Christmas

Hi all!
I hope you all had a wonderful holiday! Ours was nice but I'm glad it's over. DD had a "barbie Christmas" - wow! She is loving it though. DS got an IPOD - there was not a Wii to be found anywhere! DH & I did just fine too!

We took the kids to the city for the weekend. Saturday night was very nice and we looked at the lights. Sunday was BITTERLY cold and REALLY windy! We were indoors most of the day, luckily!

My pictures are still in my camera -- I know, shocking! I will try to share a few this week!

They are calling for snow today/tonight - we'll see.... My cousin is getting married tomorrow so hopefully it won't be too bad!

Have a Happy New Year!

Quick check in

Hey!

I am still alive.

We had a nice Christmas and will detail more soon!

I just wanted to check in...

HUGS

It's coming, it's coming!

Christmas is coming!

Our DD informed us today that she just can't wait for Christmas! It's so fun to see her excitement and joy. She loves the music, trees, lights, wishes and treats. DS is getting old enough that he's pretty laid back about everything and is next to impossible to buy for!

DH has been on the "holy grail" quest for DS's gift for 3 weeks with no luck. I have a feeling he'll have a few little things on Christmas morning and an IOU...

DD got to see Santa today at Wal Mart and she was thrilled. Of course, her list was different than the one we've been hearing about! Why? Why must they do that?

I hope you are all having a joyous holiday season!
HUGS!

Ok...

So I had my cry and told him I was mad. I will be going shopping this weekend with his list of ideas (I made him do one!) and hopefully will be almost done shopping when I return.

Other than that, it has been a crazy week. Work is insanely busy and I don't know whether I'm coming or going right now. :) My christmas letters are still sitting in the computer and who knows when those will get out - maybe they'll be New Year's letters.

We got about 4" of snow on Tuesday night. It was pretty - just wish they would actually plow and put some salt down. Oh well...can't have it all!

Have a great day!
HUGS!

Are you kidding???!!!!!

Seriously, as I FINALLY come up with something to get my husband for Christmas (he is the one who gives me ulcers every year trying to figure out what to get him) - he orders it himself today!!!!!!!!!!! I couldn't believe it! He never mentioned wanting it, nothing - I came up with the "perfect" gift today and was going to order it tonight. He mentions that he ordered it today.

I just want to cry! Now I don't have a clue again! ARGH!!!!!!!!!

Happy December!

GREETINGS!!!!!!
We were greeted with a lovely winter storm today (and it's still sleeting). In the 3 1/2 hours that my van sat outside at work today, I had to scrape almost 1/2" of ice off of it. It snowed about 1/2" this morning and we've had rain/ice/sleet since then. Welcome December!

We're gearing up for the holidays! The trees are up, decorated and lit. We got some shopping done this morning and are racking our brains on what to do for the kids.

Hope you are all well - I will continue our trip details in a day or two - I know, you're so excited...

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

TGIF - Christmas List tag

I've been tagged by Peggie. In turn, I'm tagging anyone who reads and leaves a comment.
1.) Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? Hot chocolate!
2.) Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? Wrapped!
3.) Colored lights on tree/house or white? White
4.) Do you hang mistletoe? no, I've never hung mistletoe
5.) When do you put your decorations up? The day after Thanksgiving
6.) What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)? Usually the roast my grandpa makes and the breakfast casserole made by my dad.
7.) Favorite Christmas memory as a child? Deciding who would be the 1st to make the 1st bathroom trip (since we had to walk by the tree) on Christmas morning to scope it out.
8.) When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I think I was about 7 and my cousin dropped the bomb but I played cool like I knew all along. Crushing...
9.) Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Yes, we do Christmas with my in laws.
10.) How do you decorate your Christmas tree? Our main floor tree is all snowmen and our basement tree is Hallmark and homemade ornaments.
11.) Snow! Love it or Dread it? Only for Christmas!
12.) Can you ice skate? I've never tried.
13.) Do you remember your favorite gift? I don't know.
14.) What’s the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Being together with family
15.) What is your favorite holiday desert? Is it sweet? Then it's my favorite!
16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? We have started taking the kids to the city for a weekend right before Christmas to see the decorations, play and window shop.
17.) What tops your tree? A snowman and Bugs Bunny
18.) Which do you prefer giving or receiving? Giving
19.) What is your favorite Christmas Song? I'm not a big fan of Christmas songs. I would probably say Carol of the Bells though.
20.) Favorite Christmas Movie? Christmas Vacation, A Christmas Story, Miracle on 34th Street (old version)
21.) What do you leave for Santa? cookies and milk


TAG - you're it!

