My Review of Batman The Dark Knight 12" Figure

Originally submitted at Toys R Us

Features mega-detail, amazing sculpts and superb style collectors will love.

Batman The Dark Knight 12" Figure

Not too shabby!!

By Graham Graham the birthday man's mom from TN on 9/11/2008

 

4out of 5

Pros: Can Withstand Use, Realistic, Detailed

Cons: Small Parts

Best Uses: Older Children, Imaginative Play, Collecting, Young Children

Describe Yourself: Stay at Home Parent, Parent of Two or More Children

We have had this in the house for an hour now and it seems to be quite the hit. It is built well, so I don't forsee it breaking or falling apart quickly (thank goodness!). The only little piece that goes with it is his "batarang" and it's rubber so it won't hurt anyone if you have small kids in the house. He's pretty cool the way his wings retract and pop out...detail on him is good too. Overall I'd say this looks like this gets an A. (a bonus too cuz it said 29.99 on the shelf, but it rang up for $21.59. Go figure!!)

(legalese)

This is a really crappy day

I MISS MY MOMMY!!!! That's right, I'm 31 yrs old and missing my mom. It was the best week......my parents flew down sunday night but the part that i hate is that they had to leave this morning. I absolutely adore my mom, and I've burst into tears off and on all day long. I wish we lived closer to them, but that would mean moving back to Michigan which is just unacceptable. For so many good reasons....like Graham's dad lives there, my INLAWS live there & the snow......oh dear heavens the snow!! For any of you that know me, know full well that I am NOT a snow lovin girl. Odd for someone that spent her entire life up til 5 yrs ago in Michigan, huh? So mom & dad remain a 15 hr drive away (cuz they're in the tippy top of the lower peninsula now) and I never know when the next time I'll see them will be. It was nice waking up all week to the sound of my parents voices and spending time doing stuff together. If you ever wonder why I am the way I am.......all you have to do is spend 15 minutes with my mom to figure that one out. I appreciate her so much as I've gotten older, she's wonderfully sarcastic and weird & I see myself in her more and more with each passing day. Why do visits with people you WANT to visit have to end....and end so soon? 4 full days just wasn't long enough & my heart is just aching right now cuz I just didn't want them to go already.

We did do fun stuff, took them up to Opryland Hotel (we love that place & so do the kids) and walked around, ate out a whole bunch, checked out Stones River Battlefield (from the comfort of the air conditioned van, i might add...lol) and one of the BEST days was Wednesday. Mom and dad used to live in Huntsville, Alabama eons ago (it's where i was conceived, so there's your timeline) and they figured since we're so close to there that they would like to day trip it down that way. And even better, they wanted to go to UNCLAIMED BAGGAGE in Scottsboro!!!! I have a feeling that that place is hit or miss on stuff (this was my 2nd time there in the last month) & the first trip we didn't get much except for my fabulous new purse. This time however.......I got a FULL bottle of Burberry Brit perfume for $38 (in the store would be around $85!!!) AND I got a new Ipod!!!!! It's the new model of Ipod Mini 6gb, and it holds 1500 songs, which is MORE than enough for me!!!! $45!!!!! I'm so stoked over that one.

