Monday, November 19, 2007

Bird Day Vacay

I have no reason to post other than tomorrow is FRIDAY. No, you say? How dare you! I work for the public school system and I say tomorrow is Friday and I'm having a 5 day weekend. Yes, I'll be cooking a bird. Yes, my husband will still be WORKING, because the television must always have his lovely face to tell us that it's gonna get COLD here in TX. But he will be home for "dinner" (2pm? is that about right? I don't do this every year, ya'll) and not have to be back on air until 10pm. Fun, fun. I'm off to pull out recipes that the kids will sneer at and say, "but what is IN it?".

And I'm going to make them be thankful for it all.

Saturday, November 10, 2007

Happy Birthday Marines/ Veteran's Day

My friend with a husband serving in Iraq told me it's the birthday of the US Marines. I'm giving a shout-out to the tough guys and gals who fight in the front lines. Thanks and Happy Birthday. She mentioned a recruitment poster that seemed right up my alley... equal opportunity toughness. In honor of the men and women who serve in all branches I found the Marine poster. Love it.


Thursday, November 1, 2007

A lover and a fighter




We did Halloween. It's one of my favorite holidays and we always do it up BIG. Everyone in the neighborhood comes to our house because we have the huge inflatable decoration in the yard. I usually put a lot of work into the costumes (even store-bought I try to augment with home touches). This year no one could decide WHAT they wanted to be. Sonny wanted to be Elvis. It would have been ADORABLE. He came up with the idea of "Thank you, thank you very much" for the candy. He does the voice very well. But when he saw an actual ELVIS costume, he was so *not* interested.

He decided on being a boxer. We don't usually promote violence, but it was cute. We made him the loser and gave him a black eye with my eyeshadow. I could hardly get him to keep his robe on, even in 60 degree weather.

Daughter chose an angel (smirk). It's such an inside joke, but if you really knew her... My mom is the witch. She wears the same thing every year.



(These are the only pictures I took. My dad took a lot with his new I-phone. As soon as he learns how to email them to me I'll have some GOOD ones. He took pictures of EVERYTHING)

Monday, October 1, 2007

This might make you think. Don't play it if you've ever suffered a strobe-induced seizure.



I love the message. Others have pointed out that it COMES from a beauty industry company which questions women on their armpit smoothness. Don't know.. it's a step in the right direction, I guess. I like this song as well.

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Kindergarten homework is for grown-ups

I'm not enjoying kindergarten homework as much the SECOND time around. I know it's not fair to the younger child, but it is what it is... Collages, family photo albums, I can handle this. I need warning (more than one night) but I can make it as cute as the next BTDT kindergarten mom does. But SOME homework, some "homework" leaves me scratching my head and wondering, "ungraded work: is it really necessary to run out and get three apples and a 16 oz water bottle before bath time when all I want to do is sit down"?

Our homework tonight required that we cut three apples in half and compare the number of seeds in each one. Yes, my Baby Boy had just eaten the last one for snack the day before. I have no apples in this house. So we skipped the hands on part and discussed the topic. Then come the higher level thinking "probes". I leave the last question as your thought for the night. (and yes, I came up with three, but seriously...)

Name three ways an apple is like a stoplight.
_____________
_____________
_____________


At this point I prefer 4th grade multiplication and division.

Sunday, September 23, 2007

Can a split personality be a good thing?

Click to view my Personality Profile page

I take these silly tests because of Myspace. Usually they are pretty accurate. I've noticed, however, that I either have to answer in "social" mode or "work" mode. If I do both I come off as muddied and indecisive.

Do I like to socialize with a large group of people? Yes. Do I? Rarely. Do I like to work on a team? Not so much. Am I judgmental in a social setting? Not often. Am I judgmental and decisive at work? Ab-so-lutely.

Maybe this is why I don't make many FRIENDS at work. Ya think? The only friends I have at work are the ones whose professionalism and intelligence I admire. (and those took years to gather). I guess blurring the lines a bit would be beneficial if I ever want to have a social life since lately all it seems I do is work or think of work. Argh.

My work profile might as well have titled itself "outspoken mean witchy-poo", whilst I don't think people who know me socially would think that (Or don't tell me if it's true!)

