Your questions, my answers!

OK, here we go with the Q & A. I got some really good questions. Thanks to all that wanted to know more.

Carrin asked:
What do you want to be when you grow up?
I want to be happy. If I am happy then I must be doing what I want. Right now, I am perfectly happy being a stay at home mom.

What is your favorite memory of Benny?
I am not a good dancer. The only person I ever liked dancing with was my dad. He is a great dancer and can lead real good. I use to love going to street dances with him. When I met Benny, I found out he loves to dance. He danced different and lead different than my dad and we were kinda awkward. One night we were out driving around and he pulled over on a dirt road. I asked him what he was doing and he said "Gonna teach you to dance with me". He cranked the radio and we danced in the light of our headlights. I will never forget that night. Now, we dance really good together.

When you found out you were pregnant each time, what was your first thought?
When I was 16 and found out I was pregnant with Little Man, my very first thought was "OH SHIT". Then I called my mom.
With Toot, we had been trying for 11 months. My first thought was "Did we even do anything last month?" No joke. I thought the test had to be wrong for a split second.
With Smiley, first thought was "That was fast". We had JUST started trying.

Would you eat a rolly poly bug for $5?
Hell no. I don't eat nasty shit! I always said I could have done great on Fear Factor if you didn't have to eat the nasty stuff. Benny said to tell you that he would!

Bethany asked:
Do you believe in capitol punishment?
Yes ma'am, I do. Especially now that they can test DNA and stuff. My only problem with it is that it takes to damn long for them to do it.

Would you rather have sex twice a day everyday for the next year or go with out?
A year is a long time without BUT I would choose to go without. Here is why. When you have to do it everyday, it becomes a job and not something you look forward to. There is other ways Benny and I can please each other with out actually having sex (I'm using Clinton's definition of sex). Then, imagine the fun we would have after a year. Never mind, don't imagine!

Trudy asked:
How did you and Benny meet?
I did post the long story here but I will shorten it up now. We met at a bar. He was in the band and I was there with my folks. When we were introduced, he leaned down, kissed me, and then walked off. Not one word. Then later that night, he asked my mom if he could keep me. We have been together every since.

What is your favorite color and why?
Red. I don't know why but it has always been.

If you could only eat one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be?
This is easy, Taco Bell. Specifically, bean burrito with no onions add extra cheese. I have loved those ALL my life.

Gwen asked:
If I told you that you had 2 weeks to live, how would you spend them?
With my family. I would ride backroads everyday with them. I would pile my folks in there with us and we would just ride and talk. This is one of Benny and my favorite things to do. We very seldom have the radio on and it gives us a chance to talk and listen to each other and the kids. They can talk with no interruptions and we can really connect with each other. We talk about any and everything. And sometimes we just stop and dance. I would dance with my dad, Benny, and my kids. Hell, probably my mom too. I can't think of anything I would rather do.

Amanda asked:
Besides Benny, what is your guilty pleasure?
Beer. I LOVE beer. And Taco Bell.

If you could pick one person who has already died (someone you knew or not) that you could have 3 more days with who would it be?
This one was the hardest to answer of all the questions. I thought about this one a lot. I have only had 2 people close to me die. One was my great grandmother who was in her 90's. The other was Benny's dad who was only 62. I would pick Benny's dad. Reason is, he passed when I was 7 months pregnant with Toot and he never got to meet any of Benny's children. It bothers Benny so much that out children didn't get to know him. He still cries when he thinks about it. I would do that for Benny and our children.

Is Benny feeling a little less sore after the anchor tried to take him out?
Yes, his is still sore and has scabs but he does feel a lot better.

How do you really feel about Obama? Just kidding!
I will go ahead and answer. I can't stand the guy AT ALL.

Yaya asked (in a different post):
Really? People just wave at strangers?
Here is the deal on that. Most of our roads are one lane. If we pass someone, we wave. Not if you are on the big highway or something like that or you would be constantly waving (and they wouldn't even see you). If someone is walking down the road, we wave. If someone is out in their front yard, we wave. When we are out in the boat and another boat passes, we wave. I can tell you that 99.9% of the people I wave out, I don't know. And it's not a big wave, more just like raise your hand or finger (the good one) or nod. If we are within talking distance, we say hi. It's just common courtesy/southern hospitality.

