I had two whole comments on my last blog! YAY!
I have tried everything to UPDATE this blog, however, while I can still post, it won't let me do much else. I have started a NEW blog (but with a link back to this one, where I started). For the two of you who check on me (or anyone new who happens upon this) my NEW blog is at..
www.monkeeandthebee2.blogspot.com
come be a part of the new blog!!
Wednesday, December 12, 2018
Tuesday, December 11, 2018
Five Years
Hi.
Wow, it's been a long time.
5 years. Five. A lot has happened to my little hive.
I have really missed writing in my blog. No one ever really read this. Mainly because I didn't share it with my facebook people because I wanted a place I could come and vent my feelings without hurting any one's else's feelings. I wanted a place where I could bitch about my kids' bio-mom without starting some massive drama. This blog may have had few readers but, it accomplished everything I wanted it to, and more. Best part? Today, almost nine years after starting it, I can go back and read the mundane day to day details I faced as a insta-mommy and newlywed! It's amazing. I have grown SO much since then. I've changed a lot, too. However, I also wish I could go back to a lot of that :D
So what's the haps? What's new?
Well, my last post here was June of 2013. In July of 2013, I lost my mama. She passed away of what was officially called "Valley Fever". That is what ended up actually killing her. However, the real issue was she didn't take care of herself. She smoked like a chimney. She had heart disease, C.O.P.D, and diabetes that she all but ignored. She got sick with the flu on the way home from my wedding in January of 2013. She ended up in the hospital where she contracted MERSA She got well enough to come home and was on the mend when she fell in late February 2013 and broke her shoulder. My dad is older and couldn't pick her up, so they had to call the ambulance. They took her to the hospital where she stayed a few weeks to see if they were going to do surgery or let it heal itself (doctors said the feared she was too weak for surgery). She ended up with MERSA again. She finally came home but her spirit had already given up. She wouldn't eat. She wouldn't get out of bed. After several weeks, she started to get bad bed sores so the home health care nurse had her sent back to the hospital. She coded a few times. Ended up on a ventilator. She held on for the next 3 months until my dad finally got on board with letting her just pass (she BEGGED him for several weeks to just let her go to hospice). My sister and brother and I made it out to Arizona the day before she passed. We were with her in her final moments and while she had very little mental clarity while we were here, there were moments she was fully with us and knew we were there. She grabbed my hand and squeezed it and pointed to my ring and her heart letting me know she loved Bee and the kiddos. It was really hard. hardest thing I ever had to do. Shortly after she had passed, my sister and her then boyfriend decided to move out to Arizona to be close to my dad. Now that mom had passed, he was alone. I was happy he would at least have someone out here to kinda keep and eye on him.
Then, in January 2014 Bee and I were SUPER excited to find out we would be adding another little bee to our hive. On October 2nd, 2014 Jackson Zebadiah Brown (he can thank his daddy for that middle name and be THANKFUL mama convinced him to let it be a middle name instead of his first name :D) He has been the final piece we had been missing. He is beautiful, smart (oh LORD is he smart!), silly, independent, bull-headed, and ALL BOY. He has no fear, and is completely NOT like my other 2 children. He is feral. LOL I kid...but not really. Watching him grow up these last 4 years and getting to be his mama have been a HUGE blessing. Exhausting, but a blessing none the less.
In February of 2015, we decided to fly out to Arizona as a family vacation to visit my dad, sister, and aunt's and cousin's we have out there. My dad had flown home to be with me for Jackson's birth but, I knew if WE didn't come out and visit, my sister, aunt's, and cousin would probably never get to meet Jackson (or "Beboo" as we call him :D) We left Cleveland in the middle of a huge blizzard and freezing cold temperatures. It was February in Tucson which meant that the mornings and evening were in the 50's and the day time it warmed up to mid 70's low 80's. With zero humidity, that made it HEAVEN on Earth for my little family. We had been on the ground in Arizona about 7 hours when Bee looked at me and said, "I feel GREAT. I don't hurt. I can actually MOVE!" He declared right then and there he wanted to move to Tucson. I told him I was down. Get a job out there and we will make it happen. Well, by April 2015, he had a job in Tucson. He packed as much as he could into a 1995 Jeep Wrangler and drove across country to stay with my dad and save some money. I stayed behind with the kids and packed up the house and waited until school was out for the Summer and on May 28th, We loaded what we could and my dad drove the moving truck and I drove the SUV and we left behind everything we knew and everyone we knew and embarked on a new adventure.
