Giveaway! Enter to win a $25 SpaFinder Gift card!

Giveaway Time!

I somehow received a $25 SpaFinder e-gift card that 

I am probably never going to find time to use. 

 

  Since I'm sure we all had stressful holidays 

and could use some pampering, I figure that someone can use it. 

So I'm giving it away!

Here's the deal: 

 This giveaway will run from 12:00 PM today (Jan. 22) until 11:59 PM on February 5th, 2015. Enter with the Rafflecopter widget below.
  Winner will be randomly chosen through Rafflecopter. The lucky winner will be notified by email within a few days after the giveaway ends and will have 72 hours to respond. The prize will be sent via email in .pdf format within 1-2 weeks of confirmation.... Blah blah blah, you can read the rest of the fine print below xD









 Terms & Conditions:
Giveaway ends February 5, 2015 at 11:59 PM EST. No purchase necessary to enter or win. Your privacy is important to me, I will not share or sell your email address. Winner will be chosen randomly through Rafflecopter Random Selector (which uses Random.org) and contacted via email. A reply to the winning email is required within 72 hours before a new winner is chosen. The winner’s entries will be verified. Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery of physical prizes, 1-2 weeks for digital prizes, unless other wise noted. Unless otherwise specified, open to U.S only, ages 18+. Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Spafinder, Instagram, and Google+ are in no way associated with this giveaway. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Days in the Life of Kris blog reserves the right to publish winner’s first name and last initial. Days in the Life of Kris blog also reserves the right to choose a different winner in the case that the randomly chosen winner refuses to co-operate with rules, reply to winning email in 72 hour time period or does not have verifiable entries. Giveaway is subject to the laws of the state of Ohio. Taxes due, if any, on prize winnings, are the sole responsibility of the winner. Void where prohibited by law.
 

Are your children scary?

My children are scary. My daughter is 8 (almost 9) and she acts like a teenage girl. My son is 11 and he acts like a teenage girl....
In the past, I've always tried to be rational and responsible when dealing with my children's outbursts.

For example:
"But, Mom! Everyone else is wearing make-up in 2nd grade! Why can't I??!!"
Because this is not "tramp training camp".
I don't say that, but I'm thinking it. Instead I take a deep breath and say "What other parents let their kids do is their business. You're my business, honey. Girls that are wearing make-up at 8 years old are trying to look and act older than they are. You're 8, Morgan. Try to be 8! You'll be older soon enough and you'll have the whole rest of your life to wear make-up."

"I hate you! You're the worst mom EVER!"
What I really want is to stick my tongue out and say "I hate you too, stupid head!".
Instead, I calmly say "You can hate me if you want, and I'm sorry that you feel that way, but I love you."

With my other child it's not much different:
"I don't want to put my laundry away! This isn't fair! You make me do everything!"
[inner voice] You do nothing. You don't even pick up after yourself. You play video games, leave butt-prints in my couch, and make my life miserable every chance you get....
 "Son, I'll gladly put your laundry away if you'd like to go to work for me, wash and fold the towels, sweep and mop, load the dishwasher, take the dog for a walk, dust, and cook supper. No? That's what I have to do today, so I don't think its much to ask for you to put your own clothes away after I kindly washed and folded them for you."

My children are the ones that make other people decide against reproducing. My kids make me understand why some animals eat their young. I'm torn between telling them the bald-faced truth, and being a mature, caring adult. Occasionally, I can diffuse a situation with humor, but more often than not they make my head explode. I've been known to use sarcasm.... heavily. I've been known to yell back. But, I always try to be mature when my kids act like spoiled brats. The fact that they act like spoiled brats kind of shocks me to begin with. They don't get everything that they want. I've tried to instill values in them. I've taught them right from wrong. AND I've always been a super-cool punk-rock mom!

How would they feel if I threw a fit because I couldn't have what I wanted. What if I refused to do anything? What if I hated them and slammed doors? What if I went out in public in a ripped and stained red shirt with yellow plaid shorts without brushing my hair or teeth?

Last week, I had enough of the door slams. When my son slammed the door, I proceeded to tell him he was doing it wrong. I then demonstrated the proper way to slam a door and made him do it the "right way" for nearly a half hour. I won and there hasn't been a door slammed since. Yesterday, my daughter started screaming and flipping out because she couldn't find her favorite shirt. I yelled gibberish and flailed my arms around. When she finally stopped her tirade and looked at me in shock, I calmly said "Now you know how ridiculous you look screaming like that."

Obviously I have to be just as obnoxious as they are to get my point across. I guess when I say what that sarcastic little voice inside my head WANTS to say, they get the point much better than when I try to be calm and understanding. To think that these are just the 'tween years. As teens, I'm probably going to have to resort to psychological warfare. I'm going to have to shave eyebrows and draw mustaches while they sleep. I'm going to have to drive them to school in pajamas with feet. I'm going to have to saran-wrap the toilet. I can't wait.

Do you have the same problems? How do you deal with your 'tweens?

Electric bill..... What? O_o

I'm going to complain. I'm going to rant... maybe.
I just got my electric bill. I just had a WTF moment. I just hyperventilated.
I have Ohio Edison as my electric provider. Ohio Edison is owned by First Energy.
I opened my bill today and I see my bill is $125.80. I think "holy crap, my kids are using too much electricity!".

As I examine my bill, I realize that this is not the case. We only used $69.25 in electricity, which is slightly high, but its been hot. This is where the WTF moment came in, right before my self righteous indignation  took front and center. Where did the rest of the bill come from? I proceeded with my examination.....

I'm being charged an extra $56.55.
$4.00 for a "customer charge", $4.58 for a "cost recovery charge", and $47.97 for a "DISTRIBUTION RELATED COMPONENT".WTF is that? According to my bill, a "distribution related component" is "a charge (including taxes) for moving electricity over electric distribution lines to your home or business. Formerly, Delivery Charge".

Annnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnd....... Cue self righteous indignation.

They're going to charge me for distribution???!! Hey, Ohio Edison, you're OWNED by the company that provides my electricity. You're the only company I can HAVE for electricity.You want me to pay for YOUR company to bring YOUR company's electricity into my house, and then you want me to pay for the electricity too???!! AND you want to charge me for being a CUSTOMER??!! You're almost doubling my bill!

I repeated the above speech to customer service. Its explained to me that the "distribution charge" is similar to a rental fee. First Energy is providing electricity to me through Ohio Edison's power lines and I have to pay a fee for that. FIRST ENERGY OWNS OHIO EDISON. I'm using First Energy's power lines. Does anyone understand this other than me? O_o
Basically, the customer service rep gave me a "that's how it is and everyone pays it" speech and hung up on me.

Everyone is broke. Money is tight EVERYWHERE. Everyone is in debt including our own government.
Evidently, this justifies raising the prices on everything from food and gas all the way to electricity. Even after pondering over it for hours now, I still can't understand why First Energy/Ohio Edison would create such a ridiculous charge with the economy the way it is.
I guess the theory must be that they already raised the electric prices, why not go all out and take every dime?