It's In The Genes

Before I continue with my observation for the day, I just want you to know that I'm fully aware of the fact that I fell off of the blog wagon this past weekend. I had a sick kid, I didn't feel so hot myself, I was focusing on Christmas cards, etc. It just didn't get done. And you know what? The world will go on! (For those of you that know me well, you know how big of a deal it is for me to say that!)

And now, today's thought....

There are a great many things that I've passed on to my kids: my love for home-made mashed potatoes, my anal retentive need for everything to be tidy (well, only one kid got that), the general shape of my nose, my competitive nature, the list goes on and on. Tonight, I discovered one more thing that at least one of my kids picked up.

We stopped by the library after hours to return a book for Andy and I asked Matt to hop out and put it in the book drop. What he did next totally made me giggle. He ran over there, placed the book in, closed the door to activate the drop, then opened it again and peeked in just to make sure that it was empty.

That's not something I've ever told him to do. All I can think of is that he's seen me do that a million times with mail boxes so it must have made sense to him to do it at the library.

My kid makes me smile. :-)

One Step At A Time

Today I did something very cool.

I bought jeans that are a size smaller. :-)

I've been wearing my heavy jeans; I'm not yet able to fit into my skinny jeans. However, the heavy jeans started getting a little too baggy so I had to go by some one size smaller.

I was hoping to be back into the skinny jeans for my trip to Tennessee next week. It really doesn't look like I'm going to make it. Oh well, baby steps, right? I'm down one size.

Hooray!

"Always two there are, a Master and an Apprentice."

Sorry. I couldn't pass up the obvious Star Wars quote. Priorities, you know.

Anyhow, here's my thought for the day:

Who is having more fun these days? The teacher or the student?

The World We Live In

You know, sometimes I like to pretend that we're not in the 2000's...

Like maybe we're back in the 50's and I'm June Cleaver and my biggest problem is the Beaver giving away my new hat and gloves to the clothing drive at school.

Or maybe I'm Aunt Bea and I'm trying to help Opie nurse the sick birds back to health.

I could be Laura Petrie, were I'm busy rearranging the furniture for a dinner party that I'm throwing.

Heck, I could even be Lucy Ricardo and I would spend all day trying to figure out what to do with the two sides of beef that I ordered. (It was such a good price!)


Those happy thoughts never last long though. I'm always jolted back to the reality of our times. Take tonight, for example. This is question #10 on a consent form that John brought home from school today regarding the H1N1 vaccine:


10. Is your child pregnant or planning to become pregnant in the next month?

Yes - No - Don't Know

Sigh. I think I do miss the good ol' days.

Ten on Tuesday

For today's Ten on Tuesday list, I'm going to share with you my ten favorite Christmas cds. I'm a Christmas nut and I have a ton of Christmas music. It was really hard to narrow it down to ten; but Thirty on Tuesday seemed a bit excessive.

I decided to add in the links (where possible) so that you can listen to samples if you're so inclined.

In no particular order....

1. A Christmas To Remember, Amy Grant. While I love love love all of Amy's Christmas cds, this one has Highland Cathedral on it. If this would have come out prior to my wedding, it would have been my processional; it's simple and it's gorgeous.

2. The Living Room Sessions: Christmas, Chris Rice. It's beauty is it's simplicity. My boys are learning to play some of them on the piano; I love it!

3. A Christmas Together, John Denver and the Muppets. From the touching lyrics in A Baby Just Like You to the pure fun of The Twelve Days of Christmas, this cd has it all.

4. Christmas Card, The Statler Brothers. I've been listening to this one all my life; my parents had the record. This would always be on while we were decorating the tree. This one is easily one of my top three favorites.

5. Merry Axemas: A Guitar Christmas, Various Artists. What can I say? I grew up in the 80's.

6. The Christmas Sessions, MercyMe. Oh, I love this one! Their Little Drummer Boy is my 2nd favorite version of it ever (just behind White Heart). It IS the best version of God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, they use part of Carol of the Bells in the background. Sounds weird, I know, but it really works. And as a parent, you can't avoid being moved by Joseph's Lullaby. It's amazing what Joseph and Mary were asked to do.

7. It's Christmas Time, Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra and Louis Armstrong. Classic.

8. Elf: Music from the Major Motion Picture (Soundtrack). I just bought this one about a week and a half ago but I love it already. It's so very happy.

9. One Christmas Eve, Wayne Watson. While this one loses a few points for including Sweet Little Jesus Boy (I hate that song), it wins a million points for Child of Bethlehem. I sang it in a musical once with my choir buddies; I think of them every time I hear it. Also, this one has my favorite version of I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.

10. Yust Go Nuts At Christmas, Stan and Doug. Because a Scandinavian comedian with a super strong accent messing up Christmas songs is just that funny.

Sorry....

...tonight I've got nothin'.

Gone all weekend with baseball activities.
Spent over 8 hours today processing Little League paperwork.
Just spent several hours at a board meeting.

