Saturday . . . Memorial Day Weekend

Just wanted to wish all my friends a wonderful and safe Memorial Day weekend.

If you are going to be out on the roads, please buckle up, put the cell away, and if you are going to be partying it up, please get a designated driver.

And . . .

My sincere thanks to all of our armed services veterans, both past and present. Thank you ladies and gentlemen for stepping up to the plate, and for the ones that are deployed or stationed all over the world right now, please be careful, and come home soon.

Have you thanked a veteran lately?

Be safe everyone.

Gorton's Crunchy Breaded Fish Fillets

Yes, I know. Fish fillets. Processed. Parts of unknown fish and who knows what else. Yuck.

So, not the case with Gorton's.

I have never been a fish fan. I've tried many types and they all just came across as mushy, and well, fishy. Don't even get me started on "fresh" fish. That I haven't been able to even come close to eating.

I happened to stumble across the Gorton's product and picked up a package, and I can say that I was pleasantly surprised. They have a great flavor that didn't linger in your mouth long after eating them, and with baking in the oven they came out very crunchy.

Even my little one loved them.

They are the perfect size. You get two pieces per serving. Yes, there is quite a bit of sodium (500 mg per serving) in them, but then you look and see the Omega-3 fatty acids, potassium levels, the trans-fats levels, which is zero, and the calories from fat which are all in the great range.

So, since I was enjoying their product, I decided to do a little more research on them.

Did you know:

Gorton's has been around for well over 100 years?

Or, that they have a Research and Development Center where a product must pass more then 50 quality checkpoints? Truly, how many business do that? Products are even checked for any "illegal antibiotics and chemicals," and if found those products don't make it out to the customer.

It appears to me that Gorton's is looking out for the consumer and not just to cover themselves. Oh, and of course, right on the bag it says if you aren't happy with their product they will be more then happy to help you out, just give them a call.

You should really try out one of their products and see what you think.

They have quite a selection:

You can get everything from fish sticks, to crunchy fillets, to grilled fillets and all natural fillets and even shrimp. Of course there are many more products to choose from.

Here is their website if you are curious about them:

Gorton's


Disclaimer:

This review is my own opinion. It was done on a product that I specifically purchased and I did not receive any compensation or products from Gorton's.

Weather

Here in the north country the weather is really starting to heat up. For May we have had record setting temperatures.

Its been hazy, hot & humid.

Which is also weird considering we had snow on Mother's Day.

Typical north country weather.

Anyways, I'm sure in the rest of the country the weather is starting to heat up as well.

Do yourselves a favor when you go out in it. Wear tons of sunscreen. Make sure everyone in the family has sunscreen on. Hats are also a plus. Yes, even if you have hair on your head, you head can still get sunburned. Plus, if there is a big enough brim, it'll keep your face shaded.

Also, drink plenty of water. Nothing more refreshing than a glass of ice-water on a hot day.

When you are done with your day, or even if you do this before you begin:

Please, check on your neighbors. Especially if you have elderly neighbors or know that your neighbors haven't been feeling well. Make sure if they have an a/c unit that it is in and working properly (only takes a few minutes to put one in for someone). If they have fans, make sure they are out for them and on and running.

Just stopping in and saying hi is always a good thing.

Enjoy your day.

The Due Date

The day I've been dreading.

But, I'm okay. I know I could be worse.

I'm sad. But I've been trying to stay busy by doing laundry and running to the post office, and of course, playing with Em.

I miss my little one. I know that I should be holding a little baby right now. Em, should have a little brother or a little sister to be fussing over. We should have another bundle of joy in our home.

I never asked if it was a boy or a girl, but I truly believe we had a little boy.

On a particularly stressful day a couple of weeks ago a friend said to me "now aren't you glad you don't have two little ones to take care of??"

I know this friend didn't mean it the way it came out. But it cut me like a knife. To me it meant, "good thing you had a miscarriage because you probably couldn't handle 2 kids."

My reply "no, I wish I had two little ones here, being stressed out about other things has nothing to do with my kids."

So, here I sit at the computer on my due date.

Doing the what-ifs? Would the baby look like me or my hubby? Would he or she have red hair like Em does or have my brown hair? Would they have my nose or hubby's?

No mid-night feedings. No waking up every 20 minutes to just check on the baby. Though with Em, I still check on her numerous times during the night.

I know my little angel is in good hands though, afterall he or she is with my Mom.

Feel Good Friday

Feel Good Friday is brought to you by The Girl Next Door Grows Up .

Yes, it is that time of the week. If you want to know what Feel Good Friday is all about, just click the above link and hurry on over and check it out.

