What Boys Do When Let To Their Own Devices

Yeah, the dog really loved this...NOT.

Actually she didn't mind it nearly as much as I thought she would. Or at least as much as *I* would have minded it were I in her shoes...er...paws.

That boat she's in is an inflatable drink cooler that we used for the Sponge Bob themed birthday day party for The Critter. Maybe she does think she's on a tropical doggie island?

-e

VROOM!

Our little cub participated in his first Scout cub cart race. He did really well and even The Critter got to practice with the bigger boys. I'm hoping our den size increases. We lost two to moves and two to other commitments so we're a little small right now. Summer is not as busy with activities, but there is still a good deal of planning that goes on to make the fall run smoother.

Next stop the Back to School Swim Bash!! Of course it's our den's job to plan and coordinate so we may end up playing in the sprinker in the backyard with a bag of pretzles.

-e

Worries About Monday

In light of J's surgery on Monday I'll relay to you all my fears of what that day holds.

1) Death. I'd be lying if I didn't say I'm scared I will lose my baby. I realize that a tonsilectomy and anoidectomy are possibly two of the most common -ectomies known to man, but we're talking about a boy. MY boy in point of fact and I want nothing to happen to him.

2) Complications. What if he has a reaction to anesthesia? What if they take out too much? Not enough? What if?

3) Hunger. He can't eat after midnight on Sunday and I don't want him to be hungry. Or thirsty. I'm a mom, and therefore my job to want my child to eat. To be told *not* to feed him is just wrong.

4) Pain. I do not want my child to be in pain. I'd rather gnaw off my arm than have him hurt even a moment. I want them to give him something to take away any pain or I'll have to go all Terms of Endearment on them.

5) Recovery. I want him to bounce back quickly so he can enjoy the rest of summer.

-e

Thirteen Thursday: Suburban Crap

It's that time of week again when we take the time to get to know one another better. Krisco leads this challenge, but gives us quite a bit of free reign. After spending an inordinate amount of time looking for The Critter's game boy in the back of our truck I decided I'd report on the crap I cleaned out of my truck.

The third seat of my vehicle is just disgusting. I never get back there so it's very hard to police what my kids are taking, using and doing back there. Ewwww. The list of nastiness will send even the most insensitive cootie-o-meter off the charts.

1) Goldfish carcasses abound. The little fellas that didn't make it to be snack died a terrible death-by-crumbs.

2) Seven mateless shoes. How does one shoe make it out and one not?

3) Five DVDs that the boys swear they had no idea where they were if they weren't in the DVD book. Yeah, okay.

4) Eight lollipop sticks. Sticky lollipop sticks. Whenever we go to the bank the tellers send lollipops to the boys with my transaction.

5) Two Leap Pad cassettes. The books are MIA, but at least we have the cassettes.

6) Eleven empty juice boxes and juice pouches.

7) Two Sports Illustrated Kids magazines.

8) Three kid's meal toys still in the packaging.

9) Eight ground-into-the-upholstery fruit chews.

10) Four craft projects from Spring semester.

11) Nine fountain drink straws.

12) Too many to count playground pea gravel and piles of sand in the crevices and on the floorboard.

13) Ironically enough, one empty garbage bag.

Did you play? C'mon play...you know you want to. Okay, then go clean your car so that you don't have to have a list like mine.

-e

Buyer's Remorse

Today we got the boys roller skates. Well, there those tennis shoes with wheels that pop out the bottom. We made sure they were outfitted with the safety equipment, but I'm still worried. And I have no idea why. I mean I remember fondly my tennis shoe roller skates. The were bad-ass and I was bad-ass on them. I could do the backwards skate, the leg cross over around the rink, hell, I could even squat down with one leg in front of me. None of these moves would have been possible without my own set of skates.

So we're good on health insurance come what may. The boys seem to be okay and I do want them to be active, that's the reason I agreed to buy the skates.

I'll let you know...

-e

Thirteen Thursday: Things In My Pantry

More thanks to Krisco who brings us this game and encourages us to get to know each other a little better. This week I give you the thirteen things I've got in my cupboard.

1) Vanilla Wafers
2) Chicken noodle soup
3) Wheat Thins
4) cake mix - milk chocolate
5) Goldfish crackers
6) Hill Country Fare French Vanilla instant oatmeal
7) sugar
8) flour
9) rice
10) beans
11) can of sweetened consensed milk
12) cans of corn

Oh sure, there's lots more, but I only needed thirteen today...LOL. Okay, so did you play?

-e

Another Lazy Blogging Day

**Update** J-boy has swimmer's ear and not an ear infection relapse as I thought. He's grumpy as all get out and not sleeping well so that's made for a rough couple of days for all of us.

--

I lifted this from another board I'm on and I've decided to make easy work of my blog post today.

Okay, now on to the ABC's of me...

A - Age: 35
B - Best day ever: Everyday I wake up
C - Children?: 2 boys
D - Dream house: Spanish style in Mexico near the beach with a full staff
E - Eggs (how do you like them?): scrambled with cheese
F - For fun I: reading, scrapbooking, blogging
G - Greatest Accomplishment: raising my boys and being the youngest person in my title when I worked outside the home.
H - How many rooms in your place?: 10
I - Ice cream flavor: sweet cream vanilla
J - Jury duty, ever had to do it?: Nope, and I've never even been called even though I'm registered to vote and have driver's license.
K - Know any good jokes?: Umm, a few.
L - Last book you read: I'm reading "And Never Let Her Go" by Ann Rule that I got from Candy and her bookcrossing stuff.
M - Most treasured possession: My new laptop that I got for Mother's Day from my boys.
N - Name: E to friends and Lainey to family
O - Organization tip: Bags. I use canvas bags embroidered with what's in them to keep track of my different commitments (PTA, Scouts, etc).
P - Pets?: 3 dogs: Zoe, Hurley and Chula
Q - Question--most asked of you: Weren't you on the cover of SI?? *grin* Just kidding - probably stuff about kids since I work with them, but I surely don't feel qualified enough to give advice.
R - Relaxation - what do you do?: Read or blog.
S - State you live in: Texas...yee haw.
T - Talent(s): I can get 15 three and four year olds to actually stand in a straight line, hands behind their back and quietly follow me without losing a one of them.
U - Unique quirk: I have to have my sandwich in a certain order.
V - Vacation: We're going to two Texas locales this summer and to California next summer. We've been to San Francisco, Pacific Northwest, Atlanta, Orlando, Mexico, St. Louis, Oregon, Colorado,Oklahomaa, Kansas...
W - What are you wearing: Khaki shorts and a purple top.
X - X-rays you have had: teeth, back, wrist, ankle, knee, sonogram.
Y - Your hair color: Naturally? Boring brown. Now I've got highlights.
Z - Zoo animal: If I were one I'd be a hippo, but I like the elephants.