Ya got a question, I will answer. Thanks for all that asked.

If you are from Texas...

I took these from a friend of mines myspace page. Thought it was cute. I put my responces in italics.

You can properly pronounce Corsicana, Ennis, Waxahachie, Palestine, Decatur, Wichita Falls, San Antonio, Waco, and Amarillo. Who can't?

A tornado warning siren is your signal to go out in the yard and look for a funnel. We all do don't we Carrin and Brandy?

Someone you know has used a football schedule to plan their wedding date. Not me.

You aren't surprised to find movie rental, ammunition, and bait all in the same store. They are getting fewer and fewer now a days.

A Mercedes Benz is not a status symbol. A Chevy 3500 4×4 is. I will actually take a Ford F250.

Waving to strangers on the side of the street is common. A friend of mine use to always ask if I knew the person. I didn't even realize I was doing it.

You know everything goes better with Ranch. Yes, we actually have Ranch nights where everything we cook is dipped in Ranch, includine pizza.

You know what a real steak tastes like... CERTIFIED ANGUS BEEF!!!

You plan your Friday night after you go to the high school football game. I never was big into going to high school football games but I am in the minority!

You get annoyed when people from the north give you crap for using y'all, we all know Y'ALL are just jealous. You all and you guys just sounds funny to me.

You know someone who ate the 72 oz steak and got it for free. I don't know anyone but do know where you can go try.

You prefer Whataburger to McDonalds. I don't care for either.

You can drive all day (and more) and never leave the state. Been there, done that A LOT.

You know that DQ = Texas Stop Sign. I do like DQ.

Your biggest bicycle wreak fear is, "What if I get knocked out and end up lying on the pavement and cook to death?" LOL, this one just cracked me up. That would suck.

You know everything is bigger in Texas. Yup yup.

You can fix anything with Duct Tape. Just fixed a window the other day with it.

Your idea of a traffic jam is ten cars waiting to pass a tractor on the highway. This always happens when I am in a hurry!

"Vacation" means going to the family reunion. We actually made a pack a few years ago that our vacations would no longer be spent going to see family. Sometimes you need a real vacation.

You measure distance in hours. Or minutes.

You know several people who have hit a deer. I don't now any that haven't around here! Hell, I've had a deer hit me. TWICE!

Your school classes were canceled because of inch of snow. Hell, half an inch!

You've ever had to switch from "heat" to "A/C" in the same day. I love that time of year!

You see people wearing boots and jeans at funerals. But not their hats because that would be disrespectful. Benny doesn't own any pants except jeans.

You see a car running in the parking lot at the store with no one in it, no matter what time of the year. It's probably my car!

You use "fix" as a verb. Example: I am fixing to go to the store. All the time.

You install security lights on your house and garage and leave both unlocked. HeHe, I don't even take the keys out of the door, ever!

You carry jumper cables in your car ... for your OWN car. Well ya, I might need to get jumped!

You know what "cow tipping" and "snipe hunting" is. Who doesn't?

You think everyone from a bigger city has an accent. Around here, it's just a lack of accent.

The local papers covers national and international news on a quarter page but requires 6 pages for sports. Our local paper doesn't even cover national or international!

You think that the first day of deer season is a national holiday. Benny only hunts if we need the meat but we do have 2 nice deer heads in our living room.

Labor Day weekend isnt for celebrating Labor Day it just means that DOVE season has started. A WEST TEXAS HOLIDAY. But he does love dove hunting when we are in West Texas (where he is from).

You know all four seasons: Almost Summer, Summer, Still Summer, and Deer Season. So true.

100 degrees isn't unusual in August Setember October or hell even November. See Carrin, it will still be hot when you come down.

You know that in order for a place to be considered a town, it has to have a DQ, Sonic, and a WalMart. My town has a DQ but we have to go to the town 20 min away to go to WalMart or Sonic.

You describe the first cool snap (below 70 degrees) as good chili eatin weather. Actually, chick-n-dumplin weather for me.

