Archive for 'Random'
May 30th, 2010 by Jen Hen under I'm Just Saying, Random. No Comments.
Welcome to week 10 of my pregnancy! YAY! I’m a quarter of the way there! And, guess what? I’ve felt the baby move a few times in the last few days. I was ready to cry when I realized it. Of course, it’s not like I’m noticing acrobatics at this point. It’s been a few minor little bumps that feel more like when someone is walking by you in a crowded store and their arm just barely grazes yours. But, it’s there, and I feel it, and I think it’s awesome. 
I felt Lil’ C right about this time too. X-man was just a couple of weeks later, but he was my first and I was being told it was impossible that I could feel him so soon. Apparently not, as my doctor said it was very possible considering the way my body is built. So YAY for feeling baby 3 move! I’ll just start referring to baby as “Baby T.”
I have this feeling inside me that we’re having a girl. I may be wrong, and if so then that’s fine too, but … I guess we’ll find out in about 7 more weeks. Since I’m self pay and don’t have to worry about what insurance will or will not cover at this point, I’m going to ask the doctor to let me go ahead and do an ultra sound at 16 or 17 weeks to try and see gender, then just schedule the 20 week ultra sound at around 22 weeks. I’m IMPATIENT about this! HAHA!
I’ve been so ridiculous and looked up all the online gadgets that do “gender prediction” (more than once each… because I’m spastic like that). Then if we go back to the difference in my symptoms from the boys and this pregnancy. I’m probably just looking for the answer I want. haha. HEY! I need some balance for all the testosterone I’m surrounded by in this house!
The kids and I went to see Shrek Forever After in 3-D this past Tuesday. It was Lil’ C’s first movie experience (aside from Shrek the 3rd when he was about 6 months old… appropriate, yes?). He LOVED it. He was adorable with his little 3-D glasses, his excitement was infectious, and he behaved amazingly well. X-man and I mostly enjoyed the movie, but have decided that 3-D is not our thing… we both felt queasy when the movie ended and as this was the second 3-D we’d seen, and the second time we felt that way afterward… we’ll just assume we found our correlation.
DH Cam is loving his new job, aside from cursing the inconsistent schedule of the last two weeks and some machine issues last night that were headaches on top of his lack of sleep. He hasn’t quite figured out that he can’t keep a completely normal daytime schedule during all of his days off then pull 24 hours of being up his first night back to work each week. He’ll learn. He’s a smart guy like that.
I’m still adjusting to the overnight shifts when he is gone and I have to go to sleep alone. However, I’m adjusting very well to having the entire bed to myself. Going to sleep alone sucks. Sleeping alone… not so much. 
He’s also loving the new pick up he bought this week. Once he sets his mind to doing or getting something, it happens. And he says I’m in control of finances. BAH! 
He’s planning on doing some modifications to the truck after spending countless hours on forums about his particular year, make, and model. Thanks so much to the people who have posted all those pictures with their pimped out trucks. My husband didn’t really need help getting big ideas. He’s a Hen man, and they don’t have trouble coming up with their own ideas. hahaha. I keep poking fun, but I’m glad he’s so happy with his choice. It was well deserved. Next up on vehicle purchases? Something big enough to fit the soon-to-be five of us without having to strap one of the kids to the luggage rack on top of the vehicle. I don’t imagine people would take to kindly to seeing X-man or Lil’ C riding around and getting extra protein as they swallow bugs hitting them while we drive 65 down an interstate. I suppose the other option would be to put X-man in the back end of the Montero, but then he might have the chance to hold a note up saying, “Please save me! I’ve been kidnapped!”
That last bit, I must admit, is inspired by a true story. I worked with a man at a grocery store up in Michigan when was 18 and pregnant with X-man. I only remember his first name, Al. When I had to work until close Al would share these stories of his childhood that would just about have me in the floor laughing. He and his brother were raised near New Jersey, or in New Jersey, I don’t remember exactly. One time his parents were taking them to the beach and as they drove down the NJ turnpike (I hear it’s a vicious road by way of traffic congestion) they decided to put their hands behind their backs to make it appear as though they were tied up, then pretended to bang their heads on the windows. When they realized someone was looking they would mouth “HELP ME!” I can only imagine how mortified their parents would have been if they had actually been pulled over by cops alleging they were kidnapping their own children when they were actually taking them to the beach to enjoy some family time. haha.
