Here's to the bird!

Ohhh, I am STUFFED! We did the traditional thing, eat till you are full..go to the bathroom, then eat some more, Full. Had heartburn all night, ugh, why eat soo much, you don't feel any better???

So, let me give you a run down on our Thanksgiving. Mostly went without incident. But, a few little funny things thatI must share.

First there is Chuck. Yep, I was able to convince him that HE needed to get up early and prep the bird. Every year, it's me. I get up, butter the butt and slap it around and cook it. I think this year...it should be him. So, after showering, I noticed he was up and in the kitchen. well for crying out loud, it worked! Went to the kitchen, and this is what I saw..

All he needed was a gun and a ski mask...someone broke in to steal the turkey!! But look again, you may have missed this......

orange knee highs....nice.

Ok, so moving along. He decided later to head to the store, in his lovly outfit, icluding socks with sandals, and get a pecan pie for work. While he was at the store, I asked him to bring home a baster. I first need to share with you what happens to my cooking utensils. For some reason, my cooking utensils make great shovels and what have you. I have lost a good portion of spoons, forks, spatulas and obviously my baster to the great outdoors. I don't think basting with a baster that was used for a mud pie would be a good idea.

So, got the new baster, checked it out and it looked a little like the "BMW" of basters. Of course, I never cook. The baster that I previously owned was a hand me down from my mom...it was probably a hand me down from grandma which was probably a hand me down from Noah. get the picture?

Excited by the new thing, I quickly cut the ties and started using. My first suction it grabbed a whole bunch of juice and stuff...but then wouldn't really release to well. what in the world?? so, try again...Charles, you bought this stupid thing and it doesn't work! It now doesn't release at all and the ball you squeeze won't puff back up! I'm just about panicking, because without basting..you get dry bird, YUCK! Here he comes.... shaking his head, he says not a word and fixes the problem.

Look at this, tell me you wouldn't do the same thing as I did.

There is something in there. I thought it was to help with sucking out the juices..some really nifty way to do it. Look at the next photo..

but nooo there is a brush that you use to clean the inside of the stupid thing...who whould have thought?. Dah! I knew that! A little FYI...it doesn't work to well with the brush in it while trying to suck up juices.

Nice little discovery. But here is the finished product!

Nice birdy bird! Very tasty... All in all, it was a yummyful thanksgiving. For the first time, I did crock pot stuffing which was VERY GOOD! Thanks Dawn! Anyway, Happy Turkey Day to all my friends and fellow bloggers.

Charles and his Sack O Nuts!

Ahhhh come on now, get your mind out of the gutter! I was referring to his nuts that he loves soo much..lol!

Chuck has a thing for walnuts, pecans and some other funky named nuts. He said he used to get them in his Christmas stocking as a kid. ok, whatever...anyway, since it's the season for nuts ( literally) he came home with some walnuts and decided to crack away on my couch. Thanks!

So, cracking away...here comes Keaton...Watcha got there dad?...nuts, want some? hysterical laughter from Christian as he knows another term for nuts. sure dad!

Meanwhile I am in the kitchen not really paying attention to the cracking going on in the next room, UNTIL...Keaton comes in and starts this WEIRD noise that only I and one other person (Taran) knows how to do. It's a nifty way to itch your throat, makes a pretty interesting noise...anyway, here he is standing in front of me making this noise and he is saying something that I can't understand. What? come again? What's that on your face? He is now starting to look like Hitch. Member this? Big puffy face, the whole shabang!

CHARLES!!!! Nah, he's fine, give him some bendadryl. Alright, can you breathe son? Take a deep breath, are you all right?? Mom, my ears itch, I think the potatoes need to come out!

Benadryl to the rescue! Q-Tips to itch and romove potatoes.... Whew, NO MORE NUTS!! Hysterical laughter once again from Christian. So, we sit down to watch a movie and Keaton comes to me once again, looking better had been running around...and says. mom, my tummy hurts. Ok, not thinking..I say You probably need to poop, head on in there and sit for a little bit. He comes back, no luck..no poop. Well, still not thinking I think he needs a belly rub, a little massage to move the poop! So, massage I go, a little deeper, harder and then...... he gets up and runs to the restroom. Great, it worked! I am soo proud!

