Four Days in Myrtle Beach, SC

Thursday
We decided to go out of town this past weekend since Kyle had a 4 day weekend from school.  We ended up keeping him home from school on Thursday because he still wasn’t feeling well and he had thrown up the night before.  We had originally planned to leave on Thursday afternoon soon after we picked Kyle up from school.  We planned to pick him up at 2pm when school let out, and bring him back home.  I had planned to give him a quick bath and then we would hit the road.  We ended up leaving on Thursday around noon.  It took a little over 4 hours to reach Myrtle Beach, SC.

My in-laws live in an apartment community that offers an apartment suite for guests for about $55 a night.  We were able to stay in the suite while we were in Myrtle Beach, SC.  Luckily we are about a building away from their apartment home.  It was nice to stay in an apartment, it has a kitchen which is great when you are away from home.  The apartment also has a washer and dryer but the washer wasn’t working so we weren’t able to do laundry.

Friday
Our four days have been eventful.  We stopped at the beach on Friday, but only stayed about 5 minutes because the wind was blowing and the waves were a little rough and we weren’t sure how Kyle would be around the ocean.  I did find about 4 seashells! 

On Friday night, my in-laws offered to watch Kyle so Shannon and I could go out on a date.  Shannon and I have not been out as a couple since Kyle was born.  It’s not easy to leave him with just anyone, especially with his Autism and special needs.  We ended up going to a place called Broadway at the Beach, which is a bunch of shops on the beach.  It’s like an outdoor mall with all kinds of shops.  There are also restaurants, IMAX, and movie theater.  We saw a Starbucks and had to stop in there.  I had a hot Chai Tea Latte and Shannon and a White Chocolate Mocha.  It was really fun enjoying coffee and just walking around alone!  While I went into some of the shops, Shannon fed the catfish in the water.  I ended up buying 2 Yankee Candles!  I really wanted to buy more, but I have to remind myself that I can make my own soy candles!  This has definitely inspired me to make more candles, especially Christmas scented candles!  It was fun to smell all the Yankee Candles.  We had dinner at a Mexican restaurant called Abuelo’s.  It was delicious!  It was really nice to be out without Kyle! 

Saturday
On Saturday, we went to an indoor playground type of place for Kyle.  They have bouncy houses and bouncy house with slides and other playground type equipment that are padded.  We stayed for a little over an hour, but Shannon and I were pooped out by that time.  Kyle dragged us to go play with him.  He had us bouncing along with him and going down the slides with him.  We also had to swing him on the soft swings.  Shannon and I took turns and we were both sweaty and worn out afterwards.  We stopped by the beach after that and stayed for a half hour or so.  Kyle loved the beach!  While he was picking up seashells and throwing them back in the ocean, I was collecting as many seashells I could fit in one hand!  I honestly think Kyle thought he was cleaning up the beach by throwing the seashells back into the ocean.  At the end, he started picking up handfuls of sand and throwing it back into the ocean. 

On Saturday night, my in-laws watched Kyle again so Shannon and I could go out!  Shannon really wanted to see a movie at IMAX and we wanted to go back to the Broadway at the Beach again.  It was fun the first time around since we walked around and it was really good exercise for us!  It got us out and about and walking!  Instead of going to see Harry Potter at the IMAX theater, we ended up seeing Puss in Boots in 3D.  I really didn’t want to see Harry Potter as the books or the movies interest me.  I have no desire to read the books and I really tried watching one of the movies, but didn’t really understand the hype.  We had a big lunch so we weren’t hungry by the time we headed out, so we didn’t eat dinner out.  We walked around the Broadway at the Beach and had Starbucks again (we ordered the same coffee drinks as the night before).

Saturday night was Halloween night at the Broadway at the Beach so we saw a lot of people dressed up in their costumes. They also had live music. We saw one costume in particular that got a lot of attention. There was a person dressed as Death and he was walking around with a guillotine. There was a mannequin set up in the guillotine and the sign said, “Casey Anthony’s Retrial.” Just before he brought down the guillotine, the mannequin would fidget a bit and then the blade came down! Everyone was taking pictures and video of it. It was very creative! We also saw two guys dressed up as plastic army men, I think they got that idea from the Disney theme parks.