We lived with my dad for a few months and then found a house to rent. We rented for one year and then BOUGHT OUR FIRST HOUSE! Well, MY first house. This is like, house number 4 for Bee :D
We have been in our house for a little over 2 years. We found a decent high school for the kids. C graduated this past May. She is working for In-And-Out burger. She makes REALLY good money (she makes quite a bit more than me!!) She still lives at home. She tried living on her own but she moved in with someone she was dating and the relationship turned sour so she came home. However, we never see her. She is always working or with friends. She might stop by for 5-10 minutes to grab some clothes...or to visit her baby brother (who ADORES her. They are thick as thieves) but she is happy and 18 and living her best life. If SHE is happy then, *I* am happy.
Little man however, is not so little anymore :D He is 6'1 and 225 lbs! He still plays football. In fact, he started this year on the JV team but, after 2 games, he was promoted to Varsity and after one varsity game, he was a starter!! Pretty good considering the only other sophomore on the varsity squad was the QB who helped take the team to the semi-finals this year (if they had won, they would have played for the state championship). He no longer plays basketball but he works out all year to stay in shape for football. His voice is deep and most times I can't tell who is speaking, Bee or him. He is a wonderful big brother and Jackson loves "beating up" on "dak". He will be driving soon and what hair I have left that is NOT grey will be soon ;) .
As for Bee and I, we will be celebrating 10 years together and 6 of those years as a married couple this year. I don't handle change very well and even though I wanted to move out here just as much as he did, I didn't handle the change all that great. It's been a rough couple of years. I had a hard time finding a job. I LOVED my job in Ohio. That place was like a sparkling unicorn. One in a million place to work. It had it's ups and downs, but they treated us employees REALLY well. That place was my FAMILY after 8 years and it was super hard leaving them and no place will ever compare. I have had to start all over in terms of pay scale which was REALLY hard to swallow but if I was going to work, which we found out QUICKLY that I needed to, then it was just something I was going to have to deal with. I have found a job that I like, is not soul sucking, and seems like it could become the like the family I had to leave behind at my old job. The pay is...well...GOD do I miss my pay checks (and bonuses :D ) from my job in Ohio but, I don't plan on going anywhere and I will move up and the pay will become better. In the mean time, it helps pay the bills which is good.
Bee has found a wonderful job driving a cement truck. They LOVE him and treat him really well. He found his work family quickly. His boss is a lot like the boss he had back in Ohio. A good, honest dude. Bee treats the company well and respects them in everything he does. His professionalism shines through in everything he does and in that industry, let a lone his company, that is rare. They treat him amazing in return. Which, considering I took almost $25 K year pay cut, is a VERY good thing LOL. My husband works REALLY hard and I am very lucky. As I said, I did not handle the change to being out here very well and the last couple of years were rough. However, what HASN'T changed is that I love that man with everything I have and everything I am. Your valley's are what make your mountain top's that much better. We have been through the ringer but we have only come out of all of it that much stronger and that, to me, is what living your vows is all about.
Well, this update has been long enough LOL. I think this will conclude this entry for today. However, I plan to keep up with this again. I would like to post at LEAST once a week. Possibly more?
Until next time!
Wow, it's been a long time.
5 years. Five. A lot has happened to my little hive.
I have really missed writing in my blog. No one ever really read this. Mainly because I didn't share it with my facebook people because I wanted a place I could come and vent my feelings without hurting any one's else's feelings. I wanted a place where I could bitch about my kids' bio-mom without starting some massive drama. This blog may have had few readers but, it accomplished everything I wanted it to, and more. Best part? Today, almost nine years after starting it, I can go back and read the mundane day to day details I faced as a insta-mommy and newlywed! It's amazing. I have grown SO much since then. I've changed a lot, too. However, I also wish I could go back to a lot of that :D
So what's the haps? What's new?
