Under the weather

Not feeling well today. Watching movies and doing nothing else. Hope tomorrow is better.

Lemons?...Make Lemonade

Thought I would share pics of my haircut that I sort of got by accident. You just never know how short a stylist is going to cut your hair. Sometimes they are conservative and sometimes they just aren't. I don't usually mind how short it gets cut because I can usually always style it the same way no matter the length and it always grows back pretty quickly. This time it was about as short as it's been in a long, long time. I discovered today that I can style it like I did when I had my hair cut off in the back a few years back. So today, I'm loving my hair. I've been tempted to cut my hair real short again but was afraid I wouldn't like it or wouldn't like growing it back out. If you've never had really short hair like this then just don't know how good it feels. It takes no time to fix and you don't have to touch it up all day. Not to mention, less hair product to buy. Wonder, if I'll keep it this way for awhile.

Rescuing my photos

I've been pulling old photos out of their albums today, trying to get them put away in boxes instead of being eaten away in these non-archival type photo albums. I haven't decided if I'll store them in photo boxes or eventually make scrapbooks with them. The reason to do this now is the need for storage space due to the recent Christmas gifts that we've received. I think storing them in boxes will take up less space. Ever start a project, not realizing how much time it's actually going to take? That was me today.

It's amazing what I can remember more than 30 years ago and have trouble with today. What I don't know is why Tanya and I continuously dressed like twins when we were growing up? Anyway, it was fun to look at the pictures and closely examine every square inch and remember when...

Giggles

In my house there are words that are ordinary and generally used that can't be spoken without getting a giggle from an 8 year old boy. These days those words are nuts and balls. I ask, why the giggles about a word that meerily means an item that you throw about for fun... and I get more giggles.

Merry Christmas!

We had our gift exchange last night and will eat our Christmas dinner today. Looks like Santa Claus came last night so the kids must have been good this year.

Getting ready for Christmas

I took Caitlin, Hayden and Cody to see "Night in the Museum" a couple of days agos. We laughed pretty much through the entire show. I would recommend it. I'm not sure what the critics think of it.

I've done quite a bit of cleaning this morning trying to get ready for the mess we will have once the gift wrapping gets underway. We love all of the gifts, but finding places to put everything afterwards can be a chore in itself. Not much planned today except maybe a last run to the store for a few items and then I'll be staying indoors until after Christmas.

I wish my family lived closer so that we could see each other during the holidays. Would be fun to see everyone. Hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and is enjoying their family and friends.

Winter Ball

Caitlin had her Winter Ball last night and all the kids really looked nice in their finest duds. They even showed up fashionably late. As the dance was getting underway, they were getting pictures taken and driving to other friends' houses to get pictures taken. I think they enjoyed hanging out with each other more than anything.

I'm going to work to give my boss his Christmas present and then going to lunch with Leslie. Should be a fun afternoon.

Gift Wrapping

This is another 4:00am day. And once again very productive. I finished all the Christmas gift wrapping. Now the Christmas trees are not looking so sad.

I was out until after 9pm last night finishing my shopping because I wanted the end of this week to be hassle free. I am going to try and make those buckeyes soon for neighbors and teacher gifts. I hope they turn out as good as they look. time to take my shower and then another day of work.

It's my time and I like it!

I've been up since 4 am so far today and although that might sound bad, it's really the best thing. I get a multitude of things done at that time of day and it's just the best feeling. That's why I don't complain about it. It's my happy time. No interruptions whatsoever. And multitask....you should see me multitask. I am the Queen of multitask; but only in the early morning when no one is watching, no one is witnessing, no one is amazed, except me.

A day like every other day... almost

I stayed busy today with Christmas chores, like wrapping and boxing up for the mail. It's good to have that over with so that I know everyone will have their gifts in time for Christmas.

Caitlin pierced her ear before going to school today. I saw her walk out of the kitchen with an ice cube but I just thought she wanted it to eat. What happened to the days when getting ready for school meant taking a shower, getting dressed and putting on makeup. But now it's, "I guess I'll pierce my ear real quick".

12 Days of Christmas... break

I still have a few more Christmas presents to buy and until that's done, I'm going to be a little stressed. I mean, who isn't at this time? The people left at the end are the ones that I don't know what kind of gift to get them. They're not less important, just harder to buy for.

But in my future is 12 days off from work. How ironic is it that I have 12 days off during the 12 days of Christmas. Maybe I'm the only one who would think of that. I'm lucky that Christmas falls on the days I do work so that I actually get those days off. I had to ask for Wednesday off but my boss is really great about that. If I could just get that darn shopping out of the way.

Dallas

In Dallas this weekend. Went to eat with a couple of the soccer families at Snuffer's and then we all went to the Stonebridge Mall. Saw the runner up from Design Star at the mall. That was cool. Not that anyone else would know who I'm talking about unless you watched that HGTV contest program. Even though our soccer team lost today, it has been a good weekend.

There are Consequences, Mr. Cat!

I had two Christmas bulbs broken over night. Well, no it was really only one and a surviving bulb was rolled over into the corner. Who cares about those details.. what matters is that someone is playing with my stuff during the night. And I know who's doing the playing. Mr. Mojo himself. I spanked, he ran.

Congratulations Graduate!

This is for my sister who is graduating from college this weekend. An amazing feat that not everyone gets the opportunity to achieve. She'll be teaching elementary age children and I must say.... god bless you for taking on that task.

He giveth and he taketh

I woke up in the middle of the night after hearing Mojo beside my bed. I got up to find that one of my slippers was missing and in its place was a potholder. Not sure how he expected me to wear a potholder. I went back to bed and when I got up this morning I wore my one slipper around the house while looking for its mate. After looking under my bed with a flashlight, in everyone's bedroom and all bathrooms, I finally located it in his favorite spot these days.... under the Christmas tree. Maybe he didn't want me to find it until Christmas morning.

I'm outta here

No school again today for the kids. I'll be going to work. I think I'm actually looking forward to it a little bit. I won't have to be the referee today or have arguments with a six grader. Bliss.

My day's events

The snow is still here and going nowhere fast. I did manage to get out and do some Christmas shopping. The roads in our neighborhood are still covered in ice and snow but the main highways are pretty clear and easy to drive on.

I watched the DiVinci Code today. That was a good flick.

I was insulted by Dylan today. He's pleasant as usual.

I got a hug from Caitlin for no reason. She's the one that makes my day better.

Snow Pictures

Ignore the date on the pictures because the camera wasn't set correctly. But here a few pictures that have been taken over the past two days.

Sleet and then Snow

After getting what looks to be about 2-3 inches of sleet, we are now receiving the blizzard that the meterologists have been predicting all day and that will leave somewhere around 4-8 inches of snow. Only time will tell how accurate the prediction is.
I've asked Ray to bring home rented movies for us to watch for the next few days. One thing I've learned about getting snow in Oklahoma... be prepared to be confined to your home for more than just a few days.

