Attempted Abduction

So, apparently there was an attempted abduction in our neighborhood this past Saturday. Naturally, I am scare feces-less. The reason...I think this same person actually scoped me and the children out less than two weeks ago. The car he drove matches the description that was reported to the police. I remember being pissed at the kids for taking so long and not listening to me before we had to go to this change of homeport meeting at the base in Kings Bay, GA. Then we're running 20 minutes behind, Sean's waiting for us there, and as I'm buckeling the kids in their carseats, I notice a suspicious truck driving SLOWLY down our street. Of course, since there is still a lot of new construction going on in our neighborhood, I'm used to the construction workers or people coming through to look at the houses. BUT...this truck had some crazy tinted windows and was going slowly in front of our home, the both times it passed us. The thing is, it's late afternoon and the truck was in our neighborhood before the guard stands duty at the gatehouse. I remember being in a rush and forgetting to set the alarm but having had a bad enough feeling about that car, I go back and set it.

Now I find out that there is a predator out there who tried to abduct a child in our neighborhood AND knows that I have two little ones here too.

All I can say is THANK GOD for Jax and the world class protection training he's gotten.

I'm still on edge though and trying to explain it to Kaia without scaring her. So far, she's scared. Arghhhhhhhh.

Thankful

My kids are sick and I'm a newly "single" married mom. Still, I'm thankful that my kids have stuffy noses and are cranky (maybe more due to the fact that we woke them up around 5:45am to take Sean to the base) and do NOT have stomach viruses...probably one of the most contagious and ickiest things to go around a family! I CANNOT deal with nausea...so, yeah...I'm thankful my kids seem to just have a cold and hope that I don't get it ("The Fam" is coming into town this weekend). I'm also thankful that I got a few extra days to talk/see my buff partner. Stress was pretty high for us with our messy house, him leaving, the kids, and figuring out our home situaton ( when to list it on the rental market). Still...it was nice to have this weekend to see/talk to him for a little bit longer.

My spirits are good. Just have a butt-load of cleaning to do...but looking at it as a good thing. Only thing is...I DON'T LIKE TO CLEAN! ;o) I miss Sean and hate that he's not here since I hate to be the lone adult in the home. I always look forward to the adult interaction after a full day of refereeing/mediating my four human & canine blessings. I also have a total peace of mind when Sean's home since I hate being home alone at night...I'm always paranoid of what I'd do in a(nother) situation should someone enter/break in the house and how to protect the kids and myself. Jax is doing a great job with being protective. That big arse bark of his is enough to make Sean & I pee in our pants...and it's not even directed towards us. Plus, he's almost 100 lbs...so he's a pretty big deal. ;o) Jax gives me plenty of comfort knowing that he's an awesome deterrent...and can attack if needed. *whew*

Anyhoo...I stress as I write since there's so much to do.

TTFN.

Want to make $10?

So, since becoming a mom, it just SO much easier to shop online. I don't have to worry about potty breaks, diapers, snacks, naps, breakdowns (theirs & Daddy's/Mommy's), etc. So, I found this site called Ebates.com it pays you for shopping online. Oh yes...music to my ears and helps to lessen the guilt when I know I'll be getting some money back for having made that super duper huge purchase online...;o)

Anyhoo...you get checks quarterly based on how much you've earned in your account. You do get $ for referring friends too. If you don't earn the minimum amount needed for the quarter...no biggie since it rolls over. I've gotten two checks so far...a huge one thanks in part to holiday shopping and sales...the other not so huge because I had to lasso my wallet shut. ;o)

So, I strongly encourage you to sign up. Right now till June 30, you get $10 credited to your account instead of the usual $5. BUT...you have to use this link and use my email address: tmleee@terpalum.umd.edu!!

Have fun!

Almost a decade!

I just dyed my hair from a box and cheated on my stylist (Ngoc from PR@Partners in Mazza) for the first time in almost 10 years!!!!! Yeah, I'm blogging about something trivial but I had to admit my infidelity. I still am trying to hold off on cutting my hair until I get back up to DC seeing how the last time I entrusted my hair to someone (before Ngoc) I ended up with a mullet. Asian Americans are not meant to rock mullets...especially during the first semester their college freshman year. After the square that was my hair grew out (I had to lob off the rat end of the mullet), I found Ngoc. Needless to say, that is why I have never cheated on my stylist ever since.

Happy Father's Day!!!

Happy Father's Day to my baby, my dad, my grandfather, my brothers, cousin, etc.!! Today kinda sucks because 1) Sean's not here because he has to stand duty (24 hrs. on the boat) and 2) my dad's not here. We celebrated, sorta, yesterday with Sean...AFTER he got off of work. Basically, it was just a day of relaxation for him since he's been working so darn much and getting only a few hours of sleep a night. So, he got a nap in with the kids while I cooked up a feast for him (churrasco, lemon quinoa, grilled asparagus, & RICE). Today, he's working and we'll see him tomorrow evening. The darn photo album I made for him is coming in tomorrow too (instead of LAST WEEK...arghh)...I guess it actually turned out to be ok timing since tomorrow will be Father's Day part deux. I need to make my sweet potato stuff that's Sean's favorite and a fresh fruit tart for dessert tomorrow. Should I use my leftover chimichurri sauce to marinate chicken breasts? Hmmmm...anyhoo, I feel so bad for him because he's just been so exhausted!!! Poor guy.

Today is also bittersweet since, even though I have surrogate dads (Uncle Dan, Daddy Yuan, & Daddy Naik), I still miss my dad. It's been 9.5 years without him and even though it's a bit easier now, there are definitely times like this that missing him hurts a lot more. I also think what a crummy daughter I was the last few years of his life during his battle with alcoholism. It's hard not to regret how I felt and how I treated him but at the same time, it's all a learning experience. Anyhoo...losing my dad and others made a huge impact on my life...it's definitely too short to take people for granted. Life is definitely too precious and you never know when you will lose someone. I only wish that he would've gotten to meet my kids (all four of them...human & canine)...and Sean as well.

Still...today is a good day to reflect how blessed I was to grow up with the father I did...despite the alcoholism (which never made him an angry or violent drunk...EVER), was an amazing person and I learned a lot from him. He definitely taught me many important lessons...both directly and indirectly. I am also blessed to have such an amazing partner who is such a great parent. I know Kaia and Jaron have lots to learn from him too.

Happy Father's Day, Fathers!

Let's see if I'll keep this up...

I used to have a Xanga site but outgrew my name (old AOL sn and way too old to be using it), so I no longer blog there. Anyhoo...this'll just be a mess of thoughts, ramblings, occasional recipes, etc. Alright...on to boring you!! ;o)