But NOOOOO, not poop....Vomit, all over the bathroom! Here I am trying to be the loving, supportive mom and I am GAGGING as I rub his back...every noise, I GAG some more... I can't even get the words out to Chuck that we are both loosing our cookies in the bathroom. Nice, who will have to clean this up? Should be the one with the sack o nuts!

So, I guess we now know that Keaton is allergic to walnuts. It could be worse I'm sure! Aren't you glad you check my blog everyday for stories like this? Makes ya feel all warm and fuzzy now doesn't it? Hey, at least I have no pictures with this one...

Another Note

Brotherly love at it's best! Now, I found this little note about a year ago, it now resides in my closet in an album that has the kids drawings, art projects and special little notes like this one. I discovered it one day while cleaning out Christian's nightstand. See, it's like this. On the weekends, he takes prednisone, which makes him moody and irritable. You can barely bump into him and he thinks the world is coming to an end, crying and just feeling let down. So, since Keaton is a regular in causing mass amounts of emotional let downs..I had decided to have him write his feelings down rather than let it out verbally... a little safer for us all. ( or at least I thought).



So, now onto my little discovery... I actually found this quite humorous..I hope you all do as I KNOW he does not mean this!

EXACTLY how it is written:

Dear Keaton Powell


you are a pimp and you shutup your mouth. I hate you. I dont like you.

Your not playing my game tommoww. You are a dodo.

You are a brate day ( boy). Your not geting your pencle back.

I have your big pencile. You meet me at 3:00 tommorww.

this is the end of you.Your going to pay for what you do to me.



Look out Keaton, he has your big pencil and YOU'RE NOT GETTING IT BACK..tooo dang funny!!
Anyway, I also have this posted on my board at work...keeps me laughing!
Just so that you know I don't make this stuff up... here is the proof, hard to read, but here it is!

Because he is a diligent student, who goes above and beyond...he circled several words...not sure if they are adjectives pronouns or what have you..see, I was not that diligent of a student.

Comments

OK, I have had several of you not really know how to post a comment on this her lovely blog. Here is the deal, click on comments at the end of each post that you want to make a comment on..then this takes you to another screen where you write your comments in the box on the right. You don't have to "sign in" ..you can just leave your comments Anonymous.. but you must enter some weird word or all those letters in the other box before you can post your comment. If you sign anonymous..you can sign your name at the end of your comments in the box... get it? Confusing I know... but at least I know someone reads this...If not, just email me...

I am having entirely too much fun with this, lots of good stuff everyday!! I am seriously thinking that every week I can do a post on Chuck's Closet.. there is PLENTY more good stuff in there. ( well, I can do this as long as he still doesn't check my blog). Anyway, hope you all get a kick out of it as much as I do because......You Can't Make This Stuff UP!!!

Ladies...He's Taken!

Charles..Chuck...Chuckie boy.....


One requirement that was non-negotiable when buying this house was that I HAD, MUST, WILL have my OWN closet...WHY??? Well, you had to ask...The man NEVER throws anything away, including clothes.

Yep, I waited til he went to work and decided how funny it would be to go through his closet and show you all a few choice outfits that thankfully I can step in and save him and me the embarrassment before he gets out the front door. Now, not always can (and will) I do this...sometimes I get a kick out of what he is wearing, I say not a word!

First, a look at the " walk in " closet. Make sure to pay attention to the " " as you are supposed to walk in into a "walk in" closet...

hmmmm, rooomy! I know this picture doesn't do it justice, but clearly you have NO ROOM! Most of which are clothes that he just can't get rid of... Here's my ALL TIME favorite discovery.......

Oh, that looks just like the perfect box for my paperwork, don't mind if I do....

Ok, a typical outfit when going to a meeting, training or just plum church! .... You must be one lucky son of a gun to have a matching hat with that nice shirt! sweet!

Next...ummmm...don't be jealous... You know you want this...