Yesterday the little one and I went to one of the local farms to see the animals, go for a hayride, etc.

They have a petting area where you can feed goats, llamas, rabbits, pigs, reindeer, and even a camel. Plus, there are ducks and roosters and hens all over the place. I almost backed out going because when we pulled into the driveway, there were school busses there and kids running all over the place. But, I promised Em (even though she probably didn't know the difference) that we would stop and visit with the animals.

So, after paying admission, and getting some popcorn to feed the goats, off we went.

I wasn't sure how any of it was going to go because when we normally take her up to a friend's farm to see the cows, she won't go near them.

I wasn't able to get a lot of pictures because I was keeping an eye on her and at times I forgot I even had the camara in my pocket.

She loved feeding the goats the popcorn and giggled everytime one took a piece of popcorn out of her hands. I kept thinking she was going to get bit, but the goats just used their tongues to gently take it.

Then it was off to the llamas. The crazy, wild haired llamas. She kept grabbing handfuls of grass to feed them.









Then we walked over to the barn to see the pig and her new piglets.

Poor Mama pig was out cold and snoring loudly. It appeared that she was having a rough day. Daddy pig was in the next pen and he was sound asleep as well.




We sat down and relaxed for a little bit and watched the ducks while waiting our turn for the hayride. Em was laughing loudly at a hen that was chasing the mallards all over the place. Pretty sure that the hen thought it was a duck.

Off for the hayride, and the feeding of the cows.

This place has 2 of the biggest cows I have ever seen. One has been there for years and is humungous.

Em was able to feed this lady some bagels. Cutest thing I have seen. At first when that long tongue came out she started to panic, but she held it out for her and the cow took it right out of her hand.



All and all it was a fun few hours for Em. She was able to explore all over, feed animals, and went on her first hayride. I'm planning on taking her back sometime soon.

So, how was your week??

Al Bundy Pose

Yes, this is how I found her on the floor the other night.

She has been skipping naps so by 6ish, if I'm not watching her closely enough, she is curled up on the floor somewhere.

Sadly, that is Dorito dust on her face. Sometimes I think that makes me a bad Mom because I do let her have a few Doritos before supper.

Sentence you never thought you'd say to your child

Have you said anything to your child lately that you thought would never come out of your mouth?

Something weird? Off-the wall??

Something you would never expect to have to say in the first place??

Mine today was:

"I bet this taste better then that catfood you just ate."

She likes the dry catfood. Better then the cats.

So, she has to be watched like a hawk, and she snuck some by me.

When I said that to her I was handing her a piece of bologna.

What have you said to your child or grandchild or little one lately that you thought you would never have to say?!?

My Mom

For the first time, this year, I didn't get to go down to the cemetery to visit and plant some flowers for Mother's Day. Maybe being under the weather was a blessing because we had freeze warnings for a few nights in a row and the flowers wouldn't have made it.

I plan on going down this weekend.

Let me tell you a little something about my Moms.

She was a great woman. Funny. Sarcastic. Just had the type of personality that would draw people to her.

Sure, when I was younger we would butt heads. Not to many teen-agers don't do that with their parents.

Sure, after she got sick, we would butt heads because I didn't want to lose her.

I remember our road trips. Just her and I.

We would pack up and hit the road for a few days and go and see her Aunt (my Great Aunt) on the show circuit. I loved those trips. Most of the time we would get lost, but would find our way there.

We would go down to the casino and spend the night. This was our time. I remember the first time I took her there. She was scared.

But she had a blast.

I would wake up in the middle of the night and she would be back downstairs at one of the machine's again. I could go out into the hallway, look over the railing and there she would be sitting, and just like she knew, she would look up and wave. I would either get dressed and go down and join her or go back to bed and let her have her own time.

After she got sick, we still went. I would wake up in the middle of the night and look to where she was sleeping, and she would be there.

Oh how I longed for those times when she would be downstairs at a machine.

She liked to play the wheel. I would get her there, rub her head for luck and then go and find a machine to play. It never worked for me, but I'll be damned everytime I went to check on her she would have a stack of chips in front of her.

I miss our times.

A friend and I have gone down to the casino a few times since, and it just isn't the same, and I'm sure she wouldn't appreciate me rubbing her head for luck.

I have time with Mom now. Spend some time talking with her. Telling her I miss her. Telling her I need her. I know she is listening.

I know she is keeping an eye on and holding the little ones we have lost.

At her funeral the minister was talking about Moms being President of the Auxilliary.

The Secret Society.

No one knew who the members were.

Or how to join.

At a time when people were crying and sobbing, you could hear those same people giggle or see a smile when the Secret Society was mentioned.

