Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Vocabulary Parade.

Of course, we were rushed this morning getting ready for school (surprisingly, that is a rarity around here, I'm usually pretty together in the mornings), but here's my little Vocabulary Word.

The mustache wasn't quite what he wanted & it's pretty uneven, but frankly, we're lucky he even got one at all. (btw... we were in SUCH a hurry because hes' riding his bike to school these days. It's hard to get that kid off of his bike now! Who would've thought?)

Mom & I are flying out to Illinois tomorrow for the funeral. I have lots to do before then, but I'm so appreciative of Michael for all of his help and his willingness to do what needs to get done to make things easier on me. I love you honey!

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Sad.


My Grandma died today. Rest in Peace, Grandma. I love you and will miss you!

Double Trouble.

Happy Birthday to my mom (top) and her twin sister, Aunt Karen! Honestly, you both still look uncannily like these pictures! Love you and see you this afternoon!!!

Sunday, October 26, 2008

Gotcha!

Here's my little guy "performing" in a restaurant. This is the same little guy who is COMPLETELY mortified when I "dance" in the car. Even if we are out of town.



Saturday, October 25, 2008

Big day.

Happy 10th Birthday to our adorable nephew, Jack!
and
Happy Anniversary to our wonderful friends, Jenn & Jeff... a.k.a. Jeffiner!
Love all of you!

Friday, October 24, 2008

Buzz.

Morning Movie Day! Megs & I are going to see "The Secret Lives of Bees". Yeah!

Thursday, October 23, 2008

Just Kidding.

Due to likely inclement weather, the Vocabulary Parade has been postponed until Oct. 29. Now you'll have to wait 'til then to see my cute little Vocabulary Word.

Megan should be here in about 5 hours. Parmesan & Roasted Garlic Chicken for dinner. Yumminess!

Baseball hangover.

I've got another "baseball hangover", I'm having a hard time staying awake for these games... I made it to the top of the 9th before I fell asleep on the couch last night. I was hoping for better news about the Rays when I woke up this morning. There's always tonight, boys. Get 'er done, will ya?

Megan will be home for dinner tonight! I'm still not sure what I'm making, but I've got to make sure that it's something she likes. Trouble is, I can't keep track of which kid likes what. With very few exceptions, all of them will at least eat a little of everything, but for special occasions, like say, coming home from college, I want to make sure to make something she REALLY likes, especially since the rest of the weekend may be kind of hectic & this may be my one shot at feeding her a home-cooked meal.

I used to hear people talk on TV of "home-cooked meals" with such love & nostalgia & I just never used to get it. Not that my mom wasn't a good cook, because she was, but I always enjoyed eating out more than eating in. Within the last year or so, I have become such a fan of the "home-cooked meal", even when I'm the one cooking it. Planning meals, however, is another story... I HATE that! I need to get to the store soon, too, so I need to think of something p.d.q.
Tomorrow is "Vocabulary Parade" day at the elementary school, in lieu of Halloween. They haven't done it every year, but when Ben was in 1st or 2nd grade, he went as a BOOKWORM. Here he was the day before, he was home sick when I was creating my "work of art".
Tune in tomorrow for a picture of our new Vocabulary Word. I think he's gonna be pretty cute!
In the meantime... GO RAYS!!!

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

C'mon Boys!

I know I promised a coherent post, but that's not gonna happen. I had a very busy, productive day & I just sat down to watch the Rays. Down 2-0 in the 1st inning. C'mon boys, you can do it!

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Various updates.

Jordan had a great time time at the dance. Of course, she didn't take any sweaty dancing pictures so I'm going to have to take her word for it that she actually danced, but she said she did so I'll take her word for it.

Jordan's game this weekend got postponed until tonight, but we managed to go to 2 soccer games anyway. How pathetic are we?! Saturday we watched her old team (that she was on for 5 years) play against a team that was comprised of a lot of players from the team she played with last year. It was fun watching so many kids we know & seeing their parents, many of who are great friends & who we miss very much. Sunday was a beautiful day (almost sweater weather, but not quite. Actually, not really close, but it wasn't unbearably hot, so we enjoyed it), so we decided to get out of the house the only way we know how... we went to a soccer game. We went to watch the local college girls play. Unfortunately, the home team lost, but all in all it was a really nice day.

