Tag Archives: kids

Wrapping up the week…

3 Replies

Friday and since I am on a roll, I figured I would once again participate in 7 Quick Takes with lots of other people!  You can check in over @ Betty Beguiles for all kinds of fun, weekly reports from all over the world!

  1. I’ve started reading the Hunger Games.  The fact that I can come up with 6 other things while getting sucked into this book is amazing in itself.  yes.  I just called myself amazing.
  2. After getting the new and revised football schedule for our son I was able to hammer down some plans to visit with friends and my sister in our old town in a couple of weeks.  While I’m there, I’ll get to see the daughter of a good friend play the lead in “To Kill a Mockingbird”.  And get to visit with my sis and some friends.  Bonus!  This particular weekend actually has friends out-of-town and other activities so the group is much smaller, but sometimes God plans it that way and I’m trying real hard to stop second guessing Him.  His plans are generally far more awesome than mine anyway.
  3. Speaking of football, Hubby was able to get our son a new smaller helmet and boy did that make ALL the difference for our boy.  He came home a different kid.  Being the first year of “tackle football” after many years of “flag” it’s been a little eye-opening and my whole reasoning of steering AWAY from tackle all these years has been affirmed.  My boy is bruised, sweaty, tired, learning to deal with hydration and migraines if not hydrated. and he LOVES it.  OY!  What’s a mama to do???  I bought him a bigger water bottle/jug and am ready to cheer him on next weekend at his first game–double header.  GO SHARKS!  (I’ll just keep my whining and fear under my cap…..)
  4. Good exercising this week.  Even snuck in a walk with Hubby tonight.  In between refereeing bickering girls we even got to chat some.   Now that’s good stuff.  After celebrating our first Valentine’s day together in YEARS, it’s been a good week.  To say the least.
  5. Made a DEE-LISH ham and bean soup this week in the crock pot.  Love.  The.  Crock-Pot!!  The kicker is that I actually remembered to soak the beans overnight. it was a hit with all but one child (who has pretty consistently always been the picky eater of the family.  ah, his loss)  oh.  and the recipe?  Totally winged it.  Did I say I was amazing?  😉  well, if I can replicate it….than believe it!  To be continued….
  6. I have a few new followers this week.  WOO hoo!  Almost to 20!  I would love to really sit down and write/blog more regularly, but HOLY COW, it takes time.  effort.  patience.  I am lacking in all areas.  Kudos to you writers  out there!  However, I do have a couple “mental health days” I am taking off of work and I wonder if I will get any writing/blogging done or just put the smack down on chores and errands.  Right now I think God has me right where He wants me and if He wants me to blog more, that window will open, for now it’s good practice!
  7. Our friends are coming to visit this weekend!  So exciting!!  My husband’s fraternity brother and his wife and their two boys.  We’ve known each other since college, but MB and I became close these past few years while Hubby was away.  And I am so grateful for God’s timing in this friendship.  What a gem.  There is something intimately comforting when you can share your heart and the Lord with a dear friend.  And she most definitely is one!  The forecast is for rainy weather but I think we will figure something out.  Looking forward to catching up and relaxing!

Happy Friday to all!  God Bless!

 

Party sucess…another birthday for the books!

Leave a reply

Our oldest girl is now in the “double digits”.  WOW.  Not entirely sure how that is even possible.  Once I started contemplating the reality of that knowlege; I realized we will have a 15 year-old-driving-permit kid AND a 13 year old by summer’s end, not to mention the baby turning 9.  Heart palpitations, check.  Life rolls on.  Like a locomotive. With no brakes.  Down a steep and icy hill.  <sigh>  and that’s the blessing, right? God’s gift: The present.   We wake up.  On the other side of the dirt and we can experience everything each day brings.  Even if it’s realizing these little kids aren’t so little anymore.  Which is why I LOVE to make such a big deal over their birthdays.  Not the over-the-top,MTV- pimp-my-birthday, big deal, but a SPECIAL deal.  It’s their day.  And we celebrate it. All day!!!

Chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast.  Yes, please!  Lunch with mom @ school–Publix sub!  Dinner of choice:  chicken soft tacos!  Family birthday cake with siblings, parents, grandparents, and great grandparents–but of COURSE–with a homemade ice cream cake!  Delish.  Wrapped up with a birthday party with classmates and neighbors on the weekend.  And here’s how it went down…..

Dramatic Fanatic is our go-to place for a home mystery birthday party.  They’ve got it all, invites, thank you’s, the whole play. Good stuff!  Last year I printed it up the day before the party.  No costumes.  No rehearsal.  and guess what?  HUGE hit!  Huge, I tell you!!  So this year, we printed it up a week before the party and sent the character parts out with the invites, costumes encouraged (but not required).  We kicked dad and the boys OUT.  (There was going to be way too much noise of the high pitch levels)  We held it mid afternoon 2-4:30.  (a perfect time…chores were done in the a.m., lunch was over,  little snacks were ready and plenty of time to relax afterward before dinner, etc).  The girls were costumed up, for the most part and brought their drama.  It was so fun.  Everyone really got into their parts and there was plenty of hooting and hollering going on and accusations of “who done it”.  Prizes were given (after voting) for best constume and most dramatic. The whole theme. Sheer brilliance.  No goodie bags, but sent the girls home with a litle Valentine treat.  Seriously low stress and high fun.

And now, apparently our youngest is ready to bring it back for her summer party.  Aye, Aye, Aye!  At least I have a few months to prepare!  God is good.  All the time!!

Happy birthday, sweetness!

Oh, yeah…still no pics….laptop is with the Geek Squad though and hope to be up and running this week!  Fingers crossed, prayers offered up!!  I’ll have to do a photo post on all the missing pics from my posts…that could be kind of fun!  

 

Quickly…TGIF!!!

Leave a reply

I’m on a roll this week…three posts, WOO HOO!!  Look out, imagine what can will happen when I get my laptop back!!  Or not..I take it as it comes, though I am really working on something for Valentine’s Day, just need to get it from my head to paper/computer and that, my friends, is often a LONG, LONG process!  Let’s wind this week up with the Quick Takes, usually @ Conversion Diary, but since Jen is busy finishing her book…..we’ll move it on over to Betty Beguiles