Moving on from that, I just got home from the doctor. Graham and I went to Dr. Murphy Tuesday...Graham because he has had this horrendous cough for about 5 weeks now and nothing was working. Me, because I got strep throat. Monday night my throat closed completely and I was having trouble breathing so I started taking prednisone to decrease the swelling...fun stuff. I have always had chronic strep, getting it upwards of 6 or 7 times a year. So he referred me to an Ear, Nose & Throat doctor to see about yanking my tonsils out. I was torn on whether i wanted that or not, but it sure would be nice to not be sick for THAT one reason anymore!! So I went to see Dr. Gross (who wasn't gross at all.....generally rather pleasant) and he looked at my throat and said "Good grief! You have deep holes on both sides going all the way back!" Just what i wanted to hear. So I'm scheduled to have them removed August 12th. He says I'll be out of commission for about 10 days & on heavy pain meds and according to him, i am not allowed to do a damn thing!!! He says I should even have someone looking over me for the first 3 to 5 days "just in case".....just in case what, exactly???? YIKES! And it's easier said, then done since Scott works, ya know? I hate hate hate asking for help, but I'm gonna have to to make sure that the kids get picked up from school and brought home. And I'm sure Scott will be annoyed that it's on a Tuesday (he works noon to 9....and i'm scheduled for an afternoon procedure) but that's the day the doctor does these things, so he'll just have to get over it if he gets annoyed. I'll just take a cab. lol. If I drove myself to the hospital when i went into labor with Graham (yes, seriously. none of the assholes that i worked with could be bothered to help...but i digress) then i should be able to fenagle something, right?

All i know is that I am ridiculously stressed out right now. It's for that reason that I should wrap this up. I just needed to vent.

Later Gators

Pills & My Parents

Quite the combination of topics, huh? lol

Well for starters let me just say how THRILLED I am today!!!! One reason being that Risperdal has FINALLY gone GENERIC!!!!! Sorry, you might be asking why that's so exciting or moreover what the heck a "respirdal" is and why you should care. This is the one med that Graham is on. He has been on it for about 4 yrs now & I can say that this drug has been a true saving grace. I've never been one that's gung ho about druggin up my kids & we tried after he was first diagnosed going the whole medicinal homeopathic route, but unfortunately it just didn't work. After a slew of unsucessful and NIGHTMARE med trials we found respirdal. It reduced/eliminated Graham's aggressive outbursts and mellowed him. Now if you know him, you would probably NOT use the word mellow to describe Graham......so now imagine what he must've been like BEFORE respirdal. We have great insurance, and his prescription each month has only been $30, but when we have a lean month, $30 can be hard to come by sometimes. So just this week I found out that after 4 years of much debating and begging and praying, hoping and wishing......we found that it is finally being produced in a generic form. $8 a month!!!! And if we switch our rx over to Kroger we could cut that down to $4 a month!!!! I am STOKED!!!!

Just got off the phone with my mom....she and daddy are sitting in Flint, MI at the airport 2 hrs before their flight is scheduled to takeoff. lol....I am so ridiculously excited that they are coming here & it kills me thinking that they are actually going to have to leave on Friday. My goal is to really push the great things about the Murfreesboro area and make them fall in love with it so that they decide to move here once and for all. Em actually woke up around 6:30 this morning and came running in to our room and pounced on our bed yelling "GUESS WHAT TODAY IS!!! TODAY IS THE DAY THAT GRANDMA & GRANDPA WILL BE HERE!!!!!" I know just how she feels. We're gonna make a couple stupid goofy posters to hold up at the airport....if only they weren't getting in so stinkin late! (10:30pm in to Nashville...ugh) I'm even doing LAUNDRY today.....and for those that really know me know that I simply do NOT do laundry. That is just one of many wonderful things that Scott does. I just want their stay to be perfect.

So the kids will miss most of the week of school with them being here & no, I don't feel bad about it. It has been 4 years since they have visited us in TN so this is a really really big deal. School will still be there next week. Speaking of school, it seems that we are off to a pretty good start! The second day of school Graham brought home a notebook sheet FULL of science notes that he took himself!! His teacher seemed really excited about it & boy, so was I!! No real incidents yet with Graham & he is excited to go to school which is just awesome. Em's teacher is looking to be wonderful too. Complete opposite of the teacher she had for Kindergarten & I like her already.

Well, my mop haired minions......I am off to do whatever it is that needs doing. Too many things that I know i should do & I'm too excited to concentrate on doing those things so I'm all over the place today! Here's hoping that you have a great day! Go hug a tree or shave a squirrel....lol

TOODLES MONKEYS!!!!

What's Goin On? What ISN'T going on??

Hola monkeys!!

