Favorite Quotes

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  • "I'm so busy.... I don't know if I found a rope... or lost my donkey! - Unknown"
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Thursday, August 28, 2008

Hot Mamma!!!


I was taking Frank to football practice the other day, and Frank said "The other day, Blake said 'Your mom is HOT!!'" Made my day. I had to work really hard to get my inflated ego through the front door when I got home.

P.S. I think it might have something to do with the sports car I drive!

Friday, August 22, 2008

So what does Diabolical mean?


Carlie came home from school yesterday and asked Lena "What does Diabolical mean?" Lena didn't know. So when I got home Carlie asked me. I told it meant some who's really evil...like a villan.

So at bedtime, the two girls got into a tussel. I can hear them in the other room fighting, and I hear Carlie yell at Madi "You're DIABOLICAL, Madi!!!!" LOL. Big words for a 5 year old.

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Animal Lover






Madolyn has always been crazy about animals and most animals seem to know it. My parent's little dog Cooper absolutely LOVES Madi. They are two peas in a pod.

Well Madi came home from her first day of school and told me. "Mom, did you know that you are Da Urinal?" Since this came out of the blue, I couldn't figure out what on earth she was talking about. She goes "You know....Hamsters are Noctural because they sleep during the day and are awake at night. And Humans are Da Urinal."

And I go "Ohhhhh....Diurnal!!"

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Lunch Notes



It's been Libby's job this school year to pack everyone's lunch for school/work the next day. We've all been taking our lunch including Bob and I. Today I found the note above from Libby in mine. It made my day!!!!

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

What it takes to get a smart kid to eat dinner



Every family has a kid who won’t eat. My kid brother had not eaten voluntarily in over three years. - A Christmas Story

Carlie is our child who won't eat at the dinner table. Last night, she was refusing to eat as always....the meat tasted yucky, the corn had juice in it, etc, etc.

So Libby says "Mom, can I only eat 95% of my food and still get dessert?" And I see the lights go off in Carlie's head. She wants to know what percentage of food is remaining on HER plate, and I say "Oh, about 90% of it." So she wolfs down the rest of her Mac and Cheese and wants to know what percent is left. I tell her that about 75% is still left. At this point she stops a minute to negotiate with me. She says "If I eat 80% of my food, can I have dessert?" So I tell her that 80% will work. So she continues to take a bite of this and a bite of that asking me after each bite what percent is remaining. Whew!!! I actually got most of a meal down her. Thanks, Libby!!!

Monday, August 18, 2008

Mean Girls



I HATE the whole Mean Girls thing, and I am constantly telling my three daughters that they need to be kind to people...in particular those who are different, new to the school or don't have any friends.

After their second day of school last week, Madi climbed up in my lap and we were talking. I told her, “If you see kids in your class that don’t have anyone to play with them or be their friend, I want you to go make friends with them.” She looked at me like I was crazy and said “Moooooommm." I thought uh oh.

But she followed it up with "I’m already friends with EVERYBODY in the 1st grade!!!” LOL. It was the second day of class. My little social butterfly.

Saturday, August 16, 2008

Tater - Part III - The Ghost Cat

Shortly after Carlie was born, Tater had just become extremely ragged looking. The other cats picked at her and she looked like she was on her last legs. I didn't want to put her to sleep, so I asked Mom and Dad if they'd take her home with them and let her live out her last years in peace.

After she went home with them she filled back out and perked up. She would love on them in the evenings. Tater's favorite think in the world has always been milk. And I swear she could ASK for it. She would stand in front of the ice box and demand "Meeeeeiillllk! Meeeeeiiilllllk!" until someone came and poured her some milk.

My parents went to China last summer. They got a high school boy to watch their animals while they were gone. And they warned this boy that Tater was very, very old (at least 18 years old) and that it might be possible she would die while they were gone.

When they got back from China, Mom called me up crying and said that Tater was "gone". I reply "What do you mean 'gone'? Did she die while you were away?" And she said that Tater had just disappeared. They have a doggy door that they'd left open, and they assumed she'd gone out the doggy door and had gone off somewhere to die.

I knew she was very old, but I cried. I'd had that cat my entire adult life. When I went back to visit Mom and Dad that next weekend, I looked out the kitchen window and cried again. I told my Dad that it really bothered me that we didn't know what had happened to her, and I just had the urge to go and look for her. At the same time I knew my parents had alreay looked and looked and looked for her.

