved. Lots of reducing and grating and rice-ing. Seth had to help a lot more then I bargained for. I also made Chocolate Chip cookies (note to self: do not melt butter-cream the butter or you get pancake cookies) and cinnamon rolls at the request of Seth which I have decided are the BIGGEST pain the butt to make, and of course they are his newly declared “Favorite” thing I bake. Great. I’m currently hunting for recipes to try next weekend but it feels like I have a Mexican weekend coming on…
I heart my DVR!
We made a real effort to get things off the DVR this weekend after I had to delete like 20 “House Hunters” and “Property Virgins”. The TV season is getting ready to close and so most episodes are new. I’m complaining now about having too much to watch, but wait until May and I’ll complain about everything I love being off air until September. I’ve also noticed that Seth has less shows than I do for the ones we watch apart (Me: Ghost Whisperer, ER, Ugly Betty, Make Me a Supermodel, and all the Law and Order’s-Him: Reaper, Sarah Conner Chronicles) Which means he has to find things to do or I have to get up early on the weekends to watch them all.
“ER” made me cry, again, I think I was more crying that it was ending and that everyone was coming back. The stuff with the newer cast I fast forwarded thru. “Ghost Whisperer” made me cry-THANK GOD JIM is back. And I’d like to give a little shout out to “Chuck” which has some of the best writing EVER. We’ve had to stop watching this show while we eat because we get to laughing so hard we have to pause so we don’t choke. We are worlds behind in our “Friday Night Lights” and “Numbers”, but we will get there! We taped that new “Kings” show last night, and I love me some Ian McShane so I’m pretty excited. I can’t wait to get home and watch that and “Big Love” I have a sickness, I know this. If you ever saw my DVR Series Manger you’d really feel sorry for me-or disgusted, but I live in Nebraska, where the weather is either too hot or too cold to do anything of substance. I’m sure if we moved to Colorado I’d be hiking or something.
Scientific Proof!
So this morning on the radio they said a new study came out that you are considered mentally old at the ripe old age of 27 and that you hit your mental peak at 22. I almost drove my car into a tree when I heard that. I didn’t believe it so I went and tried to find it. And it’s true!! http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7945569.stm YOU BASTARDS. I always knew I was old. *runs to sob in a corner and buy depends*
Here lies Safety, it died when Steve fell off the ladder
They put up new stone markers at the entrance to NPP’s Admin Building today, and they seriously look like grave markers. They say our new strategic foundations like "Safety" "Accountablity" and some other ones I didn't see because I ran in the building and away from the Foundation reminding grave markers. Then I made inappropirate jokes about them with my co-workers, like "so if you don't do one of the foundations, is that where they bury you?" But I still hate them. And I don't want to walk out the front door today.
It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood
It’s going to be gorgeous out today, near 74 or something ridiculously not March like that. I would love to be home finishing up the trim sanding. And sitting outside with the kittens who LOVE it outside, even though I know my dad is right and they are going to be dashing out the door before we know it and not coming home. It’s just so hard, and Willow whines and cries like we are the WORSE parents ever. Every time she throws one of her fits Seth yells back at her “Oh its SO AWFUL WILLLLOOOOOOWWWW we are SOOOO MEANNN.” But I actually did a neighborly thing this weekend! I randomly talked to someone about the weather that was walking by with their dog. Seth about fell over in shock. I’m not very neighborly, especially since the ding dong ditch incident a month ago.
Speaking of those hooligan kids-they had a GANG of them across the street last night screaming and pointing what looked to be guns at each other until 11 o’clock at NIGHT. And the town bicycle mother was HOME, or at least her car was. I want to have those kids arrested so bad. I think I’m going to go plant some weed at their house or something, but first I have to figure out how to find weed to plant. When’s curfew, at what point can I be an old lady and call the cops. The screaming is out of control. I know these kids are going to be a problem. One day when Seth had the day off he was at home sleeping in and the girl was screaming “help! Help!” and Seth went hauling out there to see what was wrong and she was just crying wolf. So I’ve had it out for her since. Now there is a GANG ( I say it in capital letters to make it scarier) of them out there at night screaming and pointing guns at each other. Bah Kids! *shakes cane*
Work-UGH!
Alright I just got handed a HUGE TERRIBLE AWFUL project that I want to complain about in great detail, but I’d better just get started on it instead. Hope you all have a great day-enjoy the weather!

Love (that spring is starting!)
Carrie

The problem with people who have no vices is that generally you can be pretty sure they're going to have some pretty annoying virtues.

