I tried to be good. I went to bed much earlier than usual last night, so I could get up early with the kids, go do my errands, and then take them to the pool until Daddy got home. We haven't swum since the end of May, so we're due for a pool visit.
Instead, I was up at 0600 with an upset stomach, and I was shivering and feeling awful. When it was all over, I went downstairs to rest on the couch until they got up. Only, I fell back to sleep. And it was late morning before I woke up again.
Dammit.
Oh, well. No sense berating myself for it; what's done is done.
I just love Chloë's profile, especially when her glasses are missing and I can see it.
I got right up with the kids and we sprang to work in the kitchen, assembling our ingredients, preheating our oven and preparing ourselves to bake chocolate chip banana bread.
First, Sophia mashed up our three extremely overripe nanners.
Next, Chloë whisked in a few eggs.
Jack dumped in the shortening, and Chloë added the sugar.
Sophia mixed it all up, after adding the vanilla.
They added the rest of the ingredients, and Chloë mixed it all up.
Voilà! The kids dumped it into the pan {note to self: really must buy loaf pans!}, and their very own chocolate chip banana bread was ready to go into the oven!
During the 75-minutes baking time, Jack played downstairs with his cars, and the sisters took turns perched atop the fainting couch and sliding down it. Then they all took turns cuddling in my arms and singing lullabyes with me. Sophia didn't know many of the words, but she sung along anyway. This caused mucho hysterics on my part, and she laughed as hard as I did. It was a fun time.
It's ready!
Jack was the first lucky boy to dig in, once it cooled enough. He gave it his stamp of approval and demanded some margarine.
Any chance to show off the Fiestaware...
Daddy came home just as we were starting to dig in, so he enjoyed his piece, too. Then we showered and got ready to go out. We'd gotten some really good Moe's (Welcome to Moe's!) coupons, and Chloë was asking to go for her special dance recital dinner, so I looked up online to see if there was a Moe's mystery shop available. There was! Score.
Dinner was great, even though there were still no tomatoes for salsa, and even though the smoke from the North Carolina wildfires was too overpowering to let us sit outside. They way overstuffed our burritos with yummy good stuff.
Jack didn't want to eat his quesadillas. Just chips. Nope, not this time. I told him if he didn't take at least one good bite of his quesa, he was going right to bed when we got home.
Guess who went right to bed when he got home?
That's right, it didn't work. He didn't eat. He cried a whole bunch about going to bed, though. Oh, well! One thing I'm adamant about is following through; no empty threats here!
Once home, I sat outside in the nice evening air and called my father in Ohio. I never did reach him for Father's Day. He's doing well up there, just getting used to life there as opposed to South Carolina. It was good to hear from him.
Rob snapped this picture of Sophia once again up on her perch. She was also reaching back behind herself and licking her foot. Girlfriend is mighty flexible, which is why I'm going to go with the majority from the poll and put her in gymnastics this fall! I did manage to call and get the details from them about that; it's comparable in cost to dance class, and she can start anytime since it's a year-round program. Should be fun! Thanks for the help!
Stephanie soon joined us to have some cheesecake, again in celebration of Chloë's dance recital. It was supposed to be Friendly's, but we had all these Schwan's desserts already and decided to save our moulah. It was pretty good! (The slices are bigger than theirs, which I'd cut in half for them to share.) I should have made some strawberres because I'm God, to put on top.
After dessert, Rob took the girls upstairs to bathe and get ready for bed, while Stephanie and I drove to Walgreen's so I could pick up my prescriptions. We got there, though, and I realized I'd forgotten my checkbook at home! Gah!
So we drove home, picked that up, and ran to Farm Fresh. I'm out of salt and wipey-wipes, and she needed chicken and rice for her poor sick doggies. Then we went back to Walgreen's. Now I'm stocked up on my drugs for the cruise. Another item crossed off my list. Whee!
She soon said goodbye, and I decided to start back in on sewing Chloë's blue dress. It was not off to an auspicious start, however, when I couldn't even thread the darn needled and had to call in the troops for support. Took Rob a while, too, but he finally got it after cutting that fat yarn at an angle. So I was on my way to press some seams when I realized it was time to post my nightly blahg entry.
It's always crazy around here on half-days. Today and tomorrow are the last two days of school for my kids, and they are "adjusted dismissal" days. Half days. Just go on, you can say it.
I had no idea what time to expect Jack's bus this morning, given that she is so variable on regular days. I was thinking 10:15, so I was lazily checking email this morning at 9:38 when Jack shouted from the kitchen, "MOMMMMM! My bus is here!!!" Wha? Thank goodness it was only a half-day, as I hadn't bothered to put anything in his lunch box yet. I sent him out, for the first time, without his backpack. He was completely bewildered by this. I had to tell him three times that it was all right before he was convinced.
Of course, I should have sent it. He came home with his hands full of papers!
And his AM bus driver walked up to the door to show me she had a picture of Jack, and a picture frame, but his picture was too big for the frame. She wanted me to have it anyway. Which makes me feel rotten that I haven't gotten anything for the teachers and bus drivers. Wait. There is still time to run to Farm Fresh for some gift cards. Should I go?
So when Sophia finally woke up, I put her in her favorite new sundress before setting off for Chloë's school. We had to pick up the awesome movie prize pack we won from their Relay For Life raffle. It contained:
The huge popcorn bucket
Four new DVDs
Four boxes of movie theatre popcorn
Two bottles of Green Tea with Citrus (ick)
and substantial gift cards to AMC Theatres and Blockbuster!
Totally worth the $5 I paid for my six raffle tickets, I thought as we lugged our loot back to the sweltering van. I just hoped that chocolate wouldn't melt in the summer heat. I think it came out all right.
Back at home, Sophia insisted we open everything in the "party box," as she called it, right away. She was so excited about it and couldn't wait for Bro and Sis to get home so they could watch a movie and, of course, eat some snacks. "I loooove snacks!" proclaimed Soapy.
By the way, birdies of all shapes and sizes are her favorite animals. Jack's are bunnies and Chloë's are kitties. What you'll do with that information is up to you, but I just thought I'd share now that it's become so clear.
Next things Soap wanted to do was color in her sister's new coloring book. I didn't see the harm, so I sat and watched as she oh-so-carefully scribbled with ten different colors all in the same spot and then declared that page finished. She did that on two more pages before she'd had enough with that activity. She wanted some "juice," and by that, she meant the green tea.
I let her have at it, after I'd had a big swig and decided it was not for me, or, I was sure, her father. Here she was, sitting quietly drinking her tea at the table, so I got back to work sewing Chloë's shorts.
