Good Morning

I love my frig with the front water dispenser. That's gotta be one of the coolest inventions ever. Cold water. Beautiful. So I got up at 5:45 this morning and decided I needed a little water. I was going to fill a water bottle so put it up to the dispenser but must have still been not quite awake because I guess I didn't have it lined up correctly. When I pushed the lever, COLD water sprayed all over me, the frig, and the floor. Brrr... And not the way I wanted to wake up this morning. But it did wake me up!

Make My Day

I was at the wonderful world of Walmart a little while ago, picking up a bottle of wine for tomorrow's book club, when the little Walmart cashier carded me! The computer register said, "Is this customer under 40?" She must have thought I was! Bless her little heart!

Spring Training Baseball

The king is back from his trip to Arizona to see a little spring training baseball. They were able to see the Oakland A's, the Dodgers, the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Chicago Cubs, and the San Francisco Giants play. I believe they all had a good time. I know the king did because he'd like to go back again next year. I hope he does. It makes me feel much less guilty about my girl trips!

The Cubs and the Giants

The Oakland A's and Dodgers

Oakland

That's not a beer, is it, Grandpa?

THE THREE AMIGOS!

Skippy-Doo-Dah!

Say it with me,
"Today is the LAST day of winter!!!"

"Annoyed"

Today I was working with 3rd graders. Zac was annoying me a little, but he's really cute, so mostly I was putting up with him. At one point I was following him down the aisle, and he was walking VERY slowly, so I told him to speed it up and then playfully pushed him into his chair. Really, it was playful. But then he said to me, totally innocently, "You're kind of pissy today, aren't you?" I had to explain to him that that wasn't an appropriate word to say at school, and that he should call me, "annoyed" next time!

I was relaying this story to a teacher who now teaches 5th grade but used to teach 1st grade. She said 1st graders say that kind of stuff all the time because they just don't know any better, and her favorite story was when a 1st grader who yelled, "Get your A** off the swing; it's my turn!"

Kids...gotta love 'em!

Primping

I had to get up a few minutes early this morning to make sure I was done with my hair dryer and hair straightener so my child could use it.

Not my girl child...

My BOY child!!!

Happy St. Patrick's Day to all of us Irish!

Cousins

Lynelle sent some photos of her handsome children. We should get to see them when Jackie graduates, if not sooner. Enjoy San Diego!

Cute

I just saw this on the end of an email and it was too cute not to post:

Wash your hands and say your prayers
because germs and Jesus are everywhere.

Sunny Arizona

The king is off to sunny Arizona to enjoy some spring-training baseball. I hope he really enjoys himself and soaks up a little of those warm temperatures for me. Maybe I need to go next year! It's suppose to be in the 80's all week! Lucky Duck!

And then there were two...

The princess' guy is out. The queen and the prince still have hope!

Too Much Information?

It's probably really self-indulgent, but I love these things. I saw this one on a friend's Facebook page and decided to do it with my answers. Feel free to not read it if you could care less--and I totally understand if you do!!

First thing you wash in the shower? hair

What color is your favorite hoodie? don't have one, unless you count the purple one w/the zipper

Would you kiss the last person you kissed again? Yes

Do you plan outfits? yes

How are you feeling RIGHT now? calm

Whats the closest thing to you that's red? chair

Tell me about the last dream you remember having? can't remember one recently but my recurring nightmare is calling 911 and being put on hold

Did you meet anybody new today? no

What are you craving right now? water

Do you floss? yes

What comes to mind when I say cabbage? eggrolls

Are you emotional? not usually

Have you ever counted to 1,000? probably as a kid

Do you bite into your ice cream or just lick it? both

Do you like your hair? usually

Do you like yourself? usually

Would you go out to eat with George W. Bush? Yes

What are you listening to right now? my son wailing on the guitar

Were your parents strict? no, their motto was: give her enough rope to hang herself. I never did.

Would you go sky diving? no

Do you like cottage cheese? yes

Have you ever met a celebrity? Yes, Liberace. Try not to be jealous!

