The Biggest Loser, Week 3, Sept 30

[Sorry I’m coming into the show a little late…I was the soccer mom tonight and we just got home from practice.]

That said, we are pleased to join the broadcast of the Biggest Loser, already in progress:

I so want to go to the Grand Canyon.

In that camper.

I am, by no means, an outdoorsy type--so that RV is looking mighty fine. Camping is scary. Not that I’ve ever been, mind you, but from what I can tell, there would definitely be some bugs and dirt involved. Which is why I’ve chosen to take an RV next time I am in the mood to camp.

Which would be….never.

Back to the show:
Ed & Heba did great on the calorie-counting challenge. Had I been there, I would’ve completely taken the challenge to guess the calories. I would’ve gotten them all right too! I know my calories, I do.

Pink team girl summed my thoughts on camping up quite nicely: “I don’t know why people do this voluntarily.”

The canoe/rope pull Challenge was quite, um, what’s the word…challenging.

They are all ready to get back to the ranch! That’s good; they’re starting to “crave” the better, healthier lifestyle. It was hilarious seeing them with the medicine balls earlier--they didn’t know what in the heck to do with them. All gave up and went for a walk instead.

Back at the ranch:
There’s those Ziplock Vaccuum Sealer bags again. And, how many times have they given a plug for Extra Sugar Free gum?

That is one mighty last chance workout. BRUTAL.

Weigh in!!!
My favorite part:
But, there’s a catch…nobody will be voting tonight. One person from the team below the yellow line gets a ticket home. That’s just plain cruel. So divisive!

Red Team (Phil & Amy): Lost 15 pounds He made it below the 300 mark! Excellent-
Brown Team (Brady & Vicky): Lost 8 pounds.
Pink Team (Renee & Michelle): Lost 9 pounds
Orange Team (Ed & Heba): Lost 16 pounds. Ed also made it under the 300 mark. Awesome!
Purple Team (Amy & Shellay): Lost 9 pounds.
Yellow Team (Jerry & Colleen): Lost 5 pounds total (she lost 7...he gained 2)

BUT, here's the silver lining...this makes is VERY easy to decide who will go home. He's in such bad health...seems like he was holding her back. He just can't compete. This was the team that logically needed to go beneath the yellow line. This is all just my humble opinion...of course, I am not there to advise them and Colleen is doing her best to convince dad to stay there.

So...now we wait for one hour...to find out who will go home from the yellow team. Thanks to the magic of television, we really only have to wait through one commercial break to find out.

AND...IT'S.....curtains for...Jerry!

Let's see how Jerry's doing today:
Wow--he looks great!!! Lots of exercise. He looks like a different guy. Amazing. He looks 10 years younger. He's lost 70 pounds. And, here's what Michael had to say about that: "That's really good because I was afraid they were going to say he had died." Always seeing the silver lining, that Michael.

See you back at the ranch next week!

Most Observant Wife

ME:
"Hey! You shaved your fu man chu thingy off your chin!"

MICHAEL:
"Hey! I sure did! About 3 weeks ago!"

Dress Code

Last Sunday, we had to go to "early church", which, I might say is very early. So, in order to be ready to leave our house by 7:40, I got up before any of the kids were awake and got dressed and ready for church.

Apparently, pigs were flying or hell froze over or some other extreme "this'll never happen" happened, since Maddy had NEVER seen me dressed before she was out of bed. I'm normally in my PJ's well after the house is up & going and I am always the last one in the shower.

She insisted several times that morning that I needed to "go get ready for church....almost time to leave mom....go get dressed....get your nice clothes on...come on, time to do it..." She was convinced I was still in my PJ's. ALL THE WAY TO CHURCH, she continued to heckle me. "I can't believe you're still wearing your jams, mom! What'll people think?"

Lest you think I was going super casual that morning, I had on black dress pants, black heels, a nice sweater/tank, and PEARLS. Since when would I be wearing heels and pearls with my PJ's?

She finally backed off...when we were pulling into the church driveway. I don't think she was ever convinced that I had real clothes on, but by that point, I think she had given up trying to convince me since we were already at church.

Happy 1st Birthday Will!

You tell me this isn't the cutest baby you've ever seen!!!

We celebrated Will's 1st birthday yesterday, Sept 28. Hard to believe how fast a year can fly by!

He thoroughly enjoyed his chocolate cake--he was definitely born into the right family. While we were putting a candle on it and getting plates ready to cut the cake, he kept putting one finger into the edge of the frosting, he'd cut his eyes around and see if anybody saw and he'd lick the frosting off. Over & over & over again he did this.

Of course, when he got his own piece on his tray, he went to town and ate heartily.

Happy Birthday Will!!! We are so glad you are part of our family....even if you are one big chocolatey mess!

The Lollipops need a curfew

Update on the Lollipops, Maddy's soccer team:

We've played 4 games and have won 1, lost 2, and tied 1. How do you say that in soccer-ese? 1-2-1? not sure. Anyways, there are only 2 girls who have actually scored goals for the Lollipops...and one of them isn't on our team (poor thing, scored in the wrong team's goal. )

So, yesterday, they were really having a rough game--moving slow and just out of it, in general (which isn't too unusual, I know...but it was a little more than we were used to.)

My friend Tracy, in her beautiful Scottish accent, described their look on the field quite well: "Oh my. Looks like the girls were all out drinking together last night."