On that note I’ll end for now, and I hope to get around to writing again sooner, rather than later. I hope everyone has a safe and happy Memorial Day weekend with family and friends. 3pm on Monday is the national time of silence for remembrance of our fallen soldiers who died protecting our freedoms.
Tags:10 weeks pregnant, comedy, Memorial Day, pregnancy, Shrek 3-D, Shrek Forever After, Shrek the 3rd.
March 30th, 2010 by Jen Hen under Bzz is the word for BzzAgents, I'm Just Saying, Random. No Comments.
It is BEa-U-Ti-FUL outside. (Please sound that out as you read it. I really meant to place major emphasis on the word beautiful.) I LOVE this weather. It’s sunny, a comfortable upper 60′s, and just the slightest of breezes. Perfection in Western Kentucky. Granted, I’m stuck inside dreary old campus buildings most of the day, but this weather motivates me. It motivates me to get my tush in gear, accomplish the things I only talk about acheiving during those dark, cold winter months.
I feel… rejuvenated. I feel like going for a walk and kicking my metabolism back into gear so I can shed those pounds I put on when I’m hiding inside for three or four months of the winter. I feel like getting my bathing suit ready figure so that I’m all prepared for the Florida vacation that is finally getting closer. I feel like going to the tanning bed and getting rid of this pasty complexion. (I also feel like shopping til I drop, but I’ll resist that urge unless I just find some killer clearance deals I can’t turn down.)
Travel is on my mind non-stop. This is one of my favorite times of year to go on trips to the mountains where I will be surrounded by budding trees and fresh air. I really want to wisk my DH away for a weekend trip to Gatlinburg, TN. No phones, no computers. Just the two of us enjoying the outdoors and site seeing.
DH is kind of hard to get away from his phone and computers. Technology is a catch 22 for me. I absolutely love keeping in touch with so many people courtesy of the internet. I love writing and I understand the practicality of computers in our everyday lives. I’m glad that I can call my husband or get a quick text message from someone regardless of where I’m at, thanks to my cellphone. But I also LOATHE the very same technology because so many of us remain constantly “plugged-in” and, ironically enough, detached from everything around us. There is nothing more frustrating to me at this point than being in the middle of an enjoyable conversation after dinner, and the phone ringing and someone thinking they have to answer. (Not to imply I haven’t been guilty of the same, because I have on occasion.) Whatever did we do before these inventions? (Note the sarcasm. I’m old enough to remember those days.)
At any rate… life is looking more brilliant now that the sun is shining more often and I’m able to see the brilliance around me again.
Most of you know from following my writing that I began therapy a while back. Absolutely the best thing for me during that time. I’m still going just for “routine maintenance” and the occasional “reboot” of my internal “harddrive.” (I thought I would speak technology since that’s the language for today… haha.) The fantastic side of things is that not only can I write that life is feeling brighter, but sessions are reducing from every week to every other week, and we anticipate cutting it back to once a month very shortly. Progress feels fantastic.
My drive for the semester is back too! YAY! I’m finally back on track to receive some reasonably good scores for my classes. I’m sitting on the very edge of an A in Social Work (the last multiple choice exam really did a number on me), and I’m sitting at a high C, on the edge of getting up to a B in my Biology class (again, those darn multiple choice exams).
The moral of this post? Life is good! I’m glad to be back in full swing and almost in tip-top shape.
I’ll write more tomorrow and update everyone on the kids. Also, don’t forget to keep a look out for more posts about the documentary, “Babies”, being released this Mother’s Day weekend (May 7th, I think).
Tags:Babies, Cellular Phones, Computers, Focus Features, Gatlinburg, Spring, Technology, Tennessee, Western Kentucky.
September 26th, 2009 by Jen Hen under Random. 1 Comment.
Actually, I found a couple of somethings.
There’s a cat in the Hen house! However, this kitty is a welcome new member of the Roost.
As I was sitting here trying to look like I was grossly involved in something important, while actually doing nothing more than surfing the “internetweb” as DH refers to it, I stumbled across a post on Craigslist. Against my better judgment I clicked the headline for a kitty. I whimpered to DH to stop me from looking. He told me to get it. WHAT? Yeah. The rooster was all about a new kitten. Oops! The cats out of the bag! (Cheap, I know.)
I sent a message to the generic craigslist safe e-mail addy, not entirely expecting to be the first to inquire, but not against actually being the lucky winner of the gorgeous faced kitten. About an hour later I had a response which lead to a phone call, which lead to a trip to Wal-Mart, which lead me to the door of C.N. King. No, C.N. King is not the kitty’s name. His name has yet to be determined.