I'm so glad the Rays are in the World Series, but GEEZ! I am so tired after staying up til after midnight watching those games. I hadn't planned on getting so involved in the whole thing, but I am. I'm looking forward to getting a good night's sleep tonight so I can stay up to watch the games... goodness knows I need it because I was CRANKY yesterday! Michael could barely stand me & I don't blame him because I could barely stand myself.

Megan is coming home this weekend. :) YEAH! She's coming in on Thursday night, so I think she's going to join me for a Friday morning... I'm looking forward to it.

I'll try to post a more coherent post tomorrow...this one is all over the place, but hopefully that good night's sleep will help me make some sense.

Friday, October 17, 2008

Homecoming

Jordan is at her Homecoming dance right now. Hopefully, she is dancing her butt off & taking some pictures of her own, but, just in case I took some to share...

Here is Jordan & her friend, Kara at our house before group pictures (notice 2 things: 1) I moved my Halloween decorations, just for the occasion. 2) Jordan is wearing HEELS! I believe this is the first time for that).
Here are the soccer girls who were in their group.

The whole group. They had dinner "reservations" for 6pm at Carrabba's... they left the photo sesssion at 5:55pm... the restaurant is AT LEAST 20 minutes away... I'm interested to hear how that turned out.

My favorite picture of Jordan this evening.
Me & my Jordie-Girl. I was not prepared to have my pic taken tonight, but one of the other moms, who just happens to be Jordan's high school soccer coach, insisted. There is no resemblance, but I swear, she's mine...and Michael's. Michael wasn't able to get off work in time to see her tonight, but if he were there, you'd see where she got her looks.
Anyway, I'm exhausted from watching last night's Ray's game so, I'm going to pretend to watch the FSU-Wake Forest soccer game on the DVR & I'll probably fall asleep. But, I'll be on the couch where I'll get to talk to J when she gets in. I'll let you know how it went tomorrow...

Heartbreak.

I don't even LIKE baseball, but here I am, still awake at 12:58 am, completely & totally stunned by the Rays loss tonight (Michael has been asleep since the 6th inning, I think; when the Rays were up 5-0). I think I'm going to watch "The Office" off of the DVR to get my mind off of the game, hopefully I'll be able to doze off as soon as I hear the theme song. Something about that song just makes me happy. I hope Jim & Pam are still happily engaged. I just couldn't handle it tonight if something goes wrong in their relationship.

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Nerd Day.

Today is Nerd Day at the high school. This is the same outfit Jordan wore last year, except this year the glasses are real. I think the dress is part of the Mary Kate & Ashley collection from the little girls section at Wal-Mart. It came with a long sleeve mock turtle neck with ruffles on the sleeves, but that was "too" nerdy. Apparently she can only be a "cute" nerd.

If she gets dress code today, I will not be going to the school, as I suggested that she may want to put on a pair of shorts underneath. I was given the "idiot mom" glare, which means she is on her own with this one.


BTW, I hadn't realized that dress code violation=referral. Not cool. Apparently, the Dress Code Nazi was on a rampage that day... I guess she thinks that Spirit Week is a distraction from the education process. Whatev! Thankfully, one of Jordan's teacher's saw the whole thing go down & the dress code violation has been "taken care of". Sometimes it pays off to be a good kid. And she is a good kid, despite the "idiot mom" glare.

Monday, October 13, 2008

Anger Management.

Apparently, Jordan is the theme for today.

I had just gotten out of the shower when I get a text message from Jordan saying that she had dress code violation & that I had to pick up her clothes. Now, you SAW what she wore to school today, she was completely appropriate & adorable.

So I texted her back: Do I need to bring more clothes?
Jordan: Yes please. I'm wearing freaking leggings.