Saturday, September 22, 2007

A little unsupervised snack




My children know how to fend for themselves. Unfortunately, I can often come out of my Calgon moment to find them doing all sorts of terrifying things. Baby Boy was being very quiet so I asked My Daughter what he was doing. "Sleeping", she said. I came out of my room to find him with his hand in the cereal bag. Too cute. Ignore the knee bruises. They used to shock me, but I'm numb to them now. The kid never goes very far without falling.

Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Kids' music Mommy can tolerate





I'm loving this (lyric and illustration, no story) book and album. It's a Sandra Boynton creation and her books, musical or otherwise, all rock! This is best for "older" kiddos. I wouldn't necessarily use it as a lullaby for a newborn, but as long as they are old enough to dance they'll love it. It's been out since 2005, but Kohl's sold it in their "Kohl's for Kids" section for 5.00. Therefore you can get a brand new copy on Ebay for cheap!

My kids love the Tantrum song, the Boring song, Dog Train, Cow Planet, and The Penguin's lament. I highly recommend it!

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

3 days down, 2000 to go

My son has completed the first three days of kindergarten. He seems to like it. The teachers seem to like him. I don't know if they'd tell me otherwise, though. I work at the school. I've asked him what he's done thus far. He gives the most common answer, "nothing".

I said, "They're teaching you nothing?? That's terrible".
He says, "no I learned to read".
"You learned to read? In three days? ...Really?"
"Yep."
"What did you learn to read?"
"Because".
"The word because?"
"yes, that word."


I haven't tested him, but of course it's totally untrue.

*edit - He got the kindergarten teacher he wanted! We found out today. The classes were over-crowded, so they divided again. He wanted a certain teacher, and I was very pleased with his choice. When asked why he wanted her his answer was simple: "She's the prettiest."

Great- little chauvinist.

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

Such as. The Iraq. The US Americans

So I work in special education. And it's been a rough week. I totally needed this.



And, such as, the children, I'm really not trying to make fun of her - snerk. All of us have strengths. She and I just don't share any. ;)

Sunday, August 19, 2007

Scissors and glue, and .. wet wipes? Oh My!

So we did the school shopping. I WORK at my children's school. I comprehend school budgets. I've seen teachers spend hundreds of dollars of their own money per semester just to cover materials. I spend about a hundred a year myself and never ask for reimbursement, despite the fact my department has a good budget (can you say federal funds?)

But my kids' supply lists this year were something to behold. One child needed 36 pencils. 36! *per child*. That's a lot of writing. One child needed 4 boxes of crayons and *12* glue sticks. I bought what equaled to a half-gallon of hand sanitizer, more ziploc bags than I've ever bought for my own home, paper plates, baby wipes, brown paper bags, 4 huge boxes of Kleenex, Clorox wipes, high-lighters, 40 markers, two pencil sharpeners, a half-pound of rubber eraser, 8 bottles of glue, 2 pairs of scissors, a ream and a half of paper, and NOT A SINGLE NOTEBOOK. Daughter was so bummed she didn't get to choose a folder, binder, or notebook. The school's gone to "uniform" DOGS binders (Daily Organization Gives Success) and we purchase those on meet the teacher night.

School shopping is just not the fun it used to be. I felt like I was preparing for an educational disaster bunker. How bizarre!

Monday, August 13, 2007

Taste the fear of the naked chicken!

My children are so cool. I took my kiddos to Long John Silver's today. My son ordered a chicken plank. He likes to "peel" his chicken. Being the extremely laid back mother that I *can* be, I let it slide. I figure not eating the breading is a nutritional benefit of his wackiness. So he peels his chicken plank while wearing a paper pirate hat. I can tell he's not really hungry. Now I know he's playing with his food. So I say, "Quinn what are you doing?". And his response is to thrust the peeled chicken in my face and growl in his best pirate voice, "Arrgh! Taste the fear of the naked chicken!".

I about peed my pants. He's only 5. It made absolutely no sense, but it was the funniest thing in the world. If I don't write this stuff down, I will forget it.

Wednesday, August 8, 2007

Neglected Things

I've neglected a LOT of things this summer:

My workout plan
My organization plan
The children's bedtimes ( they have to move up! )
This blog
Myself (always, but I'm not exactly sure what I'm doing instead)


As usual in August, it creeps up on me that I need to dust of the elliptical, clear out the many pairs of 3.99 flip flops from the bottom of my closet, and get my kids to bed before 10:30 for at least 3 days before insisting that they go to bed at 8:30 the day before school starts.

