You Mess With The Best...

After 14 years of marriage, I've learned that in order to keep things interesting around here, I've got to mess with Patrick just a little bit. My skills have gotten pretty good over the years so much so that I've gotten him to believe he was 3 years older than he really was. THAT was funny!

So my current mess has to do with this:



I think I've mentioned before that Patrick is very particular about the way a new roll gets put back on the holder. He uses it like once a day...why would it be that big of a deal? I use it like 20 times a day and I don't care!

Anyway...

As tempting as it is to purposely put the roll on the opposite way he likes, I've decided that it's no fun anymore because he actually gets mad about it. So to spare angry feelings I don't do that anymore.

So, the other day I was trying to use the restroom in peace but as many of you mothers know, if it's not your kids barging in on you, it's your man. The toilet paper had run out and I had grabbed a new roll as I sat down. I hadn't had the chance to put the roll back on before Patrick made some comment about me NEVER putting the roll of toilet paper on the holder. Apparently he doesn't realize that with four potty trained girls in the house, we go through almost a roll a day and 99% of the time, the toilet paper is hung properly to his specifications on the holder.

I've learned over the years to pick and choose my battles and have gotten really good at biting my tongue, but duuuuuuuude....he caught me at a bad time. So, I "nicely" told him that I do put the roll on the holder almost daily and that from now on, I will NOT do it so that he can see how often I DO do it.

If you decide to come visit us, don't be surprised to see the roll of toilet paper off the holder because every time Patrick puts the roll on the holder...I take it off.

You mess with the best...well, you know the rest!

First Car

WHAT WAS THE MAKE, MODEL, AND YEAR OF YOUR FIRST CAR?



When I was 18 years old, I received some money from a car accident settlement and bought my very own car. It was a 1988 Brown Dodge Shadow and I paid $2700 for it. For the most part, it was a good little car. The previous owner was an older man and he took pretty good care of it. It did have a few quirks about it though. One day in the blazing 110 degree weather, I was heading over to a friends house for a lunch date. I got into the car and wanted to roll the window down. It had electric windows and when I pushed the button to roll the window down, it didn't roll down. I was dying. I can't remember 100% but I don't think the air conditioner worked in the car because I drove over to my friends house dying of heat! I quickly realized that after I started my car, if I turned the key back just a tiny bit, the window's would roll down. I was sure glad to have figured that out as summer's are dang hot where I live!

I also remember that my very first debt was because of this car. It had a steering shaft problem. I took it to a service center only to find out that it would take a week to fix and I believe the cost would be $1200 to fix. I didn't have the money, but I had a credit card, and that my friends, is where I lost my financial way...(just want to throw out there that we are currently debt free and it is so liberating...you should try it!)

That little car served me well. I had it when Patrick and I got married. Since Patrick had only a motorcycle at the time, my car became our car. When we moved out to Utah, we packed that little car up with all my stuff (Patrick had already been living in Utah), and drove it across the dessert to the Great Salt Lake area.







Shortly after being married, we realized that we needed another car. One car just wasn't cutting it. So we headed to the local car dealership, naive as brand new babies. We bought a car but because neither of us had any sense or negotiating skills, we litterally got screwed! I'm talking we bought a car that was 3 years old and when everything was all said and done, we paid $23,000 for it. That would have been ok if it were a BMW or even a Honda Civic, but we paid that much money for a Plymouth Neon...A PLYMOUTH NEON!!! Let's just say that we both learned our lesson. So, the Neon became my car and the Shadow became Patrick's car.

During the second year of our marriage, Patrick moved out to Los Angeles to work and train in the mortgage business. I stayed out in Utah as I had a job (actually 2 jobs. He drove the Shadow from Salt Lake to LA. Of course the Shadow didn't make it and somewhere in Nevada, the timing belt broke and the car had to be towed and fixed at the nearest service center.



During that summer (1998), Patrick had decided to surprise me one night in the wee hours by driving that Shadow from LA to Utah to see me, He made it there and back just fine...I surprised him on the phone about 4 weeks later with the news that he was going to be a dad.

In November of 1998, I quit one of my jobs and flew down to LA to pick my man up for good. We then drove the Shadow up to Sacramento to visit my family for Thanksgiving. Then we headed back to Utah...we put a lot of miles on that car. Shortly after returning to Utah, we realized that it was time to sell the Shadow. We found a young kid who bought it for $600...and we washed our hands of it...or so we thought.

About a year after selling that car, we got a letter from the DMV asking us for proof of insurance for it because it was involved in a crash that totaled it. I started to freak out as I didn't want to be responsible for an accident that we weren't involved in. Apparantly, the kid who bought the car never transferred ownership and since it was the first time that we had sold a car, we didn't know that we needed to send something off to the DMV clearing us from such happenings. It all worked out in the end, but it was kind of sad knowing that the little brown Dodge Shadow had met its doom...He was a good little car...I will never forget him.

Dear Diet Pepsi...