Do you rent movies often? for the kids, about once/month or less

Is there anything sparkly in the room you're in? my rings I'm wearing

Have you made a prank phone call? as a kid

Ever been on a train? yes

Brown or white eggs? white

Do you have a cell-phone? yes

Do you use chap stick? no, carmex

Do you own a gun? no

Can you use chop sticks? not unless someone ties a rubberband around them for me

Who are you going to be with tonight? family

Are you too forgiving? probably, but that's how I roll!

Ever been in love? yes

What is your best friend doing tomorrow? I don't know

Ever have cream puffs? yes

What was the last question you asked? What are you doing, brother?

Favorite time of the year? Christmas

Do you have any tattoos? no

Are you sarcastic? that's also how I roll

Have you ever seen The Butterfly Effect? no

Ever walked into a wall? Yes

Favorite color? red

Have you ever slapped someone? yes

Is your hair curly? slightly wavy

What was the last CD you bought? Hair Spray soundtrack

Do looks matter? yes

Could you ever forgive a cheater? depends on what they cheated on

Is your phone bill sky high? no

Do you like your life right now? yes

Do you sleep with the TV on? Only on the weekend if my husband is watching something

Can you handle the truth? yes

Do you have good vision? yes

Do you hate or dislike more than 3 people? I don't hate anyone, but on any given day I might dislike many people (usually small children), but I always give them a fresh start the next day

How often do you talk on the phone? as little as possible

The last person you held hands with? my daughter

What are you wearing:? t-shirt and sweats

What is your favorite animal? don't really have one

Where was your default picture taken at? what's a default picture?

Can you hula hoop? I could as a kid, can't now

Do you have a job? yes

What was the most recent thing you bought? dinner at Taco Johns

Have you ever crawled through a window? yes, with my son in tow

What day is it?

Is it Friday yet? I really, really need it to be Friday. No wait, I want it to be 9:30 pm Friday night because then the dumb middle school dance I have to chaperon will be over and I can go to bed and sleep, sleep, sleep. How many more hours until that happens????

Just so you know...

It's MINUS 8* right now. Really, in March? Really.

Winter Blues

I am tired of winter. It is snowing for the third time in as many weeks. It was below 0 on Friday. It's windy. More snow, cold and wind expected tomorrow. I've had enough of winter and am ready for sping. Spring, where are you?

Birthday Celebration Complete

This will be the last birthday update, until next year. Last night I got to go to dinner at my favorite Mexican restaurant and have my favorite margarita with one of my favorite friends. Life is good...

More Dance Photos

Someone with a much better camera than I have took these photos.

The princess is the one in the back in this first photo.

The princess is front and almost center in the 2nd photo.

The princess is doing the splits on the left in photo #3.

The princess is in the front, left in photo #4.



The princess is on the far right, standing in photo #5.

The princess is on the far right in photo #6.

Great shots! Love the first one the most!

Birthday Part 4

After work today, I came out to the parking lot to see balloons tied to my car. No note, but if I had to guess, I'd say they were from Mary Beth. Thanks, Mystery Balloon Person!

Birthday Part 3

I've come a long way, baby!!

Birthday Part 2

Last night my family took me to Fuddruckers for dinner. YUM! Onion rings! Happy early birthday to me!

Today I'm wearing my "I didn't ask to be a princess but it the tiara fits..." t-shirt and my tiara!! I'll be having the students sing to me all day! Tonight I have dance--more celebrating, I'm sure! :)

It's good to be me!

Pant-less

Yesterday the prince sauntered into the kitchen in his boxers on his way to the laundry area to get a clean pair of pants. Neither the princess nor I said a word. He looked at us and said, "I just walked though the room without any pants on and no one said a word!!"

It was kind of funny.

Last night I was doing laundry and decided to wash the pants I was wearing so took them off and threw them in the washing machine. I walked by the princess without my pants on and she didn't say a word!

You'd think we walk around pant-less all the time! But we really don't.

Birthday Week

Well the pilgrimage to birthday mecca has begun. Last night I had dinner with 7 friends at Red Robin. Chocolate, a smelly candle thing, and a cool coffee travel mug were greatly appreciated by me, as was the yummy chicken sandwich. Of course, me being me, this is just the first of several mini-celebrations! Oh yeah, and the Red Robin people sang happy birthday and gave me a sundae!

Dancing Queen!