Well, my last post here was June of 2013. In July of 2013, I lost my mama. She passed away of what was officially called "Valley Fever". That is what ended up actually killing her. However, the real issue was she didn't take care of herself. She smoked like a chimney. She had heart disease, C.O.P.D, and diabetes that she all but ignored. She got sick with the flu on the way home from my wedding in January of 2013. She ended up in the hospital where she contracted MERSA She got well enough to come home and was on the mend when she fell in late February 2013 and broke her shoulder. My dad is older and couldn't pick her up, so they had to call the ambulance. They took her to the hospital where she stayed a few weeks to see if they were going to do surgery or let it heal itself (doctors said the feared she was too weak for surgery). She ended up with MERSA again. She finally came home but her spirit had already given up. She wouldn't eat. She wouldn't get out of bed. After several weeks, she started to get bad bed sores so the home health care nurse had her sent back to the hospital. She coded a few times. Ended up on a ventilator. She held on for the next 3 months until my dad finally got on board with letting her just pass (she BEGGED him for several weeks to just let her go to hospice). My sister and brother and I made it out to Arizona the day before she passed. We were with her in her final moments and while she had very little mental clarity while we were here, there were moments she was fully with us and knew we were there. She grabbed my hand and squeezed it and pointed to my ring and her heart letting me know she loved Bee and the kiddos. It was really hard. hardest thing I ever had to do. Shortly after she had passed, my sister and her then boyfriend decided to move out to Arizona to be close to my dad. Now that mom had passed, he was alone. I was happy he would at least have someone out here to kinda keep and eye on him.
Then, in January 2014 Bee and I were SUPER excited to find out we would be adding another little bee to our hive. On October 2nd, 2014 Jackson Zebadiah Brown (he can thank his daddy for that middle name and be THANKFUL mama convinced him to let it be a middle name instead of his first name :D) He has been the final piece we had been missing. He is beautiful, smart (oh LORD is he smart!), silly, independent, bull-headed, and ALL BOY. He has no fear, and is completely NOT like my other 2 children. He is feral. LOL I kid...but not really. Watching him grow up these last 4 years and getting to be his mama have been a HUGE blessing. Exhausting, but a blessing none the less.
In February of 2015, we decided to fly out to Arizona as a family vacation to visit my dad, sister, and aunt's and cousin's we have out there. My dad had flown home to be with me for Jackson's birth but, I knew if WE didn't come out and visit, my sister, aunt's, and cousin would probably never get to meet Jackson (or "Beboo" as we call him :D) We left Cleveland in the middle of a huge blizzard and freezing cold temperatures. It was February in Tucson which meant that the mornings and evening were in the 50's and the day time it warmed up to mid 70's low 80's. With zero humidity, that made it HEAVEN on Earth for my little family. We had been on the ground in Arizona about 7 hours when Bee looked at me and said, "I feel GREAT. I don't hurt. I can actually MOVE!" He declared right then and there he wanted to move to Tucson. I told him I was down. Get a job out there and we will make it happen. Well, by April 2015, he had a job in Tucson. He packed as much as he could into a 1995 Jeep Wrangler and drove across country to stay with my dad and save some money. I stayed behind with the kids and packed up the house and waited until school was out for the Summer and on May 28th, We loaded what we could and my dad drove the moving truck and I drove the SUV and we left behind everything we knew and everyone we knew and embarked on a new adventure.
We lived with my dad for a few months and then found a house to rent. We rented for one year and then BOUGHT OUR FIRST HOUSE! Well, MY first house. This is like, house number 4 for Bee :D
We have been in our house for a little over 2 years. We found a decent high school for the kids. C graduated this past May. She is working for In-And-Out burger. She makes REALLY good money (she makes quite a bit more than me!!) She still lives at home. She tried living on her own but she moved in with someone she was dating and the relationship turned sour so she came home. However, we never see her. She is always working or with friends. She might stop by for 5-10 minutes to grab some clothes...or to visit her baby brother (who ADORES her. They are thick as thieves) but she is happy and 18 and living her best life. If SHE is happy then, *I* am happy.
Little man however, is not so little anymore :D He is 6'1 and 225 lbs! He still plays football. In fact, he started this year on the JV team but, after 2 games, he was promoted to Varsity and after one varsity game, he was a starter!! Pretty good considering the only other sophomore on the varsity squad was the QB who helped take the team to the semi-finals this year (if they had won, they would have played for the state championship). He no longer plays basketball but he works out all year to stay in shape for football. His voice is deep and most times I can't tell who is speaking, Bee or him. He is a wonderful big brother and Jackson loves "beating up" on "dak". He will be driving soon and what hair I have left that is NOT grey will be soon ;) .