Sonic

I've said this before but.... you know when you go to Sonic too much when the carhop brings out your food and ask you if you got your hair cut.

I only bring this up because once again the carhop decided to talk to me in that "you are a regular so I can say this to you" kind of way. I now know their inside joke when people park on the outside spaces when it's pouring down rain. Like I didn't already know they'd rather us not get our order.

Hi, I'm normal.. and you are?

I always seem to be between the wrong people in line most places I go. I've had long one sided conversations about someone's illnesses which, oddly enough, led to the history of the town I live in. My part of the conversation was me acknowledging that he was speaking.

On one fine day at the post office, I had an old man next to me that was trying to strike up any kind of conversation he could while on the other side of me I had a young guy that kept answering him even though he was speaking to me. And the young guy wanted to talk about the government and politics. I'm not sure the post office was the place to strike up that type of convo.

Yesterday I was standing between an older lady who apparently wanted to stand extremely close to me and a biker bitch in front. Unfortunately I was too close to the biker trying to put some distance between me and the old lady. And this was bad because the biker was quite odorous. Not like body odor, but something else strange and nasty. Something I won't soon forget.

Swiffer

I bought a swiffer duster yesterday and I must say... I'm in love. I like that you throw the dust away. It really does work well.

Out come the trees

The Christmas trees are up or should I say out. I really don't have to do anything with them except get them out of the attic and plug them in. A little decorating here and there and "voila".

I must get some other things done today, bills, cleaning, laundry. I've been putting this stuff off and it's piling up!

It's all about the kids

Today's been a long day. We were up early to go to a soccer game and then the kids had guest over for the day. Another soccer game and then some of the kids were off to the movies. I watched a couple of movies today in between all the running around. Tomorrow will be more relaxing after one more early morning soccer game.

Not just a blogger, but a bloggee

I've just been reading the blogs this morning and one that I find interesting to read is Life (and death)... He's a malaysian doctor here in the US who's writings are humorous and interesting. It's hard to find a good blogger.

It's the day after Thanksgiving and the day after I had given myself permission to over eat since it was the National Holiday of "Stuffing". I do not plan on repeating the events of yesterday however. As delicious as it was, it was also miserable to feel that full.

Happy Turkey Day

Hope everyone is getting ready to sit around their tables with their families and enjoy the fixins. I know I'm going to and it's going to be delightful, delicious and just what this mom looks forward to.

Birthday

Today is Caitlin's birthday. She has let everybody and their neighbor know about it. Exactly what I would do if I were 15. Happy Birthday, Caitlin!

Take that!!

Who doesn't love the fact that O.J.'s television special and books have all been cancelled? Yes! I read that all the books that had already been sent out would be recalled and "destroyed"!! Ha! Unfortunately he has already been paid over 3 million dollars.

Just bloggin'

I hear that November is National Blog month so I guess since I'm about 19 days too late.. I had better get with it. I just haven't had much to talk about except the occasional "my husband is taking a new job in Texas" story. And then "now he's not, at least for right for now, maybe later". I can't keep up so what would have been the point of publishing it.

Busy, busy busy.

I just finished helping Hayden with homework. We had to make a pop-up book about Egypt's leaders. As we were finishing up I realized that this was just "busy" work. I hate when teachers give busy work as a tool to get kids to retain information. Especially when the project takes hours to complete.

Night of the living dead.... literally

I had a night, a few days ago, where I don't remember getting into bed. I remember that I was tired and heading to bed but I was so tired that the next thing I remember is waking in the middle of the night sleeping on the wrong pillow. I have a certain pillow I use as I'm sure everyone does and this pillow was not it! And I was mad about that but it was too much effort to get the right pillow so I just went back to sleep. When I woke the next morning I tried to remember the events of the previous night that led me to the wrong pillow. Nothing. I can't remember pulling back the covers, or what was on tv, or setting my alarm, even though.... thank goodness I did that.

Chewbacca

This is my baby. Isn't he awesome? He's very affection (even with strangers, I just recently found out) and loves to play with everyone... not one creature is excluded. I couldn't do anything about his glowing eyes because he would turn out to look like a freak, so you have to admire him as is, but imagine dark pupils in a sea of brownish/green.

What's with the critters?

I grounded one of my cats to the outdoors recently because she pees on everything. OK maybe not everything but she does pee on the carpet and has been known to pee in a bean bag chair a couple of times. So when I got up this morning, Caitlin had asked me if I had heard the cats fighting in the house last night, which I had not... no big deal. I went outside this morning because Kami, the now outdoor cat, was meowing. When I stepped out on the back porch I noticed blood splattered around the cat food bowl, trailed across the porch and up on the side of the house. As I looked up to see if there was any noticeable injuries on her, she went scurrying around the corner of the house. I followed and so did the trail of blood. This is not good and I'm the one... of course, who has done this to her. Not by my own hand but by my own doing just the same.

I go back in the house and out to the front porch to see if that is where she had retreated only to be greeted by more of the blood trail, which trailed along the sidewalk to the garage and back where I had made my first discovery. And some of this blood is not just drips, it's globs. Since I can't seem to catch up with her, I decide to wash off the evidence before the younger boys see this and start revolt against me.

Afterwards, I keep looking for her all the while trying to get ready for work. And by this time, Ray has informed me that we have another problem if she was attacked by a skunk, possum, or other wild creature... rabies! I had already decided that I could not leave her outside at night and now this meant that I couldn't exactly leave her indoors either. Was I suppose to take her to the vet to be quarantined? And yes, I even thought... how much was this going to cost me? I had really created a problem with her outdoor grounding.

Finally while we were looking for Hayden's lunch box out in the car, she comes along and we give her a good going over to see where her injuries are and would you believe... she doesn't have a mark on her. Not even a tiny spot of blood. What a freaking relief. So where is this cat now you ask? Indoors. Tucked away safely from those ferocious creatures of the night.

We've had a lot of blood shed at our house in the past couple of weeks and I'm getting pretty darn tired of it. But I guess I didn't share my story about the possum, did I?

Bunko in Broken Arrow

I filled in as a sub in a Bunko game this past Friday. I'm a home body and I had dreaded going all week because that's just how I roll, but I ended up having a good time. I had completely forgotten how to play the game since it's been over 8 years and my memory is just not as sharp these days. Quite honestly, nothing was familiar about the game except for the rolling of the dice. And even that seemed different. Did the game always use only 3 dice??

I did walk away with a delicious Chicken Tortilla Soup recipe which I made for dinner yesterday. Everyone ate it except for the 2 young-uns in our household. I guess it had too many colors and "things" in it.

Marvelous Monday

Usually Mondays are not something to be looked forward to but today is a special day. This is my day off and my plan is to make it special. I'm going to watch a mindless, fun movie and I've made some of my favorite foods... spaghetti and broccoli cole slaw... for lunch. I have a Mr. Goodbar waiting for my special dessert/snack. All of the laundry is done, beds are made and I'm home alone while everyone is either at work or school. Except for Ray coming for lunch, the day is perfect. You can't be anything else but jealous of my situation. After all, it is quite glorious.

