404 Error
It seems that we have an error here in our town... the "cheap" gas station (you know, the one that is ALWAYS lower than everywhere else) is now up to $4.04 for a gallon of gas. Sigh. I know there are places where it's higher than this, but it's still annoying! I'm afraid we've had to cancel all of our travel plans for the summer. It's just too expensive to drive home. We were going to take a little day trip tomorrow, but we've scaled that back to something more local. I try not to go out and run errands more than once or twice a week. We're doing everything we can to make each tank last for as long as possible.
What is the price of gas in your area? Are you changing any of your summer plans because of the cost? Or are you still going to do the things you'd planned? Has it affected your every day living at all?
Enquiring minds want to know...

Round is a Shape
So, I've gained a little weight... again... and I'm trying to get motivated to get up and get moving. It's harder than I thought it would be. I'll admit it - I like being lazy. I enjoy lounging around, reading books, messing around on the computer, and in general, doing nothing. Of course, the health benefits to this type of lifestyle are fairly limited. Okay, really, they are nonexistent. So, I'm trying to get motivated. And so, I turn to you, blogging buddies. I have a few questions that I'd love for you to answer if you get a moment...
What is your favorite healthy meal?
What about healthy snacks?
What do you do for exercise?
Do you stick to the same routine?
Or do you like to change it up?
How do you stay motivated to reach your goals?(Not just weight loss goals... any goals)
I know I can do this. I've done it in the past and I want to do it again. Any thing you can share with me would be much appreciated!

It's Curtains for You!
I live in a desert. It was 113 the other day. And in the summer it doesn't cool down at night. Sometimes our low temperature for the day only reaches the mid 90's. And so, you can see why our air conditioner runs. A lot. And our power bills? They make me want to cry.
So, we've been trying to think of ways to help save money. We're renting right now, so it can't be anything permanent. Our thermostat is set at 81 during the day and 78 for night. We have blinds in all the windows, but they really don't seem to help that much. The other day I put up curtain's in my boys room. I used white corduroy - hoping that the white would help reflect some of the heat. I don't know if you can really see the top... I cut off the tops of some old blue jeans - buttoned them together and then sewed them to the top of the curtain. Not that this helps save energy, I just love the way it looks!And then we tried something. We bought some Mylar blankets - the kind that you find in the camping section at the store. And I got some strong magnets or earth magnets. And I hung the Mylar between the blinds and the curtains using the magnets.
It has made a huge difference! I did this in Baby Girl's room too and I can't believe how much cooler these two rooms feel. Hopefully we will be able to do this in the dining room and living room too.
So, do you have any tricks for keeping your home cool during the summer and saving a little money along the way?

And then! Oh, the noise! Oh, the Noise! Noise! Noise! Noise!
Sunday night we got a phone call from one of Red's friends. Both of his parents were scheduled to work Monday night and they were wondering if he could stay here. "Sure, no problem!" I said, wanting to help out where I could. So, he came over. They played PlayStation for awhile and then it was time for bed.
Yeah, right.
They talked. And they talked and they talked and they talked. And, while Red's friend is a nice kid, he has no idea how to whisper. Red's not the greatest at it either. So, the noise level started out fairly normal, but usually grew to a roar. I've never said "SHH!" so many times in one evening.
And then, to add insult to injury, they were up at 5:15 giggling. And trying to whisper, but it wasn't really happening. And they got louder and louder and I finally got up, threatened them with their very lives, and crawled back into bed. But Red's friend just can't seem to keep the noise to a level considered normal and the "Shh"-ing began again.
Right now, Red is in the shower. And his friend? Quiet as a mouse. Me? I should go back to bed. I'm feeling a tad on the Grinch-y side and a little more sleep would help. But, Red will be out of the shower in a minute and the noise will begin. Again.
At least they'll head off to school in an hour or so... but they'll probably wake up Little Bug (who went to sleep around 10:30 last night) and Baby Girl (who seems to be getting sick and was up half the night with a stuffy nose and a cough). And those two will be so fun to be with! Sleep deprived and a tad on the sick side. Sounds like a recipe for a house full of Grinches to me. Should be a good day!

At a Glance
Do you ever read something out of the corner of your eye and totally misunderstand what is written? For example, in the BlogHer ads on the right hand side, there was a link that said "Bloggers Unite for Human Rights..." . Now, I just kinda glanced at it... and I'm tired... so I hope you'll forgive me when I say that I did a double take because I thought it said "Bloggers URINATE for Human Rights".
And yeah. I can see how that could bring some temporary relief, but really, it's not a long lasting solution. Don't you agree?
I think I need more sleep. Who knows what will pop up in my sidebar tomorrow if I continue to be sleep deprived...