We lost Moms right before Christmas in 2004.

Sometimes it is hard to believe that she is gone.

There are times when the phone rings I hope it is her on the other end.

Without me knowing, hubby programmed his Mom's phone number into the phone and put it under Mom. One day the phone rang and it said Mom on the face. For a second I hesitated about answering it.

So for my Moms, my best friend, the keeper of all I told her, I Love You.

I Miss You.

Happy Mother's Day.

Oh, and thank you for saying "I hope when you have kids you have one just like you."

Guess what.

I did.

Feel Good Friday

Feel Good Friday is brought to you by The Girl Next Door Grows Up .

Yes, it is that time of the week. If you want to know what Feel Good Friday is all about, just click the above link and hurry on over and check it out.

Well ~ I have a pretty easy Feel Good Friday story this week.

It is . . . .

I feel good.

Not great.

But good.

If you read my previous post you can see that I got sick late last Saturday night and I have been sick all week with a lovely stomach flu.

I had a path worn between the bedroom and bathroom.

The animals took cover when they heard me come flying out of the bedroom.

The little one ended up with a milder version of it and was down and out for a couple of days but she is doing better as well. Though it is highly contagious, hubby never got it.

Oh . . .

What else made me feel good?

I knew Pops (who had this the week before last) was running to town the other day and I asked him to pick me up a pack of baby wipes (we were down to two left in the package) and a couple of Gatorades to get into the little one and I so we could start getting hydrated again.

You know what he did??

He came home with a case of each.

That is my Pops for you.

There is something that has made me sad this week though and I will do a seperate post about it. Let's just say I missed doing something that I should have done on Sunday because I was sick and I could kick myself for it.

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend.

Ugh . . . Ugh . . . Ugh . . .

Flu Shot ~ Check. (in October of 2009)

Vitamins ~ Daily.

Headache ~ Check.

Body Aches ~ Check.

Body Chills ~ Check.

Frequent Bathroom Sprints ~ Check.

Having the flu or something that resembles it on Mother's Day ~ Check.

Which leads me to Ugh . . . Ugh . . . Ugh . . .

I just wanted to wish you all a Happy Mother's Day, my friends.

Feel Good Friday

Feel Good Friday is brought to you by The Girl Next Door Grows Up .

Yes, it is that time of the week. If you want to know what Feel Good Friday is all about, just click the above link and hurry on over and check it out.

I won't lie.

It has been a stressful week.

One of those weeks that make you want to crawl back into bed and pull the comforter over your head and just stay there.

My Pops has been sick.

My little one is now under the weather.

I haven't been able to sleep, concentrate on much of anything, or do much. I think the stress is going to make me lose all my hair. Plus, I've got the makings of a wicked sore throat going on.

But, there are always things that make you smile during the stressful times.

There are those good friends that send you strange jokes via emails that make you laugh. Okay, some you just shake your head at and hit delete but there are others that really make you laugh.

Then there is my little one.

Did I tell you that she decided to wear the toilet paper around her head when we ran an errand earlier in the week?

Yes, she likes toilet paper wrapped around her head, ninja style. She has been doing this for a while now.

I know it made at least one gentlemen's day as he thought she was the cutest thing with it wrapped around her head and she made him laugh.

Think That The Stomach Bug Is Going Around

Poor Em.

I know she doesn't feel good. These last couple of days she is going through diapers and clothes quickly.

Just trying to keep her hydrated.

Not sure if she caught something from Pops who had been sick or just something that is going around because of this crazy weather.

Anyway, we had to run a couple of errands today and just as I pull back into the driveway she falls asleep so I get the pleasure of carrying her into the house. She is solid and hard for me to carry.

We got as far as the couch.

I got her some juice, gave her the infamous Dolly, and this is where we are at.

Giveaways/Reviews, etc

I have been debating about doing giveaways and reviews of products on my blog.

I haven't decided if this is a good or a bad idea.

I have talked to a few "companies," and it appears that they would like blogs to have more followers, which I can understand.

But, I don't just want to get followers because I'm giving something away. I want followers with whom I have something in common with or because they like to read what I write. This is why I follow the blogs that I do, because I enjoy reading them.

I laugh with ya, I tear up with ya.

Plus, no one wants to be the first one to give me a chance at a review. Another thing I understand.

Then there is the issue with ads. I don't really want to go that route. I have seen some blogs that are so clustered with google ads that it is hard to read.

I'm considering trying that "link within" widget that I have seen on quite a few blogs that I enjoy. The ones that use it, do you like it?? I know it only links to similar posts, which is a good thing.

Decisions, decisions, decisions.