Branson, MO

So... we are in Branson, MO for a couple of days, having a really great time. The internet connection is not so great but other than that, we are having fun. Everyone practically raced to the very first roller coaster ride (except me) and I was really worried about Cody because I didn't get a chance to show him what he was getting himself into. He rode it, said it was fun but never rode another roller coaster the rest of the day except for a really small one built just for kids.

The only thing I wanted out of the trip for myself was a caricature of the entire family. Which I got and was only met with a small amount of resistance. Luckily the artist was really funny and that helped make the long sitting interesting.

On our way here we stopped in a convenience store where I was sure I was going to develop lung cancer. The smoke smell was so bad and the lady running the store started having a coughing fit (flem and all). We began looking around at each other in disgust. After she got it all coughed up, she blamed her episode on "that darn candy". That's been our joke this weekend anytime we hear anyone with that smoker's cough. So funny.

Deep thoughts

I need a new washer and dryer that will make me like to do laundry. And maybe a new stove and oven that will make me like to cook.

Midland-icky poo

We are going on a mini vacation next week and the entire family is looking forward to it. We haven't done this since Hayden was a baby. It will be a short trip but it's better than nothing. Branson, MO... here we come.

Ray has an opportunity to take a job in Midland, and that literally makes me sick to my stomach to think it might happen. I don't ask about it because I'm afraid of the answer and I thought the whole idea had gone away but now I'm not so sure. Midland has nothing to offer me. I wish Midland would blow away. (not literally, just the idea)

I love the Tulsa area. Everything about it. It's amazing to live in a place that has so much to offer and so many things to love.
Weather, people, shopping... it's all great.

The thing that scares me the most about Midland is the school system. I have to worry about Hayden because he just doesn't adjust to new and different very well and this is very different! We finally have him with teachers that he loves this year and he's feeling confident about it, which is important. I think only moms think about these things when raising their kids. We are in a school system now that I would love for my kids to graduate from. The elementary school where Cody is at received "over the top" scores on their testing from last year and they are tooting their horn about it now.

Deep thoughts

Things that are good about working:
The bed gets made in the morning... and I didn't do it.
The laundry gets done...and I didn't do it.

Down and then, Up again.

I was down with back problems this past weekend and end of last week. I was feeling pretty low about it because it has me incapacitated and I just went through this a month ago. But today was glorious! I don't know if I was just so happy to be feeling better or if it was because I had a good day at work the day before but my mood was way up there.

I'm seeing a chiropractor now and it just feels good to turn your problems over to someone else and allow them to help you. I hope I don't have too much faith in what he can do but I'm certainly hopeful that he's a miracle worker. I do have to say that I had minimal discomfort in my lower back today and I'm not sure that I've been that pain free in a month's time. Only time will tell if this doctor is helping but I'm really feeling like he is. I'm still noticing some discomforts in my leg which I was hoping would go away, but maybe with time.

Anywhooo... that's it for now.

Happy Days

School seems to be going great for the kids. Especially Hayden, which makes me so happy. Last year, he hardly ever had anything good to say about his day, but this year... his teachers rock!! And those are his words. If it keeps going this way, I'll be sure and write his teachers an email telling them how happy we are to have them. I'll just cross my fingers that things continue on this path.

Oh how I love shoes!

Here are the shoes that I purchased from Skechers. The black ones. Aren't they so cute and omg.. so comfortable. You get to wear something as comfortable as an athletic shoe but with a little dressed up look. I'll be wearing them to work. They also come in brown, which I was undecided at first on which color to buy. I wear more blacks than browns, so... black. And look at this even dressier version on the left called the Luxe. Either of these types would be great for someone who is on their feet all day. You should check them out. Who doesn't love shoes?

So embarrassing

I was at the store...yes again... checking out and I had my purse up on the counter digging for my wallet and when I brought this item out of my purse, a tampon flipped up... into the air... and landed on the ground. It's a good thing that I'm as old as I am and don't let those things bother me as much anymore, but it was still quite embarrassing.

It's the little things

I walked into our grocery store in Claremore today and saw the greatest idea for customers. A display with a large container of oversized wipes and a trash can. Timing couldn't be better with school starting and colds running amuck(sp?) I will certainly use this and just think how clean those grocery basket handles will be now. I'm so excited.

Oh hail the king!

One of our cats has been known to adore my middle son, Hayden. But after what I've witnessed, I would say it is more like she "worships" him. Just to give a little history...we've always talked about how this cat likes to fish out clean socks from the laundry basket and drops them off in Hayden's room during the middle of the night all the while meowing like crazy. I just figured she just liked that room the best. But Hayden slept on the couch a few nights ago and when I woke up I found a pile of socks at the foot of the couch. I've decided that they are items that she brings to him as someone would bring gifts to a king or god. I'm not sure what it is but it's just odd to me.

Beauty and the Beast

Caitlin and I are going to Beauty and the Beast at the Robson Performing Arts Center today at 2:00. We are quite excited and are actually looking forward to dressing up a bit. It's sold out for this showing so I'm looking forward to seeing who all is going. Hope it's not a bunch of loud ass kids because that might ruin it.

Ray took Hayden and Cody to the lake today. They will have a good time and it's going to be a hot day.

We had Mojo neutered and declawed yesterday and he's doing well. He's as sweet as ever if not sweeter. Have I mentioned yet that we didn't name our cat Pele... it just didn't stick so we decided Mojo would work. Although..Caitlin calls him Batman and Dylan calls him Evil. This cat will never know his true name, but we love him all the same.

Oh and I had my hair colored yesterday and for me it's been a little hard to get used to. Too much red I think. It's over all a dark brown much like my natural so that parts not bad and then there are a few highlights thrown in. I'm waiting for it all to fade a bit so it won't be so noticeable. Maybe it's not, and maybe it's just that I notice it too much since it's my hair.

Reality-TV

A good relaxing day for me would consist of marathon reality programs, a diet coke and cross-stitching. Only the good reality shows of course. And there are some pretty good ones out there that will make you chuckle. I highly DON'T recommend My Fair Brady, even though I watched it to the end because I just couldn't believe that they would actually get married... they were a good example of who shouldn't get married.

Tanya turned me on to a couple of reality programs out there (and maybe she wouldn't want me sharing that), Laguna Beach and the spinoff from that, which follows Lauren, is The Hills. Which I might add IS having a marathon this morning. I love Run's House, Kathy Griffin's My Life on the D-List and Hogan Knows Best. Actually Tanya might have told me about Hogan's show because I think I always thought it had something to do with Hogan's Hereos, which in "reality" it's about Hulk Hogan and his family. I think my love for reality is pure noseyness about other people's lives.

What have I been up to?