C.N. King is a single mom. Not just a single mom. She’s a woman on a mission. She’s a fresh-out-of-high school, freshly published, Freshman in college, single mom of an almost-one-year old. And she’s a brave soul who has written a brave book. Yours truly has ordered two copies. Yeah, TWO.
First, I suggest you go check out her website (yeah, the one where her name is all blue, or purply, or whatever color it changed my text to). I’ll be watching my mail for the arrival of my copies. Here’s where “Second” happens. Watch for me to be posting my little review of the book. AND! There’s a “Third”… watch for the very first giveaway from MommaHen. That’s right my lovely readers… I will be putting up a chance for one lucky reader to receive a free copy of “Where My Ink Comes From.” The giveaway will happen quick because I want to do my best to give any local who might win a chance to make it to her book signing on October 15th. I’ll post more details about that later. Personally, I’ve read the preview on Amazon.com, and I’m going to be in line for a signature. Even though I could probably use the excuse of her kitty wants to see her again to get mine signed earlier.
Now, my little chick-a-dees…. my nest is calling for my head to hit the pillow. Here’s to hoping the kitty doesn’t cry tonight.
Tags:Amazon.com, C.N. King, Giveaways, Where My Ink Comes From.
September 15th, 2009 by Jen Hen under Random. No Comments.
College is going great. I’m really enjoying the semester and the classes aren’t bad. I’ve been successfully working ahead on homework for Ag Econ, and keeping up with homework for Probability and Statistics. Hopefully I will find out what I made on my first exam in P&S on Thursday. At this point I have A’s in both classes which makes me super happy.
I was sitting here tonight working on my Exam Review for Ag Econ. The kids were playing peacefully in their room. I gave pause to reflect to this time last year. Lil’ C has obviously grown so much. He has become so independant. Last year I was having to wait until both the kids were in bed for any hope to focus on assignments. Now, I’m able to do assignments, and answer his beck and call. It brings both a sense of relief and a sence of sadness. Sadness because it means he’s growing up on me. Not that I don’t notice this daily. He’s developing this little personality and a sense of humor. (Reference him shaking his bare booty at me tonight then laughing. He thought it was hilarious when Momma Hen shrieked in horror at his little display of boyish humor.)
I received a phone call this evening from a member of the PTA calling other PTA members to ask for assistance at next Tuesday’s Family Reading Night at the school. I will be working in the cafeteria serving up the gourmet meal of hot dogs and chips. WOOT! ha. What amused me was when the woman told me her name it clicked in my head that it is my P&S teacher’s wife.
Then, I’m talking to my cousin on the phone this evening and catching up with her when she mentions that DH’s older brother dated her older sister for several years. WHAT? Yeah… welcome to a small small community. DH was all “Really? They should get back together!” haha. (Don’t worry, she’s a pretty distant cousin… we’re not THAT backwoods around here. Yet, we’re close enough people that a cousin is a cousin whether it’s your first or your 12th three times removed… with only 1300 residents in my actual hometown, it’s just how we roll.)
DH must have read my little entry the other day where I was whining about being sick. He’s so sweet. DH came home from class today to find me curled up and napping in the big green chair. He woke me up long enough just to ask me if I needed to be awake by a certain time and if I needed anything. I had come home and put on my pj’s and curled up to try to sleep away some of this crummy illness. When I woke up he offered to get me a Ricola for my sore throat which included going to the car to get my backpack since I shoved them in there this morning before heading to campus. He got me something to drink, and he cooked dinner tonight. Not to mention, he took care of the dishes earlier today and finally put his laundry away. Now, if only he would have put my clothes up too. hahaha. Just kidding.
I think I’m finally feeling some better. I suppose tomorrow morning will be the true testament of that. Either way, there’s no room for naps tomorrow, or the rest of the week for that matter, but that’s okay. And on that note… it’s time for Momma Hen to go settle into her nest (bed).
Hazel Day is coming up! I’m so excited! I’ll write more about that later this week or next week.
September 9th, 2009 by Jen Hen under Random. No Comments.
Last night I was enjoying the quiet… which means I was in the shower… the one place I get to be alone and without interruption (most of the time). You know the scenario… letting the hot water work out the kinks in your tired and knotted muscles… washing your face so naturally your eyes are closed.
