Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Modern Family

So thankful for Modern Family after a way too long day. Phil Dunphy cracks my ass up.

And as luck would have it...I'm kinda married to him. Big has some stuff in common with Phil. He cracks my ass up, too.

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Back in the sad-dle...or should I say glad-dle?

It is November and last year I blogged each day about something I am thankful for and I plan to do it again this year. It feels good to count my blessings...and sometimes be thankful in writing after a great or not-so-great day.

Today I am being thankful for 2 things since I missed my chance yesterday.

Yesterday, in the car with the boys heading through the toll and the people in front of us are going ridiculously S-L-O-W so I sigh loudly...Bug says, "Mommy, now is when you call him an idiot!"

That is my boy! And I love him...especially when he recognizes what a sigh really means. And it must be noted...he said idiot not any form of fuck. And I might have tossed out a 'Fuck!' had the day been more hectic before we encountered their snail-ish pace. So, yes, he says inappropriate words but chose to keep it more kid-friendly...perhaps b/c there is a baby in the car these days.
I am grateful to have a son who keeps me on my toes and cracks me up...A LOT!

Today I am thankful that I can vote. Sure, I m WAY out-voted and negated here in Texas but I still plan to exercise this right and chalk one up for the liberals! At least, we live in the most liberal part of Texas.

Go ahead and get your grateful on too...

Monday, September 27, 2010

At a loss for words...

No, nothing has happened to cause it.

Just am.

I will find something to blog soon. But no need to waste your time or mine until I have it.

Enjoy.

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Crossover News...aka Crap

Has anyone else noticed and become alarmed at the increasing trend of non-news being reported as breaking news by reputable programs?!

Who the hell gives a rat's ass or is stunned that Paris Hilton was arrested for possession of cocaine? Um, no kidding. What...did you figure she just didn't eat and still managed to have to energy to party and shop nearly every hour of the day? No, she needs coke to stay that thin and have energy to do everything related to being a sex-tape celebutante. That girl is just one missed magazine cover away from a crystal-meth addiction and I'm not the only one who hears that clock ticking for her. Shockingly, the powers that be at E News don't hear it and they know a hell of a lot more about her than I do.

But, at least, it makes sense when E News reports on her antics...not so much when my local ABC affiliate gets in on the reporting during our evening news. Slow news night, Austin?!

Monday, August 30, 2010

Am I Snow White in some alternate universe today?

Well, I have a boy who thinks Diego (the animal rescuer from Nick Jr.) hung the moon and stars just before he invented trucks, tools and cake. Those items happen to be some of Bug' s favorite things to any who wonder. And he fully intends to be Diego for Halloween. Yes, a blonde Diego but, nevertheless, Diego. So we learn A LOT about animals in this house...and when we are out of this house.

So, today has been a bizarre trip through animal hell or heaven...I'm simply not sure.

In any case, I started my morning standing out by the pool with the telescoping brush in hand ready to begin scrubbing down the sides and bottom of the pool to help cure the plaster. (YES, the pool is looking finished but still not quite ready for swimmers...kinda like my girlie parts! Haha!) During my pool brushing times, I frequently encounter an odd assortment of creatures. Normally, a series of thirsty or extraordinarily clean wasps, a big wolf spider who has made our pool his new home and june bugs and lady bugs more rarely.

Early this morning, I noticed a dark spot in the deep end when I looked out from up in my bedroom but the water is awfully cloudy from all the calcium sloughing off the plaster. As I got to the deep end with my brush, I recognized the dark spot to be a GIANT dead frog. Not a floater but a sinker and it grossed me out. Bug, on the other hand, thought it was cool. Oh, how is he my kid?! I am not a girl who can fish a dead frog out of the pool...and Big is traveling. Of course, Big is traveling...that is a little joke God plays on me from time to time. He likes to see how I respond to these scenarios. Hell, I like to see how I respond to these scenarios. So, I can't blame him. I promptly called my neighbor and asked how likely she was to fish a dead frog out of our deep end and toss the carcass over our fence into the field. Surprisingly, she said she'd be right over. Minutes later, she had the croaker over the fence and I was busily brushing the pool. It still is freaking me out that there is a puffy dead frog on the other side of our fence. I am not a friend to the frogs but it is creepy to know he's just over there.

Then, this afternoon, it got interesting. The boys were both in their rooms for naps. Bug was napping and Bub was shrieking like a howler monkey stuck in a fire ant pile. The kid was overtired and the best way to go to sleep is to just GO TO SLEEP! Finally he did but it didn't last more than an hour. So, I took advantage of my free time to get the pool scrubbed down again.

While I was out there scrubbing the deep end, I heard a strange sound. When I looked up, there was a good-sized pigeon on the slanty roof of our back porch and he was quickly coming down toward me. Let me be clear...he was looking me straight in the eye and heading down fast. He didn't seem like a Hitchcock-ian black bird so I decided that trembling would be out of the question. I stood my ground and kept right on brushing. He flew down onto the deck and started walking around the perimeter of the pool coming after me...but not so quick this time. By the time I got to the shallow end, he was about 6 inches away from me.