Welcome to Monday everyone.
My Dad’s surgery went really well, thank you everyone for all your good juju in his general direction. Hopefully he will have a quick recovery! Surgery in your abdomen is one of the worst because you don’t realize how much you use it! (or at least so I hear, I’ve only every had surgery on my face…)
We had a pretty productive weekend. It was REALLY busy. Because I’m lazy I’m just going to cut and paste from my morning emails to people of exactly HOW busy we were this weekend:
Friday I had to go see my Dad in the hospital. It was the worst thing ever. Those beds are so big and he looked so small. I fell apart when we left. Dad’s are supposed to be indestructible! It made me feel really old, like I should have been grown up and be able to handle it but it was like I wanted him to get out of bed and take care of me and my sadness for him. He did a good job though, he kept telling me not to worry-he knows me too well! I decided I hate everything about hospitals, but especially the smell. I know that’s cliché but it does smell so uncomfortable. They worked really hard to make that place all shiny and not hospitalish-can’t they do something about the SMELL?? Get some glade plug-in’s or something, I’m sure the aromatherapy would help patients
.
Saturday we woke up early and started rushing around the house to get things ready for accent wall painting and the arrival of the new TV! Mom called on her way home from the hospital with dad-he wanted tomato soup from scratch, and my brother is usually the guy who makes that, but my brother was to busy being in his friends movie that day so I volunteered to do it. And since we were going to be over on 72nd street anyway, I also stopped to pick up the painting stuff from Jesse so he wouldn’t have to drive it across town. We waited in the WORLD'S LONGEST LINE to pick up or TV (which is so nice!!), so on our way home we had to stop and get all the stuff for soup and get the painting stuff from Jesse. Jesse gave me a new DVD case for my movies to match the one Seth’s parents got me for Christmas and I was so EXCITED. It was like a little secret gift that you didn’t know you were going to get that makes your day. Like when my mom picks me up a bubble bath when she gets some from Bath and Body Works, she probably doesn’t know how much that makes my day when she decides to do it.
Anyway, I made the soup and cinnamon rolls. While we were waiting for that we painted the red wall and then went to have dinner with Dad. Seth sat with him while I took my mom over to Kohl's to get him comfy sleep pants and get him some Advil. We had dinner and left around 9. We put another coat of red on the wall and then went to bed pretty much.
Sunday Seth let me sleep in and we taped off and painted the brown walls (which I LOVE, they look like giant candy bars in my living room).. I completely forgot we told Cheeto and Whit we would celebrate their birthdays with them on Sunday. Oops. So they called at 5 and wondered what we were going to do. And I was like, oh WORST FRIEND EVER, in my defense though, I gave them their presents last week, so it completely slipped my mind that their birthdays were this week. We ended up having them over for pizza and watching a movie. It was fun. When the boys went to get the pizza Whit and I just caught up and it was nice to do girl talk this weekend.
I also did laundry, made a chowder of cauliflower, potato, corn and cheese soup-its strange and missing something but it's a good filler soup. And I made Seth pulled BBQ pork this week for dinner.
The kittens were alternately lovely and awful when it came to painting. We had one incident in the red paint (Willow) and one incident with the drop clothes (Bagheera/Willow, we don't know who the culprit was). When they were getting too close or gave a wet paint wall some love they got locked in the spare room where they SCREAMED and HOWLED and CRIED until they fell asleep or we let them out. Bags did NOT like being locked in the spare room and was a HOPELESS cuddle monster when we let him out, like were were locking him in a gulaug or something and he was just SO thankful he was out, he loved on us in hopes we wouldn't send him back. The cutest part was when Seth was sitting on the stairs painstakingly painting and trying not to get paint on the carpet and Bagheera climbed right into his lap because he thought Seth was sitting on the floor for cuddles. I have pictures, one day I might remember to post them.
My DVR is screaming under the weight of all the shows I didn't watch this weekend.
We have a lot ahead this week. We have to tape off all the walls for when we have people over to paint, Seth has to pull all the trim off those walls. He is trying to sand the trim as he goes, so that then when we get another free weekend we can just stain until we are blue in the face (or pass out from fumes). There is a TON of stuff on the DVR, even though I did wake up early to watch a lot of it. And I’m getting my hair done this weekend, which is very exciting.
Well that’s all from Hellbusch central!Hope you all have had a pleasant start to you week!
Love, (my new chocolate walls)
Carrie

Listening, not imitation, may be the sincerest form of flattery.