Sorry, I'm done for the day. There are no creative brain cells left.

I guess I can be thankful that tomorrow is John's late day at school; I get to sleep in until 7:30. Woo hoo!

I'll try to offer up something better tomorrow. :-)

Seven on Sunday

I know, I know...it's supposed to be Ten on Tuesday. However, a bunch of little things made me happy today so I thought I'd take the opportunity to be thankful, even if it's the "wrong" day.

In no particular order, here are seven things that made me smile today.

1. My Farms. Yes, I'm a Facebook junkie and I have three farms. I love them. They're so orderly and tidy; they make me happy.

2. Andy. He offered to run an errand for me today when I was in a hurry and stressing out about how I was going to fit everything in. A little thing, but it meant a lot.

3. The Colts won. It wasn't looking so good there for a while, but my main-man Peyton pulled it off. It was fabulous!

4. Left Overs Being Consumed and Not Wasted. We'd piled up quite the stash of left overs in the fridge. Tonight everyone had some (all various things, mind you, not things you'd usually put together) and not a bit went to waste!

5. Cheesecake. There was a left over piece of cheesecake in there that was Andy's. He let me have two bites. I'm on Weight Watchers so I couldn't really eat more than that, but boy were those two bites heavenly! I love cheesecake.

6. My Boy Matt. He's such a good ball player. He went five for six with two walks in the tournament this weekend, pitched four shut-out innings and played some great defense at short. He's pretty awesome.

7. My argyle socks. Seriously, how can I have a bad day when I'm wearing such fun socks???

You Gotta Love Ted

No, I'm not speaking of Teddy Roosevelt, Ted Williams or even Ted Knight.

The Ted that I'm referring to is Ted Leitner. He's been a sports fixture around here for as long as I can remember. Every now and then, he says the funniest things. Tonight, speaking of the Aztec defense and the Wyoming offense, he offered up this little gem:

"That was sloppy tackling but excellent blocking for a not terrific offensive line."

He cracks me up.

The End of a Season

Today was the end of John's first trimester at school. Finals are done, books are turned in and he starts his new schedule on Monday.

Tonight was also the last night of football. It seems crazy that we're done; it's been such a big part of our lives since practices started in June.

John had a great season. He got play time in every game, which was much more than some of the kids got. He has grown so much, matured. I am so very proud of him!

Tonight, I honor him with my blog. Here are a few pictures from the season...

This was on July 1st. He's getting ready to go to his first scrimmage (summer passing-league). They'd only been practicing for about two weeks at this point.

This was taken mid-August. They're at their first official scrimmage; some school up in Escondido. It was 110 degrees that day. We were dying just sitting there; I can't imagine playing in it!

He made it though! Look at that smile!

So handsome!

September 4th, The First Game

Unfortunately, he didn't get to play in that first game. He was knocked unconscious at practice three days before and received quite a good (or bad!) concussion. He was side-lined for a week. They were nice enough to let him work the chain gang; he's over there on the far side in an orange vest.

At least he made the best of it. He's played in every game since!

Warming up for our first away game. His aunt & uncle, as well as a cousin from Colorado were in town and got to see him rush the QB (he was a defensive end) and force a bad throw which resulted in an interception. It was a beautiful thing.

A series of events led him a new number. He went from #80 to #59. It's all good; he just wants to play, he doesn't care what number he is.
Love, love, love that face!

In keeping with the never-know-what-number-you'll-be theme of this season, at this game he wore #70. I don't have any better pictures because my camera pooped out. In this one, he's talking with his coach and fellow linemen right before they went in for the game-saving goal line stand. Yep, he's good.

So proud of you, son.

Go Nighthawks!

One Ringy-Dingy...Two Ringy-Dingy

After a week or so of making the decision followed by another two weeks of waiting, late Tuesday night I received my new cell phone. Yippee!

Then came the hard part...selecting ring tones. A few of you know that there are some seemingly ridiculous things that I have a hard time making decisions about: which checks to order, what Christmas cards to purchase, things of that nature. Same thing with ring tones. In a moment of frustration last night I sent a text to my buddy that read, "Why is picking a ring tone for my mom so stinkin' hard?" Her reply: "Because it is terribly important and to mess it up would display a terrible lack of good judgment." She so gets me. :-)

However, all of that indecision is behind me. I am happy to report that all of the ring tones have been chosen and every setting has been adjusted just how I want it.

I am now receiving phone calls.

Never A Dull Moment

In mid-July, we had quite the adventure. While I was in Reno for the weekend taking in excellent films at the cinema and filling my body with o-so-healthy food and drink (ha!), my youngest son was playing in a baseball tournament in Menifee, California.

Andy and I kept in touch via phone calls and texts; I was apprised of the scores of the various games and exactly how Matt was doing at each at bat, etc. When my phone rang at 4pm, just as I was getting ready to drive up to Lake Tahoe for dinner with my buddies, I assumed that it was another update. Well, an update it was, but not the kind a mom wants to get.