Okay, feel free to lift from me, but tell me if you did so I can see what you said.

-e

Summer Ponderings

Today is the first "real" day of summer for us. Before I had Papa here so it was more about family time. Now I'm a little panicked about what our schedule looks like this next grand twelve weeks. I feel this pressure (albeit much of it internal) to keep the boys active and J-boy reading. I think I'm good on the reading part having instituted a "quiet time" each day. They're allowed to read, sleep or just look at the wall, but they must have the down time. For me as much as them. Then when Papa gets home they'll be rested enough to have some fun with him.

The thing of it is I still feel like I'm supposed to keep them active. Hmmm...the great challenge with that in Texas is that it's hot. Damn hot. I can take them swimming and I will, but stuff is bound to occur like ear infections. J-boy can't swim while his ear is smarting. So what to do, what to do. So far we've watched TV and played a few video games. We've moved to more board games, but these are sedentary activities. There are some lovely trails in the area, but I won't go walk them alone with the boys. So not safe.

Mostly I'm just worried about what I *should* be doing. I blame that new TLC show "Honey, We're Killing Our Kids". It has these families eating soup and salad for dinner and working out an hour each day. This is the standard?? Okay, maybe the ideal, but I feel this pressure to live up to that level and it's killing us. The "coach" on that show said mom needed to have a calmer life. Yeah, right...calm when she's having to orchestrate an hour of some sort of sports-like activity. Hell, I think taking both kids to the grocery store should count for something.

Anyway, I just had to let out some of this angst. Intellectually I know I'm making much to about nada, but I go with my strengths.

-e

The Do

A bunch of you have been asking for a picture of the hair so here it is for your review. Ha. This was taken the first day I got it done and I still wasn't quite used to it so I'll have to get new pictures now that I'm not so freaked out about it.



Oh, and don't you love the purple bra with the brown tank top? What? You never would have noticed if I hadn't pointed it out? My bad.

-e

Thirteen Thursday: Summer Goals

cSpecial thanks to Krisco who brought us this game and encourages us to get to know each other a little better. This week I give you the thirteen things I hope to get accomplished this summer.

1) Clean up my craft room/office. I want it to go to more of an office than a craft room. Papa bought me a laptop for Mother's Day so I have my very own "space". No one gets to use this bad girl but me. Maybe it seems like a small thing to other people, but for someone who's kids eat right off her plate the idea of a small place all my own is just giddy-producing.

2) Teach 7 weeks of Camp MDO. We're doing different countries as themes and the research and preparation is great for teaching my own kids.

3) Paint the boys room. I want each of them to get to put their own personalities in their space - even if it does mean some crazy colors or whatever. It's just paint, I keep reminding myself.

4) Shred all the old documents stored in the garage. I'm down to the last three boxes of crap that were collected for years. Now it's time to get it gone.

5) Clean up the indoor file cabinet. We have a four drawer and that just makes us keep every little scrap of paper (okay, it makes Papa keep it; I'm a serial throw-aware). I want to bring down our on site paperwork to two more decorative drawers and not this big metal box that we used at our old office.

6) Paint the baseboards. I love, LOVE, LOVE!! my new floors. We're almost done except the last of the painting the baseboards with a high gloss paint. Okay...maybe I'll give this one to Papa...

7) Put a bunch of stuff on eBay, Craigslist or Freecycle. After pimping Pampered Chef I have so many stones. I have found that I really only use a few of them so the rest of them are being sold. I've found a few other things we've been holding on to that would really be better out of our house and maybe being put to better use somewhere else. This may be a byproduct of my HGTV addiction.

8) Visit every free pool or attraction in our town. We live a great town that has a ton of free things to do. I want to experience all of them with the boys!

9) Get J-boy's tonsils removed. Since it's already scheduled for June I feel pretty safe saying this will get done. I'm scared...

10) Buy bikes for Papa and myself so that we can take the boys down to the Velloway to ride.

11) Have at least 3 friend get-togethers at our house. We are so bad about not having people over because we get caught up in other stuff. We need to have connections and fellowship with others.

12) Find a church home. We've been putting it off for far too long.

13) Start The Grocery Game to try to cut our grocery bill down. I see that line in the budget keep climbing and with two boys I can't imagine it getting smaller. I'm just trying to control or manage it.

That's some of the goals. I'm sure there are more.

Did you play??

-e

Butterfly

Z-boy graduated from his MDO/PreK program today. So cute! I wanted to hold it all together, but I started boo-hooing the minute Pomp & Circumstance started. Of course me tearing up caused all the other parents and teachers to start crying too. Z-boy's teacher said she had a big speech planned, but was too emotional to finish. So here we are after the big event. All he can think about is the cake and punch they get when the ceremony was over.

I know, it sounds sappy, but it's so hard to think of my little boy growing up. Everything he goes though is an emotional roller coaster because I think "this is the last time we're going to ___".

Of course I'll have to look back on this post during the summer when the boys are driving me crazy.

-E

Thirteen Thursday: Evidence I've Turned Into My Mother

It's that time again when Krisco has us all getting to know each other just a little bit better. Usually I follow her lead, but I've been a rebel the last few weeks and come up with my own. As a belated homage to Mother's Day this week's Thirteen Thursday will review things I've said in the last week that convinced I am becoming my mother.

1) If you put things back in their place you'd know where to find them.

2) You don't have to like it, you just have to do it.

3) Shut the door!

4) Turn the volume down! I can't even hear myself think!

5) Try at least one bite before you decide you don't like it.

6) Why do you always wait until the last minute to tell me these things?!

7) You'll always be MY baby!

8) Don't slam the door!

9) Don't talk with your mouth full.

10) There is always money for books.

11) Quien te lo manda??

12) Yeah, but they're family.

13) When you have your own house you can make the rules.

Did you play? Or feel free to add your own here in the comments section.

-E

Stop Growing!!

Happy Birthday, Z-Boy!! You have blessed our life for FIVE whole years!!


I can't believe that 5 years ago today my baby was born. He went from an 8.5 pound bundle of joy to the hurricane of activity he is today. I think I'm even more morose because he has his MDO (preschool) graduation on Friday. He will no longer be a Caterpillar, but will blossom into a Butterfly and fly away to Kindergarten. Sob!!



Look! Mommy and Daddy brought me home a new pet. I'm going to keep him in this cage so I can crawl in and hang out with him.




Thank you, Dr. Seeker for making this birthing experience more than I could have hoped for. You brought my boy into the world healthy and happy. We can't thank you enough!!

-E

I Think My Weird-O-Meter Is Going Off The Charts

But first an update...It was an ear infection. And the second ear was well on it's way to being infected too. The doctor thought there may be strep throat too, but the round of antibiotics for the ear would kick that out if so.

On to my looney thoughts...