I open my eyes and *eerie horror creeper music plays here* AHHHH! “HUSBAND!” *wait a beat* “HUSBAND! SHOE!”
Have you ever seen a water bug? They look like mutated and over sized cockroaches. DISGUSTING! Basically, they are the cockroaches cousin. At least that’s what Wikipedia tells me. I believe them. ANYWAY…
I opened my eyes and in the upper corner of the shower THERE. IT. IS. Dear Husband didn’t seem to concerned with my yells of distress. I, on the other hand, was on the verge of tears. Sad, and pathetic, I know. But, he came to my rescue, complete with his nice dress shoes he had just worn to a funeral that day. Then, those dress shoes sent a nasty creepy crawly peeper to its funeral. Of course, not before my DH made mention of some movie where a similar bug jumped off the wall and into a woman’s hair. Yeah, thanks for that. Nonetheless, he found the dustpan and removed the source that destroyed my peaceful time. For that, he was serenaded… “Did you ever know that you’re my heeeeeeeeeeeeer-oooooooooo?”
In other news, Lil’ C is back in full throttle mode with his energy levels and temperament. He does, however, have unexplained red spots on his legs and on the OUTSIDE line of his diaper region. I have a theory that he has a sensitivity to the “Cool Zone” Pull-Ups (which don’t help him At. All.). It’s the 4th time I’ve seen similar bumps in the same general areas, only each time is progressively worse. I know you’re reading J… NO MORE COOL ZONES! And on that note, does anyone else want to try the “Cool Zone” Pull-Ups? I have a whole package minus 2.
Tomorrow is Thursday Thirteen! I can’t wait!
September 7th, 2009 by Jen Hen under Random. No Comments.
The Snuggie commercial. Ahh! The epitomy of informercials turned primetime commercial. The things look ridiculous. I mean, do YOUR hands really get trapped inside a regular blanket when you are curled up on the couch? Mine don’t.
So then there’s the wonderful work of AjaxOuch (a former Speech and Debate student of mine) and friends with their humor: The Kozee!
Seriously. I’m entertained.
(Sorry, I was going to post directly in here for you to watch, but I was not getting along with the coding… grr)
Although, admittedly, as we sat in the freezing cold during Ice Storm 2009 (as it’s so lovingly referred to by those of us who live in the region and were effected) DH says “I have to admit, I kind of want one of those Snuggies right now.”
Now, if you want to check out the rest of Ajaxouch’s stuff you should really click this line.
Tags:Ajaxouch, The Kozee, The Snuggie.
September 6th, 2009 by Jen Hen under Random. 1 Comment.
Lil’ C and DH both have a nasty cold or something. Both of them have been running a fever and have sinus congestion. And both, are quite pitiful. Yesterday they laid around most of the day. DH napped off and on in our big comfy green chair, and Lil’ C napped in my lap, on the couch, or on his floor (sad, I know). By 9pm last night both were passed out… one in the chair, one on the couch. I let Mr. X stay up until about 10 so long as he stayed quiet in his room. Once he went to sleep I had surround sound snoring in the house because all three of them snore something fierce, especially when they have nasal congestion.
Lil’ C whimpered in his sleep literally every 5 to 10 minutes until about 1:30 this morning. I laid down with him on the couch in an effort to help him feel comfort, but after about ten minutes of that he wanted to go to his bed. I sat beside the bed and laid my head on the edge, but the neighbor’s teenager had about 7 of his friends outside. I was not a happy Momma Hen. They were loud and bouisterous. I’m a fuddy-duddy. This was not the first time that they had been loud in the wee hours of the night. Lil’ C kept looking at the window, looking at me, and whimpering. I told him I was going to try to make them be quiet and he said, “okay.” I messaged DH’s uncle, who manages the neighborhood, and asked him if we could please stop 8 teenagers from being loud next to the kiddos room. “I think I might explode.” About twenty minutes later the teenagers cleared out on their own accord and Lil’ C was finally able to go to have peace about 2am.
I went and crawled in bed with DH, fell asleep pretty quick, but Lil’ C needed Momma within 15 minutes of me drifting off. *sigh* Needless to say, it was a restless night. And we were up at 7:30am, just like clock work. I managed to stumble out of bed and into the kitchen to get Lil’ C’s morning started. I was surprised with how alert I was with the minimal sleep, but I sometimes think God must have some mercy on mother’s of sick kiddos and give them some extra boosts of adrenaline. haha.
