I Have A Cropover!!!

Definition of a cropover - Where a scrapbooker goes to scrapbook for 12+ hours and dedicated himself/herself entirely to huge projects that you are hoping to get done in one sitting. It usually does not happen.

Symptoms of a cropover - By the next morning you are exhausted and can have a bit of a headache but you are still energized because you got something accomplished.

This is me today. I went to a friend's birthday crop (Thanks and Happy Birthday Tyna!) at Scrapbook Art. The crop started at 9 AM. I finally got there at 10:30 AM and stayed until 11:30 PM. So I logged 13 hours of work and play and eating in this frame of time. Fun? YEAH!!!

I was starting to loose steam around 9:30. I had awoken at 4 in the morning and was unable to go to sleep. So I did what every other crazy agent would do. I went into my office and tied up a few loose ends before I headed out for the day. Insane? YEAH!!!

I did accomplish some of my Christmas projects and that is a feat to be proud of. I have undertaken several Christmas Gift projects and am praying to have them all done by Christmas. I have another crop coming up in December on the 7th from 1 PM to 11PM. 10 more dedicated hours to accomplish my goal? YEAH!!!!

I did have a blast hanging out with friends and playing in paper, photos, stickers, embellishmens, etc. I think I am going to have a charity crop in March for Eating Disorders Awareness Month. Giving back to the community? YEAH!!!

I will include details soon of this crop. It will definitely be a comfortable crop and a ton of fun. Who knows? If I get enough interest I may have to make it a 2 day crop. I hope so!!

November - so far....

This has definitely been a roller coaster month. If it could go any particular way, it has.

I will break down by category. Big shock. My trying to compartmentalize my life.

FUNERAL

As mentioned in my earlier blog, E's grandma had passed away. It was very sad for both of us but very nerve wracking at the same time. We had one final chance to see her in hospice and it was very hard. Grandma was a person who was always filled with life and an amazing energy and to see the cancer zap that out of her was hard. The hardest part of the whole thing was for us to see the Witch-In-Law. Please remember that the last time we have seen her or E has spoken to her was over four years ago. She acted as I would have expected her to act. At one point with us at hospice she threw herself on him. I could see that it bothered E but I gave him some space to deal with it.

At the wake was the real test of his family. To see who was well with us and who was going to treat us terribly. It was half and half. Two of his uncles and their wives were very nice to us and some of their children were nice. The other half worked to avoid us and not say a word. We at least learned who understood what was going on and those who just still (after four years) just did not get it. At least by the funeral we were prepared as to how we would be treated.

The funeral service was beautiful. I know that Grandma had planned the whole thing out in advance and that was executed very well. E's sperm donor was there and that was interesting. He was disrespectful (as always) in the fact that he actually wore his sunglasses through the entire service and following. Probably to cover his bloodshot eyes. Did not even bother to utter a word to E. Which turned on a huge light over my head. I had realized that in the entire six years that we have been estranged from him he has made absolutely, positively no attempt to have a relationship with E. The Witch-In-Law has pushed and tried to have a relationship but the Sperm Donor has not. Proof to us that it is truly a one sided relationship. My heart did go out to the Witch-In-Law because I know that she was close to her mother and I know that I would be at a complete loss if I had lost my mother. E was a pallbearer and once everything was completed we had to head out for our flight to Dallas.

DEER DRAMA

The morning of Garndma's funeral we were hit by a deer. No, I am not kidding. We were hit by an eight point buck in the middle of Downtown Bedford. The deer came out from between an Enterprise Rent-A-Car and a Labor Ready. E saw him barreling toward the car and there was not a thing that we could do. The deer came in through the back window of our Honda CR-V, hit his head on the headliner of the car, fell out of the car and obviously broke his neck. He then scrambled from the road into a car dealership where he damaged another truck, another Honda and finally died. Unbelieveable. The Bedford Police Animal Control was at the opposite stoplight from where we finally stopped and pulled over and he came over to investigate. His first initial reaction was WOW. Same as us. We were very fortunate at where he hit because if he would have hit my window (passenger seat) I could have been killed. If B would have been in the passenger back seat he could have been killed. Instead B was covered in glass but thank God he was not cut. After the police took their report we headed out with a damaged car and deer fur flying all over the car. Quite gross. E wanted to keep the deer but obviously he could not due to the fac that it needed to be field dressed immediately and we did not have time or resources. So now it is the ultimate battle of getting it fixed, coming up with the deductible, and all sorts of other stuff.