I know... I haven't updated as much lately. What's it been? Once a week if that? I guess with working 3 days a week, it's enough that I'm not left with enough time to want to use the time I have left to blog. Even though I do love blogging. But more than that, I love reading blogging site. I just finished reading Dooce and was surprised to read that she has skin cancer. If you like blog sites, read Dooce, she has a great sense of humor and her site is interesting, if you like that sort of thing.

I took Dylan to get his wisdom teeth out yesterday and that was interesting for more than a few reasons. He's fine today. He took a pain pill when he woke up this morning and that's been it. He's not hurting much so he just wants to take advil from here on out. Plus, he goes to work tomorrow and I informed him that I'll be driving him if he takes pain meds at that time. I'm not letting him drive under the influence per the doctor's orders.

Caitlin is still out of town with her friend. She called today and is having a good time. She'll be home tomorrow and I'll be happy to see her.

It's been a relaxing weekend filled with kids playing, animals fighting and laundry as usual.

I'm Oscar

Work at the attorney's office is going well. The first week was a little stressful and I had the blemishes and out of whack back to prove it. This week has been better and tomorrow I work alone which is quite relaxing. It's been interesting sharing a desk with Leslie. I told her it was like the Odd Couple sharing their apartment. I don't consider myself to be a slob or even messy, but Les keeps everything very tidy. I have to laugh at some of the things she organizes. I don't mind anything that she does with our co-custody of the desk because I'm just happy we are co-existing in this position. It's mostly her that makes the job fun and if I didn't have her to laugh about the whole experience with, I don't know what I would do.

Hi Ho, Hi Ho... it's off to work I goeth.

I've been to work for two days now and I can officially say that there are good days and bad days. :-)

Well, maybe bad is a little extreme. So I had a not so great morning but it became better later on in the day. I think I was just in a bad mood. It's weird how you can start your day off like that and then find yourself laughing out of control in the evening just because of a fuzzball flying loose in your car.... you'd need details to understand the funny part. So I'm off to work this morning and I'll be alone all day. I can't see how that can be a bad thing. Hope it goes by fast.

Oh and one more thing... tons of rain recently. We received 3 inches a couple of days ago and it started again last night and rained until morning. It sure is going to be green and pretty here. I guess that's why it's called "Green Country".

Old dog, new tricks

Did the work/orientation thing today to get the gist of my new job. Was very interesting but a lot to take in at one time. I hope this dog's not too old to learn a few new tricks, because I have a lot to learn. Getting paid for it will be the best part, but I want to do a good job so it will be worth it to my new owner. :-)

Joining the Chain Gang

I have one more day of freedom. I go to work on Friday for an "orientation". I keep telling myself to get everything done before this day because this is it. I'm a big baby about things sometimes. You'd think I was starting a fulltime job, working 5 days a week. I'm making such a big deal about a job that only consist of 3 days out of the week. And yet I continue to prepare as if I've been sentenced for a crime I didn't commit. I want to like this job and I hope that I do, but if it becomes boring... then I'm surely being punished.

Regionals

We are back from the USYS Regionals Championship in Little Rock. Caitlin's team made it to the Quarter finals but they just couldn't finish a few opportunities they had. So without that, our time there ended. It was fun overall but the hotel location was less than desirable. Downtown Little Rock is not a good place to have a team of 14 year old girls stay. And that part of Little Rock will leave you feeling like never returning. But if you go there, stay on the west side of town because you'll surely want to return. The soccer complex was beautiful with lots of trees and shade. If someone could have turned off the heat and humidity, that would have been nice.

And as always.... it's nice to be home.

Employment changes things

The regionals tournament is coming up and I've got tons to do in the way of packing. I'm taking Hayden and Cody with us now since Dylan has finally landed a job(Hammett House, washing dishes). There won't be anyone at home during the day with the young 'uns so off with me they go.

Caitlin has practice everyday until the day we leave and she'll continue to have practice when we get to Little Rock. Sounds like a lot but seems to be the norm in this situation. No one here is complaining... we are too happy about the whole thing.

Dylan's first day on the job went well but he has now sworn off eating at restaurants. He says never again, fast food only. I'll have to see how long that last. Just glad that he's finally found some work.

As for me, I'm preparing to start my new job in July. Mentally and physically. I just need to make sure I have a few outfits to wear and that things stay caught up around the house so that I'm not too overwhelmed with working out of the home and still working in the home. I'm just glad that one of them pays a salary.

Pele' Mojo

Move over and make room.

We've made an addition to our family. I'd introduce him to you but we still haven't quite come up with a name. We've tried out a few but none have stuck so far. I think I might just call him "Hey". It sure beats the suggested names like "Mr. Giggles" or Dr. Evil". A couple of favorites that might work out are "Grim" , "Matrix" or "Mojo". I like Mojo because I think he's going to bring us luck.

All things "abi-normal"

I've completed all of the major painting projects that I really wanted to get done except for my bedroom. I'm undecided about color so there's no need to continue at the moment. I'm going to paint the utility room, probably also red, and I'll just do that when I feel like it.

Hayden's tryouts are over and his team picked up 7 new players making the roster total 16. That is a lot of players but will work out if they play 11v11 most of the time. He's very excited about playing "real" soccer. They had to play 8v8 last year and it just sucks.

Everything is returning to normal after being on vacation, tryouts with Ray taking off from work, and all the painting that's been done the past week. I've actually cooked a couple of times recently and that's been nice. I don't like to cook... but I like to eat what I can make. The cost to feed this household is amazingly high. I went to the store yesterday for a few baking potatoes and came home with 5 sacks of groceries. How does that happen? Maybe that's why I don't like grocery shopping.

Well, I'm off to get things done today. So many things, so little time.

Painting

I've been painting some rooms in the house this past week and things are finally looking better. It's amazing what a can of paint can do for a wall and your outlook on things. The living room is next and that's going to be a huge job but Ray will be assisting with that project. Caitlin has helped me paint both the bathroom and the hallway and she's done a tremendous job. I'm so happy that she's helped because it goes by so much faster. She'll be helping in the living room as well. Oh and I think I'm going to do my utility room while we are at it. Brick Red would be the color.

Looks like I might have a new job in my future... July to be exact. I've been presented with it and basically told it's a done deal if I want it. It would be hard to turn down when you need the money.

Well, I'm off to the store to pick up groceries and more paint!!

The Going Ons

As soon as school let out for the summer we were on our way to the State Cup and a trip to see the family in Texas. The State Cup was amazing because Caitlin's team won it for the first time and it was the first time for her age group to qualify for the Regional Tournament. Needless to say we were so excited and remain so to this day.

Our trip to Midland was fun and we enjoyed getting to see everyone. Tanya & Alan's house is so nice and the kids and I all agreed... we loved it. It's an older home with lots of charm. I think it inspired be to get off my butt and do some home improvements. Their cat, Junior, was interesting and finally showed us that he had warmed up to us by not hissing at us everytime we walked by. Petting him was out of the question unless you were looking to be abused. I could have "fun" with a cat like that, but since he wasn't our cat, I tried to let him be. As for the rest of our trip... mexican food galore. I was a walking stink bomb the entire week. It couldn't be hidden or denied. Hayden seem to be having the same side affects from the mexican food but as all kids do... he let loose and enjoyed it.