As for Bee and I, we will be celebrating 10 years together and 6 of those years as a married couple this year. I don't handle change very well and even though I wanted to move out here just as much as he did, I didn't handle the change all that great. It's been a rough couple of years. I had a hard time finding a job. I LOVED my job in Ohio. That place was like a sparkling unicorn. One in a million place to work. It had it's ups and downs, but they treated us employees REALLY well. That place was my FAMILY after 8 years and it was super hard leaving them and no place will ever compare. I have had to start all over in terms of pay scale which was REALLY hard to swallow but if I was going to work, which we found out QUICKLY that I needed to, then it was just something I was going to have to deal with. I have found a job that I like, is not soul sucking, and seems like it could become the like the family I had to leave behind at my old job. The pay is...well...GOD do I miss my pay checks (and bonuses :D ) from my job in Ohio but, I don't plan on going anywhere and I will move up and the pay will become better. In the mean time, it helps pay the bills which is good.
Bee has found a wonderful job driving a cement truck. They LOVE him and treat him really well. He found his work family quickly. His boss is a lot like the boss he had back in Ohio. A good, honest dude. Bee treats the company well and respects them in everything he does. His professionalism shines through in everything he does and in that industry, let a lone his company, that is rare. They treat him amazing in return. Which, considering I took almost $25 K year pay cut, is a VERY good thing LOL. My husband works REALLY hard and I am very lucky. As I said, I did not handle the change to being out here very well and the last couple of years were rough. However, what HASN'T changed is that I love that man with everything I have and everything I am. Your valley's are what make your mountain top's that much better. We have been through the ringer but we have only come out of all of it that much stronger and that, to me, is what living your vows is all about.
Well, this update has been long enough LOL. I think this will conclude this entry for today. However, I plan to keep up with this again. I would like to post at LEAST once a week. Possibly more?
Until next time!
Wednesday, June 19, 2013
Thursday, May 23, 2013
My first REAL Photography job :)
I have been wanting to be a "real" Photographer (ie: PAID) for awhile now. The only problem is, my confidence in me and my equipment. :) I am terrified that I will take crappy photos for someone who will feel their result was not worth their payment. I don't have backdrops, fancy lights, or even fancy lenses. I do have a decent eye, and an expensive camera that I mostly know how to use ;) So, when an aquantince of mine asked me to take her daughter's senior pictures AND was willing to hand over a nice sized amount of cash, I was at a loss. Most of me was like "YES! YES! YES!" and a small part of me was all "No thank you. We don't really want to put ourself out there. What if you hate the pictures? What if I fail?!".
In the end, I told that small part of me to shut the hell up and eat a cookie :) I took the job and while I was so nervous for the 3 weeks that led up to it, I still was also excited! It ended up being so much fun!! My subject was great and we had a lot of fun (even though it was 9,000 degrees with 10458% humidity!). They wanted to go downtown and get some pictures there and shoot some at Squires Castle (giant castle/park). Due to filming a movie downtown and Tribe Game traffic, we opted out of downtown for right now, but plan on getting together next month during the work day to do the downtown pictures :) I also found a sweet photo editing software that was free and like photoshop, but WAY easier to use :) What do you think?
In the end, I told that small part of me to shut the hell up and eat a cookie :) I took the job and while I was so nervous for the 3 weeks that led up to it, I still was also excited! It ended up being so much fun!! My subject was great and we had a lot of fun (even though it was 9,000 degrees with 10458% humidity!). They wanted to go downtown and get some pictures there and shoot some at Squires Castle (giant castle/park). Due to filming a movie downtown and Tribe Game traffic, we opted out of downtown for right now, but plan on getting together next month during the work day to do the downtown pictures :) I also found a sweet photo editing software that was free and like photoshop, but WAY easier to use :) What do you think?
Friday, May 3, 2013
Hi and waiving!
I'm still here! I have been a huge slacker at work lately. This has caused a medium sized, but sneaky mountain to grow at my desk. At some point a week and a half ago it threatened to topple on top of me if I did not attend to it toot suite.
So, there's that.
But, now I am here. Medium sized mountain vanquished and all. So, this is what's been up.
