Dancing With the Amazing Idol Survivor (or, How I Became a Prime Time Couch Potato)

This is nothing to be proud of. Surely I have better things to do with my time than watch reality TV five nights a week. But I can't help it! I'm addicted! It just so happens that all my favorite shows are on at the same time right now. This makes for a busy week of TV watching. Thank goodness I have the DVR in case something really important comes up!

My week begins with Amazing Race on Sunday night. I missed the very first season of this show, but have been hooked ever since Season 2! This season is an "All Star" season; I pretty much like all of the teams, except Charla & Myrna. They have GOT to go! I'm rooting for the Beauty Queens, Dustin and Kandice.

On Monday nights it's Dancing With the Stars! I love love LOVE this show (probably because I love dancing so much)! Last season I was ga-ga over Mario and Emmitt. This season my early favorite is Joey Fatone, altho there were others that I thought did very well, too. We'll see how the season plays out - it has only just begun.

On Tuesdays it's American Idol! This is another one I have watched since Season 2 (where was I during Season 1???). I don't really have any favorites yet this season, but I think Sanjaya has outworn his welcome, and I think Melinda will win it all. Just my early opinion. There are several I like on there.

Tuesday nights will also be the results show for DWTS. I will likely DVR this and fast-forward thru the boring parts to the end when the announcement of who's going home is made.

Wednesday nights are Idol's results show. This is another good one to DVR and then skip to the end. No need to listen to 30 minutes of blah blah blah when all I want to know is a) who are the Bottom Three, and 2) who is going home.

Thursdays bring Survivor! I have watched this one from the beginning, and I still love it in its 14th season. This season has gotten off to a slow start for me, but it looks like they are going to mix things up this week, so it should get better. No favorites on this one so far for me, either, but there are a few I certainly dislike!

With all this going on, I barely have time for my other TV addictions......Lost and Desperate Housewives, to name a couple. Like I said, good thing I have that DVR!

Hello. My name is Bubba's Sis and I am a Prime Time Couch Potato.

To sleep, perchance to dream....

When I sleep, I dream. Vivid, sometimes crazy dreams that I can remember clearly, sometimes for years afterwards (like the one where I was going on a date with Vince Gill and we went ice skating and he had a pet monkey....). I even dream when I nap. I have recurring dreams and random dreams. Perhaps I shall post my dreams on this blog sometimes, both for your amusement and so maybe you psychotherapist-type readers can help me figure out what they mean!!!

But that's for another day.

There are some nights, like last night, when I don't sleep. I don't know why. Sometimes I don't sleep at all - just lightly doze here and there for 5-10 minutes at a time, then lie awake the rest of the time. Some nights I lie awake for hours, songs and thoughts whirling in my head, playing like a movie on the back of my eyelids, until I finally fall asleep just in time to be good and asleep when it's time to get up. Because I haven't done a good list here in a while, I figured this would be a good one -

Ten Things I Think About When I Can't Sleep

1. Things I need to do the next day
2. My next vacation
3. How I will arrange my furniture and things in the new house I want
4. Impacted ear wax (I think I have that right now and I'm somewhat concerned)
5. Whether the people I interact with on a regular basis really like me or are just pretending to
6. What I would do with the money if I won the lottery
7. What I would name another child if I were to miraculously have one
8. Hurtful things that have happened in the past, and why some of them I can let go of and others still kinda piss me off
9. Things to blog about
10. What time I have to get up and how little sleep I am getting.

Of course, there are a million other things that go thru my mind on nights like these, and they are always set to music. I'll get songs in my head that I have no idea how they got in there. I'm weird that way.

So what do you do when you can't sleep? Besides READ, which everyone tells me to do. Sometimes that works for me, sometimes it doesn't. What stuff do you think about?

Sad Sign of the Times

I know what fear is. All my life I have been afraid of things - some irrational, some not - but I know that feeling in the pit of your stomach, that pounding heart, that overwhelming sense of dread. But never in my life did I feel fear at school (except for a tornado drill in 2nd grade that freaked me out a little). I never felt unsafe at school, never worried that I would be harmed or, worse, killed.

Times are different now.

Yesterday Darling Daughter (who is in 7th grade) was absolutely terrified to go to school. It seems that rumors started swirling on Wednesday that gang members would come into the school on Thursday and shoot anyone that was wearing red or blue. EVERYONE was talking about it. The teachers had called a faculty meeting about it. The school officer was on high alert (we didn't even have a school officer when I was in school!).

My first thought was, "Well, just don't wear red or blue tomorrow!", but looking into her tear-filled eyes, I knew that this was very real to her. She was truly afraid.

Of course this was real to her. She has grown up hearing tales of Columbine and other school-shootings; along with tornado drills and fire drills, the schools now also have lock-down drills. More than once has an area school been sent into lock-down for various reasons. When Navy Son was in high school they went into lock-down for hours because of some shooting or knifing threat. She knows that these things do happen, and they can happen here in our suburbian bubble just as well as they can happen in the inner city. My daughter did not want to die at school.

After a phone call to the school I was assured by both the counselor and the principal that they were, indeed, aware of the rumors and they were just that: rumors. Nonetheless, the school security was prevalent on Thursday, and there were no incidents. Darling Daughter did not wear red or blue anyway, just in case. She was nervous all day. My heart ached for her.

No child should have to be afraid at school; no child should have to worry that they will be gunned down for wearing the wrong colors. What kind of society have we created??

Diagnosis

Got in to see my doctor today - after 4 days without a voice, the diagnosis was confirmed: I have laryngitis. I also have bronchitis. So now I'm on an antibiotic and some wicked cough syrup that makes me feel way drunk and sleepy. But I don't seem to be coughing as much, so that's good. Give me a few days and I'll be back to my good ol' self, voice and all.

In the meantime, I must sleep........zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

My Happy Place

Just got home from spending a wonderful week in my Happy Place - Disney World. Yes, I know we go there a lot. This was Hubby's and my 6th trip; it was the kids' 5th. We love it there. Even after that many trips, we still did things we had never done before - rode new rides, saw new characters, ate at new restaurants, stayed at a new resort - every trip we take there is different. And every one is magical.

I came home sick this time - it hit me on our last day there - sore throat, bad cough, and no voice. I suspect I have strep throat, but maybe not. Definitely laryngitis. Maybe pneumonia for all I know. We got home at about 10:00 Friday night, so I can't see my doctor until Monday. I'm managing to suffer thru the weekend so far.

Welcome back to real life.

Movie Review

I don't go to the movies very much. It's not that I don't enjoy movies - I just don't usually enjoy the movie theater experience. The prices are too high, the people are annoying....I'd much rather watch from the comfort of my own couch. HOWEVER, I am occasionally persuaded to take in a movie on the big screen. This weekend it was Music and Lyrics, with Hugh Grant and Drew Barrymore.

I thought this was a great movie! Granted, it is a "chick flick" (altho Hubby enjoyed it, too - I caught him laughing several times!). But it was a good story, funny, and had great music. Anyone who remembers the 80's will get a kick out of how well the music of that time is portrayed. The video is hilarious, and I've been watching it on YouTube several times today! I definitely recommend this movie - and I think I'll even buy the soundtrack.

And now that Hubby has seen Music and Lyrics with me, he wants me to go see Ghost Rider with him. Ugh.

Things I'm Sick of Hearing About

Things I Can't Get Enough Of!

I Wanna Be a Bear

I don't know who authored this, but I like it! Because the Winter Doldrums have got me down....

In My Next Life, I Want to Be a Bear

In my next life, I want to be a bear.
If you're a bear, you get to hibernate. You do nothing but sleep for six months.
I could deal with that.
Before you hibernate, you're supposed to eat yourself stupid.
I could deal with that, too.
If you're a bear, you birth your children (who are the size of walnuts) while you're sleeping and wake to partially grown, cute cuddly cubs.
I could definitely deal with that.
If you're a Mama Bear, everyone knows you mean business. You swat anyone who bothers your cubs. If your cubs get out of line, you swat them too.
I could deal with that.
If you're a bear, your mate EXPECTS you to wake up growling. He EXPECTS that you will have hairy legs and excess body fat. He KNOWS not to get between you and the food.

Yup..... Gonna be a bear.

He's here!!!

Take a look at my new nephew!!! Isn't he beautiful?!? Bubba and Katie Lady welcomed Baby Drew into the world today at 5:19 p.m. EST (which was 4:19 p.m. here in Texas). He weighs 8 pounds and 5 ounces - a big boy! I'm so proud and I can't wait to see him in person!!

There she is....

