Fun on Friday

Well, we had our fun last night, but I thought I would post this today because last night was the most amazing of nights! My kids like MOST kids in Phoenix, don't see rain very often, so they are kind of scared when it starts BEATING DOWN on our skylights. I don't like skylights, more on that a different day, but they do make for an amazing microphone to the rain that is few and far between. When the rain started, we all went in the master bedroom (NO SKYLIGHTS), crawled into bed, and tried to watch cartoons. Unfortunately, the satellite was going in and out, so we read books and just talked. When the rain died down, we were able to watch a little television while discussing what to do for dinner. Seriously, last night we were supposed to go to NYPD Pizza and Cheesecake Factory, but driving in Phoenix when it is raining is a RIDICULOUS chore. PEOPLE DO NOT KNOW HOW TO DRIVE HERE! Everyone goes like 35 miles an hour, tons of accidents occur, so we decided to stay in! We decided to have a picnic in bed and pretend like we were at a hotel. The kids were DARLING, so well behaved and ate more than I had seen them eat in a long time. (WHILE I LOVE CHINESE FOOD, I don't think rice was the best thing to eat in bed, but live and learn!) I took the comforter off, laid down a blanket, we ate on that, when we were done, I stripped it off, put the comforter on, NO BIG DEAL! They loved it! AND, Pat came up with the very ghetto idea of using storage box lids as trays, but it worked BEAUTIFULLY! And look at these kids, picture of HAPPINESS!

Ten on Tuesday-My Grandpa

1. My uncle was in town this weekend, so we had a LOT of family gatherings, which is nothing new, this family doesn't need an excuse to gather, but we had more than other weekends.

2. On Saturday we had a pool party, and the guys in the pool were tossing the football around. My grandpa got up to play with them, and when he was throwing the ball, he fell. Patrick DOES NOT cuss in front of the kids. He is constantly chirping, "LANGUAGE!" at me, (I think it might be my next Lenten offering, but that's a different story for a different day!), but apparently he screamed, "Oh Shit!" He may or may not be the only person who saw it. I saw people jumping out of the pool and running, I started looking around for the kids, and they were all fine, so I was confused. It is almost like it happened in slow motion looking back on it now.

3. He was VERY lucky, he fell on the meatier part of his shoulder, so he has a GIANT bruise, but looks like he is going to be OK!

4. The thing I remember most is my grandma's shrieking. The man you have been married to for almost 60 years is lying on the ground, and you don't have any idea what is wrong with him, so I get the shrieking, BUT, I had to YELL at her to snap her out of it. I felt terrible, but there was no other way. I just kept yelling at her to get him some water.

5. My grandpa is VERY hard of hearing, he worked on airplanes in the Korean War, and it damaged his hearing. I don't have A LOT of memories of conversations with him. I don't think I have had very many. But, he will go off on these tangents, or start telling stories about golfing or the parties they went to at the Playboy Mansion, and I could listen for hours.

6. My kids have no idea that he is hard of hearing and carry on MANY conversations with him. He nods and smiles. I know he doesn't know what they are saying. I hate to discourage them from talking to him because I don't want them to know he can't hear. It always discouraged me from talking to him.

7. He and my grandma have attended EVERY event I can remember them ever being invited to. They haven't missed ANYTHING! Unlike other people in my life, they are a total CONSTANT!

8. At our wedding, during the first dance, he cut in and danced with me, leaving Pat standing there!

9. I am going to email Claire Beeler right now and set up some family photos in November when my uncle, David, comes back!

10. I have never lost anyone close to me. It is going to be a very sad day when I do. I don't know how I will react. I am scared of how I will react. I am scared for my mom.

Grief

Mitch Menlove was the dad of a little girl at Tyler's school. I didn't know them. I have never spoken to any of the family, but the stories I have heard make this story worth sharing. He was 36 when he died. His oldest son wanted to hike the tallest peak in AZ, Mitch wasn't sure he could do it and kept saying no, finally this past weekend, he took his son, they reached the top. From there the details are fuzzy, but the son's last words to his dad were, "Thanks for believing in me dad!" Mitch died Monday morning around 1:30am.

It is said that if you complimented him on his tie, he would take it off then and there and give it to you. Lots of men at the funeral were wearing ties that Mitch had given to them. They have three children and his wife is due any day with their fourth child. It is unimaginable what this woman is going through. Any positive thoughts or prayers for this family would be greatly appreciated I am sure. I linked the Obituary and a video of Congressman Flake paying tribute to Mitch!

Obituary



Just a sad reminder of how short life truly is. Life can truly change in an instant.

The Many Faces of Jackson-Part 2

Last summer, I posted The Many Faces of Jackson, and it is back in full effect again this summer! He is a crack up with all his crazy faces!






I honestly don't know where he gets it from!

