I have been debating...

I have really been debating about doing this post. I have opted to go forth with it because I look at this blog as my personal journal and sometimes just blogging is very therapeutic for me.

Its no secret I am divorced and raising three kids. I face daily challenges in this life and sometimes it gets tough. Right now its really tough.

I filed for a modification in child support back in January. My ex has been dragging it ever since then. In the process his attorney quit on him. He told my attorney he couldn't reason with him and was tired of all of his milarky.

This summer there was an incident while my youngest son was spending a week with his dad in which poor judgment was exercised amongst my ex and his employees who were drinking and horsing around after work. My youngest son was literally given a swirly by a 24 yr old man. My son called me and told me as he was crying hysterically. I called my ex and asked what was going on and he was drunk and told me my son deserved it. I asked to come and get him and he said no. So I called the police for a welfare check on my son.

Less than a month following this incident my ex filed for custody of our oldest son. Keep in mind, my ex has not exercised visitation or any type of communication with our oldest daughter for almost 5 years. She can't get along with his girlfriend so he has disowned her. He does not acknowledge holidays or birthdays.

So see if you follow this. He doesn't see our daughter. My youngest is punished with swirlys and is told he deserves it. (My ex even told the officer our 9 yr old son deserved it.) And he wants custody of my oldest son. He was denied last time he tried and was told to take alcohol management classes. He did not do this.

It appears to be a cut and dried case in black and white that no judge in his right mind would grant this request.

But what if he does?

I have spent the last couple of weeks sick to my stomach every day with a black cloud hanging over my head and crying myself to sleep. If I could honestly say that it is a good living environment at my ex's I would not fight this.

My son is 16. He is at a crossroad between boy and man and is making life long decisions. There are too many negative factors in that home. I am not perfect either. My house is not spotless. I am terrible at homework with the kids. I don't cook every single night, we eat out more often than we should. But I am with my kids every night through the week and on the weekends when they are here. My daughter and I are very close.

I know my kids. I know what they like. I know what they dislike. I know where they go to school, what grade they are in and who their teachers are. I know their friends. I know their birthdays.

So if any of you have any extra prayers to spare, pray for the judge who will reign over our case that he will make the best decision for the three of our kids together as a whole and as the family they have become.

Are ya all ready to play yet?

Sunday, Sept. 14

Tennessee Titans at

Cincinnati Bengals

~JR~ Tennessee Titans

Buffalo Bills at

Jacksonville Jaguars

~JR~ Buffalo Bills

Oakland Raiders at

Kansas City Chiefs

~JR~ Chiefs

Indianapolis Colts at

Minnesota Vikings

~JR~ Colts

Chicago Bears at

Carolina Panthers

~JR~ Bears

Green Bay Packers at

Detroit Lions

~JR~ Green Bay

New York Giants at

St. Louis Rams

~JR~ Rams

New Orleans Saints at

Washington Redskins

~JR~ Saints

Atlanta Falcons at

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

~JR~ Atlanta

San Francisco 49ers at

Seattle Seahawks

~JR~ Seattle

New England Patriots at

New York Jets

~JR~ Patriots

San Diego Chargers at

Denver Broncos

~JR~ San Diego

Miami Dolphins at

Arizona Cardinals

~JR~ Arizona

Baltimore at

Houston Texans

~JR~ Baltimore

Pittsburgh Steelers at

Cleveland Browns

~JR~ Pittsburgh

Monday, Sept. 15

Philadelphia Eagles at

Dallas Cowboys

~JR~ Dallas

Just post your picks for the week in a comment and I will add it on to the post.

Sarah Palin ABC Interview With Charlie Gibson Part 2

Does anyone come to mind?

When I sold radio advertising, I took lots of classes, sat through lots of meetings and endured a lot of training. When I worked for a country music station, believe it or not, I learned the average country music listener is the most influential and possibly affluent demographic. Hard to believe, but true.



The best advice I was given by far was to target my commercial that I wrote to the "38 yr old soccer mom." I looked at the station manager as if he had just lost his mind when he told me that. Then we went into a lot of discussion and a lot of studies to find out why that particular person was the primo target person for advertising. Not just radio advertising, ALL advertising.



Here is a basic recap of the "buying power" and overall decision making process a "38 year old soccer mom" has.



1. She is a mom, a lot of marketing is targeted to kids, the kids want what they want when they want it, but mom decides if it is practical, reasonable or even in the budget.



2. She may be married and working a full time job, juggling the household budget and chores.



3. She may be single and working full time or even more and juggling the household budget and chores.



4. Either of the two scenarios listed above, she is making major spending decisions.



5. She might be a stay at home mom handling the budget of the household.



6. Her husband or someone else may handle the budget, but her voice is heard on how to handle it. ;)



7. Her kids may be older, high school or even college and she is guiding them and helping with their first job and how to handle money and trying to bestow words of wisdom on these kids.



8. She may have elderly parents or relatives that she is helping care for. Maybe shopping for them or helping them with healthcare decisions.

The point I am trying to make here is not necessarily financial, but more along the lines of do not discount a woman because she is a "soccer mom." I believe women as a whole look at life a lot differently than men, and we look at all sides and how everyone will be affected by whatever decision is made.

I do believe a woman is more likely to ask a question like "Just exactly what is the bottom line dollar amount of this project?" And a woman is not afraid to ask and not afraid to say no if it is out of the budget.

There are many other scenarios, but as you can see, the "38 year old soccer mom" is a very diverse individual. She is living life in full color one day at a time caring for her children, loved ones and herself. She is learning things one step at a time and figuring out how to best handle situations as they come at her. We all know life is messy and the "38 year old soccer mom" cleans it up.



Do any of these points remind you of anyone? Maybe 44 years old and perhaps a "hockey mom"? These are just some thoughts that have been rolling around in my head as of late and I thought I would share them with you.

9/11 Bud Commercial - AIRED ONLY ONCE

Never Forget

Daddy I miss you - Heaven 911

nuff said

The deal is done

I bit the bullet and bought a used car today. Much like the one pictured here. I drove to Mishawaka to see one that I had found online. Before I went I did all my research, I knew my Kelly Book Value, I had a carfax report in my hand and it was off a lot of a used car dealer that used to advertise with me when I worked for a local radio station.

When I got to the lot I looked it over, two dings in it, carfax indicated its never been wrecked and his been in the shop for regular maintenance on a regular basis. The dealer gave me the keys and said to check it out. So I went down the road and called my nephew. He went over everything with me over the phone - I checked everything under the hood as directed and then drove it with him on the phone telling me things to do. We found some bugs - but they are fixable bugs.

So I went back to the dealer, told him what I had found and asked for his best number. I said no, too high. He asked my number and he had to call the owner. The owner said to meet me in the middle, I said no, still too high. He didn't want to budge. I said no problem, I still had some other leads to follow up on. Started to leave and guess what.....???? He made the deal at my price. I got it for $200 less than my nephew said I should end up at. I am a happy girl.

Its very much like the car pictured above, a Lincoln LS 2002, it has tinted windows, a moon roof, charcoal leather interior and a 6 disc cd player. (All my priorities!) So I guess over the next few days we will see how good of a deal I made. I paid for it and drove it home then the kids and I went back and got my other car. Which is now my daughter's and hopefully life just got a bit easier.

Buying a used car....

OMG What a nightmare. I have been shopping for the past month for a good used car not to exceed $7000. I find them. The good ones are already sold. When I talk to a salesperson and the little dollar figures stop rolling in their eyes as they calculate just how much money they will make....once that process has ended and they have determined I will not make them enough money for them to spend anymore time talking to, then I am back on my own to try and find another good deal. One of these days.....

Are ya ready for some FOOTBALL!?!?!?!?

It's almost here! Thursday night!!! Are ya ready for some FOOTBALL?!?!

All right like it or not, its becoming a tradition, three years now, its time to make your picks for the week! I am dusting off my feather and big black kettle and eye of newt....

Thursday, Sept. 4
Washington Redskins at
New York Giants
~JR~ Giants

Sunday, Sept. 7
Cincinnati Bengals at
Baltimore Ravens
~JR~ Ravens

New York Jets at
Miami Dolphins
~JR~ Jets

Kansas City Chiefs at
New England Patriots
~JR~ Patriots

Houston Texans at
Pittsburgh Steelers
~JR~ Texans

Jacksonville Jaguars at
Tennessee Titans
~JR~ Titans

Detroit Lions at
Atlanta Falcons
~JR~ Falcons

Seattle Seahawks at
Buffalo Bills
~JR~ Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at
New Orleans Saints
~JR~ Saints

St. Louis Rams at
Philadelphia Eagles
~JR~ Rams

Dallas Cowboys at
Cleveland Browns
~JR~ Cowboys

Carolina Panthers at
San Diego Chargers
~JR~ Chargers

Arizona Cardinals at
San Francisco 49ers
~JR~ 49ers

Chicago Bears at
Indianapolis Colts
~JR~ Colts

Monday, Sept. 8
Minnesota Vikings at
Green Bay Packers
~JR~ hmm... Packers

Denver Broncos at
Oakland Raiders
~JR~ Raiders

Come on guys, lets have fun this season, comment here with your picks and I will add them onto the post as they come in so we can all watch and compare. Jeff - is your dog in again this year? I might let Mercedes the frog catching cat join in...