A carbonated soft drink isn't a soda, cola, or pop ... it's a Coke, regardless of brand or flavor. Yup

You recognize that beans and cornbread is a meal that must have been bestowed upon the people by the Lord Himself. I can make some bad ass beans!

You can be satisfied with a meal consisting only of a hunk of bread with flavored flour and milk (a delicacy known as "biscuits n' gravy"). Had this the Tuesday night for supper.

Dr. Pepper is the best thing in the world. Yummy!

You understand these jokes and are "fixin" to forward them to your friends from Texas. LOL

Finally you are 100% Texan if you have ever heard this conversation:
"You wanna coke?"
"Yeah."
"What kind?"
"Dr. Pepper"
Carrin and I actually had a conversation like this right before I went to see her!

Have a great day and if you got a question for me, hit the post under this one.

Q & A and an award

I have seen a lot of people do the thing where they have folks ask them questions and they answer them. I am still not feeling to great and haven't done anything all week so I figured this would be a good time to through it out there.

So, here is how it will go. You ask me a question and I will answer it. Any question you ask, I promise I will answer it. Then, I will post it when ever I feel like it. It will most likely be sometime this week because Benny is going out of town for the weekend and I really don't have any plans.

Also, a while back I got an award from Amanda and forgot to post about it. Oops! Here it is.

If I remember right, there wasn't any rules (I may be wrong). So, I am just going to keep this one all for myself. Sometimes I am just selfish, I know.

Thanks again Amanda. You rock!

So, lets get those questions pouring in!

Weekend stuff

So over the weekend, we spent everyday at the lake.

Friday we went to a lake right by the house but it's a shallow lake and real dirty. I don't like going there but we didn't even head to the lake until about 5:30pm so that is where we went. The lake is shallow and dirty enough that it isn't even safe to swim in after July. They actually post signs telling you not to swim in it halfway through the summer. As soon as we got home, I threw both kids in the shower. We wont be going back!

Saturday, we went to the lake we love and Benny's brother was there with his in-laws. He has two brother-in-laws that are really cool so we had a great time. At one point, we were tied to his boat and forgot we put the anchor down. When we took off, the 20 pound anchor came flying up into our boat and hit Benny in the shoulder and head. If it had been about 4 inches to the right, it would have hit only his head. THAT SCARED THE SHIT OUT OF ME!!! He is still REALLY sore but he is managing (as always). There are two anchors on the boat. One in front and one in back. We will never use the one in back again! Luckily, both the kids were in Benny's brother's boat at the time.

Sunday, he was really really sore but still wanted to go out on the boat. This time we went to the river and met up with my folks. The water is a lot smoother out there which was good because Toot decided that she wanted to knee board all by herself. So she did. She did so great.

I was so excited about it because I knee boarded all the time (by myself) at that age. Man they grow up way to fast. We also stopped and just swam for awhile. Actually, I just laid in the boat while the kids swam but got some cool pics of the Spanish moss. It's actually the tree I was laying under.

So that was our weekend. I am sick right now (don't know why but it sucks) so I didn't do anything at all yesterday. Trying to do more today because I have got to kick this.

From Benny

Hey, Hows it going?
Good here.
I am having a hard time writing this because I am REALLY pissed at out current President (yes,TMM, we are rightwing).I don't want to piss off all of April's friends. But, I know April more than anyone which means she doesn't give a shit!
I am not a socialist. I don't believe in killing babies. I do believe I should be able to carry a gun when I want (besides government buildings, schools...). I do believe in freedom. I do support our troops (no matter what war). AND I do believe that we are royally FUCKED! I have heard so much that is going on with our country lately. I really hope this is not the 'Change' you voted for but if it is, why are you reading April's blog because, well, never mind.

Short and not very funny (sorry TMM) post but I almost died tonight (April will fill you in) so this is all you get.

Benny

Huh, that was interesting, kinda.

So I watched a show yesterday that I have never seen before. Don't want to mention the name but it rhymes with Jon and Kate Plus 8. Oh, I just did. Oops!

Anyway, I have heard mention of them on the news and on blogs. A lot of people say she is a bitch. Having never seen the show, I kinda thought to myself, if I had 8 kids, I would be a bitch too. (Way to many comma's in that last sentence!)