Y'all. I have made a lot of mistakes with these shorts. The inside-out and pocket mishaps of yesterday were just the beginning. I sewed the crotch all wrong, and now it looks like the wearer has been riding a horse for too long. I knew it didn't look right but figured it would just fix itself as I proceeded. The directions said nothing of the right way to do it, which I have since learned from my former home-ec teacher MIL, who is valiantly trying to teach my dumb ass to sew from halfway across the country! Of course, I'm now ten steps ahead of the crotch (that doesn't sound good), so I have a lot of ripping out to do. Sigh. It just doesn't come easy to me, this sewing business.
Jack's bus pulled up a mere two hours after he left, so it was time to stash the sewing for a while. You have to keep your eye on that one. Shortly after that, Chloë arrived, wanting to know what was new.
What's new?! What's new, you ask? I have new things for you today, my dear!
First, I showed her and Jack all the goodies we'd won from her school. She was just mystified that I could have snuck into and out of her school without her spotting me. I'm a sneaky one, my dear.
Then, I showed her the packages that their Aunt Gail had mailed from them, apparently just for some summer fun.
Sophia received the most adorable outfit ever, which she insisted on changing into right away. Cuteness personified!! I want to make that!
It always amuses me when two or more of the kids are opening presents at the same time, but they're so interested in what the other person got, they're not looking at their own goody! Jack's eyes were glued to Chloë's new outfit (which she dubbed "a China shirt," after the also-embroidered she-dubbed "China outfit" that we actually bought her in Morroco, in Epcot!), so much so that he nearly missed the fact that he'd gotten a new pair of Cars swim trunks! This brought much glee on his part.
Next, the kids gathered 'round as Chloë opened their group present, a summer catching toy for outside! I'm saving it for when they go to Stephanie's, so they have something new to play with and retain their interest.
Gail also sent this freaking awesome cookie cookbook, which has tons of mouth-watering recipes for every cookie imaginable. I haven't even used it yet, but I can already tell it's going to be my go-to book for cookies now! Mmm, I'm salivating. You must get this book!!
Thanks for our goodies, Gail! Love 'em, love 'em, love 'em (that's a quote from Chloë's monologue, btw).
Once that fun was over, the kids were clamoring for their promised candy. I let them pick the movie (All Dogs Go To Heaven, which is way more violent than I'd remembered from my own days watching it as a kid) and the candy (JuJubes, I think). They settled in, and I picked up my fuzzy yarn for the scarf that man had ordered for his daughter, and which I'd completely forgotten about yet again. Whoops. I used to be able to knock out the whole scarf in two hours. This time, being rusty and having fakety-fake nails on, I barely got past the keyhole before the movie ended. Oy. I'm not looking forward to finishing it, but I'll go do that tonight after I finish this.
Once the movie was over, the kids were acting ornery and bossy and pushy and not-so-nice. I gave them the choice: naptime, or clean up the living room time. They chose naptime, small wonder. Once they were in their rooms, I lay down "for a quick shut-eye," I told myself. I didn't wake up for hours! Way later than I'd planned, and Stephanie was on her way over to babysit!
I hopped into the shower as Rob was getting home, very late from work. Of course when we've got somewhere to go, he gets stuck in traffic. It's a rule, you know.
Anyway, we went out, had dinner, had some drinks, laughed a whole bunch and generally enjoyed each other's company. I'm so thankful for that. He didn't feel well, though, and barely touched his dinner. And we were stuck in a booth with an immovable table, and I barely had room to breathe. It sucks to be fat!
Back at home, Rob took the kids upstairs to get ready for bed, and Jack turned around and peed in the laundry! He was wide awake, so there was just no excuses for it. What the f HELL?!! Why would he DO that?? I am just completely baffled by it. Completely baffled.
Oh! I almost forgot. I've had multiple requests for the bread recipe and for the story about why I deserved to be peed on. First, the bread. The recipe is from here, but I will post it below for those of you who are as lazy as I am:
INGREDIENTS
1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
1 1/4 cups warm water (110 degrees to 115 degrees F)
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 cup grated Romano cheese
3 cups all-purpose flour
Cornmeal
DIRECTIONS
In a large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Add the sugar, salt, garlic salt, cheese and 2 cups flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough.
Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; divide in half. Shape each half into a 14-in. loaf. Place on a greased baking sheet that has been sprinkled with cornmeal. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes.
Brush loaves with water. Make three diagonal slashes about 1/2 in. deep with a very sharp knife in each loaf.
Fill a 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking pan with 1 in. of hot water and place on the bottom oven rack. Preheat to 400 degrees F. Bake loaves for 20-25 minutes. Remove to wire racks.
And now, your story.
Rob hates to be poked in the sides. Haaates it. It makes him jump and squeal like a little girl. For that reason, I do it all the time. ALLLL the time. He asks me constantly to stop. I have tried. I just can't help myself. So one time, he was in the bathroom taking a leak, and I came up to him with my finger a-twitchin'. He knew that look, so he warned me, "If you poke me, I'm going to pee on you!" I laughed and poked him anyway. With that, he turned and peed up and down the whole front of me, clothes on and everything.
Today, I woke up again feeling lousy. And I had enough sleep. So there goes that correllation! I was hoping it would wear off, so I could accomplish something, but I just kept getting worse. I do think it is allergies, but Claritin does nothing for it, and neither does the Benadryl I take for my skin's allergic reactions. What else is there?
Anyway, so I slept darn near the whole day away. The kids were playing loud and shrieking and having fun, but the only thing that woke me up enought to care was Rob yelling at them to be quiet because Mommy was sleeping! Otherwise, I didn't mind them a bit.
At 1730, I finally got up and showered for my "date" with Stephanie. She had never been to Ruth's Chris, so I told her I would try to get another shop for them and take her to it. I finally picked one up, and it was tonight.
We had a really fun time. We both had our Palms out so we could act like we were business associates and I could take notes under cover. Secret Agents! It's kind of difficult to be discreet about it at a place like that where a half-dozen people are always fawning all over you, so I don't bother to try. If you have it right out in the open, it must be something else, right?
At least that's what I hope.
We had crab and shrimp and steak (not me, I don't eat beef), baked potato and broccoli, and a Chocolate Explosion for dessert. Everything was delicious, and we were stuffed.
After dinner, we made our way to the bar. There, we cut loose a little, talked a lot with our cutie bartender, Nick, and laughed ourselves silly.