Congratulations to Miss Oklahoma Lauren Nelson, who tonight was crowned Miss America 2007! The Miss America Party at my house was smaller than usual this year, partly because the pageant was on Monday night (how crazy is that?!?). The usual attendees include myself, Bubba's Mom, Katie Lady, Wendy Bird, and my best friend Dana Lou. Wendy Bird couldn't make it down from Fort Worth this year, and of course Katie Lady couldn't come all the way from NYC with a baby about to be born any day now!! But we did have a good time, eating brownies and critiquing the contestants; and one of our favorites did win this year! So we put the crowns away until July, when we will get them out again for the Miss Texas pageant. Hopefully the whole gang will be back together again for that one! Until then we will all keep wishing for World Peace....

Normal? It's all relative....

Recently took a "How Normal Are You?" quiz that I found on cjh's blog - here are my results:

You Are 40% Normal

While some of your behavior is quite normal... Other things you do are downright strange You've got a little of your freak going on But you mostly keep your weirdness to yourself

How Normal Are You?

Bubba and Katie Lady also took the quiz, and they too are 40% normal! And Cousin Wendy Bird - 40% normal. So it must be a family thing.

I am surprised that my normalcy is only at 40% - I always thought *I* was the normal one, and everyone else was weird! It certainly seems that way. But I can see a few things I do that people may construe as weird...

For instance, I like even numbers. The volume on the TV should always be an even number. Or a multiple of 5 - that is OK, too. Also, if I'm walking up stairs I must take the first step with my right foot. And the right sock must go one first, then the left sock, then the right shoe, then the left shoe. If you go sock-shoe, sock-shoe, it's just not right (Bubba will back me up on that one!). I'm a very organized person, to the point where some think I could have a bit of OCD - but that's not weird. That's just organized. I like to do certain things in a certain order. I like things to be in their place.

Doesn't everyone have their little idiosyncrasies? Does that make us not "normal"? I didn't understand how some of the questions in the quiz determined if I'm normal or not - like is it ok for someone else to be in the room when you use the bathroom. Any married couple has done this. It's a necessity. Not weird. And have I smoked pot? I have not. Is that normal? I have no idea. Bubba, have you smoked pot???

Well, all quizzing aside, I still see myself as a pretty normal gal. And if you don't agree - well, you're weird.

Clean Slate

My favorite part of New Years is starting a new calendar. It's like a clean slate - open to all the possibilites of things I will do throughout the next year. At the end of the year I can look back on it and remember the story of my life for the past 365 days. All written out neatly in blue ink. All the birthdays and anniversaries checked off, the list of books I read and movies I watched, the appointments kept and parties attended. The weddings and the funerals. The good and the bad. It's all there.

One would think I would have my resolutions in there - my list of things to do better - or at least differently - for the New Year. This year I'm not making resolutions. Because who are we kidding? I'm not going to keep them anyway. Things I should resolve to do? Cook better meals for my family and not eat out so much, save more money, read more books. Might happen. Might not. Either way, I'll be OK. Why put pressure on myself by making it an official resolution?

I do have some goals for 2007. I want to move out of this house. Hopefully soon. It will be an improvement to all areas of our lives. I want to go on the vacation we had to give up when Hubby broke his leg. We have that tentatively re-scheduled, but we will see. I want to become stronger in my faith and truly trust God enough to not worry about things. I guess those kinda sound like resolutions, but they're not exactly. Just things I want for myself and my family. Things to improve our lives and make us happy. We need happy. Because we've dealt with a lot of crap lately. I can prove it - it's all written in last year's calendar.

Kudos!

CONGRATULATIONS to Navy Son, who has been accepted at the Naval Academy Prep School! He will go there from August 2007 to May 2008, then beginning in August 2008, do four years at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis! We are so proud!

The Best Gift

Well, Christmas is over for another year. Without a doubt, the Best Gift Ever is the gift of Jesus Christ - He is perfect, and no amount of Bah! Humbug! or Scrooginess can change the beauty of celebrating His birth. Despite my less-than-cheery attitude this season, the true meaning of Christmas did not escape me, and it moved me to tears as I held my candle and sang Silent Night in church on Christmas Eve.

But my Best Gift This Year came from Bubba and Katie, who searched high and wide to find me just what I wanted.....

Bah! Humbug!

I have tried really hard to be in the "Christmas Spirit" this year. Really, I have. I've been listening to Christmas music on the radio, attending parties, going to church (well, I always go to church, but I'm trying to reinforce the TRUE meaning of Christmas). Just when I think things are starting to look up and I feel a little bit cheery - BOOM! Life kicks me in the butt again and I'm back to being Scrooge.

One of my holiday pet peeves is those Christmas family newsletters that people send out with their Christmas cards. For one thing, if we are really that close, I already know all the stuff that you've been doing over the past year, and may have even done some of it with you. And if I don't know all that stuff - then why the hell are you sending me a Christmas card when you don't even care about keeping in touch with me for the past year? Usually these family newsletters serve simply as "brag letters" - boasting of the wonderful vacations their family went on this year, how Junior is making straight A's in school and playing on the All Star baseball/soccer/football team, how great a promotion Mr. Husband got this year (including a hefty raise), yadda yadda yadda. Puke. Here's my version of our family's newsletter for this Christmas:

Well, 2006 started out pretty good for us - we managed a great trip to Disney for Spring Break and even brought Bubba's Mom with us. Things seemed to be going swimmingly - and then reality hit. Since summer Hubby and I have both lost grandparents, and Hubby's boss died suddenly of a stroke. We had a rather major and hurtful feud with Hubby's family. Hubby broke his leg in two places and had to have surgery, and we also discovered that his blood pressure was so high that HE very easily could have stroked out himself. His recovery has been hellish, and altho now he has finally been given the all-clear, there were 54 days of incapacity for him, which dumped quite a burden on me. He missed a whole month of work. Did I mention he is paid solely on commission? Yeah. A month without a paycheck is rough. All that pretty much blew our holiday vacation plans away. We're also trying to sell our house because our neighbors are drug-dealing gangsta wanna-be's; today one of them drove their car all the way across our yard, from their driveway to ours, coming dangerously close to our bedroom windows along the way. Had to speak with the cops - again - about that one. You know it's a bad sign when all of the town's police officers know your neighbor by his first name. The refrigerator died today - it's only 3 years old, so we're not sure what's up with it, but everything in it is melting and it's leaking all over the kitchen floor. I'm tired, I'm broke, and I'm frustrated. Bah! Humbug!

Robot Boy

Little Son did a very cool thing today - it was his first Robotics Team Competition. Being in 4th grade, this is his first year to be eligible to participate, and his division is called FIRST Lego League - the robots are built from Legos, but have computers for brains. Computers these kids have to program in order for the robot to complete its "tasks" for the competition (no remote-controlled robots here). I must admit, I was not looking forward to spending the entire day at the University of Houston watching a robotics competition, but I was pleasantly surprised at how interesting the whole thing was, and I was so very proud of Little Son for being smart enough to even do all that stuff! His team was mostly first-timers, but they did ALL the work on their robot, from building it to programming it, and managed to come in 16th out of 20 teams in their division. That's not last place. And Little Son got a medal for being one of the two kids on the "floor" running the robot during the competition. He's already excited to go back and do it again next year!

Double Standard?

Danny DeVito was on The View Wednesday, apparently "drunk as a skunk" (Joy Behar's words). He told a long, drawn out story about having sex with his wife in the Lincoln Bedroom at the White House, and also made several off-color remarks about President George Bush, some of which had to be "bleeped out". But according to an AP report, everyone is laughing it off. Co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck even said, "But he was a fun drunk!"

So why is this OK?

The comments that Mel Gibson made while drunk - off-color comments about Jews - have all but ruined him. The media tore him up. Why is it OK to make rude comments about the President while drunk, but not about Jewish people? I don't condone rude comments about either Jews or the President, but why is one so much more forgivable than the other?

Crazy things been goin' on lately......

First of all, I was driving down the freeway last week and came up on an odd van - larger than your standard van, with signs on the back - one a large VISA/MASTERCARD/AMERICAN EXPRESS sign. And another that said "CAUTION CHILDREN". Could it be? No! Yes. As I get up beside it I see that it is the ICE CREAM MAN! Since when does the Ice Cream Man take CREDIT CARDS?!? WTF??

And even tho it is not yet even December, the Christmas decorations are going up everywhere. Let me just say that I believe keeping it simple is the nicest way to go about decorating for the holidays. It shouldn't look like Christmas just threw up in your front yard. And I hate, hate, hate those giant inflatable things people put in their yards! And one more thing everyone should remember - Santa, Frosty, the Grinch, Rudolph - none of these were at the Nativity. Let's pick one theme and go with it, folks.

