DorisMouse

Jeremy Munson

2009-04-21T16:27:00.000-07:00

Okay, now for my youngest child. I have to admit Jeremy is the toughest of my children to write about. I have a very special place in my heart for him. I think it comes from knowing that he would be my last baby. He was the most beautiful baby ever born!! Yeah... I know, all mom's say that.

Jeremy was my accident prone child. He was born emergency C-section since he had his cord wrapped around his neck and pulling on it with his left hand! That being said he came out perfect. : ) He had is first set of stitches at 2 years old and it just went on from there!! He almost ran over his sister, but lucky for her there was a six foot plum tree in the way. This picture was taken just shortly after his first driving adventure... he looks so sweet here. But looks can be deceiving! Hehehe He is actually very sweet, but also a bit mischievious! At the age of 7 he actually managed to run over his brother! Thank God for guardian angels... Adam ended up with just a cracked pelvis. : ) (Oh, by the way... Jeremy either rides the bus or his bike... no driving for him! LOL)

When Jeremy turned 12 his dad & I got him a 21 speed bike that resulted in 36 stitches!! Yes... my little accident looking for a place to happen. I can't even count how many stitches he has had overall. I know that his guardian angels were working overtime! And I am so thankful that they were.

Jeremy is now 25 and just as sweet as ever. He has had a lot of difficulties to deal with in his young life. Thankfully, he has mostly grown out of his accident prone stage. : ) There is still a special place in my heart for my baby boy, (yes, I know that I may take a little heat for that comment!).

Jeremy is very creative, he has done some drawings that are terrific and tried his hand at digital art. I was blown away by his creativity with our digital art programs... he gets his creativity from both of his parents... his dad is an architectural designer & painter, and his mother expresses her creativity through her jewelry designs and graphic artwork.

It is kind of strange to think of the three kids and realize that I have 3 opposites! : ) I always thought that was something that you would only have with two... however, each one of my children are special in their own way. I have been so blessed to have them in my life.

Here is a more current pic of my wonderful son ~ Jeremy

~ J. Adam Munson ~

2009-04-04T03:00:00.000-07:00

Today, it’s Adam’s turn to be in the spot light on my blog. Today is his 27th Birthday!! Wow! When did that happen? I still remember when he was born… what a wonderful and sweet natured baby! I also remember when he was about 15 and had a cold and felt terrible. He comes into my room (I was sitting on my bed working on a cross stitch project) and he lays down next to me and puts his head on my shoulder and says “Mommy, I don’t feel good”. What a great feeling to know that even as your children are growing up they still have times when they need their mother.

When Adam was born I wanted to name him Adam Jeffrey. However, his dad thought it would be cool to name him Jeffrey Adam that way his signature is “J. Adam Munson”. I didn’t mind as long as I got to call him Adam. : ) He fits his name quite well… he carves his own way through life, not really walking in other’s footsteps. He is very much his own person. Even so, I see many similarities to both of his parents. He is a good blend of both of us.

He has many hobbies… brewing beer & gardening – he has an awesome indoor garden, & reading are just a few of them. He also throws a great party!! The last time that I was in the Seattle area he had a big BBQ party. The food was awesome, they did a BBQ cook off and we all got to sample everything & vote on our favorites. I love the fact that he is very responsible when it comes to party time. He will not allow his friends to drink and drive… since it was August and the weather was perfect (surprising in Seattle), he had tents set up around the yard, in case people needed to crash and sleep it off before driving home.

Adam is very concientious of our environment. He rides the bus almost everywhere he goes (unless his sister is going and then they carpool together). Sometimes when I am talking to him I realize that he is one of those “Scary Smart” people!! Hehehe He is very intelligent and loves to debate with his dad – actually, I think that they both enjoy the debates. : ) While Adam might be considered to be very opinionated, he always looks at the situation from all the angles before choosing his opinion.

The best thing about Adam is his love for his family. He can always be counted on to lend a shoulder to cry on, or to listen to a little venting session!! His sister and brother both know that they can always count on Adam to be there for them. I know that even though I live in Arizona, if I really need to talk I can call Adam. He is also close to dad… I am so glad that my kids have a good relationship with their dad, he cares about them a lot.

Awesome
Democratic
Adorable
Man

That is my son Adam!!
Adam – I love you a lot and miss you everyday. Have a very Happy Birthday.

Rebecca Jeanne

2009-03-24T09:47:00.001-07:00

Rebecca & Jake.

My Beautiful Daughter, Rebecca was born on July 7th @ 1:54 AM, in Seattle, Washington.

I have to admit that I would have been a bit disappointed had she not been a girl! I was so hoping for baby girl... I wanted to have a little girl so that I could have the same relationship with her that I do with my mother. My mother & I have always had a very good relationship and are still friends today.

However, I forgot to take in consideration a couple of things...
One ~ Rebecca is not me & Two ~ I am not my mother!!