When Does it Come Out On DVD?
Yep. It was that good. It came out yesterday. We saw it this morning and I'm already wondering when we'll be able to get the DVD.

Prince Caspian was an AWESOME movie! Lots of changes from the book, but I still loved it!
Have you seen it? Are you going to see it? Give me your thoughts...

It's Still Me
Some of you have noticed the new avatar... sorry for the confusion. Most of you are used to seeing some kind of frog next to my name. Unfortunately, I can't find a picture of a frog that I really love right now. So, instead, you get this picture of my eyes and a Gerber daisy. And no. My eyes aren't that blue... it was just too fun to play with the tinting feature on Photobucket!
So, don't be afraid... don't hide from the new avatar, it's just me. I'll get back to the frogs as soon as I can find a picture that I love!

Google Me This
It always amazes me the things that bring people to my blog...
orbert skye - author of the Leven Thumps books... pretty good, but not my favorite
http://mejojacspot.blogspot.com/ - Seriously? I really want to know why you are Googling my blog address... wouldn't it be easier to just put it in the box up top?? I'm just sayin...
mejojac - Yep. That's me...
costco cheesecake factory cheesecake topping ideas - we used fresh blueberries... cooked them down into a sauce... so good!
royal icing tiara - I get lost of searches for this... again, go here... here and here and the actual instructions are here
mormon green bracelet - I have no idea what this is about... my son has one of those wrist band things that is green...
dobby sturgis motorcycle - Um... is this really on my blog somewhere?? Probably in different posts... maybe... I think...
we're sorry, but the number you have - Red's friend has gotten so much better about not calling so much. It's been nice
memosfamily party - I'm always up for a party! Who'd like to come?
knuckles splitting - I never did find a lotion that worked REALLY well. Some worked okay for awhile, but nothing really great...
green frog in lettuce bag mexican - this was one of my all time favorite pictures!!

Sorry the picture is so big... I wanted you to be able to see the frog...
it feels like someone is sitting on my chest - I'm sorry... been there, done that. Feel better soon or push whomever is sitting on your chest off...
space mountain kids scary disneyland - yep. Red freaked out... but in the end he LOVED IT!
blogher dentist crowns my temporary 2008 - after THREE permanent crowns, they finally got it right. As I walked out of the office they tried to set up TWO MORE APPOINTMENTS. I laughed!
knock-off recipe for pf changs lettuce wraps - Oh, Amber sent me a link for these... they weren't exact, but they were still good! Go here...
canning jar vases - they do make really pretty vases... as seen here...
i hope your day is going good vs well - ack! A grammar thing! BE GONE!! I don't know nothing about good grammar...

And that's it for this edition of "Google Me This!" (It's supposed to be a play on words from Batman... the Riddler always says "Riddle me this...". Yeah. It's kind of lame... )

No More Monkeys Jumping on the Bed
We've had our mattress for about 10 years. Honestly - I bought it at a yard sale. The guy said he had bought it a few months earlier and was now having to move to New York and was trying to get rid of most of his furniture and then he'd start out new once he got there. He asked $50 for it... I got him to throw in a set of dishes and we had a deal. You see, we had been sleeping on a full size water bed. But, the bed had been modified or something... so it wasn't actually as big as a full size bed, but not quite as small as a twin. It was very uncomfortable and we really needed a regular mattress.
Now, this mattress was nothing fancy. It was a lovely turquoise color and the coloring bled through the mattress cover and into the sheets for the first while. Lovely. But, we were college students and we took what we could get. It was just fine for many years. But, recently it had developed some dips and odd curves and lumps. Another added bonus was the chorus of squeaking and creaking springs every time you moved. I was waking up each day with back trouble. Neither of us felt like we were getting a good nights sleep. And so, we decided to suck it up and get a new mattress. But, what to do with the old one?
Why, drag it out in the living room and let the kids jump on it of course!
They got to do this under one condition: they would NEVER EVER jump on the new bed! So far we haven't had any trouble... and the kids had a ball jumping on the bed for a few hours before the guys came and hauled it away. It was almost tempting to keep around... but it just didn't match the living room, so it had to go...
And we got a great deal on the new mattress. I'm sleeping better and having less trouble with my back (knock on wood).
But watching the kids jump around made me miss our trampoline. We all used to go out and jump for hours when we lived in Oregon. Now our yard is too small to set the darn thing up. Someday I hope we'll be able to set it up again... someday... but for now, I'll just have to keep them off the bed!