One down, two to go!

Today was the last day to do our biggest paper route. Yeah!!! We still have to "keep an eye on him" until Wednesday when my DM gets back. The 2nd biggest route we are hoping will done tomorrow. The new girl will be doing it on her own Monday, but again, we will have to help if it is needed. The 3rd route is a small route. We might have to do it until the 14th yet. I know the DM is trying to fill it. It won't be that big of deal to fill as it is small. It also isn't that bad to deliver because it is small. It is so exciting to be done! We are relieved. Money will be tight and we will have to watch it but it will be much better for our family and for our health. I am sure the Lord will bless. Plus we can do more for Him.

JM's car is running so great! He is very happy with it and he feels good about it. I am glad it finally all worked out. God took care of it all! I knew He would, but it was so hard waiting for Him to do it. Know what I mean?

Oh! I got some good deals today at Acme! They had some items on sale and I had some good coupons. I had a coupon for a free Cascade Crystal Clear dishwasher rinse agent. It was $3.69! I got a bottle of Cascade gel dishwasher soap for 59 cents after a $2 off coupon. It wasn't the large bottle, but still, for 59 cents you can't beat it. Then I had a coupon for $1.50 off Dawn Direct Foam (hand) dish washing soap. It was $2.89, so I got it for $1.39. I thought those were pretty good deals! I was happy. I love going to Acme, handing them the savings card, then watching the minus signs for the items on sale. I saved a total of $41 today between coupons and sale items. I was pretty proud of myself. ;-) Of course it was the Lord that put it all in place. He is so good!

We are going to start school Sept. 8th. I have all my books now, turned in my paperwork, and just have to start. We are going to take a break yet this week and then start on the 8th. I honestly thought of waiting until after Seth got back from TX, but I don't want to wait that long. He will just have to work a little harder that week to finish. Or he can take some of it with him if he gets board. Yeah, right! :-) That won't happen. He is excited about the indoor pool and the gym at the hotel. He has never been on an airplane before and that is exciting to him too.

I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday weekend! Get some rest and enjoy your family!

'Til next time...

We got the title!!! YES!

I was actually handed the title to JM's car today. After over 2 months of trying to get this title and car and what not... it is all good. The car is running great, it passed e-check, and it has 3o day tags on it for now. I can get the regular tags at any time. JM is thrilled. I am so happy for him. What a long journey that was!

Paper route update... It looks like we will have to do the route a little longer. The biggest route will be taken over on Monday. The middle route on Wednesday. The little one... well hopefully soon. I really wanted to start school Monday the 8th, but if we are still doing the papers, I won't. We need to be done with the route and focus on school. JB and I both agree on that. I will know more Wednesday. I am bummed as I really wanted to be done on Sunday and was looking forward to hanging out in bed all day Labor Day, but it won't happen. Boo hoo!! That is okay. At least we don't have to worry about the big route. Makes it a little easier.

JM bought Seth a ticket so he can go to TX too. Seth is excited to have a "vacation". I am glad JB is able to get away for a few days. It has been a rough year for us and it will be good for him to get away. I just wish I could go too. Not going to happen though. Maybe next time.

Thanks for praying about the car. I am glad the Lord finally worked it out. I hope we learned the lesson we needed to or whatever it was that needed done.

'Til next time...

The car is home!!!

JB and I picked up JM's car. We didn't have to pay the deductible, Dale paid it all. I think that was pretty big of him. I think he should as much as he has put us through. STILL don't have the title. I was told tomorrow it will be hand delivered. Yeah, sure. We will see. Anyone wanna place bets? J/K. JB did say it is running really well and they did find another valve that was broken so hopefully it will pass e-check.

I'll let you know what happens with the title.

'Til next time...

Getting closer and car update...