Happy Friday everyone!
I hope it’s a happy Friday for you! And you have a great weekend ahead planned!
So I lied-today is not my 6 month wedding anniversary-there were numbers involved people, I got flustered, it is actually my 5 month a versary. But we are still going to celebrate. I’m currently trying to find something fantastic to cook for dinner. I know I want asparagus, and a fantastic potato dish. Also I want to use my new immersion blender to make a great soup. Maybe cheesy cauliflower? And to cap it off I am going to make cinnamon rolls with a disgusting amount frosting.
Also this week Seth will be dining on pulled pork a la this recipie from my favorite cooking blog: http://ashleescooking.blogspot.com/2009/02/pulled-pork-and-lowfat-no-mayo-coleslaw.html
But the BIG thing this weekend will be the arrival of the NEW TV!! Hooray!! And also the painting-but yesterday I quit the painting team, but I think I might come back tonite after I get the cooking out of my system.
Today is Dad’s surgery, in fact it could be happening now, I’m not sure, but either way I’m in a very quiet place right now radiating happy thoughts.
I ordered more pictures last night (thanks “X number of free digital prints” w ebsites!) for my cube, and it took forever to decided what I wanted, we have TONS of pictures. Like an obscene amount. I need to get the digital photo frame Cody got me for Christmas set up, or at least I need to get Seth to do it.
I’m secretly planning that trip to Vegas in my head. So far my bridesmaids are there and their husbands, except their husbands do boring things like gamble and watch sports and hang out and we do fun things like go dancing and party it up and try to figure out if wearing the cute high heels that match our dresses and WALKING (because you walk everywhere in Vegas-its just what you do) and DANCING all night in them is a good idea. In my head it is a VERY fun trip where there are lots of magical moments pictures that we always look back on fondly and smile. I secretly think it is because I’m rapidly approaching 30. YIKES. Let’s not talk about that, let’s talk about other things like Grey’s last night.
It was pretty good. I thoroughly enjoyed it myself. That fight scene was pretty great and I am still fawning over Own Hunt. The writer’s blog today had me up in arms because they threw out all these stupid teasers about Meredith and Derek and Izzie and Bailey, but I’m ignoring them. Did anyone else watch?
I officially closed the door on “Trust Me” this week. I just couldn’t get into it. The characters were terrible and not easy to like and the pacing was TOO SLOW, the storyline wasn’t developing at all. And I kept comparing it to “Mad Men” in my head. Dude when is THAT show coming back? What a great show. I should see how much they are on DVD…anyway so “Trust Me” is out, but “Lie to Me” is still in. That show is getting better and better. I love learning about all the microemotions that people have. And I spend a lot of time now staring directly at people when they talk. Yay TV where you learn things!
Speaking of TV-I’m obsessed with watching the house hunting shows on HGTV, like House Hunters and Property Virgins. And I don’t know WHY I watch them, because I usually HATE the people buying the house because they are OH SO STUPID and think things like the color of the paint is a reason NOT to buy a house. Or the dude who is trying to act like he knows stuff and in EVERY ROOM has to ask the Realtor what said cabinet, floor, beam, door, or tile is made out of. And as if to cement his awesomeness he has to throw in a suggestion of what it COULD be which is usually WAY off base, like “Gary, what kind of cabinetry is this? Is it fruitwood?” and Gary’s like “Uh no, that is MDF, but it’s so realistic it COULD be fruitwood, couldn’t it??” And usually Gary is using the most car salesmen like approach to selling a house. Maybe we just had a bad agent or something but our sales lady could have given a flying hoot if we cared about the house or not, she was just there to unlock the door. In retrospect, our sales lady sucked. When we buy again, we won’t be going back to her. I’m going to like NP Dodge or something where they are JACKALS. But anyway the guy last night, they were in Hawaii-first off was flamboyantly gay-which I’m fine with, but he kept using inappropriate words to describe things in the house. Like he kept saying “Isn’t this bathroom delicious you all? It’s just DELISH!” Ick-can you tell me what exactly in a bathroom is delicious? I don’t normally find myself in a bathroom wanting to EAT anything.
The ones I hate most of all though are the people who are buying retirement/vacation homes in other countries like Mexico or Jamaica or something. I hate those people, mostly out of jealousy. I want to have a summer home on the beach. Also, the furniture is always included in these homes, which I’m not sure I’m okay with. I know people who get drunk and pee on their couches. How many rich dudes passed out on that couch and peed? No thanks, you can take your pee couch with you. The furniture is mostly old balls anyway. It probably smells like old people and salt. But they have these beautiful open concept houses with like 3000 square feet and when they do the “Three Months Later” part of the show, they are like eating fresh fruit and veggies they got from the market down the street and drinking fantastic drinks and they look younger and happier and I hate them for it, purely out of jealousy. It’s plain as day green jealousy for sure and I’m not ashamed to admit it. I’m secretly starting a campaign to make my parents want to get a summer house in Mexico so that I can come visit and pretend I live that life.
My FAVORITE one of these was this couple from Oklahoma who built houses and decided to move to Nicaragua forever. So they start the interview and they keep pronouncing it NIGGER-agua. Over and over. It is almost like the producers are rubbing it in your face that not only do you not have this kind of money, but they have SO much money they can offensively pronounce the name of the country and get away with it. Because the real estate agent is just like 10% commission on a million dollar house? Lips Zipped. I couldn’t believe it, but THEN, but THEN the old guy starts ribbing the lady about how it was SUCH a big house she wouldn’t be able to clean it and she goes-I kid you not- “Well I’ll just get one of them NIGGER-auguans to clean it for me, they are cheap out here”. And then I fell over and died. My brain exploded I could not take it. Seth and I were like did she SERIOUSLY just say that!?!? House Hunters! *sigh* I love you. I could spend DAYS telling you about the House Hunters that was in FRANCE…
Alright I’ve rambled enough for today. I hope you all have a super fantastic weekend and lots of good things happen for you.
Thanks to everyone for keeping my Pops in your thoughts and prayers.
Love (my life),
Carrie

To err is human--and to blame it on a computer is even more so.

Happy Thursday All! It’s Grey Day and the last day of the Grey’s Anatomy/Private Practice cross over. Thank goodness! My DVR was struggling! Let’s hope it’s a good episode tonite!
Wait is it Thursday? Yeah, yeah it is because tomorrow is my 6 month wedding anniversary. I can’t believe it’s been six months! So much has changed since my wedding it feels like AGES ago. I should plan a nice dinner. Maybe that’s what I’ll troll the net for today…
Painting update-we tried the grey paint suggestion and I think its going to work, albeit that it’s going to be a ROYAL pain. It will still take two coats, but it really worked. It was like night and day. Thanks for the suggestions everyone! I’ll make sure to take pictures this weekend to show everyone how the accent walls and bathroom turned out. I think we will bed doing that tomorrow night and Saturday. I’m going to sucker Jesse into helping when he stops by to help us install the TV.
The TV!! I’m so excited. I haven’t really thought about it because we don’t have it right now. Seth took down the TV in the bedroom in anticipation of the new one (mostly because Cody was there to help him take down that mammoth beast) and I’ve really missed being able to catch the news at night before we go to bed. I think our first official movie on it will be Madagascar 2, since we bought that ages ago and haven’t watched it yet. Also we have Weeds Season 1 to watch, which reminds me I need to ask Jesse if he has the rest of those. I am so excited to have a fancy new tv in there-with all my books, I may never leave!
Speaking again of books-L’ara dropped off “The Reader” last night, and since she is crazy busy at work, she probably won’t post a review, but I’ve just moved it to the top of my list, so hopefully I will be able to review it all for you soon!
Also my dear friend Jenny-who used to work with me at NPP and is now at UNMC wonders where one disposes of old books they don’t want anymore, like old Danielle Steel books (seriously, that doesn’t comprehend with me at ALL who WANTS to give books away!?!? J) So if any of you out there want to do a book trade or knows where to donate stacks of books, hit the comments section!
So today my Pops has another CAT scan to look at his chest, and if all goes well his surgery is tomorrow. So lets all keep him in your respective happy places!
I am so hungry I wish it was lunch time already, I started looking at food for Friday and about ate my screen. I have the WORST desire to make a totally dripping with fat mac and cheese. I made a really good one a couple months ago out of my southern cook book that had djion mustard in the sauce and it was lip smacking good. *sigh*
So thankfully on AI last night they didn’t put thru Tatiana-THANK YOU JESUS. She made a big scene and the camera kept cutting back to her like she was going to wig out or something but she just randomly started crying on whoever was closest. By the way AI producers-WORST wrap up show ever. I literally watched all of 6 minutes of it, four of those minutes were watching Carly and Michael Johns from last year sing. Thank the HEAVENS for DVR. I am hating this new format with such a vengeance. I mean who really sat thru all 12 of the results? If you did, I can give you a list of shows my arm long you should have been watching instead.
One of those is Chuck. Great show. Great writing-great actors. If you aren’t watching it you are missing one of the cleverest shows on tv today. Or any of the Law and Order’s, SVU was particularly twisty this week. It was all about this transgendered kid, did you even know there WERE transgendered kids? Whose parents let them change their sex at age like 10? And take hormones and blockers in hopes that when they are old enough they can have reassignment surgery? There is a whole support group and world of them out there! Who knew? That must be so hard in school. I can’t imagine anything like that flying in the Midwest. We haven’t come THAT far yet-Intervention is still blaming that shot putter’s drug addiction on “The torrent drug and Gay/Lesbian scene in Omaha” I was like really? Where? I went to a gay club to go dancing (L’ara you remember that?) here once and got licked on my back. That was about as torrent as it got. And they had really tiny scary bathrooms and free ice water and I thought that was WORLDS better than Guitars and Cadillac’s. I’ve just dated myself for all of you youngn’s out there reading this.
I’m on a hunt for blogs to read at work, I’m nearing the end of my Joshilyn Jackson archives over at Faster than Kudzu, so I’m open to suggestions. If you have got them, throw them in the comments below! I’ve taken to just hitting the “next blog” button at the top of the page in search of one, but I keep coming up with ones that are not in English, although they have fun pictures. Anyone have any idea how to search and find blogs besides typing “blogs” into google?
Oh speaking of the page, I added some fun for you. I’m playing with gadgets, to the right and the bottom of the page I’ve added some things. I spent a couple minutes playing hangman this morning. Yay for gadgets!
Hope that you all are having a great day!!
Love (of decaf green tea),
Carrie