Another week went by, and Granny woke up early one morning and there was that Dang cat sitting in front of the fridge and demanding "Milk!!!! Milk!!!!" Granny said the hair on the back of her neck stood up, she said she thought she was seeing a ghost! But it was Tater. All we can figure is that she'd wandered outside and had been staying with someone else for those two weeks.

My poor Dad, he said "Every day I came in from work, and I was afraid that cat would be dead. I worried and worried about her. Then she did 'die' and I got used to her being dead. Now she's back, and I'm back to worrying every day whether or not she's alive!!!"

Tater lived another six months or so. Still, she had gotten very frail, and we knew she wouldn't make it much longer. Even at the very end though...she literally only had one tooth left in her head....she managed to bite my Mom one last time and drew blood! And once again, she disappeared out the doggy door.....only this time she didn't come back. Rest in peace, Taternator....you gave me alot of good company.

Thursday, August 14, 2008

False Teeth


My Dad (Papaw) has had dentures for about a year now. He's occassionally taken them out and chased the kids around the house with them...as my own Grandpa Cass used to do with me.

My Mom just got dentures a few weeks ago. She's been a bit more vane with hers and didn't want the kids to see her without them in. I don't think I even mentioned to my kids that Granny was getting new dentures.

She watched them for us the other day, and she said she was careful to never let the kids see her without them. But one day Carlie (out of the corner of her eye) caught Granny putting them in. She looked at Granny like she was crazy and said "WHY on EARTH are you putting Papaw's teeth in YOUR mouth!!!!"

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Saving Star Fish

An elderly man was picking up objects off the beach and tossing them out into the sea. A young man approached and saw that the objects were starfish. He asked, "Why in the world are you throwing starfish into the water?"

"If the starfish are still on the beach when the tide goes out and the sun rises high in the sky, they will die," replied the elderly man.

The young man countered, "That is ridiculous. There are thousands of miles of beach and millions of starfish. You can't really believe that what you're doing could possibly make a difference!"

The wise old man picked up another starfish, paused thoughtfully, and as he threw it to the safety of the sea, he said, "It made a difference to that one."

Later that day the young man returned and helped the elderly man throw starfish into the sea.


JB is doing SO well right now. I just wanted to take a second to brag on him. He has his own apartment. He comes over to do laundry at our place, eat and sometimes just to hang out. I went over to see his apartment last night to bring him a few things. He starts college in a week. He's planning on getting a degree in Restaurant Management. Granny sent him a whole load of pots and pans, spices and kitchen stuff. We gave him a love-seat. His grandpa bought him a bunch of tables, a toaster and a can-opener and they gave him his bed from their home. He's got a .... well a batchelor pad. LOL.

I'm sure he'll probably mess up again. But right now his future is looking very bright. Many people told us why taking on a teenage boy with problems was a hopeless task. But I like to think of JB as a Star Fish. "It made a difference to that one."

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

School Starts This Week






















It's killing me that my last one is going to kindergarten!! Last night was the night that they find out who their teachers are and go put their school supplies in their classrooms. Everyone got a good teacher.







Yesterday was also the first day at football practice with full pads where they start hitting each other. Bob said Frank got laid out flat on his first hit. I asked him if he still liked it, and he said yes, but it hurt alot when you got hit. I told him it didn't hurt as bad if you were the hitter instead of the hittee!!!

















Monday, August 11, 2008

One of My Fav Motherhood Essays

I hope my children one day feel this way about me.


The young mother set her foot on the path of life. 'Is this the long
way?' she asked. And the guide said: 'Yes, and the way is hard. And you
will be old before you reach the end of it. But the end will be better
than the beginning.'

But the young mother was happy, and she would not believe that anything
could be better than these years. So she played with her children, and
gathered flowers for them along the way, and bathed them in the clear
streams; and the sun shone on them, and the young Mother cried, 'Nothing
will ever be lovelier than this.'

Then the night came, and the storm, and the path was dark, and the
children shook with fear and cold, and the mother drew them close and
covered them with her mantle, and the children said, 'Mother, we are not
afraid, for you are near, and no harm can come.'

And the morning came, and there was a hill ahead, and the children
climbed and grew weary, and the mother was weary. But at all times she
said to the children,' A little patience and we are there.' So the
children climbed, and when they reached the top they said, 'Mother, we
would not have done it without you.'

And the mother, when she lay down at night looked up at the stars and
said, 'This is a better day than the last, for my children have learned
fortitude in the face of hardness. Yesterday I gave them courage.
Today, I have given them strength.'