Um, Steph, I just realized something. You gave Nick my blog website - now he'll know we were the shoppers! AHAHAHAHA! I suppose I could delete this post, but then I wouldn't be able to post this lovely picture the staff took of our evening:
Steph just wanted a picture of her German Chocolate Cake Martini - and Nick - but when they saw her taking a picture with her camera phone, they came up and insisted we let them take our photo with their special occasions camera. So we did!
Fin.
P.S. We watched August Rush last night, and it was amazing! I totally loved it. I gave it a '6' - out of 5! Rob gave it a '4,' saying parts of it were 'disjointed' but his head was stuck by his computer the whole time. Anyway, our scores average out to a 5, right?
P.P.S. I "frogged" (rip-it, rip-it) the shirt I was crocheting for myself last night. The pattern is horribly written, and I didn't like it enough to guess. So I suppose I won't make anything else for myself. Hmph.
Chloë has started a summer blog! If you'd like the link to her little story site, post to me in the comments!
Thursday, I was granted a reprieve from all the running about. Which is good, because I didn't get much sleep, and I felt awful again. I have decided lately there is a direct relationship between the hours of sleep I get and how good I feel. I managed to get the kids to their buses on time, and since Sophia was so tired from my keeping her up all night to try on the new dress, I decided to take a nap until she woke up. Well, it was almost time for Jack to come home before I heard a peep out of her. Quite a nice little snoozy for moi!
Yes, I ironed the dress, but Sophia jumped and rolled around and climbed and what-have-you in it so much that you couldn't tell anymore, by the time I was able to take the picture.
She was very excited to wear it again. I couldn't find the white buttons I had purchased for it, so I had to go through my stash for one. We decided together on a blue and pink butterfly that goes with the stripey colors. It fits through the loophole, so even though it was much bigger than the prescribed 3/8", it worked for me!
We had this little new-dress photo shoot after dropping Chloë off at her last Brownies meeting of the year. Just one more skating party in a couple of weeks and that's it 'til September!
Rob came home while I was upstairs showering to get ready for our date and putting away all his laundry, which he is unable to do... so I had him go pick up Chloë while I continued working.
She came bounding up the stairs afterward to tell me about the meeting, during which she apparently made a bird feeder. I have yet to see this thing!
By the way, Sophia has learned to roll her 'r's and has been trilling away for the past three days. In a super high pitch! We keep trying to get her to stop, even for a few moments, but she loves it too much. She even trills when she says, for instance, "Dad" or "butterfly," but her favorite thing to say is "iArriba!"
The Littles were having fun on the floor, playing with empty laundry baskets and coming up with names for the games they were playing. Jack would say, "Mom, this is called circus robot game!" or some such. Before long, I lay on my belly on the bed to watch them but instead became their jungle gym. They were climbing onto my back, rolling off, taking turns, and I heard Jack say to Sophia, "Go around the butt. The butt is BIG." LMAO!
While we were getting dressed, Stephanie arrived, and the kids bounded down the stairs to meet her. They love their Steph. She was there because we were going out to dinner. I broke rules and decided to take a couple of Outback Steakhouse shops because they were new and we've never done them before, and I wanted to give them another try. Last time was in Panama City, and I was either newly delivered of Chloë or newly pregnant with the twins, and very hormonal and emotional. I couldn't find anything on the menu that wasn't either beef or mushrooms - two things I will not eat - and I sobbed, and we left. It was most embarrassing.
They have entirely revamped the menu since then! There were lots of things for me to choose from. In the end, we had the spinach artichoke dip for an appetizer (yum), Rob had the tilapia, and I had the grilled shrimp and scallops. No dessert, but then we had to go to the bar for a round of drinks. Rob had a Colorado Bulldog, which I partly suspect he likes to order to stump the bartender as much as for the taste, and I had an 'Aussie Skyy' with vodka and peach stuff and all kinds of tasty good things. Rob didn't like it, but it was right up my alley.
The restaurant was right next to, along with a lot of other really great shops including a knitting one and a sewing one, a Super Kmart, so Rob ran in there to look for water wings while I worked on the report in the car. No luck there, so we drove to the opposite corner of the lot and found a Dollar Tree! Gotta give the DT some love; they had a stack of ads with my baby's picture in them! I grabbed a bunch, if anyone needs or wants one! We found water wings there, and the very same swimsuits our daughter modeled. We ended up buying four new pairs of 6M swim trunks for our, yes, 5yo son, because they were only a dollar and they would probably fit better than the 2Ts he's always having to yank up now. Then I grabbed a bunch of little-kid socks, since we're always losing them in the laundry.
Back at home, the kids were already in bed. Yes! We had planned on ... *ahem* ... but we both ended up falling asleep on the couch like a coupla old fogies. Oh, well.
Which meant I hadn't set my alarm and totally overslept for the umpteenth time lately. <Insert aggravated face here.> Actually it wasn't too late this time, but having to get the Littles up to drive her to school when they'd rather be sleeping is annoying. Plus it was Field Day for Chloë, and I didn't want her to miss out on the fun. We remembered her bathing suit and special shirt, but I totally forgot to send her with an ice-cold water bottle. Oh, well, I knew they'd have water sports.
I got Jack on the bus and then Sophia and I sat around, while I tried to figure out what to do with her today. I was going to take her to pick up my new glasses and then go to the fabric and knitting stores from last night, but in walked Daddy about 4+ hours early, and all my plans went by the wayside. Instead, I asked for permission to close my eyes for a minute, and I slept. For much longer than a minute. More like 240 of them!
When I woke up, Rob was napping next to me, Sophia was down for her nap, and the Bigs were quietly playing with (and eating the contents of) the big box of Laffy Taffy Chloë won at school. More about that on her blog!
The mailman brought these little items for CARE Package from a lady who had found out about us from another lady on Ravelry. If you're out there, Cindy, thank you so much!!
In the end, I didn't get my glasses or do anything else, and the audition I was supposed to take Chlo to was rescheduled for tomorrow night. We ordered a pizza for dinner - and cannolis - and sat around watching An Arctic Tale afterward. I tried crocheting on my new top for myself, but again I put it down and fell asleep. I am a sleepy girl this week! And that pattern is very poorly written. I'm not a fan of novicely-written patterns...
Tomorrow really will be a busy day, so I'm going to go get ready for it.
At home last night, Jack came downstairs and went to sleep inside the cat scratching post tunnel thingy! So funny.
We were up late last night, so we slept late this morning. It still wasn't enough, and I was bleary-eyed for quite a while. Let me tell you, blear looks really hot on fat people.