He was calling to report that Matt had "just had several of his teeth knocked out." I was sure he was kidding, I'd just talked to him about 15 minutes before. He wasn't. After they got some of the blood out of the way and could take a look (ewwww), the teeth were there but they'd been pushed way back, dropped all the way down and were dangling by their roots.

Not knowing what was ahead for Matt, I hopped on a plane and flew home. Andy received some instruction on how to "hold" the teeth in there in transit and they made the hour-long drive back to San Diego to see the orthodontist. It was very cool of our orthodontist to meet them at 6pm on a Saturday night.

Thanks to Andy's brilliant prepping, our orthodontist's great care and a whole bunch of prayers answered; I'm happy to report that as of yesterday we've gone from this...

(Yes, those are the seams from the baseball imprinted on his upper lip.)


(The thought was to shove the teeth back into place, put braces on them and try to hold them in while the bones fused around them and locked the teeth back in.)

...to this!

We still have to wait a while; they said that if the teeth are going to die it could take up to a year for that to happen. But for now they are strong enough to be brace-free while we wait!

Yay!!! Love that smile!

Ten on Tuesday

Hey friends and fans. Okay, that might only be one of you...but still, Hey! :-)

I'm taking a little different approach to Ten on Tuesday for the rest of the month. Traditionally, the Tuesday lists have been things that I'm thankful for. I've decided to mix it up a bit and do a Top 10 list. So here we go...

Since I take my sweatshirts as seriously as I take my coffee cups, I'm going to count down my Top 10 sweatshirts for you and tell you why they mean so much to me. Enjoy!


#10. Ah, Veggietales. Back when the boys were younger, maybe 3 & 4 years old, I found these on sale at Berean and I got them for all three of us. It was the only matching stuff we ever had. They looked so cute in them! I pull this one out every now and then and am reminded of sweet times with my little ones.














#9. This one is a favorite because it reminds me of a lifetime of memories with my family and my dearest of friends. We've been season ticket holders to SDSU football games for all but about 5 years of my life. It's been wonderful. Things I think of:
-My mom making "math worksheets" for me when I was little
- Getting deli sandwiches and taking them with us (back when eating out was novel and a treat)
- When I was finally brave enough to not cover my ears when the cannon went off
- Taking turns buying ice cream with a certain guitar player that I know
- Tight end contests...'nuff said.
- GOOOO RICOOOOO!!! :-)





#8. Lucy! She's my favorite...heck, I am Lucy! Ever wonder why my blog is called Snow Comes Up?

My friends gave me this for my birthday about 8 years ago. After I opened this, we went to Magic Mountain and I got really, really sick and came home the next day with a fever and bad bronchitis. That was also the M.M. trip where I passed out on Goliath. Fun times, huh? Actually, it really was a day full of memories, some just different than I would have planned. This sweatshirt makes me smile; I think about Lucy, about good times with good friends, and how I wish with all my heart that we could recapture some of those times.







#7. While zip-up sweatshirts aren't typically my favorite, I make an exception for this one. I mean, how many people have their name on a sweatshirt? :-)

It's actually my brother-in-law's company, Coffman Construction, Inc. They had these made and were super cool to outfit our whole family in CCI gear. They're just awesome like that. Some of my very favorite people...





#6. While I'm not a die-hard Charger fan, I'm an extreme fan of the game. And, well, you have to have a home team sweatshirt, right?

Actually, this one is extra special because Matt gave it to me for Christmas a few years back. And, it's the warmest sweatshirt I have. This one comes out on the coldest of days.













#5. This one is pretty beat up but I love it.

When my hubby was accepted to CSUSM, I schlepped the kids up to the school one day to surprise Andy with a t-shirt.

So, I went to the school one afternoon with a one year old and a two year old. We had to park in an outer visitor lot, which was about mile away from the bookstore. I also seem to recall the biggest staircase ever (or it seemed so carrying a one year old) that we had to climb. We made it though, and while there, I treated myself to a sweatshirt.

It was a fun (looking back) adventure getting this one and it reminds me of my husband's incredible commitment to both is family and his education.





#4. This one makes me happy because I actually purchased it in Wisconsin.

Several years back, Andy and I were in Chicago and we decided to drive up to Kenosha for the evening. Beautiful town!

It was a perfect fall night, nice and cold. We went for a walk and then went shopping and I bought this. We then topped off the evening with a trip to White Castle, where I quickly decided that I never need to go to White Castle again! :-)










#3. This is one of my new favorites. I bought it at a baseball tournament that Matt was in a couple of weekends ago. I wasn't sure if I was going to get a sweatshirt or not, but when the boys won the tourney, with Matt pitching the win, I decided that I must have one. My boy rocks!









#2. Well, now that John is playing high school football, I had to get one for his team, didn't I? That was a given!

So proud of John and all of the work he's put in...literally hundreds of hours. He's amazing. Go Nighthawks!















#1. Is there any doubt why this one is my very, very favorite?

It's a sweatshirt (which implies that it's cold outside if you need it).

