Radios and Chicken Parmesean
Today I went to pick up the truck from the mechanic. It’s gorgeous:

The radio still needs to go in next week to be fixed.  When they took it on the test drive, they turned off the radio to listen for any odd noises the truck might have made. They didn’t realize that the radio was never on…. So they’re contracting an auto sound company to fix it.
There were 13,000 dollars worth of damage and it only cost me a 275 dollar deductible. Quite incredible.  Plus, they gave us a lot of all new upgrades. The collision center I picked the truck up from was an hour away from where we live. So my sister in law and I stopped at a gas station on the way home for food. There was a huge restaurant in the pit stop  so we sat down and ordered.
Apparently it was owned by a family fresh off the boat from Sicily. They had the thickest accents and made a mean chicken parmesean.Who’d have guessed at some small town mid west town we’d find authentic Sicilian food.

So that’s the story until now. Writer’s block is preventing me from saying anything of interest. Go to church this weekend and  celebrate the sacrifice your Savior made for you. Watch The Passion even if it makes you cry.
Thank God for what He did for you.

Letters from an Occupant

So today’s ruling on the constitution vs the liberals left told us very little news. Basically there’s nothing new to report. So what part of the constitutionis unclear? The part that says “The right” or the part that says “to bear arms”? If a ban were to be placed on guns in any of the states, the only people who would  own guns would be the criminals. Law abiding citizens would  be without and with less means to defend themselves. I’m not saying that kids should be packing heat in their backpacks on a daily basis, but I firmly stand by the right of any well educated American to own a weapon. Derek and I keep a handgun in our nightstand and a shot gun in our closet. I dare you to break into our house at night. DARE YOU.  Knowing that there’s a chance that a homeowner  could have a gun in their immediate possession, would you feel comfortable breaking into their home? How about after guns are banned? A little more confident? *sighs*

A friend of mine was debating the issue with me saying that the placement of the comma in the constitution is what made their point unclear, thus sparking this entire debate.

New subject:

 I’ve been working on the remodeling process of the downstairs bathroom in my inlaws house for the past few weeks. We began the tile yesterday and will work to finish it today.  Its not hard, it’s just slow and tedious. After you put each piece up, you have to check *EVERY* SINGLE grout line to make sure EVERYTHING is straight.  Then if you have to cut that piece at all, you have to measure and cut 1800 times to get it JUST RIGHT. Either way, it’s really rewarding to  see it all come together.

It’s been making me think about work on my own house. It’s only 6 months until we move into our little house in the country. (It’s current tenant has NO sense of curb appeal.)  But it belonged to my great grandparents  and I’m looking forward to owning it myself. It’s got some areas that need fixing and painting, but I’m eager to work on all that.

New pictures and videos of the kids  posted.

Warning: MUSHY STUFF AHEAD

Dear Love,

I can’t wait to remodel the bathroom of the house we’ll be moving into when you come back. I want to build our house together. It’s what I’ve dreamed of doing since the day I met you seven years ago. I want to build a house filled with love and the laughter of our children. I want to wake up every morning with the sunlight peaking through the blinds of our bedroom windows shining on our faces. I want to open my eyes and see your mouth open and drooling as you sleep comfortably next to me. I love our crazy, passionate, comfortable love. After two and a half years of marriage, I still want no one else but you.

Happy (belated) PI Day

(Edit: This post was technically written on 3/14. I just didn’t get around to posting it till after midnight. So happy (belated) Pi Day.)

It’s Albert Einstein’s birthday, and to celebrate you should go to http://www.scienceteecher.com/ and buy t-shirts that are smarter than the average American.

Speaking of smarts,  let’s talk politics. I won’t lie, my candidate (Huckabee) is out of the race and I’m heartbroken, but it’s time to buck up and move on. Who’s the next best selection? Well, only one of the three current candidates is prolife, but to be fair, let’s look at the next important issue: money.

I’ll be the first to admit that I am not a fan of McCain, but we need someone other then our two Dem candidates and Ron Paul is pretty far behind in the running.

Proposed changes in taxes after 2008 General election:

CAPITAL GAINS TAX

MCCAIN 15% (no change)

OBAMA 28%

CLINTON 24%

How does this affect you? If you sell your home and make a profit, you will pay 28% of your gain on taxes. If you are heading toward retirement and would like to down-size your home or move into a retirement community, 28% of the money you make from your home will go to taxes. This proposal will adversely affect the elderly who are counting on the income from their homes as part of their retirement income.