Grandpa Jeremiah William Edward Powell lll had this tweed beauty all to himself until grandson Charles just begged him for it on his death bed. Tweed and all, scratchy..just how he remembers his grandpa's face. I'm just kidding, but he loves this thing...why??? It's soo heavy it breaks the plastic hangers, it's scratchy, hairy...need i say more????

Tweed #2...except this has those nifty elbow pads...you know, in case you rub your elbows a little too much and need a little extra something. It's heavy and scratchy just like the first one...got a mound of dust on the shoulders. He was planning on wearing this with his khaki's Sunday morning... brush off the shoulders first you know, make himself presentable.

Moving along....on the hanger together as he was planning on wearing this outfit together... ]t's stylish, in with the crowd....it has camo, what the big boys are wearing today! Yah buddy!

Alrighty then...next...hey, now that's a tie!

WHY would I throw this away??..I mean, Michael Jackson had one just like it..it has real leather trim and everything! "Beat it, just beat it...no one wants to be defeated...." Darn! Can I dye this red? Add more zippers?? Matching gloves??? oh wait, I bet I have some..somewhere!

Next...we go NOWHERE without this gadget. A MUST and I mean a MUST...we have an assortment of these...it's like a matching pair of shoes with an outfit... you HAVE to have....

the matching Fanny Pack!!!

As I said earlier...Step back ladies, he's taken!

For Christian

This is a more serious blog entry, I can't really say I'll do this often...Not really me to be serious as I hide many of my serious emotions by being silly. A safety mechanism. But, sometimes you just have to let it out...then go on and laugh some more....there is ALWAYS something to laugh about around here!

Christian's illness....doggoneit.. will not go away, and as often as I can, I make it go away by laughing and just not facing it. But sometimes I find other ways...obviously by trusting in what God has in store for him and us. And, by talking about it..then I'm good to go again..

This morning in bible class, I found a verse to a song by Casting Crowns...I'm sure that if you are the religous type, you have probably heard this song before. "Ill praise you in this storm". A very meaningful song to me as this is a storm and what do I chose to do with it?

Here's the verse : Psalms 121: 1-2

"I lift up my eyes to the hills - where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth,"


I'll praise you in this storm...absolutely! As much as I hate the fact that we have to go through this, I have to trust in my faith that there is something better! Oh, and there is!!!

Christian has no idea what is in store for him. We don't either. A cure may come up, maybe in time, maybe not...who knows. I can sit here day in and day out and be sad and gloomy and live as this is his last days. Well, I don't care to live that way. I care to make the most of today and what he can do and be glad that he is still alive and with us. I'm not like other's who sit and calculate how much time before this happens, how much time will he be able to do this..and so on. Nope, not me! Why waste what is in front of me right now and not enjoy what I have now?
I'm not in denial, I'm in: I accept it, let's make the most of it and carry on!

Here is a video I made last year. I found this song that was AWESOME with words and said exactly what I would like to say. But I did it really just for myself, I showed my family, a few friends..but it is NOT something that I did to get sympathy, pity or attention. Well, and for the simple fact that I did a video!.. wha hoo me! AWARENESS was my first intention though. Some of you may have seen it on Facebook..but honestly, I did not post it for EVERYONE to see it, only some of you. But here it is, getcha some kleenex and hit play..that is if I can really download this..having some issues at this momment, but hopefully I can figure it out.



"Can you hear me? Let me take his place somehow..see he's not just ANYONE...he's MY SON!"

I promise, this next video that I do will be a more "funny" take on MD. I already have an idea...just wait! Oh, and by the way, If you are a Mark Schultz fan, he will be in Memphis, ummm sometime soon. He is doing a concert for AGAPE..you can log onto agapemeanslove.org and get tickets..it's for their Heartlight thingy that they do every year to raise money for adoptions. It may have already happend, not sure... just a little FYI.. Anyway, hug your little one's and be thankful that God gave you them to raise and make the most of!

It is NOT a NIP!

NOTICE: This is NOT suitable for young viewers..viewer discretion is advised.... consider yourself warned!