Lil’ C wanted me to come hang out in his and X’s room after we’d been up for about an hour and a half or so. I went in there and played magnets and watched cartoons with them, then Lil’ C and I crawled into his bed (it’s a full size)….and we both fell asleep until pretty late in the day. I guess we both needed it. His temperature has been hovering around 100.2 auxillary. He has blown his nose a few times, but otherwise doesn’t seem as congested today. The poor kiddo has been feeling so crummy he hasn’t even been swollowing his own saliva. Instead he’ll start drooling down his chin, at which point he comes to me and goes “Oh no! Oh gross!”
He’s eating less than normal, but eating nonetheless. We definitely aren’t having any trouble keeping fluids in him, so that’s always a good thing. His only symptoms are the fever and stuffy nose. I bribed him into taking a dose of medicine this morning and just managed bribing him into another dose of over the counter decongestant. How did I bribe him? Well… you know those nasal aspirators they give us when we bring our babies home from the hospital? Yeah… he HATES that thing. He blows his nose really well for a two year old (seems like it took X forever to figure out how to blow his nose), but I will still use the aspirator when he seems to have more difficulty blowing. I’m mean, I told him he could take medicine or I had to use the bulb. He opted for the medicine.
I’m not a huge medicine pusher really. I typically reserve medicine for when things are prolonged. In other words, I won’t hand it out to the kiddos (or myself) at the first sign of a fever or cough. I definitely agree that we live in an over medicated society. There’s a medicine for everything out there and it seems few people are hesitant to pop a pill or drink a tablespoon of whatever medication seems to address their problem. But what ever happened to letting our naturally existant immune systems do a little work?? No, I’m not going to let my child carry a dangerously high fever without relief. And no, I’m not going to let him be sick for more than about a day and a half with a fever without taking him to the doctors. I’m not THAT extreme. His fever tells me he has a virus of some sort waging war on him, and that his body is actually fighting back. He’s still well enough to be in his room playing monster with big brother, and video games periodically, so he’s not completely feeble.
On the upside… potty training is going really well! Even despite him being sickly! In fact, I’ve never been so excited over poop in my life. hahahaha. That’s right, Lil’ C went number 2 on the toilet for the first time yesterday, and all on his own accord. He ran into the bathroom, took his diaper off, and sat down. He likes to be alone while he goes potty (who can blame him?) so I left the bathroom to give him his privacy. He came running out and went “Ewww! Poo! Momma! Poo!” Sure enough, I found a present in his potty and praised him in abundance. He’s getting so good at the potty! YAY! The end of diapers is coming! YAY!
DH is gone to Grandpa Hen’s for a family holiday gathering. I’m sad the kids and I didn’t go… we had plans to play some Spades. It’s a Holiday tradition with the Hen’s, but we’ve missed out on the past several Spades games for various reasons (other plans, sickly, too late and needing bed, etc.). Perhaps we’ll get some Spades in at Thanksgiving. I guess we’ll have to wait and see. I had been hoping DH and I would make our way to Michigan during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. My class reunion is that Saturday and I’d be so glad to get around to visit some friends in other parts of Michigan. Mostly people DH has become good friends with too.
Now that this has taken me about two hours to type from all my breaks for other things, I ‘reckon I’ll stop rambling for the time being. I’ve made a notecard for my quiz in Agricultural Economics Thursday, now I need to figure out some graphing in Excel for the homework, and work some more on my Probability and Statistics.
September 5th, 2009 by Jen Hen under Random. 2 Comments.
My friend Tracy and her husband have been featured on offbeatbride.com! YAY! Congrats to them! Tracy is such a thrifty person and so good at coming up with unique things to do. I remember when she started doing the planning, which was before she moved to Pennsylvania. I was so impressed with all the bargains she was finding and her creative ideas. Things didn’t quite fall into place for them to get married here in Kentucky before the already scheduled move, but it seemed to have saved them even more money in the long run. They even did a self-uniting ceremony! How cool is that? Go check out Tracy and Aaron’s story on offbeatbride.
Tags:offbeatbride.com, self uniting ceremony.
September 4th, 2009 by Jen Hen under Random. No Comments.
I was browsing through some interesting videos and came across one in particular that kept my attention for a solid five minutes. Check it out HERE.
Go on… I’ll wait for you…
Finished with it? Yeah… that’s some interesting stuff there. My DH is getting his degree in Technology Systems Management (December graduation is quickly approaching!), so I found the fact about new technology especially intriguing.
