Princess and the Frog

What the heck is Babcia doing??

Throwing down a V at the grill?

Oh...let's zoom in on that a little bit.. what's on that grill handle?

It's a little froggyyyyy!

Babcia went outside to turn on the grill for the first time this year, took off the cover, and discovered "a little friend".

Screams. Shreaks. "AHH HELP! FROG!"

Really? A frog? Its a frog. Maybe he's a prince in disguise!

So before I got the frog off of the grill, I obviously took these pictures, and then nudged my little frog friend and he went hopping away.

The neighbor even came up on the back porch to investigate Babcia's screaming and assist in the frog removal. He suggested keeping the frog on the grill for some frogs legs.

With his wife yelling from next door that she was going to call PETA.

I'm glad I saved the little froggy from the perils of his charcoal demise.

HCTZ and Furosemide,

Justine

10 Things Wenisa Has Learned...

Today Wenisa is moving out. She's lived here for almost a full year, which doesn't seem possible. I asked her to "reflect" on the past year and she gave me the stink eye. Then after two consecutive mealtime conversations/lessons (one about the British Monarchy and the next about Charles Lindburgh and his desire to pick a wife based on her genes so he can have the children he desires)... I asked her to think to 10 things she learned while living with Babcia over the past year. Here's what she came up with:

1. Never forget to close the blinds at night to your back deck because a bear might be peekin in on you!
2. How to serve as a translator for Babcia. Justine talks kind of "fast" and "has marbles in her mouth" according to Babcia and she can never understand what she says, so I always have to explain what she said... I don't know how she's going to live with out me!
3. How to clean your old tarnished silver!!! Take  a glass bowl that has a crumpled piece of tin foil and a few spoonfuls of baking soda in it, put your tarnished silver in it, and pour some boiling water over it...and VOILA!
4. My eyes were opened to the world of Poland. Polish Harvest Festival, polish traditions, and most importantly POLISH FOOD! My favorite was definitely kielbasa...
5. I also learned about flower arrangements when I attended the Garden Club's monthly meeting with Babcia. I will most definitely never include my container as part of my arrangement EVER again!!
6. I met a 102 year old woman. I went to Justine's great grandmother's house on her 102nd birthday and that was just really cool!
7. I learned people still use landlines. Babcia's landline rings OFF THE HOOK! I've never heard a house phone ring so much...
8. Narcolepsy is contagious. (this statement may not be medically accurate)
9. Babcia maybe shouldn't run an online book company without our help...
10. Babcia is a good note taker. However, when it comes to finding the note, that's a WHOLE nother story. She has about 15 notebooks that she could have written it in, or on a piece of paper in the kitchen, on the desk, in her room, pretty much...it's gone for good. 

...and many more lessons learned :)

Babcia's adopted 5th grandchild... Wenisa :)

Thanks for everything Wenisa! I'm glad I had someone to share these memories with!

Zoloft and Effexor,
Justine and Wenisa

The Royal Wedding Recap!

Well if we remember back a few months ago, Babcia was very upset that she wasn't invited to Prince William and Kate's wedding. When I woke up this morning, Babcia gave me the lowdown on the entire wedding...(here are some highlights)

1. The hats were fabulous
2. The Queen didn't have a black purse like she's been carrying for the past week
3. Kate wore flats down the aisle
4. Did you see her sister's dress?? THAT IS CLASS.
5. HE COULDN'T FIT THE RING ON HER FINGER!!
6. She had 4.. FOUR bouquets, because the flowers wilt ya know!

Then I asked her what SHE wore to the wedding... 

"Well, I got up early, put eye drops in my eyes, brushed my hair, and attended in my flannel nightgown, and I didn't have any shoes on! I didn't have a hat either..." 

WHAT?! I wish these were fashionably acceptable in America... Maybe not THESE, but hats.

If Babcia got to wear a hat, I hope it would be one like Princess Eugenie's (on the right). That has to be some sort of balancing act!

Ritalin and Adderall,
Justine

NO EXCUSES.

The hoarding continues. I was in Babcia's basement looking for scrap fabric I can use to cover a corkboard that I bought for mega-cheap today for my new apartment, and instead I found THIS:

WHAT?!

