Busy times

For starters, we finally gave the kids their 6th grade graduation presents. Well, we *did* throw them a pool party back in June, but they both knew they'd be getting something else. We just couldn't figure out what. Recently, because of our trip to Canada, I decided to make DD's dream of having a pink digital camera come true. DS was harder so he got a gift card from Best Buy. DD was thrilled with her present! DS later admitted that while he couldn't complain, he was halfway expecting cell phones because that was another thing they'd been asking for. Apparently, it is absolute child abuse to send your kids to Jr. High without one. *rolls eyes* What they didn't know, was that we had already ordered them phones. Not because they wanted one, but because I started to realize that with the proper rules in place, them having phones would be really helpful to me. So, last night, we hid the new phones in their backpacks and while we were all in the living room together, DH and I called them. It was hilarious watching them dig through the backpacks, not sure of what was going on, lol!

Besides that, I've been busy packing and doing a little shopping. I obviously needed new clothes and jewelry, right? *grin* I went to Old Navy for jeans and later, mom and I went shopping for warmer tops. I got some cute stuff, including a new blazer. *sheepish grin* But! The blazer is NOT lined down the sleeves and it has tiny blue pinstripes, so it is very different from my other ones and therefore, a necessary buy. I got a $10 purse at Old Navy too. Very cute. I also got a bunch of new necklaces and earrings, but won't describe them (seriously, how mundane can I be?).

So I think I'm ready. I'm not dwelling on the fact that I'll be flying tonight. I think I'll be fine. *deep breaths* Wish me luck!

You all have a great Friday and weekend! I'll come back with lots of pics to share. *smooches*

Ten Things (...or, easy blog update)

Ten Things

10 Favorites...

Favorite Color: Black
Favorite Food: Circus animal cookies or pizza
Favorite Band: AC/DC *waves at Carey*
Favorite Movie: Crash
Favorite Sport: Football
Favorite Season: Fall
Favorite Day Of the Week: Tuesday
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Pralines and Cream
Favorite Time of Day: Late morning

Currents...
Current Mood: Tired and cranky
Taste: Nothing
Clothes: Black t-shirt and black nightie pants
Current Computer Background: My blog
Current Finger/Toenail Color: Fingers; liquid lightning by Victoria's Secret and Toes; some shade of pink
Current Time: 9:41pm
Current Surroundings: my desk
Current Annoyance(s): Ugh. too much to list (PMSing)
Current Thought: I wish it were Friday

8 Firsts...
First Best Friend: Becky
First Love: Little Timmy
First Screen Name: Motormouth
First Pet: Rosco (a dog)
First Piercing: ears
First Crush: Doug (I was 5, he was about 30)
First Music: Eurythmics or Beatles, can't remember
First Car: 1985 Toyota Corolla

7 Last...
Last Cigarette: N/A
Last Drink: Water
Last Car Ride: Yesterday, driving home with DD after going to Old Navy
Last Text Message: A text from ex-SIL telling me to do another facial
Last Movie Seen: What Women Want (on TBS tonight)
Last Phone call: Mom
Last CD Played: Misc one I made myself

6 Have You Ever...
Have You Ever Dated One Of Your Best Friends: No
Have you Ever Broken the Law: Yes.
Have You Ever Been Arrested: Nope
Have You Ever Skinny Dipped: Yes
Have You Ever Been on TV: Briefly in third grade. A news story about schools.
Have You Ever Kissed Someone You Didn't Know: No

5 Things...
You're Wearing: Same as above
You Did Last Night: Went to bed early, read.
You Can Hear Right Now: My son procrastinating before going to bed
You Can't Live Without: Lip gloss
You Do When You're Bored: Think


Places You've Been To:
1. Jamaica
2. Alaska
3. Cozumel Mexico
4. San Francisco

3 People You Can Tell Anything To...

RLBFF

My older brother

More than one blog friend

Choices...
1. Black or White: Black
2. Hot or Cold: Hot

1 Person You'd Do Anything For:
My children (they're twins so they count as one *grin*)

___________________________________________________

This might be my only update before I leave on Thursday. I have so much to do to get ready. I got a new camera today so hopefully I'll be able to use it and have lots of pics to share when I get back.

