Wordless Wednesday

Memories of Thanksgiving....

My Favorite Christmas Song

I have to post this at least once a year. Enjoy!

25 Things You Did Not Want To Know

I'm sure that you reeeely want to know all of this, but seeing as I've got an hour to wait for the onslaught of 10 year olds, I figured I'd go ahead and post. Ahem.

Liz did this and I'm stealing borrowing tagging myself. I'm still in post-NaBloPoMo haze. Maybe by Monday I'll have my mojo back.

1. Name someone with the same birthday as you. Carmen's daughter, Emma.

2. Where was your first kiss? On a school-sponsored camping trip for science class in the Shawnee Grasslands in Northeastern Colorado. We were in the 7th grade and both had braces.

3. Have you ever seriously vandalized someone else’s property? Not really. I did, however, put stolen (discarded) tires on the goal posts of our high school football field the night before graduation as a senior prank. The logistics of that were impressive.

4. Have you ever hit someone of the opposite sex? Yes, and the besterd deserved it! (Totally Liz's answer, but it totally fits.)

5. Have you ever sung in front of a large number of people? Yes. My first duet was in our 6th grade play. "There's a hole in the bucket," with John W. I also sang for many years with our church worship band.

6. What’s the first thing you notice about your preferred sex? Probably eyes. With Headless Dad, though, it was that he was an amazing father.

7. What really turns you off? People that are inconsiderate. Like when you inadvertently cut someone off while walking through a restaurant? You should really say sorry or excuse me. I could continue with the examples, but I think you get my gist.

8. What do you order at Starbucks? House Blend, with lots of room for cream.

9. What is your biggest mistake? Not buying a large chunk of property in Colorado. In my 20's I could have afforded it, and my husband and kids would love it now. And? It would be worth about 3 times what I would have paid for it.

10. Have you ever hurt yourself on purpose? No.

11. Say something totally random about yourself. I can wiggle my ears. So could my mother's father and as a child I thought it was sooooo cool.

12. Has anyone ever said you looked like a celebrity? As a child some people thought that I looked like Tatum O'Neal. As a college student some thought I looked like Demi Moore in St. Elmo's Fire. Since I got my glasses last November my husband thinks I resemble Sarah Palin. (Funny....those are just about the same answers as Liz. Hmmmmm.... )

13. Do you still watch kiddie movies or TV shows? I like Disney movies but the boys are not really into them. My favorite was Little Bill, though.

14. Did you have braces? Yes. And I had dental implants before they were common.

15. Are you comfortable with your height? Yes, but I've always wanted to be even taller. My dream was to be 6 feet tall. Um, didn't quite make it.

16. What is the most romantic thing someone of the preferred sex has done for you? My college boyfriend unwrapped Hershey's kisses and hand made new tags for them that had very personal love messages written for me, then wrapped up the kisses again. *sigh*

17. When do you know it’s love? When you can screw up royally, and there is still hugs and kisses and forgiveness.

18. Do you speak any other languages? Nope.

19. Have you ever been to tanning salon? Yes. In college I once bought a "30 dollars for 30 days" package before a sorority formal. Seriously tan for that one.

20. Have you ever ridden in a limo? Yes.

21. What’s something that really annoys you? California weather.

22. What’s something you really like? Rose bushes.

23. Can you dance? I suppose that I can but we haven't been dancing in years, largely due to my husband's back problems.

24. Have you ever been rushed by an ambulance into the emergency room? No.

25. Tag 5 people! Kelly, Steph, Deb, Jenn, and Busy Mom.

Winner Week!

Yea me!!!! I picked 13/16 last week to be the winner for Week 11 here on the BFL. Finally! Last year it took me until the last week of the regular season to win so I'm feeling lots better about myself. You know, my self worth is totally hinged on whether I can pick the most W-L for the week, right?

Anyway, here are my picks for this week:

Thurs:
NY Jets @ Buffalo

Sunday:
Philadelphia @ Atlanta
St Louis @ Chicago
Detroit @ Cincinnati
Oakland @ Pittsburgh
Tennessee @ Indianapolis
Denver @ Kansas City
New England @ Miami
New Orleans @ Washington
Tampa Bay @ Carolina
Houston @ Jacksonville
San Diego @ Cleveland
Dallas @ NY Giants
San Fransisco @ Seattle
Minnesota @ Arizona

Monday:
Baltimore @ Green Bay- Score-32

Carlos' picks:
Thurs:
NY Jets @ Buffalo

Sunday:
Philadelphia @ Atlanta
St Louis @ Chicago
Detroit @ Cincinnati
Oakland @ Pittsburgh
Tennessee @ Indianapolis
Denver @ Kansas City
New England @ Miami
New Orleans @ Washington
Tampa Bay @ Carolina
Houston @ Jacksonville
San Diego @ Cleveland
Dallas @ NY Giants
San Fransisco @ Seattle
Minnesota @ Arizona

Monday:
Baltimore @ Green Bay- Score-41

So, if you want to join us, go sign up here, or follow our progress here.

Good Luck! or not....I kinda want to win again.

The Last Night

It's been a long month, but I survived.

And apparently so did you, since you're still here reading!

