Calgon... Take Me Away. ReMax? Take me Away?

Seriously - wasn't that phrase used by both companies?

It has been one bad week so far (it is Tuesday!).

First - my Vikings lost on Sunday.  It is Tragic.  We are NO longer "one of the only undefeated teams in the league". 

Yesterday, within 15 minutes of getting to work, the phone rang 13 times & I had 4 people in my office.  NOT kidding.  One man came down, said "Oh, I'll just wait for Denise. (and stare at you for the next 45 minutes)."

Today, as I was rushing to leave work, the phone rings & I answer (WHY?!).
It is an elderly woman that doesn't live at WestRidge.  She *thinks* she is signed up for a defensive driving class on Tuesday...
Conversation as follows:
I'm sorry Ma'am, you'll have to call back in about an hour and talk to Denise. She's in a meeting right now and isn't available.
"De.. what? Can you spell that?"
"D-E-N-I-S-E"

Oh, D-I-N-S-E-E? That's interesting.

"yes."

"So, can you tell me about the class?"

Ma'am, you'll have to call back in about an hour and talk to Denise.
So, where is RestWood? What are you? are you a building?

**insert steam coming from my ears**
"We are a Retirement Community - an Apartment Building"

OH! An Intern Community?

"yes."
"Can you tell me where you are?"
394 and Hopkins CrossRoad.  You go north one block to Fairfield Road.
"Oh, I live in Hopkins. Well, actually it is Minnetonka.  But it is close to Hopkins."
"nice"
So, I've never heard of West Road.  Can you tell me how to get there?  I live really close to Hopkins."
"Ma'am, can you tell me, are you closer to 169 or 494?"
OOOOH! I'll give you my address - I live on Sanibel Drive. I don't know what highway I would take. How do I get to RestRidge?
"Ma'am, I can't tell you how to get to West Ridge until you tell ME what road you are closer to."
"Oh, I just don't know.  I live in Hopkins."
I will just give you directions from 169, okay...

Oh, I live in Hopkins.

Okay - let me give you directions from 169...

*insert something about living in Hopkins and can I ask you something about a driving class?  I think I'm signed up for it.


PEOPLE - THIS LADY IS DRIVING.

Then, Hannah discovered that Corn Syrup makes great finger-paint.

Did someone say... Consignment Sale??

OH MY GOODNESS! I just found my new obsession.
Just Between Friends.

It is a twice-a-year consignment sale.  I have tried to attend and/or participate for the past 2 years, but the spring sale usually coincided with our annual trip to Florida.  This spring I attempted to do it and I missed the "Drop off your things on Tuesday" memo.  WHOOPS!

One day, I was cleaning out the 24m-2T tub that is sitting in our room & decided to set apart some things for the sale.  I ended up sending 60 items to the sale & only took home about 15!  Three of them I highly overpriced because I wanted to say "I tried", but didn't want to actually sell them.  (Winnie the Pooh & Piglet Halloween costume + a Disney Trival-pursuit game).  I noticed today that I never rubbed the $1.80 price marking from the thrift store where I BOUGHT the Disney trivia game... ! LOL! Maybe that is why no one bought it. "WHA?! She only paid $2 for it & is trying to sell it for $10? I don't THINK so!"

I volunteered for one shift, so I was able to get into the pre-sale the night before it opened as well as the 1/2-Price Day pre-sale.  (I only wanted to find Christmas Dresses for the girls and snow-pants for Hayley).  Those women are CRA-ZY!  I swear I saw one woman with 2 laundry baskets and a baby-stroller... all 3 piled WAY higher than the woman was tall.

But I DID get a SUPER cute Gymboree outfit for Hayley for $15 - 5 pieces: Hoody/zipper Sweater, Long-sleeved shirt, Skirt, Leggings and matching socks.  Some of you just said "WOW! Awesome deal!!"
But for those who just said "What is Gymboree & why would you pay $15 and be excited?"... Gymboree sells very nice clothes for kids. Kind of pricey for me normally - a pair of jeans for a 4 year old would cost $25-$30... (but they will never wear out.)  A Sweater could be $30 easily.  The outfit I got - each piece probably averaged $20 brand new.  She wore it to church today & looked SO adorable.

