Moving

Yep, I have found a small, one bedroom house that is perfect for the puppies and me. It is even so close to work that I can walk. All I have to do is climb Mt. Crumpit.

It has a small yard so Millie can go out and bark to her hearts content. This place is less expensive than the apartment. So life is getting better.

More details later.

Long days and pleasant nights

Let's do the timewarp

Have you ever been surprised by Memories? Last night I was going thru pictures and stuff to find something for a new project. While digging in an undocumented stash of pictures, I came upon a cluster of papers from my freshman year at TU.

What a timewarp. There was a letter that had been handed out to us along with the flight itenerary, hotel info and rehearsal schedule for the Washington trip. Right on top of that was the review from the Dallas newspaper that compared me (Tammie Smith) to a young Bernadette Peters. Oh my, has it really been 22ish years since that happened? On the back of this copied article was a letter that I had written to a friend. It talks about a date I had the previous weekend with someone intelligent and a Stephen King fan. He was an English major. I'll be damned if I can remember who that was. Obviously not much has changed about me... still huge King fan and well, I guess since the letter is in my stuff, it was never mailed - again not much of a change for me. lol

It was fun. I found myself laughing and I guess I had that corny smile a person always gets when the past surprises them.

Long Days and Pleasant Nights...

Bestest Aunt Tammie Ever

I had a pretty exciting weekend.

It began with what was supposed to be an uneventful and boring cleaning of the inside of my car. I placed the puppies on their harnesses and took them with me. I thought they would like being outside with Mommie. It was all fun until another resident decided to walk her rather large canine within the view of my puppies. Millie and Toby raised hell barking. I realized the sound of the barking was greatly reduced, looked and Toby had magically broken free of his harness. He tore out ready to eat the canine that was at least 800 times his size. Once he reached this horrible creature, the barking seized instantly and he looked at me totally confused. He had caught it, now what?... was the look on his face. Needless to say, they were both taken inside the apt for the duration of the cleaning.

Then we went to Petco to have their toes trimmed. Toby pooped in the lobby, Millie tried to bite one of the dachshund manicurists. Then when that didn't work, she peed on her. Needless to say, Petco was happy to see us leave.

In the midst of this drama...I was named "The Bestest Aunt Tammie EVER!" I also received 4 unrequested hugs. Not just hugs, great, big, bear hugs. All I had to do was take her a basket that turned into a cage for her animals, a princess doll, one blinking princess crown, one pair of high-heeled princess shoes and one princess wand.

The Barber Cut Off was yesterday. T came up and helped us. We had a blast. We laughed heartily at the woman that dropped food all over Cindy and actually accused Cindy of being rude because she didn't give her an autograph before cleaning up the food and carrying it to a chair for her. Anywho, we had fun and everyone actually thought T was nice and fun. I think she drugged them...

Last night I decided to place two quilts under the sheet on the transformer bed. It is getting rather hard on my back. It was fun making the bed with a puppy playing chase under the sheet. You should try it sometime. Seriously, I have a puppy you can borrow for the chase.

Long days and pleasant nights...

Week in Review

What an interesting week. Out of the blue I'm going to get to see WILLIE. OMG For a better description of how that feels just mosie on over to the Dancehall - JoJo's Dancehall, that is. I'm not as jazzed about the Pat Green part as she is. I mean he's an awesome entertainer and all, but the part I'm dying for is to actually be front-row-center for WILLIE. The Red Headed Stranger, one of the Highway Men, the Willie of Waylon, Willie and the Boys... the OMG I get to be so close to Willie I will actually be able to feel the sweat fly off his face... excitement that I can't explain if you don't know Willie. Also did I mention that I get to make my first trip to the Armpit and get to stay at Aunty Kathy's B&B? That's exciting too.

As you see here, I'm now the "Manager of the Year." Actually the envelope said "Employee of the Month" but signs in the parking lot don't lie, right? I have proof! Anywho, the best part of that day was the free ice cream. The ice cream truck makes an appearance on occasion. This occasion, according to the GM, was my being named "Manager of the Year!" or maybe he said it was a big thank you for the excellent team coverage of the PGA. My eyes were hurting, so it was a bit fuzzy. Those of you who are Reagan fans can understand "fuzzy". Did I mention that I have my very own parking place, with my name on it? This also makes me eligible for Employee of the Year. That's a popularity vote, so don't count on me getting it. However, it is a great excuse to get Daddy into a suit and take him to the Country Club for our company Christmas party. I do need a date...

Tonight I accidently watched a biography about Elvis. This was an interesting one that I haven't seen before. It was actually home movies very well blended with family members talking about memories. They also played the exact perfect Elvis song at the exact perfect time. I actually cried at the end. Those of you who grew up in a household with a mother like mine will understand. We can tell you almost anything you ever didn't want to know about that man. I do love his music. I am sad that the fans (in my opinion) led him to his unintentional overdose. The worse part is that since Elvis has been gone 30 years now, that means it is getting close to that anniversary for John Lennon. Lennon is my Elvis. But not to distract from this anniversay... the world lost one of the greatest artists ever Aug 16, 1977.