Dear Diet Pepsi,

First off, I love you. There is not a day that goes by that I don't think of you. You and I have been through a lot together and I don't think you even know how much I light up every time I see you. You've always been by my side, whether or not I've had a headache, a bubbly craving, a sweet tooth, or even when a thirst needed quenching. And for that...I love you.

Unfortunately, there comes a time when one realizes that addictions are not healthy and even hindering to the progress one is trying to make. I've now realized that you aren't the right one for me anymore. It's not you - it's me. I'm the one who has changed. As hard as it is for you to hear this news, please know that it hurts me ten times more. You were everything to me, but it is time for us to part ways. Please don't be sad.

I've seen you in the arms of others so I know you have many admirers, I won't judge you. Perhaps this break up won't affect you the way it will me. I will be fine though. I've actually started a new relationship with water. We are like BFF's now.

I will miss you. I know you will be calling to me every time I pass by a soda fountain. Please don't be hurt if I don't give you the time of day. It's only for the good. Perhaps you will someday make your way back into my life, but for now, I have to let you go...starting tomorrow.

With much love and regret,
Rachael

Bucket List

If I were born in the era of my great-grandparents, I'd be dead in 10 years. Even though the life expectancy of my era has greatly changed since then (age 45 to 77 years), it doesn't change the fact that someday I will still die.

I recently realized that I am getting old up there in age. It's like it just hit me. I can't hang out with the newly married couple anymore...I have to hang out with people who've been married for more than 10 years and have like 5 kids or something to feel comfortable and have things in common. With this realization, I've thought that it is probably about time that I create a BUCKET LIST.

So here's the START of my spend all of Patrick's hard earned money "Things To Do Before I Die" List:

1. Go to New York and see a Broadway Show
2. Go to London and See Phantom of the Opera
3. Learn to play the piano
4. Go out of the USA and lay on a beach somewhere for a week or two or three
5. Write my personal history
6. Lose a total of 60 lbs. and keep it off (40 more to go!)
7. Write a list of 20 things I like about myself
8. Visit Forks Washington and do a Twilight tour
9. Train for and Run a 5k (post knee surgery)
10. Have a full spa day
11. Go to a psychic (strictly for fun)
12. Finish the yard remodel
13. Finish the house remodel
14. Pay for someone in line behind me
15. Read all the Harry Potter Books
16. Do one correct pull up... and then do another one
17. Buy a ragtop Mini Coup and tour the USA in it
18. Get all my family photos printed in a book
19. Take a water aerobics class
20. Keep a real live plant alive in my house for at least a year
21. Get a real bed...not just a mattress on the floor
22. Use my camera for an art project of some sort
23. Paint a wall in my house a bright color and love it
24. Interview my dad about his life and stories...get them into a book for my siblings and I.
25. Memorize my multiplication facts up to 12.
26. Get braces or Invisilign for a confident smile
27. Paint a large masterpiece on canvas and hang over my bed
28. Enter a photography contest
29. Finish a Rubix Cube
30. Go to Disneyland during a holiday season like Halloween or Christmas

First 30 are now official. cause you know, it's out in blogland now! Here's to the journey in completing the list before I kick the proverbial bucket!

CHEERS!

20 Questions

I was recently on a website that had an "About Me" section on it. I really enjoyed reading the questions and answers this person put on her site, so I decided that I would every once in a while have a post with a random question and an answer to it. Who knows, I might be using this blog to write my personal history someday...

WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE CANDY GROWING UP? WHAT IS IT NOW?

My favorite candy growing up ia no doubt, Sour Patch Kids. I remember my mom dropping my friends and I off at the mall. There was this candy store in it that would sell them by weight. I would ALWAYS go into that store and buy them. The store clerk would package them into a little white bag. I don't recall being able to buy them at the grocery store at that time so it was a special treat to go to the mall and get those candies.

I don't really have a favorite candy now...I like a lot of them. Milky Way and Snickers candy bars are my preferred chocolate, but I will have to say that Sour Patch kids still rank up there as being one of my favorites. I also like the Orange Wedge gummy candy too. I guess it really depends on what kind of mood I'm in.

While typing this, I can't help but think back to when I was a teenager, I would walk down the street to the local grocery store and buy super big dill pickles at the deli for 50 cents each. They were huge. I would buy two of them. One for the walk home and one to eat later. I often recruited friends for the walk too. I have very fond memories of those days. It hasn't been that long since I was a teenager, but I know for sure, they don't sell the big pickles at the deli anymore...instead, they prepackage them and put them with their prepackaged sandwiches. They are half the size and twice the price...what a rip off!

Kid Quote of the Week!

Carly: "I'm going to kill the bad guys."

Ethan: "Carly, that surely isn't me!"

Cleaning Tips 101

With 9.1% of the American population unemployed, you can only imagine the money saving tip articles plastered all over the internet. Imagine my surprise when I came across an article about the things the author felt were necessary in her life that she wouldn't give up because times were hard.