Well, it is Tuesday. That means only 5 more days of the papers. I am thrilled! To be normal again is such an awesome thought. To be even more broke is a little scary though. LOL It is a sacrifice I am willing to make. We will make it work with the Lord's help. Henry, the district manager, asked us to continue working after the first to help out the new people. Ummmmm NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That was probably a little much, huh? ;-) I told him maybe we could work something out. JB does not want to and I don't either. Tomorrow one guy is to come in and train with us. JB will take him and also tell Henry no, we won't help. Henry is also going on vacation next week. That is why he wants us to help. We will see what happens.

JM's car is done. Dale called me yesterday (Monday) morning and said I could pick it up this morning (Tuesday). I asked him if he had the title because I can't do anything without the title. They won't give me a tag and the ones on it are expired. He said "oh yes! I will bring them to you". Well, he then calls me yesterday afternoon and tells me that he will stop by the mechanic's where the car is and put on a dealer plate so we can drive it. He will then get the title to me some time Tuesday. I am still not clear when. I told him that he could just leave it with the car. That would be fine. I don't know if he will or not. I will not all the way to Hartville until I know there are plates on it. I am not going to waste my gas, that is for sure. I don't know if I can pick it up today or not because I don't have anyone to help me anyway. JM and JB are both working. Then I have to run a meal to someone at 5 and the place closes at 5:00. So it will have to wait until the morning I guess. I will probably call the mechanic and let him know I will be there tomorrow early. I think he opens at 8:00 in the morning.

JM is thinking of taking Seth to TX too. Seth is excited at the thought of going. That will leave Joshua and I home again. That is okay. It will be nice and quiet! Now you know who the loud ones are. Ha ha!!! If he is going to take him, he needs to get his ticket because the rates will go up or the plane might fill up soon.

It was a quiet weekend and it was nice. Got my grocery shopping done and we did some cleaning. I am working on laundry again. Never ending process it seems.

'Til next time...

Only 9 more days!

Henry, our district manager, told us that he thinks he has our routes covered and our last day will be Aug. 31st. We are all praying that it works out. We are so done with it. It is sad that something like this brings us so much excitement.

Really not much else to report. JB has been very busy at work and doesn't have much time to even eat lunch. Tonight JB and Seth are camping with the Boy Scouts. It is a "family" camp-out, but I am not going. Someone has to do the papers and JB is the Scoutmaster so guess who gets to stay home. :-) It is okay. I rather sleep a few hours in my bed than all night in a tent.

I ordered the rest of our school books. I am not going to start until after Labor Day and after the papers are done. I really don't have the mind set to start yet anyway. With co-op it will be a little easier for me when it comes to Seth, but Joshua will have my full attention. A lot of Seth's stuff will be done through co-op and he will have to "answer" to them on his work. I like that. Gets him ready for college, if he chooses to go that route. He could graduate at 16, but JB doesn't like that idea. I say go for it. Get school done and over with, start working, and learn to be a man. How sad of a mother am I? ha ha! Seth likes the idea of graduating at 16. He would be almost 17. Anyway... School won't be starting until September here. Probably around the 8th. Co-op starts on the 12th. Gives us a week to get a head start on my stuff before starting on co-op work.

JB and JM are taking a trip to TX next month. They are going to see JM's special friend. I have met her but JB hasn't. Plus JB gets a vacation. It will be nice for him to have a few days off to just relax and also nice for JB and JM to have some time together. I think JB is really looking forward to the trip. JM is paying for it. JB has to go because JM isn't 18 yet and can't rent motels and cars and such. They are flying instead of driving this time. It will save time but a little more expensive with plane tickets. They got a fairly good rate on the tickets though. Just have to make sure they take a carry-on only and nothing else. It is extra to take luggage now.

I was thinking of dying my hair. I have never done that before. I have had perms but have never dyed it. I am thinking like a reddish color. What do you all think? Would it look bad? Hard for me to picture right now. I would have to find the right tint before I would do it. I doubt I do. I will chicken out! I am such a chicken!

It has been a basically quiet week. Kind of nice for a change. I like it!

'Til next time...

Happy Birthday to me!