Travel details, part 2

DAY 3 - We flew out of Oakland for Honolulu early Sunday morning. Let me tell you - I am not a big fan of flying but to fly over water with NO land around - at all - makes me pretty nervous! We arrived in Honolulu around lunchtime. We checked into the Doubletree Alana with our ocean view room - it was lovely. It overlooked Fort DeRussy and the ocean was about 6 blocks away. We went shopping to pick up some snacks for the week and walked down to Waikiki Beach. We had ice cream at Lipperts at the Hilton Hawaiian Village - coconut pineapple for me - MMMMMM!!!!!! We had a light dinner at Hard Rock and sat outside - such a treat! :) After dinner we went for a quick swim in the freezing hotel pool.

DAY 4 - We grabbed coffee and rolls at Starbucks and headed to Pearl Harbor. That is an AMAZING experience! They show a movie before they take you out to the memorial that is so moving - oh man! The memorial is beautiful - the wall of names is just mind boggling. We took the tour of the Bowfin submarine from World War 2 - interesting. I know I could never do it - too small a spaces for me! We also toured the USS Missouri. That is a HUGE ship! It was very interesting and we got to see the spot where the peace treaty was signed with Japan.
We walked around the side of the Missouri deck and there was a navy ship going out. Let me tell you, I had never been a witness to that before, but all those white uniforms all lined up at attention around that ship, just made my heart swell and caused a big lump in my throat! It was beautiful!
Then, in all our infinite wisdom, since it was 1:30, we decided, Hey, let's go hike Diamond Head. Uh, yeah - that is NOT a middle of the day kind of hike! DH & I both made it to the top but with much sweating, grunting and complaining (on my part) but were rewarded with spectacular views of Honolulu! It was worth the hike.
Since we stunk to high heaven when we were done, we went back to the hotel to shower and get ready for the luau. We went to the Royal Hawaiian for theirs. It was great! The food was excellent and the after dinner entertainment was great! And since we apparently hadn't had enough to eat, DH wanted to stop at Cheesecake Factory. So we did and enjoyed it on the balcony of our room when we got back.

DAY 5 - Pretty low key day. We did some shopping around town (including a scrapbook store that was AMAZING!). We drove up to the National Cemetary in Punchbowl Crater - can I just say, WOW! The cemetary was amazing and the flowers that had been left at the headstones were gorgeous! We walked up to the lookout and could see the whole city and some of the mountains north. Wonderful, wonderful view!
We decided to hike to Manoa Falls that afternoon. It was just incredible! It's not the biggest waterfall on the island but the hike there was great! We walked through a rainforest, fruit trees, a bamboo forest. The falls were very pretty and quiet.
We had dinner that night at Cheeseburger Waikiki, walked around town a little then went to bed early.

Stay tuned....there's more to come! :)

Trip details, part 1

WARNING!!!!! Vacation details enclosed. This post may bore you to tears....you have been warned!

As some of you know, DH & I got back last week from the trip we have been waiting 11 years to take. I had a wonderful time and hope he had as much fun as I did. Our main destination was Hawaii but we spent a few days in San Francisco.