DIVIDEND TAX

MCCAIN 15% (no change)

OBAMA 39.6%

CLINTON 39.6%

How will this affect you? If you have any money invested in stock market, IRA, mutual funds, college funds, life insurance, retirement accounts, or anything that pays or reinvests dividends, you will now be paying nearly 40% of the money earned on taxes if Obama or Clinton become president. The experts predict that “Higher tax rates on dividends and capital gains would crash the stock market yet do absolutely nothing to cut the deficit.”

INCOME TAX

MCCAIN (no changes) Single making 30K – tax $4,500 Single making 50K – tax $12,500 Single making 75K – tax $18,750 Married making 60K- tax $9,000 Married making 75K – tax $18,750 Married making 125K – tax $31,250

OBAMA (reversion to pre-Bush tax cuts) Single making 30K – tax $8,400 Single making 50K – tax $14,000 Single making 75K – tax $23,250 Married making 60K – tax $16,800 Married making 75K – tax $21,000 Married making 125K – tax $38,750

CLINTON (reversion to pre-Bush tax cuts) Single making 30K – tax $8,400 Single making 50K – tax $14,000 Single making 75K – tax $23,250 Married making 60K – tax $16,800 Married making 75K – tax $21,000 Married making 125K – tax $38,750

How does this affect you? No explanation needed. This is pretty straight forward.

INHERITANCE TAX

MCCAIN 0% (No change, Bush repealed this tax)

OBAMA keep the inheritance tax

CLINTON keep the inheritance tax

How does this affect you? Many families have lost businesses, farms and ranches, and homes that have been in their families for generations because they could not afford the inheritance tax. Those willing their assets to loved ones will only lose them to these taxes.

NEW TAXES BEING PROPOSED BY BOTH CLINTON AND OBAMA

* New government taxes proposed on homes that are more than 2400 square feet

* New gasoline taxes (as if gas weren’t high enough already)

* New taxes on natural resources consumption (heating gas, water, electricity)

* New taxes on retirement accounts

* New taxes to pay for socialized medicine so we can receive the same level of medical care as other third-world countries!!! Can you afford Clinton or Obama?

Bodily Fluids and Decorating

 One thing I was never able to handle: bodily fluids. Blood is fine, anything else is a vomit factor. Which is why when my very sick, nearly 2 year old daughter hurled all over my bedroom floor, I felt a little ill. I noticed a long time ago that being a mom changes everything, including the level of grossness we’re forced to handle. I’d like to say I wouldn’t change my position for the world, but when puke is involved, the job seems slightly lackluster.   Needless to say, unprecedented cleaning ensued. Germ freak.

 Lately, I’ve been helping my inlaws with remodeling their bathroom. I got to look at tile and tear walls apart. it’s really got me dreaming about flipping houses again. Am I the only person who gets such a kick out of mundane activities? Plumbing isn’t terribly hard when things don’t leak. It’s no wonder  plumbers don’t care about arriving at your house promptly at the time they tell you they will. They make such a huge dollar amount for a relatively easy job and have the leisure of telling folks they’ll be there between the hours of 8-5.

 Meanwhile,  I’ve gotten back into decorating mode. I currently have 180 dollars worth of yummies in the “wish list” bin on www.ltdcommodities.com .
Amanda has three modes of neurotic  upset:
1. Insane Cleaning
2. Manic Decorating
3. Total Meltdown
If I get vomited on again, we might just see a level three.

I’ve heard from Derek again and for all you family members: he’s safe still. He’s working 12+ hour shifts and getting very little sleep.

There’s nothing more to say aside from “GO TAKE A SHOWER” because baby vomit is gross.

Here’s Cait pre-vomit. Yep, she’s wearing my bra.

So Much More to Say

(Disclaimer: a friend told me to pour my heart out on these pages, not to keep my feelings hidden on my private xanga. So here they are for all to see. Take it as you will.)

It’s been days since I spoke to him, and yet I’m attempting to keep the panic and heart break out of my voice when I speak, out of my eyes when I look at his family.  I hug the kids a little too tightly hoping some of his past hugs will squeeze out into them and they’re clearly getting tired of me smothering their faces with my lips. 