I checked out the new grocery store that is all the rage today. It's further than about 5 other stores I could go to, but only 2 of them really count since the other stores are ridiculously overpriced. I digress. I liked this new store, but I feel uncomfortable there. I feel like I don't belong. I feel like everyone in the store is looking at me like you don't live in this neighborhood (which is a swanky one at that), what are you doing shopping here? Get lost, you across-the-boulevard trash! Your neighborhood is two subdivisions over.

Now I know they're not really saying that, I suppose, but I can't help but feel I'm trespassing. No, I never felt that way when Swanky Neighbors shopped at the store that is close to me before Chez Grocery opened and they were traipsing over to my 'hood. And the new Mega Warehouse Store that is opening in, count them, 17 days would require Swanky Neighbors to come over to my 5 mile, but I'm civil.

I think a lot of this stems from a park in the area. It's called Swanky Neighborhood Park, but that's not it's real name. It's really a City park that just happens to be in that neighborhood, but some of the moms in that area are very propriatary. That is not my imagination, I've hear it from others.

Anyway, no real point to all of this other than I like the new store and I'll probably keep going to it and if some soccer mom wants to rumble in the parking lot, bring it on.

;)

-E

The Good Lord Willing And The River Don't Rise

We're getting to the end of this crazy season. I've dropped balls all over the place, pissed off more than a few people and left several things undone I'm sure. Still I can bask in my successes. I've passed out all the PTA goodie bags for kitchen staff, lunch monitors, teaching assistants and crossing guards. I'm still giving my time and talents to the end of the year hurrah and doing my best to make sure my students enjoy their last few days with me as their teacher.

Can't win 'em all.

I think J-boy has an ear infection. Shit. And I have to work tomorrow. Double shit. Okay, so I'll take him with me since he's not contagious, but I can't really send him off to his school because of the no fever thing. He has an appointment with the ENT soon so maybe we'll make it until Thursday?

I'm surrounded by piles of paper in this house. I cannot seem to get a hand up on controlling the paper beast. I keep saying as soon as school is done for the year I'll get caught up. At this point I can't help but worry a bit that maybe 12 weeks won't be enough to get my head above water...er...paper? My current plan of action for dealing with the mail is not dealing with it. Not my finest plan I'll admit. And I can't help but be a bit curious why we got two electric bills this month. I know I could just open the envelopes and find out, but why spoil the suspense?

I can't sign off without just a little blurb about Grey's Anatomy. Oh. My. Goodness. That was a pretty steamy scene between Meredith and Derek! I wasn't surprised that Denny died, and yeah the whole Izzy on the bed with dead Denny scene choked me up a bit, but hello! you stole a heart! If you believe in nothing else do you not think, at the very least, karma may have an intervention? Christina was ticking me off. A little, just the tiniest bit of sympathy would not be out of order here. Sheesh! And I love the whole George-Callie story line. They are so cute together. I can't believe I have to wait until September to see my family at Seattle Grace again!

-E

Mother's Day Madness

Actually it was pretty good. The boys got the concept of Mother's Day this year and did their best to let me have my day. I got breakfast in bed at about 6:30 a.m. and then I took *my* mom to breakfast later around 10 a.m. Then me and my mom went to have massages. It was the best! I'm all goofy from relaxation.

The boys and Papa all cleaned my car for Mother's Day. Papa said the 3rd seat would have sent my cootie-o-meter off the charts. Yeah, don't tell me anymore.

After all that we went to Red Robin for dinner and now I'm waiting for Grey's Anatomy to start. I made banana pudding to cap off the day.

All and all a dandy Mother's Day 'round these parts! How was y'alls?

-E

Floors other Flights of Fancy

Floors

I thought I'd post a pictures of the finished product since I'm so damn proud. I know y'all don't care, but indulge me.





Ain't they purdy? They clean up like a dream. I'm so happy with them. I'm glad we waited to get exactly what we wanted. It was worth it!

Mother's Day and Other Celebrations

Why is there all this pressure on *one* day when it comes to celebrations? And in the case of my family why can't people make a plan and stick to it? I said Saturday would work better for a Mother's Day celebration! Everyone has church at different places on Sunday not to mention all the other commitments, let's just give the poor day a break! First we're having something at one sibling-in-law's house, then we're not. Then we're having lunch somewhere else. *sigh*

Then on the other side of the loony bin there's still more Drama for the Mamas. First we hear they want to have something, but aren't quite sure yet. Then they're having a BBQ at mom and step-dad's, but there's no actual time because that would ruin the spontaneity.

Umm, oookay.

I have two small children who are scheduled to the nth degree. Spontaneity or any derivatives of the word do not enter our vocabulary. Tell me when you're having your function and we will do our best to be there, but do not plan around us! And for goodness sake's, if you pick a time and place, DON'T change it or it totally messes up everything else we have planned!

Where's My Hair?

As I mentioned I had my hair highlighted early this week. When I went to work the next time I taught my students saw my new do and they were a little surprised. You have to figure is little kids notice something new that it's got to be pretty drastic? My first hint should have been that my co-teacher didn't recognize me when I walked in the room. Anyway, while I was sitting at the play-doh table one of the little boys came up to me and asked me where was my hair? I told him this is my hair. He tells me "no, where did you leave your old hair, not the new hair?" I told him I left it at The Hair Store and left it at that. Sometimes it's easier to not over explain.

Party Week!

I just realized I will be a partying fool this week. Well, in so much that a PTA/scout mom can be a partying fool. I mean, we're not talking Animal House or anything, but pretty wild for me.

Z-boy's birthday is this week and we're having family/extended family over on Wednesday. Thursday I have my monthly Mom's Night for dinner and then pedicures. Friday I have my PTA Board end of the year soiree complete with food and adult beverages. Now this is the kind of over-scheduled week I like!

Catch you cats later!

-E

I Told You I Was Out of Creativity

So I had to steal this from Cassie.

1. How did you get the idea for your profile name? From a TV show. Then I changed the name of my blog (but not the address) and I thought of it after a few beers at the last Mom's Night Out.

2. What song are you playing now, or wish you were playing? I'm listening to Papa snore while the TV blares in the background. I *wish* I was listening to Sheryl Crow's "Wildflower".

3. Has the death of a celebrity ever made you cry? River Phoenix's death still makes me sad and I cried when he died. I cried at Princess Diana's funeral.

4. What colour underwear are you wearing? Pink.

5. Do you want a baby? No, I have two of my own and many nieces and nephews.

6. What does your dad do for a living? He's retired from SBC. Now he works part time doing something, but I'm not sure exactly what (I don't know if *he* knows).

7. What does your mum do for a living? Works in a law firm.

8. What is/are your pet's name(s)? Zoe Sonic, Hurley Knuckles and Chula Tails. We are swanky giving our pets middle names. Actually that is the work of Z-boy who is gonzo over Sonic The Hedgehog.

