We took the kids to the mall today so Calista could talk to Santa.  Ace and Nate weren’t keen on sitting with him, so Santa got down on the floor and let them sit on a little sled for the picture.  And Nate did sit with Santa after a bit.  It was so cute.  Santa is the best!  And if you look closely, you’ll see he likes Starbucks like a true Pacific Northwester.  ;)

Shh. Shh. Shh. Shh. Do you hear that? It’s the winds of change.  (Yes, that’s a totally cheesy line from Monsters Inc, but I don’t care.)  What started out with the potential to be a really bad day turned out to be a pretty good one after all.

The bad part was that I went into the garage to grab a rice milk and as I bent down to pick it up, I bashed my mouth on the corner of the recycle bin and split my lip.  I started bleeding and man did it hurt!  My gums are bruised, my lip is split, and I had some skin hanging down the inside of my upper lip.  I said “had” because as I was trying to bite it off, it got caught between two of my teeth and RIPPED off.  AUGH!  I shudder just thinking about the pain… Read the rest of this entry »

I have lots to post about tonight!

I will start with Baby Boot Camp.  I’ve had some comments from readers who are thinking of doing the same, and let me tell you, it was worth it!  With the exception of one night, the boys have slept through the night every night since I did it!  Sweet bliss!  They still put up a good show when we put them in their cribs, but I’ve noticed once the door is shut, they know it’s time as they are quiet and go to bed like good little monsters.  I don’t know why I didn’t put them through boot camp sooner…  :)

Next is the December 7th accident.  We got the estimate on the Pacifica, and it is around $4,600!  I didn’t think it was that bad, but I guess it is.  Luckily, my insurance is good and they’ve already sent the check for repairs and we’ll take it to the shop Monday.  They’ve also already cut a check for new car seats — again! — and will arrange for a rental.  Too bad it’s going to take a good 2 weeks for the vehicle to be repaired, and I wonder if Christmas is going to slow it down even more?  I hope not! Read the rest of this entry »

The accident/insurance saga continues…  Today, the at-fault party’s agent from the October 22nd accident called me and left a message saying that he needed to get a recorded statement from me.  One and a half months after the fact!  What the heck is this guy doing?!  Later, I got a message from him letting me know he’d be out of the office the rest of the week.  I didn’t give him a statement and tomorrow, I plan to contact his supervisor and raise hell.  This is just ridiculous.

I called a lawyer for a consult and he talked to me, then wished me luck.  Apparently, this isn’t worth his time/energy.  I’m not sure.  Now I am feeling hesitant to call another lawyer.  It’s not like there’s big bucks to be made here, but I need help getting my money back from this stupid insurance company, and will probably need help with the subsequent accident.  What a mess. Read the rest of this entry »

Today, the insurance company for the lady who hit me on October 22nd called and tried to tell me that they feel I was equally at fault for the accident because I could had been “more attentive” and “traveling at a safer speed.”  I laughed out loud when he told me that.  He even went on to ASK me what the speed limit was and how fast I was going.  How can you determine my speed was unsafe if you don’t even know what my speed was?!  Ridiculous!!

After a good argument with the insurance agent, he said he would have to review the case with his manager and would call me back by the end of the day.  And, of course, he did not call me back.  So I just finished up a nice little fax for him with all of the reimbursements they owe me as of right now (which is $1,199.40) and kindly let them know I will gladly get a lawyer and also go for lost time and wages if they can’t confirm these reimbursements and give me a date of check issue right away. Read the rest of this entry »

If there’s one thing I cannot say about my life, it would be that it’s boring.  My life is anything from boring.  Or ordinary, for that matter.  Things just seem to happen to me.  Sometimes good, sometimes bad, but often unbelievable.

Yesterday, my brand new Pacifica (you know, the one I got on October 31 after my van was totaled?) was hit by an 18-wheeler.  Yes, an 18-wheeler.  Un-freaking-believable!!!

We had been out and about after dropping Calista off with our friends, T and G, to go Christmas tree hunting.  Skip got a haircut, and then we took the boys shopping.  There was a scary free Santa at Wal-Mart that the boys met.  They screamed when we put them on his lap.  Oops.  Afterwards, we met up with Calista again and decided to stop by McDonald’s on the way home. Read the rest of this entry »