This next bit is going to sound crazy...not crazy like I may have been a little overtired myself but crazy like I may have accidentally dropped several hits of acid during lunch.

This pigeon was beautiful...I couldn't take my eyes off him. And not just because he was WAY inside my wild bird comfort zone. He was a mix of deep auburn brown with spots of white and a very full and feathery snowy white tail/birdy butt region. It was the prettiest wild bird I have seen. He had such bright red little bird legs with white spots on them. Kinda like he was wearing polka dot leggings. And then, much to my National Geographic Explorer chagrin, I noticed he had a black cuff on his birdy ankle...he was some kind of homing pigeon. Damn dream killer, pigeon!

I mistakenly believed for a brief instant that I had found my true calling. I was going to be the next big thing on reality television...the bird whisperer. That cuff shook me out of my dreamy state and reminded me that this bird is used to people...in fact, he probably thought I was going to bring him in and serve him some fine-ass bird seed on the good china. Isn't that what homing pigeon owners do with their birds? Treat them like family? They must. Or, at least, the owner of this pigeon must because he definitely wasn't the least bit intimidated by me. He hung around while I finished cleaning the pool and then even let me get up close and tak with him. Then after a while when I walked away, he flew off.

He hasn't come back. I know...I have been watching and spending a disproportionate amount of time out back in relation to the steamy temps.

Kinda wish he would come back so I could get Bug and show him this cool pigeon...especially since we can't get enough of  "Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus." by Mo Willems. Mo Willems can write a children's book. And this pigeon can drive our bus any day!

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Wordy Wednesday-Sales Skills Edition



The pictures above are the computer images of our pool that is currently under construction in the backyard.

Please don't be intrigued by the pool pictures. That was our downfall. Instead, take note of the pretend images of Big and I.

Big appears to be negotiating a sorta dive into the not-so-deep 5.5 ft end of the pool in an attempt to end it all and walk away from the endless chores, work and now soccer coaching with which he seems to be inundated.

I am just brainlessly soaking in the shallow end. Perhaps an allusion to my inability to hold a steady thought and possess more than the attention span of a fruit fly. I am neither disturbed or interested in the notion of my husband executing a suicide dive into the new pool.

The boys are also curiously absent. Gotta wonder where they have wandered off or been sequestered, maybe?

Those pool guys sure know how to sell it. We saw these pictures and signed right up for a pool. We should be splashing in just over a week...hopefully I can keep Big from diving and we can all enjoy it.

Monday, August 16, 2010

Mini vacation, maxi fun!

Yes...it has been a while. I have been focused more on the world outside my computer for the past several weeks. Some things good and some things not so good taking my attention. Now onto our vacation...and the length of this will make up for my extended blog absence so, please, buckle in.

We planned and booked a week long beach vacation for the second week of August back in February. Evidently, that wasn't in the cards for us...Big had a car accident and we had to get a new (used) car, our tenants in our rental house decided that they didn't want to pay rent in a timely manner this month, we just closed on our pool loan and it just didnt make sense to be putting so much money toward a vacation with all that going on. We live entirely on cash and not credit cards so we get to make those kinds of decisions from time to time. On the up side, we got a GREAT rate on our pool loan since the credit is in tip top shape! Glass half-full angle for sure.

In any case, it worked out perfectly. I can see why we were lucky to stay closer to home this year. For one, the beach is seeing some ill effects as a result of the gulf oil debacle. Not tar balls or anything but the ecosystem is in flux with all that oil forcing animals into areas they aren't normally. Secondly, our swimming pool construction was set to begin and Bug's most thrilling part was to occur the first day we left for the beach...the digger digging the hole. So, we were able to hang out on the back porch and by our living room windows to watch the excavator do its thing. That blew the beach out by a long shot in Bug's book. It was pretty cool for Big and I, too. Plus, Bub has been getting used to a sleep schedule and a week at the beach with bright sunny bedrooms would have thrown us a major curve ball. I was so convinced that he would just be a baby #2 and accept his role as such by falling asleep wherever and whenever. He has different plans. He simply won't fall asleep when we are out and about so I need to keep him near a crib/play yard for naptimes. Otherwise, we feel BIG consequences.
 Overall, we tried to make it as much of a vacation from routines and life as possible even though we weren't away at the beach or even far from home for most of the week.)



So our vacation week looked like this:

Monday-home to watch the excavator dig up a big hole for our pool in the early morning. After about 2 hours of this, Big took Bug to a local swimming pool with water slides and a splash area. They played there for a couple hours while Bub and I laid low at home and managed chores, made lunch, got dinner rolling and Bub got his morning nap. In the afternoon/evening, we watched more digger action and took a family walk/Bug bike ride and made smores.