The kids enjoyed being at Grandma's house where they have side-by-side computers and the video games in tow. Fun for all. Tanya and I hung up pictures that needed to be hung up after Mother had some painting done. I think it looks nice. She could throw out some catalogs and old tv guides that she'll never read, but try telling her that.

We also went swimming and that was really fun. I love to be outside soaking up the sun. Alan was able to go with us and the kids really enjoyed that. Alan is one of those easy going people and likes to make things fun (I loved his "stepped on a rock" moment because it was so unexpected).

I'm probably leaving something out that I wanted to say so I'll just updated later if needed. Anyway, the trips were fun but it's always good to be home.

State Cup Prelims

The soccer was good this past weekend. So nice to be outside in the sun instead of cooped up indoors. It was hot at times, but we survived the heat. I enjoyed everything about the weekend except the occasional glimpse of cellulite.

Oh the shame!

I have a hairdresser that I've been using for the past few years. She's very good and I've never been disappointed. I took Caitlin to a different hair stylist recently and on a whim, I made an appointment for myself to have my hair cut and foiled with the same girl that she was using. Unfortunately, today, I ran into my regular hair stylist at the grocery store. We said our "hellos" and as she walked off, I was left feeling like I had betrayed a close friend. Yes, it was obvious that my hair was different. I guess it was bound to happen in a town this small but you still hope that the Gods will be kind and spare you this shame. Looks like I might have a new hairdresser now. So that's how my day started out and only got more interesting from there.... but that's another story entirely.

Just what??

I use the word "just" way too much. In fact I absolutely wear the word out. Everytime I write an email or update my blog, I proof read and delete "just" several times. Everything is:

just really
just going
just need

It's to the point that the word doesn't even make sense and I have found that I don't need it.... I just like to use it!

Happy Birthday Day!!

Today is my birthday and I've decided that it's a good thing when your birthday is this close to Mother's Day. Especially being a mother myself. All of the Mother's Day specials on the talk shows and news is a reminder that not only is the day coming where I'm recognized for being a mom, but also my birthday is near and what's more special than Katie, Matt and Al doing the reminding.

Yep, I'm special.

All work and no play

First off.. our soccer team lost but it wasn't as horrible as I imagined. The team didn't play well and when that happens, it's hard to want them to win. So they didn't deserve it and that's the way it goes. The score was 2-1 so it was a close game.

Leslie called me last week about a job that might be coming available at a lawyer's office. Turns out that he's not ready to fire his incompetent secretary even though his wife would like to see it happen so that someone can get into that office and get it organized. So maybe someday down the road this employment possiblity will come up again and I'll be more mentally prepared to take something full time. For now, I'm employed very part time, which I'm comfortable with.

Laundry is priority today. I've managed to ignore it the last couple of days so there is plenty to catch up on. I'll try to fit in some work and HGTV on the side. I'd like to get in some exercise, tanning and shopping but since there are only 24 hours in a day, that's unlikely. And now, the clothes dryer beckons me.

Let the Gods smile upon us!

Go Zebras!!

It's just all that I can think of right now. Tonight is huge! We are getting geared up for the soccer game tonight. Isn't that part of the fun? You know...the anticipation. It plays such a big role in the excitement. We mentally prepare for whatever emotion awaits us this evening. There are only two ways it will go.... a win will bring a rush of adrenaline that will keep you awake for hours and a loss will bring a silent ride home trying to figure out what went wrong. It could be the biggest night of soccer that our high school boys will experience. Either way, it's great that the team made it this far.

We played this team earlier in the year and lost 1-0. If we play it right, tonight could be our night. But if we don't, well.... we will see.

Me... Me....Me!

Some weeks I feel I have too much to talk about and then other times I feel like I just have nothing to say. This week has been one of those "nothing to say" weeks. Even though it's been very busy.

Hayden stayed home from school 3 days with a case of pink eye so those days were shot to hell as far as my "me" time. I took my cat to the vet on Monday, who was miraculously cured one day and $85 later. Then I was called into work on Thursday so that day was lost. Today is ok except that I had a meeting this morning which meant that I had to get up early, shower and dress before I had a chance to have breakfast. I'm already looking forward to next week when I can rush the kids off to school and have every day to myself. Call me selfish.

Dylan's high school soccer team has a quarter-final game tonight so the entire family will be attending that event. I hope it goes well. Lots of soccer this weekend but it's close to home so we are very excited about the games.

Caitlin has a boyfriend and I think he's great, but if he tries anything inappropriate with her... I'm going to kill him and I've already told her so. But right now, we love him.

I think Cody is looking forward to Mother's Day tea next Friday because he keeps bringing the subject up and asking if I know what they are making at school for the mothers. I could take advantage of the child and find out everything...but I won't. It's going to be really nice though, because it's on my birthday so I'm calling it my special party they are throwing for me. :-) I constantly remind my kids about my bday and tell them what an important day it is. I think it's imperative to not let them forget how absolutely fantastic I am.

Go Zebras!!

The Claremore Zebra Boys Soccer Team is district champs for the second year in a row. Dylan scored the first goal in the last game of the season against last year's State Champions. It was so much fun. I hope they do well in their attempts to get to the state finals.

A river runs through it

Aaaahhh! Rain (and some hail)! Finally. We are just so dry here in this part of Oklahoma. And we just don't have the type of landscape that can be without rain for this long. I've been noticing lately all of the ponds that are used for watering cattle and horses are nearly dried up. Since I don't have first hand knowledge about the status of the ponds, my first thought is that maybe they are draining them for some reason. But.. everyone at the same time? So, it must be the lack of rain.

A few years back when we were continually getting rain, I named the path that the rainwater runs in our backyard "A river runs through it" because that's what it reminds me of. Well, "A river runs through it" is flowing again today. It won't last long but it's great to see it again.

Oh and Dale.. if you read this, I finally planted those rollout flowers that mother bought me a few years back and they are starting to sprout. You can let her know. My mother is the QVC queen. Not something I can say that we are proud of, especially when she gets carried away, but some items are pretty nice.

Migraines bite!

OK. No longer controlling the migraine today. It became really hard to bear. So I took more meds, laid down and took an extremely short catnap... 10 minutes to be exact. I fell asleep while watching or not watching SpongeBob. But I did notice some relief so I decided I needed to get up and move around. Laying around usually makes headaches worse for me. Everyone's different, I guess. I took a shower and fixed me a diet coke. Luckily my whole day was not shot. Caitlin had a game at noon... which we won.. yay!! and I felt fine through the whole thing although I knew the migraine was coming. Came home, ate too much as always and felt sick. And let me just tell you.. having a full stomach just puts more pressure on my head. Not good! I have vowed not to eat another solitary thing today. I'm going to go blowdry my hair now and then do more internet surfin. Tomorrow will be a better day.