On Thanksgiving night we were driving home from my parents' house and happened to pass by a Circuit City. People were lined up outside the store, apparently camping out until the store opened on Friday morning! What on earth could anyone possibly need so badly that they would camp outside the Circuit City all night to get? Insane.

One of the radio stations I listen to has begun playing only Christmas songs until December 25. But they need some things pointed out to them. "Hard Candy Christmas" by Dolly Parton is NOT a Christmas song!!!!!!!! It is a song from The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas that the girls are singing as they leave the Chicken Ranch when it gets shut down! ONE LINE says "it's like a hard candy Christmas". How, I ask, does that make it a Christmas song? There's also a Dan Fogelberg song about running into his old lover in the grocery store on Christmas Eve....I don't think that exactly qualifies as a Christmas song either.

I know, I know - I'm sounding kinda Scroogy. I'm still having a hard time getting into the Holiday Spirit, but I'm getting there. This is the week I should be at Disney World celebrating the beginning of the Christmas Season with Mickey and Friends - seeing all the beautiful Christmas decorations and attending Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party. But alas, we are here at home with Hubby's broken leg. I'm not bitter - and certainly don't blame him - but I am a little sad about it. And feeling slightly overwhelmed about decorating, entertaining, and most of all, shopping. And it's hard to feel Christmas-ey when it's nearly 80 degrees every day! I'll get there, tho. I'll get there.

Gig 'em, Aggies!!

Beat the Hell outta t.u.!!

Christmas - In Yo Face!

I was going to blog about the craziness of the holidays that is already upon us (and how I'm feeling just a bit scroogy as of yet) - but cjh has said just what I was thinking here on her blog. Check it out.....

And HAPPY THANKSGIVING (The Lost Holiday)!

I'm still here!

Wow - it has been a while since I have blogged! Not much to write about - I've mainly been taking care of Hubby as he continues to recuperate. The week right after surgery was bad; this week has been much better. He even went back to work Friday! We got out some today, too, doing some volunteer work thru our church for Interfaith Caring Ministries, then going to a dinner for the volunteers at our church tonight. I think it is good for him to get out and about more. It's definitely good for me.

We're still trying to sell the house - been cleaning like a mad woman today for an Open House tomorrow. The house we want to buy is still on the market, so we're holding out hope....

So this next week is Thanksgiving. I'm having a hard time getting into that 'holiday spirit' this year - it just doesn't seem like it should be Thanksgiving already. Life kinda stopped for us just before Halloween when Hubby had his accident. We're trying to get going again. Just not feeling very festive yet.

So, my apologies for being a lazy blogger. I promise more posts soon!

Just call me Flo

Surgery on Monday went well, and Hubby Dumpty has been put back together again - his fibula has been set, and he has a screw holding the bones in his ankle together; his leg is in a soft cast from the knee down (it's driving him nuts, which makes me think that the hard cast he'll get in 2 weeks will REALLY drive him batty!). He is not really in pain, but he's uncomfortable, and it's hard for him to get around with the crutches. Yesterday he had a bad reaction to the new pain medication they put him on post-surgery, so we had to switch back to the pain pills he was taking for the week before surgery. Today is better.

My role as nurse seems to be going OK - I'm still managing a Florence Nightingale attitude, and haven't become Nurse Ratched. However, I think nursing as a profession is out for me. I just don't have the patients.

Mr. Fix-It Gets Fixed

Tomorrow's the day! Hopefully Hubby's blood pressure is in a good range and they can go ahead with the surgery - if not they will have to give him a spinal and operate anyway, because his leg HAS to be put back together again. Either way, at this time tomorrow he'll be repaired and on the road to recovery! Say a prayer!

It's all fun and games until someone gets hurt...

Last weekend we headed out to the country and camped with our church group - one of the couples has a great place out west of Houston with lots of land and a barn that is half-house. There were 15 adults and 15 kids, and we had a great time playing volleyball, riding bicycles and 4-wheelers through the trails in the woods, carving pumpkins, bobbing for apples, going on a hayride, and making s'mores by the bonfire at night. We even got all dressed up in our Halloween costumes for a party Saturday night - Hubby dressed as a Pool Shark - complete with shark fin and pool stick; I was the 8 ball. Little Son was King Arthur and Darling Daughter was Guenevere. A good time was had by all.

Sunday morning it was time to pack it up and head back home; Hubby and his buddy decided to take the 4-wheelers out for one more ride. And that's when it happened. Hubby managed to roll his 4-wheeler, breaking his leg in two places. He is going to need surgery to put a pin in his ankle to hold the bones together. He is not a happy camper. But he is alive, thank God, and doesn't have any other inuries (like his head!). And this accident has brought something even more important to light - he has dangerously high blood pressure. Had he not been going in for surgery, we may never have known how high it was, and he very easily could have had a stroke. They put him on BP meds for this week, and will do his leg surgery next Monday. I think this broken leg saved his life. God had to run over him with a 4-wheeler, but I think He got Hubby's attention. God is looking out for us. God is good.

I've had to ditch the 8-ball costume for a nurse's one - and I'll be wearing it for a while. I hope I have the patience with my patient! So far so good....

Shake Your Gluteus Maximus

In a discussion about hineys today, Little Son (he's 9) announced that he knew the "scientific name" of your rear end (he learned it in P.E.). "It's your Bootius Maximus!" Of course I instantly cracked up (no pun intended) and had to explain to him that the word was GLUTEus, not BOOTYus. This embarrassed him, but I couldn't stop laughing. He just doesn't like being the butt of the joke. I then had to explain to him that I was not, in fact, laughing AT him, but that I thought it was cute - like when he called our gazebo out back a "casino" and we have called it that ever since. And that we say words like "deroniant" and "tenchaper" and "puddy" because those were words Bubba said when he was little and they just stuck (translations: deodorant, temperature, and pudding). And that his sister told me when she was 2 years old that for Christmas she wanted a "jackass-in-a-box". (Now where in the world did she hear THAT word?) So we all had a good laugh about our BOOTYus Maximus, because who doesn't find derrierre humor funny? I mean really. It's hiney-larious.

We're outta here!

It's official - our house is on the market and we are moving. Not sure exactly where yet - I have my eye on The Perfect House that is close to my parents, but it will probably sell before we sell ours. So we have several options open to us. And there are several reasons why we are leaving this house - it is certainly a wonderful house - but there are just times in your life when you need to move on, and this is one of them for us. So wish us luck, pray for us, do a chant, whatever.....we need to sell this house!! And I need to not go crazy in the process.

Hissy Fit

Lots of things are getting under my skin lately - some big, some not so big, but nonetheless, they are building up and I feel a giant hissy fit coming on. You know, a full-on screaming, cussing, crying - maybe throwing a few things - fit. Perhaps it will be one of the biggies that sets me off, like my VERY annoying neighbors; or perhaps it will be something not so important, like a jackass tailgating me for going 20 mph in a school zone and then speeding around me the first chance he gets. Maybe I'll just get mad at LIFE and rage with my fist shaking towards the sky. But I think it's coming. Yes, watch out world. Bubba's Sis is going to have a Hissy Fit. Then maybe I'll feel better.

Water, Water Everywhere

Yesterday was a crazy weather day here! We got 13 inches of rain in one day - on top of all the rain we got over the weekend. Being that this is the Bayou City, there were floods all over town. Two women even died when their SUV became submerged in flood water and they could not escape. My house stayed high and dry, but just around the corner at our neighborhood pond, which is surrounded by Clear Creek, the water was rising and rising.....

Here's a pic of the pond area on a normal day (well, all those people aren't there on a normal day, but it's the best picture I had that includes the sign):

And here's the pic I took this morning of that same area (can you see the sign out by the tree?):

I can just imagine the critters that come with that flood - alligators, snakes, and whatnot. There was a guy out there fishing this morning - in an area that is usually not even CLOSE to the water! Thankfully today it is sunny, so I won't have to start building that ark after all.

Another Death in the Family

My toaster died this morning. I knew it was coming - it was getting old and crotchety. Today I had to throw it away. I've already picked out a new one, which I will get after an appropriate mourning period. BUT - tomorrow is my birthday and I do NOT want a toaster as a birthday present! There is just something terribly wrong with giving household appliances as birthday presents. I don't care how cute they are.