It's from Disneyland, the Happiest Place on Earth.

It's Christmas.


Yep, this one's the best! Only a few more days until I can pull this one out! I can't wait!!!

"I don't have THAT many."

Since it's now officially Christmas Season at our house, when the boys wanted hot chocolate last night it seemed like the right time to dig out the Christmas mugs. As I should have expected, that turned into me taking the opportunity to clean the cabinets. I unloaded everything, washed out the cabinets and then put things away in a proper, tidy fashion. While I was reloading, I went through things, pulling out things I don't need anymore. Here's a bit of the conversation that Andy and I had while that was happening:


Me: "Hey, honey...look at all of the stuff I'm able to get rid of. It's going to make the cabinets so much more tidy. There will be room for everything without cramming it all in there."

Andy: "Are you sure you won't want any of that next week and go out and buy it again?"

Me: "No, I never use it. There's not really room for it all anyway, so there's no use keeping it."

Andy: "There's only 'no room' because of your dang Starbucks mugs."

Me: "Oh, come on. I don't have that many."


It was then that I stopped and counted. Yep, he was right. I kind of do have that many. Seventeen to be exact. But I need every one of them! Choosing the right mug each morning is a terribly important decision; it reflects my mood and sets the tone for my whole day! My coffee mugs are a very personal thing. I decided to share them with you.

The Everyday Mugs

The Fall/Autumn Mugs

The City Mugs

The Christmas Mugs

And that makes 17!
No wonder that cabinet was getting a bit crowded. :-)

Check the Lyrics

This evening I found myself looking up chord sheets to various Bon Jovi songs for my son; he's learning to play the guitar and Richie Sambora is pretty much his hero right now. As I was getting ready to print this one out for him, something struck me as a bit odd. I started reading the lyrics and before long Matt and I were both rolling on the floor laughing.

These are the correct words from the song "Summertime" off of the Lost Highway album. Please observe:

Verse 1
These days life goes like this, wake up, check that off some list
Gotta be a little something more than this in the bottom of my coffee cup
I keep a postcard in the back of my mind
Of white sand, sunshine, and you shinin' like a brand new dime
That's keeping me from giving up, feeling like I've had enough

Verse 2
I was a warm breeze with a cool tan,
Life mapped out on the back of my hand
When God was laughing I was making plans,
But he didn't laugh when I found you
If there's a heaven baby you're the proof, You make me...

Chorus:
Feel something like summertime, top down and nothin' but time
Radio's on and you by my side, feels something like summertime
Like that first slow dance and the first long kiss
There ain't nothin' baby better than this
It's like a beach blanket and a bottle of wine, feels something like summertime


It's a catchy song; I like it. It was a lot of fun in concert; in general I'm a fan. Now, please observe the lyrics that some dude posted when he was putting together a lead sheet online. Verse one is off, but generally close. Verse two and the chorus are a hoot!


Verse 1:
These days life goes like this,
Wake up take it off of some list,
Gotta be a little something more than this in the bottom of my coffee cup
I keep up false call in the back of my mind,
White sand, sunshine, and you shining like a brand new diamond
That's keeping me from giving up, thinking that I've had enough

Verse 2:
I was a home beast with a cool tan,
And a half mop out in the back of my hand
When I was laughing I was making plants
But I didn't laughed when I found you
There's a heaven baby all to prove, You make me...

Chorus:
Feels something like summertime, tough down and nothin' but time
Radio is on and you are by my side, feels something like summertime
And first romance and that first blown kiss, bearing nothing better than this
And it's like a beach blanket and a bottle of wine
Feels something like summertime


Thank you, whoever posted that awful attempt at the lyrics. My family sure got a kick out of them!

That's Where I Left It

I've had a bit of trouble getting into the holiday spirit this year. Maybe it's because we've been so busy. It probably has something to do with all the hot weather we've been having. It may also be due to the fact that baseball season never ends now that we have a boy playing travel ball.

Whatever the reason, I've been slow getting going this year. I was happy to put out the Halloween decorations in October because we had house guests. I dutifully switched them out for the Thanksgiving decorations on November 1st because that's what you're supposed to do. I've had trouble, Red Cup and all, kicking into Christmas time though. I started our Christmas letter, purchased my Christmas cards and have even picked up a present or two, but I haven't really been able to jump on board the Christmas train.

That is, until today. Today was absolutely perfect.

I should have known when I got up that it was going to be a good day; it was really cold this morning. That always makes me terribly happy. When I left the house a little after 9am, it was still cold enough to warrant a bit of layering and two shirts.

I then proceeded directly to Starbucks and purchased my four-point-latte. It was still super cold outside after I got it, so it made the already perfect coffee goodness all that much better.

Latte in hand, I walked a few doors down and entered (insert angels ooo-ing here) Target. Frankly, it started out like any other Target trip; I had a list of various household and miscellaneous items to purchase. Strangely though, no, magically, something started to happen as I wandered through the store: I started paying attention to all of the Christmas items on the end caps. I took the time to really look at things, to ponder what I would like to get people this year. By the time I reached the Christmas section in the back, I was fully overcome with holiday spirit and I was singing along with the Christmas tunes!