Gripe

I hate today. That's just my feelings right now. I really don't know why but it's just all that I can think. Well, I do know why... I have a migraine and although I'm controlling it with my medication, I just don't feel great. And when I don't feel good, that seems to give me permission to eat. Another thing I don't want to deal with. I want to feel good everyday. Is that just too much to ask for? Considering the things that other people have to deal with, I have nothing to complain about and yet I do it anyway.

I had to take Hayden and Cody to the dentist today and that's another thing that makes my day head in the wrong direction. I appreciate my weekly schedule so much that I don't like when it deviates into another direction. I want to get the kids to school, come home and have the day to myself to get what needs to be done, done.. or at least I want to think about getting it done. But errands take away from that precious time and I'm left feeling less motivated. So whether you care or not, that's why I hate today.

Deep thoughts

Right when you get comfortable with how things are, they change. So don't get too comfortable.

I had a dream that I was being bitten by mosquitos on every part of my body that wasn't covered by clothing. I couldn't keep them off me... very annoying. I woke up and felt like I had them crawling on me and even felt like I inhaled one up my nose.

It's 4:30 in the morning, so what else would you expect from a post at this insane time of the day.

Easter in Dallas

Caitlin and I will be in Dallas this weekend for a tournament. I hope we have time for shopping at the mall. We will be close to the Galleria. I'm also looking forward to the warm weather... low in the 60's and high in the 80's....perfect!!

Caitlin is sick today so hopefully she doesn't have anything that will last long or have lingering symptoms, like a cough.

I'm a monitor at the junior high tomorrow for the testing that they do every year. I'm sure it will be one fun filled moment after another. Joy!

Just things

Hayden's in a tournament this weekend and so far they've won the first two games. Just three more games if they make it to the finals. My life doesn't exist during weekends like this because we spend the entire time getting ready to go to the games, driving to the games, being at the games, driving home from the games and going to bed so that we'll be rested for the next day of games. But it's fun believe it or not.

I added piercings to my ears a few weeks back and this Friday is the day that I can change them out. Too bad that I already did that a couple of weeks ago. :-) I'm worse than a kid sometimes.

We are going to Midland at the end of May and we are looking forward to that. We have many tournaments between now and then so we have little things to focus on to get us to the time of that trip. In fact the State games are the last weekend in May... in Oklahoma City, so we will be leaving from the tournament and heading to Texas. That will leave us only about 7 hours to drive instead of 9. We'll worry about the 9 hour trip home when that time comes.

Kidd makes my day

I have a new use for my laptop. I listen to Kidd Kraddick from their website and I carry it from room to room. How awesome! You would have to know how much I miss that radio program. We don't get it here in Tulsa anymore.

I worked today and got quite a bit done. I haven't been able to work since losing my computer last week. But now things are getting back to normal and I can start earning a paycheck again. Not much else going on.

Curiosity killed the cat

I bought this new gadget yesterday, you may have heard of it…Scrub Free Automatic Shower cleaner. Hey...any help I can get with housework, I’m taking it. So I got it hung in the shower and was ready for it to get to work. The way it works is that you press a button and then after about 15 seconds a small sprayer on the gadget rotates around the shower spraying the walls with the cleaning solution. This thing beeps as it counts down so that you know when it’s about to start spraying and you can get the door/curtain closed. It’s really cool.

Well, I wanted to see this thing in action so I decided to just crack the shower door a bit so that I could watch it rotate and squirt. I stood there looking through the partially opened door, waiting as it counted down. Before I knew what happened, I had been sprayed in the face. At first I was stunned. I stood there waiting for my eyes to start stinging. The stinging never comes and so my thoughts are back to that sprayer. Since I still haven't seen what I was after and not wanting to be outdone by this small contraption, I’ve decided to try again.

After wiping the solution from my face, I survey my situation. The small sprayer was facing the opposite way so I knew I would have time to close the door before it rotated around and I would avoid a repeat of my first attempt. So there I am again, waiting and counting down with the automatic sprayer. I hear it start and before I know it, I’ve been struck again… in the face… again!! Well, needless to say, two tries was enough for me. I’m not making anymore attempts to watch this silly gadget. Not today, anyway.

Concert

I guess I never did update about the concert. It was great!! A lot of fun but since I'm critical about everything I was making notes in my head on how they could have done things better. First of all they should have opened the doors to the arena sooner. The line wound around the block and the music started at 6:30. I don't think the doors opened until after 6:20 from when I last looked at the clock. They needed more than one section where T-shirts were sold. The line was jam packed waiting for t-shirts and then they ran out of certain sizes too early into the event. As for the performances... why didn't they use the video screens more? It would have been great to see the band members up close even if it was on the big screen. But the music was great, especially Hawthorne Heights. I had a great time singing and not being heard. I did discover something about concerts that I have outgrown. The fans screaming!! My ears just can't take it. It became almost painful by the end of the night. The music wasn't too loud, just the screaming. I would certainly go to another concert, but maybe one a little closer to home.

Well, I'm off to the store to get a replacement toilet paper holder. Seems that Cody was using ours as a grenade and lost it. How does this long cylinder look like a grenade?? He makes me tired.

Mike Tyson

I got that dreaded phone call this week that parents sometimes get and don't want but as soon as the person on the other end starts talking, you know it isn't good. Cody's principal called to inform me that Cody would be calling me shortly to explain that he has gotten himself into a bit of trouble at school. It's their policy to have the students call the parents to let them know. Apparantly Cody and a friend at school were playing the way boys like to play and things got out of hand and pretend turned into "real". They were kicking each other until Cody decided to jump on the kid's back and bite him on the arm. Fight over. Both kids lose recess but Cody will lose an extra day for the biting incident. I couldn't understand him on the phone very well through all the sniffles and crying. I hope I don't get anymore calls like that.

Cody just seems to be into everything these days. He's 8 so maybe it's a "phase" age that kids must pass through. I went out to the garage the other day to get something out of the freezer and there on top of the freezer was a pile of the most disgusting worms. They were slimy and leaving some sort of stain on the freezer lid. Needless to say, I no longer had an appetite for whatever it was that I was fetching.

Then a few weeks ago we were cleaning out our van to trade it in for a new car and in a small compartment in the back seat we found what we like to call "Cody's treasure". There were parts to old necklaces, sticks, coins, unidentifyables, and the breast bone of a bird with feathers still attached... gross! I wonder what he'll be when he grows up.

Spring Snow

I woke up to a snow covered ground this morning. I didn't really pay any attention to the forecast because I really thought we wouldn't be seeing any snow. It wasn't until the kids woke up and asked about the snow that I looked out the window. Yep, there it is.. snow covering everything and it's still coming down. The bad thing about this is that I'm traveling on these roads this afternoon and what's worse is how the roads may be this evening around midnight when we attempt to come back. It's bad timing, but as usual.. the snow is pretty.