Roller Coasters Make Me Sick

The past 10 days for me have been an emotional roller coaster - I've been sad, I've been mad, I've been happy, I've been hurt, I've been proud, I've been depressed, I've been overjoyed to tears. And frankly, I'm tired. Emotionally AND physically. So I'm sorry I haven't blogged in a week. I'm still here! Just gathering my thoughts and emotions for my next profound post here.....stay tuned!

Mercy Delivery

In our small group at church we have been discussing the attributes of God for the past six weeks, and examining how we can emulate those outside the walls of the church into our daily lives. One week we talked about mercy and the kind things we do for one another out of Christian love - as we discussed this the EMT in our group got paged and had to rush out to his ambulance and go save someone. We laughed and said he was on Mercy Delivery - someone must have ordered a large to-go! What a great concept, we thought - Mercy Delivery. We all had a good chuckle.

Tonight I was the recipient of Mercy Delivery. As you may have guessed from my previous post, it has been a difficult week at our house. Tonight was the visitation for Hubby's Grandpa; tomorrow is the funeral. We have dealt with a tremendous amount of stress this week, both funeral and non-funeral related. Enter Mercy Delivery. Tonight my small group brought a meal to our house - a simple act, you would think - I expected one person to show up with something yummy to take the burden of preparing a meal off of me tonight. Instead I opened the door to SIX women and FIVE children, all bearing plates of food - everything from tamales to chicken salad on croissants to cookies and pecan pie. I was overwhelmed by the love. Everyone came in with a hug and a smile and the laughter and love overflowed from the windows and doors of my house. I don't have the words to describe that feeling - knowing that these people LOVE us and PRAY for us and genuinely CARE about us. I was moved to tears.

Perhaps this Mercy Delivery thing is a good idea. Ironically tonight as I browsed thru the blogs I read, I found another sort of Mercy Delivery here - take a minute and check it out. It'll make you feel all good inside. I know I do.

Three Funerals and a Wedding

This week Hubby and I will be going to our third funeral in as many months; his Grandpa passed away this morning (well, yesterday morning, since technically it is Tuesday now). Since the end of June we have said goodbye to my grandmother, Hubby's boss, and now his Grandpa. The funeral will likely be Thursday. Then this weekend we're headed to a more joyful event - Cousin Wendy Bird's wedding! I promise not to wear the same dress.

Denise? No! Denephew!

Oh boy!! Katie Lady is having a baby boy!! I am so excited about my new nephew, who will make his debut in February! Time to start buying little boy stuff!!! Gotta spoil him rotten, you know.

Rita Remembered...

A year ago this week we were keeping all eyes on the Gulf and Hurricane Rita. We eventually decided to pack up the things we love most, secure the rest, and head for Dallas - an evacuation we now refer to as The Runaway Scrape. Everyone around here has an evacuation story - ours is worse than some, but not as bad as others - still, it was a Living Hell. Nineteen hours to Dallas with two kids and two dogs is no picnic, let me tell you. We saw things that absolutely shocked us. Basically, it sucked.

This year Hurricane Season has been kinder to us - we are only up to the letter H instead of R, and only one or two of the storms have even come into the Gulf. Most seem to meander around out at sea. While the season isn't over, we are certainly relieved at our fate thus far. Today it is a beautiful day here - a touch of fall in the air - woke up to temps in the high 60's and will only top out at the high 80's today! It's sunny and breezy and beautiful. Not a hurricane in sight! Here's hoping there won't be any in sight for the rest of the year........

Is this fair?

Let's say there is this hypothetical junior high school that, in the spring, will be accepting applications for National Junior Honor Society. And let's say that the hypothetical rules for admittance to said Honor Society require the cumulative average of all classes taken for the year to be 93 or better. Let's just also say that the hypothetical school does NOT give extra consideration in grade points to G/T (Gifted/Talented) OR Advanced classes. Therefore, a student who is working very hard in the G/T Program, which is quite rigorous and not easy to get into, and is making high B's and low A's could be denied admittance into said Honor Society, while a student who is taking regular-level, less-challenging classes (which there's nothing wrong with that) and is making mid-to-high A's would be in. Does this seem right? Especially when there are hypothetical parents who say, "I would rather my child make straight A's in regular classes than B's in advanced classes." Am I the only one who would have a problem with this?

Navy Son

Everyone welcome Navy Son to the blogging world!


*Disclaimer - Navy Son's comments do not necessarily reflect the opinions and/or attitudes of his parents. Side effects may include dizziness, dry mouth, or nausea. Consult a physician if you have any symptoms that last longer than four hours. Read all comments at your own risk.

Never Forget

You know you're getting old....

...when you're browsing thru an Antique Mall and you're seeing things you remember from your childhood! Like this and this and this, and these. I also had one of these and some of these. I carried this lunchbox to school (Bubba's Mom still has the thermos)!! Also a lot of old dishes and pitchers that I remember being in either our house or my grandmother's house, record albums (um..are those really antique now?), and old typewriters (my Granddaddy had an old typewriter that he threw out with the trash!!!!!!!!!!!!!!). When I was a child I thought going to antique stores was B-O-R-I-N-G because it was just a bunch of old stuff........now it's more like a trip down Memory Lane! Look! There's Nanny's dishes! Hey! Maw Maw had this in her kitchen! Hey - Granddaddy used to have THIS PICTURE hanging on his wall! ::sigh:: I guess I really AM getting older.

LOL

Sometimes I see something in the funny papers that just makes me laugh out loud.....

Calendar Girl

One of my favorite favorite things to get during the year is a new calendar (see # 23 on my 100 Things About Me list). This week Bubba's Mom found my 2007 calendar (the one I love) and bought it for me. For the past few days I have been in heaven getting it all ready for next year - writing everyone's birthdays and anniversaries, special occasions, etc. in my very neatest handwriting with my very favorite pen (did I mention that I'm a little compulsive about it?). It looks so pretty and clean and fresh - just like the new year will look on January 1. I don't know why I love calendars so much - maybe it's the hope it instills in me when I see the next 365 days laid out before me like a blank slate....maybe it's the compulsive planner in me.....maybe it's my need to keep my world in some type of order and control. Whatever it is, getting my new calendar is my most favoritest thing this time of year!!

Smell my breath! (by Naughty Little Boy Dog)

Hi Mommy! Hi Daddy! Guess what? While you were gone I found that great lip gloss again! You know? The chocolate mint one? I found it in The Girl's purse. She has all kinds of neat stuff in there, like a pack of Kleenex (do you know how much Kleenex they can get in those little packs??) and some pencils. But that lip gloss - yum yum! I offered some to Good Girl Dog, cuz' that seems like something girls would like, but she didn't care for any, so I ate it all up myself! Don't I smell good?!? Want me to kiss you?!? You've been gone so long - just give me a little kiss and smell my chocolatey, minty breath!

Transitions

Ever since my daughter was a baby I have bragged about how well she handles transitions. Crib to Big Girl Bed? No problem! Bottle to sippy cup? Easy, breezy! Giving up the pacifier (Nee Nee)? Well, the Nee Nee Fairy came and took it and that was that. On her second day of second grade she had to change to a different class - the teachers were concerned it would upset her but she just said, "It's OK. I handle transitions well." That's my girl!!! She is going thru another phase of transitions now as I watch her go from little girl to young woman. So far so good - she is breezing thru Junior High School with fabulous success, and she is wearing a bra and shaving her legs without complaint. She just doesn't want to talk about it. And she CERTAINLY doesn't want to talk about getting her....little friend....if you know what I mean. She knows all about it, thankyouverymuch, has no questions, and will let me know when it happens. I dread this. It will mean she finally IS a young woman and not my precious baby girl anymore.

I, too, seem to be in a phase of transition myself. I'm on the back-side of my 30's now - which is odd because I still feel like I should be 21. But, as my mother always promised, my body is changing. I've had to have parts removed. Other parts are shifting or changing shape. I plucked a couple of grey hairs today, and I'm getting crow's feet around my eyes. "Kids today" amaze me with the crap they do sometimes. And sometimes - only sometimes - music is too loud. But maybe, just maybe, PreTeen Daughter will still let me play Barbies with her sometimes.

Katrina - One Year Later

There's so much I could say about this disaster.....but the media is all over it today and frankly, I don't have anything to say that hasn't already been said. Bubba has some good posts on his blog about the levees and re-building New Orleans; and Wes has an excellent post reminding us all that it wasn't just New Orleans that suffered, but thousands of others in Louisiana, Mississippi, and even Alabama that don't get the publicity that The Big Easy is getting. So today, let's remember ALL the victims of Katrina - even the ones that the media forgot.