We had our moments when she was little where I thought... this is exactly what I planned. We will be BFF!! Then the teenage years hit! Our family was going through a lot at that time, her dad & I were newly divorced & there was a lot of chaos in our lives. Thank goodness we got through those years of turmoil. :o)

My daughter called me one day and said the words that I thought that I would never hear... "Mom, I just wanted to let you know that I don't blame you entirely for the divorce anymore" Wow! I can't even begin to describe how that felt. She has always been her "Daddy's Little Girl", which I completely understand and support since I am too. Unfortunately that also meant that my little girl had grown up and knew things that I hoped she never would.

Ah well... I guess we all have to grow up sometime. Luckily she was planning her wedding during this time and we had so many fun things to talk about. We spent hours on the phone and even more hours on The Knot (a website for brides)... looking at dresses for her, dresses for me and all of the fun stuff that goes into planning a wedding. We had a great time. Then came her wedding day. She was such a beautiful bride! There were a few times that I was bit nervous, but not because my baby girl had grown up and was getting married. It was more to do with all of the tension between her parents and their parents! It was a bit akward, but we all made it through with flying colors. : )

Each day that goes by we grow closer, I am so blessed to have such a lovely daughter. It makes all those years of turmoil just disappear, and we know that each year will just get better.

I am so excited that she will be coming down to spend Mother's Day with me this year. I used to dread Mother's Day and now it is one of the Happiest days of the year. : )

Rebecca ~ Thank you for being the perfect daughter.

My Fabulous Kids

2009-03-23T08:25:00.000-07:00

I will be posting a series of blogs this week about my three Fabulous Kids! The are ~ Rebecca (the oldest), Adam (my middle child), and Jeremy (by youngest).

They are all at different stages in their lives and I am so proud of each of one of them. It is funny to think that I got 3 opposites!! I didn't know that was possible until I had kids. And while each of my children are completely different, they each have a very special place in my heart.

I remember as a kid always wanting to grow up and have children of my own. It may have a lot to do with the fact that my baby brother was born when I was 9 and since he has downs syndrome he stayed a baby a lot longer than normal kids. It was so much fun to take care of him. I was always the little girl that had a baby doll with her and took great care of her. : )

Stay tuned... the next post will be about my Lovely Daughter Rebecca.

Times are Tough!!

2009-03-10T11:13:00.000-07:00

Just to give you a little update, I am extremely happy to say that "Yes, I am still employed"!

However, my wonderful hubby Mike, works for the State! You would think that since he works for DES and they are seriously short handed right now that he would be very busy. Unfortunately, as a computer programmer he is one of the people that got a 10% decrease in pay this year!! Then, he was told that he would get to take 8 mandatory furlow days between now and June... basically another 8 days without pay!! Yikes... what's up with that??

So, in an effort to keep our income still coming in - Mike has been selling a few guitars on eBay. I have sold some Antique porcelain & am now getting ready to start building more inventory on my jewelry so that I can post some of that as well.

Well that is my update for today! :o)
Have a great day, All.

You thought I forgot how to do this didn't You??

2009-03-10T11:06:00.000-07:00

Oh My Gosh!! It has been forever since I have even had 5 minutes to think about posting anything on here.

I am still not too happy about all those silly speed cameras... it's like they are all of a sudden taking over the freeways! The biggest problem that I have with them is not that they are there, but that so many people forget they are there until the last minute and instead of checking their speed - they just slam on the breaks!! They are just an accident waiting to happen.

My thoughts are... since we all know that they don't take your picture until you are going 11 miles over the speed limit - then just set your cruise control for 7 over!! That way of your speedometer is off a little you have a bit of a cushion! Hehehe

Those Damn Cameras!!

2008-12-11T15:44:00.000-08:00

Okay - those stupid photo radar camera's have popped up all over the freeways in Phoenix! What is up with that?? The biggest problem that I am seeing right now is that they don't really get people to slow down until the last minute. About 300 yards before the camera's you can bet there will be a massive slow down... everyone slams on their brakes at the same time hoping to avoid being captured on film!

Plus, I saw on the news that the pilots flying into Sky Harbor Airport are having a difficult time landing when they keep getting seeing all the flashes from the camera's. So the state decides to spend MORE money and put covers over them to help keep them from blinding the pilots!! They were also saying that most of the $$$ coming in from the tickets go to pay for the camera's, film and processing!! Very nice!

It really wouldn't be so bad if everyone just kept to the same the speed... most of the freeways are 65 miles per hour anyway... who needs to go faster than that?? Well... besides me!!

And to top it all off ~ My wonderful Hubby got me a Home Depot NASCAR Racing jacket!! He said that it was not because I am a NASCAR fan (good thing, since I'm really not one!), but that it is because I spend all my time racing around back & forth to work (Home Depot At-Home Services)!! What a goofball! But that's okay... I still love him anyway!! Hehehe :o)

Geez... have I been busy or what??

2008-12-11T14:57:00.000-08:00

Okay, I know that it has been a while since I posted anything. I have been insanely busy! After spending two weeks in Denver instead of just the one I planned on the middle of November, I have been doing double work!! I am now processing all of the incoming paperwork for our Denver Branch as well as my own for Phoenix.

