Local Garage Sales

Posted on by Mandy

I love getting a good deal on things, but I have never been the type of person who could wake up very early on a Saturday morning and hit the local yard sales.  I suppose I just love my sleep too much, and also getting a small child up and going that early is another obstacle.  Every once in a while, people in our town have garage sales on Fridays, so I can sometimes hit those up if I have the day off.

I did have the day off yesterday and a friend of my mom was having a yard sale.  I really didn’t want to brave the extreme heat, but my mom told me she had BOOKS, so I was excited.  I vowed this year not to buy any books and just check them out from the library, but at 25 cents a book, this was a deal I couldn’t pass up.  My mom’s friend also has a granddaughter and she had tons of her toys and books in the sale.  This is what I found:

A box of books and workbooks for E.B.  The workbooks were never used and there were even some old 1960’s school readers.

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I also found a great lot of books.  Most of the were Oprah Book Club books that I have never had a chance to read.  I’m really excited about these and have already started on Angela’s Ashes.

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And then E.B. also scored this Little Tykes writing desk and a toy laptop computer.  They were both in perfect condition.  

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Grand total for all of this?  $6.00.  Yes, I am serious.  I think we got a great deal.

About That Cat…

Posted on by Mandy


So, the other night when I walked outside to get something out of our car, I saw a flash of fur running down our street. It looked liked a small dog, so I figured it was a neighbor’s and hoped the poor little thing was running home. I went back inside and didn’t give it another thought.
So. A few minutes later, Pearl, our female cat, was at our door looking out and going bonkers over something. That something was a small orange kitten. The kitten was crying, so I knew he was obviously scared and hungry. Cracked Daddy even felt sorry for the little fellow, so I set him some food outside. It was also really hot, even though it was night time, so Cracked Daddy said to let him come inside.
So. Little kitten came inside and made friends with Clyde and Pearl. I think he was small enough to not scare them or seem like a threat, so they tolerated him and the kitten kept its distance. E.B. immediately pointed out that the little kitten looked like our neighbor’s cat named Jimmy and began to call the kitten Little Jimmy. I shortened it to L.J.

And so, the hunt began on Facebook and within our circle of friends and family to find Little Jimmy a good home because Cracked Daddy was adamant that we COULD NOT HAVE ANOTHER CAT. I asked everyone…I begged….I tried to sell Little Jimmy’s finer points, such as how I had already litter box trained him and how sweet he was. Nothing has worked so far. And in the meantime, Little Jimmy has stolen my heart, made himself at home, and just fell right in with the Cracked House chaos.
So. Little Jimmy has been here two weeks now. Because we CANNOT HAVE ANOTHER CAT.

Let’s Talk Back-To-School Supplies

Posted on by Mandy

Wow. It’s not even August and already the aisles at all of the stores are screaming BACK TO SCHOOL SALE! I’m personally not really all that ready to think about it, but I figured I’d better at least start making a dent in E.B.’s list for this year. I was a little shocked at not how long the list was,(because these types of lists are always long) but at how many of each item I am having to buy.  4 bottles of glue…6 glue sticks…what, are they eating this stuff?  I kid.  sorta. 2 boxes of Kleenex, Germ-X…are we noticing a pattern of “x”?  Dial handsoap, 2 boxes of crayons…2 boxes of markers….3 reams of cardstock paper….and on and on.  I was all enthused until I noticed every item had some sort of specification.  24-count crayons. Glue bottles in certain ounces.  Did you know glue sticks were specified in grams?  I start down the aisle, grab a few items, and then have a sudden urge to start rocking and asking strange shoppers nearby to please hold me? and then I turn and head for the checkout.

I’m still not done.  Obviously.  I have 2 more weeks.  Thankfully.

So what are your children’s school supply lists looking like for this year?  Managable?  Affordable?  Or the equivelent of an office supply store on one piece of paper?  I want to hear all about it.  The good, the bad, and the ugly.

And does anyone else miss the days when all in the world you ever needed to start school with was a Trapper Keeper?

Idle Threats

Posted on by Mandy


For the past few months, E.B. has interpreted anyone correcting him or denying him something as purposely “hurting his feelings”. If I tell him it’s time for bed, I’ve “hurt his feelings”. If I tell him no, he cannot go play outside when the heat index is 105, I have also “hurt his feelings”. This child is so in touch with his “feelings” that you’d think he’d been seeing a therapist since he was in utero.

As I sent him off to bed tonight, (which by the way, hurt his feelings, imagine that!), he informed me that if I continued to “hurt his feelings”, that he was going to go spend the night with grandma.

Would it be so wrong of me to pull out his little Thomas the Tank Engine suitcase and help him pack?

Did I Tell You We Survived T-Ball?

Posted on by Mandy

If they said “run home”, he headed for the dugout. He kicked more dirt in the outfield than he caught balls, and when he did get the ball, he held onto it until the batter on the other team scored a home run. He balked at going to practice, wouldn’t stay in the dugout, pitched some really terrific fits, regularly left the field mid-game to come get a drink and try to sit with me, and was pretty much uncooperative. BUT…

He did eventually make it around all of the bases towards the end of the season. He was the RBI king. He once hit a double. He looked so stinkin’ cute in his tiny little uniform.

And getting a trophy for Most Improved Team? Well, that was just the coolest thing ever.

All I can say is thank goodness for really patient coaches.

Electrolux~Kelly Confidential $25 American Express Gift Card Giveaway (CLOSED)

Posted on by Mandy


Kelly Ripa and Electrolux are joining forces once again to celebrate the launch of Electrolux Appliance’s new stand-alone refrigerator and freezer – that’s right, the familiar duo has split up. And to sweeten the celebration, they’re bringing in the “Emperor of Ice Cream” Stephen Bruce, owner and founder of Serendipity 3, the landmark New York City restaurant and dessert spot, into the mix.

Kelly and Bruce teamed up earlier to make banana splits for a cause. And now you can dig in with your virtual spoon! At www.Kelly-Confidential.com, you can build your ultimate banana split using virtual ingredients from classic whipped cream to caramel sauce to rainbow sprinkles. For each “split”, Electrolux will donate $1 to the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund as part of its $750,000 commitment to help fight ovarian cancer.

As usual, Electrolux and Kelly find new and fun ways to say thank you to those who support this great cause. Everyone who logs on to the site and builds a split will be automatically entered for a chance to win the daily prize – $50 towards sweet summer treats – and the grand prize: the new stand-alone refrigerator and freezer from Electrolux.

Thanks to Mom Select, I have a $25 American Express Gift Card to share with one of my readers. To enter, just leave a comment on this post. Please be sure I have a valid email so I can get in touch with you if you win. One entry per person. Void where prohibited. Deadline to enter is Monday, July 19 at 11 PM Central.

11 Years

Posted on by Mandy


Today Cracked Daddy and I celebrate 11 years of marriage. Here we are on our wedding day. So young….so full of dreams…so clueless. LOL! It’s been a wild ride full of the ups and downs of life, but I can tell you with all certainty that I wouldn’t have wanted to experience it with anyone else. I love you, honey.