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Beth Kern - Dirty Denim

Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh....

I have a secret! More to come later this week....

Trim and tone

I am so painfully aware of the obvious body changes that having kids has left behind. Parts of my body that used to be one place have shifted to other areas. I have tried exercising, but this problem has not been corrected regardless of my persistent attempts. It's those problem areas that seem impossible to get rid of that drive me nuts.

Perhaps plastic surgery is the answer? What about a tummy tuck? Has anyone else considered having one?

The tummy tuck would help tighten the abdominal muscles that have been damaged in pregnancy and weight loss. Liposuction also trims away the saggy areas in your tummy which would give a more toned appearance.

What could it hurt to have a tummy tuck done? I know a flat tummy would boost my self esteem while making me feel younger and rejuvenated.

The Times magazine did an article on liposuction which featured a UK Tummy Tuck facility called Make Yourself Amazing. MYA is one of the largest cosmetic surgery facilites in the UK. Just the name itself gets my attention.

Costume party

We went to the costume party Saturday. That was pretty fun. The kids had a blast. Food was delicious of course. Had a couple of drinks. They had karaoke which is always a good time. And the 'studs' from last weekend showed up as the chippendales. *smh*

Help with math

Next week we have parent teacher conferences. The school has arranged to have reading and math tutors available to talk with parents.

I'm looking forward to talking with them to see if Kat needs to get some help. To my knowledge, the school has not yet conducted their testing to find out who needs the tutoring. The last I heard from them, it was being offered based on income rather than need.

This seems completely wrong to me, but what do I know?

Last year, Kat really struggled with her mad minutes math tests. This is where they test you on basic math facts and you have so many problems per page. It seemed like it took months before she was able to get the first page done in the allotted time. By the end of the year, she seemed to be progressing quickly with the problems. I think by the last test, she was on the third page or so.

I have not seen much in terms of math testing so far this year. Kat shows a lot of interest in reading, which is a good thing. And we try to keep her excited about math too. We make a game of it and quiz her at home, or when we are driving, etc.

But she may need a little extra help. I would get her a tutor now and get her on the right track than to wait until she is in junior or even senior high.

Weekend plans

This weekend my sister should be here. That will be fun. We always have a good time. Maybe we will do karaoke again with her. I dunno. This is also the weekend of the big costume party that we would like to go to. So it's still all kind of up in the air. I do hope we can do that too though, so the girls get good use out of their costumes.

Insurance rates keep increasing...

It seems like every year we get a notice that insurance rates are increasing. Are people aware why they keep going up? Maybe if they understand part of the reason, they would make a change.

I realize the economy is tough right now. I know that has a lot of people under tremendous stress! This ultimately causes people to get distracted when driving. And even in some cases, it leads to road rage.

Some people are just high risk drivers no matter what. They have poor driving behaviors which leads to at-fault accidents.

Teenagers are driving today with cell phones! Does this not scare you?

And lets not even get started on the trucking industry. Trust me! I helped with underwriting insurance policies for large fleets for years. Some of the things I saw come across my desk scared me. Stats show fleet drivers have an average accident rate of 20% a year!

There is actually new technology out that could help with driver safety. GreenRoad has developed driver safety and risk management technology that has reduced accident rates of their customers by 54%! Of course, this helps lower costs at the same time. Great news, huh?

Their focus is on business, fleet and teenage drivers.

The GreenRoad system provides drivers with instantaneous in-vehicle feedback on their driving behavior, without invading privacy. GreenRoad's system detects driving maneuvers to access safety levels. This information is then transmitted to an Internet site to let the driver know where they need improvement.

Statistically, car accidents are the leading cause of death in teenagers. Using technology to improve driver safety can help save lives.

Whatta day

I'm so exhausted. The girls were up before 5 this morning. They stood in the new dresser drawer and pulled it off track and bent the track a little. Sarge luckily was able to fix it tonight when he got home. Thank GOD! We didn't go to gymnastics since he worked over and I couldn't get ahold of gramma. But that was ok with me, cuz I was definitely not in the mood for gymnastics.

