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Preparing for Winter

Well it is that time of year again and the weather is getting cold already. Even as far south as Houston gets some really cold spells. Of course, now I have to do regular heater maintenance to make sure it is working properly before it gets too cold. I don’t want to turn it on and not have it work right. That happened once before during a really cold winter and we were miserable until the repairman was able to get here to fix it. I certainly learned my lesson on that one.

We have a fireplace as well and that is helpful too. When the heater went out that year, we lite the fireplace and all slept in the living room to keep warm. It is also one of our favorite things to do during cold weather. We light a fire and sometimes roast marshmallows over it or play games, sing songs and Christmas Carols. Winter is a great time for family bonding since we are stuck in the house a lot.

I like to keep regular maintenance on all of our appliances. Whether it is the the refrigerator, washer and dryer, stove or the AC unit. Lifes little lessons have taught me well that things can break down at the most inopportune moments and being prepared is always best. Most of our appliances are fairly new and under warranty so keeping them up is not difficult. I make sure to buy the regular maintenance insurance whenever I buy a new appliance or anything electrical. Even our TV’s, computer etc, have them.

I dug out all of the big comforters for our beds and put away the summer blankets. This is a ritual every year and with it comes all of the heavy winter coats, sweaters, and thermal underwear. Likewise, I have to take the kids lighter jackets and put them away or they will try to wear them in 30 degree weather and end up sick. I do not know what possesses them to do this every year, but I am definitely not going to let it happen this year.

Now it is time to call the repairman and get him out here. My cousin uses the Aramendia Houston office for all of his and suggested I give the ones in our area a try as he highly recommends them. My cousin always lets me know the best companies to use.

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Halloween Dance tomorrow

My son is going to his Halloween dance tomorrow. He even asked a girl to be his “date”. It is so cute, even though I did tell him he is too young for a girlfriend and dating. I will let this one slide because it is a special occasion. Never the less, I know that they will have a blast. They are even going to dress up as two characters from Pokemon. That should be really adorable.

 

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Such wonderful news

I just got such wonderful news this morning and wanted to share it with you. My best friend in the whole world has just told me that she is going to be a mother. That’s right people. There is a new baby on the way for me to spoil rotten the same way she has spoiled mine. I am over the top. She has also asked that I be the baby’s godmother. I am honored to say the least, but to be honest I kind of knew that would be the case since she is godmother to my eldest child.

Now for the really fun part. We get to shop till we drop for baby gear and that is sooo much fun. I have already told her about all the sites I know for awesome stuff and she is going to come over later so we can oogle everything. As soon as she knows whether it is a boy or a girl, we will be able to figure out what she will decorate with and go from there. I can’t wait !

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A little worried

The childrens schools have apparently gone on lockdown. There were some threatening emails sent to one of the school board employees and so the schools in two counties are now on lockdown. So they tell us anyway. I know that it would be pointless to attempt to go to either school and I am trying to make myself stay home and wait, but it is difficult.

The world has become such a dark and dangerous place now a days and it is really a sad commentary that you have to worry if your children will be safe when you send them to school each day. There is a great deal to be said about our local law enforcement though, as they are on it and have sent out multiple units to each school. Now to try and keep myself at home and out of their way so they can do their jobs.

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Moms birthday

Moms birthday is coming up soon and I know just what to get her. I am going to get her a mother’s ring. She has expressed a wish to have one for a long time and I always thought dad would get it for her, since he said he was going to. Apparently he has forgotten about it, so I will do it for her birthday. Typically you give one for Mother’s Day, but you can do it anytime.

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Tux Paint

Do you have a small child that wants to learn or use your computer? Well I found a great program for them to learn to do art on the computer. It’s called Tux paint.

My youngest child loves it! He makes all kinds of pictures and such with it. It is absolutely free and is malware and virus free. So it is safe for your computer. Give it a try and see how much your child likes it as well.

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Tide pods

Usually I don’t use tide. It is much more expensive than some of the other brands, but I got a coupon for a free package of the pods. I decided I might as well try them and was very happy that I did.

Of course we all know that tide works, but I never realized how much laundry detergent gets wasted when you measure it out yourself. Using the pods, I go through much less detergent and it seems to last forever. It doesn’t have to be Tide, but I would try the pods of any brand if I were you. It will actually save you money.

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Teachers conferences

It’s that time of year for the teacher conferences. I don’t know why they have them so early in the year. You would think that they would wait until at least after the first report card came out but they don’t. Scheduling the conferences for so many different times is occasionally a problem for me. With three kids, sometimes the teachers give me times that are incompatible. Oh well, I will see it through as I always do.

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Charity drive

We are doing a charity drive for the school. It will include a small carnival/fair with some small rides, various local vendors and an animal show as well. Everyone is so excited since this is the first year we are doing this. Usually we have a bake sale, but the profits had dwindled so much that it was pointless to continue. The suggestion for the fair came from the children themselves, so they are inordinately proud of this achievement. The fact that they get to help as well has them over the top. Make sure you come out this weekend and have some fun with us.

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Funerals

A death in the family is never a good thing, but if it is an elderly person and it brings the family together from far and wide, sometimes that part is good. My great uncle died a couple of days ago and the funeral is today. He was in his nineties and more than ready to go. I know this because I talked to him about it last time we saw each other. He was happy knowing that when he passed the family would all be gathered together. It gladdens my heart knowing that he will be happy watching us all together.