today we bought a barbie

And not that kinda of barbie - this one you grill on! I guess, you could grill barbie on the barbie but, I think that would be a sticky mess!! LOL

We were going to Lowe's for something unrelated to a grill...but when we pulled up - there was a beautiful yellow sign sitting on a bunch of Char-Broil grills. It read 20% off on certain Char-Broil grills. Char-Broil is from my hometown. My two requests were - that it be a Char-Broil and Infrared. I didn't ask for much! Yeah, I live in Texas, but I like to support my hometown when I can!

Our first run was steak and shrimp that we picked up at the Cedar Park Farms to Market this morning. We also wrapped up five ears of corn with butter, salt and pepper. And did five burgers! Great first run, everything was cooked evenly!

I was in a total food coma after dinner...

Daily 5 - 7

- up at 6:47am - took Dylan to summer school

- made malted milk ball cupcakes for Dylan's birthday

- was disappointed in the lack of bacon found in the fridge for my BLT (who eats 39 slices of pre cooked bacon?) I'm not bitter

- upon delivery of said cupcakes - I noticed the frosting on one looked smeared - with the other part smeard on my boob!

- spent several hours sitting at the oasis enjoying the view of the almost nonexistent lake travis

Daily 5 - 5

- late breakfast early lunch at Kerby Lane Cafe
- bought another Tassimo today
- someone other than me cooked tonight
- someone other than me burnt popcorn
- i nearly died from the smell

Apartment - Lease House - Own House

I’m gonna ask because I’m tired of all the searching and time wasting it has caused us. I haven’t lived in an apartment since I moved out of Florida. I only lived in an apartment for one year. I have lived in several leased homes, two here in Texas and several growing up in Georgia. Now, my question to you is, what do you prefer if you have no other choices? Of course our choice would be to own, but even with the crazy economy here, owning a home may not work out for us. The price range that is affordable is very tiny living space. I’m really ok with tiny, most of the apartments we looked at in our range were on the small side. Apartments have some advantages, no grass to mow, fitness center and pools to enjoy. They also have some disadvantages, being that you know everything your neighbors are up to and they know your business, too. I prefer not to hear them – AT ALL. Leasing a house has a few advantages, for one it is a house; you’re not connected to another. The disadvantages, you have a yard to maintain, and some sort of landlord/management company (apartments have management companies, too) to deal with. In our case, our landlord lives across the street. Yes, THE landlord. The person that OWNS this house! I kid you not! I was not thrilled to hear that, it was not discussed during the trips to see the house. He listed it with a management company, but they have NOTHING to do with the house! The only thing they did was the credit check and the application. The owner was asked not to pester us, unfortunately that fell on deaf ears. He claimed he would only walk through the yard every 30 days. I can’t remember the last time that he was NOT in the yard! I can’t open the windows for fear he has someone in the yard looking at the gutters, the roof, the fireplace, etc…for pete sakes, I’m losing my mind. It’s like living in an apartment!

We’re not leasing this house another year and we are not buying this house. It was on the market before the owner decided to lease it. That’s another whole issue. Remember the movie, The Money Pit? Yeah, that’s this house – lots and lots of issues. I doubt it would pass the inspection.

Our lease is up in November. We’ve looked at several apartments; we’ve looked at older homes (I’ve purchased two older homes here in Texas – still own one but that’s another story and not an option) on the market and new home builders (I built a home in Florida). With the new homes, their advantage is that they are new. With the older homes, the advantage is they might have some character the newer homes never have, plus we can afford to add a few updates. And, well you know my theory on apartments.

I’m just so tired of looking and time is closing in. Hmmm, I wonder if this stress is causing the itching.

If you read my blog and have any pros/cons please let me know what you think. I really know we should own if possible.

Proud Mama

Ya’ll I’ve been so busy this week. My oldest baby will be graduating high school this Sunday! I honestly can’t believe where time went, wasn’t he just in Kindergarten? Yes, he was, you can’t fool me! Seriously though ya’ll, he’s graduating high school, I have a child that is eighteen, where did time go? Yes, I’ve cried, I won’t lie to ya. I started crying about three weeks ago, it hit me and I cried. I cried like the first day I put him on the bus for kindergarten. This reminds me, I need to purchase waterproof mascara…making not to self. LOL So, I’ve been busy, labeling his announcements and stamping them – and searching for last minute addresses to let all of our friends know that Justin’s graduating! Well, we were limited to about 50 announcements. I have four left. I should have sent out evites! I also have a confession to make – We haven’t ordered his senior photos…I know, I suck.

I’m incredibly proud of Justin, he had his struggles, and he entertained summer school many times and was a regular in the credit recovery program the school offered but in the end he earned his diploma and that is all that matters. He did it his way, even though it was a wild and crazy path, he did it!

I am so very proud of you!

One More Prayer

Since I blogged asking for prayers, I have received several interviews (Thank you Cathe). Before that day, I’d only received two interviews since last September. That’s right, just two interviews out of about 50 applications/resumes that I sent out. I’m going to put myself out there again and this time I’m going to be more specific in my asking. Please lift me up in your thoughts and your prayers for more than just interviews, I need a job. These last few weeks I’ve had at least two interviews a week. It’s awesome! But, I want someone to give me a chance; don’t worry about the low pay. If I didn’t agree with the pay I would not have applied. I know I’m probably over qualified for a lot of the positions that I have applied for. Again, I wouldn’t apply for the position if I didn’t need the income.

I received an email from a real estate company for a part time-work at home employee. That would be perfect for me. Well, actually, I applied for the position and then I received the email. The email asked for me to come by for a quick no right/wrong profile test. I hope the computer enjoyed my humor. If they like me, I'll be called in for an interview.

I, also, just applied for another HVAC company. I think I have applied for this position before. But, who knows, like I said, I’ve applied for over 50 jobs since September. I have the experience, please scroll down my resume. I know, it was a long time ago, but seriously, I do remember how to schedule appointments.

Thank you again :)