Sunday
We took it easy on Sunday.  My husband and Kyle stayed home while my mother-in-law and I went to the mall.  We shopped at JC Penney and just walked around for a bit.  While I love shopping, it’s no fun when you don’t have money to spend.  I saw a lot of cute clothes, but I kept reminding myself that I don’t “absolutely need them.”  It’s just too bad when my husband gambled away our savings the week before.  My MIL saw a cute leather jacket and looked at the price tag and said, “It’s only $89.  That’s not bad.”  All I could think was, “um, sure.”  Again, her son just gambled away all of our savings the week before.  I didn’t even dream about or think about getting anything.  We also looked at shoes and saw a few cute boots that I would have liked to get. 

We stopped at PetSmart on the way home since my MIL needed cat food.  It was so odd going in to a store that allowed pets.  As a non-pet owner, I have no reason to go to PetSmart. 

My MIL watched Kyle on Sunday night so Shannon and I could go out again.  We ended up having dinner at Hard Rock Café.  The service and employees were so-so.  I bought a Hard Rock Café glass cup.  Our first date was at a Hard Rock Café in Sacramento and I got a glass cup back then. 

Being in Myrtle Beach, SC, it’s been a nice change to be in a city with plenty of restaurants, shopping, and things to do!  Even though we were out of town, we were able to fit in plenty of exercise. 

Too Dependent

If my in-laws hadn't moved out of their house, we would still be living there.  Shannon would have loved to live with them for years.  He seems to like to live/depend on his parents and also living off the money my mom who would send ME for MY birthday. 

We are still unemployed, but Shannon has had his surgery to where his hernia is no longer an issue (it's been fixed).  Before, his excuse for not looking for a job was his hernia.  Now that his hernia is fixed, his new excuse is that he's working on his case.  There are no issues with him finding a weekend job, or even an overnight job.

This past weekend, we went to Harrah's where he gambled away our little bit of savings egg, plus took out another $200 from our bank account to gamble with.  He decided we're going to Myrtle Beach this weekend since Kyle has a 4 day weekend from school.  He and his parents planned this without my knowledge.  I told him we need to cancel this trip because we can really afford to go.  Now he's saying that he'll need $200 to print stuff out for his case.  Obviously he wants to use MY SAVINGS BONDS to live off of and use to spend on his case.  It just makes me so mad that he doesn't even think about the future/bills/paying for things that come up!!!

Back to JC Penney

Shannon and I went back to the mall this afternoon.  We wanted to leave the house since they were having a representative from the bank inspecting our building and the inside structuring of each of the apartments (for insurance purposes).  They said it wasn't necessary for us to be home.

It's nice to get out of the house, especially while Kyle is at school.  We usually aren't able to go out alone, except when Kyle is in school.  It's a weird feeling being out and about without Kyle, but we also miss him.  

I ended up returning the Liz Claiborne crops because when I tried them on again, I didn't like how the legs were so wide and loose around my legs.  Anyway, I ended up finding 4 long sleeved tops (much needed for the dropping temperatures), and a fleece sweatshirt and matching fleece pants.  As I was checking out, the cashier informed me that they are actively hiring for the Christmas season and that I should definitely apply!  I told Shannon about this and decided that at the end of this month, I will choose between getting a job or sign up for college!  I am interested in taking a Medical Transcription course that is offered through a community college.  The course is done completely online!  Also, they offer a special price for NC residents only of $350 total for the 2 part course.  It will take 8 months to complete.  It's done through a company that also offers job placement assistance/resume assistance. 

JC Penney yesterday and today!

After Kyle got home yesterday, we ended up going to the mall.  The mall is less than 10 minutes from where we live, so it's a short drive.  Since we were shopping with Kyle, we can't "shop" too long in a store because he gets anxious and wants to keep going.  We rent a stroller to keep him "strapped in," otherwise he will pull us on try to run away.  We walked around the mall for a bit, mostly to get out and for the exercise. 