I made my way downstairs where Rob was feeding the kids, and set to work sewing the panels of my stripey blanket together. I got about halfway through the first seam when I remembered Rob needed to finish his LensCrafter's shop for his new eyeglasses, ie, pick them up so I could do the pick-up section of the report. And there was no food in the house and he'd be right nearby, so I wanted him to go to Panera, too. Yum, yum.
Shortly after he left, Stephanie called me to say she and Tim were on their way over for our Day O' Fun. Rut-ro, Raggy! I was still in a nightgown, Rob was out, and the kids were in various states of undress. But we quickly got our bathing suits on, just in time for Stim (their name together, see) to come a-knockin'.
I kept on seaming my blanket while we waited for Rob, and then I gobbled down my brunch while he got ready for the pool. Mmm, mmm, Panera. Good stuff, man. We shared some cookies with Stim and the kids, and then scrambled to get our pool necessities together. You can't just go to a pool these days. Of course, there must be towels - five. Then there must be "some scream," no matter what time of day or how short or long your visit. And most importantly, there have to be pool toys for each child. We ended up bringing all the blow-up toy prizes from our night at Motor World last weekend.
The pool water was frrrreeeeeeeezing. Rob barely made it into the pool at all. No meat on his bones. The rest of us managed to acclimate just fine. We didn't have any water wings (must put those on the shopping list), so Chloë clung steadfastly to the wall as she played with Stim and her school friends. Jack and Sophie were in and out, in and out, cold and hot, up and down. Little monkeys, they are. It was a good time. The adult swims were very much welcome, as the neighborhood kids were there in abundance and got quite rambunctious. Can't tell you how many times I was pushed and shoved with a baby in my arms. Don't like that. Not a bit.
After a while, we left and came back to our house, where everyone changed and showered and dressed. Oh. Ask me what's the worst that could happen? I'll tell you: Being allergic to the pool, my oasis in the summer months. But not just allergic. Full-body-welt highly allergic. The hives were huge and angry, and my face swelled up, and it was all very uncomfortable and unattractive. Once in the house, I chugged some four or five Benadryls and waited for the ugliness to depart. The ugliness caused by chlorine, anyhow. It took a while, but I'm back to "normal" now. I use that term loosely.
Then Steph and I took Jack to the grocery store for some dinner needs: Dog food for Lily's sup, and sangria, green beans, linguine, strawberries and Italian bread for ours. Jack picked out a new car (I'd promised him a few days ago for something), and I picked up some Cottonelle wipes four our tushies. I love those things. No more TP for me!
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Rob was peeling and cooking up some shrimp scampi to go atop our linguini. Linguine or linguini? I'm too lazy to go look at the box right now. When we arrived, he set to work boiling water for the pasta while I sliced up the strawberries for our dessert. Those things were almost as big as my hand, look:
Ginormalous!
The kids (and Rob) kept buggering me for some berries, but I threatened them with my knife and kept the thieves at bay. (Not really, put down the phone.)
Then I remembered I didn't have any whipping cream for the strawberry shortcake, so Stim took Sophie back to the store for some heavy cream and, oh, yeah, can you pick up some more Bisquick too?
Dinner was excellent, and we all ate our fill. Even the kids did pretty well with no complaining, other than Jack repeatedly tell us he didn't want his shrimp even though no one was making him. I should have bought more than one loaf of the bread, though; it was awesome. I had two glasses of wine and got quite inebriated, and Stephanie soon joined me so we could be silly together. And we were. I said a lot of dumb stuff and giggled at myself.
We went back to the living room to rest our bellies and let the kids play while I tried to show Steph briefly how to crochet. She did a stitch or two and looks like she's going to be an easy student, so we'll have to sit down together soon and do it fo' real. I had finished seaming up the second seam earlier and was working on the edging of my stripey blanket. We were also running back and forth, Steph and I, to the kitchen so I could show her how I make the biscuits (big tongue stuck out to Stephanie-Canada!). It was a lot of back and forth. I got a little dizzy. Remember, I was drunk. (Hey, let's call a spade a spade. I wanted to say 'a worm a worm' just there. I don't know why.)
Um, so, what else...
The shortcake (biscuits :P) were finished, finally, so everyone regrouped in the kitchen to down some strawberries. It wasn't our usual shortcake: I'd added more sugar to the biscuits than usual, and I didn't have milk so I used some of the heavy cream in them. And Rob whipped the cream and some sugar together instead of using the canned stuff. It was so-o-o good. We all scarfed it down pretty well. I never get tired of strawberries. Maybe I should think of some new things to do with them? I don't know, if it ain't broke...
Rob made Tim give Jack his growth hormone shot after that, so he'll be able to do it while we're in Europe. It went as well as expected. Jacky cried, and it's sad, so I showed Steph how much he's grown since taking the shots for the past almost-two years, versus no growth over the previous two. They'll be fine. I'm sure of it.
Drunken self-portrait of Stephanie
Rob and Tim, overjoyed about sticking little boys butt's with sharp needles
Stim left shortly after that, and the kids went to bed, so I finished up my single crochet edging. I have two more rounds of single crochet to do, and all those ends to sew in, but for the most part, it'd finished! Yippee! I've only been at it for a few months, off and on of course. It's cotton and really heavy. I'm loving the colors together. Steph really liked it, too, and she called it funky. I think. Now she wants one. A day after I told Rob I was never going to make another one of those again (it was my third). Haha! But of course I will, if she wants.
I fell asleep under my new allergy-free blanket right after that, from the effects of the pool and too much good food and fun times with our friends. Very comfy. I love it!
Friday did not go as I had planned at all. It started when Chloë and I were walking out the door to go to the bus stop. Usually, the door is locked, so I have to turn the switch to make it unlocked. Well, for some reason, it was unlocked, so as I was leaving, as usual, I turned the &*^*& switch and, yep, locked myself out of the house. Now, normally when Chlo lets the dog out in the morning, she forgets to lock the back door afterward. But nope, not yesterday morning! So I was completely SOL. And Jack and Sophia were locked inside the house, sleeping in their little beddie-byes.
Fortunately, this was the one day I happened to grab my cell phone on the way out the door.
I called Rob and told him the sitch. He's got a long drive to come home from work, but he was on his way to bail me out. I was glad to at least have that morning's paper still sitting in the driveway.
After a half-hour of reading that, I decided to call Rob and see if he was close to home. Oh, he was very close... but he had a flat tire. And no jack. Aughhhh! So he had to wait and wait and wait for motorist assistance to come and bail him out, before he could come bail me out.
