Monday, But Looking Forward to Thursday

I have been harassed and threatened to the point that I feel it is time to blog again.  Even though I have been suffering from a lack of motivation to write, and a minimal amount of confidence, I have been shamed into making a blog appearance today.  As usual, I am looking forward to Thursday and the gymnatics update from Campbell's mom and pictures.  In fact, I think I will dig out my leotard and plan to do some gymnastics myself on Thursday in celebration of Campbell going to her gymnastics class.  If I can figure out how to do it, I will try to photograph myself doing my handstand, just to share in the fun!

Campbell's mom is so so good to post so many pictures of her and her daily activities.  She has pics of finding her nearly naked in her bed in the morning because she has removed her pajamas.  She has pics of falling asleep in her carseat in the back of the car.  She has pics of her gently examining pictures and keepsakes in her home.  She even has pictures of her crawling under the furniture, and oh yeah, there was at least one time that C got caught emptying entire boxes of kleenex and baby wipes.  I AM SORRY!  I cannot EVEN compete with that!  I got nothin'! 

Here are a couple of highlights of my day.  And please forgive me, there are no pictures.  :)

1)  An insured package that I had sent via the United States Postal Service to my son with some medications in it was found, late, but nevertheless it was found.

2)  My mom has a new car, kinda sweet sportscar, and I got to drive it.  We went after a coke, and I complained about something or other.  She couldn't get a word in edgewise, which is the general opposite of our conversations.

3)  I forgot to put my power bracelet back on after I got out of the shower last night, and so I wasn't wearing it all day..... because I forgot to put it back on this morning, too.  I swear, I ran into two walls and nearly fell down three times, just trying to pull on my coat and things like that!  Guess I am going to have to just leave it on when I shower, but that just doesn't sound right.  Seems to me like it would be like taking a shower with all your jewelry on.  I don't think so.

4)  And I started my Christmas list.  Okay.  So I started a list.

Yes, people, THOSE are the highlights!  I know, it's pitiful.  Well, I didn't give you the details -- I actually accomplished a lot more -- I went to work, ran lots of errands, completed a couple of travel projects and other desk projects.  But you know this is a blog about a girl who lives in the middle of the country, and today, she's got nothing new.  Sorry. 

Please come back, and always remember that *sarcasm* is my best friend.  :)  I just want to be funny!

Cute Kid Tuesday

Everyone knows a cute kid or two.  I know I do, but today, it is time to feature one of the cutest.

Here is my darling friend's precious daughter, Campbell.  She has a wonderful blog, mapping the day-to-day life of her daughter.  It is wonderful for those of us who don't live particularly close to them and don't get to see them often enough.  Here's her blog.  If you are reading mine, you probably know her and would enjoy reading about what they are up to. 

And here she is telling me what she wanted to do next when she was at my house.  Of course, we did it.  It was read 3 books.  So we did, and we read them each 5 times.

She is brilliant.  After I read the books to her, she returned the favor and read them to me!

Then she wanted to do some off-roading, so we obliged.  We wore our seatbelts, safety first!  After a day at Lily's, she was worn out.  But Campbell left Lily wanting more....  Hope she comes back soon!

Not For Me, But....

This portable crib caught my eye today.  The reason that is so unusual, is because I have absolutely NO NEED for such a thing, but is is just THAT COOL!   It's called the GoCrib.

Can you believe this deal?  There are no metal bars or yucky nylon.  You aren't going to have to worry about losing a digit setting it up.  This pack-and-play is inflatable, and it can easily be squished back down into its backpack to transport it to grandma's house, or the next hotel.  Even though it is inflated, (it includes its own easy to use pump), it is unbelievably strong and durable.  It can withstand even the occasional 'big kid' who can't resist getting in!

Since you know kids put their hands and mouths on everything, you can rest assured the GoCrib is super safe.  It is PVC free, Phthalate free, and made with lead-free, non toxic materials.  Oh, and the pump is non-motorized, so you don't have to worry about where you will plug it in or batteries being dead.

Apparently, you can no longer use the baby as a reason not to visit someone.  :)

Back to School?!?

Really?  It can't be that time already.  I lamented this fact about a month ago when I saw school supplies out at Walmart prior to the Fourth of July.  But ready or not, it is almost here.

My kids don't start back to college until August 23rd, but those with grade school, middle school and high school kids will probably be sending them back earlier than that.  Is it just me, or does time seem to fly by?  Especially the older I get, the faster it seems to go.  There aren't a lot of days that I think, "wow, this day is slow, I wish it would hurry up and be over."  Why is that?

Is it that I am officially old?  Gosh, that would shock the heck out of me.  I mean, I know I am old, but good grief, I'm not that old.

Is it that I am busy?  I wouldn't have thought that.  After all, what do I do anyway?  People ask me that all the time, and I even ask myself sometimes.  I feel like I probably do less than the average 46 year old.  My jobs are part time, I have help with the housecleaning, I hate going to the grocery, so I avoid that as long as I can -- all that and there are just errands and laundry. 