What is it about snow and how peaceful it makes everything. Have you ever stepped outside after a snowfall and just listened to the quietness of it all? It's the most peaceful time.

Where hath Spring gone?

It's 2:00 in the afternoon and it's 36 degrees. When will Spring really arrive? I am going to be outside at Caitlin's track meet tomorrow and I hate the cold. Please warm up before then.

But then after the track meet.... Fall Out Boy in concert at the Lloyd Noble Center in Norman, Ok. We are so excited about going. All American Rejects and Hawthorne Heights are also playing. Did I say I was excited?

EDIT: Track meet has been cancelled due to snow in the forecast!! Oh well, spring may not be here yet, but at least I'm not outside in the cold now.

Racked up like a douche

Tanya and I were talking about not knowing the words to some songs and how this didn't stop us or anyone else from singing it the wrong way. One song mentioned was "Blinded by the light". I found the lyrics and what I discovered was the only line in this song that I knew was "blinded by the light". Alan shouldn't feel so bad about his slight word glitch that Tanya caught him singing the other day. Here are just a few of the lines from that song below:

Blinded by the light, revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night
Blinded by the light, revved up like a deuce, another runner in the night
Madman drummers bummers, Indians in the summer with a teenage diplomat
In the dumps with the mumps as the adolescent pumps his way into his hat
With a boulder on my shoulder, feelin' kinda older, I tripped the merry-go-round
With this very unpleasin', sneezin' and wheezin, the calliope crashed to the ground
The calliope crashed to the ground
But she was...Blinded by the light, revved up like a deuce, runner in the night

What is this person talking about? Definitely liked words that rhymed.

aaaahhh..

It's rainy, gloomy and cold here today. Everything I like except for the cold part. But I don't even mind the cold today because just the thought of snuggling under a blanket watching movies/tv makes for a perfect Sunday. Nothing but rest and relaxation to be seen for as far as the eye can see. I feel happy.

Pretty dull week

It doesn't really seem like there's been much going on the past few days. I did go into work yesterday for a brief amount of time and on the way home, stopped by Linens & Things in Owasso. I'm on the lookout for toothbrush holders that are for single toothbrushes, not the ones that hold four all together. Since I have 4 kids, the toothbrushes just seem to be a little crowded. I guess my thinking is that I can keep them from spreading germs by having them separated. Not to mention I can tell who's toothbrush is who's. There have been times when I've needed to know this. I haven't been successful in my search and I know they exist because I've seen them at someone's house.

Went to Lowes this week and picked up paint chips. The interior of the house needs painting bad, but I just haven't been in the mood for this big project. And I am usually on my own with this type of stuff. I want to paint the living room and hallway and then repaint the kitchen either a darker blue or a taupe. The same taupe that I would want to paint in the hallway and foyer. It's not actually called taupe but "wild hawk". I dont' know if that helps anyone to imagine the true color. Tanya has painted her living/den area a red or "brick" color and it looks really pretty. This has inspired me to do the same since I have Americana items in that part of my house. Maybe I'll start soon.. maybe not.

Oh and one more thing... I'm really getting excited about seeing Hawthorne Heights in concert next week. The other bands are also great but this one is my favorite. I do love Fall Out Boy's songs. I wonder if afterwards, I'll have a new favorite band.

I guess I'm shallow, or did you already know that?

I was out running errands today when I decided that I really needed to get my hair trimmed. It had been bugging me because this weekend I took the scissors to my hair, like I usually do when I see that I don't like the way it's looking. I usually don't do too much damage to my own hair and no one can tell if I've cut it because I wear it a little on the unkempt side. The problem is that I know that it is no longer even and has areas that are just longer/shorter than others, so anyway, this bugs me tremendously. My first stop was at SuperCuts. I could get in and out quickly and for what I needed this would be fine. So I enter, sign in and sit down. Then I get to scoping out the salon personnel. Hmmm! Something does not look right here. First thing I notice is that the girls doing the haircutting have horrible hair. I see no kind of cute style and hair pulled back into a ponytail, well just one of them, the other girl...I can't even describe what problem her hair was having. They were fat and homely. One had a terrible complexion, which I feel sorry for her but I just need someone who has some style and class to cut my hair. All of a sudden, Supercuts was just not cutting it for me. It had become more important than I had earlier thought. If I've ever had a panic attack, then this was one in the making. I just decided that it meant nothing and they would probably do just fine. So I sat there listening to them carry on conversations with each other. Maybe I was just in a weird mood but they were making me roll my eyes with their stupid comments to their customers and each other. I must have stepped into the white trash salon, which is usually how I classify people who don't meet up to my standards. So now I'm feeling the panic set in. "Am i actually going to let them cut my hair?" I probably sat there about a minute more trying to come up with a plan of escape and when I couldn't take it any longer, I walked up to the desk, scratched my name off the list and told them I needed to leave. Whew!! No harm done and it was no problem leaving. The next place I went to was higher classed, but booked up and couldn't take me until tomorrow. So I tried Cutter's Salon. I had to wait for quite a bit but I think she did pretty well and hopefully it was worth it. The cut is different from the way my usual person who does it but I'm not sure anyone will notice but me. So, my haircutting experience started out terrifying and ended up okay. The moral of this is, "Just say no to scissors and don't let white trash cut your hair!"

Old-Timers disease

Well, we survived the weekend. Tired, but it was good. The party was probably too long but it didn't matter to me. I just played on the computer, did laundry and vacuumed rooms that weren't occupied. Did all of that of course after the soccer games that we attended. The weather was decent except for the wind on Sunday. Hayden and Caitlin played at the same time on both days so we just paced back and forth to see bits of both games. I probably watched more of Caitlin's game than the other but you wouldn't have known it by talking to me afterwards. Ray walked up near the end of her game and asked the score and I confidently told him we were still down 0-1. When the referee blew the whistle, neither team seemed too excited so he asked if I was sure we hadn't tied the game up. "No, not sure why TSC isn't happy they beat us". Then he asked if I knew the score of the boys team that was playing next to us and of course I did... 2-1. One of our dads walked up to discuss the game happenings and that was when we found out that our team had scored in that game. In fact, it was finished off of a corner kick that Caitlin had taken. Where was I and how did I miss that? I still can't figure it out. Then a friend from the boys team joined us and low and behold I found out that the score in that game was 3-0... not 2-1. What the heck?? How I hate old-timers disease. Or do I have attention-deficit disorder and just can't pay attention to a game that last that long? Does my mind wander off into zones that even I can't comprehend so my thoughts are lost in time? Because I just don't understand why I saw what I saw but yet didn't see a thing. I'm going to try harder to pay attention. Just add that to my list of things I need to do, right under trying to speak better. I just hope I can remember to try harder once I've stepped away from this computer. If you happen to see me or talk to me, you might want to remind me that I added a post to this blog and should read it. Geez!

Halo Partaaay!!