My New Friend

Had a fabulous lunch today with Bubba's Mom and cjh - our first time to meet cjh face-to-face. We had such a nice time - talked and laughed and enjoyed the scrumptious food (thank you again, cjh, for your croissant!). I found myself not wanting it to end so soon, I was having such a lovely time.

At one point in my life not many years ago, I decided I didn't need any new friends in my life - I now realize how silly that was because new friends are so much fun! I hope to get to know cjh better 'cause I think she's pretty cool (I hope she likes me too!).

Oh, and Bubba - we talked about you. Just to let you know. :-)

Lunch was the highlight of my day - the rest includes grocery shopping, shuttling kids here and there, and attending Open House at Brilliant Daughter's school. And it looks like I'll be doing at least some of those things in the rain. Ugh.

I hope my new friend has a good afternoon and stays out of the rain! Let's do lunch again real soon!

Welcome a new Blogger!

Everyone check out my cousin's new blog - Wendy Bird.

Welcome to the Blogging World, Wendy Bird!

Get out your pennies.....

A recent post by cjh reminded me of a fun game I have played at a couple of parties - everyone starts out with 3 pennies, then takes turns going around the room stating things they have NEVER done; everyone in the room that HAS done that thing must put one of their pennies in the pot; the last one with a penny wins! This inspired me for my new List - Ten Things I Have Never Done. Get your pennies ready!

1. I have never been arrested.
2. I have never smoked a joint.
3. I have never cooked a turkey.
4. I have never been to Europe.
5. I have never sang karaoke in public.
6. I have never given blood (other than for blood tests of my own).
7. I have never worn contacts.
8. I have never seen Napoleon Dynamite.
9. I have never had a passport.
10. I have never been to a professional football game.

Anyone have any pennies left?

Earworms

You know how you get a song stuck in your head sometimes? It seems I ALWAYS have a song in my head - it's never quiet in there. Sometimes it's a song I heard recently on the radio or on TV, but often it's just a random song and I have no clue why it has popped up to sing in my brain. Tonight, as I was folding and putting away the last load of laundry, Donna Summer was singing "Last Dance" in my head. Where did that come from?!? Was my subconscious trying to tell me something? Do you ever wonder that? If the random song in your brain is really a message to you? Why else would it just pop in there with no explanation? I think it's rather odd. Sometimes I wish I could just turn off the music and be QUIET. Where's the MUTE button?

Maybe I shouldn't sit up until midnight eating Fritos and bean dip so much.......

Too Funny!

Need a good laugh? Read this.

It's really hot here.

Yesterday I posted a picture of my van's outside-temp thermometer showing 98 degrees in the shade. Today it was hotter, so I attempted to update the picture, but for some reason it wouldn't let me. So I just deleted yesterday's post and created this one. As you can see.......IT'S REALLY HOT HERE!!

For my red-headed friends......

Redheads Have More Sex, Survey Says

This is NOT why I wish I were a redhead. Just in case you were wondering....

More Things

Wow - making the list of 100 Things About Me really inspired me to do some deep introspective searching of myself, and now all these other things for the list are coming to mind! So I thought I'd list a few more, and perhaps categorize them, just for something different. Tonight's list - 10 Medical Things About Me

1. I have very low blood pressure.
2. I've had 1 major surgery, 2 outpatient surgeries, and 2 oral surgeries.
3. I have been under general anesthesia 4 times. It's hard to wake up, but it does not make me sick.
4. I'm scared of the dentist.
5. I have had 3 epidurals.
6. I have never had a broken bone except for when my high school boyfriend hugged me really tight and cracked my rib, and when my drunk ex-husband hit me and broke my jaw.
7. Because of aforementioned broken jaw, I have TMJ.
8. Because of aforementioned TMJ, I get frequent headaches.
9. When I was pregnant with my daughter, I worked for the OB that delivered her.
10. I am not overweight, do not have high cholesterol, and have a healthy heart rate. I think that makes me pretty healthy!

Andy, too!

Tonight Andy Pettitte his HIS first career homerun in the Astros' win over the Padres 4-2. Wow! Keep it up, Astros! We believe!

Back to School

Tomorrow - well, actually later today - my kids go back to school! I have always loved back-to-school time, even when I was still IN school. It's like New Years to me. New classes. New clothes. New books. New school supplies (LOVE those!). A clean slate. What will the year bring? Also, the new TV season will kick off soon (I'm so sick of re-runs!). My dance classes will start back up (new classes, new students). We will be back into a routine around here. That is a good thing.

So you would THINK that since we all have to get up and going early tomorrow, I would have gone to bed early tonight. Nope! I just did a few Sudoku puzzles online (my homepage offers 4 levels each day) and polished off a bag of Fritos and a can of bean dip (a most excellent snack). I'm getting kinda sleepy now, so I better give in. It's an exciting day tomorrow, er, today! Happy New Year!

Way to go, Roy O!!

Roy Oswalt hit his first career home run tonight to help the Astros beat the Pirates 14-1. You know it's going to be a good game when the pitcher hits a home run!!!

100 Things

Apparently a cool thing to do on your blog is make a list of 100 Things about yourself (I first saw this on The Pig's blog, and have since seen it on a couple of others). Never wanting to be the one that's not with it, I pondered long and hard and finally came up with a list of 100. So, without further ado, here are 100 Things About Me:

**Note the date of this post and change any ages, etc. accordingly to when you are reading it.

1. I am a Christian.
2. I have 3 kids - my oldest is my husband's son who I adopted when we married.
3. I am terrified of elevators.
4. I love babies.
5. I can not have any more babies because I had a hysterectomy at 35.
6. I am 36 years old.
7. I have never weighed over 100 pounds (except when I was pregnant)
8. I am a good dancer; I love to tap dance.
9. I have a major sweet tooth.
10. I like Half -n- Half on my cereal.
11. I have one brother (Bubba) who is 7 years younger than I am.
12. I have excellent handwriting.
13. I can also type well.
14. My first car was an old, black AMC Hornet that we called The Roach.
15. I hate to cook.
16. My mother survived breast cancer TWICE.
17. I once won $800 in a bowling tournament.
18. I love baseball.
19. My youngest son gave up Little League Baseball at 8 years old so he could focus on playing golf.
20. Every home I have ever lived in is within 15 minutes of each other.
21. I love Disney World. I've been many times.
22. I rarely use pencils.
23. I am compulsive about calendars.
24. I love maps.
25. I'm afraid to fly.
26. I met my husband in a country/western club that, when I was little, was a movie theater that my Granddaddy built.
27. I cross my 7's and my Z's.
28. I love dogs - I have 2.
29. I never knew I could love someone as much as I love my children.
30. I think I am the only person in the world who doesn't like margaritas.
31. I do like beer, and I like to peel the neck label; it marks it as "mine".
32. I'm paranoid I will get breast cancer.
33. Some people say I have obsessive/compulsive tendencies.
34. Roller coasters scare me, but I rode Rock 'n Roller Coaster at Disney MGM Studios 2 times.
35. I love John Denver.
36. I like to read, but rarely do anymore.
37. I'm into Sudoku right now.
38. I love a brand new box of 64 Crayons.
39. I've never had chicken pox.
40. I hate grocery shopping.
41. I love being a stay-at-home-mom!
42. I like baths, not showers.
43. My oldest son is in the Navy, currently stationed in Italy.
44. I'm a sucker for gift shops.
45. I hate to wear shoes, but I own a lot of them!
46. Wearing a bra isn't so great, either.
47. I love jammies.
48. I drink hot tea every morning.
49. Since my husband and I have been married we have owned 21 vehicles.
50. We have been married 14 years this year.
51. I love Elvis and I have been to Graceland. It was not hokey.
52. Two of my children are considered Gifted & Talented.
53. My husband could be a professional pool player.
54. I'm not too crazy about popcorn.
55. Ice cream, either - I could take it or leave it.
56. I am very organized.
57. I'm a night owl.
58. I hate mornings.
59. I hate hen parties.
60. I like to scrapbook my vacations.
61. When I see a baby be born on TV, I cry.
62. Crying makes me tired.
63. I like to eat out.
64. I wore white cowboy boots when I got married.
65. Swimming with stingrays in Grand Cayman is one of the coolest things I've done.
66. I have ugly hands and feet.
67. I like funny movies.
68. I like to take naps.
69. I love to get mail.
70. I have very vivid dreams.
71. My house is decorated like a beach house.
72. My dream house would be on a beach somewhere.
73. I'm a pretty good photographer.
74. I like thunderstorms.
75. I wish I were an Aggie like Bubba.
76. I like to read the funny papers.
77. I think firemen are sexy.
78. I used to dance with a professional ballet company.
79. I am proud to be from Texas.
80. I can bait my own hook.
81. I don't care for cats.
82. Sometimes a good foot massage is better than sex.
83. I am named after my mother's sister.
84. My family and friends and I watch Miss America together every year and we all wear crowns.
85. I have a love/hate relationship with bathing suits.
86. I was on the drillteam in high school.
87. I graduated from high school in 1987.
88. Jewelry doesn't excite me.
89. I hate to iron.
90. The smell of Pond's cold cream makes me think of my grandmother.
91. I can't stand to smell cigarette smoke.
92. I can drive a stick shift.
93. I let my dogs sleep on the bed.
94. I like to go for a walk in the evening.
95. I sleep hugging a pillow.
96. People have always teased me because I'm skinny, but I've never teased anyone about being fat.
97. I know a few astronauts personally.
98. I wish I could sing well.
99. My in-laws are crazy.
100. I wish more people read my blog.