DAY 1: We flew into Oakland International Airport late morning. It was sunny and 60 - beautiful after leaving the temperatures in the 30s at home. My wonderful, fantastic husband pulled surprise #1 out of his sleeve as we drove into San Francisco. When we started planning this trip, we looked at the Argonaut hotel but decided we wouldn't spend the extra money on it and booked the Days Inn. Unknown to me, he found a really good deal a few weeks before we left and booked us a night at the Argonaut. So, here's how he pulled it off. (I warned you!) He told me he wanted to stop by Fisherman's Wharf before we went to the hotel and that I needed to get him there (he knew where he was going). So, we head in that direction and he says "Hey, it's the Argonaut, want to stop just to peek in?" Since we had time, I agreed. Yes, I know - can you say SUCKER - I really had NO clue! So we pull up in front and I see the sign for parking and say, "We can't pay $39 to just run in here!"
DH: "They won't charge us for a few minutes. No big deal."
I look up and there's a doorman waiting to open my door. "Um, you need to make sure they know we're not staying." He nods. About the time I realize that DH has popped the trunk, he has already jumped out of the car and it hits me.
I was bawling all the way into the lobby. He explained to the staff that it was a surprise to me. It was a GORGEOUS, BEAUTIFUL, AMAZING hotel! Our room was a city view and decorated in a nautical theme. I just loved it and am so glad we got to stay there for a night. (The bill was hidden from me...)
Anyway, we grabbed a burger and went to sit down on the pier to take in some sea breeze and atmosphere. We walked around Pier 39 for a bit and saw the sea lions.
We decided to drive across "the bridge". So, we got the car and drove across the Golden Gate Bridge. And of course, because I was already on emotional overload, I started crying when I saw it. It was SO amazing that all the times I'd seen it on TV and in pictures and we were about to drive across it. I never thought I would say that was beautiful but it was! It just fits into its surroundings perfectly and am so glad that it is one thing I can say I've done before I die.
We drove out to Muir Woods and made it a mere 20 minutes before they closed. I'm glad we got to see the redwoods - they are SUCH an impressive tree. Just huge! The pictures of us standing next to them, make us look like little tiny munchkins.
After we got back into the city, we had a light dinner at Boudin's Bakery. Think sourdough bread sandwiches - good stuff!
We took in Pier 39 at night, did some shopping then walked to Ghirdelli Square for a mint sundae. Good stuff!

DAY 2: Alcatrez Day.... It was a nice boat ride out there - despite the gray day. The views of SF and the Golden Gate Bridge were very impressive! Alcatrez is a creepy yet very interesting place. I didn't know much about the history before we went.
The afternoon got very rainy. We decided to drive up to Napa Valley to visit a winery that DH found before we left. It was a really nasty, foggy day and we probably would have had a nicer time if the weather had cooperated a little more, but what are you going to do? :) We visited Sterling Vineyard, which is quite impressive. We took a tram ride up the hill to the winery from the parking lot, took a self-guided tour and got to taste 5 different wines.
We stopped for lunch at a little drive in called Taylors - great chicken fingers and fries!
We stayed in Alameda that night to be closer to the airport, since we left for Honolulu the next day.

Stay tuned for more details....

White Thanksgiving

We woke this morning to about 1/2" of snow on the ground. I guess it's just the start of winter. My apple cake is done and I'm waiting for the pumpkin pie to bake.

I hope you all have a wonderful day and eat plenty!
HUGS!

Thankful!

As Thanksgiving is tomorrow, I reflected on all the things that I have to be thankful for, here are a few.

I have the most amazing husband in the world. I love you, honey!

We have to incredible, healthy children.

We have a roof over our heads, food on our table and clean clothes on our backs.

I have many wonderful friends.

We just got back from our "trip of a lifetime".

I hope you all have many things to be thankful for too.
Happy Thanksgiving!

Well it's Wednesday...

I don't have much to say - really!
Just - fall has come to the Midwest and it's beautiful. (other than the nights being cold!)

Really - it's been a crazy week but just everyday craziness....

Hope you're all well!
HUGS!

Just one...

digi layout.

DH gave me most of the creativity for this one. Thanks, honey!

Read to me!

"Will you read your book to me?"
How could I even resist those words? I CAN'T! DD crawled up on my lap this morning before we left while I was reading and asked if I would read my book to her. So, she sat very quietly while I read 3 pages of my murder mystery to her before we had to leave. I seriously think she would sit and listen to you read an encyclopedia as long as you were reading to her.