But, aha! Barbara the cleaning lady has a key to my house! It was early, but I figured she was a normal person, unlike myself, and probably up at that hour. She was. She was in the middle of cleaning her house. If I could wait, oh, an hour, she could come after that? Argh. No, I'll wait for Rob, thanks anyway.
Shortly after that, I heard a commotion coming from inside the house. So I started ringing the bell and knocking on the door, and almost instantly, Sophia unlocked it and let me in. What was she doing up so early and out of her room? Jack had gotten her up. She still had the sleepy face. But I was in!
So finally Rob came home (I'd called him to let him know I'd gotten in), because he wanted to get the jack out of the shed and put in his, you know, actual vehicle where it was, you know, actually needed.
And then he said he needed my *^%^*& van to drive back to work, because his spare tire was not going to be making it all the way there and back. Fudge! I had plans, and lots of them! So in return for fouling up my day even more, I talked him into running to Panera first to get us some lunch, which he did. And it was yummeh.
But then he left, with my van, leaving Sophie and me stranded for the day instead of being able to do all the running we had planned. Sigh. We trudged upstairs, where I spent the better part of three hours hauling out all the kids' spring/summer clothes and putting away winter clothes, sorting through them to see what would still fit and what would need to be handed down/tossed/donated.
I'd forgotten that Chloë still wore a lot of 3Ts last summer! So literally half of her summer wardrobe went directly from her closet into her sister's; Sophie is wearing 3Ts and some 4Ts now! Good thing I just bought a bunch of clothes from Gymboree; it should be here next week. Jack will still mostly be able to wear his 2T clothes, of course; the boy just doesn't grow much, and short shorts don't matter as much as short pants. Sophie lost a lot of her wardrobe, too, so I put it in a bag to bring to consignment.
I wanted to dig in on the laundry some more - I must talk about laundry constantly, because literally, it never freaking stops around here! - but it was time for Jack's bus. I made my way down just as she was pulling up to the driveway. I peeked out the peekhole to see her looking pissed because she thought I wasn't home - after all, the van wasn't there. So I threw open the door with a big smile to catch her nodding to her aide and mouthing "yeah, she's here." Have I mentioned this bus driver and I hate each other?
We couldn't go to the Farmer's Market because, of course, no car. So we hung out in the living room, playing with toys, reading, knitting, and what-have-you, until Daddy finally came home from work, a little early, having gone to the Exchange for some shoes and a tie for the cruise, and to the Naval hospital for Jack's shot record so he can register for kindergarten. Holy run-on, batman. I don't care. It's my blog and I'll babble if I want to.
So the kids all needed naps, and they went right down when Daddy returned from work. We were going to watch movies and eat something while they slept, so Rob went to Moe's (Welcome to Moe's!) to pick up our usual order. Then Steph called to say she and Tim were around the corner and heading over. Cool. I decided to put on a bra, at the very least. I'd been sitting around in sweats with no underthangs.
They came right in while I was half-nekkid, putting on my brassiere, and I screeched at them to stay out! Hehe. There are always boob issues when Steph and I are around each other. There was another boob issue later, but she forbade me from posting about it!
They brought along their two puppies, one-year-old Wazowski and this new little cutie, Rosie May. She is the most beautiful puppy ever!!! (At least since Tiger Lily was a wee lass.) So soft and sweet and .... ahhh. I love puppies. Especially this one.
Rosie May falls asleep on Chloë's lap; she's in heaven
After a long while of shootin' the shit, we puppy-sat for them while they went out to get some dinner and leave us to ours. Chloë was awake by this point, so they took her along for dinner! This was a special treat for her, to go out with them, and she was very excited. The pups were good, although Miss Rosie had a couple of accidents during her visit. She's new, though, so she's excused. I sure don't miss the puppy stage with Lily, though. Man.
I showered and dressed fo' reals while they were gone, and by the time they returned, the Littles were awake, too. Steph wanted all 26 of our legs (7 people, 3 doggies) to get some exercise, so we took a walk around the smaller lake across the street from our house. I was really nervous about this, because of my back and the troubles walking I've had lately, but I do need to build up some stamina so I can enjoy our cruise to the fullest. We headed out.
Sophia sat right down at the beginning of our walk to watch the ducks!
Jack liked being up close to this guy and kept calling him a turkey, which made me laugh.
I got about halfway around the lake before I kept having to stop and sit to let my back stop it's painful spasming and seizing. It was annoying and embarrassing. I'm hoping the impact of this injury will diminish after the gastric bypass.
I'm awfully fond of this sight every spring, especially because I often think of my children as my little ducklings following along behind me, wherever I go. Duckies are the cutest babies!
Back home again, I let Stephanie cut my too-long bangs... and I won't be doing that again! LMAO! They look not so good. But they'll grow back; they always do.
Then I cut her hair, and there were many jokes made about the kinds of things girls do when they get together. We hung out some more before they headed home, and all of us were so glad to have such good 'couple' friends.
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Are you liking the music being back on the site? No? You'll have to thank or blame Daisy for that, depending on your opinion!
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I stayed up until 0400 on my monthly online charity crochet-a-thon thingy, chatting with crochet friends and trying to win a prize. I won nothing. I've won nothing all year. Suckage. Rob had long since fallen asleep upstairs, but I didn't have the energy to join him and crashed on the couch until 10 AM when Tiger Lily started banging on the back door to go out. I was just getting up when Rob and the kids came downstairs, on their way out to get new tires for my van. Yeah, both our cars were desperate for them. So I was all set to lie back down - hey! free time without the kids means sleep! - but then I remembered the crochet-a-thon. I was determined to win a prize.
I sat on that computer for the next three hours and still didn't win. Dammit. I kept playing Webkinz tournaments to pass the time, and I've won about 40 between last night and today during the chat. Rob just rolls his eyes and laughs at me. Hey, it's fun. And I had to pass the time while the chat was slow somehow!
At 1300, I jumped in the shower to get ready for my eye exam appointment. [I didn't really need an exam, but I needed new glasses (I burned mine!), and so I picked up a mystery shop to get free ones. Yeah, I know, I said I was done with that, but it keeps pulling me right back in. And hey, you can't beat a free exam and glasses. Plus I have pink-eye and needed a prescription.] The appointment was for 1440, but I had had enough of the computer. Still no sign of Rob and the kids. Another hour passed. Still no sign. Ten minutes before I had to be at the eye doctor, I called him, only to find out he was still at the flipping tire place! Five hours getting tires! With three small children! Ay ay ay.