Ch ch ch Changes! And too much cheesy broccoli rice...

Hi everyone!
It’s been a while since I have done an update blog-so here I go!

We have some scheduling changes to bring to your attention.

The painting party has been moved to February 28th now. Paint is on sale this week at Menards for a really good price and Seth may have to go to Baltimore the first two weeks in March, and since he is the A team in the whole painting operation, we kind of need him there. So if you are open-let us know! That way we can get a pizza and beer count. Plus it’s on a Saturday now, so we can start a little earlier, say noon? Hope to see you all there!!!

Also there is an Orlando vacation update!! We are now going May 8th thru the 11th. I am taking an extra day (Tuesday the 12th) off work because we don’t get in until 10:30 on Monday. I am SO excited! I’m going to have to dig out the bathing suit tub and the BIG suitcase since they are charging you for them now!! I think that Mom can get us a discount pass thru the military for Disneyworld, now we just have to decide on what day to go! I’ve heard you need to get there early! I’m so friggin excited I don’t even have words for it.

The kittens are doing great-we took them out for a walk yesterday since it’s probably going to be the last nice day until the spring. Someone at the meeting this morning said it’s supposed to snow 7 inches on Friday. Good LORD! These past couple of nice days have been really great though, I’ve actually gotten out to run TWICE. And I hacked up my left lung like a 70 year old chronic smoker afterwards. I’m clearly out of shape.

But the babies LOVE it outside. We put their harnesses on and let Bagheera run free, Willow stays on the leash, but she has a pretty long leash, she just likes to sneak up on Bags and pounce him. The best part of yesterday was when a flock of birds flew low overhead and Bags just about crapped himself, he had no idea what they were! Too cute!

Cooking lessons are still on for Sunday! I’m pretty pumped, I was starting to stress about what I was going to cook this weekend for next week’s dinner and then I remembered that I am going to have CALZONES and RAVIOLI!! Yay!

Well its pot luck day at work, and I accidently made a METRIC TON of cheesy broccoli rice. (I seriously need to tattoo the instructions on how to cook rice in the rice cooker on my arm-3 cups of dry rice apparently equals 10 cooked rice cups!) and I’m pretty sure it’s not going to fit in the microwave to be heated up. Nice.

Hope you all have a great day!
Love (without reservations),
Carrie

How much longer until the weekend?