PS-Last night was awesome! Didn't get any pictures, but open bar, little appetizers and 25% off my entire purchase-which included lots of their little $4.95 dresses for Tyler and hair accessories that were soooooooo cheap!!

Ten on Tuesday

1. I HATE when people tell me that Diet Coke is going to kill me. Anyone who knows me, knows I am not drinking it because it has no calories, but I am drinking it because I like the taste. I am also certain that the ridiculous amounts of wine I consume are also going to kill me, but I like these things. Why do people INSIST on raining on my parade????? I have already been to McDonald's this morning to get a Diet Coke because after one day without it, I could feel my veins slowly closing, and the blood was not flowing to my heart! Cause of Death: Lack of Diet Coke is how my autopsy report would have read!

2. OMG-Levi and Bristol are getting married, I know this is kind of older news, but I haven't discussed it. I love it. You know my good friend, Sarah, is SEETHING angry, and she can't really do anything about it!!!!

3. Do any of you watch My Life on the D-List with Kathy Griffin? I seriously NEVER watch this show, but it was on during one of my stints in bed when I was sick, and I happened to catch THIS EPISODE, where she goes to Alaska to stalk Sarah Palin and confess her undying love to Levi. I always thought she was a little off, and I didn't really LIKE Kathy all that much, but I FELL IN LOVE WITH HER after this episode-HYSTERICAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

4. I HAVE PICTURES!!!!!!!!!! Here are some pictures of us eating S'mores when we were up North!








5. We also made this AMAZING beer can chicken. Something I have ALWAYS wanted to do. It was wonderful and INCREDIBLY easy! Doesn't it look pretty??




6. There is this AMAZING Mexican bakery in Prescott, it is called Donut Hole, but it is soooooooooooooo much more than that! Look at all the pastries! AND IT IS CHEAP!



7. If you have been around me long enough, you have most certainly heard me talk about the Nordstrom Grand Opening I attended in San Antonio. It was a ONCE IN A LIFETIME EVENT! Walking in to the store you were handed a cocktail, appetizers were passed, if you wanted another cocktail, you went to one of the jewelry counters where the cases were stuffed with bottles of alcohol. We were given this porcelain tea cup that sits upon a shelf ALL BY ITSELF IN MY HOUSE! It was AMAZING! I bought the most amazing shoes that night. Katie let me wear them in her wedding, Lori would not. I wear them any chance I get, and I STILL LOVE THEM almost six years later. I have no idea how I was able to afford this event and the shoes while Pat was in law school, but we made do. In fact, I think I lived a much more charmed life back then, but that's a different story for a different day! THE POINT of this rant is that TONIGHT, I am going to the H&M VIP Grand Opening, and I have HIGH expectations for this event. I am certain it will never live up to the Nordstrom Grand Opening, but I hope it is kind of cool. OH WELL, if it is not, then at least it is a night out with a friend! AND, these summer months are KILLING ME, so I need a break!

8. I have ZERO information regarding Jackson's Kindergarten class in the fall, and the thing that kills me the most is that I DESPERATELY want some sort of supply list! I am anxious to get my shop on!!!!!

9. Twitter was not working on my cell phone yesterday. It was very depressing!

10. Wish me luck, I have less than 12 hours to figure out what to wear tonight. H&M Opening already has one thing against it. . .it is in Scottsdale. I liked figuring out what to wear in San Antonio MUCH BETTER!!!!

Tylerisms

Tyler is HYSTERICAL! She is a perfectionist when it comes to understanding what you are saying, and if she doesn't understand what you are saying, she will say, "WHAT?!", OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN until she understands it. She is relentless. Lately, we have run into some bugs that we don't usually have a lot of interaction with.

Last week it was wasps. I think it is a hard word to pronounce, especially in plural form. I must have repeated it about a thousand and one times. She finally got it down and was able to say it. Later in the day, she asked if we could go outside because the "stings" were all gone. She decided wasps was just too much work and started to call them "stings" because DUH! that's what they do!

This weekend, she asked what the buzzing was coming from the plant. We have these bugs here called cicada. You never really see them, you just hear them. We told Tyler they were cicada bugs, that you wouldn't see them, you just hear them. On the way back from the pool she asked if the "buzzes" could sting! She just decided to name them "buzzes"!

She comes up with the most random things, and I never want to forget them. LOVE HER!

Ten on Tuesday

1. Apparently we are all on the mend. My ear is still popping like popcorn, and I am VERY TIRED, but other than that, I feel MUCH better.

