sisters!

awww...how cute

this here is mah pointin' puppet

facebook is amusing

the last thing elise put on her christmas list was "a very special christmas".


awwww...

ok girls...let's take a picture to put in the christmas card...

waiting for kaely to join us..

still waiting...

so close!  thanks elise

still not sure

maybe

can we do a silly one now?

Meanie-pants

This car is calling me names...

an elise original

here's the tree and assorted children in pajamas

we looked at almost every tree with a yellow tag.  we couldn't all agree.  but then they just happened to look over at the blue tag section and all instantly fell in love with this 7-8 ft beauty.

it needs more ornaments...

here are some fantastic pictures of liz's shower weekend, courtesy of jill!

i'm pretty sure (and hopeful) that this is the only photo of me in that super hat in existence.

here i am talking...

my task was games.  they gave me a job where i get to tell people what to do?!

funny story about the cake...

look!  no hat on me

still no hat!

not bad for 2 weeks after pneumonia...

elise got into the van last friday and announced that she had written a song about thanksgiving...did i want to hear it?  oh heck yes!  it was super cute, but when i asked her if i could record her singing it, she got shy.

today, she she was apparently feeling more outgoing!

it's much too early for christmas-y type activities, but lilli absolutely had to see him. i said "we haven't been in a while because you were afraid of him" and she said "i'm not 3 or 4 or 5 anymore...i'm not afraid" and you know her hand was on her hip.

so we went

i bribed kaely with bath and body works and promised her that this would be the last year she would have to do this...

sigh

i just ate my last publix cookie.  i guess it's time to go back to florida...or at least georgia.  some state that has publix...

i flew to ft. lauderdale last weekend for liz's wedding shower/bachelorette festivities.  i was in charge of games...a daunting task for one who has not ever been to a wedding shower before, let alone helped plan one.  the week leading up to the shower was a bit on the crazy side (watch out for the sarcasm there), so i texted anne in a panic for help.  here is her awesome help:

Who Am I? (Or, The Existentialist)

You've probably come across this before, but its a pretty good game which can be adapted to suit most wedding shower themes.

You pin or tape the name of a different famous person to the back of each guest.

Each guest has to guess the name of their character by asking the others questions to which the answer must be 'Yes' or 'No'. For instance 'Am I female?'

Wedding Dress Game

The guests are divided in to teams of three to five. One of the guests from each team will act as a model. Each team is given three rolls of toilet paper and five paper clips.

They then have five minutes to design and create a wedding dress and veil.

It is preferable if each team can be out of sight of the other, perhaps in seperate rooms.

After a set amount of time the teams come back into the main room, to be inspected by the real bride who will judge which is the best wedding dress.

How Well Do You Know the Bride?

To play this game you will need to make a list of 10 or so questions relating to things you know about the bride.

Lucky Coin

This is another easy to organize bridal shower game.

First take a coin and tape it securely blah blah blah...

we played them all except the coin game.  and everyone said they had fun and didn't seem to be snickering...

i rented a car and lucked out with a cute one, so i was more than happy to be the d.d. during the festivities part of the evening. 

driving in south florida is like riding a bike...you don't really forget how.  we went to some crazy country bar, tequila ranch at hard rock (where liz rode the mechanical bull...i have video, but would like to continue being her maid of honor, so i am going to refrain from posting it), a dueling piano bar with the most perverted pianists ever, and finally, a casino.

i really got into the whole idea of valet parking (thanks westin!) and looked for it all night.  i had to park the car myself all night, though...sigh ;)

sunday morning we enjoyed the peace of the beach before heading home.

here's another reason why mom is so awesome, other than the fact that she took care of me for weeks while i had a pneumonia and gives my dog haircuts while i travel:

today she suggested that i turn a blind ear to gossip.

ok mom...i'll try...

Happy sunday indeed

Random discovery

Only in south florida will you find people line dancing to the backstreet boys.

Backstreet's back!

Alright!

TP wedding dress

Cake?!

IMG00027.jpg

He's so stressed it's hard to rest and relax ;)

what happened to october?

we have a new critter.  i rescued him from the side of the road.  the plan is to build a habitat for him in the backyard, but there has been something happening every weekend, so he is still hanging out in that box.  did you know that you can get canned turtle food at petsmart?  and he loves it...

so since i rescued this guy (and he doesn't even really have a proper name...now that "tinkerbell" won't work):

• we have started working on christmas music.  this picture makes me giggle...it looks like i am describing the size of the choir. 

