Goodbye, Old Friend

Tonight you closed your doors forever; I miss you already.

I grew up with you, my children have grown up with you.

I've eaten dinner with you more than with any other.

I've celebrated many occasions with you; date nights, birthdays, anniversaries, Mother's Day, Father's Day... I've even toasted in the New Year with you.

My eldest son received his first sunburn at your place when he was an infant. (I do not hold your heat lamps responsible, it was entirely my fault!)

A great many memories were made at the big round booth in the corner, our booth.

Your chips and salsa were my favorite. Enchiladas, guacamole, flautas, you did it all! I had planned to eat with you the night I get my braces off...there was a large plate of nachos with my name on it!

Now all I have is this picture to remember you by; my family opening your doors for the last time.

You, my friend, will be sorely missed. You are my family's Cheers. Sure, there are other locations, but you...you were the best!



Adios, Amigo.

Flashback Friday - Oops!

Does anyone remember the brilliant idea that I had last Friday? Then one where I planned to start a flashback photo blog? Each week, a new picture? Yes, well, I've run into a slight problem. It occurred to me last night all photos of me prior to 1988ish are not here at my house; they are still in albums at my parents' house! Oops.

Now I realize that I could have pulled a post-1988 picture for today, but that was not my intent. Since I started at the beginning last week, I want to continue on with my time line, not jump ahead to my teen years. I will be spending some time at their house this weekend, so I will undoubtedly be poring through the albums in search of the perfect little gems to share with you in the coming weeks.

In the meantime, I did not want to let you down today. I mean, you went through all the trouble to come and visit me, right? So for your viewing pleasure this week, I proudly present a picture that I have of my husband and a few of his siblings.



Judging by their ages, I believe this must have been taken in the fall of 1975. This is a lesson in parenting, if you really think about it. Apparently all you need to amuse and entertain your children is a box, a cowboy hat and a fire extinguisher. Who knew?

My hubby? The stud in the hat!

Now It's Time For The Letter N.....

It's Tuesday...time for another list! This week, for your reading pleasure, we are enjoying some nifty N words.

Things that I am thankful for that begin with the letter N:

1. Naps. Few things make a Sunday afternoon, or any afternoon for that matter, more complete.

2. Nieces. I am Aunt Missy Shell to nine gorgeous nieces. I love each and every one of them. Jessica, Tarah, Lucy, Leah, Kali, Jenna, Laura, Mia and Emily.

3. Nephews. Yep, I love them too. Gorgeous isn't the first word that comes to mind, though. My nephews range from cute all the way up to handsome. Here they are, all seven of them. Chris, Derry, Gabe, Jeremy, Jarod, Jack and Jason.

4. Never-Ending Pasta Bowl. One of the truly beautiful things in life. Go and visit your local Olive Garden before it's too late!

5. Niederdieten. Andy and I laughed out loud every time we drove past that sign in Germany. What a great town to live in...Niederdieten!

6. "No Mommy, No Mommy, No Mommy, No Mommy". Now I didn't like it at all when my kids said this, but hearing sweet little Jason say this, with his scrunched up pouty face, it was the cutest thing EVER. All of the words run together and he looks so serious...I love it!

7. Norwegian Blue. Beautiful Plumage.

8. Nachos. I do believe that nachos will be my first meal upon having my braces removed. I love, love, love nachos.

9. Noises Off. "Clackett, dear, Clackett."

10. Nincowpoop. I always stop to listen when Bugs is insulting the Bull.

Flashback Friday

Because I am enjoying my Tuesday blog series so much, I have decided to start another series called Flashback Friday.

Each Friday I plan to choose a picture and blog about it. It will certainly be fun for me to walk down memory lane; hopefully, if you join me, I can provide you with a laugh or two along the way. (If nothing else, the hair styles should get you!)

A wise woman once said that you should start at the very beginning. It is a very good place to start, after all. In going through my old photos, it occurred to me that if I was to go back to my beginning, I'd need to start with two very important people...my parents.

Mom and Dad met in high school. I believe they started dating in their Junior and Senior years, respectively. Several years later, they were married; several years after that, I came along.

So to begin my Flashback series, without their permission (shh, don't tell!), I have chosen to post their senior pictures. Don't they look great???




See you next Friday!

Mistake Also Starts With M

It seems like as soon as I post my list each Tuesday, I immediately think of something that should have been on the list. It never fails. Yesterday was no different. I was getting ready for bed and a light went off in my brain. How could I have forgotten such an important M? No self-respecting M list would leave off this one! What have I done????

Therefore, I submit one final M that most definitely should have been included. Actually, it should have been #2, directly following my son.