I only feel this way at night. It’s the reason I can’t sleep. My insomnia aides in a late night and my son provides me with unrealistically early mornings. When midnight comes and I see the empty pillow next to me, when there’s no one there to kiss goodnight it hurts deep inside my chest much deeper than a physical pain. I’ve never realized just how much  I depend upon him to sit next to me. Feeling his presence in the room has never meant so much and I wonder how I was so strong and confident before we were married. Was there always a gaping hole in my chest and I was simply blind to it? How did I manage to remain so successful, so busy, so seemingly happy before my husband and I married? I remember being a confidant woman who depended solely upon herself to make her future happen. So now, why do I feel broken? Why do I feel like I shouldn’t fall asleep only to wake up alone tomorrow?  I only feel this way at night when I can hear my loneliness in my ears.

The day time is fine. My kids sit beside me and I busy myself with cleaning up after them and reading Dr. Seuss to Caitlyn. I tickle Aidan and marvel at how grown up he’s becoming and how much his smile belongs to his father. Their laughter and screams dilude the sound of my aching heart and although I complain of how my hands are so full, I wouldn’t change it. I know women have done this for centuries and with less means of technology to contact their spouses beforehand. I realize just how lucky I am to hear from him even once a week, but it doesn’t make the pain easier. When the mate to your soul is gone, a phone call won’t fill the void. You can feel it as though a physical pressure is bearing upon your chest.

Derek called tonight, but only for a few minutes. He wanted me to know that he was safe and to hear how the kids were doing. I only asked God to give me a few minutes more on the phone, but I’m selfish. It wasn’t enough. It wouldn’t have been enough if we’d had 50  minutes, I’ve got so much more to say. It won’t be enough until he’s home in my arms. And even then, will I fully appreciate him? I notice his absence now and how much it means to me, but how long will it take after he returns for me to take his presences for granted again?  

See Ya Huck

Yeah, my guy is out of the nomination race. I watched his “Peace Out” speech last night.  It’s funny, I could see it happening but denial is a much nicer stance to take. And the funniest part of it all was how excited I was to have a minister in the White House. I loved his  view points and the changes he viewed making, but the word “minister” jumped right out at me. Any other candidate could have had the *exact same* ideals and voting history, plus really white teeth and I still would have chosen the minister first. Funny how one word can change your whole persepective.  

Anyhow, McCain is our guy.  Apparently at www.votechooser.com I’m told I need to vote for  McCain . Cool site, a little too simple to be completely accurate but it gives you an idea of where you should stand.

I was talking to a friend about monopolies when I realized: God has the monopoly on Christianity. Isn’t that against the law? Well apparently The Onion website has already beaten me to this idea. http://www.theonion.com/content/node/28626

Yeah, I know, I could be a comic genius if I wasn’t a buck short all the time.

While I’m on the subject of passing you off to other sites, check out On_my_moon. I love her insightful views involving her family life.  She seems to take things in stride and as an up and coming mom, I can appreciate  that.

Speaking of taking things in stride, I didn’t get to hear from Derek all day today. I know, I know. Waaaaah. Big deal, women go all the time without  hearing from their deployed husbands. I’m just not used to being one of them. But don’t worry, I won’t bore you with the heartwrenching details. Hooray for secret xanga sites.

Todays Xanga Question:

If you could chose one person to be your mentor, who would it be?

I’d say Einstein. Or my grandma.  Maybe I’ll mix and match the two? My grandpa’s pretty cool too. And my mom. And my dad.  (my birthday’s in a few months, ya’ll.) But definitely Einstein. Great hair.

I just answered this Featured Question, you can answer it too!

God loves science.  Go to your little science lab. Keep trying to disprove His existance.  He’ll keep putting bird poop on your windshield.

Today’s xanga question: Do you think living with your significant other before marriage is a good idea?  Why or why not?

Nope. You see, I’m a prude and I think it’s a bad idea.  If you really love your sweetheart enough to move in with them, then you’ll see in advance all the things they do that will piss you off in the future.
IE:
Squeezing the toothpaste from the middle of the tube, not the bottom.
Eating all the bread and leaving you only the heels
Licking a spoon and sticking it back in the drawer
Sticking a finger in your plate of food to see if it’s too hot
Picking their nose and flinging it rather than using a tissue

If you’re married to this person when you move in, you’re stuck together and rather than leaving at the first sign of heeled bread, you’re forced to work it out. Love will keep us together, even through toothpaste conundrums.