9. What colour are your bed sheets? Light blue with Khaki accents.

10. What are the last 3 digits of your phone number? 991

11. What was the last concert you went to? George Lopez

12. Who was with you? Papa.

13. What was the last film you watched? Secondhand Lions.

14. Who do you dislike most at this moment? The "caterer" who slapped a some cheese and fruit together, called it a "display" and waaaaaay overcharged the PTA. But, no, I'm not bitter.

15. What food do you crave right now? Nachos.

16. Did you dream last night? I don't remember if I did.

17. What was the last TV show you watched? A rerun of Melrose Place on Soapnet.

18. What is your fav piece of jewelery? My engagement ring and my longhorn charm.

19. What is to the left of you? a dry erase board.

20. What was the last thing you ate? Chick Fil A

21. Who is your best friend of the opposite sex? Papa - cliche, but true.

22. Who last MSN'd you? I don't have MSN, I have YIM, but I don't have it on.

23. Where is your significant other right now? Sleeping.

24. Do you have a crush? Yes.

25. What is his/her name? George on Grey's Anatomy and the other I can't say because it would embarrass him, but it's not really a crush as much as it's eye candy.

26. When was the last time you had your hair cut? Two days ago.

27. Are you on any meds? Yes, isn't everyone?

28. Do you have a mental disease? Yes, doesn't everyone?

29. What shirt are you wearing? Denim cami.

30. Are you sexy? Too sexy for my cat.

31. What's your favourite store? TJ Maxx.

32. Are you thirsty? No.

33. Can you imagine yourself ever getting married? -- Again? Like if something happened to Papa? No. I couldn't/wouldn't ask my family to "blend". I know it works for other people and someone else might make another choice, but for me as long as my kids are at home I wouldn't want to have to manage two often conflicting relationships. And when the boys are out of the house then, hell, I want to do what I want to do! I figure that's the payoff since I've spend the last 16 years compromising and meeting halfway.

34. Who's someone you haven't seen in a while and miss? My cousin, Louis.

35. Where do you work? At Casa P's mostly. Also the grade school and finally at a Mother's Day Out program.

There you go! Let me know if you stole what I stole.

-E

Thirteen Thursday: Things I've Been Doing Since I Obviously Haven't Been Blogging

Where have I been and where are my witty thoughts and contemplations I'm sure you're asking. So in the interest of time I'm going to combine my update with my Thirteen Thursday. Here are 13 things I've been up to the last few weeks.

1) Planning, organizing and implementing the PTA Teacher and Staff Appreciation Luncheon. I will address some of the horror in another post, but suffice it to say I'm glad it's over.

2) Doing all the administrative and accounting stuffola for summer and fall registration at my work. The end of the year is a butt kicker in my line of work. Everyone has questions and everyone expects me to have the answers. Riiiiight.

3) Getting my floors installed!! Woo hoo! That is actually what took me out of commission, blog wise, in the first place. It was a state of chaos in my home. BUT there were blessings galore with the whole installation process that made the inconvenience so worth it. First we got the flooring $.40/sqft cheaper than we expected. Papa and Special K were going to install it all on their ownsome, but Special K was going out of town for two weeks. Not to worry we'd live with concrete floors - and not that pretty, rustic kind of concrete either - until he came back. While we unloading the boxes some guy who was a friend of the guy my step father asked to come look at our floors (you following??) called Papa and asked if he still needed a quote. Papa said were unloading as we speak so come over now. After some negotiating Papa got the guy down to $1.10 a sqft for installation and they'd do it the next day. Hot damn! We were still giddy at our savings on the material so we reallocated the moolah to the installation. I have to say the guys that installed our floor did a fantastic job! I love it! I love having this project complete.

4) Finishing up the last few weeks of our Mother's Day Out program. We're making all the sweet and sentimental end of the year stuff that they'll keep until Mommy cleans out their room.

5) Registering Z-boy for...gulp!...Kindergarten. Even though I know the teachers and the school I'm still so anxious about next year. I will be leaving both of my boys 4 blocks away with someone other than family.

6) Getting my hair highlighted. I told the stylist to do what she thought was best. I was scared shitless with the results the first day, but I'm good now. I knew I had to do something drastic when I passed a window and wondered who the old, matronly looking gal was only to discover it was ME. I went to the salon the next day.

7) I came out of hiding on my online moms group. Not sure how I'm feeling about it all. I still feel fairly disconnected. I have a pretty strong real life community so I'm not really cultivating other friendships at a distance.

8) Watching all my DVR recordings. I do love sweeps month! Lost, Grey's Anatomy, CSI, Ghost Whisperer (yeah, I admit it) and Real Housewives of Orange County. Awesome!

9) Getting J-boy ready to have his tonsils out. We're going to the ENT this week. I'm very nervous.

10) Doing the overview for Scouts next year. It's a well oiled machine, but if you don't volunteer for something you get assigned something. That's never good. So next year we are in charge of the food drive and the cake auction. I still have to do the back-to-school swim party this year.

11) Getting ready for Z-boy's 5th birthday. The boy has BIG plans. We're having a Sponge Bob theme, but he wants Sonic presents. Mmmmkay.

12) Preparing the end of year goodie bags for Teacher's Aides, Kitchen Staff, Special Areas Teachers, Lunch Monitors, Nurses and Administrative Professionals. All of these people have been "celebrated" in the last three weeks. I. Am. So. Tired. And fresh out of creativity.

13) Selling some stuff on ebay. I have a ton of things that need to be auctioned off, but the task of getting it all prepared and loaded just seems to be too much for me right now.

Hopefully I can get a little more consistent letting you all into my life when school finished for the year. I'm so looking forward to the slower pace of summer. I want to hit every free pool in town. I was going to put J-boy in all sorts of things to keep him busy, but so far I've just registered him for two weeks of 3 hours per day of science camp. The rest of the time we're going to bug my neice at the pool she's life gurarding at this summer.

-E

Mini Rescue Heros

Where were they when my kids starting collecting those damn Fisher-Price toys? The original RH toys are huge. For J-boy's birthday my mom bought him this huge ass Hyper Jet HQ that is literally a piece of furniture in our home.

Now my kids are into the "mini" versions of everything from Matchbox to slinkies. Include a magnetic component of some kind and you have my kid's money.

-E

I'm Bringing Home A Baby Bumble Bee

My boys received insect kits from the Easter Bunny. ;)

They have been bug-finding fools! Everywhere they go they're looking to collect creatures and put them in these plastic boxes and peer at them through magnifying glasses. This whole process is creepy to me. I suppose, as a girl, I'll never understand the bug fascination.

It makes me realize my boys are moving into a new stage of their life. They enjoy having me around for afternoon snack and seeing my face in their schools, but it's Daddy the wait for each night. Daddy takes them to the dog park and to play basketball. Daddy has them washing the car and building go-carts. I'm good for a peanut butter and 'nanner sandwich.