DALLAS

As I had mentioned prior, E and I had to leave the funeral to go straight to the airport to catch a flight to Dallas. We were both going to judge the Diamonds and Pearls National Pageant. We judged last year and had a phenomenal time. They spoil us to pieces when we judge and it gives E and I time together and a mini vacation. We really do have fun when we judge together and we do believe ourselves to be very fair since we really do not know these contestants. I hope that we get to go back next year. That would be a blast.

WORK

My work has actually been picking up. I am completely ecstatic by that. This time last year I was slow and this year not so much. I think that it helped to have our last Register to Win of the year in October. I am still striving for my spot on Leaders Trip to Hawaii. I need 10 more booked life before December 30th and time is going way too fast. I am praying that this can be accomplished. I have a lot of support from my team to get there. They have been so encouraging and I do not want to let them down.

This is all for now. We get to have a relaxing weekend this weekend and this is nice. We will be going to church soon and going grocery shopping later today. Have a great week!!

Rest In Peace Grandma Smith

Early Tuesday morning this world lost a very wonderful woman. This woman is E's grandmother AKA Grandma Smith.

We last saw her in hospice and had a few precious last hours with her. She was an amazing woman and it was very hard to see her down like that. She was the kind of woman who greeted you with a warm smile and a great hug and loved you for who you were. Not what others had or have thought of you. She has always been extremely welcoming of me as E's wife and B's mother and treated me like gold. She is definitely irreplaceable.

E has been holding up well. I know that this has been hard for him and all I can do is let him know how much I love him and support him. She had a hand in raising E and for that I am eternally grateful to her. The best part for me was that I did have an opportunity to thank her for all that she has done and given to me. She cared so much about me and my family that it touched me.

Below is her obituary from the Akron Beacon Journal. Feel free to read about how truly wonderful she really was.

Grandma Smith - we love you, always have and always will. Enjoy the loving embrace of our Father in Heaven and be our guardian angel from time to time.


Dorothy Eileen (Whitehead) Smith
Dorothy "Dottie" Smith, 74, went home to be with her Lord on November 4, 2008 after a courageous battle with pancreatic cancer.

Dottie was born on May 18, 1934 in E. Liverpool, Ohio to Lilly and Herbert Whitehead. She was a member of the Church of God of Prophecy and was a loving wife, mother and grandmother.

Preceded in death by her mother, father, brothers and sisters, her legacy includes a family who will miss her dearly, her husband and best friend of nearly 60 years, Ralph; daughters, Janit (Carl) Layne of Coventry and Carol (Tom) Blose of Canal Fulton; sons, Garry (Shelly) of Akron, Craig (Kathy) of Brimfield and Robert of Newcomerstown; 11 grandchildren, Eric, Tiffannie, Jamison, Amanda, Adam, Brooke, Brittany, Julie, Bob, Ashley and Alison; three great-grand-children, Tyler, Mikayla and Brendan. She is also survived by her brothers, John Whitehead and Jerry Fuller; sister, Phyllis Jean Nye; many, many nieces, nephews, cousins, aunts, uncles and numerous friends.

Her belief and faith in God was her guide through life. She knew that with Him all things are possible. There wasn't a person that met Dottie who didn't automatically fall in love with her beautiful smile and loving personality.

The family would like to extend a special thank you to all the staff at VNS and Hospice Care Center.

Family and friends will be received 4 to 8 p.m. on Thursday, November 6th at the Schermesser Funeral Home, 600 E. Turkeyfoot Lake Road (Route 619), where services will take place on Friday, November 7, 2008 at 1 p.m. Final resting place will be Northlawn Memorial Gardens. In lieu of flowers, please make donation to St. Jude's Childrens Hospital or VNS Hospice Care Center. (SCHERMESSER-GREEN, 330-899-9107)