I just answered this Featured Question, you can answer it too!

Two

My daughter is 1 3/4 years old. For those of you who don’t have children, she’s blossoming into a two year old. Yay.
 This could be a wonderful experience. When my daughter turned one, I had a tear in my eye as we presented her with a birthday cake and she sweetly smiled at my with bright blue eyes. This year, the only tears will be of frustration as she promptly screams “NO!” to every gift we attempt to hand her.  As my daughter rapidly approaches two, I find myself smacking my own forehead more frequently.
“Why?” I ask. “Why does she do these things???” The only answer? She’s two.
Here, have some mashed potatoes.

Kids are a blast. Only a few years ago, I lived my life without them. Some days, I threaten to strangle them. But all in all, you have no idea what you’re missing until you’ve lived life with a child.

Lately, Caity’s been asking about Daddy. She gets to talk to him in her baby-chinese language when he calls, but she’s definitely been upset by his absence lately. It makes me sad.

On a lighter note, I got to see a video of Mike Huckabee’s band playing “More than A Feeling.” It was a pure drop of awesome.(It’s on youtube.com) You all should know by now that I’ve been a Huckabee fan from the beginning. I’m still under the illusion that he can win. I’ve got all my fingers and toes crossed. Feel free to disagree with me. It’s cool.
A video that makes me laugh: (turn off the music player to hear it.)

The Whole Truth
My father-in-law found this website from a Florida newspaper that  rates  the truthfulness of the major politicians and the statements they make. Someone can campaign for change or world peace and it sounds great. However, in the excitement of it all, do we really check the facts of our favorite politicians? It’s likely not. (what? They have shiney teeth when they smile and we get distracted!) So here’s a helpful site:
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/

  On the other side of this seemingly helpful sight, they have some of the most random comments in there that they’ve rated as truth or non-truth. For example, Huckabee hunted squirrels in college: Truth.
Interesting, sure. Helpful to his campaign? Maybe they’re trying to help him win the redneck vote? I dunno. Just seems kinda pointless.

 I’ve begun learning Spanish in one of the most childlike ways: through a video game. I’m a  huge gamer geek and happened to come across “My Spanish Coach” for the Nintendo DS. Would you believe it’s really helping? My spanish wasn’t the best before I left Texas, but now after a few years of not speaking it, it’s downright non-existent.  So if you too are a gamer geek and wish  to learn a new language, there’s hope for you yet. I’ve also been playing IQ enhancing games.  Do they really enhance your IQ? I don’t know. But on my last IQ test, I’m a mere two points from being a genius damnit and I want those two points BADLY.
Other video games I’m playing lately?
    Legend of Zelda, Phantom Hourglass

     Shiaya Online (free!)

Yeah, my husband is gone and I’m bored.  With all these video games getting in my way, it’s been awfully hard to find the time to exercise and stay fit. I suppose I’d look fine if I was squishy. It’s a risk I’m willing to take.

My kid is a nut:

That’s all!

Party Like A Rockstar
I am officially a xangalebrity. I had more than 90 hits before noon eastern time today. Being so famous now, I suppose I’d better find some paparazzi and make sure I’m not wearing undergarments.  </sarcasm>

Seriously,  Britney Spears is on foxnews.com’s top headlines at least once a week for nothing more than going pantyless or her latest breakdown. Now they’re going to supposedly stop reporting on her because they’re afraid of pushing her over the edge, but I feel *not* giving her the attention she craves will do that job just as well.

 Caitlyn is currently craving the attention of anyone who will read to her. Sure, reading is a good thing, it increases early IQ and sets a path towards intellectualism, but her favorite books are driving the family crazy.  We now own almost EVERY Dr. Seuss book on the market and as soon as each family member walks through the door coming home from work, they are instantly demanded to sit. Caitlyn thrusts her stack of books in this person’s lap as she shouts, “Ba ook? Ba ook? Ba OOK!”

An excerpt from her favorite ba ook:

Through three cheese trees three free fleas flew.
While these fleas flew, freezy breeze blew.
Freezy breeze made these three trees freeze.
Freezy trees made these trees' cheese freeze. 
That's what made these three free fleas sneeze.

The book is currently residing under the couch. 
The kids are taking the deployment relatively well. Caity asks for daddy at night when it comes time for goodnight kisses.  Only 173 more days to go.
Love to all.
PS, Found a comic strip that explains my evenings with Derek: