Her Last Death

Her Last Death begins as the phone rings early one morning in the Montana house where Susanna Sonnenberg lives with her husband and two young sons. Her aunt is calling to tell Susanna her mother is in a coma after a car accident. She might not live. Any daughter would rush the thousands of miles to her mother's bedside. But Susanna cannot bring herself to go. Her courageous memoir explains why.

Glamorous, charismatic and a compulsive liar, Susanna's mother seduced everyone who entered her orbit. With outrageous behavior and judgment tinged by drug use, she taught her child the art of sex and the benefits of lying. Susanna struggled to break out of this compelling world, determined, as many daughters are, not to become her mother.

Like many memoirs this book is a story of a girl growing up w/ a dysfunctional parent and tried to survive w/ what she was given. She has to decide if she should keep the negative parent as an influence in her new life and family or cut them out completely.

Yes To....

Cucumbers

So the skin on my face is freaking out!!! This happens whenever we start to have a weather change. I get these lovely lil red patches of super dry skin ...its just fabulous. So while I was at work today I decided to go online and see if I could find something at Walgreen's to pick up on the way home.... kinda like a VO5 treatment for my face... so I came across this...

Yes To Cucumbers  Calm Care Soothing Facial Mask

We all need an extra boost from time to time. Our Aloe and Cucumber Soothing Facial Mask delivers a gentle moisture boost to tired, sensitive skin.

This super-charged, nutrient-rich mask leaves your skin soft, silky and completely cushioned. Who could ask for more! 

It had 3 very positive reviews so I went and got it and LOVE IT!! I just washed my face and already I can feel a difference. And I love the way it smells!! I would totally recommended to anyone!!

Carrots 

Walgreen's just happened to have a special that if you bought any Yes To product that cost more then 8.00 or something then you got a free Lip Butter -- Heck Ya!! since my lips are falling off too!!! So I picked this up this lil beauty in melon flavor, a value of $3.64.

A girl can never have too many chap sticks!!! And so far I love it!!! Now I am a burts bee fan true and blue but I would have to say that Yes To Carrots is my next favorite. My bff Lindy gave me one of these awhile back ago and I use it all the time as well.....

Its a nice change to plain jane chap stick :O) called....

C Me Blush Lip Tint 

Enhance your natural look with these sheer, alluring shades that work with every skin tone.

All these and many more can be found at your local Walgreen's and Target or you can check out their website.

The Shining

just in case you live under a rock this is the synopsis....

 

Terrible events occur at the isolated Overlook Hotel. It's a place where the guests are deceased but not necessarily departed, high in the wintry Rocky Mountains in the off season. A family checks in so the father can write, and terror lurks behind every door. Their son, who has psychic powers but does not know he has them and does not know how to use them, struggles to hold his own against the forces of evil that are driving his father insane.

 

I was intrigued to read this book after our trip to Colorado where we visited the Stanley Hotel which is where Stephen King got the inspiration to write The Shining while staying in room 217. I had seen the movie many many years ago and couldn't recall the details of the story so reading the book was an adventure. This was my first Stephen King novel to complete and I enjoyed it very much!! I highly suggest reading the book to anyone that is a fan of his work and also a fan of the movie staring Jack Nicholson. Now my goal is to stay a night at the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park CO. which is said to be truly haunted .  Below are some photos that we took while walking around the ground level of the hotel. And for more information on the history and the hauntings check here.

The Stanley Hotel opened in 1909

The original owners piano located in the ballroom and is said to still be heard playing with nobody sitting at it.

 

Brad's dad standing in front of the creepy elevator... I looked inside and it was way creepy...and is still running.

Me, in front of the grand staircase!!

Before technology ruled the world

Remember when life was simple.....think hard....before bills, dvrs, cell phones and HD....think about when your biggest worry in life was remembering your phone number just in case you got lost...or making sure you didn't color outside the lines.... Sometimes when I'm having a hard time falling asleep at night I try to conjure up as many childhood memories as possible...its amazing what you can remember sometimes...well I was looking up vintage pictures or something and I came across a picture of a game I had when I was a little Reese and decided that would be a great blog idea.....and so it begins...

Toys from my childhood

this was the pic that sparked the blog....Hungry Hungry Hippo

I always would loose the marbles

I personally didn't have this toy but I recall playing with it in the church nursery

Man I thought I was hot shit on my big wheel!!

(i actually had a barbie one but couldn't find a picture)

loved my little pony...I still remember how they smelled - weird i know

I had a crazy flashback when I saw this - completely forgot about it!!

My bff Chris had one of these....I could play with this forever!

I know this pic is small but it was the only one I could find

My exact lunch box when I was in the first grade!!

Oh the memories!

 

Oh teddy ruxpin how I loved you and I think my mom still has you!! 

 

I would sick my lil miss make-up doll in the freezer to get her make-up to come on...and I think I buried one of my goldfish in her make up case in the backyard.

 

My love of dogs started at a young age :O)

These are just a few of my favorite toys growing up....look at how simple they were I think Teddy Ruxpin is the only one that required batteries.... What were your favorite toys growing up as a child??? Would love to hear about them!! And stay tuned for other 80's flashbacks .....

Bon Qui Qui

 So the other night we were at work and it was really....really...slow and somebody asked me if I had ever heard of Bon Qui Qui -- I had no idea what she was talking about ... she proceeded to pull up this you tube video form MADtv....now I am not a fan of watching videos for some reason....but I watched this one and it was sooooooooooooo....funny I just wanted to share it with my blogger buddies .............so enjoy!

Babble

Let me apologize in advance...I am the worst speller in the world and I am currently doing this on my iPhone and I don't think I can do spell ck on this thing ... Anyways I am currently at work w another headache!! Ugh!! I went to a new dr yesterday he he said my headaches may be caused by the tightness in my neck and shoulders so we are trying to work that out. But it seems my blood pressure is a bit up as well - I though it was just yesterday bc I was in the dr office - white coat syndrome - but I just took it again and it's higher then normal.... Great!! This getting older is for the birds man!!!! I think if I can ge my headaches undercontrol I think everything else will fall back into place.

On another note the beast has finally died...well not completely but I have decided to end the relationship...as some of you know I have been on the look out for a new car...however I am a bit credit challenged which is making it a bit difficult...not to mention that I haven't had a car payment in like 5yrs...so anyways last month the u.joint went out - fixed it now I think it's the fuel pump ...that's after Brad and I have done other things to try and fix it -- anyways Ive decided to try and sell it as is for whatever I can get...we have had good times in the last 9yrs but it's time to part ways..and I am a lil sad about it but oh well. Life will go on...

I'm a currently lil more then half way through my book The Shining a classic which I've never read bf and it's right in the good parts when everyone starts going crazy...well it's almost time to go home so that's all Im going to go now...bye

I forgot to add.....

Re my last post...no people I am not preggers!!!! I know this fo sho!!! Why can't a girl get a stomach virus w.o people assuming she's pregnant. Gah everyone has asked me that a thousand and one times this last week....and then when I say "no" they give me the funny eye...anyways...I just wanted to clear the air :0)

ugh....i'm so frustrated rt now bc brad wants me to pop out of bed and clean and I don't want to!!!! Blah wish me luck for today I think I'm going to need it....

Sick and Tired of being Sick and Tired....

This last week was crap to say the least.... I got sick, sick, sick, I actually threw up...and there was no alcohol involved. I had a massive headache 2.5 days in a row w/nausea all week and hot flashes -- no fever though ... my temperature was actually lower then normal...I'm weird I guess. I still feel a lil icky today but I will survive.

So re my last post and my dad....We were able to get him into Grace Living Center...I had to be the one to break the news to him and I had to do it over the phone (since I was sick I could not go around all the old peeps) it sucked and I think it was one of the hardest things that I had to do in a long time...but in the end it was what is best for him...he told my mom that he is glad that we moved him there b.c it will keep his mind active. So that did make us feel better and he has a roommate which is good he needs company. In the end as sad as it may be I believe we did the right thing.

On a better note I'm still liking my new job as unit secretary in the ER. I finally am on my own and so far doing ok. The hardest part for me is that in registration I knew almost everything and now I know nothing...I know it will take time and experience but it is just frustrating....and now they are allowing us to get overtime which excites the heck out of me!!! So instead of going into work at 4pm I can go in at 2pm!! That makes me happy b/c I heart ot...again I know I'm weird.

I'm going to leave you with Charlie Bean Halloween Photos...his nickname has always been squirrel b.c when he was little he looked like one...so I came across this at Target one day and just couldn't resist.

Yes that is an acorn in his hands...hehehe...he was not a happy camper as you can see :O)

Not sure I like where this is going....

So as some of you may already know, and for those of you who don't ... my dad has been in a skilled nursing facility for about 2 months now...he is disabled and has early onset dementia due to a brain injury back in college from a motor vehicle accident...well anyways my mom and I were hesitate on sending him there but the Dr. insisted b/c he had become weak when he had pneumonia. Now my mom told me today that he has plateaued in his rehab and they may be sending home soon...which you would think would be great news ....RIGHT... however my mom and I have come to realize that maybe he needs more care then we can provide. So I couldn't sleep and I started thinking about this stuff....and so I got the laptop and started looking it up....did you know to be accepted into a longterm nursing facility you have have medicaid which is the state insurance - and I was looking up a facility here in Norman that got great ratings and it stated that if medicaid is your insurance to pay for the care that they will use you social security check for your monthly payment. If that is the case then what is going to happen to my mom...she is 66 and in good standing health for the time being but she currently still has to work b/c of all the doctors bills and such. She too relies on my dads SSI check to help pay things off. If she doesn't have that any longer then what??? My family is not a family that has very much to fall back on....gah .... now I think Im even more stressed then I was before b.c my dad needs the help he needs the care... he is at a high risk for falls and depression. He enjoys the skilled nursing home that he is at b/c he socializes he plays bingo, and cards and has little old people to talk to all the time ... he needs that ...gah I hate being a grown up!! It sux!! It sux to have to be making these decisions -- I hate making life decisions they just eat away at me!!

Yours Truly,
Stress Out in Norman

Beautiful Boy

What had happened to my beautiful boy? To our family?What did I do wrong? Those are the wrenching questions that haunted every moment of David Sheff ’s journey through his son Nic’s addiction to drugs and tentative steps toward recovery. Before Nic Sheff became addicted to crystal meth, he was a charming boy, joyous and funny, a varsity athlete and honor student adored by his two younger siblings. After meth, he was a trembling wraith who lied, stole, and lived on the streets.David Sheff traces the first subtle warning signs: the denial, the 3 A.M. phone calls (is it Nic? the police? the hospital?), the rehabs.His preoccupation with Nic became an addiction in itself, and the obsessive worry and stress took a tremendous toll. But as a journalist, he instinctively researched every avenue of treatment that might save his son and refused to give up on Nic.
Beautiful Boy is a fiercely candid memoir that brings immediacy to the emotional rollercoaster of loving a child who seems beyond help.


This was a really good book...it explains all the different emotions that a father or family member may go through when dealing w/ a loved one who has an addiction problem. There's blame and then anger and grief BUT always hope.

I would give this a 4 out of 5 bookmarks...it was hard for me to get into it.