I am so happy that both of my children love books as much as I do. Reading has always been a big part of my life. I hope they will continue that love to their children someday.


The big countdown is on to our trip. I am SO excited but there is SO much to do! I wonder how I will find time to do it all. I know I won't actually relax until that plane is in the air, either. But I have 2 books to take with and am excited to read them and relax a little.

Have a great evening!

Wacky Wednesday!

Have a wonderful, safe Halloween!

MIsc pics

Just some of my photos I've been looking at and need to play with some more.
Barn wood: I loved the design around the attic window - I need to crop and play with this a little more

DD's hands:

Look....

I digi-scrapped...amazing!

This is for my brother - they recently had to put Tinka to sleep. Finally getting a few baby pictures done...

Thanks for looking!

It's Friday!

I hope you all have a great weekend - plenty of plans here again. {insert eye roll & sigh}
I truly hope I can get a little scrapping done...wishful thinking, I'm sure....

HUGS and have a super weekend!

Thursday thought

"Nothing is impossible. Some things are just less likely than others."
Jonathan Winters

Warm fuzzies!

In our area, there was an "animal crises" - a woman was hoarding dogs, cats & birds in her home. TERRIBLE!!!!!! (I won't go into all the details) Most of the dogs are still getting used to grass and being walked on a leash.

Yesterday, myself and 2 other ladies from our office went to the shelter where they are keeping these animals while the legal mumbo jumbo is being sorted out. We walked dogs for 2 hours. It was FANTASTIC! I have never owned a dog but have been wanting one. I fell in love with a little dauschund. I man!

It felt wonderful to get out and do something to help the community and the animals. They were so happy for the human contact.

Maybe we'll get a dog...

WHOA!

I seriously can not believe this week is over! I had out of town training 2 days this week, so that always seems to drain time away. Between the kids schedules and activities, work, trying to sleep a little, I don't know where the time went...

Again, another week without any scrapping. sigh... One of these days, I'll actually get some time in. (Yes, I'm laughing hysterically while I type that)

Hope you all had a good weekend and wonderful weekend!
HUGS!

Monday, Monday....

can't trust that day. (You know the song - Mama and Papas, come on...)

I really do not enjoy Mondays. They never seem to go well. (Raising my coffee cup!) So, here's to hopefully a good Monday. Cheers!

I did some book research yesterday and my "to read" list increased considerably! YEA!!!! I just know I will never run out of books to read!

DD has a horrible cough right now so I've been up with her off & on the past couple of nights. She climbed in our bed last night, so DH & I didn't sleep a whole lot but she seemed to sleep quite peacefully.

DH & DS went to the Bears game yesterday. We really thought they were going to pull it out, but alas, no such luck.... It was sad!

I did not do much scrapping this weekend, so I do not have anything to share. Hopefully as the week goes on, I can get a couple of layouts done.

I wish you all a very happy Monday and a wonderful week!
HUGS!

What are clothes without....

PURSES AND SHOES???????!!!!!!!!!!
(Yes, I am a purse junkie!)

Clothes

I do NOT consider myself fashionable! Not even close. But after reading a friend's blog post about some clothes she had found that she liked, I decided to go "e-window shopping". These are some of the things that I found that I liked....

This was my favorite - too bad I don't have anywhere to wear it and that the price tag doesn't fit the budget.

TGIF!

Just wanted to wish my readers a HAPPY FRIDAY and I hope you have a GREAT weekend!!!!!

I hope to post some scrappings here this weekend and visit my blogroll.

HUGS!

BOOKS!!!!!

Yes, books will be the subject of today's post.

I love books!

Reading started at an early age. My mom read to us almost every night then taught us to read. I was reading before I went to kindergarten. I loved books. I would read anything.

I'm still like that. I love books! I work part-time at our public library - talk about an enabler! I am surrounded by them... The only things I have found that I just can't read are sci fi and true crime. I have a real hard time with those. I LOVE a good mystery (kind of fluffy, though - not too gory)! My "to read" list is neverending! Seriously!