Earlier this evening I skimmed my posts for this month and all in all I'm pretty impressed with myself. I actually wrote more than I didn't, if that makes sense. I'm a better blogger for having done this exercise this year. You hope anyway. Heh.

I also noticed a few loose ends that I should tie up....

• For my last Just Curious I asked about political issues. My big one is still immigration/border control/healthcare. I live in a border state. Just sayin'.
• I mentioned that I had gotten a phone call that you would want to hear about. It was in reference to the massive cluster **** that surrounded my son's last football game. One of the defensive coaches called to talk to me, HD, and HB#2. He apologized for not being aware enough of what was going on with the game to realize what was going on. He said that he was wrong to not stand up for the kids, and after this season he would certainly never make that mistake again. This is one stand up guy. I was hugely impressed that he called and talked to all 3 of us. It was the right thing to do in a crappy situation and we were all thankful that he had called.
• Peter posted some positive news about Anissa yesterday. Keep fighting, Girl!

And in other news, I found the best nightgown at Target the other day! It's like one of those spaghetti-strap tanks (with a built in bra!) but it comes down below my knees. It is really cute, soft, and the best part? It was $4.98. Seriously. (Gillian O'Malley, size Large, if you're interested in getting me a gift. Preferably any color except pink, since that's what I bought.) Next time you're in Target go grab one for yourself. You'll love me next spring when you pull it out, assuming that you live somewhere cold and won't be wearing it this winter. Otherwise you'll love me now. It's that comfy.

Oh, and I finally won the BFL this week! After my awful finish last week I came back for the big win, choosing 13/16 games correctly. Yea me! Stay tuned for the winner's badge-as soon as Greis sends it, it will go up.

I guess that is enough random for tonight. Did you complete NaBloPoMo? If so, let me know in the comments. It's huge thing to complete. I'm tired.

I'll check in later this week, I promise, but I'm way behind on cleaning, decorating, and getting ready for a certain big boy's first sleep over.

Oh yeah, and there's that little thing of grocery shopping...

Saturday Shots, from Tuesday, on Sunday

I don't think I would have chosen to go to KISS for my kids first concert, but I'm certainly not complaining either. They haven't been around for 35 years because they put on a bad show, right?

And, what do 8 and 10 year old boys love more than fireworks and smoke and laser lights? (It was kinda funny when both Headless Dad and Headless Boy #1 jumped every time there was an explosion, though! It's not like they didn't know that it was coming.)

OK, I had to include this shot of Gene Simmons, drooling his characteristic blood during his solo. The boys thought it was hilarious, and guessed right away that it was fake blood in capsules. Sharp, those two.

The inclusion of a stage-wide screen was brilliant. Remember the days of watching ants on a stage? We were jipped, I tell ya.

All in all it was a great night. If any of you are thinking of taking your kids to this show I'd say go for it. Make sure that you prepare them for the explosions and the fake blood! It wasn't even as loud as I expected it to be. (The opening act, Buckcherry, was extra loud, and we didn't like them much. Coulda skipped them.) There were lots of kids there, many as young as about 3, and the KISS lyrics are tame.

Sing it with me,
"I,
Wanna Rock and Roll
All Niiiiight.
And Party Every Day!"

Double Digits

Ten years ago today you came into our lives. Nine and a half pounds of all knees and elbows.

Today you're still all knees and elbows and only tip the scales at 60 lbs., dripping wet.

You're quick to anger, just like your mom, and love to yell. I'm sorry that you learned that from me, but we'll continue to work on it, ok?



You are really smart. You just made the high honor roll for the first time and your dad and I are so proud. I love how curious you are, and how you invent things then draw up the plans for building it. Detailed, down to the screws.

I love how you play games of Pokemon, Bakkugan, or Yugioh, even if you never follow all of the rules. At least the rules are getting more consistent now and don't change in the middle of the game.

I love that you love your brother and sister fiercely, most of the time. You and #2 play so well together when you want to. The happy sounds make my mommy's heart swell. I'm really glad that you get along so well even though you two are drastically different. (In the interest of 'fair and balanced' though, when you two fight? I want to rip your eyes out.)

You have decided this year that baseball is your game. You have a great head for it. You 'get it' unlike a lot of kids your age. You are currently taking private lessons because you want to get better before next season. You have recognized that it takes practice to get better, and that the best players play more. Your coach complimented you last week on your improvement, and your eyes sparkled. Hard work pays off, and you're seeing it for the first time I think.

You have a kind, gentle, and loving heart. You are the first kid to be compassionate for someone that is hurt or crying. Your whole life you've been this way. Other adults notice and comment on how caring you are. That is not taught but born into the fiber of your being. It is a quality that may get you hurt in your life, but it will also bring you much joy. I don't want you to let it go, but I do want you to develop a few (small) callouses to protect your sweet heart. I hate to see you hurting from the small, everyday hurts of this world.

You have to be flexible this year for your day. We are spending the evening celebrating Grandma's* 80th birthday, and you're ok with that. We'll have your favorite dinner with your aunt and uncle tomorrow, and your first sleep over party next weekend. I guess that just means that we'll celebrate lots of times.

You're worth celebrating, my son. Happy 10th Birthday!

Love,
Your


*Grandma is my cousin's wife's mother. That family is awesome, personified. I'm sure he'll get a Happy Birthday or two there, too.