"Lost time is never found again."
-- Benjamin Franklin

"Time is too slow for those who wait, too swift for those who fear, too long for those who grieve, too short for those who rejoice, but for those who love, time is eternity."
-- Henry Van Dyke

"Better late than never, but never late is better."
-- Unknown

more pics

More pics need to be taken...  Chase and Sheena will be home in about a week or so.  I am emptying the memory cards and charging up the batteries due to the impending arrival.  We have seen him so rarely this summer.  We will have to make up for lost time with lots of pics when they finally get here.

Now here is a perfect example of why we will need to take a lot of pictures.  Sheena = looking good.  Eyes open, perfect smile.  Perfect head tilt.  Chase = eyes almost closed.  Still a cute picture and would probably work for some things, but if we took, say 20 more, we might get a really good one with his eyes open a little more, or something spontaneous, like a funny moment or something.  He will love getting this news.  Shhh..... don't tell him.  We can just surprise him when he gets here.

He loves his mom.  Surely he will indulge her.......

Wild Men

The boys of summer are having a fabulous time in SoCal.  I have gotten a few texts from them, and they seem to definitely be living life on the edge.  They stopped for a snack yesterday at the Heart Attack Cafe at the Orange County Fair.  They told me they had deep fried butter and chocolate covered bacon.  Neither sounds very appetizing to me, but I think they were just trying to get me wound up. 

I know Chase wanted to show Mike his favorite little hole in the wall eating establishment, Chronic Tacos.  No doubt, that is on their list...

Last I knew, today they were having lunch with Chase's boss, Michael, then were off to the X-Games.  Good times.

I remember when the kids were little, and they would watch the X-Games on television... then they would go outside and build ramps to skate off and ride their bikes off of...  It's amazing we didn't have more visits to the emergency room.  We were pretty lucky that way.

Oh, and they also had to send me a text to tell me that it was 75 degrees there.  I responded with a sarcastic two word phrase that isn't fit for publication, and informed them that it was 98 here at home.  And to think, only three days ago, I was saying "Aloha," and "Mahalo," as if they were part of my regular vocabulary... and watching the palm trees sway in the wind. 

Believe it or not --

I happen to have more photos of the University that might be helpful for Bon as she becomes more familiar with E's new surroundings.

Like, for instance, this could be the view from his dorm room....  it really could!

And here is our basketball coach, his name is Travis Ford.  We think we like him.  We don't agree with all of his antics, but to my knowledge, no chairs have flown. 

And the lesson here, is that you want to be sitting behind this particular goal at the end of the game, because, win or lose, the players come back and jump into the stands with the students, and they all join in singing (and they put arms on shoulders of the strangers and friends all around them) the Alma Mater, which luckily -- E learned at Camp Cowboy.  So he is good to go!

So that is what is going on in that picture.  There are at least 3 players in this picture.  The kids love this!

And then you know, we will always be there for you!  This is only part of our Stillwater contingent.  We have many others and you know many yourself!  I think it is going to be a great fit, E!

Bring your orange!!!  You are going to need it!

A few more local landmarks....

Still sharing compassion and concern for my friend who is going to soon send her firstborn off to the university.  I figured I could at least help her become familiar with some of the local landmarks.

Okay, Bon, Eskimo Joe's -- don't miss the cheese fries.  And remember, potatoes are a vegetable.

The World Headquarters..... celebrating their 35th Anniversary next week, while we go on that trip to distract you.

And this is Hall of Fame...  it is the street right in front of your boy's dorm!  Definitely the place to be on game day!!!!

The Barn is on the strip.  Seriously, they have the best cokes.  Just sayin.

I'm here for ya!

The big birds have no idea.....

The birds that made this nest know nothing about the World Cup.  They have no idea that the USA is out.  They have no idea that they are center stage because of .... soccer.

I don't know if you can tell or not... but there are four little baby bird heads poking up out of this nest.  It is on my back porch, and yes, they are making a big mess, but what do you do?  The mom and dad come along ever so often and feed them, and these little fellas act like they are starving to death!  After all, it is around 95 degrees out there, and I'll bet they would like nothing more than a big long gulp of water. 

For a while now, I have been watching the parentals coming and going from this nest, making the preparations needed for the arrival of these itty bitty ones.  The nest is way up high, probably about 12 feet off the ground.  So until a couple of days ago, I didn't know that the eggs had actually hatched, and the babies were fighting for survival.  It has been a fast incubation, if you ask me.

It got me to thinking about my own nest.  Seems like not so long ago, we had a baby or two of our own.  They squawked.  We fed them.  They started to show signs of growth and maturity, and we gave them space to grow even more.  We let them take little trips out of the nest, and they learned confidence, and always came back.  But we are approaching big steps out of the nest.  They are probably ready.  But, am I?  What's next?  Will they come back?  Ever?  The big birds have no idea what is going to happen to their little nest and its occupants.  But I do.  And it's good.  Life is good.