And now I'm realizing I didn't do much this summer for myself. Didn't document what I *did* do in this blog. I did add myself to Myspace, despite my better judgment. My brother calls it "computer crack" and he's right. He also never reads this blog, no matter how often he's asked to. I have to post this all on Myspace in order to get responses. My mother says she is scared of the internet and doesn't know if she will read this blog. I think she thinks it's Myspace. I've haven't told her about that page.

So this blog has made me painfully aware of my lack of progress AND I've already gone back to work!

Yes, I've gone back to work (I'm not obligated until the 21st, but no good teacher waits until then) and people are asking "what'd ya do?" and this summer I can literally answer: Nothing. So maybe that was what I did for myself. I feel *really* rested, which may be the only thing I have to show for the summer.

Friday, August 3, 2007

So I wanna be a D-lister groupie

Yeah. We went on vacation (Kansas City, BTDT).

We saw some baseball, toured a cute museum, took the kids swimming some more, blah, blah. Family fun and all that.

BUT when we got back home I got to go see my very favorite TV star, comedienne, witty wonder, Kathy Griffin! Love her. Love, love, love her! She's so inappropriate and has such a high tolerance for: shocking, bombing, and offending. I got a second row ticket in Tulsa. My seat was so close to Kathy I could've spit on her. (not ever would I do that!) She is super adorable in person: teeny, energetic, quick, and gracious. She even pretended to NOT mind that the ancient Brady theater was about 120 degrees Fahrenheit. If I could afford to follow her around, I would. Yes you do have to be one of those shallow people who follows celebrity gossip, but it's worth it. Her insight on Celine, Oprah, Paris, and Lindsay just can't be missed. She briefly mentions her father, who passed away this year at the age of 90, going to Baghdad to perform for the troops, her divorce last year, and then everything else is 100% celebrity gossip/dirt/observation. Most fun I've had this summer. I've seen every DVD, television special, and guest appearance, and this was almost 100% new material to me.



I hope she wins an Emmy. She deserves it this year!

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Countdown to school... I'm ready!

Sometimes summer is too long, even for those of us who "get a break" from work every year. I like my job. Most of the time I love my job. I don't gauge my job satisfaction by this last year (it was at toughie) and I have very high hopes for the 07-08 school year.

I'm ready to go back. My kids are ready to go back. We haven't met our summer goals. Heck, we haven't even gone on our mini-vacation. That's next week. But I miss school. It's been a constant my whole life. I was good at it as a kid, and I've found I can give it as well as I received it all those years. New crayons, fresh notebooks, clean backpacks; these are the things that get me revved up. Even the task of taking 9 years of materials from three locations and moving into one classroom (no more inter-campus travels!!! - only other SLPs can appreciate this) isn't squashing my excitement to see those new smiling faces.

We're also excited because my baby is going to be in kindergarten this year. And as much as it pains me to send him, I know he'll be as successful in his education as his sister has been thus far. So, as much as it seems odd, I'm adding a count-down to school ticker. I'm ready, willing, and able to work! Oddly enough this is the longest summer break ever, due to new TX legislation pushing start of school back across the state. The countdown starts now.

Oh, and just as a side: Happy Birthday to my Dear Husband, who only gets cuter with the years. I'm not jealous.


Monday, July 16, 2007

Cottony Root Rot



So let's add to the list of results of local flooding: Hundreds displaced, homes infested with mold, unsanitary conditions all around, cabin fever, increased depression, and last and probably least, my tree DEAD. The tree guy came and diagnosed cottony root rot; Bradford pears are susceptible and especially in clay soil with lots of water. When I complained about the rain a couple of weeks ago my tree was green. Root rot apparently takes effect VERY QUICKLY. See the picture of my Bradford Pear in the back yard (green) as compared to the one in the front yard (brown and black).






The removal fee is 200.00, thank you very much. Oh well, I can't complain when I see what happened in the flood plains..

Wednesday, July 11, 2007

All things must pass

The funeral was beautiful. The lead singer for Big Loo, a really great local band, was a dear friend of Connie's son. He sang the George Harrison song "All things Must Pass" first off in the service. There went my composure. Connie would've really liked that - the song and the emotional punch being first.

I've never tried to embed a Youtube video, but here goes. This blog is just for computer practice anyway.

This is Paul singing George's song in tribute to him. Justin Smith, the singer at Connie's funeral, played the guitar and gave a quality version of this.