Actually it was Sunday the 17th. I am now 38 years old. Two more years until the big 4-0! Yikes! That is okay. We all have to get there eventually. One step closer to meeting the Lord, right? ;-) Anyway, we went to church and the SS and service was really good. Then we went to get chicken and jojo's from Talamos on Kenmore BLVD. I love their garlic dip! YUMMY! After dinner I took a nap. A nice long nap. JB went to get Dairy Queen for me and I basically had a relaxing day. Had a few phone calls for my birthday. It was a nice day.

We did turn in our notice for the routes! I CANNOT wait! We gave the date of Sept. 14, but we might be able to quit on Aug. 31. I am really hoping we can. If Henry (the district manager) can find someone to fill the routes then he will. I said the sooner the better! Pray that it is sooner. It is really getting harder and harder to do the routes because I know the time to end is near. If you ever had a job you hated and knew it was almost over, you know what I mean.

JB (hubby) called about JM's car. It needs a new motor and the mechanic was waiting to hear from Dale to make sure it was okay. So JB called back Dale and talked to Bobby. He told Bobby that mechanic was waiting to hear from Dale. He expected Dale to call mechanic today to give the okay and have it done. It will cost us $200 for out deductible, but we won't pay it until the title is given to us. I don't think we should pay the $200 myself, but if it gets the job done, I will do it. I just want JM to have his car and move on from this mess. Once I have the car and all is well, I am going to post the name of this place my friends know not to buy from this place. Is that wrong? I don't know. Maybe it is. If the Lord tells me not to, I won't.

JB and I went to a place called Papa Gyro's in Canton. It was a long drive but was it good! Oh yummy! Wasn't too badly priced and got a lot of food.

It was a pretty uneventful weekend. I like those kind of weekends. I hope everyone had a great weekend and hope to read all about it!

'Til next time...

Quitting the paper routes!!

We have already made up our mind to quit the routes. I am so thrilled. I have to wait until the district manager comes to work tomorrow morning to tell him. We were going to have our last day be Sept. 30. Well, not anymore. This morning when I went in I found out that the Akron Beacon Journal and the Plain Dealer are merging. So on September 15 they plan on the ABJ carriers to deliver the Plain Dealer as well. Umm, NO! I have enough papers and have a hard enough time getting them done now. I am not going to do it. My last day now will be Sept. 14! It is a Sunday and the last day before I have to start delivering the Plain Dealer. I am so thrilled and cannot wait!! I cannot wait to sleep a normal night and have a normal life again. Mostly I will be glad to not fall asleep in church from being so tired. You may wonder how anyone can fall asleep in church, but trust me when you get up at 2:30 in the morning, work for about 4 1/2 to 5 hours then go to church, you are tired. Sitting in one spot for any length of time, you can easily fall asleep. I don't care where it is.

I didn't get my shopping done yesterday but I did get some laundry done. I am hoping to go to the library and the grocery store today, then continue with laundry. There isn't a ton of laundry or anything but it adds up fast with 5 people.

Have a good day!

'Til next time...

Productive weekend

The sale went okay. My mom and niece did well. JM made more than I did but at least we did get rid of some things. I was able to get away for a few days. That was nice too though I missed my hubby and my soft bed. Mom's spare bed is a little hard. I slept okay though.

JM is going to be a manager at the pizza place he works at. He started his first management class this weekend. He is pretty excited about it. His boss told my hubby that JM has what it takes to be a businessman. He is really impressed with JM.

We have decided to quit the paper route. We are really not making any money on it with the gas and the taxes. We are tired physically and mentally. It is a good decision. We have to give 30 days notice though, so it will be probably the end of September before we did. Also, there goes the Carrier of the Year award. Oh well. I just feel bad for my customers. I am hoping they will get a good carrier. A lot of them are older.

We had a family meeting yesterday afternoon. It was very productive. I am glad we had it. The boys got a better understanding of what JB and I have been dealing with and we got their feelings on some things that are going to happen around here. We have some changes coming up and it will be difficult for all of us, but the Lord will see us through.