Guessing Game

Ok, here's a great idea. Why don't we try to guess 'Why Tab is feeling crappy today'?

Here are some clues, you see if you can guess correctly what might have caused this.

• My ass hurts
• My right wrist hurts
• My right shoulder hurts

So, any guesses out there? And nothing kinky! *looks at the perverts*

your weakness?

For me, every time I go shopping there are 6 temptations that I can't resist.

Mine are shoes, (no surprise) purses, blazers, lip glosses, jewelry and candles. When I shop, I almost always come home with one of those things. Doesn't matter a whole lot if I need any of those things, either. I mean honestly, I have at least ten blazers, twice as many purses and good lord, I'm not going to count my shoes. Even now, on my desk I have at least 9 candles (in jars) and about the same amount in lip glosses. It's a curse.




What are yours? What thing always draws you in?

Need Advice!

Ok, I have no idea why, but I am seriously considering changing my hair again. I need advice on two things: one, should I go back to my lighter roots? Here are a couple pictures of me with my natural hair color. I'm using my BF (hope she doesn't mind, lol! she reads my blog so she'll let me know) as a good comparison of how "not blond" I was. I guess it is a medium shade? These are very old pics, obviously, lol! So should I wait until spring to lighten it? Isn't that how most people do it?

I also need to decide whether to cut my hair. It doesn't seem to be growing out like it used to and frankly, it just feels flat and boring. I was considering something closer to my shoulders, but not quite as short as shoulder length. I think it would give me more body and fullness than the long straight style I have now does. Opinions? And do you know if my hair can recover from being cut at my age? I always notice that the older women get, the shorter their hair gets too. I'm not quite ready to never have long hair again.

I can also darken it again (I'm due right now) and go for the cut before leaving for Canada. I'm trying to decide before I leave.

This last picture just made me laugh. It's another reason my younger brother probably doesn't like me. I do maintain I was trying to baptize him, not drown him. *grin* Plus, it shows my natural childhood color.

So does everyone here stick to a certain color and style, or do you routinely change it?

Monday Randoms

1. My kids spent the night with my ex-SIL and her two kids. I have been slowly reconnecting with her after a two year break. It feels good to forgive, and better yet, to realize it was never my place to judge her. I'm glad to have her back in my life.

2. I am going to Victoria, BC in two weeks! Yay! There is a Titanic exhibit at the museum and we will visit family while we are there. It's actually just DD and me, my parents and my older brother. Other than flying, I'm very excited about it.

3. I have been reading a book lately that I recommend to everyone. It is called Making Life Work, by Tom Zinkle. It consists of things we are mostly taught growing up (ideally) but written so effectively that it is like learning it all over again. While reading this book, I've actually felt a tangible change in my attitude towards life, and others. I'm not the biggest 'self-help book' advocate (other than How to Win Friends and Influence People), but here I am, annoyingly preaching about one. Sorry! ;-)

4. What started as a tense scolding towards DS tonight, ended with my climbing up on his loft-bed with him for an hour tonight. I didn't want him going to sleep on a bad note so I went in to see where he was at, emotionally. We had a great talk (way more effective than the scolding, really) and I *hope* nights like tonight actually sink in and make a difference. This kid is motivated mostly by money, and I'm tired of feeling like that is all he cares about. Seriously, if someone gives him cash as a gift, the first thing he asks is, "do I have to spend it?". I'm all for being smart with your money, but seriously, it worries me to a small degree because I'm not seeing a balance here. I'm not sure how to change how someone feels about something though, so I'm feeling frustrated by this. *sigh*

5. My older brother has not heard from his soon-to-be ex-wife for a week now. He's already gaining some weight back and looking better. We even watched two movies together this weekend! It's nice having him back.