I hope that my kids feel the same way about reading that I do. I know they both like going to the library...

What have you read lately?

Small town

Yes, that's right - I hear John Melloncamp's song in the back of my mind...

I got this as an e-mail and as I read it, I was dying laughing because all but probably 2 of them apply to my life as I was growing up...


Those who grew up in small towns will laugh when they read this.Those who didn't will be in disbelief and won't understand how true it is.
1) You can name everyone you graduated with.
2) You know what 4-H means.
3) You went to parties at a pasture, barn, gravel pit, or in the middle of a dirt road. On Monday you could always tell who was at the party because of the scratches on their legs from running through the woods when the party was busted. (See #6.)
4) You used to'drag'Main
5) Most people went by a nickname.
6) You scheduled parties around the schedules of different police officers, because you knew which ones would bust you and which ones wouldn't.
7) You could never buy cigarettes because all the store clerks knew how old you were (and if you were old enough, they'd tell your parents anyhow.) Besides, where would you get the money?
8) When you did find somebody old enough and brave enough to buy cigarettes, you still had to go out into the country and drive on back roads to smoke them.
9) You knew which section of the ditch you would find the beer your buyer dropped off.
10) It was cool to date somebody from the neighboring town.
11) The whole school went to the same party after graduation.
12) You didn't give directions by street names but rather by references. Turn by Nelson's house, go 2 blocks to Anderson's, and it's four houses left of the track field.
13) The golf course had only 9 holes.
14) You couldn't help but date a friend's ex-boyfriend/girlfriend.
15) Your car stayed filthy because of the dirt roads, and you will never own a dark vehicle for this reason.
16) The town next to you was considered 'trashy' or 'snooty,' but was actually just like your town.
17) You referred to anyone with a house newer then 1955 as the 'rich' people.
18) The people in the 'big city' dressed funny, and then you picked up the trend 2 years later.
19) Anyone you wanted could be found at the local gas station or the dairybar.
20) You saw at least one friend a week driving a tractor through town or one of your friends driving a grain truck to school occasionally.
21) The gym teacher suggested you haul hay for the summer to get stronger.
22) Directions were given using THE stop light as a reference.
23) When you decided to walk somewhere for exercise, 5 people would pull over and ask if you wanted a ride.
24) Your teachers called you by your older siblings' names.
25) Your teachers remembered when they taught your parents.
26) You could charge at any local store or write checks without any ID.
27) There was no McDonalds.
28) The closest mall was over an hour away.
29) It was normal to see an old man riding through town on a riding lawn mower.
30) You've pee'd in a cornfield.
31) You laughed your butt off reading this because you know it is true, and you forward it to everyone who may have lived in a small town.I would not have wanted to have been raised any other way!!!!

Tough times don't last... Tough people do

All I have to say is, if you ask questions-you probably won't get a straight answer!

Tuesday talkin'

Hello!

I wanted to let you know that Pink Ink Studios has lots of goodies for my photographer/scrapper friends. http://pinkinkstudios.com/shoppe/index.php?main_page Stop by and check it out!!!! Also, scrapping friends, http://www.mydigitalmuse.com is having grab bags this Friday and Saturday. There's lots of fun stuff in them. My friend, Andie designs for both places - please check out her stuff.

Hope you're having a great week!
HUGS!

Tuesday talkin'

Another baseball post...

Chicago Cubs, the tribe has spoken.... (actually the Diamondbacks decided)





YOU'RE DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

UGH! It was pitiful! Just pitiful!!!!!! Seriously, the first pitch of the game was a home run by Young. It just went downhill from there. They left the bases loaded in the bottom of the 5th... just....just.... yeah.

So, in the time honored tradition, I will say:

Wait 'til next year!

On the bright side, our seats were pretty good. We could see the whole field and our section was VERY entertaining! The beer was flowing and the crowd was hilarious! After the 7th inning, I think most people had given up cheering, so we were just watching, half-heartedly clapping and watching everything going on around us. A couple rows down, a group of guys was acting out scenes from different baseball movies - they were hilarious! I wondered a few times if candid camera was there.