Today I am going to see my friend Sara and we are going to talk about school stuff and other things. Her kids are coming to my house to watch a movie with my kids. We are hoping to actually have an adult conversation without interruptions. She has younger children. Those that have small kids know how hard it is to have a conversation with small ones around. Gee, even having older ones can be a problem at times. :-)

I need to get a grocery list ready and go shopping today too. I am hoping to do that anyway. I haven't seen if JB took my van today or not. I have to run to the library too. I have things on hold that need picked up. Not sure how much cleaning will get done today, but it is basically just laundry. The boys and I cleaned up Saturday. It is amazing how much can get done when you set your mind too it. Is it spotless? NO! It never will be either. I gave up on spotless years ago when the boys came along. It wasn't bad with one, but as the other two came along, my priorities became clear. They are more important than a spotless house.

Thanks for listening!

'Til next time...

Busy days ahead.

Today Seth and I got ready for the sale. We found some odds and ends and some big things to put in the sale. Some of it was in the basement and we cleaned it all up. I didn't have as much stuff as I thought. I could get rid of more, but I do want some stuff. ;-)

It is warm out tonight. JB and I took a walk after dinner. We walked about 20 or so minutes and talked. It was really nice. I am hoping to make a habit out of it but not sure how much he will be willing. He works all day on his feet so I know he is tired. It is nice to have some time just the two of us.

We are looking into quitting the paper route. I REALLY hope it works out. Pray that it does for us. I don't know what I will do with a good nights sleep every night! I am excited at the thought but am not going to get too excited. Just in case all doesn't work out. It will be some changes for us to and sacrifices, but it will be worth it.

Tomorrow I will be doing a lot of running. I have to collect from two of my customers, go to the library, and one other thing that I cannot remember at this moment! OH NO! I hope I remember tomorrow. They are repaving our street so it is a mess right now. I just hope I can get back home or even leave for that matter.

No news on the car yet. I am going to let it go for this week, then give them a call Monday. I have a feeling I still won't know anything at that point. No title yet. I haven't pushed for it. I am just tired of it all. It is really frustrating.

I am praying Amy's surgery went well. Pray for her health and a speedy recovery.

'Til next time...

Yippee! It is Friday!

That means JB will be home tomorrow! They have had a lot of fun at camp but I know JB is ready to come home. Seth is ready for a real shower. He earned his swimming merit badge and I think his climbing merit badge. He almost has his camping merit badge too. I think he almost has his Life rank. Yeah! After that is Eagle. He is pretty excited about it.

Joshua has done a great job on the paper route this week. I was worried about this morning because we have extra customers. We got it done! I kind of bribed him. I told him if he folded and delivered I would take him to Sheetz for a sandwich and cheese fries. After we started delivering I told him he was doing a great job and upped it to add in a shake. He was thrilled and really did great. He did slow down towards the end. We had really rushed and both of us were getting tired. We finished and I took him for his treats.

Next week I have to baby-sit for a friend on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Then on Thursday and Friday I am going to my sister's house for a yard sale. She lives on this busy road and has a big yard with a barn. When we have sales there we always do great. I have started getting ready for the sale. When I go I am taking Joshua with me. He and my niece are going to Cedar Point for the day. He doesn't know it yet. It is a surprise for working so hard this week and a few weeks ago when Seth was at camp. He will be thrilled!

Today I have been cleaning. I didn't do much cleaning this week with JB gone. With not many here it doesn't get too messy. I put down this powdery stuff on the carpet. You are supposed to leave it on for 15 min. So I went to the kitchen and loaded the dishwasher while I waited for that. It timed out pretty good. The house smells fresher. :-) I am waiting for the dining room to finish so I can vacuum it. I waited too long to vacuum because there was/is a lot of dog hair. Ginger really sheds! I haven't vacuumed all week. Like I said, I didn't do much. LOL

Won't know anything on the Toyota until next week. I hope it doesn't take too long. They are working on our roads this next week so there is one less car to worry about. We have to find other places to park. I don't know where that is going to be!

I guess I better get back to work.

'Til next time...