6. We got a new Tivo box! When our old one died, I was horrified to realize that DirecTv was no longer affiliated with Tivo. The one they gave us was so much harder to navigate. So I bought a new one on Ebay and am thrilled to see my little Tivo guy on my set again. :) *waves to MTW*

7. I'm trying to soak up the last of the summer rays before it's too late. Can anyone tell me what to expect in terms of my tan fading? It's been so long since I worked hard at getting one, and I don't know what to expect. Will I turn totally white again over the winter? Will it be like starting all over again when summer starts next year?

8. Hall and Oats: Who loves them? I must say, if they are ever in my neck of the woods, I am SO there. I love those guys.

9. My Valentine: I hope you had a great birthday! I thought of you often and wished I could have been there to make you a cake. :) *besa*

10. I end on a #10 because 9 just feels so unfinished. *grin*

Thank You

Just wanted to say thank you to each and every person who I've interacted with through the blogs, in email, or even mostly just on OT. We often refer to each other as our "online friends" but the truth is, I find that I can turn to some of you more than even my "real life" friends. You all bring something unique into my world. You have all made me smile, encouraged me, made me laugh and even made me share in pain that you have felt. I hope that you all know and understand that even when I am not commenting, updating, or even when I "disappear" at times, you are never far from my thoughts.

Guess I'm feeling mushy today. *sniff* I love you guys!

Woo freakin' Hoo!

I have been an emotional mess lately and tonight was no exception. Watching Spencer make the interception with only 8 seconds left, not only made me scream with joy, but it brought tears to my eyes as well. During the whole game, I kept thinking, "this is why I stopped watching football...can't take the anticipation". And I'm not sure whether I'll be watching every game or not, but tonight, I am glad I did. *does happy dance with Carey*
I hope Carey had a blast tonight! She was in my thoughts as I watched. :)

Other than this, not much to update about. My DD is adjusting to being a preteen and it's taking a toll. She is very emotional and sensitive lately. She's also very affectionate with me. I hope that part lasts. I've got a pretty busy week planned, but will be hitting your blogs the best I can.

*smooches*

A good name?

I'm not going to go into detail, but something I read in another blog yesterday made me realize I should have two things named that currently are not. I feel inadequate. Can you all give me two names? You don't even have to know what we're naming here. Might be funner that way. :)

And while we're here, everyone wish MTW a happy birthday!

feeling crummy

And really, I feel stupid for letting it bother me. *sigh*

Remember my friend Jenn? The one I was going to cut back on because she is so high maintenance? Well, she had a party on Saturday night and I'm feeling crummy because I know she didn't want me to go. The silly thing is that I wouldn't have gone anyways, but still.

She originally sent out evites, which I received. Then the evite was cancelled and when I spoke to her she said the party was still on, but something was wrong with the invitation so she pulled it. Later, she made a point of telling me not to feel *any* pressure to come to the party because, as she put it, "it's not your kind of party, ...you know, drinking, dancing, making out". Well, the making out part was a joke, because I knew there wouldn't be any, but the other parts were true. If she were normal, I would take this at face value but part of my previous problem with her was the fact that she put unrealistic expectations on me, as a friend. When she had other parties, not only was I hounded to death about them but she also let me know she'd take it personally if I couldn't go. *rolls eyes*

This last week we were on the phone Monday - Thursday due to a problem she was involved with (regarding my soon-to-be ex-SIL), and I noticed later that she never mentioned the party to me once. I found out later she emailed my brother, reminding him about the party (he didn't go either). Then, when I was looking at her pics of the party (she posts them online) I noticed she called not only my brother during the party, begging him to come, but also his best friend (and my friend too) Clint. Hmm. But no call to me. No reminders, no calls, nothing. And of course the fact that she pretty much told me not to come herself, in the beginning.

