Happy Halloween Everyone!!! I just started a new website. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with it yet but I wanted to use angelfire because you can do anything you want to on it. So far all I have is a Halloween picture there. You can check it out if you want. The url is: http://www.angelfire.com/nj4/ottosite.

It's been 9 days since I"ve blogges. I don't blame you if you don't check this out regularly. Where did that 9 days go?? I won't even go there. Some of them have been very frustrating, that's for sure. Linda and I did the St. John's bazaar this past Saturday and I think she did VERY well. I, on the other hand, didn't do so well. But, I did have a lady come by our table looking for me so she could order 2 dozen ornaments. That was the "big sale" of the day. I'm also making 80 candle holders for a friend of mine to give as Christmas gifts from the place she works at. I thought I would have to beg coupons from everyone I know (and some I don't) just so I can make some money on the deal, but I went to Michael's the other day and was able to buy a case of 24 candle holders for 22.99; and with my 40% off coupon, it makes it 14.00. THAT was a big relief. They normally sell for 99 cents each. I still have to buy one more case of them, but I have all the other supplies needed to finish the project. I expect to be done with both projects in a week. Thanks for checking on OttO. Later......................

I found out I can't put new music on my blog. I guess you'll have to put up with what I have on there. I was looking for more free sitebuilding places through google but didn't get very far and I started imagining how long it would take to check them out and got discouraged. I decided instead to update my SS. Simon and Jude site; finally! I've been saving all the bulletins from the last several weeks and I started with the most recent and added the content of them to the website. It was a good feeling to do that. I checked the traffic and there actually has been some! That makes it more motivating. I just have one more to add and that's this week's. I think I'll do that right now.

What am I doing wrong???? I tried to change my music and I can't....................I'll have to call the Earth Goddess; and the Goddess of a LOT of other things too! SHE can help, I know! I can't tomorrow; I'll be busy all day. It'll have to wait until Monday. Has anyone been watching "Survivor?" I saw it tonight and was glad to see that team win the immunity challenge. Why? I don't know. Maybe because they're the underdogs. I tend to root for those type. Let's not even speculate as to why I tend to do that. I have honored Alex's request to delete her animal blog links, and I hope you all do the same. She will appreciate it. I'm going to retire early tonight so I'll have to blog some more later. Let's hope when you check my blog, I'll have the music I want on here. We shall see.........................

If you've been reading my blog, you know that I was supposed to start cleaning a house today. I didn't start because the people called and told me we had to reschedule for two weeks from now. That's ok with me. I guess I'll start then instead. I should really stop taking naps in the middle of the afternoon. I feel so lazy when I do that. But around 3:00 p.m. I am SO tired! Of course I work until 3:30 so there's no way I can take a nap until I get home and then I wait until the kid Alex babysits gets picked up (which is around 4 or so), so it's usually 4:30 before I lay down to read (and fall asleep shortly after.) That's probably why I stay up so late at night............hmmmmmmmmmm.

Well, today was Boss's Day. We acknowledged our boss at St. John's with cards, a banner, a plant, and some things she'll need to take with her when she goes to Greece. She was excited. She didn't even realize it was Boss's Day until we gave her her stuff. Why is the word "boss's" spelled the way it is????

It sure makes for a short week when you take Monday off and already get Friday off. I had to do work at home tonight otherwise I wouldn't get it all done. I know, not a good habit to get into but I had to get my work done. I'll make up for it somewhere else...........maybe. Later!

Tomorrow I start cleaning a house that I've never cleaned before. I never know exactly what to expect when I start a new house cleaning job. It shouldn't be too bad. The lady said she has one bathroom, two bedrooms, a living room and a kitchen. Sounds small! I will soon find out. Oh, about the SS. Simon and Jude bazaar; it was a great time, the food was good, the crafters were really nice (and I think they enjoyed themselves), and we made almost $2,000 profit. That money will be put toward our bell tower repair. I didn't make much money at all. I thank Alex, Rebecca, and Linda for watching my table for me since I was required to be in the kitchen all day (my favorite room!) Well, I didn't spend all my time in the kitchen. I had to mingle with the crafters, get a sense of how their day was going, and I did tell them we were considering moving our date to the third weekend in October next year. About 75% of them thought that would be a good idea. I hope most of them come back. We need to do something about our traffic! Any suggestions, please let me know. I am open to any good ideas. We put a LOT of work into that bazaar and I'd like to see us profit $3,000 next fall. That's my goal. "Think big!" P.S. Wish Windy and me good luck for the 26th: St. John the Baptist bazaar. Thanks!