  1. Week 6 of my making strides towards my healthier goals.  This week came with lots of challenges to the exercise area and my lunch exercise routine wasn’t going to happen this week. at.  all.  Therefore, I did what I had to do.  I hit the gym at o’dark hundred (AKA 515 a.m. ISH) to get my strength work in.  And walks after work this week (2 so far) in addition to my gym time.  Next week will be back on track, but I am patting myself on the back for recognizing what was coming down the line for the week and planning for it. Like to see more of that, I would!
  2. Still no laptop.  You can go back the last couple posts and review whazzup with that, I’d prefer to just move on.  And there are STILL no pics, so carry on with your imagination and all.
  3. Today my phone fell out of my pocket while having lunch with our birthday girl.  Front screen, meet cement.   Screen is now spidery all the way down.  Taped together to keep the glass from slicing my face.  The phone works.  Phew.  That’s the good news.  Now to find a reasonable repair…which I believe my son has a friend who does that. or some guy in some kiosk in the mall.  Whatev.  I’m still pretty growly about it.  GRRRR!!
  4. Our youngest son had his official football weigh-in last night.  The night before our big girl’s 10th birthday!  Talk about a team effort with Hubby.  He and birthday girl had their “date night” and littlest girl and I made the birthday cake and took a walk together.  When they came home we made and ate dinner (minus the boys) and then I picked up Mr. Football from practice (with dinner in hand) and lugged him across town for an 8:30 p.m. weigh in.   Meanwhile, Hubby helped the girls make the school birthday snack and made sure Oldest son ate and everyone showered up.  Somehow at 9:30 we were ALL in bed.  WowZA !!  what a difference having Hubby home!
  5. Tonight we celebrated big girl’s birthday dinner with her choice of dinner:  chicken soft tacos and an appetizer of wings.  BOKKK!!  Followed by our homemade ice cream birthday cake.  See what watching too much Cake Boss will do?  Although, I am NOT ready for fondant yet…but ONE day…maybe just maybe and then look out, Buddy!
  6. Strep throat has been running through the house this week.  1 confirmed.  1 probable.  1 questionable.  1 still clean.  Have I mentioned how awesome Publix is with their FREE antibiotics?  Shout out.  Unpaid.  Grateful!  If I knew how to tweet there would be some ##hash mark thingies in there somewhere.
  7. The big birthday party this weekend is a Mystery party.  So fun.  My friend Lea gave me this idea last year and it was such a hit we hit up Dramatic Fanatic again for a new mystery.  It’s so fun.  We are kicking the boys out.  They  need hair cuts anyway.   Maybe they can go kayaking if it’s not too cold out.  Serving snack-ish foods and cake.  or cupcakes.  still to be determined.  Martha Stewart I am not.  And yet somehow my kids still end up having a good time.  Strange.  And there usually isn’t too much fussing about the lack of goodie bags. <gasp> what?  yes.  I.  HATE.  goodie.  bags.  Said it.  Out loud.  And I tell the kids, “thanks for coming, we don’t do goodie bags”.  Now, I usually DO have a great lollipop or some fun little something they may have made, but that’s it.  Who came up with that concept anyway???  I’d like a word.  Or the ability to pop ’em in the head.  JK,  that’s  not very nice.  maybe just a little pop?

Alrighty then.  That’s our week in a Quick Take.  All out-of-order, but that’s kind of how I roll.  Have a blessed weekend!

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!   (for the next few weeks @ Hallie Lord’s blog!)

Mama got her cardio today!! The bright side of a breakdown…..

2 Replies

I came home for lunch yesterday for a Skype meeting (more on that later, but it was AWESOME) and after the meeting was over I left to go back to work.  Or so I thought.  I got in the car and vroo…nothing.  vrooo…nothing.  vrooooo….NOTHING.  UGH!  After calling my step-dad to come over and jumpstart me, because surely THAT’S the problem, still….nothing.  Grrrrrrr.

Suddenly remembering that AAA had been sending me renewal stuff and hoping , HOPING, that only meant they were merely beginning their four-month-early renewal routine and that my card was still in effect.  Checking my number online and….PHEW…still in effect, (apparently I had not put the updated card in my wallet for some reason).

30 minutes later, my friendly tow truck driver arrives and my baby was put on the flatbed.  Fortunately, I realized that the likelihood of the truck actually being fixed today was low, so I put my bike on the back of the truck for later transpo..

Then the flurry of texting and phone calls to arrange pick up for the kiddos since hubby was working late and then back to work where now my poor friend is knee-deep in alligators since I took the three-hour tour at lunch!

Riding my bike home from work (thankfully I live close!) I was trying to look at the bright side that at least I was getting in my 30 minutes of cardio, right?!?!  Once home,  our youngest son asked me to walk the neighbor’s dog with him (and who am I to turn down a little quality time with my boy?!?)….after our walk he wanted to get in his “off day” run for his football homework and asked me to ride my bike with him since it was getting dark (again with the QT)….he wrapped up his two laps (a mile)–at a good pace, mind you–and as I pulled in to the driveway he decided to go for a third lap–since he  was feeling so good–at this point my rear end had to draw the line.  “Have a good run, bud!  Be safe and I’ll see you in a few.”  Mother-0f-the-year.  I know.  Don’t judge.  He’s a smart boy and he made it home safe and I helped him stretch afterward……

Hopefully we get the green machine back today.  However, God’s timing is perfect.  Sometimes He reveals to me WHY stuff happens and sometimes not so much, but at least the timing was pretty good for a “breakdown”:  Lunchtime.  Not on the way to school/work OR on the way home.  Hubby is working from home today so he can taxi us all around until the truck is finished.  Our little life is a 4 mile radius, which is do-able.  Why complain?  I just laughed.  It’s always something.  It makes life spicy.  and hey, it’s only money, right?  This too, will pass and it’s not the end of the world.  It’s just a little soreness on my posterior which means I need to mix in the bike for some cardio and toughen up!