Some of those items and reasons included:

1. Cable TV because she lived in Oregon and it rains a lot there
2. Brand name food because it tastes better.
3. Internet because she occasionally works from home
4. Smartphone; again, for work purposes

As I tried to wrap my head around this article and how silly it was, I realized that there were some things that I would have a really hard time giving up if I had no choice. Cable TV isn't even an option here as we have not had it for over a year now and I've got to say that my kids are fine even on rainy days. This is not to say that we don't watch TV, but we have found a way to do it for only $15 a month instead of around $80. It's called Netflix. You can stream TV shows and movies on your computer, through your Blue Ray player, through a Wii gaming system, and the most popular way in our house...through an Apple TV. Of course you have to purchase these items, but you can save an enormous amount of money by doing so. You don't get to watch your shows as they air on TV, but most networks stream their current TV series online the next day. I was able to watch the entire 8 seasons of the show "24" in like 3 months. Now that's how I like to watch my TV!

This post wasn't really supposed to be about Cable TV or brand name food. I really wanted to share with you some cleaning items and tips that I have come to love because they work for me. If I had to give them up...I'd have a really hard time doing so.

So, without further ado...



CLOROX ANTIBACTERIAL WIPES:

These are my favorite. These bad boys are so versatile! I keep a tube of them in my car for after park trips, scrapes and scratch cleanings when we aren't at home, sticky hand cases, and even dirty feet happenings. They are also great for wiping the shopping cart handle down before you head into the store (especially if you have a baby sitting up front).

I also use these on a regular basis to spot clean my bathroom in between scrub downs. They are great for toilets and vanities. I've also used them on my mirrors, but have since found another product that works better (see below). I usually wipe my bathroom down once every day or every other day...helps for those unexpected visitors that show up and need to use your restroom!

Speaking of bathroom scrub downs...another one of my favorite cleaning product is:



COMET

I used this as a child and coming in at under a dollar for a bottle that lasts over a year, it's a great buy. I like to use this on the bottom of my shower and bathtub. I don't use is it every scrub down (depends on the dirt and grime that's visible). If I am not using Comet, I'm using these:



SCOTCH ERASERS (or even Mr. Clean's Magic Erasers)

Have you ever used these in your bathroom? With a little elbow grease, these guys get all that stuck on grime off. I've tried numerous other shower cleaners and it doesn't even touch that stuff. You do have to scrub a little more than normal, but you will see the grime coming off and the tub shining through.

Of course these things are amazing for cleaning up anything off of walls, baseboards, doors and the like. Especially when you have an artistic 3 year old who thinks the wall is her canvas!

Another favorite (right up there with the Clorox Wipes) has got to be these:



PLEDGE CLEAN & SHINE (AND OIL)

When Patrick surprised me with Stainless Steel appliances I was super happy until it came time to clean them. It seemed as if I tried everything to no avail. One day I was going through my cleaning supply shelf and came across the Pledge Clean and Shine that I used for dusting. I decided to try it out on my fridge AND I WAS BLOWN AWAY!!! This stuff took all the finger prints, toe prints (yes, toe prints), food and water right off leaving it looking shiny and new. It even seemed to keep those things at bay for awhile.

I figured that if it worked so well on the stainless steel, then it should work awesome on mirrors and glass...it did, and now I use this item for my mirrors and glass. This has got to be my favorite find yet!

I also have a few items that are fake stainless steel. The Pledge Clean & Shine does not work well on these, but the Pledge Oil works wonders. It even takes out those annoying water stains. Go ahead...Go try it!

When I was a teenager, I used to fill a pan up with soapy water and poor it all over the kitchen floor, then scrub it with a scratcher and then dry it with numerous towels. Some may say that cleaning the kitchen floor this way was probably not most efficient, but I do have to say that it cleaned it absolutely wonderful! Unfortunately, times have changed and I no longer clean my floors this way. Instead I've come across these:



SWIFFER WET JET SYSTEM

Truthfully, this was kind of a "get me through" type of purchase until I could afford what I really wanted (A Shark Wet and Dry Vac). I'm still using these 4 years later (guess I've prioritized where my money gets spent). It works pretty well. I really like that I can spray and clean without bending over and that the pads are disposable so I can just throw the dirt and grime away, but it doesn't clean as well and a pan of soapy water, a scratcher, and a teenage girl slipping around on her knees...it will do though

Lastly, my favorite cleaning product is

OXYCLEAN

I don't have a picture, but I will always have this stuff in my house...always! Let me just tell you that it got up a whole glass of grape juice spilled onto tan carpet without leaving any hint of it ever being there! AMAZING! I've used it to spot clean my carpets, clothes, and even have used it in on my car floors. The trick to it working on those hard stains (like grape juice), is catching the stain as it happens. It will not take a dried stain of grape juice out...this is why I have it in my house always! I always tell people about this product because it works.

So, are you ready to go clean? I'd love for you to stop by my house and try these products out. My shower is ready for a scrub down...any takers?