I would also like to say that the 5 Marines who presented the colors were walking through the concourse before the game and they got a huge ovation. It was very heartwarming and I got a little emotional. As I was waiting for my hot dog, Scott Eyre (Cubs pitcher) walked through the concourse behind me. I did a double take and he smiled at me, said "Enjoy the game." I told him "Good luck". I thought it was pretty brave of him to walk through there with the fans milling around.

And I swear I almost cried when I was walking up the steps to my seat. It hit me I was about to watch a playoff game and I felt quite overwhelmed. I don't know why but I was very teary eyed and tried to take it all in.

So, our baseball season is officially over and now I will have to wait until February. (And yes, you will probably hear me whine about this all winter...)

The weather has been VERY warm here! Nineties....hmmm....did anyone tell Mother Nature that it's October? Not complaining but I just don't want to go fromt his to 30 degrees. That's just cruel!

Hope you're all having a good weekend!

Deep breath, aaaannnndd....

here we go!

The Cubs HAVE to win tonight. HAVE TO!!!!!!!!!! It's do or die! Literally. I will be cheering them on and praying that maybe "their" crowd will help pull them through.

Crossing my fingers and hoping the Diamondbacks have a BAD game!

Zoo fun!

My brother's girlfriend works at the zoo and said she could get us "behind the scenes" of some things. When he told me she was working with the Okapi. I said, "O - whatee?"

An okapi: Ryan meets the okapi:

Sara meets the okapi:

The okapi "ham it up" for the camera:

Warthogs - the "babies" are: Luke, Bo & Daisy - yep, the Dukes of Hazard! :)Sara meets Daddy Warthog

She also got to feed a dyIker:

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, what do you see?

Playtime for the polar bear:

Lunch time for the grizzlyl bear:

Giraffe

Camel

Thank you for a GREAT day!

These were taken with our new camera so they aren't all what I wanted...

Thursday Thoughts

Prepare for lots of randomness today...

Still waiting for computer time at home to load my zoo pictures...

Well, the Cubs lost last night. Sigh... I'm just hoping I don't watch them lose the series on Saturday. THAT would be sad!

ALOHA!!!!!!!!!!! We leave in 1 month and 5 days for San Fran/Hawaii. I am SO excited!

Dear Library Patron:
If your book is involved in the flood from 6 weeks ago and you've just unpacked it from its box, please do not bring it into the library with dripping pages. It is disgusting and who knows what kind of diseases it carries. Fortunately, our employees are "up" on the tetnus shots. We will send you your bill.
Sincerely,
Your local library

I am the proud owner of my very own snorkel set. Sorry, Andie, I haven't tried it out...yet....

The trees are really turning and they look fantastic!

Why is it that I can think of a FANTASTIC blog post as I'm drifting off to sleep? Word for word - it's GREAT in my head but I sit down to type it and it's like kryptonite to Superman?

Have a GREAT day!
HUGS!

Wednesday already...

Ok, so this week is going fast!
We had a GREAT day at the zoo on Sunday. (Pictures to come...) We didn't get to feed the giraffes but we got to pet the okapi and the warthogs. The kids thought that was really cool! We got to see the new polar bear playing. The weather was PERFECT!!!! Sunny - 80s. However, my husband & I have different ideas of "what not too far way" is. His apparently is about 45 minutes, mine - maximum 15 minutes...

Monday....what was Monday???? It must not have been too exciting.

We took Ryan shopping for something to wear to the homecoming dance this Saturday, last night. I was reminded once again, why I hate shopping! I don't have the patience for it. Plus, trying to find pants for a 5'9", 110 pound kid is NOT easy! We found a pair and they aren't too bad, with a belt, I think he'll look fine.

I got my ticket today for the Cubs game on Saturday night. I can not even begin to tell you just how excited I am about them being in the playoffs, let alone that I am getting to go!