Tuesday-Big had to do some work in the morning to build our fence in coordination with the pool construction. So, the boys and I loaded up and went to play and shop at Ikea...actually a fun spot for Bug. He loves getting to walk in stores and feel like a grown up. There is a great kids area at Ikea that makes him batty. Then we came home and did an art project and watched the pool builders frame out the exterior perimeter of the pool. Then, we went out for a special dinner at our favorite mexican restaurant as both my big boys LOVE the queso and chips...not to mention Big earned an extra large margarita for all the fence work he did in the extreme Texas heat and humidity. And Bug got to have a sleepover in our room for the first time since he was a baby...just for fun!

Wednesday-we spent the morning at a local little kids amusement park. Not especially fancy but you couldn't tell based on Bug's reactions to everything. He was in kiddie heaven! Ferris wheel, carousel, pony ride, train ride, airplane ride, boat ride, and jeep ride...some of those more than once. All tailored to kids under 7. It was great! And the heat was bearable especially since they have loads of shade. In the afternoon, Big took Bug to our neighborhood pool to swim and splash for a couple hours while I started to pack us for the end of our vacation week.

Thursday-we started early and loaded up the family to head down to San Antonio Sea World. (2 hour drive from home) We arrived just before the park opened and were ready for FUN!
We saw:
  • Shamu's show "Believe" which was far more impressive than I anticipated as we were able to see a baby whale side-by-side with his mom during the show and he even did some jumps although he isn't trained yet. It was amazing. I had to push back tears at the beginning of the show when I saw how excited and happy Bug was to see it all.
  • A sea lion show that was pretty fun for the kid crowd and had lots of interesting facts for the adults.
  • We made it to the different exhibits in order to see the dolphins, penguins and coral reef fish being fed. Feeding times are strongly suggested to engage little ones in seeing the animals. Bug wanted to see the sharks being fed but we just got to see them in the tanks since they don't have scheduled feeding times for them...guess no one wants to be dinner for an audience of children.
  • Bug also played at the splash park, rode a kids roller coaster and played at a large shaded playground.
That was my first time at a Sea World and I grew up in Miami, FL with WAY too many visits to DisneyWorld but never a trip to Sea World Orlando. It was great in my book and I think we plan to get annual passes next season while Bub is still a free guest.
We ended Thursday at our hotel with an unmatched Bub meltdown at dinner...he was soooo overtired. he had napped a total of 1.5 hours all day and that doesn't make for a happy baby. Lucky for us, he enjoyed the park all day and gave us no complaints with the heat and overstimulation. A dinner meltdown was deserved and then sidelined as I nursed and held him through the entire meal. ***The greatest news...we all were asleep by 9pm and slept until 7:30 Friday morning. And I don't count the 2am potty wake up for Bug or the 4am feeding for Bub. Those were minimal considering we were all out of our element.***

Friday-we gobbled an unhealthy fast food breakfast and then headed into downtown San Antonio to enjoy the riverwalk. If you haven't been there or seen it in movies, it is such a neat place. We walked around a bit downtown and saw The Alamo. It was my first time in San Antonio and that is crazy since we have lived 2 hours away for almost 6 years now. We made our way underground to the riverwalk and took the barge tour which was fun for all of us. Bug loved being on the boat and the tour guide was very entertaining with lots of fun facts for our group. After the barge ride, we walked back to the Rainforest Cafe (a delight to the senses for little ones) and had our lunch there amidst the faux wildlife. Bug enjoys Rainforest Cafe...to put it mildly. Whenever we are near one, I make a point that we have one meal there for his benefit. We filled our bellies and then headed back to the car. We piled in, turned on the DVD for Bug, turned on the music and light toy for Bub and then set off for home. Both boys fell asleep for about 45 minutes in the car and that made for a quiet ride! After 2 days in the sun, a quiet drive was a pleasant diversion.

The weekend entailed some fun but mostly just me wrangling our effing tenants into paying their rent and late charges to save me a week of trips to the local JP precinct to file eviction papers on them. Dealing with bureaucracy while toting and caring for two small children would have made Gitmo torture look like a trip to a beach resort. Thankfully, they paid their rent and late charges AT 10PM SATURDAY NIGHT...wtf?! But I was then able to get some sleep.

Yesterday, Big hung around at home with Bub so I could have some mommy and son time with Bug. We went swimming at the neighborhood pool for a hour or so. It was wonderful to have some time with him when I was undistracted by mommy duties and a little Bub. He soaks up the solo mommy time so graciously that it makes me sad sometimes. He's such a good boy and deals with whatever comes his way. I am so blessed that he is my son!!

Today...Big is off on another business trip and the boys and I are falling right back into our "Daddy-free routine" for most of the week.

So that has been my world for the past week...and it was really fantastic!!