THAT'S FIVE. COUNT 'EM. FIVE IRONS. WHO NEEDS FIVE IRONS?!
When asked about this one...she said that it's her "favorite iron" and they don't make them anymore. A likely story...

So Justine does her research:

Mhmm... Exactly.

Just what I suspected. Definitely still available. That makes 5 extra irons completely ridiculous.

DabigaTRAN and AcetylJUSTINE,
Justine

You Know You're Getting Old When...

You know you're getting old when you pick up the remote and dial it like a telephone.

I guess it KINDA looks like a remote control...

But the kicker was when one of her best friends called Babcia and made her feel 100% better for what she had previously done, because her friend had DIALED THE MICROWAVE instead of the phone!

Both are hilarrrrious.

Aricept and Exelon,
Justine

Someone doesn't know how to WHISPER!

Babcia and I were in church today, and I spotted a little girl with super tight curly hair. She was adorable!

Her hair looked just like this!

I leaned over to Babcia during Mass:

Me - *whispered* "I would hate to have hair that curly. That has to be crazy to manage."

Babcia - "WELL, WHAT? SHOULD THEY SEND HER BACK?!"

Of course she says half of this once one prayer is over so it's even louder than it was when she was talking during the prayer... I mention to her that she doesn't know how to whisper and that she's really loud when she attempts.

2 minutes later...

Babcia - "WELL YA KNOW YOUR MOM'S HAIR IS ...."

Me - *whispered* "SHHHHH! You can't whisper!"

Unfortunately this isn't Babcia's first assault on the ears while in the church. During Christmas time, there was a small choir that seemed to have formed to sing most of the tunes during the mass. I've been going to this particular church with my family for as long as I can remember and there has NEVER been a choir before. After they were done singing, Babcia leans over:

Babcia - "YA KNOW... THEY AREN'T VERY GOOD..."

Pretty accurate representation. Right down to the ugly Christmas sweaters.

Which of course was said at the very end of a song so therefore everyone heard her. Probably including the choir. I mean, no they weren't the best. They needed a lot of help to be honest. However, I definitely would have saved those kinds of comments until I got out of church!

Aminoglycosides and Amphotericin B,
Justine

This Ain't No Amazon.com!

The influx of crazy amounts of cookbook orders has continued. I'm about ready to pull my hair out. The house has turned into a pseudo-bookstore. People have come here to pick up cookbooks. We have delivered them. Most of them we ship out to everywhere from Arizona to Georgia to Vermont! Fortunately, Babcia has few business expenses in the form of cheap labor (i.e. Wenisa and I work for food and not money.)

Babcia has attempted to take on the role of "Customer Service Associate". I really wish that "all calls will be recorded for training purposes only", because the notes that I find that she has scribbled down, on 15 different pieces of paper, that seem to be hidden throughout the house, is utterly ridiculous. I have gotten a number of checks written out for the wrong amount. People sending their checks to the church instead of the house and then calling asking where their books are, and then multiple people who are addressing their envelopes to our home address but to the church. I don't LIVE at the church. I'm pretty much about to fire her. This many mistakes and inconsistencies with her work is grounds for termination...

I have taken on the role of being the bookkeeper. I don't know how I fell into this role, seeing as I don't know how to even balance my checkbook, but my Excel spreadsheet worked out tonight and perfectly equaled the amount of money we had in cash and checks down to the $0.45.. WINNING? (Is this the proper use of the Charlie Sheen phrase?) I've also taken on the role of secretary/back up Customer Service Associate and troubleshooter. Fixing what issues arise after Babcia has spoken with someone, or taking all of the 18 voicemails and calling everyone back.

Wenisa has taken on the role of the packaging and shipping department. She takes the labels I give her, puts the cookbooks into the mailers and adds the return addresses and labels and tapes everything down. She gives them the final seal of approval... Great job Wenisa!

HERE'S MY QUESTION:
ONE OF THESE THINGS IS NOT LIKE THE OTHER...

What is wrong with this series of pictures?!

Right. And Wenisa and I are working our butts off...and look who's sleepin on the job! TYPICAL!

Lunesta and Ambien,
Justine