Most children comfort themselves with a blankie, pacifier, teddy bear...all of which are quite natural. Of course, if you were a Powell...none of these would be natural.

Let me start with my first discovery that this was a "problem". I was coming home after work one night and to get into my neighborhood, we lived on the main street. Our house was located directly in front of the "curve" into the rest of the neighborhood. So, if you lived in that area..you would pass by my house, most certainly an adventure.

Ok, so there I am driving along and there are about 4 cars in front of me (which are moving ever so slowly ) stop in front of me. I' m thinking hurry up you people what is the deal? Well, by the time I reached my house...there in the window that faces this street ( a full size window mind you) I see my son ( a little over a year old then) standing on his dresser, blinds up... butt naked with both hands on his nipples! Yeah, I was soo shocked by what I just saw..I just kept going and quickly called Chuck and told him to DO SOMETHING...QUICK! I didn't want anyone seeing me pull in my driveway!

So, this little nipple rubbing thing hasn't quite gone away. Last year at Kindergarten, his teacher had to ask what is he doing? You see... All of his shirts are stretched at the neck as this is his easy access! The moment that shirt comes off...both hands locked on the nips.

Here is a little "visual" not like you really need this... but you never know, your child may do this and so there, I have prepared you. First, the hand under the shirt method. You can see this when he's tired or stressed.... Most would not recognize what this is, well... not until now.

Next... umm, well this is what happens when the shirt is " removed"... once again "NOT FOR YOUNG VIEWERS"!

another shot, just in case you missed it...

Now, don't think I don't try and discourage this, but mostly only in " the public eye". He can nipple away at home, but not out in public. ( I do a lot of reminding).

I am reminded constantly by watching my husband that ...it could be worse! No visual aides needed. Sorry chuck, this is my blog...I make the rules, besides you are no different than any other man who sits in front of the TV and needs a good scratch.

Sign Sign...Everywhere a Sign...

Brotherly love. Nothing quite like it I'm sure, but I wouldn't know...my two rarely get along. They make Cain and Able saints! ( Hopefully they don't end up like Cain and Able). Well, so it's like this. Yelling , screaming, fighting, throwing things back and forth...Yes, quite disturbing. Oh, but there are moments that are nice to witness ( if you're ever lucky to catch this) , like when Christian falls outside...the first one on the scene is Keaton, and then he runs to tell me. Probably because he was the one who caused him to fall..Sometimes he can be real sweet and comfort him. You know, hit..I mean PAT him on the head... Sometimes they play beautifully together, but I would say that this is like the sighting of bigfoot..they say it exists, some have seen it...not soo sure.


Now here is what I do when such screaming, hateful rages towards eachother happen. Sometimes, they REALLY despise this, I have them hug one another and stay that way for 5 minutes. PURE TORTURE, I know..EVIL mom! They both cry and pitch a fit, but if that doesn't work...I do the written work. Say something nice to one another in words! Oh yes! Keaton has finally gotten to the age that he can somewhat participate in this. Now being a first grader, he should be spelling a whole lot better than what he is doing. But, he is no ordinary first grader and is too busy checking out the heater, air conditioner or pencil sharpener to pay attention. Thus is the reason why we will be back in the first grade next year.

They have even taken this written assignment a step further and now make " signs".

First..Christian's bedroom door...

and another... just to make himself clear as to WHO is to not come in or touch the sign...

ohh, and these inside his room...

I guess this sign was accompanied by another that somehow dissappeared.. don't worry, I can tell you what it said..

DANGER, GASSY CAT AND PERSON IN ROOM DANGER

Nice. Thanks for the warning. And, most importantly...pay close attention, make NO mistakes!

Next Keaton's room. Of course I thought he did pretty good with " sounding out" Christian. It says " No Christian Powell"...you know, not to be confused with any other christian.

Ok, here is what I had to ask him to clairfy...

He basically told me that he was telling christian some not so nice words and that only I could come in his room, keaton has spoken! Thank goodness he can't spell...wonder what those not so nice words are....