2. Jackson had some vaccinations today. I always get a sick feeling in my stomach surrounding vaccines. Say what you will, I totally think they have something to do with autism. A mom knows her children, and that many moms can't be crazy! That's just my opinion,not really open for debate since there is no firm "cause" of autism, and I don't think any of my readers are on the brink of finding a cure for autism, which would imply you found the cause! Felt a little bad about the rant above, I would love to hear your opinions on it, just don't want to debate! :-)

3. Kind of feeling sassy today!

4. We had a WONDERFUL weekend in Prescott. So relaxing, and I didn't do much of anything except relax and eat, two of my favorite things. Jackson got to wake up and turn the Wii on, his absolute FAVORITE thing about vacation. Tyler pretended to be a waitress in her stripper heels and tiara. She was quite the sight!

5. I will say one thing, my kids absolutely know how to run a restaurant. When Jackson would take a break from gaming and play with Tyler, the two of them know good service, can create a KILLER menu and have a smile the entire time! I love that they have been going to restaurants for such a short time, but can ROCK IT!

6. The APS time of use plan is killing me. The summer is difficult because I like to do my errands in the morning, but if I leave, forget doing dishes or laundry because by the time I get home, it is too late to run anything! GAH!

7. SOoooooooooooooooo excited Big Brother is on again! I will be sooooooooooo sad if Brendon/Brandon (the swim coach) gets voted off because I am in love with him, think he is gorgeous and like looking at his hot bod! I am fine with saying this because I don't care if Pat oogles the Vegas Scientist the entire time the show is on. They make a great couple!

8. I think the cop is the saboteur and so does Lance Bass. Lance Bass is in Phoenix and will not reply to my tweets. I think he thinks I border on stalker. If only he knew I was a perfectly "normal" SAHM!

9. As a reward for my kids being so good last week while I was sick, I am going to take them to open gym at Pump It Up! We may take a limo there so that I can get wasted because I don't know how I am going to survive it. I kind of want to cry thinking about it.

10. If everything goes according to plan, I will see Jaclyn next week. Um, I don't even know the last time I saw her!

Voodoo Magic

I know some of you may laugh, but I am about thirty seconds away from hiring the voodoo priestess, Mama Lola, that Tori Spelling did on her show last season. There is so much negative energy and GERMS in our house, I can hardly stand it. Something needs to be done! (VOODOO CHARM FOR HEALTH!)



This week, in case you didn't notice over on my twitter page, I was VIOLENTLY ILL! I couldn't get out of bed, ALL DAY! Pat came and drove me to the doctor. I had an ear infection and a stomach virus (FROM HELL)! The doctor said that she thinks I had H1N1 or the Regular Flu last week. OMG! HELL! Summer has been hell!

I just got my kids back this morning, my AWESOME mom watched them for two days while I pulled my self up from the grips of HELL! We went to AJ's, swim lessons, Blockbuster, and had lunch. Tyler goes to the bathroom and starts crying that her stomach hurt, she was also crying because she was tired, so I put her to bed. Only time and God know what is headed my way, but I would really like for it to be a fun filled, relaxing weekend! PLEASE OH PLEASE!!! Won't you please wish upon a lucky star, do a dance, anything you might do to send some positive vibes my way! (VARIOUS RELIGIOUS SYMBOLS APPEALING TO ALL FOR HELP!)

Ten on Tuesday

1. Lindsay Lohan in jail, I will believe it when I see it!

2. My ear is killing me (I think my eardrum burst)! After being sick last week, I fully intended to make it up to my kids this week, but alas, I have spent the day lying on the couch tweeting, just like last week! WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME!?

3. We are getting out of this heat for awhile, and I CANNOT WAIT! I am one of those people that packs two weeks ahead of time, the kids are thrilled, I am thrilled, everyone is thrilled!

4. I wanted the Wipeout game for Wii, I can't find it anywhere, then I went and read reviews, apparently I don't want it anymore.

5. I love Roberto on the Bachelorette, I also love Kirk, and I love the story Chris has! I will be happy with anyone winning.

6. TEAM VIENNA SAUSAGE! Jake is a giant jerk!

7. I would like for Karissa's phone to work again! THE END!

8. Was RHONJ new last night?? If it was, it totally didn't record, and I am bummed.

9. Have I mentioned my ear hurts, and when Pat's ear ruptured it was the end of the world, I got a text from him today that said, "You can take a pain pill when I get home!" YES, and what the freak am I supposed to do until then!

10. I have to get back to the couch. It is where I spend the days feeling sorry for myself. My kids have been sooooooooooooooooo good today. Remind me to buy them a treat when I feel better!

WINNER WINNER PIZZA DINNER!

The winner of the "pizza dough" is KAREN at Mommy Needs who loves the California Club Pizza! She says, "That's the only pizza I have ever tried!" Lucky for her, California Pizza Kitchen is coming soon to Tucson, and she is going to be armed with "pizza dough" and able to try anything she would like, RISK FREE don't forget!! CONGRATULATIONS, KAREN! Your "pizza dough" will be sent to you in the mail soon!

Day of Silence