Aargh! So I put on "bank clothes" (see #8) to go to the school (instead of the shorts & tshirt I was going to wear to the grocery store), grab some jeans for Jordan & head out the door... FUMING!!!

As soon as I get in the car, I call Michael to vent (read:scream) about the situation. All I could figure is that some teacher had deemed the skirt too short (like my mom had in the comments) and had made her take it off, but I couldn't figure out why the leggings by themselves were okay. I was sure it was some ugly teacher that was just jealous that Jordan looked better than she did in the 80s. I was on a rampage... baring my mommy claws & ready to rip someone to shreds, which I don't do often, or very well for that matter. He, too, was incredulous, but he was able to calm me down enough so he wouldn't have to read about me in the paper tomorrow by the time I got to school. When I get to Student Affairs, Jordan was at lunch, which was about to be dismissed, so I waited to try to catch her in the hall... ready to raise some HELL (but not as much hell I was going to raise before I talked to Michael) especially after seeing A LOT of other kids dressed very similarly to Jordan when she left this morning.

So I find Jordan & she explains to me that she was hot first period so SHE TOOK OFF THE LEGGINGS and that a teacher walked by her when she was a TA (teacher's assistant) in 2nd period & busted her. Rather than letting her just put the leggings back on under the skirt, they confiscated the skirt & made her put on the leggings instead. I know the skirt was a little short (especially since Mom pointed it out to me this morning), but she's worn it before & it hasn't been an issue. I can (kind of) understand the schools' perspective on this because some kids might put the leggings on now & take them off a little while later. After all, all kids are not perfect like mine (and yours, of course!). I think I'm going to have to put the blame on Jordan for this one... I mean if she had started the morning in jeans & had gotten hot first period, I'm SURE she would have left her pants on, right? But, she was so upset I didn't give her a hard time. Anyway, bloodshed was avoided & the only damage done was that I had to make a withdrawal from my closet bank.

I know this ended up being not so exciting of a story, but as I was driving to the school, I was sure it would make great blogger fodder. So thought I'd share anyway. Aren't you happy you read until the very end? :)

Four Eyes

Someone got glasses Friday. Isn't she cute?!

Finally, I know something!

"Blast From the Past" day at the high school today. It's the one time a year I get to serve as fashion consultant. Jordan doesn't have pierced ears, nor does she wear makeup, so she's missing 2 vital 80s components, but she still looked pretty cute, I think.

Saturday, October 11, 2008

Soccer-Something-Or-Other




Here are a few pics of the 2nd half of Jordan's 2nd game today (that's all I saw her play). Her team won both their games today. At least one more tomorrow...


Friday, October 10, 2008

Fun Friday.

The garage is clean :) Michael has today off too, so he's joining me for a Friday morning movie, then we're going to lunch. (No lunch out yesterday) Tonight I'm going to Kristen's house for a Girls Night with some old high school friends (no, they aren't old, I've just known them for a long time). Kristen is making some of her sangria...YUM! I'm not usually a sangria gal, but she makes it extra yummy.

Tomorrow Jordan has an 8am game...about an hour from home. Ben's 5th grade class is meeting at the movie theater to watch City of Ember, which is based on a book they've been reading in class, at 11:30. Normally, I hate to miss her games, but in this case I'm glad to be going to the movie. The game is part of a tournament, so I'll be able to get my soccer fix later
Saturday afternoon & Sunday morning. I'm also excited that I get to borrow my dad's mac daddy camera this weekend to take pictures of her games. Hopefully, I'll have some good ones to share

Have a great weekend everyone & GO RAYS, GATORS & BUCS!!!

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Garage.

Michael is home today, cleaning out the garage. Good times. We've had "garage issues" since we moved in in 1999. All this biking has brought it to the forefront of Michael's attention. So far he's broken down a gazillion boxes that I've saved in case we need to ship something. We never ship anything. He's not happy with me. I did point out that he came in to get dust pan from the kitchen when there were 3 dustpans within about 10 yards in the garage... dustpans that all originated in the kitchen, but that did not relieve me of my box guilt.