Happy Thursday everyone!
For those of you still watching Grey’s, tonite’s episode will cross over into Private Practice (the show on after Grey’s) so be sure to DVR that full hour too. If you’re like us, you have to do a LOT of maneuvering to get that taped, Thursday is the worst night for us to tape. We have Ugly Betty, Bones, My Name is Earl, ER, Grey’s, Burn Notice, and one other one I can never remember.
Update on the Abstention From Eating Out- It’s going okay. I’m so sick of eating leftovers! I usually cook something great on the weekends and then eat it the rest of the week because I know that I’m going to be too tired to cook a full meal when I get home. Plus it makes shopping a lot easier. But about this time, I need a change. If I have to eat one more cheese enchi-I might explode. Seth is back to being my portion control because I was eating METRIC TONS of enchi’s just to get rid of them. I want to eat out so bad though that I almost break down three times a night. Usually when Seth is on his way home and could stop by Jimmy Johns or Taco Bell. Mmmm Cheesy Gordita Cruches…*sniff* I MISS YOU!! *wipes away tears and drool*
Luckily though! I get one free pass for Valentine’s Day! And DOUBLE LUCKY-we got a coupon in the mail for La Mesa’s Mexican Restaurant because they just opened a new location on 156th and Q (right by us!) and because they were voted Best Mexican in Omaha again, so its ½ priced entrée! So that’s what we are going to go and eat for Valentine’s day. Except we are going on Friday the 13th so that we beat the rush. And then for Valentine’s Day I’m going to spend the day in bed and the bath after I go to BOOKS A MILLION (my new favorite bookstore on L street, because they carry old library books!! For CHEAP! WRAPPED IN PLASTIC SO I CAN READ THEM IN THE TUB!) because that is my gift from Seth and I am so very very excited about it. I’ve been stalking their website trying to decide what bargain books to get. And then Sunday, I’m going to take Italian cooking lessons from our family friend Bob. Seth might try and go golfing with Dad (and Dan if Kathy join’s us for the lesson) if the weather holds up. So very excited! Bob is going to teach us (Mom and me and maybe Kathy) how to make Ricotta, Ravioli, and Calzone’s from SCRATCH.
I know you all are going to fall over dead when I say this, but I’m ready for it to start warming up. Only because I’m SICK of paying out of this world utility bills. Also I would like to be able to start going for bike rides again while Seth runs. And I wouldn’t mind starting to wear short sleeves again and to see a thunderstorm. What I am NOT ready for is BLINDING SUN on my drive to and from work and when I’m trying to sleep in on Saturday’s. So there I said it. Bring on Spring!
Also I’m VERY excited to start growing our garden this year, since we have a nice little one in the backyard. I just looked at seeds the other night at Target. For sure I know I want to grow herbs (as many as I can, my pipe dream is to dry them this fall), cucumbers, lettuce, carrots, corn, tomatoes, snap peas, a pumpkin and a watermelon. And I think we will try peppers again this year because we were actually successful last year! Even my Dad was impressed!
Last night, Mean Ole’ Bagheera was a cuddle MONSTER. I’m afraid I’m going to go home and he’s going to be dead in the middle of my living room floor. I was reading “Sepulchre” by Kate Mosse (I linked it for you in case you are interested!) and Bags hopped up, put his stinky butt right in my face, and started purring like a motor boat. Seth and I both just looked at each other like, what is going on? Am I dying? He promptly wedged himself in between me and my book, flicked his naughty tail right where I was reading and demanded to be loved. It was VERY odd. Seth says this morning he would not leave him alone, he wanted all of his attention. Maybe I’ll buy a lotto ticket since we seem to be having a run of luck.
Speaking of books, last night I finished “The True and Outstanding Adventures of the Hunt Sisters: A Novel” by Elisabeth Robinson (I linked again for you). It was an okay book, a fun bathtub read. The story was kind of sad and random, but the writing was funny. What drew me to it was it is all letters the author writes to people. If anyone wants to borrow it, let me know!
My new bathtub book is going to be “The Miss America Family” by Julianna Baggott. So I’ll let you know how that goes.
A couple days ago I finished “The Russian Concubine” by Kate Furnivall and it was a really good book, but I have yet to figure out what the title means, because as far as I an tell, no one was a concubine. The mom was kind of a whore…there were only two main women in the book, and neither would be what I would describe as a concubine. If you want to borrow it and let me know what the heck the title means, please do!
Well that is about all that is exciting from Carrie Central.
Hope you all are having a great day!

Love (like an awkward sibling),
Carrie

So many adventures couldn't happen today, So many songs we forgot to play..

This may come as a SHOCK to you all-but Seth actually got up with me this morning! I know. I was stunned. But as I was walking out the door (late-I swear I looked at the clock and it said I had 15 minutes and then apparently I fell into a time warp and it was 20 minutes later and I have no knowledge of what I did in that fifteen minutes) he goes-“You look like a Mom today” and I was like, great thanks, that’s for pointing that out now as I am walking out the door LATE and there is nothing I can do about it except blog and whine. And feel uncomfortable all day.
Not that looking like a mom is a bad thing, it just wasn’t what I was going for. I think it was because I was wearing flannel pajama pants to bed last night-in my defense, it was COLD. But anyway, that just made me laugh. Thanks HONEY.
I think I need to like plan my clothes out for the week because if I don’t and I have to rush it in the morning, I end up smelling like cat butt or looking like someone’s Mom.
Speaking of work-yesterday I spent a good hour trying to retrieve my staple puller from the black abyss behind my desk that tried to eat it. Now I know what you are thinking, really Carrie, an hour on a staple puller? But it is a FANCY staple puller, it is ergonomically correct with hand grooves and little thumb pads, and it even has a magnet! It was special order! It's a Bostitch! In a flamboyant move, I tried to bounce it into my pen cup and ended up bouncing it directly over the pen cup and into the darkness behind my desk. Here at NPP we have these AWFUL desks that have a piece of metal that separates the desk from the cubical wall.
*Digress to demonstrate the stupidness of the piece of metal* Once a couple of years ago when I first started here it started to smell REALLY bad at my desk. Like really bad, I was the SMELLY girl. After about 100 different forms of air fresheners, the girl who shared a wall with me got fed up and threatened her boss if I didn't stop smelling she would quit. Of course, I had to prove outside the cube I was NOT the smelly girl, so it was deemed the smell was coming from the cube itself. They made me clean out all my drawers and move all of my stuff out. When it was apparent I wasn't the girl who leaves rotting things in her desk, they finally called facilities management to tear the cubes apart, and there, in between my cube and said piece of metal, was a dead snake who had eaten a mouse who was poisoned and got too fat to get out from between the metal and cube. And he was rotting, under my feet, and before that probably SLITHERING there, so needless to say, I threw a fit of LEGENDARY proportions. *digression over*
So if you lose anything back there, unless you have super long lean arms, or brute strength you aren't' seeing it again. Someone must have really wanted something back at my desk at one time, because they bent and broke the metal plate to get behind the desk. So I pried and laid on my back and laid over my desk like a beached whale trying to get my staple puller back. When I finally got it, I emerged triumphant and dusty and probably had my hands covered in petrified cricket gross. And then I was late for a meeting. I went to the meeting holding my retrieved staple puller high for all to see-proud of my victory over the back of the desk and when it came to my turn to talk about what I had done so far this week at work and what I had planned I said "Well I just fought the back of my desk VALIANTLY for the return of my super fancy staple puller (as you call can see here), so that was pretty much my focus for the last hour, I'm not sure where to go from here..." and my boss looked at me and dead paned-"maybe to a feast in honor of your victory or do you just want to do the award ceremony now?" And we all laughed hysterically, best boss ever.
Here’s an issue I’m greatly passionate about. People who hock crap at work. We are in an economic crisis people. Don’t come into my cube and corner me and then make me feel bad for not buying your crap, your kids crap, or your charity crap. I don’t want to buy a raffle ticket, buy any form of make up from you (I announce LOUDLY at every job that my mom is a Mary Kay lady and my grandma is a Avon lady-I’m COVERED thanks.), buy cookies, popcorn, magazines or wrapping paper from your kids (isn’t the point that THEY are supposed to be selling it, in my day my mom REFUSED to do anything but drive me up to people’s front doors, she never took my cookie forms into work-the lesson was I was supposed to sell it, not her), or anything of that nature. And I am vehemently against people hocking charities at work. I get that you want to do a good thing, but I think a person’s charity choices should be personal and their own. I don’t need to justify to you why I don’t want to support your charity, because maybe I have charities of my own, and I certainly don’t need your guilt trip, thanks. And we work 45 minutes away from Omaha, at the end of the day, I want to go home and take off my pants. I do NOT want to go to your home and buy your baskets, candles, plastic containers or kitchen tools. That’s what they make the Internet for. You got a website? Great, shoot it too me, if I want your stuff I’ll order it there. Seriously people, we are in an ECONOMIC crisis, I gave up going out to eat for a MONTH so that I could get a luxury item (TV) that does not mean I have 46 dollars for some eye cream or cookie dough. Thanks though. BACK OFF. I need a sign for my cube, because if one more person comes in here and asks me to be on their relay for life team or buy their kids fundraisers I’m going to take someone out at the knees really. Have I EVER bought anything from you? Dude I won’t even go in on “secret buddies” but that is because I’ve seen the crap you get in your cube for secret buddies and I really have my fill of random dollar store crap, thanks. I don’t need any bird statues or plants, I’m good. I’m quickly becoming the social outcast of the people who sell junk here. Haha. *Carrie backs away from the soapbox slowly*