Hopes for good things

As most of you know, I found the wonderful world of blogging for money a few months ago. All is going well! I just wish I had more opportunities available. Greedy? Maybe. But there is little a person can do without money anymore. Besides, it will really help with Christmas.

That is why I am so excited about upcoming release at payperpost next month. I think this will bring great things!

Argus is set to lauch at PostieCon in November. This is the highly anticipated new disruptor! Do you think you can handle it?

I have read endless posts regarding the upcoming release. I am very hopeful that Argus will bring a whole new world of opportunities for us. It will no longer be just about blogs posts and advertisers.

In fact, the powers that be decided it should not be bundled into the realm of PayPerPost as this name would not encompass all Argus would stand for. Afterall, Argus is not some upgrade of the PayPerPost system. It's an all new concept all together!

After much debate and blogger input, they have came up with a new TOP SECRET name for it. So secret, I think they even have men all dressed in black suits, white shirts, black ties, dark shades and ear buds connected to transmitters guarding it.

I can't wait to see what the future holds at payperpost. Are you ready for this?

Fall is here

We have been so spoiled so far this spring. We still have days in teh 80's. That is so not normal for us this time of year. The annual festival we have here was unbelievable! Sarge himself said he never remembers wearing shorts to it. But alas, fall is showing its presence. Today we are in the 50's. Major drop! I'm sure the cold and flu crud is soon to follow.

Black Friday is coming

It is almost time for the craziness of Christmas shopping to begin again. People have become so ruthless when it comes to getting good deals on black friday that I do not have any desire to step foot into a store during the madness anymore. I mean, you see the nonsense on the news. People are getting trampled and injured. Is it really worth it?

Perhaps they are not yet aware of online shopping? Yes, you can get fabulous day after Thanksgiving sales without even leaving your seat! You can even view the thanksgiving ads earlier than those who wait for them to arrive via snail mail or their Thanksgiving Day newspapers. In fact, there are many major retailers with ads posted already! Go ahead and take a peek. I know you are curious. Check out the fabulousSears deals now so you can budget ahead!

It's that simple. You can view what your favorite stores will be offering during their black friday sales now and make your purchases online during the sale! You can even sign up for email notifications so you will know right away when your favorite retailer posts their black friday ad! Shop from your seat, and save your feet! Who really wants endless carts rammed into their rears anyway? No thank you!

Too old for bar room brawls

We went to the bar Saturday and had a blast. We were laughing about the fact that we had literally sat in a bar for 9 hours! How crazy is that?! lol

Anywho... it was a ball. We drank way to much. I ended up selling tickets for game stuff for the bar while we were there. That was funny as hell. This week the manager is getting a bartenders application for me, lmao! Not as a job...no no no! As a volunteer... I'd get to keep any tips I get though.

They had karaoke too. That was big fun. Sarge was feeling real good, so we finally got him to get up and sing in front of others! He can do a mean Johnny Cash karaoke. Johnny, Merle, George, David Allen Coe, Waylon... he can nail most of those. Although, he was feeling a little TOO good and messed up some when the KJ put him on the spot and made him sing Boy Named Sue without notice. LMAO

All was a great time... until the 21 year old boys became too persistant in trying to get phone numbers. When we were leaving and paying our tab, they decided it was time to make a final attempt. The guys had had enough of keeping quiet and cornered them. My friends dad ALSO was pissed off and got into it with them too. Oh fun!

Just short of a full fledged physical fight, the bartender broke it up..we finished paying out tabs and went home.

These boys are in there quite a bit, so it could make things interesting. This weekend, I THINK we are going to the costume party there.

Recruiting and staffing

When I worked at the hospital, one of the jobs I dreaded most was hiring people. The endless resume search and interviews. Finding a person with the skills required to fill the job was not always an easy task.

Since this job required lengthy training, you wanted to make sure you hired the best candidate for the job. We finally decided to conduct interview panels. This made it a little easier on me since there were other people interviewing the candidate as well and forming an opinion of the person.

We would then compile all of our information into reports and review all the data all at once for all of the applicants. Now there is applications available to track all of this information for you. I wish we had this available when I was doing the recruiting and staffing.

What's new

The girls bunkbeds are awesome space wise. Meme chose to take the drawer, and we already knew Kat would have the top bunk, so that left the first bunk for Mo. Meme got to pick since she is working hard at the potty training stuff.

