My "Interesting" Life!!

Last Sunday I got stopped by a policeman for the first time EVER. I was watching a guy ahead of me on a sweet bike and wasn't watching my speed. Uh- the cop nailed me going 62 in a 45. (Had no idea what the speed limit was on this country road!) When the flashing lights came up behind me, I pulled over right away. He walked up, told me he needed to see my license, vehicle registration & proof of insurance. I said, "Officer, I've never been pulled over, so just tell me what to do and I'll do it." I gave him my license, and started digging through the glove box to find what he needed. When he came back, I was sweating bullets & handed him what I thought was registration/proof of insurance. He kind of chuckled and said, "Ma'am, this is a nice van and all, but you don't have to give it to me." Guess I looked confused. He said, "This is your title- it shouldn't even be in your glove box." (Well, I didn't put it in there! Boy did I feel DUMB!!) I asked if I could call my husband to find out where the requested items were. He said, "Look, we can do this one of two ways. 1) I can write you a fine for $150 or 2) You can flash me those big baby blues one more time, promise to drive safe and I'll let you go. Well, I looked him right in the eye, smiled really big and promised I'd be good. He told me to have a nice day and to drive safer from now on so he wouldn't have to scrape me up off the pavement. Can you spell R-E-L-I-E-F?!
Had the van looked at again and everything seems to be okay now. An uptake valve was jammed and caused the engine to cut out on me while I was going downhill on the highway. For what seemed like a very long moment, the steering column and the brakes locked up while the engine revved like nobody's business & the RPM's were outta sight! I was able to kick it back into reality and get off the side of the road. My hands were trembling- I was really shaken up! Was able to make it home again going under 20 mph with hazards on. A good friend had to come pick me up, drive me to MofM practice. Later in the week he & his wife gave us some money toward getting the van fixed- nice people! Monday, a mechanic removed the gunk that was causing the malfunction and sent me on my way. He told me it would cost $350 to replace the part, but that if I would take it easy on the engine, it shouldn't be any problem now... guess we'll see... needless to say I won't be gunning the engine!

We drove up to Lake Tansi this weekend to see my step-sister and her husband. They were staying in a timeshare condo this week and were kind enough to invite us up for a day. We arrived Sat. evening, ate supper, stayed overnight, then spent a day swimming/boating. It was nice and the kids were so cute to watch! My husband slept the entire time we were out on the boat. (Not sure if he was bored or just plain exhausted. Sometimes I worry about his health, he sure does sleep a lot when he should be enjoying us and having fun! At times I'm insecure- is he so unhappy with the life he has with me that he is escaping? The thought is painful- I try to dismiss it, but one has to wonder sometimes...)
The kids had a great time jumping in and fishing off the pontoon- didn't catch anything, but enjoyed trying. Couldn't have asked for better weather- not too hot or humid. It was PERFECT!! Made everybody pancake & eggs breakfast and did clean-up this morning. Did my best to connect & make conversation. Not only are we step-siblings 8 years apart in age, we are very different personalities. She was nice and accommodating, but after a while I started to realize I'm the one making most of the effort for conversation and I was running out of things to say- then there's this awkward silence... Oh well, as long as the kids had a nice time- that's all that matters I guess. Enjoyed a beautiful drive through the mountains up and back. Made me long for a motorcycle...

My man got a $3 raise! Yep, you read it right- after a week of being on the job, his boss noticed what a skilled worker he is and bumped him up. I'm proud of him! After 10 yrs of working a desk job, Jay is simply not used to the exertion. They start work at 6:30am and get off at 3:00pm. My man heads home & crashes on the couch for several hours at a time. Guess his body will get used to it eventually.

Put the kids to bed early tonight. They are participating in music day camp all next week & performing in a musical next weekend. Our 2 oldest daughters auditioned for drama/singing parts and got them, so they'll be working hard. Can't wait to see the performance. I love performing arts and they seem to have a passion for it as well. My littlest daughter will be tagging along with me again- poor girl is just not old enough to do what the others do yet.

Well, that's it. I'm headed to bed. Hope you had a good weekend! :o)