Well, anyway - Spring 2010 will be Sale #2!

(Oh, and I made almost $100!!!!)

Time-Saving Tuesday

I feel like part of our jobs as friends, women, mothers and wives is to share the things that make our lives easier with each other.

Today it is Downy Wrinkle Release spray. 

In the past I have laughed at the commercials... "Yeah, right.  NO WAY that works."  But in preparation for the consignment sale, the organizers highly recommended it to get rid of the storage wrinkles.

I'm not saying it works on the super-wrinkely khaki pants I pulled from the bottom of "THE PILE" on Sunday.  But, it totally worked on the stuff that had little wrinkles... you know - the crease down the middle of the shirt, the pocket that is flipped up, the hem-line that won't stay down.  It is perfect for the clothes in the laundry basket that have been neglected for a day or two. (or a week).  Our dressers have VERY small drawers & our shirts always get all scrunched up. 

I am almost positive that it is 98% water, 1% fragrance and 1% whatever "Fiber Relaxant" is.  BUT I don't care. IT WORKS.  I would recommend looking for a coupon because it cost $6.50. It is a pretty big bottle, though. 

The fact my kids won't look like a neglected basket of laundry and the lack of ironing I'll have to do is priceless.
*insert Master-Card commercial here*

(also, stop laughing.  Just because I bought an ironing board in May & it sat - still wrapped in plastic - in my front entry way until September... doesn't mean I don't iron!!!)

Happy Half-Birthday To ME!

Why don't we celebrate half-birthdays? 
My friend & co-worker, Noelle, came to work this AM with a Large Pumpkin Spice Latte from Caribou for me.  I told her there were very few other ways I'd like to celebrate my 1/2 birthday than with a PSLatte from Caribou.

So, if you haven't checked out my Challenge-blog, do it.  It is so much fun to have a super-long TO DO list.  I was doing something last night & Tim mentioned going to the drive-in.  He said "Then you can cross that off your list."  I can't tell if he was being helpful, or sarcastic that I had to put that on the list.  He's been BEGGING me to go to a drive in for the past 4 years.

I have been a cleaning-out FOOL! LOL  Between my list & this upcoming consignment sale I'm participating in, I have been digging deep.  The only problem with sorting, organizing, shredding... is the 'normal' housework gets neglected.  I feel like I worked for 5 hours on Sunday afternoon... & I did.  But it was sorting all the too-small clothes and the summer clothes & the laundry that has been piled high.  That means the dishes didn't get done & the girls' room was pretty... well... normal.

Cross your fingers for me!  I have 65 items going to a consignment sale tonight.  If I even sell half of the stuff, I will net $150!  I know that isn't much, but it is half of the next pre-school payment.  That will be awesome.

October 13, 2009

This week brings back so many fond memories.  It is the week we traditionally had our first "Break" from school! MEA weekend.  When I was in Junior & Senior high, our youth group always went to the MEA retreat or SHOUT as it was later known. 

How much fun was that weekend?!  Well, it was the first opportunity to see most of your camp friends since the summer.  It was an opportunity to see all the cute boys that didn't go to camp.  We usually got to see our Camp Counselors/Staff members because most of them lived at Bethel & would come visit with us.

We stayed at the Salvation Army camp near Silver Lake Road in Shoreview/Saint Anthony.
We went to Bethel & had volleyball & 4 vs. 4 basketball competitions, that SOMEHOW my team won like 4 years in a row.  There was the singing/instrument competitions that were fun, but I was never "good enough" to WIN WIN. The Bible Quiz.  Oh.  We kicked butt at Bible Quizzing.  (well... we would usually take 2nd or 3rd, but still...)
And most of all - during the weekend - we would celebrate the birth of my bestest friend in the entire universe... Chad Gallagher.  Oh, wait.  No. 
MISS KRISTA ANTOINETTE KOPPENDRAYER!! 
(To be fair, she did share birthdays with Chad).

So, all this tripping down memory lane is to say "HAPPY BIRTHDAY DARLING!"