But then I watched it.

This is all I got to say on it/her.

I would never put my husband down or be disrespectful to him in public. MUCH LESS IN FRONT OF THE WHOLE FUCKING COUNTRY/WORLD! (unless he was doing it to me first! ;))

Dude, seriously, there is a time and place for everything and national TV is not one of those for talking shit to or about your spouse. Just my opinion.

Also, how much money does he make because they gotta nice as shit place?!

I hope all the dads out there have a great Father's Day! Happy early Father's Day to ya'll and to all the moms that have to be the dad too!

To be the best...

MamaKat has her prompts up and I chose #2 today. What do you aspire to be?

This has been a topic of discussion for awhile around my house hold. What do I want to be when I grow up? The reason we have talked about it is because in just a few short years, all my kiddos will be in school full time. There really wouldn't be a reason for me to be home all day.

I came up with nothing. Oh, a lot of things got thrown around (real estate, physical therapist, accounting...) but nothing made me say "Yes, that is what I want to do for the rest of my life".

But, MamaKat isn't really asking what I want to do but rather what I aspire to be. Big difference I think.

That one is easy for me.

I aspire to be the best mom I can be for my kids. I want them to always feel they can come to me with anything. I want them to be comfortable enough with me that they feel they can tell me everything. I want them to not mind hugging me in public when they are grown. I want them to always be happy in this family no matter what else is going on. I want them to be happy with their life. I want them to always know that I love them no matter what. I want to teach them family values as I learned them. I believe I can be their friend AND still be their parent but I want them to understand why sometimes I can be their friend but other times I have to be the parent even if they don't like it. I want my children to be very well balanced, respectful, well behaved, loving, happy children and then adults. That can only happen if I continue to keep trying everyday to be the best mom I can be.

I also aspire to be the best wife I can be to Benny. I want him to always know that I love him with all my heart and soul. I want him to enjoy coming home after work and not dread it. I want for him to always be my best friend. I want him to feel comfortable enough with me that he can tell me everything. I want him to always be happy that he is my husband. I want to always be able to have fun with him and for him to always have fun with me. I want to have a marriage where it doesn't matter how much money we have, how many material things we have, or even how clean the house is because I want the love we have for each other to be what matters most. When we are done with our life hear on earth, I want the world to know that our life together was like a roller coaster. We had our ups and downs but the ride sure was a blast. In order for that to happen, I have to keep trying to be the best wife I can be.

Those are the two main things I aspire to be. For me, that is the two most important things because those four people are the most important people in my life. If I don't try to be my best then why should they?



On a side note, to read a really great post, go check out Amanda's post today. I really loved it and think you might too.

Happily Ever After

I have noticed that a lot of people don't like their children watching the Disney movies that involve the whole prince and princess thing. From what I have heard or read, they think that it gives children the wrong idea about life, men, and the way they should act. That is gives them a false sense of reality. That these princesses had to change to make the prince happy. That is their opinion.

I, on the other hand, think they are great. I couldn't wait until Toot was old enough to watch them with me. I do not think it gives her a false sense of reality. I think it shows her that you can have your own 'happily ever after'. This is my opinion.

I don't think you should change to make someone happy but sometimes you have to change to make yourself happy. My mom always said that you know you are with a good person when that person inspires you to be a better person.

If you choose to be with an ass then you are not going to have your 'happily ever after'. If you choose to be with someone that loves and respects you and you in turn love and respect them, then you can have your 'happily ever after'. It's all in the choices you make. I believe that 100%.

At some point in our lives, we just might need to be rescued. I always joke that Benny was my 'knight in shining armor that rode in on a white horse' (he drove a white mustang when we met). Not because he rescued me from a bad situation, I did that myself, but because he helped me heal from that bad situation. One night we were riding around and out of nowhere I said to him "You are my neosporin". He knew exactly what I meant with no explanation. What I meant was that when we met, I had a lot of open wounds. Yes, they would have healed without him but because of him, they healed faster and the scars are smaller. For that, I am blessed that I met him.

And there have been times when I have 'rescued' him. We love and respect each other and would 'rescue' each other no matter what or when.