We stopped at JC Penney and I found 2 pairs of corduroy pants in Petite size that were on sale.  I bought one in light grey and a dark brown color.  I also bought a few tops from the clereance rack.  One of the tops was a yoga tank.  I am unable to try clothes on because that would upset Kyle if he can't SEE me.  I bought what I thought would fit me.  I also had a 20% off coupon that JC Penney sent me via email. 

I tried on my goodies at home.  The pants fit nice in the waste, perfect fit, but I prefer not to have that because my weight could and does fluctuate from day to day, week to week.  The length was perfect, but I could just imagine them shrinking just a bit and they would look weird on me.  They were labeled as 6 Petite Short. 

I liked the tops that I bought, except one and ended up returning that one today.  I exchanged my corduroy pants for size 6 Petite Average and they are perfect!  I also bought a pair of jeans on sale, and a Liz Claibourne brand crops in brown color.  My crops were on the clearance rack and I only paid $8.14 for them.  They were originally $44!  Shannon also bought some much needed casual pants, boxers, and a new shirt. 

Autism Perspective 10/16

As I peered out of our front window, I watched mother and daughter walking about 5 feet away from each other.  Mom walking in the parking lot and daughter walking alongside on the sidewalk.  Daughter holding an umbrella over her head as the rain fell.  Mom wearing a black hat. 

What's different with this picture?  For me, it's the freedom of not having to hold your child's hand as you walk.  It may sound so simple, but for me, I am envious. 

Whenever we are walking with our son, we must hold his hand.  While our son is about the same age as the girl I saw walking alongside her mother, we must hold our son's hand at all times.  For one thing, our son has Autism.  He can and will try to run away and he can easily run into the street without looking out for cars.  Second, there are times he prefers to hold our hand because it's part of a routine.  He loves routine and gets upset if we break routine. 

Over $150 grocery trip!

Wow!  We went grocery shopping about an hour after Kyle arrived home from school.  We decided to shop at a grocery store only a few blocks away, instead of going to Walmart which is about 15 minutes away.  I bought fresh fruits and vegetables, and a ton of other things.  It was a fun trip because it's been at least 3 weeks since we've been food shopping.  We went to the store last Friday and decided to not buy food (we ended up buying 3 cases of bottled water) and return the next day, however the next day turned into 6 days later.  The past few days, we've been eating out!  UGH!  I hope to make up for my bad eating with good food again!  I plan on making more Quinoa with a vegetables and meatless chicken or salmon. 

At checkout, they had to open additional registers and they had to call additional help to help check out customers.  I saw a manager, a worker with a big fabric/plastic apron on and another worker come up to help customers! 

Remember the Orange Julius?

I remember when I was a kid, when my parents took us to the mall we usually stopped to get an orange julius -- a sweet treat!  It truly was a treat because we didn't get to enjoy this every day! 

This evening, we went to the mall and there was an Orange Julius!  We stopped and got a medium size drink to share.  I remember back in the late 80s and 90s, Orange Julius used to have a handful of blenders and they would make your julius right in front of you.  Well, today, it seems they no longer do that.  The orange julius comes out of a machine! 

As we walked away from the Orange Julius place, I thought about look up a homemade recipe version!  We tried making it years ago and I even found a recipe I wanted to try, but Shannon just took that over and made it the way he wanted.  This time I will make it the way I want to, with a recipe. 

Yummy smelling day

This morning I made more soy candles!  I made lavendar colored candles in a Pineapple Jasmine scent.  I had plenty of soy wax leftover to make tarts too.  They smelled so delicious as they were curing.

As my candles and tarts were curing, I decided to make blueberry muffins.  I am having a hard time finding one ingredient to make them, so I also bought "Duncan Hines" blueberry muffin mix.  They turned out pretty good!  I put most of them in the freezer and will take some out the night before so that Shannon can eat them.

The entire day, our home smell like candles and blueberry muffins!