So the kids are back in school.....not exactly sure where the summer went, but yeehaw, here we go!! Someone tell me how Graham can be turning TEN yrs old and in 4th grade and my baby girl just turned 6 and starting FIRST??? They are both growing up too fast.....whoever told them that was ok did not check with me first!!! We're only on Day 2 of school & today was the first full day, things seem to be good, but it's a little early to get a good idea of what's in store....I could not be more thrilled with both of their teachers so I think that it's going to be a good year.

Not much else exciting in my land of make believe......kids back in school, I lost my actual EMPLOYEE (hrly pay rate, real schedule) wah job last Friday & I am on the PTO this year. Yeah, I think that's about it. Mom and Dad are flying in from Michigan Sunday and are staying for 5 days so I am SUPER excited!!!! They haven't been to TN since we lived in Knoxville 4 1/2 yrs ago, so it should be a lot of fun. The goal is to entice them with just how great Murfreesboro is and convince them once and for all to MOVE HERE ALREADY. Now that my little sister has graduated from college they can't use that as their excuse anymore!!!! Ok, I'm off to veg. I'm feeling froggy so I may post a completely nonsensical blog in the next day or 2. We'll see.

Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for flying aboard Air CrazyNutJob today, we do hope that you enjoyed the flight. Please remember to put your tray tables away & place your seats in the upright position. We're preparing for landing at this time.

Fruit Loop Straws, Work & Other Ramblings

So I'm just sitting here "working", bored out of my gourd so I figured this would be as good a time as any to write in here. And any of you who have read my ramblings know that when it's been a while between blogs, I'm probably going to give you something to read. Don't you just hate blogs where the person just writes "Today I washed my hair. It was great." Well con-flippin-gratulations there Ding Dong!!!! I figure if I'm going to sit down and take the time to write in this thing, I'm gonna make it worth MY while and the while of those that might actually take the time to read something, ya know? However, if you have washed your hair today, I am SUPER happy for you!!!! Now go do something amusing. LOL

So I'm working today til 4. I love my job, LOVE the company I work for, it's just slow. My only real solace is that I'm getting paid hourly to sit on my butt and blog. And eat Fruit Loops straws. These stupid things are delightful and a HUGE breakfast fave with my kids. Little do they know that mommy scammed 4 from the box this morning. LOL

Ok, I have to get something off my chest....and some of you that read this might not like it, but oh well. From what I can see, mom's groups SUCK overall. I remember when I moved to Murfreesboro that fear of not knowing ANYBODY. I joined a mom's group, which thankfully was not an entirely bad experience FOR ME. I swear that the mom's groups in this place are somehow made of the same circle of people and some are nothing more than a glorified sorority. MEAN GIRLS. When we were 12 yrs old the popular girls made life hell for anyone that they didn't deem "worthy". And I sit back now, no longer a part of any group and see the havoc that some of these women wreak!! I'm sorry, but at what point as grown women, moms even, do some of these people decide that THEY are better, more entitled, more WONDERFUL than others???? The overall purpose of these groups is to MAKE FRIENDS, BE KIND, REACH OUT. And I watch some belittle, be nasty and stomp down on women that are wonderful and kind for no other reason (that i can see) than for pure sport. I feel blessed that I think I was probably a part of the most "sane" mom's group in town.....I made forever friends, the group thing just wasn't for me in the long run. So what I have to say is that if your life is so small that the most entertaining thing you have to do today is to make someone else feel worthless and small & question just how GREAT a person they truly are, go get a hobby or better yet, go play in heavy traffic. Get bent.

Wow....well that was heavy, huh?? Goal for the remainder of today' ramblings is light and frivolous. lol......I'm pretty sure I can pull that off.