I have to say however, the naptime struggle is even rougher now though. Now I have to add the worry about them climbing on the top bunk. Last night, Meme and Mo ended up sleeping together in the drawer. That was adorable!

Waking Kat up for school without waking the other two up is fun too. Since I can not reach her on the top bunk.

Just in time for Christmas shopping!

Coupons are always a welcome thing in my home. How about yours? Well if you answered yes, I have good news for you!

You can find coupon codes to most any store you would buy something from at NCNaturals. It is so easy to find online discounts on this site, you will certainly want to check it out!

They offer amazing Dell deals if you are considering purchasing a computer this year. We all know kids love computers! Maybe it is time to buy yourself a new one and give them your old one.

I know I will personally be grabbing up some Kohls coupons when I do my shopping for the kids.

I'm sure I will take advantage of the Macys online discounts as well. We always try to do the kids clothes shopping at those two places so the savings will be wonderful!

The meeting

Last night was the PTO meeting. One of my friends and I went to discuss the decisions that have been made about the halloween party and schoolwide parade. I now understand why they nixed the parade and I totally agree with their decision. Who know a small school could have so many protective orders in their office?! However, I am still extremely peeved that the 2nd and 3rd graders will not be allowed to dress up for halloween. While the K, 1st, 4th and 5th graders will be allowed to dress up. THe decision should not have been grade level based! It should have been school wide!

Starting a new business can be a lot of work

When Sarge and I started our business, we found out there was a lot to getting set up. And a lot of decisions to make about what type of business you want to start. Each type of business has their own liability levels and requirements.

If you want to start a corporation, you need to remember there are requirements that must be met. In a corporation, you are required to hold regular meeting with shareholders and directors. All important decisions must be made through a meeting of the directors and be documented in the company minutes. Even if you have a one person company, these meetings and documentations are still required.

The IRS will even request to see this documentation, so make record keeping and minutes from meetings a priority.

When you first set up your corporation, you need to have a meeting with your directors and shareholders to adopt your bylaws. The bylaws establish how the corporation will be ran. They also establish the duties and responsibilities for each member of the board of directors.

There are resources for helping you get all of these things set up. You can get free llc forms to help you get started.

The most important thing you can do before setting up your business is research! Make sure you do yours first. You don't want any surprises that will cost you in the end.

Hello there.

Wow. It's been a few days huh?! Let's see... I had a sinus headache one day... and then the LO challenges.... and cleaning. Yeah, that about covers the last few days for me. Tonight, Kat and I are going to Shannon's to help her clean up some. The construction crew gutted 1/2 of her house today so there is lots of vacuuming and picking up that needs to be done so they have some place to sleep tonight. And with the walls having been plaster.. that will be fun to breath in the dust.

Home Improvements

We three kids, we really need to do something about only having two bedrooms. We have a full unfinished basement where we could possibly expand, but that takes money.

We are considering getting a home equity loan to help us remodel. Home equity loans can be a very good way of doing home improvements because you can get financing with low interest rates. Plus, since it is a second mortgage, your interest is tax deductible.

We have also considered mortgage refinancing to get a lower mortgage rate and lower our bills.

RECYCLE

We went to the local fair this week and I saw the funniest thing. There was a couple of women who had a booth of stuff for sale. They had a bake sale, which looked yummy! And then they had some non-food items for sale. Hmm... is that accurate? Non-food? Seeing how they had purses made out of frozen food boxes, ie: Hot Pockets! And purses made out of plastic grocery bags. Maybe non-food is not the best wording.

I was lmao!!

Stretching the dollar

Kat's cheer team will be starting competitions soon. This means we will have to order her cheer shoes, which are not cheap by any means, as well as paying for the competitions. While I am excited for her to begin her competitions, and hope they do well at regionals so they can go to Orlando to compete, I do not look forward to the extra expenses. Especially if they do place high enough to go to Orlando.

We are talking about $2000 in costs just for Kat to go. And I have no intention of letting my little girl go to Florida without a family member with her. So that will increase the cost greatly.

When living paycheck to paycheck, there is no way we can swing that out of pocket. Even with saving up a few dollars each week ahead of time, I am sure we will have to get a personal loan in order for her to go.

I know it would be the time of her life and I do not want her to miss out on the opportunity. If they do place, I'm sure we will find a way to make it happen. Whether we have to do a cash advance from a payday loan company or find some other means to cover it, we will do everything we can.

Breast Cancer Awareness

We all know October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I can not stress to you enough the importance of doing self breast exams and having exams done annually by your doctor. If you at the age of mammograms, it is so important that you get them done! Breast cancer can be cured. But only if it is caught early!

I always try to do what I can to support the research for finding a cure for breast cancer, and several other charities as well. Here is a great opportunity to make a donation...

Who needs some bling?

Jewelry is always a great gift for women, that is no secret. I always love to get earrings especially. We women love to accessorize after all!

I have been looking around to get some ideas for my Christmas wishlist this year. I would absolutely love to add a pair of blue topaz double pear drop earrings to my jewelry box.

I also found a pair of Coyote Palm Rose earrings that I would love to get for Shannon for Christmas. Palm trees are one of her favorite things right now. The ones I found here are absolutely gorgeous too. They are finished with an antiqued brass with the palm leaves adorned with czech glass crystal beads. They would make a perfect gift, and very affordable too!

Shopping

It's been a while since I have shown ya's my great finds. So I figured I would do a little catch up. There are lots, so it may take a few entries to get them all. There a lots of great sales going on in the digi scrap world right now. Lauren Reid is leaving scrapartist.com and Angela Barton is retiring from SweetShoppeDesigns.com. So of course there are many 'do not miss' items there to pick up. Although, Lauren will be selling in another store, to be announced.

Here are a couple of my new purchases...




Both are on sale right now at mydigitalmuse.com... 15% off!

Tutoring

We went to the meeting last night to get information on what the state has mandated for our school to provide the students due to not meeting the "No Child Left Behind" standards again.

This year they are required to provide free tutoring for eligible students. But they did not go into details of whether or not the students would be individually tested to see if they needed the tutoring.

We were given a bunch of information on Reading Tutors read over and choose a provider from. They will compile a list and see if they have enough students enrolling in the provider you have selected.

The part I found the strangest was of the parents that attended the meeting, ALL of their children were in the second grade and struggling with reading. I think this made a strong statement.

I believe there must be a strong need for reading tutors within our school. This is a critical time in their education. If they become frustrated with reading at this stage, it will effect their education throughout their lives. It is very important to get these children the help they need right now.

Stand Up and Scrap

Week three is here already. I am so pressed for an idea for this challenge. I have no clue what I am going to do at this point. I need to just open PS and start scrapping. Then it will prolly just come to me. That is how it usually works. I was happy with last weeks LO. The first week... that was a rough one!

Organizing

I'm on this major reorganizing kick. Trying to make sure everything has its place, and that it is clearly accessible when needed. The things that are not used daily, I am putting into storage bins or boxes.

I found some really neat ones to use for the kids craft stuff and labeled them so they are easily identified. All the out-of-season clothes are in storage bins. I also went through the kids toys. I let them select ten toys to keep out to play with. The rest went into a storage bin. In a month, we will rotate them. They will be allowed to get ten more out, and the current ones will be put into the bin.

Organizing is a good thing! Especially when you are limited on space. Next, I am attacking the tools and things in the garage. All of the outside toys are already put into bins. Now it is time to get all the other garage stuff organized.

More on the head lice epidemic

My friend called the principal last night and told him off about the lice epidemic. He first claimed to not know anything about an outbreak. So she confronted him with the fact that 1/2 of one of the 3rd grade rooms had it 3 weeks ago. Well then maybe he did hear about it. After a total chewing out, he assured her he would look into it first thing this morning and they would send out letters and do head checks. Well, there were no head checks. And the only thing my daughter has in her backpack, is homework!

*grumbles*

Do you like to try new things?

Do you like to try new things out before they go on sale? Do you like to do beta testing? Then you need to check this out! Zuujit Mobile is looking for beta testers. For every bug you report to them, you will be entered into a pool to win a free unlocked HTC Ty TN II smart phone. One winner, which will be chosen on November 15th, will receive the smart phone.