Instead of naming it directly, I'm going to quote it. If you figure out what I'm talking about, you will immediately understand the severity of my blunder. Please forgive me.

"It was the least I could do. I always do the least I can do."

"We've got files on people who haven't even been born."

"That's not my department, sir - intelligence is something I try to avoid."

"Due To circumstances beyond our control, lunch will be served today."

"No wonder they execute people at dawn. Who wants to live at six A.M.?"

"I'm not so think as you drunk I am."

"My kidneys were expecting orange juice. Silly kidneys."

"I wanna tell you something, anybody says anything about Iowa better be prepared to back it up, pal. I'll give you a fist-full of Iowa naiveté right in the puss! How about that? You know I don't need you to tell me what's what. I know what's what just as well as you do. So why don't you just crawl back in your bottle of booze and pickle yourself? Ha!"

And finally, if you know the scene, it's brilliant...

"Please, gentlemen... Mozart."

Missy Shell Starts With M!

It's Tuesday, time for another list. Here they are, ten fabulous M's! The first one is truly #1, the rest, as always, are random.

1. Matthew. I mentioned him a few weeks ago. If I'm having a bad day and I need a smile, I only need to look to him. He is such a joy. My heart literally overflows with love for him.

2. Musicals. Oh, how I love musicals! Joseph, Charlie Brown, Les Mis, Rent... You name it, I want to be in it!

3. Mudpie. Mint Chip Mudpie from Claim Jumper. Yep. My favorite.

4. Murder By Death. One of the best movies EVER. Can I get an amen?

5. Muppets. Such a classic, always so much fun. No matter who is singing "America The Beautiful", at the end I always hear Fozzie say, "Patriotism swells in the heart of the American Bear."

6. Mashed Potatoes. Specifically ones made by either my mom or myself. We rock.

7. Mountain Dew. I can't drink it anymore, but every now and then I sneak a sip. Man, I miss the Dew days!

8. Mail. I love, love, love getting mail. One of the best Christmas presents that I have ever received was a Christmas card in the mail every day for the whole month of December. Thank you, my dear one! You made me so very happy!

9. Making Cookies. I feel so relaxed and content when I'm making cookies...

10. "Murdered by pirates is good." Heard it a hundred times, still love that line.

A Wheel In Constant Motion

Matthew walked by my desk at work yesterday and glanced at the wall calendar. He had the following thoughts....

MC: "Has it really been ten days since we were in Monterey?"

Me: "Well, eleven since Monterey. But ten since your birthday; since we went to church with Grandma and Papa and your cousins."

MC: "You know, it's funny. Sometimes time flies so fast that twenty days can go by and it can seem like only ten. But then other times, when you stop and take it all in, ten days can feel like twenty."


I love talking to my kids.

Lovely "L" Words

Tuesday again. This week it's a list of my favorite things that begin with the letter "L". Enjoy...

As always, in no particular order:

1. Lucy Van Pelt. Words cannot tell you how much I adore her; I truly, truly love her. Have any of you noticed my recent(ish) tribute to her??? Hmmm?

2. Lunchboxes. I was most proud of my Return of the Jedi lunch box in fourth grade. I was teased mercilessly, "...a girl shouldn't have a Star Wars lunchbox..." No matter. With my head held high, I carried it proudly every single day. The best lunchbox ever, it was.

3. Limoncello. AC has his Scotch, I have my Limoncello. Mmmmm.

4. Leather Seats. Don't know that I can ever go back to cloth.

5. Lists. I thrive on lists.

6. Luminaries. Specifically the luminaries in our neighborhood every Christmas Eve. If you're nearby, you should drive around; it'll take your breath away.

7. Lofthouse Sugar Cookies. The super soft, frosted ones that they sell at the grocery store.

8. Laurel & Hardy. I know there are some that don't care for them, but I was raised on them. They make me happy.

9. Lost Highway. Both the song and the album. Seriously, Bon Jovi's still got it goin' on.

10. Longitudinal. Say it out loud. It's a terribly funny word.

Tutelage

To the gentleman in the light brown shirt who was standing in the Art History section of Borders at approximately 8pm last night...

Dear Sir,

Friday evenings are wonderful, are they not? It is the perfect time to head on over to your local Borders and browse; possibly even enjoy a cup of coffee or some live entertainment. I must ask, however, that next time you are there, you refrain from passing gas.

Imagine my surprise when, as I sat there quietly reading my book, I heard a loud toot coming from my left. Clearly it was you, there was no one else standing there. I actually found it amusing; I mean everyone experiences flatulence from time to time. I assumed at that point that it was an accident and that it would not be repeated. How wrong I was!