1. The Church. We didn't qualify for a mortgage. It really didn't surprise me. Bee and I both agreed that while the price was waaay right for us vs. the square footage (8,000), what worried us was being financially able to fix it in the timely fashion it required to make it livable (like, adding a bathroom and putting in showers). Also, heating it. Good Lord. While it was zoned heating, we figured we would need to keep at least 2-3 zones heated at a time. It is a HUGE steal at that price and it's a really sweet building, but right now is not the time. I look at it this way, it's been for sale for 3 years and no one has even come close to buying it. If it's meant to be, it will happen. The whole thing DID show us however, how to get to the point where people will be throwing mortgages at us. It's going to take about $700.00 and a years worth of time :)
2. Basketball. It's my life. This weekend will be the first in almost a month we aren't packing up and heading out to some all day tournament. Instead, we are going to Detroit for a Football game of Bee's. At least we are staying in a hotel. Was supposed to be an ADULTS ONLY weekend, but every adult that we trust with our kids (or at the very least , the law says we have to trust with out kids) is out of town. C has an ALL DAY track meet and a friend of ours is going to let spend the dark time hours with them. That means, Little Man is with us. No biggie. I really don't mind little dude tagging along. The only down side is, because he is with us, we have to get a room with two beds. Which means my excitement of having a KING bed for a whole night has been dashed and therefore replaced with the dread of a gasp, DOUBLE BED. Bee and I don't work well in a double bed. Sigh. He better win this damn football game. And, he better give me money to spend at the flea market the next day. LOL
3. The Dentist. Canceled on me before. Was supposed to call and reschedule. Had yet to do so. Then, Tuesday night, I bit into my dinner and my bridge snapped in two. I picked up the phone right away and called my dentist. He got me in the next day. New temporary bridge is in place. Looks great. Feels WAY better. Cost me lots of money. I now need to get a second and third job :(
4. I was asked by a friend of mine to take her daughter's senior pictures! She's paying me too! If it goes well, maybe I'll put it out there that I can do that. Maybe make some cash to pay for the above!
5. Cats. I wish THEY could pay for their pictures being taken...
So, there's that.
But, now I am here. Medium sized mountain vanquished and all. So, this is what's been up.
1. The Church. We didn't qualify for a mortgage. It really didn't surprise me. Bee and I both agreed that while the price was waaay right for us vs. the square footage (8,000), what worried us was being financially able to fix it in the timely fashion it required to make it livable (like, adding a bathroom and putting in showers). Also, heating it. Good Lord. While it was zoned heating, we figured we would need to keep at least 2-3 zones heated at a time. It is a HUGE steal at that price and it's a really sweet building, but right now is not the time. I look at it this way, it's been for sale for 3 years and no one has even come close to buying it. If it's meant to be, it will happen. The whole thing DID show us however, how to get to the point where people will be throwing mortgages at us. It's going to take about $700.00 and a years worth of time :)
2. Basketball. It's my life. This weekend will be the first in almost a month we aren't packing up and heading out to some all day tournament. Instead, we are going to Detroit for a Football game of Bee's. At least we are staying in a hotel. Was supposed to be an ADULTS ONLY weekend, but every adult that we trust with our kids (or at the very least , the law says we have to trust with out kids) is out of town. C has an ALL DAY track meet and a friend of ours is going to let spend the dark time hours with them. That means, Little Man is with us. No biggie. I really don't mind little dude tagging along. The only down side is, because he is with us, we have to get a room with two beds. Which means my excitement of having a KING bed for a whole night has been dashed and therefore replaced with the dread of a gasp, DOUBLE BED. Bee and I don't work well in a double bed. Sigh. He better win this damn football game. And, he better give me money to spend at the flea market the next day. LOL
3. The Dentist. Canceled on me before. Was supposed to call and reschedule. Had yet to do so. Then, Tuesday night, I bit into my dinner and my bridge snapped in two. I picked up the phone right away and called my dentist. He got me in the next day. New temporary bridge is in place. Looks great. Feels WAY better. Cost me lots of money. I now need to get a second and third job :(
4. I was asked by a friend of mine to take her daughter's senior pictures! She's paying me too! If it goes well, maybe I'll put it out there that I can do that. Maybe make some cash to pay for the above!
5. Cats. I wish THEY could pay for their pictures being taken...
6. Last weekend's fun :)
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