"I've spoken to the bear's owner and he is not very pleased at all."

At least Naughty Little Boy Dog is not this naughty!

Corpus Christi

Headed down to Corpus Christi for the weekend with some friends - eight of us in all, including 4 parents and 4 kids that all love each other. It was a quick weekend trip, but a very nice one - we hit the beach on Mustang Island, did some sightseeing in town, went to the Texas State Aquarium and had lunch at the Whataburger By the Bay, the only 2-story Whataburger! (Corpus Christi is home to the original Whataburger, you know - and there's a Whataburger on every corner!) We had wanted to take in a Hooks game, but they were out of town this weekend. So we'll have to catch them next trip. We did see Whataburger Field, tho - very nice!

It's always nice to have a little getaway - and always nice to get back home. We are refreshed.

The Naughty Dog gets the worm

Now that the June bugs are gone (thank goodness!), Naughty Little Boy Dog can't find much to play with outside. Until now. Last night AND tonight, he has gotten hold of a big long EARTHWORM! He brought it in the doggie door and pranced around the house with it dangling from his mouth, like, "Look at me! Look what I've got!" At first I thought it was a small snake, but after getting it away from him we discovered it was just a worm. A big ol' LONG worm, that was kinda half-alive and half-dead. What kind of dog can catch a worm?? That's gross, I say.

Getting Away with Murder

Andrea Yates has been found Not Guilty By Reason of Insanity in the drowning deaths of her children. Add this to the list of Things that Trouble Me. This woman drowned not one, not two, but ALL FIVE of her children in the bathtub. She had to chase the last one down and fight him until he was dead. She had thought about it days before, even filling the bathtub with water once, "just in case" she needed it. She planned the killings at just the time of day when her husband had left for work but her mother-in-law had not yet arrived to help her for the day. She knew what she did was wrong. This verdict is a travesty. Is she insane? I completely believe in post-partum depression and psychosis. I have no doubt she suffered from that. I can possibly fathom a psychotic woman getting to the point of killing their child - but killing 5 of them, one after the other after the other? You'd think she'd catch her snap after the first one or two. I still believe she knew she was doing wrong, and that defies the insanity defense. Andrea Yates deserved the death penalty - at the very least she deserved life in prison. Now she will spend time in a mental hospital (which I'm sure is not fun, but it's not prison, either) and there is hope for recovery - hope she can eventually be released. I wonder if she will visit the grave of her children. We see it every time we go to my father-in-law's grave; we drive right past their little faces engraved on the headstone, and it breaks my heart. The jury has said she is not responsible for their deaths. So who is? I think Rusty Yates should be held accountable to some extent - he could see the problems his wife was having and yet he left the children in her care. Now he has gone on with his life - he has divorced Andrea and remarried. The whole situation is an awful tragedy, with an unsatisfactory ending.

I'm so apeeling!

Got a bad sunburn last week - I really should know better, as I am quite fair-skinned and have had several bad sunburns in my life (and I'll probably end up with skin cancer someday because of it, while all those people who go to the tanning beds every day and lie out in the sun so they can have gorgeous, bronze bodies will be fine). The first few days it was quite painful - I could hardly stand to have clothes on, and when I did it was usually something that barely touched me, like one of hubby's big, soft T-shirts. Then came the itching - OOO! I've been going crazy with the itching! And you know, once you start scratching it just gets worse. I've been using a lot of Solarcaine and Aveeno baths the past few days. Now I am peeling, which I think is kinda cool. I like to see how big of a piece of skin I can peel off before it breaks - today I've gotten some pretty big ones! Some people think that is gross (Bubba's Mom being one of them) but I think it's pretty fascinating. And it finally brings me relief from the itching!!!

I've decided it's just not worth it to try to be tan - my Southern Magnolia Skin just doesn't like it and the consequences are just not fun. So tease me if you will - I'll be the pastey girl on the beach or at the pool, using my SPF500 sunscreen from now on!

Fat, Lazy Americans

Yes, I'm an American. No, I'm not fat - but I can be lazy (just ask Bubba's Mom!). However, I would never stoop to this - people using electric scooters to get around simply because they don't feel like walking (you really should read the article to get the full gist of this). People with disabilities that need scooters - I have no problem with them. Even tour companies that offer "scooter tours" of the sites around town - whatever, dude. But renting a scooter when you are an able-bodied person, perfectly capable of walking around but too lazy to do so, that is just despicable. It's no wonder Americans are ridiculed by other nations for being fat and lazy - we are!!! And the sad thing is that the people who rent up all the available scooters at places like amusement parks or large stores - or take all the complimentary ones - leave truly disabled people unable to get around. If you are too lazy to walk around Disney World (or Dollywood or wherever), DON'T GO! Don't take a scooter from someone who truly needs it because you are a lazy ass, or because you expect special privileges reserved for the "handicapped". Laziness is NOT a handicap.

Add this to my list of "Things That Trouble Me". Or maybe I need a new list - "Things That Downright Piss Me Off". My neighbors could be #1 on that list, and this could be #2.

Check it out - and hurry up!

I firmly believe that Stupid People should NOT be allowed to use the self-checkout registers in the grocery store. I, myself, like to check myself out (ha!) because if I only have a few items it is quick and easy (assuming I don't get stuck behind a Stupid Person). I understand how the register works (even for produce!) and can scan, bag, and pay quicker than the average bear. However, if you do not understand how the system works (which is kinda hard since it TELLS you how it works) and you have a kajillion items to scan and you constantly need "cashier assistance", please refrain from using the self-checkout in the future. You are in my way.

Happy Birthday, Maw Maw!

Today would have been my grandmother's 97th birthday - she passed away on June 26. We had always teased her that we were going to celebrate her 100th birthday at Chuck E. Cheese - one of our cousins liked to take her there when he visited with his kids and she was quite the trooper, even playing Skee Ball just a few months ago! I hope they are having a big party for her in Heaven today - bigger and better than Chuck E. Cheese, even! We love you, Maw Maw. Happy Birthday.

Life and Death

First, the death part. Dear Hubby and I are going to our second funeral of the summer - first was for my grandmother, and now this one is for his boss. Not exactly in my Top Ten List of Fun Things I Did On My Summer Vacation. Both are sad, but my grandmother's death was rather expected, while the boss' was completely the opposite. It seems like every funeral I have ever been to, it is either really really hot outside or really really cold. I'm guessing this time it will be the first one, since we are up over 100 on a daily basis now.

Now the fun part - babies! I blogged about this back in the spring, because so many people I know have had babies or are pregnant. And I've been reading some good pregancy/baby blogs lately, too, by Pigs and PostHipChick. It all brings back so many good memories of my baby-making days. I can't birth babies anymore - the equipment has been removed - but now I can live it vicariously thru the ones I love that are going thru the joyful experience! I think I might even be having sympathy symptoms for those loved ones.....kinda scary!

Things that trouble me

Sometimes as I sit up late at night, things trouble me. Everything seems worse at night, right? That's when the boogerbears come out. It's also nice and quiet and I have plenty of time to contemplate the more troubling things in life.

1. I read on another blog that the whole thing about the Texas flag being able to be flown at the same height as the American flag because we were once an independent nation is an URBAN LEGEND! This troubles me because I was taught this all my life and never thought to question it as Urban Legend. I was taught it in SCHOOL for Pete's sake! How can that be wrong?

2. Change troubles me. Our church is adding a Sunday evening service, which is fabulous for non-morning people like me, however it interferes with our small-group time and I don't want to have to choose one or the other. I know this will all work out, but for now it troubles me.