However, I don't mind too much since it is our slow time of year. Plus, my three year anniversary was last Friday and I had my review today!! So it was a good time to ask for a BIG raise!! I figured I can't get it if I don't ask for it! Now we are playing the waiting game to see if our corporate office will agree to it. Kind of a risky time to ask for a raise since they seem to be cutting people lately... but oh well... you won't get it if you don't ask! :o)

And it begins!!

2008-10-30T08:59:00.000-07:00

Well, they officially starting turning on the freeway traffic cams today. They should all be on by the end of the weekend. So if you are out and about driving on the Maricopa County freeways... Smile!! You just might be getting your picture taken.

My plan... just set my cruise control for 5 miles over (just in case my speedometer is off a bit!), and try to be a good little citizen!! Now we shall see if I can actually execute the plan! Hehehe : )

Stocks - Yes or No?

2008-10-29T08:42:00.000-07:00

Okay... another random post! What are your thoughts on the Stock Market these days? With everything be so volatile these days, would you think that now would be a good time to buy? Or is better to just watch the situation and see what happens?

If you were to buy stocks in todays market, what kind of stocks would you think would give you the best return? Utilities? Medical? Technology?

My husband & I have been watching the market for the past year or so to see what the trends are and have seen some very interesting things happen in the past few months. So I thought that I would see what others think about how things are going.

They're Everywhere!!

2008-10-26T14:58:00.000-07:00

I noticed on my way home from the church this morning that there are now two photo radar cames on the 101 freeway between my home and the church. Not to mention the four "Red Light Cams" that are on the intersections between the freeway and the church.

I do like the Red Light cams... statistically Arizona has the most red light runners in the country!! Yikes! Apparently they don't understand the meaning of the yellow light around here. I have had times when I see the light turn yellow just as I enter the intersection and there will be six people behind me that still blow right through the intersection!! It amazed me every time.

I also find it surprising that so many people are still doing 70 - 80 on the freeways with all the radar cams out there. I have slowed down ... I really don't want my picture sent me to on a weekly basis, just so that I can get where I need to go 30 seconds faster! Hehehe But I still see people zipping past me like I am standing still. I guess they like having their pics taken!

Yes... I have come to the realization that I really am a conformist! Wow!! When did that happen? LOL

They're Watching!

2008-10-24T08:44:00.000-07:00

Okay... so I am on my way to work this morning and I notice that there are MORE traffic cams going up along Interstate 10! They seem to be popping up everywhere.

I mentioned to my wonderful hubby that I was not too happy that I was being forced to change my driving habits! His comment was "Well, at least they are doing to everyone and not just you." Then he mentions how it is also going to help me to get better gas mileage and save money by having to fill up less often. What a smart man I married! (I have used the term smart in reference to him before - but I seem to remember it just being the beginning of the comment! hehehe)

So... I decided that instead of driving 75 all the way to work this morning, I would try toning it down a bit. I set my cruise at 63 (Wow... did that seem slow!!), and you know what? I got to work in the same amount of time as I normally do when I am trying to drive 75!! Since it seems like you can never do a constant 75, you have to slow down to 50 and wait until you get around all the other slow people just to zoom back up to 75, then catch up to another group of slow pokes!!

This morning was much more relaxing! And since the photo radar is set to go off at 10 miles per hour over the speed limit I am working on changing now before they start taking my picture everyday! :>)

Then another thought occured to me... I get that this is really going to help to cut down on some of the traffic accidents since it will make all of us become more responsible by driving the speed limit. Speed Limit... and here I always thought that was just a suggestion!! Hehehe

I have come to the realization that there is nothing that I can do to change this situation (my therapist would be so proud of me!), so I will make the most of it. I will enjoy the fact that I will now get better gas mileage and save money. : ) That is always a good thing.

Disgruntled!

2008-10-23T09:15:00.000-07:00

I seem to be having a tough time with our government offices this week. At work I need to get a Police report for an accident involving one of our employees.

Well... I call to request the report only to find out that they do not take requests over the phone! I either have to mail in my request with a check for $5.00! Or I have to go in to the Police Department and fill out the form to request the report and pay my $5.00!!

Apparently this city does not give out police reports at the time of the incident so if one is needed for any reason (including Workers Comp.), you have to pay the "Adminstration Fee". Hmmmm... I am an Administrator! A thought just occured to me... I will take in my $5.00 to pay their fee, along with an invoice for my time and trouble for $10.00!! Hope I don't get thrown in jail!! :o)

Traffic Cams

2008-10-22T09:30:00.000-07:00

Well, this may be a bit random...

For those of you in the Phoenix area you will completely understand this one. What do you think of all the Traffic Cameras that popping up all over our roads? It seems to me like our government has found a way to generate a LOT of revenue without having to add people to the police force.

Now maybe they are thinking that our Police Officers should be used for more important tasks like violent crime. But I really think that the "Ticket in the Mail" is so very unpersonal!! : ) Granted, I have not had a ticket recently, but I do have to admit that the last one I got was from photo radar! Oops!

Let me know your thoughts...

My First Attempt

2008-10-20T19:10:00.000-07:00

Here is my first attempt at blogging. I would be very interesting in hearing from others who are into making Chain Maille jewelry. I have really had a lot of fun at it, and am always interested in learning more.