So we just got back from vacation Monday night. I'm so still in vacation mode that it isn't even funny.....and here I sit having to work today. UGH!! We spent 5 glorious nights in Gulf Shores, Alabama right across the street with an unobstructed view of the ocean. It was FANTASTIC!!!! We went on a dolphin cruise and saw tons of them, played in the waves, played in the pool, shopped, ate fantastic food.....it was just what we needed. I even got a TAN!!!! Believe me, for me that is a big deal. All year long I'm basically Wanda Whitebread & my idea of "tanning" is getting a good burn that turns kinda brownish before my skin falls off. But now I have a bonafide TAN!!!

Have you ever wondered who named the belly button??? Just curious because it doesn't look like a button. Belly hole.....tiny belly cavern......but not so much a button. And speaking of belly buttons....did you know that Belly Button Dusters are an actual item you can BUY??? No joke. It's an adhesive pad which you apply "over and into the offending area, and then remove it after 10 minutes (making sure you dispose of the evidence discreetly)". They're available from the Lung Shing Dispensary Company in Hong Kong at a cost of HK$48 for six adhesive strips. How nutty is THAT??

So I'm sitting here thinking about career paths that should be brought back. How about cannonball maker? Or cobbler. When was the last time you saw a cobbler?? Mmmmm cobbler...I have fresh peaches, I should make peach cobbler. Whoops, a little off topic there. Here's a question for thought: which line of work do you think will first see their jobs taken over by robots? My vote is on postal workers. Feel free to discuss.

Ok, well I think that my ramblings have gone on long enough for now. I have a turkey sandwich and spongebob squarepants cheez its calling my name.

Toodles, Monkeys!!!!

A Rant From the Brink

Wouldn’t it be nice if parents could instill kindness to other children in their own? As the mom of a special needs child, it irks me to the core to see inconsiderate, mean kids interacting with mine……and worse are the parents that sit there and do nothing.

Case in point was the other day when we took the kids to this indoor bounce place. My son, who is autistic, is loving and kind….possibly to a fault (if that’s possible). When he sees kids his age playing together , running and having fun, he wants to join. If he meets you, you aren’t his “new” friend, you’re his new BEST friend. I sat and watched G keep trying to play with these kids. They would make him think that they wanted to play with him and be their friend and then they would turn and ditch him. I watched them all run off together, looking like they’re on their way to have a ball. They got to one of those 2 person obstacle course type of bounce houses, G jumped in as did another boy & G took off running! The other boy waited til G was going, laughed to his other friends, jumped OUT of the obstacle course and ran away laughing at G cuz he didn’t have a clue. G sat at the top of an inflatable slide/climbing wall waiting for his new friends to catch up with him & they never came. Keep in mind that this is a very small venue & these kids kept doing this to him. Hiding between bounce structures until G walked by so that they could run away from him laughing. And this isn’t innocent laughter of kids having fun TOGETHER. This was the laughter of mean spirited children at the expense of another child. The thing that breaks my heart is that G doesn’t have the capacity to understand when people are being mean to him. If he sees/hears kids laughing, that signals to him that they are happy & having fun……and he wants to participate. Beyond all that were the two mothers that sat there watching their children behave this way and chuckle themselves when their kids stopped to tell them how “weird” my kid was.

Ok, so you might say that kids will be kids. Kids can be mean. They can be cruel. Blah blah blah. Sure that is true. Heaven knows that growing up I found myself on the receiving end of plenty of mean girls (geez 5th and 6th grades were horrendous…one of those things you just don’t forget). But when did we as parents decide that adhering to the “kids will be kids” philosophy was just good enough? When did it become to much work to instill a little compassion and understanding in our kids? Why don’t we explain to our kids that not everyone is alike..that there are some kids that have special needs & that sometimes it’s hard to tell those people apart because they may not look any different? When did it become too much work to actually teach our kids to be good to others?

Sleep My Ass!

Charming title, eh?