Other than that, not much else is going on.

It's Sunday!

Fall may be upon now. The days are gorgeous and the nights are cool. I am happy and hope it stays like this for a while!

I hope you're all having a good weekend. We're off to the zoo today. We wanted to go while we had an available day and before they started shipping the animals off for the winter.

Have a great day!

Good Saturday morning!

It's sinking in that the Cubs are going to the playoffs...



I had a crop last night and got to meet one of my on-line friends in persons - Monica. We started e-mailing about a year ago. She's so sweet, fun and easy to talk to! I had a great time and am so glad I got to meet her and hope we can get together again soon!



I actually got quite a few cards made and did a few layouts. Here's a collage that I did this morning:

I'll get some of my other creations posted soon.

I hope you all have a great weekend! HUGS!!!

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

They did it! They did it!!!!!! Thank you, San Diego Padres!

My Cubbies are going to the playoffs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

TGIF!!!!!

It's FRIDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!
I missed posting yesterday....so much for every day this week.
Not a whole lot is going on here.
Here are a couple of digital layout I've done this week.

It's Wednesday!

Yes, the week is almost half over.

The Cubs lost last night and Milwaukee won - NOT GOOD!!!!!! We now only have a 2 game lead... (sigh, bite nails) We MUST, MUST, MUST win!!!!!!!!!!

A bit of good news this morning...when I got to work, my name is #2 in the playoff ticket lottery. Now, if the Cubs go to the playoffs, I'm second in line for a ticket. Crossing fingers...

Hope you're all having a good week!
GO CUBS!!!!!!!!!!!

My week, so far....

As you know, we went to the Cubs game on Sunday. They beat the Pirates, 8 - 0. :) It was great! The energy in that park was amazing, we've been several times, but never had it been like it was on Sunday. There was a lot of scoreboard watching (Atlanta vs. Milwaukee) and lots of cheering as Atlanta won. When the game ended, no one left - it was crazy! The fans usually run for the exit but we stayed and clapped and cheered. Some of the players came back out and waved. It was just amazing!

If you want to see something funny, tell a 3 year old at a baseball game that the Pirates are on the field. She asked where the Pirates were and where their boat was. We were rolling!

Monday was a pretty ok day. You know, for a Monday... It was hot though. Who would have thought 90 degrees on September 24? Crazy...

We shall see what today brings.
Have a GREAT Tuesday!

What's your name?

1. your rock star name (first pet & first car).
Ribsy Chevrolet
2. your gansta name (fav ice cream flavor, favorite cookie).
Dulce de Luche Chocolate Chip
3. your “fly girl” name (first initial of first name, first three letters of your last name).
JMCG
4. your detective name (fav color, fav animal).
Blue Bear
5. your soap opera name (middle name, city where you were born)
Michelle DeKalb
6. your Star Wars name (first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first).
JENMC
7. superhero name (”the” + 2nd fav color, fav drink).
The Red Water
8. nascar name (the first names of your grandfathers)
Milford William
9. stripper name ( the name of your fav perfume/cologne/scent, fav candy).
Cotton Snickers
10. witness protection name (mother’s & father’s middle names ).
Ann Leonard
11. tv weather anchor name (your 5th grade teacher’s last name, a major city that starts with the same letter).
Partridge Prescott
12. spy name (your fav season/holiday, flower).
Autumn Daisy
13. cartoon name (fav fruit, article of clothing you’re wearing right now + “ie” or “y”).
Peach Shirty
14. hippy name (what you ate for breakfast, your fav tree).
Cereal Oak
15. your rockstar tour name (”the” + your fav hobby/craft, fav weather element + “tour”).
The Scrapbook Sun Tour

How about you? I've seen a few people do this on their blogs already.

PS: The Cubs WON yesterday, but more on that in tomorrow's post - I'm still riding the happiness high.

Happy Monday!

The challenge has begun...

My friend, Andie (hi, sweetie!) has challenged us to blog EVERY DAY this week! Hopefully, I can do it!