• work likes to crowd in every now and then
• got the treadmill fixed...sort of
• so on thursday, lilli came home from school with a fever, headache, tummy ache and her "froat" hurt.  oh yay...strep.  friday she had a doctor appointment, but before we went to that, i had to get some work done on the van.  don't judge me...work has been crazy and there just hasn't been time to get it to the shop (but i think that tires and brakes are kinda important).  while i'm paying, the school calls to tell me that kaely has the same symptoms.  i called the doctor to see if they could see kaely at the same time...they agreed if i could get there by 12.  we made it with minutes to spare.  during all of this, i was starting to feel a little blah...which i figured was to be expected...i hadn't stopped rushing all day.  kaely and lilli had strep.  the doctor told me that the lab techs were really excited about lilli's strep test because they had never seen one turn positive so fast.  well, we try to be thorough...
• saturday morning, i woke up with the flu.

but this weekend is looking good for turtle habitat building in the backyard!

starting sunday, the girls are going to be taking care of the neighbor's cat.  i wonder how long they will be doing the caring...

i went to the mall of fancy dresses or whatever that place was called today to order my dress for liz's wedding.  it was like walking into a dress up closet!  i had to supress the urge to squeal. 

hallelujah!

lilli finally lost her first tooth!  it's about time...the big ones are already coming in!  hurry up tooth fairy...

;)

so tonight i discovered that livescribe makes even the most boring meeting fun!

i got a treadmill!!  i haven't been able to get to the gym as often lately, so i found a treadmill on craigslist that sounded like a winner.  i went to check it out and it wasn't hot pink with purple polka dots and it worked.  the seller was nice and tried to find someone to help with the lifting.  i also tried to find help....but no luck.  it's always nice to remind myself that i am quite capable of doing things on my own.  he helped me lift it into my van, but after that, it was all me.  what.  a.  rush.  and then i walked a mile...just to make sure it worked :)

between that and the golden girls marathon, it has been a great day!

i'm not sure how exactly i did it...but i survived the week! 

got the girls back in school:

• what do kaely and a freshman in college have in common?  reading level, of course :) she is also ahead in math...just not quite college level.  so far, she is loving 5th grade...
• elise walked into third grade totally confident.  sure, she had to sit on the floor in front of the board to write down her homework...but that didn't seem to slow her down.  and we picked up her glasses today :)
• lillian is big stuff in first grade!  haven't heard much other than what color she is on at the end of the day (green!), but i know she is happy :)

i am so proud of all three of them!

work keeps me busy.  it was brought to my attention that i am working too hard and need to take some time for myself.  i suppose...  of course, it was also mentioned that i am bitter and too abrupt.  i disagree...but then again, maybe that was how i was able to out-argue an attorney ;)

the girls and i are going shoe shopping and then to get pedicures tomorrow...

in one conversation i was threatened with the person's lawyer, the person's "friend who works for the state", and God.

God...how do you top that one?

dammit janet

went out with bettie, my sunday school teacher. played pool with her husband and

wait, you may want to sit down

danced...in public.
whoa

also ended up driving home some friends of bettie's. brand new honda civic sporty thing. it was quite zippy and i really enjoyed shifting.

i've decided that my next car will be manual...

i love my sister

here is a text message conversation we had today...but i should preface it by saying that dad is visiting and they are completing various projects on the new house.



anne: our father is adorable

me: our father, who art adorable...sounds like the beginning of a prayer

anne: haha! walter be thy name

then she really got creative...

anne: thy will be done in california as it is in georgia

anne: give us this day a home depot visit

anne: as we forgive those who do not have kool aid in their homes

anne: lead us not into debt but deliver us from wasteful squandering. amen



our dad rocks...

So I'm at walmart with my boss and we are looking for sprinklers for water play. We found the regular garden sprinklers but can't find the fun kid ones. So she asks a friendly associate. Maria waves her hands very expressively and says "what is a sprinkler?" Her accent reminded me of agador spartacus from the birdcage. So my boss told her what a sprinkler looks like and she nodded and said she had seen one in the flyer. Off she went to ask someone else where they were...
"Garden department!"
We asked in the garden department...
"Toys!"
Thanks for playing walmart roulette.
We're going to target.

Happy Birthday Lillian!

Horton -by elise

it should also be mentioned that anne is now exploring hip hop. usually i come back from an anne visit with a list of songs to download, but not so much this trip. i did come home with a couple stuck in my head though. i've caught myself dancing to the tune in my head at random times...




sigh...it's hopelessly stuck




yeah

thanks anne...thanne

drum roll...photos have been uploaded! yay!

for me, being "spontaneous" means deciding at the beginning of the month to go on a trip at the end of the month, so to purchase plane tickets on monday night for a friday flight sounds like utter lunacy. but i did it anyway :)

had great flights out there. landed in atlanta in time to walk...nay, saunter...to my next gate and walk onto the plane. yes! sat right in the very center of the plane and watched comedy central and kept my elbows to myself (which is better than either of my neighbors). apparently, i'm still getting to know my luggage because it went round the carousel two or three times before i recognized it...sigh. anne asked what it looked like and i told her it looked like everyone else's, but mine has a green tag. oh like that one? no...oh yes. hahahahahahaha

so here's a quick rundown. i'll save the ridiculous jokes and funnies and just stick to the basics...

friday:

• target to get a camera...because i left mine at home *gasp*
• lunch at a japanese restaurant...luckily they took pity on me and brought me a fork
• steinhart aquarium
• stopped at ikea for snacks and coffee and oh look there's cool stuff too
• i wish i could remember dinner...but by then the dramamine/jet lag combo was really kicking me hard...burgers? this place i think...
• bittersweet for dessert...latte and cinnamon chocolate coffee cake? hit me

saturday:

• dailey method...we did childcare and then walked to get drinks and then took the class...wow! i wish it was offered here
• lunch at home
• manicure and pedicure
• coffee at fellini
• luis picked us up and we went back to ikea to measure things (i bought a blanket for the plane), shopping at h&m (he talked me into the obnoxious blue dress), and dinner at pf changs (the waiter had a crush on anne and bought her dessert)
• don't know why though because then we went to the whole foods bakery and stocked up

sunday:

• anne made breakfast :)
• touristy stuff at the pier
• haight street
• san jose to pick up the fluidity bar that anne bought through craigslist
• fremont to see her new house...yippee! the copa copa cabana house is super great
• back to berkeley for dinner...stopped by games of berkeley and poked around. found the greatest ever magic eight ball...ever. jupiter pizza for dinner and why not throw in some bluegrass? yes, please.

monday morning i had a 5:40 flight so we didn't do much but stumble out to the car. sigh...what a great break! when i got home, i was tired to be sure, but still refreshed. kids are the same (kaely had to get one of those moonwalk boots for her ankle, but nothing is broken), work still stinks like yesterday's diapers, my life is still the same...but i sure do feel better :)

i had a super fabulous time in san francisco!

of course more pictures are coming...

Yippee! John was right and I did have a seat on the actual airplane :)
In atlanta waiting to board...

what do you do with a 10 year old on crutches?

we're gonna find out...
pulled up to the school this afternoon to pick up the girls and i couldn't help but notice that kaely was in a wheelchair...what?! i was still like 5 cars back and almost ran over three of them to get close enough to where i wouldn't look like a total loon jumping out of the van to go get my baby. her teacher grimly informed me that kaely took a tumble down the stairs while trying to get away from a boy who was harassing her :( and grrr all at the same time. i did some basic first aid until i could get her to urgent care. she told me that she jumped the last two steps trying to get away from the other kid, landed on her ankle, and he and his friends laughed at her and kept walking. o. m. g.
at urgent care, the doctor did an xray of her ankle. the swelling is over the growth plate and his concern is that it may be fractured and that doesn't always show up in an xray. he put her in a splint and gave her crutches. motrin and rest. follow up with her pediatrician next week.

so i've done something new...i bought plane tickets tonight for a trip that begins on friday...gasp! but the fare was too great to pass up. I had some concerns, though, because it appeared that there were not any available seats. i may be sitting in the aisle...literally...i'll ring a bell and announce the beverage cart. just as i was about to call the 800 number, i noticed that delta has a handy live chat feature. i was immediately (after about 2 minutes) connected with john, who probably does not look like the smiling woman in the picture, but whatever. i explained to him the situation and he assured me that i would be able to choose a seat during step three. right..i am currently experiencing step three and i am not seeing seats available for sitting. then he explained that they hold seats until right before the flight...makes sense...then he went on to assure me that i can go ahead and confirm the flight and there will be a seat at the airport. yes i know, but i want a seat on the actual airplane. here's hoping...

so miss smarty mcpants kaely has scored 4 out 4 in math and reading end of grade tests :) kaely wants to do something special to celebrate.
she would also like to cut her hair like amelia earhart.
the best part is how excited and supportive elise and lillian are...or maybe they are just excited about the thought of a celebration...

rawr

posted the photos of our trip to dinosaur world (end of april...what?) over there ------> somewhere.
interesting place. i suggest you go with a good amount of humor and people with whom you like to laugh...

according to lilli

Water is cold and wet.

Just the way I like it.

funny

We turned into the apartment complex called villa la paz and nic says, from the backseat, "my dog has paws."

Here I am :)

If you look closely, you can see me waving...

So busy at tax time...

Yippee!

Bowling

Lilli says "these shoes are awesome!!!"

marilyn mantis had babies.

after repeated phone calls and a 40 minute wait on hold, i was finally able to speak with a *gasp* human. my new best friend pam told me that my bag had arrived this morning and the courier had already picked it up from the airport. she apologized that the website had not been updated. 30 seconds later, the site was magically updated. i love the window they gave themselves...
the good news is that, not only was there a suitcase on my front step, but it was my suitcase and it had all of my stuff inside :) i have never been so excited to do laundry!

delta has left me disgruntled

i got home from nashville yesterday morning, but my brand new suitcase is still on vacation. except that no one can yet tell me where it is...
i was told at the airport that the bag was still in nashville and would come in on the next flight, but the website and handy dandy 800 number give me less information than that.
it's super frustrating because this was the first trip that i had to pay to check my bag.
grrr!

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The official weather in atlanta is gray...