I ended up buying a few presents while I was there. I even purchased a Christmas cd to add to my collection. After all, one can never have too much Christmas music. I highly recommend the cd, it's lots of fun! It's the soundtrack to a great Christmas movie...

So it may have taken me a while to get in the spirit, but I finally did and now Christmas season is in full swing. Oh, don't worry, we'll still take the time to enjoy Thanksgiving; it won't get lost. But Christmas season is here folks, and I have fully embraced it. Apparently, I'd just left my Christmas spirit at Target! Thank you, you big red bulls eye, for keeping an eye on it for me until I came to retrieve it.

Four

As much as I hate to admit it (rather, I hate the need for the admission), I have made the decision to do something about my current state of health. This week I re-joined Weight Watchers. Something needed to be done and since it worked for me a number of years ago, I decided to try it again.

You know how it goes; all foods/beverages have a point value and you are allowed to consume a certain number of points per day. It's nice in that you can have whatever you want, but the points really do disappear quickly.

This brings me to my problem with the number four.

Four is the number of points that my morning latte from Starbucks contains. FOUR. That doesn't seem fair at all! I don't get that many points in a day and it seems completely insane that I should have to spend four of them right off the get-go with my coffee.

I know what you're thinking: Skip the latte. But that's just silliness. Of course I'm going to have the latte. I'm just going to gripe about it every day. Four is a ridiculous amount of points for my non-fat, decaf vanilla latte!

'Nuff said. (For now!) :-)

My Fairy Tale Life

Today I feel like Goldilocks.

I'm not having a problem with porridge, chairs or beds. The issue is with my pillow.

We were way overdue for new pillows; I'm pretty sure that my hubby's pillow was as flat as it could be and mine wasn't far behind. I got an ad in the mail the other day that Penny's was having a killer sale, so I went and purchased new pillows for the whole family. Unfortunately, I just can't seem to get mine right.

The first one that I got home was too small. I accidentally got a standard one instead of a queen. I promptly took that one back and purchased the appropriate size.

I then realized that the one I'd brought home was too hard. Now I know it said "firm" on the label, but I really did want some support so I thought that was the one to go with. It isn't. It is way too hard! There's no give in it at all; it holds my neck at a very awkward angle and makes my back hurt.

What next? Well, if "firm" isn't right, the next logical choice is "medium", right? Nope. I can't use that one...that one is way too soft and gives me no support whatsoever. My head just sinks!

Seriously, getting the right pillow shouldn't be this much work. I could take the Goldilocks approach; she ran down the stairs, opened the door, ran away into the woods and never returned. Somehow that doesn't seem like the best option though. I guess I'll keep looking for a pillow that works for me.

We Are of Peace. Always.

While I'm definitely selective, I can be a bit of a SciFi geek from time to time. With that in mind, last night was huge.

I can't tell you how excited I was when I found out that they were remaking "V". I loved the Original Miniseries, the Final Battle and even the terribly campy series. My dad and I never missed an episode and we had the VHS recordings of many of them. I should also mention that for two Halloweens in a row, I went out as "V" characters.

So last night, we sent the kids upstairs at around 10:30pm, I settled under my cozy blanket on the couch, we found "V" on our dvr list and hit play.

And.....

I loved it! Sure, it's campy, just like the old ones were, but it was awesome!

Morena Baccarin totally worked as Anna. I was a bit worried because Jane Badler was such a perfect Diana, but they did a good job with the new character. Erica and Jack did well (presumably) representing Julie and Donovan. We have an alien traitor, a resistance forming and a teenage human/alien love story budding...all good stuff. And who doesn't love Alan Tudyk?

The only thing that bugged me slightly was that they kept calling them "the V's". I would have preferred referring to them as "the visitors" as they did back in the day, but that's minor and I'm willing to overlook it.

All in all, I give it two thumbs up (I'd award more if I had more thumbs) and I'm hooked. I will no longer be taking phone calls, texts or emails on Tuesday nights from 8pm - 9pm. I'll be channeling my preteen/teenage self and watching a ridiculously-awful-yet-terribly-fabulous TV series. :-)

I Love Surprises

Today I had a coffee related blog prepared. It's kind of a grumpy blog, I was in a mood. My plan was to drop John off at school, stop for a cup of coffee and then come home and vent to all of you.

All of that changed, however, when I walked in to Starbucks to get my coffee.

I had no idea that today is Red Cup Day! I celebrate this day every year but somehow I missed that today is the oh-so-glorious return of my dear friend, the Red Cup. What a needed surprise this morning!

Tomorrow you still may get the grumpy blog, but for today, I am going to celebrate the joining of two of my favorite things: Fall and Red Cups.

Uncharacteristically Me

If you've been around me very much, you know that I hate to be late. In fact, I usually consider myself late if I'm not where I need to be at least 10 minutes early. I've never been late to church. My kids have never been late to school. We're not late to sports, lessons, appointments... I'm not late!