So exciting news-Bob, family friend, is going to teach me how to make homemade ricotta and use the pasta maker I got for my wedding! I’m so excited. I hope we make ravioli’s and calzones. And then I will eat until I explode. So get ready, if you come to my house, I will have been classically trained by a real New York Italian chef for your meal. Don’t be jealous, I’ll spread the love!

How is it only 10:25? REALLY?
This day is going to take forever!
Hope you all are having a great day and a special shout out to my dad who had a minor procedure done but is doing great! I hope your feeling better Pop! And thanks to everyone for their happy thoughts in his general direction.

Love (among other things),
Carrie

PS if you can name that tune and band, you win a prize. :-) Its my new thing...

Hi my name is Carrie and I'm an obsessive eye brow plucker...

Happy Hump Day everyone!
Traffic was SO BAD this morning it was UNREAL. I think that’s the worst traffic I’ve ever sat in.
Last night I watched “Intervention” off the DVR and it was this guy who was an alcoholic and he got put in the hospital for alcohol poisoning, which wasn’t shocking since he drank a GALLON OF PLASTIC BOTTLE VODKA, but the most disturbing part of the episode was when he DRANK HAND SANITIZER in the hospital because it was 62% alcohol and he needed it. HAND SANITIZER. Grossest thing EVER. And he acted like it was water. It was the saddest thing I’ve ever seen. He was all dead behind the eyes and crying all the time. I feel sadistic just watching the show. And then I don’t even watch the “intervention” part of it, I fast forward thru it because I don’t like to hear families blame shift. I just want to see the end. By the way Anthony has been sober since Sept. 22, 2008 which I find VERY HARD TO BELIEVE since he DRANK HAND SANTIZER.
He was almost as disturbing as the lady who drank mouth wash. Probably more disturbing because at least mouth wash is minty.
The Amazon Gold box is going to ruin my marriage. Amazon entirely is on track to ruin my entire bank account. Why do they have to have such good deals? Jerks.
I’m sad to report that the economy crisis is starting to effect the Midwest and people I know. My brother is looking for a job and a lot of my friends are too. I feel so bad! I know a lot of other people who are beginning to receive threats that layoffs. I really hope things pick up soon for our nation.
A radio DJ this morning said something that really struck me, she was talking about how the media is going crazy because Jessica Simpson went from a size 2 to a size 8 (by the way there is NOTHING wrong with that at all, I applaud her) and she said “It’s so sad to think that just last week our country was full of optimism and hope and love when we were rallying behind a new President, and now we are back to this petty crap.” And it’s so true. I also read a quote from Actor Daniel Radcliffe that really summed up how I feel about Obama right now or at least on inauguration day-He expressed his happiness for America in having elected Obama, describing him as a combination of Martin Luther King and JFK, saying he represents “everything the rest of the world liked about America and now likes again.” I think I really feel that sentiment because I’ve seen America thru the eyes of the rest of the world when I lived overseas on military bases.

So here are the foods I think we will be having at the STUPID bowl party-greek dip, sausages, beef and cheese dip and bean and cheese dip. And I might get some veggies. Small snacks, it’s a small party from our guest list so far. I’m trying to find a good bean and cheese dip recipe. One that you can dip tortilla chips in. Nothing that involves VELVEETA. Please for the love of pete. Maybe something with cream cheese instead? Throw your recopies my way! Ooo! And if I can put it in the crockpot you will be my hero and you may stay at our party until 10:10!
Okay well I’d better get on with the day since I was a half an hour late to work.
Also, can we just cancel the audition part of American Idol? PLEASE? They didnt' even SHOW the people who got thru really, just weirdness, that episode wasn't even worth the 15 minutes I spent fast forwarding thru it. I'm over it, can we just get to the elimination rounds so you can break my heart already and kill all the people I like? I'm starting to think David Cook was a fluke. Last seasons auditions were a little more bearable then the crap they are putting out right now...Anyone feeling me on this??
Once again it’s a day where NO ONE is emailing me. I’m starting to wonder if my friends are still alive or if their email isn’t getting thru or if MY email’s aren’t getting thru. Either way I’m very worried about my lack of emails.
One Love!
Carrie

Weekend of Cars, Cooking, and Cuddling...