At first I was a little bitter about this transition, but I'm actually getting a little more excited. Now that the boys are needing me less I'm able to pursue my own interests. I've been wanting to work on setting up my own VA business for over a year, but felt the timing wasn't right. I've been doing a lot more research, defining my market and putting together a business plan. I'm really stoked about the possibilities.

-E

Mommy Down!

Oh. My. Goodness.

I've had the flu. I haven't been that sick in a good long time. And I don't want to be that sick ever again. There is nothing fun about puking when you haven't even had the benefit of several strong margaritas before hand.

Props to my Playground Beeyoches. I had mommies picking up my kids and taking them to school and home from school. They took my kids on field trips and brought us Gatorade. My girls totally picked up the slack during my illness. I called they rallied. I'm so blessed to have my Bad Ass Suburban Posse!

-E

SPF: Bunny Themed

Welcome to Stuff Portrait Friday. This week's assignment is loosely Easter related, if you stretch your mind to it's very limits. Special thanks to Kristine who hosts this adventure.

1. Your Peeps - introduce us to some of your friends outside of the blog world.
2. Something Fuzzy - *shaking head* you guys keep it clean.
3. Something/Someone you want to dye/die - Yeah, shut up, you’ve thought of it!


My Peeps

Once a month me and my beyotches get together and do something wild and crazy. We had a smaller turn out than usual due to the Easter Holiday so not all my peeps represent.















That's me, Hot Mama, Drama Queen, Hooters and Blonde Bird. We're here for a baby shower. In a bowling alley. Can you get any classier? Sorry for the dark pictures, but the "leaguers" insist on no flash photography because it distracts their game. WHATEVER! I plan to edit these before sending them to Flickr, but y'all get the crappy version. Sorry.






















Hooters is doing her best to give her girls some props, but when you've birthed and breast-fed two kids in two years, well gravity deals you a tough hand. She's thinking maybe she'll have augmentation and go up as size or so as demonstrated here:















Blonde Bird's shirt says "Swallows" and has two lovely birdies on the front. We just tell everyone she's a bird lover.






















Now ordinarily I abhor beer, but when the nice, ahem, gentleman in the next lane bought us a round it seemed wrong not to at least have one beer. You know, in a bowling alley, when the beer is ice cold, drinking a Bud Lite seems somehow right. Since Hot Mama could not partake of the beer, he bought her a four Snickers. Mmmkay.

Something Fuzzy

My pups. Well, Chula isn't all that fuzzy, but Hurley makes up for her and then some. Hurley is in constant need of bath, but he's so cute you just can't fault him.

















Something I want to dye

Grrr. This just ticks me off! The dry cleaner said this shirt was brought in this way. Uhh..no. Papa generally doesn't eat dry cleaning fluid and dribble it down the front of his garment. I know I could fight them on it, but it just doesn't seem worth the hassle. I'll go buy him a new shirt and save myself the aggravation. And I won't use that cleaners again. Reid's cleaners at the "Y" in Oak Hill for those of you who want to know where to stay away from with your dry-cleanables.



















Happy Easter! Be blessed!

-E

A Huntin' We Will Go

The annual Easter Egg Hunt arrives.

Every year my boys go to at least three egg hunts. They LOVE it. Papa told J-boy that no more egg hunts after you're 8-years-old and J-boy wasn't having it. Of course, J-boy knew Papa was just joking. As long as J-boy will agree to it, the hunt will continue.

Z-boy had his class egg hunt yesterday. It's a bummer the grade schools still don't do this kind of fun stuff. As Z-boy was hunting this year I was once again sad that he's on his "last" of things. Z-boy's teacher last year, a mom of two grown boys, told me that I'd be emotional about all of J-boy's "firsts" and all of Z-boy's "lasts". She was right.

So let's celebrate Z-boy's last egg hunt as a preschooler.
















-E

All I Want For Easter...

...is my front tooth.
















Actually though, I'm pretty good. The Tooth Fairy brought me a five-spot. Between that and my allowance savings, I'm looking to cash in on a sweet new video game.

-J

Marketing 101

The other day in the halls this woman, with whom I'm vaguely acquainted from one of my many aforementioned commitments, stops me to ask if I'll host a multi-level home party for her. She's pimping something - I'm not sure of the company - and gives me her pitch about earning free product.

No, thank you, I tell her as politely as I can, but she preservers. Eventually she says she'll follow up with me. Whatever.

So I'm looking at something posted in the hall (the silent auction winners for you inquiring minds) and she tells me that she saw my name on such-and-such a bid. Funny, I didn't bid on that one. Hmmm. So I go over to take a look-see and I see another name that looks sort of like mine, but not really. I tell her that's not me and she tells me "oh, well I don't really know your first name."

Come again? You're asking me to host a party, to invite my friends over to listen to you peddle your wares while I serve refreshments and YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW MY FUCKING NAME?? Not that would have agreed to this party in the first place, but c'mon don't they go over this with recruits in the rah-rah meetings all direct sales companies hold??

So if you don't know, if you're asking a favor of someone, it makes a real nice impression if you know their name.

Good grief, Charlie Brown!!

-E

Stop This Ride, I Want To Get Off

I'm in WAY over my head. I'm totally over committed. I have the disease to please. I don't know how to say no. Lately it's actually let to a bit of snarkiness amongst the school moms, but more on that another time. As it is I'm on my way from one commitment to another leaving a wake of dust in my path.

I want to visually recognize all my activities so that I can decide which and how to give the boot.

PTA Executive Board
Room Parent
Scout co-leader (with Papa)
Serve on two committees at the school
Swimming lessons
Track & Field classroom coordinator
Carnival classroom coordinator
Coordinate the end of the school year luncheon
Scout recruiting volunteer

Those things are separate and apart from the "part time" job I do as a MDO instructor and coordinator. For that I do teaching, planning, registering, billing, and general trouble shooting. Sometimes I wonder if it would be easier to have a full time job? Unless I absolutely want a new car this year or maybe next I don't have to go back to work full time right now. That's the blessing of Papa's new job...woo hoo! Really I don't need a new ride right now, right now, so I'd rather continue to stay home. But I've got to get a handle on this over commitment.

I actually considered putting my kiddos in some type of camp this summer until my Comadre had a little Back To Jesus talk with me. Bless her! I'm not going to over commitment my sons as I've done to myself. I'm going to give them a summer like I used to have and if their little brains atrophy on movies and swimming, then so be it!

-E

Sunday Sadness

Hangers.

My J-boy has graduated from the baby plastic hangers to adult hangers. Oh, I've felt it long before now, but I finally took the plunge with this last round of laundry.