That is (insert BIG sigh here), until now.

Being November 1st, yesterday was beginning of NaBloPoMo and since it's now 11:30am on November 2nd, clearly I'm running behind. I participated last year, I even did it in 2006 back when I was blogging on MySpace (do you even remember MySpace?).

Several times yesterday I thought about it and was kicking around the idea of trying it again this year. I even read posts of some of my buddies who are participating. I just figured that I'd do it later.

What's that? You ask what was so occupying of my time yesterday that I never got around to blogging? Well, there was Matt's 7:15am baseball game. Then church. Then lunch. Then, well, then came the important stuff: watching football, snoozing on the couch, farming, whipping up food in Cafe World, making (real) dinner, watching the World Series, watching a movie with the kids, taking down Halloween decorations and putting up Thanksgiving decorations. See? My day was just packed! :-)

All that to say, this year NaBloPoMo for me begins on November 2nd. I have no idea what you're going to get from me; life is flying by at an alarming speed and my brain feels quite mushy most of the time. I was promised a few visits by the Starbucks Fairy if I do this though, so that alone will make it worth the effort of trying to think of something to write about every day.

Anyhow, here's to trying! See you tomorrow.

Nicknames

I've had many nicknames over the years; I don't think any have made me giggle quite so much as one that I just received this week.

There's a boy on John's All Star team that John has never played with before so he really doesn't know our family. All he knows is that for the All Star season, I'm the lady that's his "team mom". For paperwork, certifications, uniforms, jackets, etc. he has to go through me.

To get the proper mental picture, you should know that this 14 year old is about the same size as my husband, if not a bit taller, and he has a visible mustache going.

Every time he calls for my attention, I snicker a bit inside. In the most polite voice that a 14 year old can muster, he kindly calls out...

"Mrs. Team Mom?"

I love it.

Return of the Jedi

Well, it's more like Return of the Blog.
Okay, and the quote that I'm about to share is actually from A New Hope.
But still, you get my drift...

My oldest son, John, is starting high school this fall and he's trying out for the football team. (How it all came about is kind of a neat story, but I'll save that for another day.) Football camp started this week, and the coach had said that Wednesdays would be "light days" to give the muscles a break. So yesterday was Yoga day.

While I'm reasonably certain that no weird, yoga voodoo took place, John thought that the instructor's quiet voice and all of the "breathe in and out" stuff was goofy. This is what he had to say about it on the way home:

"During Yoga today, I wanted to shout out 'Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side, kid.' "


I'm glad that he didn't. I'm also glad that he knows his Star Wars so well.

1992

You know, someone really dropped the ball. There aren't really any good '92 pics either! I found a couple that I can share with you though...


That sweet ride that I mentioned in my 1991 post? Yep, it got popped. I was on my way home from work and a lady ran a red light and hit me. I spun around through the intersection, turned several circles and the slammed into the center divide a little ways down the road. It was quite the experience. Someone called the paramedics and they came and took me to the hospital in an ambulance (my first ride in one of those!), and by the time we got home from the hospital about 8 hours later, the lady that hit me had already called and reported it as a hit and run...that I hit her!


Lots of glass...


We brought home the parts that had fallen off...


Apparently I brought home some of the other lady's parts, too. She was driving a 4 Runner.


In June of 1992, I graduated from high school. Sigh. Don't know where all of the cap and gown pictures are. After the ceremony, we had a party at my grandma's house. These are my cousins. All three of them. No wait! I have four; one wasn't there.

Things to note about this picture:

1. I'm wearing a gold necklace that Grandma and Granddad gave me for my 16th birthday. Between the time I received it in 1991 and 2005(ish), I only took it off a handful of times. Even now, I probably wear it 90% of the time.

2. I have acrylic nails. Sometimes I miss them.

3. No, my legs aren't normally that shiny. I was wearing nylons. Remember those?


That's all I've got for '92. Thanks for checking in with me...I'll see you soon!

2.11.09

I've been sitting here at the computer most of the day; I just now glanced at the calendar that sits beside me.

2.11.09

This means that in exactly two months, I will have a teenager.

I'm kind of freaking out.

Seriously.

By The Numbers

Well, Crayl gets points for creativity! Today's Ten on Tuesday list is a numbered list. Here we go...

One. The number of times (besides childbirth) that I've been hospitalized. While I do have some physical issues and I get frustrated with them from time to time, I have truly been blessed. God is good.

Two. The number of children that I have. I adore my boys. Again, God is good. I wouldn't know what to do with a girl; He knew that and he gave me boys. Sure, they drive me nuts sometimes, but I am always very thankful for them.

Three. The number of places I've lived. In my life. Ever. While I'm starting to feel a change coming and I have no idea what the future holds for us, I'm quite thankful for the stability that I've always had.

Four. The number of plants that are actually living out front. I got tired of the barren wasteland, so I planted a few things. So far, so good. When I look out the kitchen window, I smile.