Well, this is it for the "sign's" for now. Several pop up from time to time, I'll be sure to post them when they happen.

Vanderbilt Update

Yesterday we went to Vanderbilt for Christian's 6 month check up before I get to the outcomes of that appointment I must first share with you a little something before the trek to Vandy.

Being the smart cookie that I am, I thought it would be a good idea to keep both boys out of school that morning and not give them their ADHD medicine. I wanted to make sure that it was in full force for the appointment and give it to them about 30 minutes before we left Jackson. Mind you Vanderbilt is about 2 hrs and 15 minutes from Jackson. Appointment at 3:0o. Ohh the many mistakes I make!


By say, 9:30 I was about to loose my cool. Fighting, arguing, spilling of milk X2, running after the cat..umm, yelling, fighting some more, a water fight, yada yada yada..... You get the picture. I knew I just had to hang on til at least 11:30. But I was clearly out of patience so with one (take a guess) screaming child at the door, I decided I had " important things to do" and was going to leave. Just as I got to my car, he went back inside, good and stay in..the whole neighborhood doesn't need to see your crazy self. I started to back out and he " re-appeared".....this time with a tube of toothpaste. What in the world? I sat for a second watching him in disbelief at what I was thinking he was going to do and what he actually did! He took that tube of bright blue Colgate and proceeded to " squeeze" the living daylights out of it...just like I'm gonna do you when I..oops, there I go again, telling on myself! So, out of the car I go, counting to 100 VERY quickly, and just as I reach him, ( the pile of toothpaste is rather large by this point) the front door opens and out walks Chuck. He took one look at Keaton and the toothpaste and me, and then I gave him the " good luck with that" look and went back to the car. Oh, Keaton got what he needed because when I got back to the house after my " errands", it was QUIET in the house...and why didn't you do something earlier??? ( referring to Chuck here, not me)


Ok, so I decided it might be best to dose out the meds...a round for everyone. On the road we go and medicine in full force. The rest of the trip went fairly well, other than getting off the elevator and as it closed I looked behind me and Keaton decided he wasn't getting off ! Too late, the door closed and bye bye Keaton... thankfully he returned back down without getting off on another floor!


So, now for the " update" on Christian's status. It went really well. This new dr is from Johns Hopkins and even worked at Cincy Children's (which is top dog for DMD). This is our 3rd time seeing him and every time we go, I like him even more. Our first appointment, he had this "bow tie" that he wore...funny I know, but it worked for him. This time he was in a nice suit..good job, (must have a misses). Anyway, we were evaluated by a Physical Therapist, which is something new that I think he started. Although we have PT in Jackson, we have never seen one at Vandy, so this was kinda cool. She gave us a few pointers, checked out his new braces, talked about " stretching exercises" and what have you and decided he was in good shape. We may need to look at certain "night splints" to help keep his feet from turning in and stretched sometime down the road..but for now, good to go.


Here is a picture of the PT showing us a way to stretch him. Since we just got a new set of braces, I now have him sleep in them so that in the morning, it goes right in with little stretching...save me some time, and you know I can use that !!!

Next Dr. Burnette. I had to ask..." Say Doc, do you want to be on my blog?" Bahhahahha, sure.

So, snap I did! Here he is talking to Christan about his wheelchair. He only uses it for long distant walking, and like at Vandy...the parking garage and crossing the streets and everywhere we have to go..it's just easier on him.


Next, Keaton acting good..just HAD to capture!

The next few pic's are of Dr. Burnett using his tool that can kinda measure Christian's strength. He has to push and pull against it. He does this at every visit, he showed a little decline, but nothing major...

another shot of the strong-man action...






Here is another picture of a "wedge" that is at a 20 degree angle that he made that can help in keeping kids with this disease stretched... say, anyone out there..can you make me one of these??? I'm afraid that if I leave this for Charles to do, it might be made with a muffler and rims...and a motor attached to it...

See, he can't even keep his feet all the way down... that is why this thing is soo good.