Wow.

I am not seeking a cat fight. I am shocked at a recent post by another blogger. She and I simply agree to disagree. We also respect each other and our own plights with our own families. And once again, we agree to disagree.

I just watched Sarah Palin's speech at the Republican Convention. This woman is the "American Family". From her son leaving for Iraq on September 11, to her pregnant teenage daughter, to her special needs baby. She is living life. In full color. She is an advocate for every American family in one way or another.

She is going to speak loudly and clearly about ending this war. She is not going to stand by and let us forfeit, but she is going to push for an end. Look at her track record in her state. Look at what she has accomplished for Alaska. Listen to what she says about jobs in America. About families in America. About children in America. Listen to her. Look at her record. Read about her. If you truly open your mind to what she has to offer, you may be able to see beyond the party line and see the big picture and look to what is good and right not only for you, but for the nation as well.

America's Sweetheart

What a difference a few days can make. How easily hope can be restored. I already stated earlier on my blog that I had lost all interest in the election. Yes, I was going to vote. I was going to do my duty and just vote. Vote for the lesser of two evils. Vote to cancel out the vote of my mother. Just vote.

AWB and I discussed many moons ago women in politics. Women and the presidency. At the time we both agreed Hillary was not the woman to be the first woman president. We agreed the job could be held by a woman, but Hillary was not the one and we were not even sure at the time there was such a woman on the horizon.

Enter Sarah Palin. The woman on the horizon. The woman who is offering hope where I was sadly beginning to believe all hope was lost. She is in my opinion "America's Sweetheart." To quote a good friend of mine, "she is every man's dream!" She hunts, she fishes, she carries a gun. In my opinion, she is my role model. She is beautiful, she is smart, she fights for what she believes in and keeps family values close to heart.

She may not have experience in foreign affairs. But hey, let's say we get our own affairs in order first! I honestly don't care that any presidential candidate is weak in one area and strong in another, let's face it folks, do you honestly believe a President makes any decision all by their lonesome? Come on, what is Congress all about, what are all of the advisory panels for? Get real. It is a learn as you go job no matter what anyone says. Besides that, we are not talking about Sarah being President - yet.

McCain is a very wise man indeed to have made this choice. A few months ago, I could not talk about politics within my own family. Namely with my mother. She was a Hillary supporter from the get go. Although I agree with some of what she had to say and yes I wanted to see a woman succeed in this world, I just could not get on the Hillary bandwagon. Not even when I felt sure a vote for her was not a vote for Obama. That was the only way I could justify it. In the primary I even understood the concept of lets push to get Hillary the nomination because she will be easier to defeat than Obama in the fall. Even then, I couldn't do it, I just couldn't cross that party line.

Over the course of the weekend I read up on Sarah and her family and her qualifications. I got all of my ps and qs in order and decided I would take up this discussion with my mother. Armed with knowledge I was prepared for this battle. I honed up on all the soft spots my mother would go for. She always used the war as her trump card and would resort to tears when discussing Hillary and how she knew Hillary would end the war. So anyhow, I was armed and ready today.

Man, blow me over with a feather. My mother and I are on the same page. Yes, she is going to vote the right errrrr Republican way this fall. All because of Sarah. My mother sees hope now. She feels Sarah will fight for all that is wrong, she will fight to get an end to the war (she has a son in the services you know), she is the picture of today's American family. What is right and what is wrong, Sarah is in there and living it with the rest of us and she has perspective.

Sarah Palin

Anyone in their right mind knows that stepping into the political arena is opening every closet door in your entire life for all the world to peek into. No one. Not one person is perfect. We all have skeletons, we all have crosses to bear.

Any person throwing their hat into the political arena on a national level knows what their skeletons are, and they also know deep down inside their ownself if the skeletons in their closet are going to keep them from focusing on the job at hand.

Sarah Palin knew full well the cross examination she would endure before she accepted the nod for VP should McCain win. The news today of her 17 year old daughter being 5 months pregnant is unfortunately information the media will make a circus of.

I am the parent of a 17 year old girl. My heart would break for her if she came home and told me she was pregnant. As parents we do the best that we can do and then we spend a hell of a lot of time praying. We are not to be judged for the choices our children make. We have no control over free will. Not even God has that control, if he did, well, then I guess everyone would be perfect.

The circus tents are setting up, the media is going to have their hayday and it saddens me. We finally get a bright glimmering ray of hope for the future of our country and I fear of how the nation will accept this information. I have to say I applaud her for standing up for and standing behind her daughter.