I hope he finishes fairly early so he can take me to lunch.

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

My boy

My boy is a bike riding FOOL! He rode around the block for 2 hours this afternoon/evening. He & Michael are going to go buy a new bike tomorrow. :) I'm soooo proud!

By George, I Think He's Got It!!!



Woohoo!

Here he is after his first solo ride around the block.


After a few more trips around the block, here is his sweaty self relaxing on the sofa.

What I didn't tell you earlier is that this week is Bike Safety Week at school. Tomorrow is the Bike Safety Rodeo for the 5th grade and that Ben was worried that he wouldn't be able to participate. No more worries for my little guy! Now wasn't that worth a torn ligament in your toe, Michael? :)



I'm it.

I was tagged by Joanne.

10 Random Facts That You May or May Not Have Known About Me

1. Michael & I first "went together" in the 6th grade. I think that lasted about a week, but we've been together since our junior year in high school when we went to MORP, a Sadie Hawkins style dance. He was actually the "date" of my friend, Mari, but we went as a group. That's the night the magic started! We will celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary next July.

2. I don't fold towels. I will wash them, but it's Jordan's job to fold them. If she's got a really busy week, the basket will pile up halfway up the wall, but I still will not fold them. I hate our linen closet & I refuse to deal with it. I'm stubborn like that.

3. We have 2 1/2 cats. Elliott & Harry live here full-time, but George spends most of his time at the neighbors (who we don't know). The first time Michael saw George go into their house, he said it felt like he was being cheated on.

4. I LOVE LOVE LOVE to go to the movies. Michael & I went all the time when we were dating (he worked at the theater, so we got in for free). We don't have time to go together these days, so on Friday mornings, when I get a chance, I go to the movies by myself. It's only $5 a ticket before noon on Fridays & I go see movies Michael wouldn't want to see anyway. It brings me great joy.

5. I have known my 3 BFFs forEVER! I met Mari in the 6th grade (we're still friends, even though I stole her date) & I met Kristen & Jennifer in 8th grade. I love them all so much & even though I don't see any of them nearly often enough these days, they will always be my unconditional friends.

6. My favorite place to be is at a soccer game. I love to watch my girls play (and Ben too, but he doesn't play anymore), but I also love to go watch my friends' kids play or my kid's friends play or really anyone I know or who I have heard about. We're kind of "soccer stalkers" that way. If Ben didn't hate it, we could (and would) spend all weekend, every weekend at the field. This is also the way we avoid doing work around the house on the weekends... [I'm not big on watching soccer on tv though, unless it's a college game where I know someone who is playing]

7. I clean when I talk on the phone. If I get a phone call from a friend, I immediately get up & start cleaning without even thinking about it. If the conversation lasts long enough, I can get the whole house clean. If I need to clean, but don't really feel like it, I will start calling my friends & hope someone is available to talk. I think this started when my cousin & I were young moms & spent hours on the phone. So, call me, I've got lots to do. :)

8. Every morning I iron everyone's clothes for the next day. Then, I try to wear things in my closet that don't need to be ironed & save the ironed clothes. To me, ironed clothes in the closet are like money in the bank. I like to know they are there.

9. I'm a morning person. I'm usually up at 5:30 & I go non-stop until 9am, when I take a break to eat breakfast & watch Regis & Kelly's host chat. I'm super productive in the morning, but lose steam around 2pm.

10. I can't wait for the election to be over.

That's it for me. All the blogs I usually read have already posted this, so if you're reading this & you want to do it, leave me a comment & let me know about it. For those of you that I sent an email to with a link to this, I tag you to start a blog & start it with your 10 random facts about you. It's fun & a lot more fun when people you know are doing it. Just go to blogger.com & you're on your way...

Go Rays!


Monday, October 6, 2008

For Your Enjoyment

Since you've heard (read) so much about them, here are a few of the not-missing-anymore pictures from the SIL. I'd forgotten how long Ben's hair was back in May, but they are still a couple of cuties, doncha think?