3. My electric bill was excessively high this month. It was last month, too. I don't think I'm using any more electricity than I normally do at this time of the year; I think the electricity rates have gone way up. Still gotta pay it, tho! The price we pay to stay cool in this Texas heat!

4. Dear husband's boss died unexpectedly over the weekend. I am troubled that a 45-year-old man had a stroke and died. I am troubled about what will happen with the dynamics of the workplace now that he is suddenly gone. I worry about how my dear hubby's job will be affected.

5. And finally, I am troubled by my next-door neighbors, who are right now as I am typing this at 1:00 a.m. outside on their driveway (the other side of my bedroom wall) making noise! This is a common occurrence, and ranges from loud talking to basketball playing to BOOM BOOM rap music blaring. It is rude, and yet attempts to (nicely) speak to them about various problems we have had with them have not gone well. The police have told us to just call them whenever we have a problem - apparently our neighbors are well known with the local police department. This troubles me.

Boy, you can sure tell I'm a Libra, can't you? My scales are out of balance and I'm all abother! (Is abother a word?) But sleep brings perspective, and tomorrow none of this will seem quite so troubling......I hope.

Good Girl Dog

In all fairness, I need to give some blog time to Good Girl Dog. She really IS a good girl - never gives us an ounce of trouble. She is loving and sweet and obedient. And she puts up with Naughty Little Boy Dog quite well (they really do love each other). The only complaint I have with her is that she has decided that at 9:00 a.m. I need to be up. Granted, she's probably right, but I'm such a night owl (notice the time of this post) that on those nights I stay up particularly late I do enjoy sleeping in. She's very nice about waking me up, tho - she gets right up beside me on the bed and gently pats me with her paw. Pat, pat. If I turn over she goes around to the other side of me and pats again. Pat, pat. This goes on every morning at the same time, and she's very persistent! At least Naughty Little Boy Dog sleeps late!

The Continuing Adventures of Naughty Little Boy Dog

Well, it seems that the little "procedure" Naughty Little Boy Dog underwent did not do much to improve his behavior. This week has been wild - every time we leave the house he just goes nuts! We come home and find the couch cushions all over the floor (not chewed up, thankfully), a silk house plant shredded, moss all over the floor from the bottom of a silk ficus (that we have had for MONTHS and he just decided the moss around the bottom is fun to play with), or the toilet paper unrolled. If we don't put them up, he will shred the magazines and TV guide - or chew on the remote control! Anything within his reach is fair game. He even chewed up his food bowl (and Good Girl Dog's, too!) I think it's time to put him back in the crate when we leave. He will hate it, but it will at least save my stuff!

(Miss) America's Got Talent?

If you watch TV at all, you know that talent shows are really IN right now - the most recent being America's Got Talent, which should perhaps be retitled America's Got Some Really Weird People In It. It's a modernized version of The Gong Show of the 1970's. Very silly.

But with shows like American Idol and Rock Star:Supernova, everyday people like you and me can become the next big star! Why, I sing REALLY well when I'm in the car all by myself. It's quite awesome. But putting someone else in the car with me throws off the acoustics or something, because I just don't sound the same. Not sure what's up with that.

Everyone fancies themselves a singer these days. That was evident when we watched the Miss Texas Pageant the other night - 7 out of the 10 Semi-Finalists sang for their talent (the other 3 were dancers). I miss the days when the Miss Texas and Miss America contestants had a wider variety of talent - over the years we have seen ventriloquists, marimba players, fiddlers, gymnasts, fire baton twirlers, and belly dancers. We even had a deaf ballerina - Heather Whitestone, Miss America 1995 - and a hula dancer - Kaye Lani Rae Rafko, Miss America 1988. Now everyone just sings, and not everyone SHOULD sing, if you know what I mean. If you don't have a nice singing voice, please pick something else to do for your talent! If you can't dance or twirl a baton or play an instrument, then do a dramatic reading! Something! It'll save our ears AND give the show a little more variety. Works out well for everyone.

Miss Texas

Last night was one of the year's much-anticipated television events for me - the Miss Texas Pageant! The winner of last night's pageant will represent our great state at the Miss America Pageant in January in Las Vegas - an even-greater-anticipated television event. I grew up watching Miss America, and even today my mom, family, and friends and I get together and have Pageant Viewing Parties - we even wear crowns!

To those who think Miss America is just a silly beauty pageant, I beg to differ. Unlike the Miss U.S.A. Pageant, Miss America awards scholarships to its contestants; the winner of Miss Texas/Miss America must posses not only outward beauty, but also inner beauty, as well as talent, poise, and personality. Miss America must have a platform - a cause she feels deeply about - and she speaks across the country on her issue. She is a role model.

We had our party last night and wore our crowns; we ate a delicious dinner and indulged on brownies for dessert. It's a "no-males-allowed" party, so the guys went to see Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (they said it was great!). We were rooting for our favorites in the Top 10 Finalists - we especially liked Miss Central Texas and Miss Woodlands - but alas, our favorite did not win the title last night. Congratulations to Miss Frisco, who I will say nothing bad about because that would be ugly. Even tho she does have a large Queen Elizabeth forehead and didn't sing that well. I'm just sayin'.

On to the Miss America Pageant in January! Gone are the days of the parades along the Atlantic City Boardwalk, of Bert Parks singing, "There she is....Miss America....", of a September crowning. But despite the changes over time, the Miss America Pageant has stayed relevant and fresh - and a great excuse for a party!

Ciao!

Navy Son is home from Italy on two weeks of leave. He stayed a couple of days with us, and is now visiting other family members here in the area (he's got to see all his peeps, you know). Last night we took him to our favorite local Mexican restaurant to celebrate his 21st birthday (you just don't get good Tex-Mex in Sicily). It was a good time; they put a sombrero on his head and sang to him, and he got a free dessert which they smeared on his face a little. He loves it when it's all about him. He looks good and the Navy has really matured him. Naughty Little Boy Dog absolutely adores him - I think it might be a birds-of-a-feather thing (Navy Son was a Naughty Little Boy Son at one time!). Anyway, I must say that his father and I are proud of how he turned out. We done good!

Spirit of America

Happy 4th of July! We celebrate our freedom as Americans today, and all the opportunities our great nation brings. One of the great accomplishments of this country has been manned spaceflight. I have lived in the NASA community all my life; my dad works at NASA. We have celebrated the great times and mourned the sad; we lived the grief of losing Challenger and Columbia - we knew the people who perished. Today NASA will again attempt to launch the Shuttle - with another friend on board. They fly on our prayers, and we will hold our breaths until they are safely home again; we will celebrate when they return. Godspeed, Discovery! And God Bless America!

Revenge

We had to go to Dallas last week - my wonderful grandmother, who would have been 97 on her birthday July 21 - passed away. She was such a great person, a member of her church for almost 90 years, a beautiful Christian and a perfect grandmother.

Because of our trip, we had to leave the dogs at the Doggie Hotel. Good Girl Dog takes it well, and she is glad to be home. Naughty Little Boy Dog is getting back at us. Since he has been home (2 days) he has eaten the dirt out of a house plant (and left dirt all over the carpet!), eaten a magazine, pottied on the floor, stolen panties out of the dirty clothes hamper and chewed them up, pulled all the stuffing out of one of the throw pillows on the couch, and unrolled the toilet paper roll. I think he has issues.

Two Thumbs Up!

The kids and I took #1 Daddy to the movies today for Father's Day - we saw Cars. Now I don't go to the movies often, for a variety of reasons. First of all, it is expensive. Second of all, the people are annoying. Today was no exception to either, but I must say that it was worth it. Cars is an excellent movie! Disney and Pixar have once again put together a great picture. It's not just for kids (altho there were PLENTY in the theater today!); I'd recommend it to anyone. This is one we will buy when it comes out on DVD. Once again, Disney, well done!

The next Disney feature we are looking forward to: Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest. It opens July 7.

Legends I Love

As I sit here at midnight, listening to music I downloaded off the Internet, I decided to make a list of legendary artists I truly love. In no particular order:

1. John Denver
2. Johnny Cash
3. Willie Nelson
4. Elvis Presley

These are the sounds of my childhood. Their songs bring me back......their songs bring me comfort........sometimes their songs bring me tears. I love them.

Summer ramblings

Well, everyone is back and things are settling down around here - we have even abandoned the Big Adventure, which was to sell our house and have a new one built in another neighborhood. But we love our house here - it's great! So why put ourselves thru the stress, ya know?