I'm also feeling a little blue knowing my youngest will be starting Kindergarten this year. Every event he does at his Mother's Day Out I'm reminded this is his last time as a little boy. My little boy.

*sniff*

-E

SPF: The Late, Late Edition

Good evening! And welcome to another episode of Stuff Portrait Friday, hosted by the lovely Kristine at Random and Odd. This week our catagories are: Washers and Dryers, Robes and Floral Life. Let's see what our players have for us this week, Johnny...















I love my washer and dryer. They're not fancy, but with two messy, dirty boys this combo does the trick. My last w/d set burned its little self out in a vain attempt to keep my family's laundry clean. May they rest in peace. These younger, stronger versions of their deceased ancestors are doing a fine job!















The Hello Kitty robe was a mother's day gift from my boys a few years ago. It's really cute and I do like to wear it, but Texas is way hot for robes most of the time. The frog robe is nice, but it's too short. If I'm not wearing pants or shorts with my pajamas my arse is hanging out, so then what is the point of a robe?




















Awwww. It's a picture of a flower my son made in his class for me today. The letter of the week was "V" so that there is a vase. Que cute!!

Thanks for playing. I do believe Vanna has some lovely parting gifts for you...

-E

Thirteen Thursday: Shows I'm Watching

Welcome to another edition of Thirteen Thursday. If you've decided to play scoot on over to Krisco's place and let know you're on the bus, Gus.

This Thursday you get to learn all about what makes my DVR move. These are the 13 shows I'm into right now.

1) LOST - I haven't see yesterday's episode yet so HUSH.
2) Medium - sometimes it's good, sometimes not as good. I still have it on my DVR.
3) Boston Legal - I love that William Shatner gets to be known as something other than Captain Kirk. Besides "Denny Crane" sounds so much better.
4) Freddie - If you haven't checked this out yet, you should. It's very funny!
5) CSI - The Las Vegas version. I like the original.
6) Without A Trace - This one is getting a little old and moving a little slow for me. I'd like to know more about the characters, but the show hasn't fleshed them out as much as they could.
7) Cold Case - this is one of my very favorite shows because the music takes you back.
8) Grey's Anatomy - So. Damn. Good.
10) Close To Home - Another Jerry Bruckheimer show. Some twist and turns, but usually good for 40 minutes of entertainment.
11) Oprah - every day on my DVR. I can always delete the shows I don't like, but I have her set to record.
12) Law & Order: SVU - The other shows may make me OD on L&O so I can old have a little bit and I choose SVU.
13) Anything HGTV

Did you play?

-E

Taking A Break

Yeah, it's been awhile. I see by the counter you are all still dutifully checking in so I don't want to disappoint.

First, had a little set back with the floor. While pulling up the tile Papa cut his leg while which required seven stitches. So I have half a tiled hallway which I refuse to mop (save for the occasional spot clean when I simply can't stand it anymore). The stitches come on Wednesday so hopefully we'll be resume our schedule.

I'm back on track with my Walking Away The Pounds DVDs. They say (no, I don't know who "they" are, but they do say) that you must do something 21 times for it to become a habit. I'm on number 5 and struggling to get my keister in front of that DVD player everyday. Still small victories when I can get them. Like today, for example, Papa took the boys camping on the Scout spring camp-out. I had the whole house to myself and I could have blown off exercising in favor of eating ice cream for breakfast. But I didn't. I exercised, took a shower, had dinner with friends and then ate the ice cream. Baby steps.

Papa started his new job this week. He loves it and I love that I don't have to worry about some freak show getting pissed at him for investigating a case and shooting him. Not too far fetched of a worry considering a program director, former investigator, was murdered a few weeks ago in South Texas. If I haven't said it before, I'll say it now, CPS investigators do not make enough money or get enough protection for the job they do.

I'm trying to clean out my craft room while my family is enjoying the great outdoors. I have to confess. My name is E and I'm a crapoholoic. Holy. Shit. I have a LOT of crap. And since the first step is admitting I have a problem, which I have, I am putting myself on a craft diet. I tend to buy thinking something might be useful...someday. Unless someday is today I will not buy it. I can't even enjoy my craft because I can't find anything. It's really very, very sad.

I cooked at home every night this week. I find I do much better when I have a plan for meals. I like the idea that we're eating at the table as a family. I need to be a little more adventuresome in our meals. I've gotten some ideas from people who post their menus on their blogs (thanks, Lisa!) and I've added things to the mix, but in general, I tend to make what I've always made. I want to branch out, but I'm just worried I'll mess it up. For example, I'd like to start making fish. I don't grill so I need a good baked fish recipe. One of my playground bitches gave me some amazing marinades that I want to try soon. I'll let you know how it goes.

Okay, I'm falling asleep and I have to put my hallway back together before the men-folk get home. I can't believe I tried to take on a project a big as cleaning my craft room. I might as well have added a room to the house!

-E

Finally A Floor!

I am so excited that we are starting our floor project! Yes, you all have been listening to me bitch and moan, piss and whine about how much I hate my floors and finally your endurance will be rewarded.

We went and picked out laminate flooring and Papa has started pulling up the crappy tile. He also tested the even crappier carpet and that should come up quite easily. We have a 30-day project goal.

Wish us luck!!

-E

SPF: C is for Cookie and Other Stuff

SPF is brought to you this week by the letter C and Kristine. This week's assignment is:
Your Couch
Your Coat
Your Candles




My Couch - One of our grown up purchases. I love leather! These couches clean up so easily gets softer with age.















My Coat - This is just one of my coats. I bought it on clearance because it was fun, funky and most importantly PINK. I'd love to have some fun pink, orange and yellow striped rainboots too. Hey, I'm Mexican. I heart color!
















My Candles - Keeping in mind I used to pimp Gold Canyon Candles, you'll understand why I have an unnatural amount of wicks & wax in my possession. I still love the candles, but I'm just not meant to be a MLM entrepreneur.






















Smell ya later!

-E

Thirteen Thursday: Cribs

Today Krisco has us talking about the types of places we've lived. I can do that!

1) When I was born we lived in a 400 sqft garage apartment that my grandparents owned. It was old and swayed when the wind blew. It was on the East side of town, which is considered to be the bad part of town, but it was home to us.

2) Eventually my parents bought a "starter" home waaaaay down South (this according to my Grandmother who thought anything out of East Austin was waaaaay anywhere). Shortly thereafter my parents got divorced and my mom and I went to ...

3) ...some creepy apartments. Even to this day those apartments send my oog-o-meter off the charts. I was about three years old and I knew a kid had drowned in the pool (which was to me then forever haunted) and that a snake was caught at the bottom of the stairs of our apartment.

4) At some point we moved to a duplex in Central Austin, which is now the swanky part of town, but back then it was mostly college students. Read cheap rent.