Anyway, overall...great check up. Dr. Burnette was pleased with how he is doing, next visit will be the " big one" again with a Cardiology exam to follow his regular check up. But this Dr, is really wanting to be "up" on the latest research and is even going to attend the PPMD ( Parent's Project Muscular Dystrophy} conference next summer. This is an organization that was founded by a mother of two boys with this disease... I can't even imagine having two son's with this disease. After we found out that this is what Christian has, we were terrified that Keaton might have it. But luckily, he did not. Anyway, this lady started an organization that funds research specifically for DMD. It is my best means of support for what we are going through. They have been truly an amazing organization to be a part of! I have met many parents that we each lean on for moral support...check it out if you want..parentprojectmusculardystrophy.com

Well, that about sum's it up...Here is a picture of Christian acting funny before he Dr. came in..he was trying to do a "wheelie" ... AND, Keaton in the background trying to figure out how to make the bed move up and down...

deebadadddbbbbeeeddeedaaada SOLD!

If you have not read the previous post about The many Uses of Duct tape..you may need to start there or you won't understand this post... just a little FYI

Oh yes! I have been completely down in the dumps ever since the dump landed in my driveway! I cannot even begin to tell you how depressed I've been, I mean you can take one look at my house and see that I've done nothing but wallow in my sorrows the past few days. Clothes everywhere, dishes undone, kids rooms a disaster because they know I won't get my boodie off the couch, mom's depressed... never seen this before, let's take advantage of good ole mom...Even told myself that I wouldn't write on this here blog until I can post some lovely pictures of the thing leaving the driveway!

So, that must mean GRRRRREAAAT NEWS hang on.. here is the story.. ( you know you can count on me for a good one..).


So, after the lovely trip home with the Hunk o Junk I had time to think about the major boo-boo that I just made. I don't take comfort in knowing that my boo-boo has caused some extreme laughter amongst the office and those checking my here blog...I still had it in my driveway to remind me of my stupidity. So, when Monday rolled around, and my friends couldn't stand my quiet self... I knew I had to do something...quick!!!

Took election day off ( you know, to observe the big decision that our country has to make) and immediately added the HUNK O JUNK on Craigslist. Never fully expecting to get any calls right away.. thought I would have few days before the stupid people call me. But NOOO, my cell phone was smoking about 15 minutes after I posted the mess. WOW! I just might have a great weekend after all! My email was even filling up... wow! Cool deal!

One guy came to inspect and all he could do was shake his head from side to side, scratch his big ole beer belly and pull up his pants. " Well, er, this thing here..ugh, she road ready or what?" Told him of the previous post, left a few missing parts, but none the less... you can't hide the GAPING HOLE! " Well, errr, ugh, yer might want to sell it for a little less, this err riiitch here needs some work. " here is the stupid people I was talking about, yah think? He then informed me that he was an " expert" in here " trailer repairs" and this would cost me over a couple grand to fix it. Nice, even more reason to get rid of it! Without futher a-do, he left me with his business card and some skin flakes as he was scratching every orifice of his body, and drove off.

Well, that's ok.. I have several other stupid people that want this. So ALL night, I was taking calls, emails and calls again...all during our country's vital time! But before I went to bed a angel of the stupid people called me, his name was James. He lives about 45 minutes from my house, and will be by in the morning to take a look at er. Wanted to know if someone would be home to let him take it if he wanted it...oh yes! Someone will be home, I can PROMISE you that! Called work, said I would be a little late, had " important" business to attend to. But guess what, James didn't show up :(

So, I waited til Chuck came home...told him the story, and what did he do? You betcha, he lite up his cigar. I'm thinking, well shoot, I just may need to start this here habit, will it make me feel any better???


So, off to work, fully "pouting". Co-workers just laugh and say... " Kristi Kristi Kristi" and laugh some more. All until my lovely spy of a neighbor calls me to tell me that someone in a blue pick up truck has backed into my driveway and is " hookin her up".... my response as captured by my co-worker and her new digital camera...





Now, don't you be kiddin me, I promise you I will take you out of this world if you are kiddin me....


For real???? Send me a picture!...