And the next day came strange clouds which darkened the earth, clouds of
war and hate and evil, and the children groped and stumbled, and the
mother said: 'Look up. Lift your eyes to the light.' And the children
looked and saw above the clouds an everlasting glory, and it guided them
beyond the darkness. And that night the Mother said, 'This is the best
day of all, for I have shown my children God.'

And the days went on, and the weeks and the months and the years, and
the mother grew old and she was little and bent. But her children were
tall and strong, and walked with courage. And when the way was rough,
they lifted her, for she was as light as a feather; and at last they came
to a hill, and beyond they could see a shining road and golden gates
flung wide. And mother said: 'I have reached the end of my journey. And
now I know the end is better than the beginning, for my children can walk
alone, and their children after them.'

And the children said, ' You will always walk with us, Mother, even when
you have gone through the gates.' And they stood and watched her as she
went on alone, and the gates closed after her. And they said: 'We cannot
see her, but she is with us still. A Mother like ours is more than a
memory. She is a living presence.'

Your Mother is always with you. She's the whisper of the leaves as you
walk down the street; she's the smell of bleach in your freshly laundered
socks; she's the cool hand on your brow when you're not well. Your Mother
lives inside your laughter. And she's crystallized in every tear drop.
She's the place you came from, your first home; and she's the map you
follow with every step you take. She's your first love and your first
heartbreak, and nothing on earth can separate you. Not time, not
space...not even death!

Sunday, August 10, 2008

Cheater, Cheater Pumpkin Eater

This is one of my favorite stories from the time I was a High School Math Teacher.

since I had to go have that Ultra Sound done yesterday afternoon, I left a test for my fourth (last) hour to take. I thought that would keep them busy and quiet, etc. So I left EXPLICIT instructions for the sub that they were not to use notes, notecards, books, etc and were to not look at each other's paper. I guess I should have known better, because that is my old class of terds. Well I get in this morning, and the sub has left a list of about six people that he caught cheating on the test. And I though *Oh, no...what I am going to do now.* So I asked about the sub and whether he is reliable, and they said that yes if he reported them cheating then they did. So I mulled over it alllll day today. And I sat down in my planning period and graded the papers. Well out of 22 kids, only five passed the test. And of those five, four of them were on the cheater's list. So here is what I did. I let myself get worked up into a real mad. I went in there and told them *You've raised the wrath of Mrs. Pool. For TWO reasons. The first is, I know you cheated. So everyone get out a sheet of paper and write one of the following three things 1 - I did not cheat 2 - I cheated by looking off of someone's paper 3 - I cheated using notecards, book, etc. I told them if they fessed up and were on the cheat sheet I wouldn't call their parents. But if they didn't fess up and were on the cheat list, I was going to call their parents.* So I made them pass all of those in . THEN, I went off of them again. I said *Not only did you cheat....but if you're going to cheat, at least be smart enough to cheat off someone who knows what their doing!!! So not only did you cheat...but you cheated and risked a zero on your test, suspension, a call to your parents, etc...and you STILL got an F. So was it worth it??? THEN, I went off on them for all flunking the test. I told them that test was at least HALF memorization, and they'd known it was coming weeks ahead of time. I told them that I knew EVERY ONE OF THEM was capable of making a C or better on the test. That I CARED about their grades and what they knew. And that in Mrs. Pool's room it was NOT acceptable to say *Oh, well its hard....I don't care if I flunk it. I'll just hope the next test is easier.* I told them that we were going to study Ellipses, Circles, Hyperbola's and Parabolas until EVERY ONE OF THEM made a C or better on the test. And that if that was all we studied until the end of the block, that's all we did. And I was going to make them so tired of studying those same things over and over again, that they'd decide it was worth their while to study for the test and pass it. LOL. I sure had some big eyes before I was done. Then I went back and opened all the papers they'd turned in about whether they cheated. I had six kids on the cheat list and 16 kids confessed. LOL. And two of the kids on the cheat list said they didn't.

Friday, August 8, 2008

Wild Night in 2004

The Wildness is still the same when you have as many kids as I do...its just the types of things they get into that changes

Feb 2004 - The kids are 5, 4, 2 and 1 years old.

I had the kids by myself tonight because Bob was running the clock at a Junior High Basketball Tournament. So I made them some dinner. Carlie had not taken a nap at daycare, so I'd put her down for a nap earlier. Before we could eat dinner, I caught Frank sneaking some marshmallows out of the cupboard without asking. He knows this is against in the rules and ended up in a tantrum where I had to hold him down. He hasn't done that in FOREVER. So I put him to bed for a while, and fed Madi and Libby. I made noodles in tomato sauce which everybody loves. By the time they were finished Carlie was awake, and I let Frank get up.