The eye tech said I could be late, so we took off immediately when they finally came in, and I had my exam. The doctor was very nice, very thorough, very pleasant... I enjoyed him immensely. He's right up there with Dr. Michael Bidus in my little book of Medical Types To Love. He gave me a script for the strongest antibiotic eyedrops available, since the Rx drops I'm using from my last bout aren't helping and confirmed that my vision is still pretty crappish at 20/200.
He dilated my pupils, so I called Rob and the kids out of the van to come help me pick out frames while those drops were taking effect. We were at For Eyes (Rob's favorite name for an eyeglasses store), where they were having a sale: two complete pairs for $99! After much deliberation, we picked a regular pair and a pair for sunglasses. Blue ones. That's a switch. We'll see.
I headed back over and let the doc look in my eyeballs some more, and I whined a bunch about the brightness. He gave me the paper sunglasses to wear around looking snazzy, and we were off.
Well, I'd spent all that time looking at the Mi Hogar Mexican Restaurant right next door, and Rob is always, always, always down for some Mexican, so we headed there for lunch. The usual: Jack ate chips, the girls ate quesadillas, I ate a vegetarian combo... and Rob orders something different every time. He ordered something called the "big burrito" and they were not kidding. I have literally birthed a smaller baby than that thing! He ate half and called it a day.
On to the next fun thing: Motor World down by the beach! Rob and I had last been about three years ago and still had some valid ride tickets, so we brought those along and bought some ride bracelets for the kids.
Our first stop was the bumper boats. The Littles rode with Rob, and Chloë rode with me. Jack and Chlo were scared at first, but once they got in there, they had a lot of fun. I'm a big fan of bumper boats, but mine would hardly go! It was very frustrating. We basically just sat around in the water and waited for people to run into us. Chloë giggled every time she got a little wet.
Next, we headed to the kiddie race cars for the kids to have a go around the track. Did you watch the video? That was just the beginning of our amusement. We parents were doubled over laughing by the end of their ride, as the kids were just horrible at it! They crashed, went three feet, crashed, two feet, crashed... you get the idea. It was totally hilarious. I haven't laughed that hard in a long time.
Next up was some 'real' driving in the family cars. I don't know what these things are all called, so you'll have to bear with me. Cars is cars. Unfortunately, in the cars, two kids couldn't ride with one parent, so we had to take turns. First, Daddy and Jack rode together while the ladies patiently waited with their mama.
The girls waiting their turns for a drive
Next up, Chloë and Mommy. Yes, I know, an actual picture of me. I can't believe I really look like this. I mean, I know I do, but I just can't believe it has gotten to this point. Sigh... It's the "before," Melanie. It's the "before."
Sophia makes a new friend while she waits
Our car lover, transfixed by the action in front of him
I tried to get a decent picture of Sophie's ride, oh, how I tried, but her little head just didn't come over the edge of the car! So I'm just including this picture (a) to show she got her turn and (b) to show I managed some depth of field with this picture!
My pretty little baby in her pretty little dress
The girls wanted to go on the jumpy thing after that, while Rob took Jack on one of the other kiddy rides and to get a drink and funnel cake. Older kids were flipping over and over in their harnesses, but Chloë was too scared to try that. After a while, she was too scared at all and got down early.
Sophia loved her turn on the jumpy, and she was winging all over the place, her hair flying in the breeze. She was fun to watch, giggling away as she flew in the air. The ride operator got a kick out of her, too, and he was holding her down so she'd fly higher and higher. This one's going to be a daredevil.
Next up, because the kiddie rides were finally opening as the evening came upon us, the girls rode the dinosaurs that Jacky had just finished. He didn't want to go again. He was all about the cars by that point.
My beautiful girls taking a ride in the elephants
Jack and Chloë went back for another drive in the hilarious kiddie cars after that. Chloë was actually starting to get the hang of steering! Jack, not so much, but he didn't care a bit. He was in seventh heaven behind the wheel of that car, his pedal to the metal. When it's time to get his license, he will be a force to be reckoned with.
We found some more kiddie rides that had not been open earlier, so they each got in one of these dealies and "drove" around and around the track. We kept hollering out to them, teasingly, "They're getting you! Go faster! Faster!" Jack took it most to heart, and would hunch over the wheel and start steering madly, a determined look on his face. It was hysterical.
Next, the "kiddie" himalayan. Holy, crap, this thing was fast. Jack had decided against it from the get-go, and he was smart to do that. Sophia started freaking out when it began, and I was flailing and yelling like crazy to get the ride op's attention and stop the thing. Rob finally got through to him, and we pulled our baby off. She was so shaken, poor thing.
Chloë insisted on staying on the ride, but she really started freaking when it started going backward. This thing really went way too fast for kids who are only supposed to be 36" tall. After the ride, I asked her if it was scary. "Yes." Was it fun? "Yes." Which was it, more scary or more fun? "It was half-and-half!" But was it worth it? "Yes!" Good enough.
Lastly, we found the Family Speedway to use up our remaining tickets. Here's my sweet Sophia buckled next to me.
I held my camera over my head and managed to snap this one of Rob and Jack in the car behind us. What about Chloë? Again, we couldn't ride two kids with one parent, so one of the ride operators agreed to drive her around so we could all go at once! This was the funnest ride, the five of us chasing each other around the track. Chlo was speeding, while Rob and I were stuck in pokey little putters.
I had just a few dollars in my wallet, so I decided the kids could play one easy game before we left. Each of them could pick up a floating ducky and see what prize they could pick from the letter on the bottom. Easy peasy. I don't know why Chloë chose the Incredible Hulk, as she has no idea who he is!
A beach ball for the very sleepy-by-this-point Sophia
Jack, of course, chose this airplane. It's his new favorite toy.
It was definitely time to go after that. They'd been out all day and had no naps or rest of any kind.
Sophia was practically asleep before we left the parking lot. But we had one more stop before home: Chloë and Jack had both been clamoring for a hot dog at the park, but we had coupons each of them had received from their respective schools for a free kids' meal at Jason's Deli for various achievements.
After getting their hot dog meals there, we headed home. Normally our little piggy, Sophie had no interest in food, so Rob brought her right up to bed. She was out again before he shut the door. So sweet. I love that I still have a baby in the house. I gave the kids their meals, and they went to down, devouring dog, pickle, chips and chocolate milk. Not bad for free!
