Starting this as a FB post but...

I started typing this as a Facebook post but I realized it was too long for that.  I haven't blogged in YEARS but it's always been something that I love to do.  I'm glad that my blog wasn't shutdown. I see that my formatting and everything is gone though.  I will have to work on that.

I just got home from working out of town (meeting with my customers).  I had a really good time, relaxed a little, ate a lot of good food, and learned so much.  This may not seem like a big deal for a frequent world traveler but for this girl from Woodruff, it is.  

Carpet Capital of the World

Anyone that has been close to me the last few years know what the struggle has been for me in the job department.  My career path has taken so many directions. I started at Bi-lo at 16 and almost immediately was made a bookkeeper.  After that, I worked at Burger King for 2 years. This is where I really learned how to work hard and be a grown-up under the guidance of the best management.  I then became a CNA working with Alzheimers' patients.  I did this for more than 10 years and this is where my heart will always want to be. Unfortunately, the pay CNAs receive is not enough for a person to live on.  In 2008, a man named Larry Sutton gave me a chance in the manufacturing industry (QC lab) with hardly any experience.   I spent almost 10 years with coworkers who will always be family.  I had to move on mainly because I didn't receive opportunities to advance myself professionally.   I went to work for a payday lending company and it was the worst experience I've had in a job.  I won't say much about this place because I don't want to offend the ones that I actually count as friends that still work there. Let's just say, if you are efficient and are older than 30/younger than 60 or have kids,  the BOLA department is not for you. Every single day made me want to go live in a homeless shelter. I actually considered applying at McD's to get out of there. I applied for every job in the state that was posted on Indeed. Finally, my current company called me for an interview and offered me a position better than the one I applied for. I LOVE going to work every single day.  I feel valued and appreciated. I have been promoted and everyday my manager tells me I do a great job.  I feel so much pride and excitement about my career path and I can't wait to see what the future holds!  

If you're feeling frustrated about your current life or job situation, just hang in there, work hard and eventually someone will give you a chance to SHINE. 

Ok Body...

...I get it.  You're 30 now.  The days of binging on tacos and milkshakes are over.  They should have been over after childbirth but I'm so hard headed.  Turning down a nice rare ribeye steak is next to impossible.  Ice cream and cupcakes are a bad addiction.  I imagine that this is kinda how a drug addict may feel about drugs.

After spending this weekend doubled over in pain from eating hot wings from Buffalo's and a thick chocolate shake from Cookout at 2 am, I think I have finally learned my lesson.  Did you know you could suffer from constipation and diarrhea at the same time?  (lol)

Not to mention, my knees hurt, my back aches, and I'm completely unhappy with my appearance. 

I'm going to start treating you better.  I promise.

Thanksgiving

Things I'm Thankful For (in no particular order)

1. God
2. Cameron and Cassidy
3. My mom
4. My Nanny and Papa
5. Family that is there for me
6. Great friends that love me unconditionally
7. A decent job with coworkers I love
8. My new car and my tough little pumpkin car with a busted lip
9. Triple load washers
10. Hot water heaters
11. Central heat even though it runs my power bill to $400
12. Online shopping and Fedex
13. Restaurants and the employees who are going to feed me tomorrow instead of being with their families
14. My teddy bear
15. Chapstick
16. True Crime Library online and Criminal Minds
17. Reuseable water bottles
18. My electric blanket
19. Prozac
20. My piggies
22. Mobile banking
23. Strawberry salads
24. Biore face strips
25. My hair straightener
26. My Crockpots are a life saver!
27. After-school programs that save me from homework
28. The gym
29. Everyone and everything in my past that made me who I am.
30. Teachers
31. Android phones

This might be a running list.

I know I haven't blogged in forever but I really enjoy it! This is me "baby stepping" back into it! Happy Thanksgiving!

I just noticed that the last post I started was a Thanksgiving post from 2011. I never even posted it! Time is flying by!

Long Time, No Blog

Wow! It's been a long time since I have entered a blog. My apologies.

It's been a rough couple weeks, months, whatever. I can't figure out if it's just stress that gets me down or if I have a real emotional problem. Maybe I just have a major problem dealing with stress. It's hard when you really don't have time to talk to anyone about what's going on..and if you did, most people have no clue what you're going through anyway.

That's is what I used to like about Myspace or Facebook, it gave me an opportunity to vent. But lately, every time anyone says anything online, people get offended or smart or defensive. Or they talk about how you shouldn't air your business out in public. I kinda miss the days when I could write 120 letters and add a smiley emoticon to display my mood.