Hello everyone! I hope you had a wonderful weekend! I had a great one.
On Friday I went out on a date with my Dad. We went to Margarita’s Mexican restaurant and to the car show. I swear we have never had as much fun at the car show as we did this year. We have gone every year since we moved to Omaha. This year, we went by ourselves as Seth had to work and Mom had officially given up on the car show experience (she tries so hard every year to get into it but just can’t-at least she tried!). I think I had more fun this year just because I got a chance to hang out with my Dad. We had a lot of good laughs.
On Saturday I woke up around 11 and started cooking. I got EVERYTHING made and was done cooking by about 6. Pam came over and helped around 3. Seth randomly stopped by and helped reach bowls or cut onions, mostly though he cleaned and worked on computers. Dan and Kathy came by around 7 and ate some enchi’s and my parents stopped by around 8 and finished up the “guest pans” (pans that I had made because I knew people were coming over). Everything turned out REALLY good with only one tray of cookies as causality. Here are the lessons I learned this weekend:
Move up the bottom oven rack off the bottom of the oven-then your cookies won’t have black bottoms and soft tops.
Vanilla pudding in your chocolate chip cookie dough really does make them soft!
Cleaning up (like all the way up, washing pans and running the dishwasher, wiping down counters) BEFORE you start the next dish really helps you refocus on what you are doing.
Kittens are decidedly NOT good kitchen helpers.
Pam and Seth are decidedly VERY good kitchen helpers.

I’m still waiting on reviews of the food that was tasted, but all and all I think it was a success, everyone cleaned their plates. I think the Black Bean/Corn/Cheese enchi’s need a little something more, but I haven’t figured out what. Maybe more cheese? I also learned that Seth loves the cheese mix and wants it on his chicken enchi’s next time-but I think he just loves cheese.
On Sunday we just relaxed, Seth worked a little and fixed some more stuff on the computers. I gave my DVR the much needing cleaning off that it desired! I took an early bath and read a huge chunk of my book and finally finished “Even After All this time” which I think ended kind of meh. It was such a good book up until this part. Since it was an autobiography, it felt like she hadn’t’ gotten far enough in her life to write a good ending, you know? The last couple of chapters seemed like a blog where you tell the world about your weekend.-when the first part of the book was very indepth about her struggle trying to live in America and fleeing Iran, it just didn’t seem like it fit. Still a very good and informative book. I give it 3 out of 5 stars.
Tonite we are having dinner with Pam and Jason at Ruby Tuesday’s. I’m pretty excited about it. We are FINALLY going to hear all about their great trip to Hawaii and eat some awesome food.
This weekend is the WEEKEND OF ROMANCE at the Hellbusch household so that’s pretty exciting. So far we plan on eating the food from the WEEKEND OF COOKING (this weekend) and watching our Band of Brother’s DVD that we just ordered. I know it’s not romantic in the true sense of the word. But its romance to us to just spend time together uninterrupted. We are even shutting off one of the cell phones, or at least leaving it upstairs. Which is going to be SO HARD FOR ME! But it’s going to be a really good time.
Hope that you all are having a GREAT Monday and you are being safe in the snow (if you are reading this from Nebraska where it is currently snowing like crazy)!!
Love to you all!!
Carrie

More lists, weekend plans, a shout out to Kitty, and I'm going to DISNEYWORLD in JUNE!!

I’m going to Disneyworld!!!
In June-when it will be hot and crowded I have been informed.
My parents are taking the family to Disneyworld and I am SO VERY EXCITED. I just don’t know what to do! Besides start saving! :-) I have never been to Disneyworld-so any helpful suggestions or insider tips are greatly appreciated! We are looking at June 14th to go. And Ellyn will finally be legal and 21 for a vacation so we will have a GRAND time for sure! Hooray for family vacations-I can't TELL you how excited I am-especially since I have been whining to Seth about how everyone but us goes on vacation and how much fun we had at the Cancun family vacation two years ago!! Hooray!!
What else? We had a GREAT time at dinner last night with L’ara and JJ! Thanks guys! *waves* We had a fantastic meal, I learned they make DIPPING OIL for bread at Baker’s, so I have to go get some of THAT now. And I learned L’ara is a FANTASTIC painter and will be sweetly wooed into my next painting party FOR SURE.
So Seth caught up with the blog last night and he says that I don’t talk enough about our cats or him. So here is my list of 100 things I love about Seth and our cats. (50 each) because I’m totally into listing things right now.
Top 50 things I love about my husband:
1) He married me.
2) He accepts that I am crazy and loves it.
3) He is passionate about his work.
4) He loves our cats like children and talks to them that way too.
5) He loves to sleep as much as I do.
6) He works really hard.
7) He has great morals.
8) He treats me like a lady.
9) He still opens doors and pulls out chairs and puts my coat on for me.
10) He is really, really, really smart.
11) He does all the budgeting and bills.
12) When we go to the grocery store, he does all the “which is the better value” stuff.
13) He used to work at a grocery store so he knows the sale cycle of things.
14) He used to work at a Taco John’s so he makes the BEST burritos.
15) He used to work at a moving company so we can get a lot of stuff into a TINY van.
16) He likes to work out, even when I whine about it.
17) He likes to cook for me.
18) He can fix the computer when I break it.
19) He can pretty much fix anything when I break it.
20) He carries my bags in the airport.
21) He carries my bags when we go shopping.
22) He still holds my hand when we sleep at night.
23) He lets me have 1 million pillows on the bed and 5 duvets and two cats.
24) He indulges my obsessions and idiosyncrasies.
25) None of my 100 weird things about me list surprised him.
26) He’s trying to help me follow my passion.
27) He loves food as much as I do.
28) He watches hours of TV for me.
29) He plays video games still and picks the ones he knows I will like to watch him play.
30) He loves my family like his own.
31) He lets me listen to my rap music and my R&B but just not as loud as I usually do.
32) He loves punk music and heavy metal and it opens me up to a whole new world of music.
33) He encouraged me change jobs on a leap of faith when I was miserable at my perfectly good job.
34) He would do anything for his family.
35) Even when he is grumpy, he is tolerable.
36) He lets me whine CONSTANTLY if I need too.
37) He lets me cry if I need to.
38) He knows if I’m having a bad day and usually makes me dinner.
39) He likes to help clean the house so it isn’t all my job.
40)He likes to cuddle as long as my hair isn’t wet.
41) He gets me water every night before we go to bed.
42) He always gives me three kisses (past, present, and future) before we go to bed and when we leave each other and says I love you too.
43) He tells me he loves me, randomly and a lot.
44)He makes me laugh.
45) He loves to learn and try new things.
46)He will have lazy days with me.
47) He doesn’t mind that I don’t wear make up or wash my hair on the weekends, as long as I bathe and don’t wear the pirate shirts (THEY ARE FRENCH CHIC SETH!).
48)He knows that I don’t like to go anywhere alone and will go anywhere with me.
49)He forgives me and loves me when I’m crabby and wrong.
50) He wants to have babies with me.