A couple other things to note: Hayden has completed his first full week of school. He didn't want to go to school the first day. In fact, his momma had to carry him in. Since then though, school isn't so bad. Evidently you get to color and play. He has also been promoting Frank. I guess now I work for Frank, at least that's what Hayden says. He also refused to allow everyone to begin eating Monday night because he decided that Aunt Tammie was driving to Calester to eat with the family. (this is where we all say AAAAHHHHH)

Zeke came to visit Sunday. He was so cute playing with Millie.

Nicole is hard at working checking students back in for another semester at OU.

Long days and pleasant nights.

Stitchless!

Wow, it's already been 10 days since I had my eyes treated for Basset Hound syndrome. Today the doctor gave me the all clear to continue with the ice packs and being extra careful in the shower. =)
He said I look absolutely fabulous (you really must sing that last word) and the last of the bruising and swelling will be gone before I know it. He took away the stitches that were still there. I was also instructed to begin using vitamin E oil as often as I think about it.

Long days and pleasant nights to ye.

Catching Up...

Maybe I'm not as tough as I once thought. Nor do I bounce back as well as Nannie. This is me a full 7 days after the Basset Hound Eye removal. Perhaps it was not such a good idea to head back to work Tuesday and Wednesday. Anywho, this morning I gave in and decided to stay at home the rest of the week. Sorry Clint.

In other news...

Nicole does not have ulcers! Hooray. This is her minutes before she went under the uhm tube for the upper and lower GI testing. Bless her heart, the medicine that was intended to clean out her bowels - cleaned out that plus her tummy. By the time she was taken back for an IV she was so dehydrated that it took a couple of sticks to find a good vein. She is now on a high fiber diet. Resident Advisors reported to work this week. Sorority girls moved in today. Nicole is working very hard to make sure things run smoothly. That includes the mopping. She also reports that thanks to that new Toyota Rav4 - the move from her summer residence to her fall residence was about 100 times easier.

Other things that have happened in the last week...

Look who's FOUR! Hayden had a swim party. Of course Aunt Tammie bought all the required accessories to begin his Tee Ball training. I'm certain he will be the star player next spring.

The family came to Patty and Jimmy's after the party. Millie was so good with Zeke. He just cackled when she walked by. She kept trying to get him to play with her like Hayden and Sinclaire. Unfortunately, he can't crawl as fast as they run. But they did get along very well. The funniest part of the afternoon was when Zeke climbed up on Papa's lap and painted his face with a chocolate donut. For some reason he didn't was that jar of baby food Mooma tried to feed him after the donut.

Ok, back to the ice pack... Long days and pleasant nights to ye.

Why Did God Make Big Sisters?

I've wondered my whole life just why God placed me in a family that already had one daughter. I mean I am so damn special, yet she thought it necessary to give me to a family that, well, was already a family. Should I also mention how bossy that big sister has always been at this point or later?

Anyway, over the last 11 years especially I've grown to understand just what the Supreme Being was doing. Let me digress...

My mom has always told me that I have angels working overtime - literally 24/7 to keep me safe. It isn't easy. I've always been curious. I'm not sure when the bi-polar really began, Cherie swears it was waaaayyyyy before college. In a nutshell I think I'm fun - others are pretty certain I'm nuts.

Only in the last few years have I discovered the watchful angel that is actually human. That angel is indeed my big sister, Patty.

She is always putting things aside when I call and ask for a favor. Trust me, that happens often. For example, I don't remember the last time I totally packed all of my stuff or even half of my stuff to move. Patty is always there. She seems to even be there when I don't ask.

Do sisters have telepathy power? I think so, primarily because the three of us somehow always know when one is needing a shoulder or Pepsi/Diet Coke.

Last week Patty kept Toby and Millie for me. I had a minor procedure done on my eyes. (Too gruesome to go into here) The procedure took place on Friday. She spent the night with me the night before. Oh and I'll insert here that while on our way from her house to my apt. Renie called for help. She had an ingrown toenail removed an hour or so earlier and couldn't drive. Did Patty say "No. Tammie and I are in Muskogee at least an hour from you, figure it out"? No, she said, pull over and we'll be there as quickly as possible. See - Angel.

Anyway, Friday morning she gave me cereal and oddly went out to buy coffee, instructing me not to make any. (She later revealed that she tricked me into drinking decaf) Then I took the valium and well the next 2 days are quite blurry.

This is basically what I looked like Friday afternoon until Sunday around noon. Patty made sure I was fed and the ice stayed cold and the medications properly applied. Jimmy was thrilled to have me there, Patty cooked every meal. =)

One more thing, she has now had Toby and Millie almost two weeks. She didn't want me to go up and down the stairs more than necessary yet. And here's the kicker - she is allergic to dogs. Angel...

So, I'll end this 'Ode de Patty' with a huge THANKS BIG SISTER!
I'll never be the big sister Patty is.

Don't argue, who did Renie call for help? =)
Long days and pleasant nights to ye ... And never forget the face of your father - if you are as lucky as Renie and me, your big sis won't let you.

PS: Jo, I did have to edit the first paragraph, somehow Gan appeared...