So I had my "sleep" study last night...and for those of you who have had one of these done....how in heaven's name do they expect you to sleep??? I had two things up my nose, 3 sensors taped to my head (or rather my hair), a pulse sensor on my finger, two wires running down my legs (to monitor for restless leg syndrome), sensors on my chest, wires taped to my face......please feel free to stop me if I've painted a delightful picture for you thus far. LOL I toss and turn so much, that every time I got even close to dozing off I would get tangled up in the wires! At one point I had 3 wires wrapped around my neck and somehow had managed to knock the box they were connected to (which unbeknownst to me was tucked under the pillow!) to the floor. Really comfortable. Then let's just add to all of that fun and frivolity, the storm hits. I was in this somewhat creepy bedroom, bedecked with celtic looking crosses on every wall (including one right above the bed, which weirded me out for some reason), in a tiny twin bed, and then it sounded like the the sky was falling with that stinkin storm. I couldn't get to sleep to save my life, and every time I started to doze off one of the sensors on my head would come undone and this woman would come barreling in my room and turn on the blinding florescent overhead light, waking me up all over again. I swear I wanted to hit her with one of the big bulky crosses within my reach...but somehow I didn't think God would appreciate it. That and I'm pretty sure she could have kicked my ass. Either that or at very least crushed me with hers. (Wow that was mean, huh?? But it's funny because it's true! ROFL) So I finally fell asleep around 3:30am, and next thing I knew she was coming in to wake me up and send me home, at 5am. I never went into rem sleep...never do...so they will be calling me in a week to set up my next sleep study, where I'll be wearing one of those sleep apnea masks...which I will apparently be getting soon. I'm so sick of going to doctors. They never tell me anything good. Endometriosis, interstitial cystitis (a bladder disease), cystocele, rectocele, arachnoid cyst (cyst on the brain), depression, sleep apnea. GOOD GRIEF! I am a medical field dream patient. Ok, I'm done with that...and my bitch session.

Oh! I was watching Extreme Makeover: Home Edition tonight and at the end they showed the preview of next week's episode. Everybody has to watch, cuz it's the one with the Hawkins family....the one that the kids and I went with Tammy and her kids to. The preview alone made tears well up in my eyes. They showed a clip of the tornado from that day and the wreckage of their house...I know I won't make it through (yet another) the show without crying. I'm such a softie. I cry at everything, I swear. LOL.

I found a fun new junk food. Edy's Dibs. I've never bought them before cuz they're too expensive, but Kroger has 'em on sale right now 2 for $5 so I picked up a thing of them. They are DELIGHTFUL!!!! I like ice cream, but lose interest in eating more than 2 scoops. (Scott on the other hand can sit down and eat a 1/2 gallon for a meal.) Just thought I'd throw that out there for ya.

Did you watch Desperate Housewives tonight? I'm not sure that I'm really diggin the new season so far. I get that they're trying to go back to the format of the first season what with the murder mystery and all, but come on! How many life and death type of relationships can they put Bree into???? My soaps aren't even that ridiculous. I dunno, I'm just sayin...Good tv season so far, I think. I still like Prison Break on Fox. Not as much as I did last year, but it still gets me to watch. House is pretty good too. That guy just cracks me up!!!! And I have to say that I like the CW (former WB/UPN). America's Next Top Model, Gilmore Girls, One Tree Hill, Supernatural....ALL GOOD!!!! The Bachelor starts tomorrow, so I'll get to torture Scott with that...that's always fun. He says every minute of that that he watches he loses a little bit of his manhood. I don't doubt it. LOL I need to get that DVR thingy. Too many shows for me to O.D. on, and too many are on simultaneously. It just doesn't work for me.

So I've babbled. I've rambled. I've bitched & moaned. And I'm pretty sure that I made this one longer than 5 minutes. (And yeah, that last one fell WAY short of that time goal!) I always forget how therapeutic blogging is until I sit down to the computer and start. It's like me talking. Once I get going I just can't seem to shut up. I think we're taking Chad out to Opry Mills (area) tomorrow for something touristy to do. Heck if I know. I just work here.

I leave you with the following thoughts to ponder:
* "Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm"
* "Keep smiling, it makes people wonder what you're up to."