The weekend approaches and it's going to have it's busy moments. Hayden & Caitlin both have games on Saturday and Sunday so that's 4 games for the weekend not to mention that Hayden has an indoor game tonight. On Sunday, Dylan is having a Halo party... again, but this time the group is larger. The last I heard there are fifteen 17 year old boys coming over to play. My living room will never be the same. I'll be sure and take pictures because I think it's only right to document this moment. I'm ordering sandwiches and will pick up drinks and sweets so that they enjoy themselves fully. I'm cleaning the bathroom but that's it... not going to any trouble to bring this together (Well, I'll give the kitchen a quick tidying up). Luckily, the rest of our family will be gone for about 3 of the 6 hours that the party is scheduled for. So won't be too bad. I'm eager to meet some of the boys and see how entertaining they will be. I really like most of Dylan's friends, just as long as they aren't too quiet and can hold a conversation. Thomas Patrick has no trouble with that whatsoever. I hope Dylan has a good time. He needs some fun in his life and he's not very aggressive about finding it.

Spring Break starts after school lets out today... yahoo! I like when the kids are out of school and we can just meander around at our own paces. It probably won't feel like we are on spring break until after this weekend but that's ok. It's going to be just what we need after the Sunday Halo Shindig.

Blogger Virgin

This is my first post to this blog. I'm not counting the 3-4 posts shown to be previous because I dragged them from another blog in order to update this one for all my readers... and she knows who she is. I'm excited about trying this out because I can say it's my own page and I didn't get the idea from my kids. It's much better than the MySpace and Xanga because those sites seem to be taken over by the younger kids. This looks like it will be easier to manuever through.

It's raining here today which probably gave me the idea for my blog name. How original. We really needed the rain too so I don't seem to mind it. (Really the only time I do mind it is if we have soccer games) I love the cloudiness. I don't understand why people find it depressing. It puts me in a great mood and makes me feel like doing more than I usually would.

So anyway, I need to get some work done today. How many days do I say that? But this internet stuff just seems to take up my time. Not to mention the other must-dos like laundry, errands and of course eating!! Speaking of that, I'm already hungry again today. Might have lunch earlier than usual, you know.. like at about 10:30. I do that sometimes.. it's ok. In fact there have been some days when I eat breakfast and then immediately after I go ahead and have cheese nachos with jalopenos or chips and salsa. But don't worry, I don't eat again at lunch, I'm good until dinner. So I'm only having my 3 meals, just at weird times. Yesterday I had chips and guacamole for breakfast or should I say right after breakfast? I guess you can tell that I'm a bit hungry since I can't seem to get off the subject of food. And now I just remembered that I have some Dove dark chocolate out in the refrigerator. That sounds good but I'll wait. Or will I....?

Feb 26, 2006 - Saturday

Well, one day of driving to the city is over and it wasn't so bad. Especially since we haven't had to do a lot of traveling lately, like we use to.Caitlin's team played like poop so that was not fun. Needless to say we are stunned when the MWC biotches score on us but it's just too much when we are down 2-0 at the half. I decided that I just didn't want to sit out in the cold and wind a minute more and if I have to watch us lose, I'd rather do it from the warmth of my car. So I told my "girls/friends" that the "karma" needed to be changed and in order to do that I was going to the car. Aaaahh. Felt so good to get indoors. And not to mention, as I sat there, we finally scored a goal. Didn't take much longer and we scored another. So of course, I called my "girls" on the cell, who still sat on the sidelines, just to remind them of why it was finally going our way.... Karma! They were thankful. Fortunately or unfortunately, the game ended in a tie.So I'm off to OKC again today, leaving around 10 and I sure hope I don't have to help our teams today... whew!

Feb 20, 2006 - Blog... blog... blog

Just rambling this morning about anything and everything. School is closed because of the road conditions so that's a good thing. We all slept in. The boys are going to one of Dylan's friend's house to play multi-multi-player video games. Just takes a few tv's and and couple of Xbox's. They'll have a great time. Not sure what Caitlin is planning but I know she's planning. I'm going to the store sometime and probably work from home. So the roads are too bad for getting to school but this doesn't stop anyone from actually taking advantage of this lovely snowy, icy-road day where the kids hang out together and celebrate, icy roads or not.

Feb 20, 2006 - Soccer

We've been watching soccer for quite some time now and as your kids get older you focus more on how they play their position instead of scoring goals, like when they were younger and a bajillion goals get scored in a game.

But Dylan has really been in a scoring drought and I say this because he plays forward. It's his job to score goals. He's had so many shots on goal it's not even funny. But where do they end up?.... they hit the post and the crossbar over and over again. This is frustrating for us so I can't imagine what it's like for him. The good thing about hitting these spots is that he's aiming for the right spot (away from the keeper) But just can't seem to correct his aim in his favor.

Well, now I can officially say that the drought is over. He had a game last week and I've never seen him play so aggressive and so determined to score goals. His first shot of the game was from outside the 18 yard box, it was low and very hard and it hit the post. I didn't even see who had made that shot (because of other soccer player bodies in front of me) but had made the comment that because it hit the post, it must be Dylan. Confirmed!! But after that, he finally got a beautiful goal in the back of the net. It was great and we were now up 1-0, and he had started it. But, he wasn't finished. He scored 2 more goals in the 2nd half. Game over 3-0. He had a hat-trick. The amazing part wasn't so much the goals he scored but the sheer determination that he had to do it. That might be the best game I've ever witnessed him play. I was excited about his energy that night. Hope he knows how proud I was. Anyway, he scored another goal in his High School game later that week... so drought is offically over!!

Feb 19, 2006 - Dialect

Did I even spell that right? I hope so because that is all I have in my favor as far as sounding like an intelligent person.

I find myself thinking quite a bit about the way I talk. You know, that Texas dialect. Apparently it's a Texas thing because Oklahomans sure like to point it out. And it doesn't help any when you start to watch your home movies and hear yourself try to converse with others. Why is it that when we (Texans/Texas alumni) talk, as we get to the end of the sentence, we draaaaawwwww out that last word. So instead of just saying something like, "No, I haven't seen that movie yet". It comes out, "No I haven't seen that movie yea-et", "But I hope to see it on Munda-ey." My friends tell me it's cute but no matter what they say, when you are the person who speaks in this matter, there is nothing cute about it. My words have more syllables than they should.

I've tried talking properly, (only when I'm by myself) and this is no easy task. Did you know that in order to do it, you have to say your words quicker? Just get them out there and over with quickly. No dragging the vowels on and on like a song. Try it. It's quite difficult and takes practice. I haven't tried to correct this problem when I'm in an actual conversation because it takes too much thought. Words just seem to come out of my mouth before I can even think, "Ok now say it like this." Before I know it, I've already said something that sounds like I just walked out of the hills of Arkansas. Why couldn't my parents have heard this kind of talk and helped me? Of course these are the same parents that let me call "cartoons"... "carntoons" for all of my life and into adulthood. Luckily I fixed that problem as soon as I caught on. No, I won't tell how old I was.

I wish I could just write everything out because my spelling sounds great!