While once could be passed off (no pun intended) as an accidental slip, after you broke wind the second time I was not inwardly laughing anymore. Really, sir, there's a restroom just a short walk away. Take the walk.

I was thoroughly disgusted by the time you backfired the third time. Mercifully, it was time for me to leave so I am not aware if you dropped a fourth, or even worse, a fifth stink bomb.

Please, sir, next time you're planning on spending evening at Borders, for the enjoyment of others, secure your rear. We'd all greatly appreciate it.

Sincerely,
Missy Shell

Baggage

While driving home late last night, I heard a commercial (on an L.A. station) urging residents to vote against a bill that is being proposed. If it were to pass, beginning in July of 2011, there would be a 25¢ tax on every bag that you get from a store; paper, plastic, etc. Now there is some fine print, and there are occasions when the tax wouldn't apply, but that's not what I'm getting at.

Here's the question: How many bags per week do you think your family uses?

The commercial said that the passing of this bill would end up costing families an estimated $400 a year in bags. That seemed like a lot to me, so I started doing the math.

$400 divided by 25¢ (per bag) equals 1,600 bags.
1,600 bags (per year) divided by 52 weeks equals approximately 31 bags per week.

I have sons, and we eat a lot, but we don't come anywhere near 31 bags per week. So I'm just curious...do you? Is that an accurate number or is it an exaggeration by people who don't want pay for bags?

Your thoughts? Comments?

K-Day

You know, it's funny how many words sound like they start with a "K", but they're actually "C" words. This week was harder than previous ones.

Here they are, in no particular order: things that I like that begin with the letter K.

1. Kraft Macaroni and Cheese. I loved it as a kid, I still enjoy a bowl every now and then. Some things never change.

2. Kojak. Remember the old TV show? I used to watch it every week with my grandparents. "Who loves ya, baby?"

3. Klondike Bars. I'd actually never had one until last week. Over the course of our week in Monterey, I think I polished off a whole package of the Cookies and Cream Klondikes. So yummy.

4. Komodo Dragons. It was the big treat at the end of the Reptile House at the zoo. Looked forward to it every time!

5. Kickin' Moms. A soccer team that I played on a few years back. We won the league, several times in a row. It was so much fun! We rocked.

6. Kevin Spacey. One of the greats. Really, he's one of my favorite actors. I think he's absolutely brilliant. The Usual Suspects is one of the best movies of all time. I just watched Se7en last night. American Beauty is a classic. He's fabulous.

7. Kisses. My man is amazing. 'Nuff said.

8. Kickoffs. Specifically the kickoffs at the beginning of football games. My favorite season is almost here!

9. Keeping Score & Stats. I'm the scorekeeper and stat queen for my boys' baseball teams. I love it. Most people don't get it, but I have SO much fun with it. And it's so useful...if you don't have stats, how can you make informed decisions for your upcoming games? Hmmm?

10. Katarina Witt. She's a (retired) figure skater from East Germany. She's got the whole package; beautiful, smart, accomplished, athletic as all get out, and pretty hot! I was able to watch her skate once at the Sports Arena. After she did her solo routines, she did a pairs skate with Scott Hamilton. When it came time for the lifts, she lifted him and twirled him around in the air. Classic.

He Goes To Eleven

I love you, kid! You've brought unfathomable joy to the last eleven years of my life. I am truly blessed.

My Wandering Mind

Here are a few random thoughts for you on this fine, Friday evening...

1. If your child is speaking in complete sentences, it's probably time to take the pacifier away. Really. It is. Just take it away.

2. I really do love the movie Juno. I saw Ellen Page in something the other day, and I was reminded of just how much I adored her in Juno. Silencio, Old Man!

3. I hate the way lettuce gets stuck in my braces. I'm shying away from salads these days...

4. How is it that fingernails can be so lovely and attractive when they're actually on your fingers, yet so repulsive when they're clipped and on the floor?

5. I couldn't stand Halle Berry in the first two X-Men flicks; she was a ridiculous, useless character. Apparently I'm not the only one who thought that...there was a very blatant attempt to make her "cooler" in the third film. (Still didn't like her, but I applaud the effort.)

6. The Clone Wars is being released on August 15th.

7. The best generic name I've heard in a while? Apple Dapples. I don't think I'll ever buy Apple Jacks again! Apple Dapples is a MUCH better name...makes me smile.

8. My brothers are hurting tonight; I'm hurting with them. I left out the quotes intentionally...they are my brothers.

9. Margaritas are much, much better when you use Patron. Try it. You'll never drink a house margarita again.

10. Were you paying attention? The Clone Wars is opening on August 15th!!!