What is Zuujit Mobile? Well if you are an eBay addict, you will love this! Zuujit Mobile Beta turns your smart phone into an all-in-one, powerful listing tool for your eBay auctions and listings. You can create your complete listing, including your photos, within minutes!

Have you ever been away from your computer and needed to check and respond to your eBay messages? I know this happens to me all the time! With the smart phone, you can take care of all of that too!

How handy is that? You can check it all out, and possibly win a free smart phone just for telling them what you find wrong. Sounds cool to me!

Random Thoughts

Did I mention how happy I was the Brett chose Jess? Mhmm... that was totally the right choice!! I wonder if they are together still though... hmm... I will have to go do some internet digging huh?!

And, that darn Niki!! She has got me hooked on Gossip Girl. Oh yeah, tomorrow night on CW people. LOL

And one last thought... will they ever have another "Rockstar" on CBS? That was my favorite reality show. Jordis and Dilana...those were my choices. Neither won though. Although, Dilana did get runner up in season two.

Yeah... I'm off to google me some Brett/Jess gossip now.

Weight loss procedures

I feel so bad for a friend of mine. She had the gastric bypass surgery done a couple of years ago and now she is having nothing but medical problems. She can not stop losing weight. She has been in the hospital multiple times now and the doctors keep trying to help her, even to the extent of feeding tubes. She is a single mother with little children who need her. It's just so sad.

I wonder if she had done the LAPBAND procedure, if things would have turned out better for her. I was reading some more about it and is the only adjustable, and completely reversible weight loss surgery available in the US today. The LAPBAND system is a gastric banding system, so as I said, it is adjustable.

She may have had to have traveled a little for the procedure but I found a Houston Lap band surgeon who seems highly credible. Dr. Collier's facilities sound like they make their patient's comfort their priority. To me, that is always a priority, regardless of what kind of procedure you are having done.

The LAPBAND procedure is all done laparoscopically and the patient gets discharged home within a few hours. Again, this makes the patient more comfortable.

The LAP-BAND system has helped many people not only lose their excess weight, but also begin living a healthier, more productive life.

School frustrations

I am so frustrated with our school this week. They schedule the parent meeting about their failing the federal education and development standards for tonight at 6:30 and send out a notice on Friday about it. Well the problem with that is, tonight is the start of our little festival here. Not that the rides, etc are important, however, our kids and ourselves are involved in other things...which were part of the activities starting at 6:30 tonight. And the parade is at 7:00. So how convenient is that? Let's hold a meeting and set it at a time when 75% of the parents will not be available! Just cuz we can!

Second... my friend called me this morning and told me to check my daughters hair when she gets home today to see if she has head lice because she just found that her daughter has it and they were together this weekend. So we start talking about head lice policies, etc. I get out the handbook for our school... guess what?! Head lice is an UNEXCUSED absence. So what does that tell parents? If your kids get head lice, you better send them to school cuz it will be unexcused if you don't. So yeah, lets just infest the entire school while we are at it! Thank God my daughter does not have a sign of it..... yet!

Lastly... it was raining here yesterday. The kids go out for their morning recess, which it is pretty chilly here in the mornings now.. and it is sprinkling. A few minutes later, it starts flat out raining. One of the teachers tells my daughter and some of the other kids to go ask their teacher if they are going to go back inside. My daughter's teacher says 'no, we are staying out'. So who will pay for those doctor's bills? hmm..

And we will not even start on the bus driver.

My dream garage...

One of the nicest things about the latest car hauler dad has is all the diamond plating it has, which means heavy duty! Even the cabinets are diamond plated. You know those will last a long, long time.

I was thinking, I would love it if we could put diamond plate cabinets in our garage too. They would never go out of style, that is for sure!

Because true diamond plate made from aluminum will never rust or corrode, we would never have to replace them like we would metal cabinets. What an amazing showroom style look this would give the garage! And we certainly can use the extra storage space. I even saw a complete desk made out of diamond plate. That would add an extra bling!

Oh yes, I definitely want to have a diamond plated garage. We would then become the "Jones" of the neighborhood for everyone else to keep up with.