5) From a duplex in one progressive city to another. My mom, stepdad and I lived in a duplex that eventually was converted to the Wilsonville, Oregon city hall. I loved that place because there were blueberry, sunflower, blackberry and pine tree orchards surrounding our little fourplex. It was so quiet and a great place to be kid! After the conversion we moved to this OLD house right next to the railroad tracks. I remember my mom being totally freaked about being so close to the tracks. Now that I'm a mom I feel her fear.

6) Moved to house in West Linn, Oregon. Also a great place way back when. I look at the real estate there now and I'm flabbergasted to see how much property costs. The house we lived in literally increased in price sevenfold. Damn Californians!

7) Back with my grandmother on the East Side of Austin, but this time in the front house as opposed to the garage apartment is place number 1.

8) Waaaaay out in Southwest Austin with mom. She bought a house in a good neighborhood only to find out I was supposed to be bussed to outer BFE. No thank you. Mom got me a transfer and I went to a school that was "out of district", but 5 miles up the road.

9) To an apartment with my husband.

10) To a duplex with my husband.

11) To the same garage apartment as in number 1, but on the other side, and now owed by my father in law (long story for another time, my friends).

12) To our "starter" home in South Austin. Such a cute house! It was the best experience.

13) To the home I lived in with my mom (#8). I was pregnant with my first kiddo and we needed more room. My mom was single at the time and didn't need all the room. We got this house and she moved to a smaller house down the road where she now lives with her husband.

What kinds of places did you live??

-E

A Mom Can Dream

Z-boy in scrubs - it's the cutest thing EVER.

We make no apologies for the fact we want our boys to be Longhorns. While the medical field would be great anything Longhorn-ish will do nicely.

Hook 'Em.

-E

Aye Fiesta!

We took the boys to Fiesta Texas in San Antonio. We hadn't planned to get the season passes since we thought our old passes were still good, but you know what they say about best laid plans. So we are set for 2006 with entertainment and amusement. Actually it's not a bad thing since the boys are old enough to ride more rides this year and the water park is bad ass! We went enough to justify the passes last year and I'm sure they will be worth it this year too.















J-boy and Papa had a blast on the Gully Washer. So did Z-boy and I, but I ended up being the one to get the most wet on this ride. Of course the one person who didn't want to get wet gets soaked. Murphy's law and all that hooey.














The best part of the day, for the kids anyway, was the Whitewater Rapids ride which is a log ride. Again with the me not wanting to get wet and getting SOAKED. Seriously people were laughing and pointing at me I was SO incredibly wet. I couldn't wear my shoes and my socks had to be wrung out.

(Z-boy is next to Papa, behind the large man in green)

















Yeah, we're suckers and we bought the extremely overpriced picture. However, I was too busy screaming to catch the shot so, following that logic, it was a worthwhile investment.















Th-th-th-that's all, Folks!

-E

Mexican Swimming Pool

It's good to know some things just get passed on from generation to generation.

























































Papa can remember playing in buckets, you know the kind that the economy laundry detergent comes in. I can recall my two cousins and I using a wheelbarrow as a swimming pool in front of my Gammy's house. To this day it's one of the memories that we reminisce about when we get together.

Memmer You Memmer.

Good times, my friends. It's the time in your life when it's just about having fun in that moment. All the other stuff doesn't matter.

-E

A Whole New World

I know I talk about boobs entirely too much.

I think the reason is I've had boob envy after nursing two kids for two years. The girls just aren't where there should be anymore. I wasn't so far gone that I was willing to entertain the idea of surgery, but I was pretty open to some non-invasive pick 'em uppers.

So yesterday two of my playground bitches, C and I, took me to shopping for my girls. We all got fitted at Nordies first and then after some serious sticker shock made the move over to Vickie's to see what we could find. Armed with our true numbers we set out to find some over the shoulder boulder holders.

I am so in love with these new bras! I got the Angels in black and a Very Sexy in pink. Oh, and by the way, I look *exactly* like those girls in the picture. WHATEVER! You know I would have been more likely to give VS a chance a lot earlier if it weren't for those stupid ass names they give the bras and the even stupider commercials. Still now that I've tried them I am pleased I will admit. I feel like I paid a small fortune for these two bras, but I feel really good so it's worth it, right? Papa had to get his jab in here about the packaging. He says the bag looks like a gift. "It's not a purchase, it's a present! That's how they reel you women in on shopping." We'll just let him talk, talk, talk. We all know if mama ain't happy...

















I want to get the ivory or nude colors, but they were out at the store I shopped at much to my chagrin. So how do I know when these bras go on sale? Is it wise to purchase online for bras? I want to add to my brassiere collection, but would rather not go into the poorhouse to do so, ya know?

-E

SPF: Junk In My Trunk and A Whole Lot Of Other Places

This weeks Stuff Portrait Friday is once again brought to you by Kristine over at Random and Odd. SPF is that little exercise that brings all of us together in pictures to realize we are not alone.

This week's assignment:

1. Your Garbage Can
2 Your "Junk" Drawer
3. Your Trunk

Let's put on our dancin' shoes and boogie, shall we?

My Garbage Can: Papa had just emptied the kitchen one so I thought I'd give you something a little more interesting than a while can with a white bag.




















I "made" this trash can from the tin popcorn came in over the holidays. The popcorn was done and J-boy couldn't bear to toss it so we reused it. How ecofriendly of us!


My "junk" drawer: I have several, but these are the drawers where I'm trying to consolidate the junk. I use a kitchen island to put my TV on in the livingroom. The island has two drawers that make dandy junk drawers.













The drawers are small so I need more than one. Papa says I should just decrease my junk rather than increase my drawer, but so far that just hasn't worked.


My trunk: When you have an SUV you don't get a trunk per se, you get a big open space that collects craporamma.














The box on the left is for all the returns I have to make. The box on the right is for stuff I have for my class. Two blankets for park trips. A thermal bag for trips to the grocery store. You can't see them, but there are park toys behind the piles of blankets.

Tell me that you played!

-E

Thirteen Thursday: My Pet Peeves

While Krisco is out of service this week I have taken liberty of designing my own Thirteen Thursday. Today you will get to hear me piss and moan about all the things that make me piss and moan.

My pet peeves:

1) When several packages (same kind of chips, mustard, laundry detergent) are open at one time. Use one up and then open the other.

2) Flyers, postings, CRAP left on the door of my house or the windshild of my car.

3) When Papa unplugs my cell phone from the charger to plug in his phone. Leave my phone alone!!

4) When someone excludes another person from a conversation while that person is standing right there! Good night, if it's a conversation that needs to happen on the down low, save it for later.

5) Dirty little socks left all over the house and the car. Keep them on your darn feet or put them in the laundry basket.

6) Spam. 'Nuff said.

7) People who come to a complete stop to make a right hand turn when their light is green. Keep the flow of traffic moving!

8) Sneaky people or at least people who think they're sneaky. Manipulative people, if you will.