I miss Myspace, even though it was more childish. It's harder to be yourself on Facebook. Everyone is FAKE on Facebook...even me. I think I'm going to sign back on my Myspace just so I can let nobody know how my days go because at least I know nobody is going to even read it. :)

Facebook Vs Google-Apocalypse

I wanted to share a funny conversation a friend and me had today on instant messenger. I won't say who the friend is because that friend may not like it that I posted this. It is humorous to me, though. By the way, I corrected most of the grammar and misspellings. Haha

Funny Facebook Convo:
o Me: Google is starting to creep me out, it’s like it knows too much.
o Friend: and Facebook doesn’t?
o Me: If the government takes it over, they will have all of our personal info, lol.
o Me: FB knows what I tell it, Google tricks me.
o Friend: No, it doesn't. Facebook keeps track of who you IM, who you talk to, who you post replies to, and then data mines that to build trends from it.
o Me: Well, they are both evil then.
o Me: I still have a bad feeling about Google. Wait and see what I tell you.
o Friend: I assure you I'd rather have Google, who is openly traded, than a privately held company.
o Me: I’m too dumb to know what any of that means. Lol.
o Friend: Just think about all the information that is on Facebook; who you talk to, what pages you like, who you've replied to, all your statuses, all your pictures and tagged people and who those people are and what they are into. It's super easy to build a profile for people on here.
o Me: I’m gonna read Revelations and see if Facebook is mentioned. LMAO.
o Friend: Yeah, let me know if Google is in there too.
o Me: haha, I wonder if Jesus will check into his Facebook when he comes back.
o Friend: You know he will. He has to friend a crap load of people so they know he’s back.
o Me: I better add him as a friend then!!!!
o Me: So, when the whole world is Jesus’ friend, that’s when he will come back?
o Friend: No, just when the whole world has a chance to friend him.
o Me: *Looks up Jesus’ Facebook page*
o Me: He only has 123,000 friends. Lol.
o Friend: Only if you are a Jehovah ’s Witness.
o Me: I hope I am not getting to know the wrong Jesus!!!
o Friend: Lol. What’s your religion?
o Me: Christianity
o Friend: Wow, that’s broad. You should be fine.


Here is the link to Jesus' Facebook page, you better friend him just in case!! :)
Jesus's FB Page

A Day at the Fair

Yesterday was the opening of the Upper SC State Fair. I was fortunate enough to be off work so I decided to take my kids. I didn't let them know where they were going, I wanted to surprise them with a reward for doing so well the first weeks of school.

The whole way there, Cameron was commenting on where we were going. We would go so far and he would say, "Oh, I know we are going skating." Then, "Oh, I know we are going bowling." Then, "Oh, I know we are going to Frankie's Fun Park." He FINALLY guessed it somewhere at the end of the drive, but finally learned to stop using the "I KNOW.." line. "MAYBE we are going to the fair." Gotta love him, he knows absolutely everything.

We go in and start on the kiddie ride section. Cameron is a pretty good sport, riding with Cassidy on all the baby rides.

Finally, we get to the huge Ring of Fire. I wasn't riding any rides so Cameron got on it by himself. I was terrified for him. I can't believe my little baby didn't even flinch....he got right in line and right on the coaster and buckled himself in. I was freaking out!!

Well, as Cameron's ride come to an end, Cassidy starts screaming. She was stung by a bee. So, we had to rush around to find a paramedic. The paramedic tried to get the stinger out for a few minutes then told me he couldn't do it (what??) and that maybe I could find tweezers when I got home. Hey, buddy, she's screaming, we are 1 hour away from home, and have only been at the fair for 15 minutes. He gives her some ice and we walk out. I finally got it out...I had to use some very unsophisticated measures to do it. That put her in a bad mood.

We go sit down in front of the magic show and Cassidy gets picked to go up on stage and do a trick. She is so cute on stage and completely captivates her audience. She may be made for show biz. I made the best video of her act and accidentally deleted it. So, that basically ruined my mood.

Finally, everyone cheered back up. We had a blast. Cameron talked Cassidy into riding the equivalent of Drop Zone & she came close to a nervous breakdown. We ate funnel cake and cotton candy. Cameron almost gave fellow fair-goers a nervous breakdown when he climbed to the top of the wall over the safety belt on the Zero Gravity ride. Cassidy smacked her face 3 times on the mirrors inside the House of Mirrors. Every adventure I have is always packed full of drama and surprises.

Oh, and I got mentioned in the Greenville News!
Hometown celebrity status, baby!

Oh, one more thing. I got pulled over on the way home for drunk driving....but I wasn't really drinking so he let me go. Crazy times.

There Is A Reason For Everything, Except Giving Up!