The Princess was awesome yesterday at her dance competition. She and the rest of her team members won several awards. Her dancing school won even more, and her friend, Christian, who dances on another team, also won several. It was a really fun day for the girls, coaches, and parents! Way to go Ladies!!!

This is the princess' team before the competition started. Lots of makeup for little girls!

Two of the girls on her team go to school with her. The other two girls are from other parts of town.

All ready to go. One of the girls on her team gave her this flower.

All the girls, after the competition. The princess is on the end.

With the big trophy after the show. This trophy will stay at the dance school!

One competition down, two to go. Can't wait for the next one!

News

Here's the happenings for us of late:

The prince registered for HIGH SCHOOL yesterday. He'll be taking math, science, English, PE, and for his electives he signed up for computer essentials, and Spanish. As alternates (if those aren't available) he chose chamber band (because it has guitars in it) and some other I can't remember. I'm sure he'll get into Spanish, but not sure about the computer class. I kind of hope it's full and that they place him in band. I'd like to check that out!

The princess has her first big dance competition this weekend. We're off to have her hair braided in a couple of hours and then have to be at the Holiday Inn by 11:30. We'll be there until early evening even though she only dances in one performance! Good times. I know she'll be great, and I hope they win a trophy, because it's all about the trophy at this age!

I am still battling my cold. Not any worse, but not any better. Mornings seem to start out pretty good, but I'm done by about 4pm. Whine, whine, whine. Let me call the waaaambulance!

The king becomes an hourly employee again on Sunday, complete with overtime pay. We've been missing that these years that he was a salaried employee. Now when he has to work after hours, we'll say, "Ca-Ching"! Of course, we give up quarterly bonuses to get overtime, so it's really a wash, but still, who doesn't want to say "ca-ching" a couple of times a week!

Have a great weekend!

And so it begins again...

Sydney--the queen is rooting for her.













Spencer--the princess is rooting for him.

Brendan--the prince is rooting for him.

Survivor begins again, as does our pool. Actually, it started a couple of weeks ago, but I'm just getting around to documenting it. Winner wins about $50 bucks!! Hope it's me!

Funny

I have caught the king's cold, and he swears I should try Zicam. So I bought the kind with the individual applicators that you swab into your nose. How the children and I laughed on the way home from work to think of what a DORK I must have looked like as people drove past us in the car and I had a swab shoved up my nose! I'm sure to the passer-by it looked like a cigarette was shoved up my nose!!! It was good for a laugh.

Today, I'm not so much believe in the powers of Zicam. I would like to check out the powers of a nap!

Henry and Ivy

Henry and Ivy came to visit last night. (Their mom is the king's cousin.) We loved playing with them. It seems the prince has a liking for babies and even mentioned that he thought Henry was more fun at 4 months old than he is now, at 19 months old! ;)

Ivy's little round face reminds me of the princess when she was that age.

Henry was very interested in the princess' fish tank.

Vegas Highlights

This was our hotel.

It's famous for gondola rides, among other things. (No, that's not us on the boat.)

The rides start outside but go inside too.
This bottom photo is taken INSIDE--built to look like outside!

The hotel comes with its own mall where we found this "live" statue.

Blake and Robin came up for lunch and some fun.

Do I look skinnier??

Because they had no king size beds available, we were upgraded to a room with pool view. Little do they know we actually like 2 queen beds, after all, we have been married 16 years, and it's really all about a good-night's sleep at this point!

Close-up of the pool and one from our bedroom window.

Highlight of the trip, and the reason I talked the king into going was the Elton John concert.

No cameras allowed so we had to be content with photos of his signs!

Elton's not this young or skinny anymore, but he still sounds like he is! It was a great show.

I'm ready to go back!

Magical Mystical Porch--Part 2

Would you believe the Magical Mystical Porch followed us to Vegas? We came back to our hotel late one night to find this package outside our door. We hadn't done any shopping! We decided it was best to just leave it there, although there was a tempting bottle of diet coke inside the big bag...

The entire package was gone the next day when we left our SUITE!

Happy Anniversary!

The King and I are celebrating 16 years today!

We'll have to really celebrate when it's 20 years on Febrary 20, 2013.

I feel a trip coming on!