Oh, and in the mail, I got a package from MIL: BoxTops and soup labels for the kids' schools, a fun book for each of the kids, a Wind in the WIllows DVD, and - yay yay yay - my first pattern to try and sew! It's a dress I can make for both girls if I want. I can't wait to take Rob to the store to get my fabric and "notions"! Fun, fun!! Thanks, Mom!
Tomorrow will be another fun, busy day, but for now, I'm going to go see if I can talk Rob into watching a movie with me. I think it will be This Film is Not Yet Rated.
Okay, so maybe it's not that important. But I have been mystery shopping for over a year and a half now, and in that time, I've done hundreds, maybe a thousand shops, and it's been a big part of my life. (And it's been a major cause of my weight gain!)Now that I won't be doing any more restaurant shops, I have really no desire to wade through all the other shops I'm asked to do for the one or two good ones in there, and be tempted by all the great restaurant shops I'll be seeing in the process. So, I'm going to go through and resign from all the companies and quit doing it altogether. No more mystery shops. Ever. Again.
Chloë and I made this friendship bracelet tonight. Whoa, I haven't done any knot-tying in a lot of years. The girls are trading bracelets tomorrow at her Brownie meeting, and we missed the last one from being in L.A. where they were all taught how to do it, so I had to look online. Oh, yes. This was the way I used to make those hemp bracelets back in college. But then I wanted to go waaay back to about 1986 and remember the fingerloop braiding method I used to do. It took me a while, several tries, and then wham! It all came rushing back to me. Chloë is proudly wearing that bracelet in bed right now, and this beaded one is what she'll trade tomorrow. She's so excited about it! As am I; bracelet tying can be so much fun, and it was really sweet making them together.
I'm getting excited about our little jaunt to NYC, although I'm disappointed once again to be traveling without my spouse. It'll be fun to go with the kids and Steph, who's never been, and see things anew through their eyes. I haven't been since I was 15 or so - maybe younger - so more than half my life ago. I did see the Statue of Liberty when I was in grad school and going for a week on the Jersey Shore with my friends. It will be interesting seeing the Big Apple from an adult perspective. My dad always drove us everywhere when we went in, or my grandparents if I was with them, so I really do not know my way around as I should (having been there many times). And I've never taken the bus or the subway there. That's one of the goals of this trip. Priorities, for me: Sign the contract. Do the photo shoot. Conquer the subway. See Times Square. Have real NYC pizza and bagels. Go to the Yarn Co., home of the Yarn Girls, who wrote the book from which I painstakingly learned to knit five years ago, and buy some luxurious yarn. Maybe see a show? Steph - maybe you should make a list too, so we can see how our ideals stack up!
The price of the Amtrak tickets jumped way up from yesterday to today, so instead of riding the train, we're going to fly. It will save us about 8 hours of confinement with the kids, but I was looking forward to it. I love taking the train. It's so romantic!
Enough about that.
Today, I felt like shit. Literally. You get my drift? Diorama, anyone? So I canceled Barbara, who was supposed to clean today, and rested on my laurels in my slovenly house. It sucked. I wanted a clean house. But I hadn't done the pre-cleaning cleaning and was in no shape to do it. Rob finally came home, and he was oh-so-tired, but naptime was not in the cards. We had to go to the mall so I could do mystery shops at Old Navy and Yankee Candle, and then it was eating-out night. Jade-free night. We decided to go to Moe's. Welcome to Moe's!
First, I did the candle shop. I didn't even know we had a YC shop here in town. Oh, what smells. I only had a $5 limit, so I had to find just the right things. And I did, but I didn't. I can't remember the scent I liked - Sicilian Orange, maybe? I think it was - but that one doesn't come in tea lights, which I wanted. Suck. So I got some votives on sale in apple and pumpkin and "frosted cedar wreath," and they actually smell good together when I open the back, stick in my face, and inhale deeply.
Then we went to Old Navy. Well, first we stopped at my new favorite candy shoppe and got my favorite favorites, coconut chocolates, and then we went to Old Navy. The thing about those chocolates is, I love them to death. But now Rob likes them, too. And so do the kids. It's not fair! Like your own things! Copycats.
And my, my, my, darn near everything at ON was 75% off. Hello! I had to spend $40, and you can get a lot of shit for $40 at 75% off at Old Navy. We bought three huge bags of clothes, some for all five of us. I hate to buy scarves, hats and mittens when I perfectly capable of making some rather nice ones myself, but for 99 cents (where is the 'cents' code when I need it? Bugger!), you can't beat it. I got some coats and shirts, the girls got some cute shirts, Jack got jammies he picked out - cars, of course - and some cute shorts, and Robert, well, he got gloves and underpants. Six different pairs of Christmas boxers. Who cares? They do the job. Oh, and socks. And those scarves and such. We made out. I could probably go back and do some serious damage, which is why we're going to put that thought right out of our heads and not think anymore about it. But you can go. 75% off, man!
Then we went to Moe's. As usual, Jack kept bemoaning the state of his empty hungry belly, and we thought for sure, he was going to eat. He even said he wanted the damn quesadilla. But no, when it came time to eating, he would chew up a bite and then cry and refuse to swallow it, showing it to me and you and God and everyone else. I get pissed and order him to swallow, Rob coddles him and is turning him into a spoiled brat who will only go to Daddy because he knows Daddy will take care of everything for him, and nothing gets accomplished. So the food gets spit out into a napkin, nothing goes in his fricking belly, and we all just sit there and stare at each other, wondering what to do next. I'm frustrated as hell with it. Sometimes he will eat, but NOT if you watch him do it. Jack's actual eating must not be acknowledged or it will stop on the spot. "Tear it up into little tiny pieces," I urged Rob. He did, and we coaxed, and encouraged, and finally, one by one, they went into the mouth. I think they were swallowed. I didn't see them go anywhere else. He ate the whole thing (the 'whole thing,' mind you, being just one slice out of a four-slice kids' size quesadilla), and we broke into applause and let him have half a cookie. I'm sure we are going about everything exactly the wrong way, but we have tried everything under the sun, and he is still no bigger than a witch's thumb. At nearly five years old, he weighs 22 pounds. And, wow. I have rambled on about this a whole lot longer than I meant to - which was not at all - but sometimes you just need to get it out!
I think I'm done. Time to sort coupons and make some sort of a plan to get groceries in this house.
Welp, Christmas is over. It's good I told you that. Otherwise, you might not know.
My dad came in late last Sunday night - scared me half to death, even though I expected him any minute. We have café curtains in the bay window in the kitchen, where I was sitting doing my scrapbook. Next thing I know, 'tap, tap, tap' on the window, and I look up and see this big giant head. Ahhh! Thus it began.