So, what am I to make of this? At first, I was fine with it, if not a bit confused, but after seeing the pictures and all the people who were there, I started to feel hurt. Am I THAT boring? Would I have killed the party? Am I a funsuck? Why did she beg my brother and Clint, but not me at all? Now I'm wondering whether to tell her how I feel, or to just not care. Maybe this is my perfect timing for a way out of her life (the way I've been wanting anyways). *sigh*

I feel crummy. What are your guesses? Why am I no fun to have at a huge dance party?

State Fair, among other important things

First off; Woo freakin' Hoo! I? Came in last place in the Blog contest!!! I thought Breezy would be too hard to beat, so I am thrilled we tied. Thank you Carey! It's the first time I've ever taken so much pleasure in losing. Other than pounds, of course. ;-) Now, on to the fair...

So after our plans to attend the State Fair on Thursday night were foiled (by SILFH) we decided to go on Friday night. We knew the crowd would be larger, but we wanted to all be together and on Thursday, my brother had to tend to yet another mess created by his wife.
Anyways, we started by putting the kids on rides right away. After many rides, we went to eat. You'd think with all the fair food I'd have had something unusual (or fried, lol) but instead I opted for a small bowl of chocolate covered strawberries. *yum* We ate and listened to the Commodores playing live.

After that, mom and I went into the exhibit building. I hate the exhibits. Actually, I hate the ones *we* went into. They are not really exhibits, but rather, the booths selling stuff you usually only see on TV. Same 'ol same 'ol. Have YOU ever bought anything at the fair and if so, are you happy about it or were you suckered in and later regretted it? My mom bought a container for the back of her van that she is positive will make her life easier and completely organized. *waves "bye" to $20*
Anyhow, my parents and younger DB (with his baby and DCommonLawW) left at that time leaving my older DB and myself, with all the kids. We'd spent good money on unlimited ride bracelets and I was going to get our moneys worth! Last year, DD amazed us all by doing a ride called The Mega Drop. I promised her this year I would go with her. So there I was, on this:


All I can say is...*thinks*. Man, I'm still speechless. This ride was not exciting to me. It scared the carp out of me. By the time "crap", of "holy crap" came out of my mouth, we were at the bottom. The worst part I guess was the 10 second (or so) lull at the top, while you are sitting there waiting to drop. Not fun.

After we got off, my legs and arms were weak. All I could think was, Payback! She's going to have to ride something else with me! So we headed to the Zipper. Who knows that ride? It's pretty standard I think, at most carnivals and fairs. Here's a pic:

This was my favorite ride as a teenager. That also happens to be the last time I rode it. Still, I had no reservations, as going upside down does not scare me. The only thing I did *not* anticipate, was the tight cage I would be locked in. Duh. As soon as the bar locked across our legs, I got an uneasy feeling in my gut. It was like a heat, searing through my stomach and chest. We were already off the ground, but the ride had not started because they were loading people still. I had to decide whether to scream and hope they would hear me, or force myself to remain calm for the duration. I turned to the side and tried to inhale fresh air through the cage. It didn't work. I was not getting enough oxygen. I turned to my DD, who was already extremely nervous about the ride, and I confided in her. I calmly told her I wasn't sure I was ok. She focused on trying to talk me through it, which in effect took her mind off of her being scared. Within a minute or 457, the ride finally started. Once we were moving, I was fine. No time to think about being trapped when you are screaming and being flipped every which way! When the ride was done, we were let off pretty quickly, and I was glad I stayed on. DD said it was her favorite ride ever. Yay!

Still, it surprises me how one can become claustrophobic so late in life. And weird too how it hits so randomly. The other ride, I suppose because there was no cage around me, didn't have the same effect at all. *shrug*

So that was our night. I also did a three story fun house with the kids, which I think burned some serious calories, lol!

Tell me, who here does these rides? Do you get sick? Do you think they are safe (relatively speaking)?