Monday, July 9, 2007

A sad end to a lovely story

My good friend, Connie, died yesterday. On her last birthday (October), right after her diagnosis, she told me she was 49. Her obituary here says she was 50. Either way it was much too short of a journey. When she started falling, then limping, in early fall of 2005 we prayed it wasn't MS. No one was ready for the diagnosis of ALS a year later. 9 months after her diagnosis her family is preparing for a funeral tomorrow.

The rather short battle is probably the way she wanted it. Those of us left behind feel robbed, but that's selfish. RIP, "Miss Connie".

Tuesday, July 3, 2007

My brain never seems to change

Every time I think I'm feeling artsy or creative, I take one of these silly tests and it says I'm boring and logical. I don't feel that logical today!










What Color is Your Brain?




GREEN:

At work or in school: I work best by myself. I like to focus on my ideas until my desire for understanding is satisfied. I am easily bored if the subject holds no interest to me. Sometimes, it is hard for me to set priorities because so many things are of interest.
With friends: I may seem reserved. Although my thoughts and feelings run deep, I am uneasy with frequent displays of emotion. I enjoy people who are interesting and of high integrity.
With family: I am probably seen as a loner because I like a lot of private time to think. Sometimes, I find family activities boring and have difficulty following family rules that don't make sense to me. I show love by spending time with my family and sharing ideas and interests.
Take this quiz!








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Thursday, June 28, 2007

Yes, it's still raining.


Rain, rain go away! It's bizarre to see many of the towns I've lived in and driven through getting this much water. It never does this. People asking "when will it ever stop?" and me married to the weatherman wishing I knew the answer.

(the above is the view out my front door right now. I don't have a fancy camera that'll focus on the falling rain. It's just depressing to see that it is ALWAYs, ALWAYs, wet. Thank goodness we are not in a flood zone.

Here's *another* national news story about our flooding.

Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Summer weather... are you here?

I'm the first to complain when it's hot. It's not very comfortable at 100 degrees in N Texas. But I have to admit: I am officially tired of rain. I could never live in Seattle! I'm sure you've seen the tragic news of flash flooding in the Fort Worth area. It's horrific. We've not had anything serious in my neighborhood, but we've had much more frequent rain than normal. I grew up in Louisiana and humidity didn't bother me as a youth, but as a full grown woman, I like a DRY heat. Daughter and Son have asked for swimming even with clouds overhead. We're heading out because today it looks like we might have clear skies and sunny rays! Now just wait for July when I'm begging for a cloud!

Monday, June 11, 2007

Wicked and Weird weekend

Wow, what a weekend. We had two great outings. First, we went to OKC with my parents to see Wicked, the musical. We had both children there. Daughter really wanted to see it and I think she enjoyed it the most of all. My mother and I had seen it in October 2005 when the Wicked tour was in Dallas. The cast was different, and I have a bias for Stephanie Block as Elphaba. I think she's probably the best, sometimes even better than Idina Menzel, the original Elphaba.

My husband said he really enjoyed it and I even caught him listening to the soundtrack this AM (don't let him know I told you!).

The second night of our exciting weekend was a concert. We saw....... Weird Al Yankovic! It was such a good concert. He looks as young as ever and has the energy of two 25 year olds, rather than one 47 year old! We got backstage passes thanks to hubby being a drummer. He knew the drummer via some message boards so he got to talk to him and was given the drumsticks used during the concert. We shook Al's hand and had our ticket signed. He was very kind and patient, tho he did look tired. (wonder why?? he just jumped and danced and sang for us for over two hours) I've posted the picture of all of us. Al made a face at every fan, and he NEVER looked at the camera. Good thing, because none of us were ready for the photo either. Daughter looks like she couldn't care less but she really was excited. She knows all the "White and Nerdy" songs and even the old Michael Jackson parodies.

What fun. Wish I could meet a celebrity every weekend. Super-duper thanks to Jon "Bermuda" Schwartz for the backstage passes. He was very sweet and attentive. He's been with Al since "My Bologna" days. He remembers every tour and will tell you all about it. He's also the webmaster for Al's official site. And he says he never gets bored with touring so go see them when they come to your town!

I deleted the picture at the bottom of the page. It wasn't a great one of me, so I got tired of looking at it. Most all the people (make that family) who read this blog have seen it.