The visit actually wasn't so bad this time. I had emailed him ahead of time that I didn't want any of that political, racist crap, and I wasn't going to wait on him hand and foot this time. Yay, me! Therapy's good for something. And he emailed me back without being all pissy and for the most part, he stuck with it.
So. Monday was Christmas Eve, and after we sat around (I watched Jade, who warmed to my dad instantly, and snuggled with him), we went to church for the singing and the candle-lighting that I so enjoy. Our attendance has been awful since we had Sophia - so, yeah, way too long ago to still be a good excuse - but the routine has just been all but shot since then. Oh, well. We try.
My dad, a steadfast Christian Scientist, seemed to really enjoy the service, although later he insulted my church as "harmless but useless." Shall I go there? Okay, at least I learn about what Jesus said there, intead of just what Mary Baker Eddy wrote. And after 65 years of going to the same church, he still hates every group who represents something he is not? I don't know if I'd call that harmless... so I guess we're even. BUDDOW!
But back to the Christmas spirit. ;)
We went home and had dinner - I'd stuck a frozen Smithfield marinated pork loin in a Pamper's Chef baker's stone before we left, turned on the oven, and bam! Savory smells greeted us when we arrived home. It was done! Of course, I didn't eat it, but the boys seemed to enjoy it, as did The Human Garbage Can a.k.a. Sophia.
Then we opened our stockings, our Christmas Eve tradition. But we forgot our other one: Rob reading 'Twas the Night Before Christmas to the kids! Just completely left it out. Whoops. The kids went crazy with their stockings, even though I had really nothing in there but different candies this year, having put all the stocking loot in the attic with the 'big' stuff. Even my dad had a stocking - albeit containing nothing but a lump of coal - but he seemed to enjoy that.
Bed for the kids, then hours and hours of wrapping presents, for me. I'm so freaking fat now, my feet go numb soon after I sit on the floor, so it was an arduous process. (I can't wait 'til January 31st!!) I bought one of those new zippy paper cutter things from Scotch, and it was a bust. I prefer my nice sharp scissors, TYVM. Maybe when I get thinner and regain some agility, but for a big blog with short limbs who's stuck mainly in one spot, it didn't really do the trick.
Tuesday, the big day! After getting to bed around 2:30 AM, the kids woke us up at 8-something. Aghhhh. I made some cinnamon buns for breakfast (love that pop-open can stuff when you're too tired to think!), and then we headed in for the big mêlée. It was overwhelming. To me. And my dad kept saying the same thing. He was pretty much in a state of overwhelm during the entire visit, with the kids constantly crawling all over him, calling his name, wanting to show him something, tell him something or do something with him, and Christmas was even more so. He's a complete neat freak. I am, to an extent - but nothing like my father. No one is. I promise. He just kept looking at the toys (which are still there, by the way. Haven't moved. Well, to be played with, yes, but put away? Nope. Where?!) and paper and shaking his head, whimpering. I rather enjoyed his distress until he started bitching about it and yelling at the kids to clean up. 'Scuse me? Because I think it's my house, and those are my kids, and that is my job. And it's Christmas, for crying out loud. Let them play with their new crap awhile! He caught me glaring at him over that.
The house shrinks a little bit every time someone comes to visit, y'know what I mean?
So Wednesday, Jade came back, and I felt like absolute crap. I had her in the bouncy seat for much of the day, so she wouldn't hurt herself with all the little toys spread everywhere, and I sat down on the couch for a breather. Rob and my dad were right there... next thing, I woke up to find Jade missing from her seat. Dad had picked her up and was napping with her on the couch. It warmed my heart. And not just a small bit because she's the brown baby. Who knew he liked little kids so much?? Between that Jade-snugging and the amount of time he spends playing with my kids, he really surprises me as a grandpa. He's definitely the fun one. He gets down. He gets into it. He only stops when he's really, genuinely tired. The man has some positive attributes, after all. (heh)
Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, I was supposed to have Jade, and all three days her mother called to say that her mother was going to keep her. Um, okay. (A) I really enjoyed the time I didn't have her, and (B) if I'm going to do this job, I'm going to want consistency and a constant paycheck. So that was the straw the broke the camel's back for me. I called her tonight and told her that it was no rush and I'd keep Jade until then, but she needed to find alternate childcare. It's a relief. I like Jade - love her, even - but organizing our schedule around hers has been a huge PITA.
So that's that. We did a ton of laundry, Chloë and I. I swear, I cannot climb that mountain. Who's the dude who kept having to push that rock up the hill? That's me, with the laundry. It used to be something I just did on Sundays. Now it's All. The. Time. UGH!! But Chloë negotiated a $2 pay with me for helping with the laundry, and that meant she had enough money to buy another Webkinz when I paid her that and her allowance today. Cha-ching! She got the bullfrog and named her Lilly; that makes 12 for us. Do you know they don't give you a new room for your 10th and up - and you also can't use the pet's name when you buy a room for it and rename it? That's so annoying!!! In other Webkinz newz, I gave her 9 charms and a bracelet for Christmas so we now have access - full, at that - to the Charm Forest! Fun stuff. (LOL!)
I took her to iPOP class today. She is so ready!! I will be aghast if she blows it in Los Angeles. Just beside myself. She is doing so well, I would be shocked. Sean was really proud of her, and his wife came in and listened to her monologue today, too. She loved it and gave her muchos kudos. Then she did her scene and her monologue again, for the ladies out front, and she did great. Good, good, good. We leave in four days!!! And last night, she was in the middle of saying grace when she switched gears and started saying the lines from her monologue. During grace!! It was pretty funny...
While we were at the mall today (for a lunch shop at Charley's Steakery or whatever), I looked in at both Gymboree and TCP for some cute clothes for her auditions - no dresses, or everyone will see her unnerpannies - and I was just so overwhelmed with the choices that we left. 'Sides, she's got lots of cute stuff. So we went to that boutique I love, the one that's going out of business, to see if there was anything, but they are practically empty. Bummer! I wanted to find a cute dress for Sophie too, but nothing. They have bitty baby girl clothes, and the only bitty baby girl I know is Lisa's Emilie, but she has no reason for a fancy party dress. Even a gorgeous little tangerine one. So I bought a bunch of hair doodles, a tiara, and a necklace-and-earring set, so we have lots of options for iPOP.
And that's my story, folks. Now to do those reports (oh yeah, we went to Bennigan's tonight for dinner. They sucked!!! as expected.)