In the 7th grade, I had a childish feud with a girl a year older than me. It was over a boyfriend. You know when you are in middle school, everything seems so serious. You think you are grown-up. I don't know exactly what happened to make us argue. I do know there was several mean letters exchanged back and forth.

My whole life, anytime I would think of this person, I would think mean thoughts. I never stopped disliking her. I never came across her again so everything I knew about her, I knew from middle and high school.

Then came the Facebook age. I don't remember if she friended me or I friended her. I do remember that I friended her so I could be nosy. That's all Facebook is about anyways. Well, it turns out I actually liked her! She seemed to have a lot in common with me. I enjoyed her statuses and her picture updates. I no longer disliked her. I really really liked her! It's amazing how childhood rivalries can follow you to adulthood.

Recently, I found out that my friend has been diagnosed with Stage 4 metastatic breast cancer. It really breaks my heart. It also makes me feel a bit guilty for ever having a bad thought about her, even though we were kids. It amazes me her strength and her attitude. She doesn't feel sorry for herself. She is an amazing mother to her 2 kids. She really is my hero.

She had surgery on her legs recently due to the cancer. She has trouble getting up and down her stairs at home. Her husband started a page to raise money to purchase a chair lift for her. I can't imagine being trapped in the downstairs of my house...not being able to sleep in the bed with my husband or help my kids to bed. I want to post a link to her page in hopes that everyone will find it in their heart to help her....even five bucks will help. I guarantee that she will appreciate every cent!

Here is the site, I can't figure out how to post a link: www.helpliza.webstarts.com

My Haters Are My Motivators!

Hating is the way overused street word for jealousy. I really don't like to use the word "hater" in a regular conversation. I think it is a stupid word in general. Most of the people who use it are nobody worth "hating" on. I mean, what is there to "hate" about someone who lives off of their mama, has many missing teeth, has 4 or more baby daddies, etc? Those are the type of people who use that word in a serious sentence. REALLY?

Okay, so if you repeatedly use the word in seriousness or you REALLY believe everyone is hating on you, then you may be offended by this post. You may even now have more of a reason to think I am hating on you. Your haters are making you famous, right? Sorry, but just because someone talks about you, doesn't mean they are haters. It means you say or do stupid things that make people talk about you. (P.S. Everyone is "famous" in a small town like Woodruff.)

The people worth hating on, are the ones who would never use the word hater. They would just keep doing what they do that makes you hate them, and are probably not even focused enough on you to even notice that you are hating on them. If I'm going to hate on (be jealous of) someone, trust me, it's going to be directed toward someone doing better in life than me. I tend to hate on stay at home moms or college graduates. It doesn't mean I don't like you, it means I am jealous that you have those things going on and I don't. It's possible that those people "hate on" me for different things. It doesn't matter to me. We all have things we wish we could change about our lives. I don't care or even want to know that people are jealous of me. Walk on my side of this green grass for 24 hours and your perception of me would change. That goes for anyone.

Lately, I have come across a good bit of haters in my life. And these aren't your normal everyday haters, these are people who really can't stand to see someone doing better than them. It's like it really keeps them up at night. They will turn to manipulation and trash talking to bring you down. It is really important that you figure these people out fast before they do any damage. The worst ones are the ones who masquerade as your friend. Then they go out of their way to expose your flaws to others, all the while still acting as a friend. My goal as of right now, is to eliminate any of these false friends from my life. I no longer want or need to be associated with people who want me to fail. I do thank you, haters, for the time that you have given me your undivided attention!

From now on, if I don't particularly like you, I am not going to pretend like I do. I am going to be polite and respectful to you but I am not going to engage in anything beyond small talk with you. I am tired of my words being exaggerated or twisted or added to and then repeated to others. There is no way that can happen if I don't even talk to you. So, don't come to me and talk to me about anyone else and try to suck me in your hating game of bringing others down. I have a limited amount of friends and they know who they are. Other than those select people, I will no longer be conversating with anyone.

I hope this doesn't come off as a HATEful post, but sometimes it's the best way to be. The more people that hate me, the less I have to please!!!

My Lone Star Baby

My youngest brother, his girlfriend, and their ADORABLE little baby boy, Shawn Avery, are here from Texas. It was exactly 7 months ago when I was in Texas waiting to see him after he was born. We have so much to catch up on! I have ten days to find everything out from him...first I have to teach him to talk though. :) I love my nephew!

The day he was born (January 4th, 2011):

I LOVE ALL OF MY BABIES
(Cameron, Kansas, Cassidy, Emma, and Shawn Avery)!!!!

It's a Boy!!!

We have a new member of our family. His name is Chewy and he is a miniature Dachshund. He is the sweetest little thing!!