9) When a store advertises a special and then doesn't have it in stock. For that matter when the store is out of stock period.

10) Gas prices.

11) People who have prolonged conversations or talk about highly personal stuff on their cell phone in stores, in lines, in restaurants. You are not the only person in the room and I don't care to hear about your last gynecological experience or the fact that you are in a fight with your significant other. It's distracting and you're not in a phone booth, I can hear what you're saying.

11) Long lines.

13) When I'm out of Diet Coke or I don't have time to stop by a Starbucks for beverage.

Did you play??

-E

He IS His Mother's Son

I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Look at that boy! What is he trying to tell us? He's just like his mama. She ain't got no class neither!




















Take heart though, there's probably hope for Critter yet. Instead of flipping everyone the one-fingered salute, he is in fact showing you his new acquisition.














Look, his brand new special Hello Kitty Band-aid. When he's really got a boo-boo no Batman or Clifford bandage will do. We must pull out Mommy's special HK Band-aids.

I don't know, he might very well be giving me the finger for making him have to look at the camera instead of Zoo Pets or whatever the hell that show is called.

-E

I Hate To Be A Downer...

...but I'm so sad!

I totally did not see this coming. Dana Reeve died! I knew she had lung cancer, but I went about my life thinking she'd be fine, all the best medical treatment, blah, blah, blah.

And then she dies!

As a mommy I am so worried about her son. Oh, I know he'll be just fine financially, but he lost both his dad and his mom in less that two years. That's enough to send anybody right over the edge. I know he's surrounded by friends and extended family, but it still makes me sad to think of his loss.

-E

The First Step Is Admitting You Have A Problem

I have a problem.

Seriously.

I've been shopping for my new spring wardrobe or at least updating what I have currently. My playground bitches tell me I need to get rid of the shorts that are waaaay too big on me and to add some bling to wardrobe. Okay, at least I have some direction now. It's sort of like the Mother's Day Out version of "What Not To Wear".

I go out armed with this advice and get a kick-ass outfit for my next mom's night out. Behold...




















A blingy, boobie shirt and boot cut jeans. When I showed the gals they were pleased and impressed. I even got two new pairs of shorts that fit in my shopping expedition. So far we're all giddy.

Then I see them...beckoning to me...calling me to take them home to their other friends...


















I just can't seem to turn away a good pair of flip-flops. I got the duck ones in the Dollar Spot so I felt perfectly justified in getting both pink and orange. Besides you can never have too many duck flip-flops. Am I wrong??

-E

SPF: March 3 (I couldn't think of a more creative title this early in the morning)

Here we go again. This week's SPF is truly the stuff of Random and Odd. Our assignment:

• your favorite jeans
• birthmark, mole or freckles
• your photo albums & where you store them

My favorite jeans:

I think I've referred them as 505's, but I stand corrected. They are 515's and they are awesome. They're a light material and soft. The only trouble is since I've lost just a smidge of weight, when my jeans get stretched out I can take them off without unbuttoning them. I've purchased another pair of jeans and they may be my new favorite, but the jury's still out on that decision.




















My mole:

Two for the price of one.

You get to see one of my moles (Papa calls them chocolate chips) and my sweet new sunburn. I had lunch with two of my Tiara Bitches at Shady Grove on Wednesday. It was nearly 90 friggin degrees and Shady Grove wasn't quite so shady. Papa says I've got to be the poorest excuse for a Mexican ever since I managed to get a sunburn on March 1, technically still winter.




















My photo albums and where I store them:

These are my scrapbooks. I use a different color for every year. It's a work in progress. I'm currently storing them on a bookshelf in my craft room. I need to prop them up since having the albums slouch is a scrapbooking sin.

















Woo hoo! Another SPF in the books! Did you play?

-E

Thirteen Thursday: Food, Wonderful Food

Welcome once again to Thirteen Thursday brought to you by the good folks over at crib ceiling. This is Krisco's attempt for us to all get to know each other a little better. So sit a spell and find out all about my food consumption habits.

1) I love the tomato basil soup at La Madeleine. I'm not a Frenchy-shee-shee kind of girl, but this soup is soooo good.

2) I love the chicken salad on a croissant from the Central Market Cafe. It has little bits of pineapple in for that sweet & savory taste that is scrumptious!

3) Also from Central Market, I adore the mango-papaya salsa. It has bits of red pepper, kiwi, serranos too. It's all mixed together and fantastic with chips. Yum-O.

4) The salad from Craig O's is so well put together. It's not a lot of ingredients, but the mixture is just right with the pizza. You must try it if you're in Austin.

5) The Bonzi Burger from Red Robin is one of my all time favorites.

6) The food at Casa Garcia's on William Cannon and Manchaca is yummy. This is Tex-Mex at it's finest. The chips and salsa are just right and the margaritas take away all the day's stress. Take note, the Casa G's on South Lamar is affiliated, but I think the one on William Cannon is better.

7) Papa makes the best bean and cheese nachos. He puts garlic, roasted onions, jalapenos and lots of cheese on them. BAM! They are so good!

8) It's a chain, but the best steak and skewer is at Logan's Steak House. Mmmm.

9) The best breakfast taco is at Juan in a Million. Order the Don Juan and be full all day.

10) Casa Maria's has the most awesome panaderia (bakery). They make pan dulce (sweet bread) fresh every day. The also custom make cakes. Casa Maria's is our favorite place to eat on Friday nights since it's great food and not nearly as crowded as some of the more touristy spots.

11) My mother-law makes the best carne guisada and tamales. She has these two meals mastered. She sells tamales during Christmas so let me know if you want to order.

12) Amy's Mexican Vanilla ice cream cannot be beat.

13) My mom makes wonderful cheese enchiladas. She makes them with onions and LOTS of cheese. Not exactly healthy, but oh, so good.

Did you play??

-e

Hola, Amigos!

My name is Chula. That's Spanish for cute. I got me a new boy human over the weekend. My brother, Hurley, whom I believe you all met earlier, is supposed to belong to the other boy human. J-boy belongs to me and Z-boy belongs to Hurley.

The thing is we both kind of like the Mama and the Papa humans too. That mama human is home most of the time and burns these really awesome smelling candles. She plays music and throws warm laundry on the sofa which is soooo cozy. Later in the day the boy humans come to the house and take us outside to roll around in the huge yard. Okay, maybe it's not huge, but when you're only 5 inches tall, let's face it, everything seems ginormous.

Hurley and I get a lot of comments that we don't look anything alike. Well, we are septuplets and our brothers and sisters are somewhere in the 'hood I'm told. Anyway, I look more like my dad, Quiero and Hurley takes after our mom's side of the family. Still he's kin and at least we're together. Hurely needs to brush up on his Spanish, but the humans seem patient.

Con mucho amor,

Chula