Happy First Day of Fall!!!!! It's pretty warm here for almost the end of September but I think the cooler weather is coming... We walked around campus yesterday and a lot of the trees are getting their yellow and orange colors - I LOVE it!!!!

We're off to the Cubs game today and as we leave - here are the current NL Central standings:

Team W L PCT GB
Chi Cubs 82 73 .529 -
Milwaukee 79 75 .513 2.5
St. Louis 72 82 .468 9.5
Cincinnati 71 84 .458 11.0
Houston 68 87 .439 14.0
Pittsburgh 66 89 .426 16.0

Maybe this is the year! We're SO close!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If we can win again today and Atlanta can beat Milwaukee, it would be another game apart....

I hope you have all had a good weekend and enjoy your Sunday!

Stop the world, 8 PM

My wonderful son called me at work to tell me that his homecoming date backed out on him. Ugh...as much as I hated to see him date, I hate even more that he is nursing a wound in his pride. I feel terrible! He said another guy that she wanted to go with asked her so she told Ryan that she couldn't go with him. Man...

Stayed tuned, I'm sure there's more to come...

Stop the world, I want to get off!

WAIT! I don't think I want to be the mom of a high schooler anymore! I have used my paper bag to breathe into so many times this week.

It's official, he has a date for homecoming. A DATE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Wait, when did he get old enough to date? So, because neither of them or the other couple they're going with have their licenses, guess who offered to drive. YEP!!! Don't think I wasn't going to let that opportunity slip by...

Ryan truly is enjoying high school and I'm grateful for that! He likes his classes, teachers and talks about all his friends all the time. I just still can't believe he's in high school. I remember crying on his first day of kindergarten!

Okay, sorry!

A little update on Sara. The whole fixing the glasses things has become a huge ordeal! Of course... Pearle is stating that her protection plan expired in April. Hmmm...no one notified us it was expiring and when we bought it in August of 05, it was for 3 YEARS!!! Do the math. So, because the refuse to reinstate said plan, we are trying to decide whether to pay for the lens to be replaced (daycare is paying part) or just to do her eye exam and be done with all of it. Good grief!!!!!!

We are off the Cubs game on Sunday. GO CUBS!!!!!!!!!! It would be just fantastic if the Brewers would just lose all their games. Too much to ask????

Hope you all have a great weekend!
HUGS!

Movie reviews

So I've actually watched a few movies the past couple of weeks...
I was ok with this. Funny, touching, you know...until the last 5 minutes. Huh? Did you not know how to end this????

Yeah...the only 2 good things about this movie - Sandra Bullock's hair and when it ended. An hour & a half of my life I will never get back...

I have seen this one a few times and LOVE it! I could watch this movie over and over and still cry.

What movies have you seen lately?

So much for the quiet evening...

Sara took a face dive onto the blacktop at school yesterday. The quiet evening I had planned at home for tonight, will now be spent at Pearle Vision replacing the scratched lens on her glasses. Can you tell I'm excited???? She got a few little scratches on her nose and forehead and her glasses bruised the bridge of her nose but she's ok.

It was fall here but it has suddenly warmed up. Mid 80s yesterday and more of the same today. Ummm, hello? I'm ready for fall. I said FALL NOT winter!!!!!!!!!!

My Cubbies are going to give me a heart attack. I wish they would just win and win big, none of this heart attack 9th inning stuff...ugh! Milwaukee needs to lose all their games this week and the Cubs need to win all theirs. We are off to the game on Sunday and hoping for a win!

Hope you all are having a great week!
HUGS!

Hi!

WOW! What a week...
My brother was here for a visit so we spent some time with him. I had a work trip for a couple of days this week. I don't know where last week went to...
The weather is turning cool. Fall is coming! : ) Some of the trees are starting to turn.
I have been on a scrapping roll and gotten some more done.
I will try to give a bigger, rambling update soon!

Paper Scrapping

Yes, I've gotten some scrapping done lately... I went to a crop last night and got almost 10 pages done! I am at 95 paper pages for the year and I haven't kept track of my digital pages.

Digital Scrappings