Wednesday, June 6, 2007

My current addiction

Yes, I am a game nerd. My daughter and I play Zelda (Wii - Twilight Princess) as a bonding activity. Ahem, we are better than the boys, after all. I love addicting games and my current addiction is Brainball. If you get bored with Suduko and have a little spare time, try Brainball. It only takes 15 min to play all the games once. They're quick and they might just keep your mind sharp an extra year or two. And did I mention it's all free and you're on your computer anyway?

Saturday, June 2, 2007

Strawberry Fields for elders

I made strawberry shortcake tonight. It was beautiful, with fresh strawberries, a sprinkle of fresh blackberries, and even some strawberries in syrup (no gooey glaze!) to sweeten it for the kiddos. I begged my daughter to at least try it. She eschews all things fruity. I didn't tell her the Cool Whip was fat free, but I plopped a glob on there to increase its appeal. She took a bite and immediately ran to the bathroom gagging. When she came back she said, "You know I have a lot more taste buds than you. It only tastes good to you because you're OLD".

I guess the silly SLP in me told her some years ago that babies start out with approximately 23,000 taste buds and us "old" people die with only about 5,000. She remembered.

Date Night Review

For those of you who don't know me (first off... how'd you find this blog?) you might be interested to know that my husband is a local celebrity. It's not all it's cracked up to be. He works evenings; 'Nuff said. That means I am a single mom all school year. He goes to work when I'm coming home. He gets in when the children are in bed at 11:30pm. He NEVER takes a night off. Every 6pm and 10pm, Monday through Friday, he's smack dab in front of the camera. At least we can turn him on at dinner time. But last night was DATE NIGHT! We got our babysitter, ironed my clothes (his are always pressed) and went out to see a movie. For those of you who AREN'T taking youngsters to the movies, Knocked Up, is my top recommendation for laugh-till-you-snort fun. Yes, it's about premarital sex. It's graphic enough that if you don't know your birds and bees now, you will in just over 2 hours. But it's not offensive, and it'll renew that babylust in us all. Hopefully the 17 yr old girls in front of me weren't all rushing out to find a baby's daddy like the main character. That guy was the homeliest cutie ever!

So the first half of the date was wonderful. We saved money by eating dinner at home. That way the babysitter didn't work as many hours, either. This little bit o' money was going to allow the second half of the date... the brand new casino! It opened the last week of school with real showgirls, Playmates, and the FLYING ELVISES (Elvii??). Here? Really? So we missed them (darn) and went just to look around. After a few people pointed at Dh and asked if he was the TV guy he made the quick decision to not gamble. More fun for me, me, me. :) I took my crisp twenty to the blackjack tables and proceeded to blunder through many 5.00 hands without losing. Statistics-wise, that 20.00 should have been gone in less than 10 hands. I got up to 40.00 before I decided to leave when I had enough to pay the sitter. I lost down to 27.50 and left - a whole 7.50 richer. This is true excitement in my world, so no sniggering. If you knew where we lived you'd know there's jack to do here.

I'm so grateful for my dear hubby. He decided to take off, lined up the night (I wrangled the sitter), and reminded me why I married him. This AM I fielded the calls from his mom, my mom, and my friend (was he sick? why wasn't he on TV?) and when I said date night, they all thought (oh, why?). No reason is the best reason. I recommend a regular date night for everyone, even if it's just your platonic best friend. Fun is worthwhile, for no reason at all.

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Summer, sweet summer

Summer is here, at least if you are an educator. For those of you not in the education world, I'm sure you're ..." jealous much"? Well, if you are a SAHM you are probably laughing because you know it's when the real work hits. I set aside these 8 weeks (more this year, thanks TX legislature for your tourism lobbyists) for re-vamping whole lives. What's on the agenda this summer? Hmmm, let's see: Daughter goes to swim team practice 2-3 times weekly at 7am or 8am (our choice!:), so what's a chubby girl to do other than workout at the YMCA while the little fish swims? Summer resolution #1, work out more first thing in the AM. Son doesn't know how to swim yet. Summer resolution #2, teach him to swim. Then there is: organize home (again), clean some things for the first time, skip TV more, work at summer school (minimally), prepare for next year, lose weight before Labor Day family reunion, use water park passes enough to justify the 99.99 cost, sign Son up for an extracurricular activity (guitar?), and prepare for the fact that he is entering kindergarten. Whew, at least I didn't set any unattainable goals, like learn to cook or host a party.

While starting a blog was not on the list, and it is a lofty goal, I figured what the hey... It is less TV time. :)