Frank was eating, and I was feeding Carlie yogurt which is her favorite. I'd just given Carlie a bite or two when Libby comes to tell me that Madi has locked herself in the bathroom (I imagine she had a little help, but can't prove it *wink*). So I have to leave Carlie in the high chair who throws a raging fit because she's not done eating her very favorite food...the yogurt. So I have to hunt up the set of little tiny screw drivers to spring the lock on the bathroom door. It only took about 10 minutes, but by the time I got Madi out she was so hysterical she was broken out all over in hives.

When I go back to check on Carlie...she is happily eating the noodles off of Madi's tray and is wearing them all over her. I guess I should be glad she wasn't eating them off the floor or eating cat food.

I then begin the bathing process. I call it a process because bathing four kids under the age of six is NEVER a simple chore. Since the bad incident a few weeks ago where Madi pooped in the tub while Libby was in it, Madi has had a phobia about poop in the tub. I had put Carlie into the tub first, and some of the noodles in her hair washed down into the tub. So when I tried to put Madi in the tub she started bawling hysterically again screaming *No Poop, No Poop, Carlie Pooped.* SOOO...I had to drain the tub with Carlie in it and refill it with clean water. At least now I have two kids clean.....two to go. Libby is in and out quickly and easily, and I am glad of this. Then I assume that Frank will be easy too. Well he was...except for the fact that Madi had gone back into the bathroom when I wasn't looking and threw a roll of toilet paper into his bathwater. Frank's supposed to have the door locked while he's in the tub to prevent such accidents from happening.

SOOOOO....I get all that cleaned up. In the mean time, I am about a month behind on Foster Care Logs which I'm trying to get caught up by Wednesday. Libby's teacher sends home a poster TODAY saying she's the Student of the Week this week and please put pictures and captions on it BY YESTERDAY. Hmmm...how do you do that one? And Frank's homeroom teacher calls while I am dishing Toilet Paper out of his bath water to ask me to please bring two bags of chips to his Valentine's Party on Friday.

Bob walks in the door a few minutes later and cheerfully says *Hi Honey, how was your day?* and can't figure out why I looked daggers at him. LOLOLOL.

Granny's Response

Oh well, those are the happy times you will remember twenty years from now. LOL Love, Mom

Aunt JoLynn's Response

Hahahaha! I am dying laughing at Madi not wanting to get in the tub cause she thought Carlie pooped in there!!

Thursday, August 7, 2008

Tater - Part II - Life after Kids

Tater never really did adjust to the idea that there were kids in our home! For the most part she would just hide out somewhere and avoid them. Tater also never adjusted to my Mom. Over the years, my Mom tried REPEATEDLY to win that cat over. However, every time my Mom tried to pet her, it usually ended with Tater biting my Mom. Tater just had this look that said "I HATE YOU!!!"

When Frank was 5 he instructed Granny, that he could now pet Tater. But only sometimes. He can pet Tater when her ears are pointed up...but when her ears are pointed down...then you'd better not pet her. LOL. That boy had her figured out

Monday, August 4, 2008

July Quotes

If anything goes bad, I did it. If anything goes semi-good, then We did it. If anything goes real good, then You did it. That's all it takes to get people to win football games for you - Paul Bryant
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Stop telling God how big your storm is - Instead tell your storm how big your GOD is. - Unknown
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Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail. --- Ralph Waldo Emerson
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My mom used to say it doesn't matter how many kids you have... because one kid'll take up 100% of your time so more kids can't possibly take up more than 100% of your time. ~Karen Brown

Sunday, August 3, 2008

Cleaning the Kitchen When the Kids were Little

This was written when Frank was 5, Libby was 4, Madi was 2 and Carie was a newborn.

We have been cleaning the kitchen. We had so much fun. I gave Frank, Libby and Madi all wipes and they wiped down EVERYTHING. I get the cheap orange spray at the Dollar Store for a $1 for a big bottle. We used about half of one. LOL. Madi was right in the middle saying *I want some spray. I want some spray.* Then I got out the mops. I had two good ones. So I used one, and I set the timer on the stove for five minutes. So they each got to mop five minutes, and the one who wasn't mopping got to water my flowers.

Now my kitchen is sparkly clean. I didn't want to mess the floors up, so I sent the big kids outside to eat with a picnic.

Saturday, August 2, 2008

Snack Wars - Part III


For our third installment, we'll talk about the case of the missing Push-Up. I had purchased a box of them from the Schwann Man, and they were SO good. The kids loved them. I let them each eat one.

