HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Wishing everyone a wonderul, fun filled Thanksgiving with your loved ones.

Hugs,

Laura

MMMMMMMmmmmmmmm.....

Hot, fresh, homemade chocolate chip cookies. What could be yummier? How about buying them along with other treats on Etsy? I am opening up a "bakery" shop on Etsy. This idea came from Sharon (the fabulous Mana Moon) and I just had to roll with it. I love to bake so it just sounded perfect to me. Sharon and her family have been quite the troopers as I have recently sent them some cookie bars to try out...and not just the taste but the texture and appearance. Fortunately, they didn't get too stale. HAH! And Sharon was so sweet that she created a form to collect feedback and sent some of the cookie bars to work with her husband. I am still shocked by her generosity and, of course, she never seizes to amazed me with her creativity and kindness!!

I will not be ready to open the shop until I have perfected a way to keep the baked goodies fresh. We believe tins are the best way to go and I will be testing them out beginning Black Friday. Let me know if you are interested in trying some goodies; just send me an email with your address and I will send you some sample yummies. I would love to get more feedback. I would also love to send some international. Gee...don't I know someone who lives in Australia? heeheehee.

I was going to attempt to send pre-portioned cookie dough but the cost of shipping refrigerated/frozen items was ridiculous. Just shipping the cookies bars was a bit high but the data that was collected, a few would be willing to buy them. The cookie bars are heavy as are the Peanut Butter Jelly bars (above) and fudge brownies. But, after doing my research, it seems that people are willing to pay a little extra in shipping for homemade yummies!

I am hoping to open the shop by the 6th of December, just in time for the holiday rush. Oh boy :-O. But if it takes off and people are happy then it will be well worth it ;-)

Hope everyone has a wonderful week and enjoy your Thanksgiving with friends and family.

Hugs,
Laura

Thank You!

To all of the men and women who protect this country and our freedom, I thank you with every beat of my heart.

Thank you for being our eyes and ears while we sleep and our hands to feed the hungry when we are unable.

Thank you for protecting our skies so we may once again feel safe to fly with our families.

Thank you for raising toys for the less fortunate so they, too, can have a gift to open Christmas morning.

I know war is a touchy subject and not many want to write about it on their blog...I don't want to share my feelings about war but I do want to share my feelings for our military men and women. Too often people take advantage of their freedom, never thanking those who have sacrificed their lives so they can go to their favorite trendy coffee shops or hang out at the fancy dance clubs...never giving it a thought that, without our troops, their freedom could be stripped away in a heartbeat.

November 27th, 1990, I married a United States Marine *OO-RAH*. Three days later he left (orders...compliments of the Corp) to Desert Storm. I am proud to be a Marine's wife (once a Marine, always a Marine) and I am thankful for my husband and all the other men and women for their efforts to protect us.

So THANK YOU for our freedom. May your angels always be watching over you.

Courage Of a Young Man

Last month I shared with you a fabulous story about my oldest son and now I would like to share with you a challenging story about my youngest son, Cody. Much like his older brother, Cody is willing to drop what he is doing to help someone in need. Uh, as long as the need is not his chores. LOL! But seriously, Cody has been known to help the elderly at the grocery store by taking their items out of the electric carts and putting them onto the belt, or holding doors for people that are behind him. He will even help his fellow classmate with sticky problems on class work. Simple, gentle help that a lot of people just turn their nose up to. Oh, but not Cody.

Cody has always been extremely intelligent, always soaring beyond his class mates. But there was always something a little different with him...he would do his homework but not turn it in until the teacher would contact us...it was the same thing year after year. He would play with one or two kids at school but very rarely play with them after school. He tended to play more with CJ and HIS friends. We often suggested he go play with his friends but he would rather stay in the house.

Last year his attitude began to change abruptly. He became verbally abusive and began to get physically destructive. Paul and I were at a loss. Here was our son who had always been laid back and easy going was losing control right before our eyes; he was a ticking time bomb. We took him to a doctor who suggested he has ADD. After having an evaluation done by a child psychiatrist, it was confirmed...Cody has ADD and ODD (oppositional defiant disorder). The reason for the outrage was due to his age and not being diagnosed sooner. I did not believe he had ADD because he did so well in school...so he would complete his work but not turn it in or we would tell him do something and an hour later it still was not done. We thought it was just Cody being Cody. The doctor explained that kids with ADD either soar above the other kids or they fall far behind. Also, the later in life it is diagnosed, the more complications the child occurs such and major mood swings and destruction of property. Cody was prescribed a medication that, if he indeed has ADD, we would see a difference....we did. We still struggle a little with the ODD but the medication does help.