Top 50 things I love about my Bengal Cats
1) Their names are Bagheera and Willow
2) We never ever call them those names unless they are in trouble. Normally they are “Bags” and “Willowby”.
3) They are so unique.
4) Bags is HandiCAT and doesn’t let anyone put him in his place.
5) Willowby has a toy mousey that is her FAVORITE even though Bags ate the face off and she carries it around the house.
6) Bags destroys every cat toy we have eventually, except the football shaped hackeysack L’ara gave Seth. So I guess technically it doesn’t count as a cat toy.
7) They miss us when we are gone.
8) They talk to us, like have whole conversations with meow inflection tone changes.
9) They are eating us out of our home.
10) Bags is a cuddle MONSTER in the morning, but only in the morning-its like he missed your ugly face so he’s decided to show he needs you.
11) Willow does this thing called pretty kitty where she rubs her head on the ground and rolls over on her tummy when she is in trouble and it is SO HARD TO YELL AT HER.
12) They cuddle together when we sleep at night.
13) They sleep at the foot of the bed with us.
14) They are too smart for their own good-they’ve just learned how to open drawers-we are SCREWED.
15) They HAVE to be in the same room as you-no matter what and they cry if you lock them out.
16) They always come running and greet us at the door when we come home-even if we are gone five minutes.
17) They actually play with their cat toys.
18) They love Seth best of all and when they cuddle with him it’s the CUTEST THING EVER.
19) Because they love Seth best of all it means that they aren’t always under my feet and in my lap so I can love them when I want-on my terms.
20) Willow loves to sit on the edge of the bathtub and talk to me when I’m in the bath and she yells at Seth if he comes in.
21) Bags peeks his head over the edge of the tub and cries because all he can see is my floating head.
22) They are learning to drink out of the toilet.
23) We make them say please for their food or treats and sometimes they actually do it.
24) They like to have their picture taken.
25) Last weekend Willow sat on top of the tv and attacked the Arizona Cardinals every time they threw the ball. I think it helped the Steelers win.
26) They are getting to be BIG cats.
27) Bags has a rug we call the Bagheera rug that looks just like him and he likes to lay in the sun and sleep on it.
28) They are so pretty.
29) They have big ole ears.
30) They play fetch
31) When they play chase me catch me around the house it sounds like a herd of elephants.
32) They are curious like you wouldn’t believe.
33) They have ATTITUDE.
34) My friends treat them like our children and love them to death.
35) They have caused me to be a crazy cat lady and I don’t even care.
36) My parents call them the “grandkitties” and sometimes stop by just to see them and play wit them.
37) I miss them during the day.
38) Bags is like a grumpy teenager most of the time.
39) Willow is like a need prima donna most of the time.
40)They love to lay in laps.
41) They don’t shy away from strangers.
42) Willow thinks she is a parrot and Seth is a pirate.
43) I once had the vet yell at me for letting Willow chew on Bag’s man parts.
44)When Bags had his man parts fixed he hated Willow for like a WEEK. Wouldn’t let her come near her or anything. I guess he associated that pain with her.
45) They are NAUGHTY and we love it even though cleaning up 100 spilled toothpicks is no one’s idea of a good time.
46)They are sweet when they want to be.
47) They love to sleep as much as I do.
48)They are learning how to walk on leashes.
49)They make me feel better when I am sad.
50) They give each other hugs.

So there are my lists for the day.
I’d like to take this opportunity, in the spirit of loving your pets, to take a moment to remember Kathy’s cat Kitty, who passed away today. My heart is with you Kathy! Know that Kitty was one LOVED cat and she had a great life. She was lucky to have you. :-) Make sure you give Kirby and extra tight squeeze for me.

Also I have decided to go on a cooking RAMPAGE this weekend, on Saturday. Here is the list of things I will possibly be cooking: Chicken and Cheese Enchi’s, Cheesy Hashbrown Casserole, Mexican Meatloaf Muffins (new recipe to try), Chocolate Chip Cookies, and maybe lasagna since I was inspired last night by L’ara.

I hope you all have a great day!
Much love!
Carrie