Summer has settled in and it is HOT. Almost too hot to go out during the day. I know people enjoy the pool and the beach and everything - I enjoy air conditioning, myself. But the kids love the pool, so we do go sometimes. They have some fun summer activities coming up, too, so no one's getting bored around here!

Daughter had a great time in NYC with Bubba and Aunt Katie - it was a trip full of "firsts" for her! Her first airplane ride, first time to NYC, first time to ride in a cab/subway/bus, first time to see and do a lot of things - first time to take a trip away from Mom and Dad! (I missed her terribly!) She's a more worldly girl now. Why, oh why, does she have to grow up??

We're already half-way thru June. We've even already had our first named storm of Hurricane Season (thanx for taking that one for us, Florida - glad you fared well). For the record: I will NOT be doing a repeat of last year's Rita evacuation (we like to call it the Runaway Scrape). I think I'd rather float on my roof than drive 19 hours to Dallas again, thankyouverymuch. I'm just sayin'. There has to be a better plan.

Enjoy your summer, everyone! So far so good for me!

Where did everybody go?!?

It seems I am one of the only people around here who isn't taking a vacation right now! Three families on my street, plus three more in the neighborhood that I know, are in Florida right now (FIVE are at Disney, and one is visiting family). My best friend is in St. Louis. In a few days my daughter will leave for New York with my parents to visit Bubba and Katie. I'm feeling a bit abandoned here! Last year at this time we were headed to beautiful Hilton Head Island, South Carolina for a week-long vacation with Bubba and Katie and our parents. It was great! This year we took our big trip at Spring Break, so we're spending the summer at home. But that's OK - another Big Adventure awaits! More details to come soon....

Summertime and the livin' is easy!

It is officially summer. Dance recital is over, school is out, and the cicadas are whirring in the trees. Daughter was a bit sad about the end of 6th grade today - she loves school - but she is looking forward to the break and to the many adventures she'll have this summer (including visiting Bubba in New York!). Little Son was not as sad about finishing 3rd grade - the first thing he said when he got home was, "Tomorrow I get to sleep late!" That's my boy!!

I must say I am looking forward to the rest that summer will bring. No schedules, no routine - I will enjoy not having to drive all over the place every day, back and forth to schools and to the dance studio - I hope to enjoy a weekend getaway in Corpus Christie to see a Hooks game - we'll spend some time at the neighborhood pool and maybe the beach - I plan to restore my soul - and when summer is over I will be refreshed and ready to take on our regular busy schedules again. But for now the "Lazy Days of Summer" sound pretty good to me!

Like no business I know...

This weekend was the recital for the dance studio where I teach part time. Every year we have it at The Grand 1894 Opera House in Galveston. There is a Friday afternoon/evening/night rehearsal, then three performances - one Saturday afternoon, one Saturday night, and one Sunday afternoon. Dancing Daughter had three numbers in the Saturday afternoon performance, then went home with the rest of the family. Being a teacher, however, I had to be there for the whole rehearsal and all three shows (I also danced three dances in all three shows). Needless to say, tonight I am EXHAUSTED! The tendinitis in my ankles is killing me and I am SO looking forward to the summer break!

Some things I learned this weekend:

1. No matter how many times you tell the parents, remind the dancers, and tell them all again, some will show up late to rehearsal and miss their turn.

2. No matter how many times you tell the parents, remind the dancers, and tell them all again, someone will come to the recital without all of their costume. This absolutely crushes little girls.

3. Despite spending nearly 6 months learning these dances, not all the students have them memorized. I had to memorize 11 different dances and I did fine. Some of them still had to watch me in the wings prompting them as to what step came next.

4. Waiting your turn to dance on stage is very hard when you are a child. So is being quiet while you are waiting. Tap shoes are not quiet. This is especially true of a class of six little boys.

5. Two- and three-year-olds in pink tutus with flowers in their hair on stage are cute no matter what they do (which usually is NOT the dance).

6. It's good to see old friends that come back for the recital; I had a great time talking with ladies I haven't seen in YEARS.

7. All of the frustration thru the year is worth it when the girls dance well and we all get compliments and flowers and gifts.
There's no business like show business!

Happy Mother's Day

Today was Mother's Day - not everyone IS a mother, but everyone HAS a mother, whether they are still with us on this earth or not. I love my mother dearly and no words can describe how much I respect her and honor her. I can only hope that my own children feel the same way about me.

This morning I awoke to gifts from my children - on the island in the kitchen sat a box of chocolate candy from Little Son (Russell Stover assorted creams - my favorite!), a CD from Navy Son, and a beautiful plate from Daughter that she decoupaged herself. And on the floor, from Naughty Little Boy Dog, a turd.

Happy Mother's Day.

Out of the mouths of babes.....

So I was at a scrapbooking class earlier this week (Hen Party - that's a blog for another day) and the women were talking about funny things their kids say. While I could go on and on about the hilarious things my kids have said, this one woman's story totally cracked me up:

Kid: "Mom, do kids sex?"
Mom: "No! Kids do NOT sex!"
Kid: "How old do you have to be to sex?"
Mom: "You have to be married. And 40."

One Last Hurrah

I think Naughty Little Boy Dog knows he's having his "procedure" tomorrow - you know, the one that makes him less manly and more well-behaved? He has been quite a pill this evening - running around the house like a freak, stealing underwear and socks from the laundry, barking at Good Girl Dog for no reason, howling for fun (he has a famous "Woo WOOO!" that is quite funny). He has probably snuck off somewhere and hiked his leg on something, for all I know. I told him he has lost his right to be a Daddy Dog. But there is hope he can become Good Boy Dog after all.

Jesus - God or Man?

Yesterday was the third and final sermon in our church's series on The DaVinci Code. In a few days you can listen to it here. Our pastor explored the various questions of just who Jesus was by referencing the Gospel of Mark. Jesus was indeed a man - flesh and blood. He felt hunger and pain; He laughed and He cried; He bled. But throughout the Bible there is indisputable evidence that Jesus was, and is, indeed God the Son. His deity was not created by the church in the fourth century, as The DaVinci Code claims. I hope that anyone who reads the book or sees the movie, and has questions, will do some research - there are countless books and articles out there that clarify the fact and fiction of The DaVinci Code. And I pray that Christians will not be shaken in their faith, but will use this opportunity to speak with others about Christ. The Truth WILL set you free.

And enjoy the book and the movie - aside from all this controversy, it is a great story!

Praise the Lord!

My beautiful 12-year-old daughter was baptized today and it was a glorious celebration - both in Heaven and at the baptism! She had a lot of family and friends there to celebrate with her, and it made for a wonderful, blessed day. God is good.

You can read Nana's account of it at her blog: Bubba's Mom

Not just a mom

A recent study by Salary.com calculates that the average stay-at-home mom would earn $134,121 a year if she were paid for all her work. I used their personalized calculator, and I have a hypothetical annual paycheck of $185,019! Wow! As a stay-at-home mom, I would of course say that you can't put a price on motherhood, but gee, I sure would like to see some of that hypothetical money! Or at least have the satisfaction of knowing what I'm "worth" the next time someone says to me, "Oh, you're just a mom?"

We don't need no stinkin' spell check!

To the males in my life for whom spelling is a challenge (you know who you are, and you've passed it on to my offspring!), please be encouraged by the following:

fi yuo cna raed tihs, yuo hvae a sgtrane mnid, too. Cna yuo raed tihs? Olny 55 plepoe tuo fo 100 anc. i cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno't mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in a wrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whotuit a pboerlm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Azanmig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt!

And by the way, I DO personally think spelling is important, so don't try to pull this crap with me.

What About Mary?

This was Part 2 of our church's series on The DaVinci Code. A very good sermon on Mary Magdalene; in a few days you can listen to it here. But again, the basis of the message is that Dan Brown took quite a bit of literary license in writing The DaVinci Code (altho he apparently believes many of the things he has included in the book). There is no proof that Mary Magdalene was married to Christ or that she bore his children - Brown's basis for this claim comes from the Gnostic Gospels, specifically from the Gospel of Philip (which, ironically, never mentions Christ and Mary being married or having children, and most of which completely contradicts the life and teachings of Jesus). There is not even proof that Mary Magdalene was a prostitute - Pope Gregory the Great in the 6th century accidently made that remark and since then that label has stuck with poor Mary. Was that Mary in the painting The Last Supper, or John? The early sketches of DaVinci's painting actually name the people in the picture, and beside the person that many claim to be Mary Magdalene is the name "John". Maybe Dan Brown didn't know that......or maybe it just made for a really good story. A best selling story. Do you believe everything you read?