Catch-up, not ketchup

I can't believe it's been nearly 2 weeks since my last post! I was posting regularly there for a long while, but I just haven't been at the top of my game lately.  I'm not just talking about blog-land; I'm talking about real-life, too.  Honestly, I don't know what my deal is & for once I don't want to sit here & over-analyze it & try to figure out what I think is up w/ my brain.  It is what it is.

I should start out by saying, I have not made it to the beach yet.  My mother in law wanted us to go w/ her this weekend, but we just couldn't afford it.  Hopefully one day this summer I'll make it to the ocean b/c I definitely feel lost & disoriented & not at all myself.  A good visit to the coast always cures what ails me.

As for the "friend" who scammed borrowed money from us: we have yet to hear a word from him.  His ex-wife & one of his close friends have contacted me to say that they're working w/ him to get his finances in order to pay me back.  The funny thing is, I'm not the only person he owes.  Apparently I'm one in a long list of folks, including a man w/ Downs Syndrome, an elderly woman on social security, and a young widow.  A real class act, that one.  Oh, I dropped the topic for the long weekend for my own sanity's sake, but once the weekend was over, it was squeaky wheel time.  He had his phone shut off (either from non-payment or just to avoid all the people he owes money), so I messaged him privately on facebook.  He never responded.  Then my husband's best friend got really upset & took it a step further by posting on his actual fb wall.  Not his private fb wall, mind you, but the one for his "business". (He's an Elvis impersonator by trade.)  Once he did that, several people also started posting b/c they, too, were unable to contact him privately.  That's how we found out about the other people he owed money.   When this "friend" had a local performance, me & the brother of the man w/ Downs Syndrome called the pub he was performing at to give them an idea of the kind of person they're dealing with.  The owner was sympathetic to the brother and was nice, but firm with me stating that we could organize a protest on the sidewalk outside the pub, but we were not allowed on the pub's property.  Before the show actually began that night, I was contacted by the friend of this "friend" who said that they would be sitting down w/ him this week to try to get everyone paid back.  So I'm giving it another week or two, but if I still don't hear anything, it's on like Donkey Kong.  At this point it's less about getting my money back & more about making him face the people he has hurt.  The way he wronged me was far less cruel than what he did to the other people I've spoken to.  Someone has to stand up, so I've claimed that role.  I've lovingly dubbed this the "Occupy Elvis" movement.

Summer vacation is here & with it comes the joy of juggling my work schedule to accommodate my kiddo.  We are saving money for Disneyland, so daycare is not within our budget.  I have a friend watching mini-me two days a week, but I'm working split shifts the remaining 3 weekdays.  I'm having a very hard time adjusting to the new hours, but it's only 3 months & it's worth it for my kiddo to celebrate her 10th birthday in Disneyland.  I'm still going to the book exchange 3 days a week, trying to sneak in time to read, and fighting the losing battle w/ the household chores.  Not to mention fitting in time to work-out b/c after losing 7 lbs the first 8 weeks, I haven't lost any weight in over 2 weeks.  I set myself a goal of dropping a couple pant sizes before our trip to Disneyland b/c as it stands I have 2 pairs of jeans that fit me right now & both are getting so worn, they're starting to tear.  I have quite a few pairs of pants, 1 skirt, & 1 pair of shorts that are just 2 sizes below where I'm at now. So I need to step it up & drop the inches before my current clothes fall apart.

I've had the opportunity to play w/ my camera & take some more pictures.  I don't have a natural talent for photography, but it's fun & some of my pictures have turned out nice.  As I get more comfortable & confident, I'm envisioning all these different locations/poses/props I can use the next time.  It's silly, but I'm really enjoying this chance to test out a new hobby.  Since I don't have an eloquent way to end this post, I'll leave you all w/ a few pictures I've taken over the last few weeks.

Our close friend's daughter, Lillian. (aka my self-declared niece)

Trin & Lillian

My pretty munchkin