Have a great weekend!

1 Thessalonians 5:18   give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Somehow we end up with a cat…..WTHeck?!?!?!?

1 Reply

For the past two weeks we’ve had an influx of cats in the neighborhood.  We have SEVERAL neighbors who have outside cats and with some new neighbors they apparently brought new cats.  great.  Did I mention I’m not a cat person?  After college, my roommate had two cats and they were pretty cool.  Just did their own deal and once in a while they’d snuggle.  That was it.  No commitment on my part and it was a peaceful coexistence.  Unfortunately, as I’ve gotten older, I have noticed a propensity to sneezing and itchy eyes after prolonged exposure to cats.  Which made it easy to rebuff the kids as they know “Mom is allergic”.  Instead they’ve begged for dogs, rabbits, hamsters…..even fish.  For the last few years I’ve had my hands full enough with kid-business, never mind adding in a pet, regardless of the variety.  Now with Daddi-O home, the requests have doubled.  tripled.  quadrupled.  ugh.  they.  are.  relentless.  I sometimes have to resort to feigning confusion to their requests, not understanding English.  whatever it takes.

And then.  This cat showed up.  Shoo.  Shoo.  Go home, kitty.

The other cats left us alone.  But this one, named Caramel by the little girl who visits the neighbors occasionally, came over, ALL THE TIME .  (Interestingly enough, we asked around and no one claimed her.  she belonged to no one.  yet several neighbors fed her.  it’s a total mystery where she came from).  She stared us down from the storm door.  Stretched on the windowsill.  Mewed.  Purred.  Basically captured the kid’s hearts one by one, hook, line and sinker.  Shoo. Shoo.  Go home, kitty.

She started sneaking in the house if the door was left open.  I had to pick her up one day and scoot her back out.  That furry body.  That swishy tail.  The ginger and white coloring (in a house FULL of redheads, we notice these things…)  Those big hazel eyes.  Puss-in-boots.  Without the boots.  Then I realized she’s not a cat yet, but that kitten/cat.  Dang it.  She reeled me in, too.  And I didn’t sneeze.  Hmmmmmm.  Nevertheless, I was NOT taking this kitty.  Shoo.  Shoo.  Go home, kitty.

I compromised, she became my mission to find a “No-kill” rescue home for her.  My good friend, whom I affectionately refer to as “Cat Lady”, steered me toward a group who did this.  The gal was super receptive and had contacts to get her to a vet and update shots and spay her on the cheap.  But…….with adoptions “in the tank” according to her, she’d see what she could do. It’s a conundrum of what to do in the meantime.

Hubby and I talked about my conversation with the rescue group gal and agreed to donate to her shots/spay, but then I realized I was willing to give it a go.  If he would.  I had to give him the hard sell:  cats are independent, she’s very social, the kids love her, it would TOTALLY get us off the hook for a pet.  Quite honestly it was an easy sell.  We agreed if the allergies got out of hand, we’d find her a new home….which would be excruciating, but we agreed to take it one day at a time.  A quick trip to Wally-world and we were supplied up.  Her vet appointment is this coming week.

For now, I am washing my hands and not touching my face.  harder than you think.  She is cuddled up and purring.  In my lap while I work on my laptop.  In Hubby’s lap while he works.  Sleeping soundly while we watch a movie.  Chasing her catnip mouse and feather stick.