Five. The number bags of chocolate chips in my fridge. I bought a ton of them while they were on sale at Christmas time, so now I have everything I need to make cookies if my sweet tooth suddenly gets the best of me. Yay for planning ahead! (I'm actually thankful for the sale prices, too. Chocolate chips can get pricey!)

Six. The number of coffee mugs that I have. Andy has his own, the kids have their own; these six are mine. It's fun each morning to, depending on my mood, select just the right mug for the day.

Seven. The number of months that I've been on the Little League Board of Directors. While it's a lot of work and at times I'm overwhelmed, I'm happy to be involved in something that is such a big part of my boys' lives. It's also a great way to get to know the men that are coaching and working with the kids!

Eight. The number of sweatshirts that are in my rotation. Each one not only keeps me warm, but has specific memories attached to it. I have no willy-nilly sweatshirts...they're all significant.

Nine. The number of days until my birthday! Yay!

Ten. The number of noodles that I just made for my lasagna. Why ten? Well, the nine to go in the pan and the extra one to munch on while I'm putting the whole thing together. This one's actually a trifecta of thankfulness: thankful for the noodle itself in all of it's yummy goodness, thankful for lasagna in general and thankful that now dinner is done!



See you next Tuesday!

Only Mostly Dead

"Your blog is dead."

My husband has spoken this phrase several times over the past week upon discovering that I haven't kept up with my blog.

It's not that I don't want to; it's just a time thing. Every day is flying by right now and I'm so very busy. In the morning I remind myself that I need to set aside some blog time, it's usually on my To Do list. However as they days roll on, I don't seem to be able to fit it in. It's funny... I always do fine in November when participating in NaBloPoMo. For some reason, it's harder to stick with it at other times of the year.

Maybe I'm trying too hard. Maybe I'm expecting grand and glorious things each day and when that doesn't happen, I give up all together. Maybe just a simple ponderable can indeed be enough sometimes.

With that in mind, here's one for you to think about today:

Why is it that people, drivers specifically, turn into absolute morons when it rains?

It's everywhere on the news, "...the freeways are just packed...", "...it's a disaster out there, give yourself extra time...", "...the rain is causing huge delays...", "...accidents delay drivers for hours...". You get a little bit of water in San Diego and it's like it's the end of the world! Every news channel has a headline that reads, "Storm Watch 2009" or something equally ridiculous. People everywhere are complaining about it like they haven't seen the sun in over a decade.

Then there are the drivers themselves. Occasionally you get an idiot that thinks he can zip around and he spins out causing everything around him to slow down. More often than not though, it's the other way around; people drive like the rain has made their vehicles physically unable to reach speeds greater than 40 mph.

I love the rain; I adore it. But sometimes I really hate going out in because of what it does to everyone else out there.

Just remember: The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse have not been loosed, Armageddon has not begun and Ripley has not brought any Aliens back to the planet. It just rained...for a few days...it'll probably only do it a few more times this entire year! I'm pretty sure we're all going to be just fine.

Ten on.....Wednesday?

Yes, I know...I'm late. It's been a crazy week around here and I didn't get this up yesterday. Better late than never, though, right?

Per Crayl's instructions, I submit ten silly or odd (some really aren't quite so odd) things that make me happy:

1. Mary Poppins. That movie always makes me happy.

2. Office Supply Stores. Glorious.

3. My Carmex. Not a brand that I would normally buy; my sister-in-law picked it up for me when we were in Palm Springs this past October. When I see it on my nightstand, I am reminded of such happy times.

4. Gravy. Specifically, when it comes out right. Whenever I make it, I kind of hold my breath and keep my fingers crossed...so many things could go wrong! Last night, I rocked!

5. Alphabetized DVDs. I know that this was an example that Crayl gave, but it is true; they must be alphabetized. Even on Christmas morning, after someone has received a new DVD, I can't just set it on the shelf. I need to switch things around until it has it's place.

6. Seeing somewhere in Germany or Italy that we visited show up on TV. Andy and I always yell out, "We were there!" It makes me smile.

7. Mail. A sure way to make me happy is to send me something.

8. Seat Warmers. I love that my Sequoia has a butt warmer.

9. When someone (anyone) helps me with the dishes without being asked.

10. Espresso Truffle. My new favorite holiday drink at Starbucks was permanently added to the menu. Yippee!

Sniff, Sniff

Last night I was in a hurry to get out the door.

While the kids were at Awana, Andy watched a movie and I spent the time working on a photo album. We cut it pretty close and I knew that we needed to get going so that we weren't late to pick them up.

I changed clothes, we got outside and into the car when I realized that I needed to get John a shirt. We were planning to go to In n Out to grab dinner, and he doesn't like to wear his Awana shirt out and about (I don't blame him). I exclaimed something about not getting there on time, jumped out of the car, ran back into the house and headed up to the boys' room.

I hadn't actually been in their room all day...I quickly discovered that it was a mess. There were clothes everywhere! (I think there's something in the eleven and twelve year old brain that makes it impossible to use a hamper.)