Ok, I believe you...take more shots of the thing leaving my house please! I need to document for this here blog...

Oh wait...I see it...I see the truck leaving my driveway!!!!

Quickly as I can, I call chuck...thinking he has stopped smoking by now. He tells me that this was a real nice older man whose hobby is fixin these duct tape beauty's up and selling em. Well butter my butt and call me a bisquit!! He paid us cash, exactly what I was asking for. The man was soo gratefull that Charles helped him re-apply the duct tape and rope that he was offering an extra 5o for his time and effort. Charles, smart man that he is...declined the offer. However he is forever bonded with the man and exchanged phone numbers... I say don't bother, you will see the thing again...you know, on your way to work on 412...I'm sure it will still be there next week when you go back to work!

Oh, say bye bye now! Going to the land of The Stupid People!...... The best anniversary present ever, watching it leave my driveway!!!

Oh the many uses for Duct Tape..

Why? Why do I get myself in these messes? Have I not learned something from the first 100 times? Apparently not! Hold on tight...this is gonna be a good one.


Everyone who knows me, knows that I am just CRAZY in the head for camping! I LOVE to camp! Now, I would love it even more if I had a nice cozy lite up, off the ground sort of deal. I could camp longer if I had a few amenities. Thinking of the boys ( of course) and of Christian's needs...I thought it would be best to look for a pop up camper...and if I found something even better..well, even better!



SOO, my hunting on craigslists and ebay led me to a few good deals. One in particular was a pop up in Bowling Green KY that was selling for around..say $1500. Looked to be in good shape and the old man would even come down on the price. Sweet! I could take some money out of savings...but driving to KY (8 hr's round trip) not something I really wanted to do. So, when my friend told me of a pop up in Searcy AR ( very familiar with this here lovely town since I lived there) I thought EVEN BETTER :) I could see some old friends, get a deal since this is a pop up that her friend owns..yeah, GREAT DEAL!!



Ok, so when I called this here friend of a friend, she started explaining what it had ie, shower, stove, fridge..what? a pop up with that? Pop up? This ain't no pop up...it's a camper trailer, around 19 ft selling for $500...COOL!!!!!!!!! WOW! I felt like I just won the lottery!! She sent me pictures and said that it needed a little work to replace a hole in the front, not a big hole..but something that my husband could do with little effort. This should have been my first clue, but NOOO...I was still stuck on $ 500 for a camper with toilet, stove, fridge ...



Well, after looking at the pictures and convincing Charles that it's a deal of a lifetime he agreed to check it out. Not only was I checking it out...I sent the check! hmmm, mistake number 2.



Got to Searcy around 10:30 yesterday morning...funny how I could barely sit still..I was like a kid at Christmas!! We pulled up at the house, I was still stuck on the $500 for a camper with stove, fridge, and toilet... I forgot to really pay attention to the gaping hole in the front. Mistake number 3.. Well, now luckily, Charles was paying attention. He saw the gaping hole, decided he could fix it with no problems. Walked inside...outdated..ummm yes, but it might do. After stepping back outside, I wasn't as excited as I had been. I started thinking this may not be a deal of a lifetime and was doubting my find. Charles on the other hand, was inspecting and figuring and doing all the guy stuff. If anyone can make this thing work..it would be him. After talking it through for a minute, we decided it was worth the risk and he could fix the hole and sell it for more. Ok, I could go with that. Yep, you guessed it..Mistake number 4.


Here we are..out on the road headed about 15 miles down on the freeway and I had to ask..." How would you know if we had a flat?" not more than 5 minutes went by and we got the signal....



Now, at this point in the trip, I was SERIOUSLY wanting to throw in the towel.. and leave it there and get our money back. Charles gets out, lights up a cigar and just stands there inspecting.. Ok, you know it's bad that he lite up his cigar on the side of the freeway. He started this smoking thing when we first decided to move to TN, it's a stress reliever for him. This was not a good sign. Wishing I had my camera so that I could document... off we went, with a thumpty thumpty thump down the road...