About an hour later, Madi came and told us that Frank had gotten another one out of the freezer (with out asking) and was eating it. Frank knew that she was going to go tell on him. I hollered at him to come in. He comes in with empty hands and his best innocent look on. I ask him if he'd eaten a second Push Up and the halo on his head practically GLOWED as he said "Well no, I didn't eat another Push Up.!!"

Madi chimes in "He did have a second one and he put it in the trash outside!" Well Frank is smart enough to know when the gig is up. He confessed.

Now Frank is a GERM-A-PHOBE. He cannot tolerate eating or drinking after anyone else, and he's easily grossed out. Bob made him retrieve the offending Push Up. It had one bite taken out of it, and was slightly dirty from its brief visit to the trash can. Bob made him eat it....dirt and all.

Frank tried to die, but did manage to get it down. Actually I think once he got the dirt licked off of it, he rather enjoyed it. I don't think he's swiped anything out of the freezer again.

We'll have to wait and see what the next saga of the Snack Wars will be. I'm sure there'll be more to come.

Friday, August 1, 2008

Tater - Part I - The College Years


When I went away to college for the first time, I was living in a small apartment in Student Housing at K-State. I was very lonesome…missing my family and my pets. I was not allowed to have pets in my 1 bedroom apartment. I tried taking my young Siamese Cat, Moses, with me. However, he was so wild, I was afraid someone would hear him in my apartment and turn me in. So I sent him back home with Mom and Dad.

I was hoping that I could find an older, quieter cat that I could keep in the apartment. Mom came to visit one day and brought in a large package in a JC Penny’s bag. I set it on the floor and inside was a cat carrier with a beautiful silver Persian Cat inside. The cat’s name was Tater. Mom had had the cat for over a week, and had kept it secret for a surprise. She said in that week she’d tried and tried to win Tater’s affections, but any time she tried to pet the cat, Tater would bite her!

For the first few days, Tater hid out under the bed. If I tried to get her out, she would hiss at me. Then one day I came home and all of my kitchen scrubbies and a pair of folded socks were in the middle of the living room floor. I knew the cat had to have done it, as she and I were the only ones in the apartment. I put everything back up, and the next day they were all back in a neat pile in the living room again!!

One day I was sitting on the couch and hear the most awful racket. Tater comes into the living room with a pair of my rolled up socks in her mouth, and she’s meowing this pitiful meow!! I guess that maybe she had had white kittens at some point, and maybe she thought she was carrying around a lost kitten or something.

As she got comfortable with me, we became friends. But she soon started another bizarre behavior. She started running around my apartment in the middle of the night like her tail was on fire. She would zip from one end of the apartment to the other over and over again. I lived upstairs, and I wasn’t supposed to have any pets in the apartment. She sounded like a herd of buffalos running through my apartment. I tried several different things to get her to stop. I tried feeding her. I tried shutting my bedroom door, and I tried holding her in bed with me. None of these worked. One night out of desperation, I took her and got her wet in the bath tub. She had to lick herself dry, which took a while….and hence ended the wild running.
The whole time I lived in that apartment I had to wet her down on a regular basis.

When I went home to visit Mom and Dad, I didn’t want to leave Tater in the apartment by herself. Again, I was afraid that the people downstairs would hear her and know that since I wasn’t home there must be an animal up there. So I took her with me. To sneak her in and out of the apartment, I would put her in the cat carrier and then cover it up in the JC Penny’s bag. We did this for TWO YEARS and never got caught.

I had not been in my new apartment very long when the Air Conditioning went out of my Pontiac Fiero. I didn’t have the money to fix it. Riding around with the windows down wasn’t really a problem for me, but poor Tater had a thick and long fur coat. When I would take her in the car with me to go home for a weekend, she’d get over heated and start panting. To fix this problem, I began packing her cat carrier with ice packs, and that kept her cool. I enjoyed her company so much those two years. She helped keep me from getting lonely.

When I graduated from college and began traveling, I took her with me on the plane. Tater was a very good traveler!!! One time when I was flying with her, we had to change flights in a major airport. I had heard horror stories about pets getting lost when planes where changed. I asked the flight attendants repeatedly if my cat had made it onto the plane. I refused to take a seat on the plane until I knew that Tater had made it safely aboard. Finally the flight attendant told me that if I would just get on the plane she’d let me know when my cat arrived. So I’m sitting in my seat…still worrying….and they announce over the intercom. “To the passenger in seat 3A, your cat has now safely arrived on the airplane and we can depart from the gate.” I wanted to crawl under the seat!!

We had a lot of good adventures together.

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