Still in a hurry, I headed over to John's dresser, looked around on the floor, picked up the first half crumpled shirt that I found and...I sniffed it! Yep, I totally did. It was passable, so I ran out the door and we headed off for the rest of our evening.

As I was thinking about this later, two things really bothered me.

1. That I actually did the Sniff Test. I mean, really...who does that? College guys in 80's movies? Seriously. I have no idea what possessed me to sniff a shirt from the floor when I could have easily opened his third drawer and pulled out a clean shirt.

2. Even more disturbing to me is the fact that I have a child old enough and big enough that I have to do the sniff test. How did this happen? When did John get taller than me? When did he start turning into a man? Where did my baby go??

Sigh. Time. It just keeps on ticking....

1991, With Apologies

I'm terribly sorry, readers. I don't have any pictures of 1991. I just looked through the album and really...I've got nothing. There are only three pictures there and none of them are blog-worthy. It's possible that my mom has some; if I find some at her house, maybe we'll revisit 1991 next Friday.

As for what I did in '91, there were a few events:

I turned 16.

I got my first job; I worked for an ENT.

I had a boyfriend.

I got a car; a sweet, 1991 Ford Escort.

It seems like I should have some pictures to prove all of that. Sadly, no. This week, you're just going to have to take my word for it.

Once again, I offer my deepest apologies.

January 21, 1995

At exactly this moment, fourteen years ago....

This girl...

...and this boy...

...became husband and wife.

I love you, Andy.

Random Thankfulness

I don't do random very well; nor do I do spur of the moment. I like to plan and organize and lay things out. However, my buddy challenged me (and you too!) to come up with ten things, without a particular theme, that I'm thankful for. So here you go:

1. My red, Swingline stapler. It sits near me on my desk and makes me happy.

2. 9 Days. That's how long I have to wait until my braces come off. Can't wait! SO thankful!

3. Mondays Off. I think that every Monday should be a day off. The work week should be Tuesday through Friday.

4. Cows. I'm such a red meat eater, I'm very thankful for cows.

5. When It's Quiet Outside. We have noisy neighbors with stupid noisy yappy dogs. I love the rare occasion when all is quiet and I can hear the wind blowing through the trees.

6. The internet. Need I say more?

7. Slippers. I wore them all day.

8. The Smell of Rain. Tonight when I was going to Blockbuster, I could totally smell the rain coming. One of my favorite smells...

9. Jeff and Jer. They've been making me laugh for a lot of years...

10. Never A Dull Moment. It's my face scrub from Origins. I feel so clean and refreshed after I use it, and it smells so wonderfully yummy! Makes me feel happy!

Happy Tuesday!

1990

I've got quite a few photos to share with you today. A word of caution before we dive in; you are about to witness, along with some fun pictures, an abundance of green. Green walls, green appliances, green curtains, green carpet, green-ish linoleum... My folks purchased their house in the 70's, and these pictures were clearly taken before the remodel! Anyhow, on with the show...


Since my last two posts included Winter Camp photos, I thought I'd sneak one in of camp in 1990. It was so cool; someone made a mistake and overbooked the place. Since we were the last to arrive (yes, we were late) we were placed in one of the vacant "staff apartments". We had so much fun! We went to a grocery store in town and bought stuff so that we could fix our own meals instead of eating camp food. This was spaghetti night.


I received my first dozen roses this year. They were delivered to me at school. Loved 'em.


I started 10th Grade. Apparently, I stood out here every year for Mom to take a picture...


I went to Homecoming. I don't have a full body shot from the front, so I thought I'd show you the back. You can just imagine what the front looked like. Frankly, I think I like the back better, butt bow and all!


Displaying a clear lapse of judgment, I was a pumpkin for our youth group Halloween party. What the heck was I thinking???


On a sad note, Taffy (my wonderful dog!) died in July of 1990. She was seriously the best dog ever. We'd had her since I was 5 years old...it was pretty hard on all of us. We all loved her so very much. This photo wasn't taken in '90, probably several years earlier, but it's one of my favorites.


While Taffy could never be truly replaced, we did move on. In November of '90 we couldn't resist bringing home these sweet sisters. This was taken the night we brought them home. Ruddy is on the left, Dusty is on the right.


It was clear from the beginning that Dusty was going to take an easy-going, relaxed approach to life...


...and that we'd have to keep our eyes on Ruddy! Yes, that's my nose in her mouth.


I'm not really sure why, but for some reason we all thought that my Granddad needed a dog too. So, in December we told him that we were all going out Christmas shopping. Mom, Dad, Grandma and I piled into the car and headed out. We brought him home a puppy. It was the best thing we could have done! Widget was his best friend until he died in 1998; they did everything together. The night he died, I'm totally not kidding, she curled up and went to sleep in his room like she was waiting for him to come back. I'm so glad we bought her!


Hope you enjoyed 1990; it was a good year. See you in 1991!