Just when we finally got him comfortable with the thought of having ADD/ODD and needing to take medication for a while, the doctor pulled Paul and I aside last week to tell us he suspects Cody has Asperger's disorder- a mild form of autism. I didn't believe him. How, after a year, do you tell me this NOW?? First we are told Cody is ADD/ODD now he has autism? The doctor told us that he has been noticing a behavior and pattern with each visit and he didn't want to just make a quick diagnosis. He gave us some reading material and some names of centers here in AZ so we can take him to be tested. I want a second opinion and I do appreciate the fact that the doctor supports me.

After reading about Asperger's and comparing them to Cody, the doctor may be correct. But I can't help but be selfish and ask WHY? Why Cody? Hasn't he been dealt enough in his young life??? We are going to have him tested at the Melmed center in Scottsdale. We don't care about the cost, we just want a correct diagnosis so our son can get on with his life. If he as Asperger's, so be it...we will continue to support him in his plans of being a Quantum Physicist and he will succeed in life.

I didn't share this with you today to feel bad or sorry for Cody. I wrote it so you can see what a strong young man he is and how successful he has been and will be. We are so very proud of him.

Jobless and Loving It!

This is me this morning...I so excited to announce that I quit my job! YES!!! I QUIT MY JOB!!!! OH LORD I could not stand that place nor the morons that worked there. My position was within the customer service department in which customer service is excactly what they lacked. The employees would argue with the customers, even hang up on them. Worse, they acted like children in the department. The final draw was when a birthday card was being passed around to be signed when two of the girls acutally took the car and threw it away! I could not believe it. Why? Because they didn't like her. Seriously people? I cannot work with jerks like this. I have a higher standard for life and, uh, working side-by-side with garbage is not what I signed up for.

So I am back during the days again but I am going to look for another job. I need to work since my Etsy shop is extremely slow. I am going to be VERY picky this time around and I will to a thorough investigation of the place before I accept. I would like to say I got screwed but, in a way, this was a very valuable lesson.

A big thank you goes out to you, Sharon. You understood first hand what I was going through and you know where I am at now. You were a huge help in my decision making and could not thank you enough. Another big thank you to all of my wonderful friends who had to hear about the shit-hole and all my gripes. Thank you all so much for always being here for me. I love you all so dearly.

Have a wonderful day my dear friends!

It's Wednesday...

and I'm ready for the weekend! Could somebody make 5:00pm Friday happen now? HAHA. Only in our dreams, right? I anxious to start touching up on my Christmas gear, which we will start this Saturday.

Oh my Santa and his reindeer, the sleigh and the little helpers...gosh how I want to put them up now but I cannot "dis" Tom the Turkey. Poor guy doesn't get quite the attention he used to :-( But I still love you, Tom....yyyuuuummmmmmm do I love you! HAHAHAHAHA! So, here is to my fun weekend touching up the holiday gear!

Hugs,

Laura

Yesterday I left a comment on a blog in which may have offended others. My outburst may have been a bit bold for some to handle. I thought it might be noble of me to apologize but then why should I have to? I was speaking my mind (which you all know I do quite well) and, as an American, I have every right to express my thoughts as do you....but NONE of us have the right to decide on one's sexuality or their marital status. I will, however, apologize for some of the bold words I used, such as A-hole.

When I wrote my comment yesterday, I wrote it in tears and major frustration; my heart has been broken by a ridiculous proposition that passed by popular vote. I prefer to say it passed by discrimination....but I do not want to get started on this topic again.

So, if I have offended you with the bold words I used, I am very sorry.

Hugs,
Laura

Where Is......Laura??

I'm here! I'm here!!! Don't you see me? I'm being suffocated by in this crowd of people! aaaaaahhhhhhhh!!!! ;-)

Hello everyone! Oh I am so sorry I have been absent lately. I went to the grocery store and someone spotted me and said, "Hey! Isn't that Laura Crosby?" and next thing you know I was signing autographs for the next 3 days! Oh, wait. That was my dream....LOL!! OK, so the REAL reason is I have had a very busy schedule PLUS my Internet was down a day and a half (pooh for all of it). I wanted to write a quick hello to let everyone know I am still alive and kicking and have not forgotten about you ;-)

Since this is my hubby's birthday....HAPPY BIRTHDAY PAUL!....I won't be back on the blogs until tomorrow. We are going out to a wonderful place for dinner with family and friends. He won't have any present to open from me since we picked it up yesterday. I set up a secret squirrel meeting with our car guy to have some stuff (seriously, don't make me talk mechanic because I'll screw it up) done to his Mustang. He was quite surprised and he is very happy with it. Yeah!

Ok, off to get ready for work. I will be back tomorrow in full swing.....smart ass comments and all! Everyone have a WONDERFUL Friday!

Love and hugs,

Laura

Let's Vote Together

It's election day so don't forget to get out there and vote! As I say every four years, "If you do not vote, you do not have the right to complain." Of course that is if you are an American citizen ;-) Paul and I will be doing our part today so, please join us and VOTE!

Have a fabulous day :-)

Laura