Luckily, we were within a few miles from a RV place that just happened to be open. This nice young man, took a look at us, and decided he would change our spare, offer a couple of " used" one's ( but looked about as bad as the 4 we already had) and grease everything down all for no charge as he, and I quote "thought we looked like we needed all the help we could get." I had to ask..." Did we get a good deal?" Yet again..mistake number 5.. expecting... I'm saying don't bother changing the tires, just un hook it and pray it doesn't find you...forget the money, quite while you're ahead! His actual response .." Yeah, you got a GREAT deal..." Of course that was enough for Charles. He wasn't done, he had this whole thing remolded inside his head by now.



So, off we go to a tire shop...in Bald Knob. Yeah, you heard me right, we are stuck in Bald Knob. NEVER a good place to be. It's like the butt crack of America! By this time, the boys and I are hungry, wanting something to eat..what is there to eat in the BK??? Micky D's. As we pull up in the driveway, he let's us off to " go park". Little did I know that after ordering the food, Keaton started yelling..." Daddy left us!"...Surly not! I have no phone, I am stuck at the Micky D's in BALD KNOB with two kids...apparently like everyone else ( except my pants were pulled up OVER my butt crack). So, there we were...stranded at the MD. I finish eating and I start getting a sickening feeling of the HUGE mistake that we have just made.


Here he comes walking up the road. What? Where is the hunk of junk?? He found a shop, the owner took pity on him and is replacing all 4 tires with " gently used" ones. Nice. Saved again. Well, do you think we should abandon this thing and call the one who sold it to us and get our $ back?? " Nah, It will be fine". Famous last words.

Headed out again...only to get about 15 miles or less and we look in the rear view mirror to see, the gaping hole now the size of Texas! You can clearly see the whole inside as the panel is about to come off. Great. On the side of the road again,however we make it to the Dollar General parking lot. Out he comes with a yellow bag full of duct tape and rope. I'm still good with the " leave it and run" plan...apparently, he was not. Once again..mistake number 6.


You can hear the tape now...riiiiiippppppp rrrrriiiippppppp! Oh yah, a WHOLE roll of duct tape and a WHOLE thing of rope. Embarrassed and quite ill at myself, I decided to retreat into the car..you know, hide myself and guess what I found??? Yep, the camera! Oh buddy, you are on film now! I only wish I had the shot of Charles standing by the side of the freeway inspecting and smoking his cigar. Yep, that would have made this here blog on the news for the number of visits just to check out Charles !





Not the best in showing the GAPING hole...we already had to put it back together before applying the duct tape...





Notice the cigar...STRESS...






First application of the rope...


And we continue...journey forth (I say without the darn thing) but none the less we are cruising at a speed of 55 ETA 7:00 pm. Anyone who knows where Searcy Arkansas is...it doesn't take from 11:00am to 7:00pm to make the journey...I should have just gone to Bowling Green! My biggest fear was hitting the guard rails crossing the Mighty Mississip and losing half my find.. I even managed to laugh a little about the thought of it. Charles agreed that if that happend, we would just carry on..like it wasn't us...just keep on going like nothing happend...you can see it now, us pulling in the driveway with only a part of the camper..LOL!




Funny, you are probably wondering " what about the boys?" HUGE MISTAKE NUMBER 7.. Well, they were the icing on the cake for this trip. Oh yes, we had many things "thrown" in and around the car, screaming because they are hungry, tired and someone looked out the other's window...hot, cold, a FLY is on me...ummm I have to pee and I have to pee again, roll up the music dad, and NO.. TURN IT DOWN... a few more items thrown.. and then ...OH AND THEN... here it is.... I UNBUCKLE!! Not so pretty when I have to do that! Lucky for me I was wearing flip flops that is my back up paddle. No, didn't have to use it, the un-clicking of my seat belt did the trick.


So...here we are home with a hunk o junk in our driveway..I am sure we are the talk of the neighborhood. Iam hiding indoors today...and ugh...everyday, til it magically dissappears! Biggest misake yet..it's in my driveway!!!


With the pressure of the wind from driving..this hole becomes much larger!

This morning's reality...notice the cigar...