I just came on the computer to check my email and I got some exciting news! My seeeester is coming home for Thanksgiving! Then my yahoo said that I had one friend on and next to this friend's name it said, "View my webcam." I clicked on it (my friend was Michael) and I was able to see him while I was chatting with him. I think that's cool. He's in Kosovo right now and soon will be in Africa. Every day that goes by that he's ok, I'm thankful for. He's a good kid. I chatted with him a bit and then let him chat with his girlfriend who was also on. It was good to see him.

I know you're all probably tired of hearing about our bazaar, but I want to encourage everyone whose able to, to come out and pay us a visit. We need the traffic! This is my third year in charge and I'm not sure what else to do to get people out there but to move it to a "good part of town." It's a really nice bazaar. We do a lot of decorating with cornstalks, bales of hay, pumpkins, gourds, fake leaves, etc., the food is good, the raffle is worth getting in on, and if for no other reason, get out there because Alex and I are half of the committee! It's not a bad part of town, contrary to popular belief, so if you're not doing anything for a part of the day on Saturday, go to 2395 S. Outer Drive any time between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. and pay us a visit. Stay for lunch! Buy a raffle ticket! We have lots of good prizes besides our top 4 to raffle off too. There's at least 3 $10.00 gift cards to Kessel, a $25.00 gift card to WalMart, a $10.00 gift card to Applebees, a $10.00 gift card for gas, a free oil change, a free manicure, a free car wash/wax, a gift certificate to Able's Greenhouse, a tool set, a barbecue set, and the list goes on. That's in addition to the top 4 prizes we're raffling off which are valued at between $60.00 and $300.00. Ok, I said it again. Hope to see you there!

I did get a picture of the firetrucks in the parade though.



It was raining VERY hard by this time!

Here is a picture of MY kid walking in the parade on Friday afternoon.....



I didn't get too many pictures after this! And Alex didn't walk much further either!

"When it rains, it pours." Due to the loss of my job at SJS, I have had to supplement my income with house-cleaning jobs. I took on two more houses since I lost my job; one every week and one every three weeks. I was sort of hoping for one more every other week. Well, last Friday, a friend of a woman whose house I clean already, called me and asked me if I'd be interested in cleaning her house every other week. I said yes. So I'll be cleaning her house on the Wednesdays that I don't clean the other woman's house. So I thought, "Well, this is good. Now I'm a little more comfortable with my income." Saturday night at the football game, I ran into a parent from St. Josaphat who told me she's been meaning to call me to have me clean her house. She wants it cleaned every other week. I told her I'd go look at it and decide how much to charge her and I will probably take that one on too. The good thing is that with Christmas coming, I can use the extra $$$. And after that, well, maybe start saving............. I just have to get used to my new schedule that will probably start next week. I know I can do it and still have more time at home than what I had when I was working 10 hours a day so I'll be fine. I just bought a day planner for a VERY cheap price and I think it's time to start filling it in. I did get some good pictures of the cheerleaders and the football players last night so I'll try to get them on msn soon. Bear with me. I have a very busy week coming up. Don't forget about our bazaar on Saturday, October 12. Come and enjoy our authentic Mexican lunch. SS. Simon and Jude Parish ~ 2395 S. Outer Drive ~ 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Hope to see you there!

My daughter is a teenager today. It's a day she's been looking forward to since she turned 12! I, on the other hand, have not been so anxious for this day to come. 5 more years and she'll be on to college. I know our goal as parents is to raise our kids to be responsible and independent and on their own. But it's a little scarey to think about the reality of it all. It's been since the 29th of September that I've blogged! With our SS. Simon and Jude Bazaar coming up next weekend, I've been busy making crafts. But between all that, I've rearranged just about my whole house (dumb timing) and that took since Wednesday night. I had to find new places to put my junk/stuff. I sometimes wonder why I create work for myself. I like to rearrange though because it makes me feel refreshed. Yesterday was the Nouvel Homecoming Parade and Alex was walking in it so I thought I'd go take pictures. Well, it rained for the whole thing; just light rain at first, but half-way into the parade, it started downpouring! I had an umbrella to shield my camera from the rain (I was soaking wet) and it worked but when the heavy rain started, I decided that was enough. It held off long enough for me to get a couple shots of the cheerleaders, which was the group Alex was walking with. Her and Megan W. came home SOAKING WET and then went back out a couple hours later to see the football game. By then it had cleared up though so I just made them dress warm. Tonight is the last game for St. Helen's 7th and 8th grade team. I'm going to get some pictures of the cheerleaders (and maybe the football players) and hopefully share them with you on msn. I gotta get ready for church. I'll blog tomorrow................