Yes, we argue and yes we bitch at each other but at the end of the day we still love and respect each other with all our hearts. Without the bad times, we wouldn't appreciate the good ones. Are we perfect? No. Are we perfect for each other? Yes.

So yes, I do believe that you can have your 'happily ever after' and I never want any of my children to think otherwise. I tell them everyday that not only do I pray they get it but that they deserve it.

I'm NOT a baby!

That's what Smiley said to me yesterday. And I guess technically, he's not.

He will be 3 in August. He's not wearing diapers anymore. He never wore pull-ups. He can talk better than most kids his age (thanks to Toot). He feeds himself and can even cook popcorn by himself.

When he said that, Benny just looked at me and laughed. After I gave Benny a dirty look, I said to Smiley "You will ALWAYS be my baby boy!". He just laughed along with his Daddy and ran away.

Kinda made me sad. I don't have any babies anymore. I never will. That part doesn't bother me because I don't want anymore children. Trust me, three is plenty! And I really love sleeping through the night. And I REALLY LOVE not wiping shitty butts anymore.

But the truth is, they do grow up way to fast. In a blink of an eye they go from tiny babies that can't even hold their head up to crazy kids that run away when I try to clean their face. Then to 10 year olds that think they know everything. It all just happens way to fast but they will all always be my babies to me.

About an hour later, Smiley bumped his head on something. He came to me with his blanky, crawled up in bed with me, and cuddled about 10 minutes. I looked down at him and asked him if he was still my baby boy. He shook his head yes.

And then I looked at Benny and stuck my tongue out at him!

Thank you

It's Thursday and that means its MamaKat time. I haven't done this in a while. Heck, I can't even remember the last time I did this but I saw the prompt this morning and really wanted to do the first one.

It is to describe something someone has done to make you feel special.

If you haven't noticed, I have had a weird/bad week. The things that happened to me that caused me to write the post yesterday were more weird than anything. But ya, it kinda pissed me off. The yesterday afternoon, I had to have a tooth pulled and that was bad. The root of my tooth was hooked and the dentist had to use great force to get it out. The whole right side of my mouth and face are bruised, swollen and is in a lot of pain. I have had my wisdom teeth pulled and it was nothing compared to this. Last night, the pain meds were not even helping. I'm doing better this morning but it still hurts pretty bad.

Anyway, a few people did little things that made me feel special yesterday. And you know what? They are all bloggers. I am so glad that I started blogging because I have gotten to know some really great people.

The first one was Sage. He defended me when he didn't have to. For someone I don't technically know to stand up for me means a lot. Just like so many of you did last week on this post. I have noticed that people I have become friend with on here will take up for me, no questions asked, a lot more than people I know in real life. I don't know if that says something about yall, the people I know in real life, or both. Either way, made me feel special. Thank you once again Sage and everyone from last week.

Second person was Carrin. She knew I had my dentist appt. yesterday and about 30 minutes after I left the dentist, I got a text from her asking how it went and how I was. That meant a lot because it shows me that she cares. Especially since she has a whole bunch of shit on her plate right now. Not that I had any doubt but once again, it's the little things that sometimes mean the most. Thank you girl, you really are the best.

The third person was Amanda. She didn't know about the dentist appt but she did read my post yesterday. Last night I got online right before I went to bed and I had an e-mail from her saying "I hope the rest of your day went better for you!". Of course it didn't and I told her what happened. She then sent me an e-mail saying "I wish you luck, a prayer and a few beers!" For someone I have never met to think enough about me to send me an e-mail like those is awesome. Thank you Amanda, I am so glad we have gotten to know each other.

Then I got C. Even when she is not blogging, she will send me e-mails just to see how me and the family are doing. Thank you my little Hawaiian Mama. It means the world to me that you actually care.

I think I am pretty damn blessed to have gotten to know you all. I wish more people would realize that you don't have to put out a huge effort to make someone feel special. The little things mean just as much, if not more. Just letting someone know you are thinking of them and care about them can turn a bad day/week into a great one.

Thank you again to each and everyone of you. More of you have done things to make me feel special but these 4 just really stood out in my head (which is a little groggy now because of the pain meds and lack of sleep). I hope everyone has a great day.