My family has all asked me if Maddy cares about losing and I have to say that she is so very different than her brother John in that respect. When he plays a game of anything (heck, it could even be backyard football, and I am not joking!), he analyzes each play, each strategy, each player's strengths and weaknesses...the list goes on. He definitely has a future in sportscasting. Maddy, however, doesn't even know who won. SERIOUSLY. She doesn't even ask if they won. Her main goal in playing soccer is to visit with her friends and to drink Gatorade.

Baby Alive

OR....

Can you tell the difference between these two babies? Are you able to tell which one is "real"? If you can't, well, you're not alone.

A few minutes ago, I was upstairs getting ready to go run errands. Will was crying downstairs, so I 'hollered' down, "What is wrong with Will? Why is he crying?"

John replied, "Oh, nothing. Maddy just thinks he's Baby Alive."

Random Updates

If you've been reading for a couple of weeks, you're probably wondering how a few things I've blogged turned out. (I flatter myself, don't I? You haven't given these things a second thought since the minute you logged off your computer, but just humor me and act like you've been DYING to know the latest here...)

*Early Riser Will is still an early riser. Operation Sleep Later is still going on. I think we're losing. It's in his genes to wake up at 5:15 a.m. We need to surrender and just get used to going to bed at 8:30 when our kids do.

*Gas shortage seems to be over. I filled up yesterday afternoon with no wait. (But I still haven't gotten my pedicure yet. It's embarrassing.)

*The new flooring has been ordered & the installer has been scheduled! Oct 7-9 is when we're getting the new floors. The garage sale is next weekend when we'll be setting the bounced-on furniture out for the early birds.

*No, we never went to the State Fair to see the skunks. Several of you have asked about that one.

*My frozen PB&J sandwiches are still completely awesome. It has taken one of my least favorite chores completely off my radar. I don't even think about it anymore! Just wonderful--


More later...

The Gospel According to John....

Clarifying: I'm talking about my son John, not the beloved disciple John.

Here goes:

Tonight during family devotion, Michael asked if they remembered what we talked about 2 nights ago. The story was from Matthew 6:5-15 where Jesus teaches us how to pray. You know, the classic "Our Father..." prayer and also about not praying like the hypoocrites who pray loud on the street for men to see them.

So, when Michael asked who remembered the story, John summed it up quite well:

"Don't pray just to show your awesomeness."

Well said.

The Biggest Loser, Week 2, 9/23

And, we’re back for another week of calorie burning, muscle building and backstabbing. All in the name of weight loss, so it's all good, right?

[Editorial note: please forgive any holes you might find here. It’s bedtime for the kiddos and I’m multi-tasking while BL is airing.]

Let’s see how week 2 goes at the ranch. Week 2 usually disappoints, Bob says.

Pink team…Michelle has some big tears…I called this one last week. I knew they’d need an on-site psychologist to deal with the family baggage she brought with her. Jillian is dishing out some BAD, b-a-d, BAD marriage advice. Wow. She needs to stick with the personal trainer gig.

Who knew that doing the slip & slide could count as exercise?!?

Hey, they’re at Kroger with Rocco DiSpirito. I was JUST at Kroger this afternoon, but Rocco was not there. The menus all sound delicious. Not as delicious as the brownies I’m about to put in the oven…but delicious nonetheless, in their own healthy way. That Rocco is full of produce picking advice.

Enough with all the product placements! They are SO obvious. Ziplock Zip & Steam bags, Subway, and Extra gum have all made obnoxious attempts at getting our attention this episode.

Last Chance Workout:
Bob is getting a little mean in the gym. He’s on the “don’t touch the treadmill” bandwagon now too. I have to be honest: I would probably cry if I did one workout with these two trainers. They’re mean.

AAAAHHHH yes! The weigh in! Get ready for lots of drama, scale beeps, and camera shots to everybody’s face coupled with a dramatic pause as they cut to commercial about 9 times in the next 20 minutes. And you know they’ll make Jerry & Colleen (yellow) go last since they’re on the line about winning $10,000 if they lose 13+ pounds.

Weigh In:
Brown: Vicky/Brady lost 11 pounds
Purple: Shellay/Amy lost 6 pounds
Pink: Renee/Michelle lost 7 pounds
Red: Amy/Phil lost 12 pounds
Orange: Ed/Heba lost 11 pounds
Gray: Tom/LT lost ZERO pounds Don’t know how that is possible…at the “ranch”…to gain weight, but they did.
Yellow: Colleen/Jerry lost 11 pounds. DANG! They didn't make the 14 pounds they needed. I think they're going to be leaving the ranch tonight.

Elimination:
Enough, Brady, enough! He is really on my nerves with the 'tude.
OK, so now onto business. DIRTY POOL! Orange team backstabbed the gray team! They were supposed to keep them on since gray saved orange last week.

The team who will be leaving us tonight is....
GRAY.

Let's see how they look now.
Tom has made major health improvements! Awesome--no more pills.
LT has lost 81 pounds. Looking good! No more fettuccini with 2 jars of alfredo sauce.

See you back at the ranch next week.

Out-crafted

Somebody very dear to my family had a "milestone" birthday last week. My mother-in-law turned a certain age that I will not mention...but I will give you a few hints. It does NOT rhyme with "nifty" and it does NOT rhyme with "eleventy".

The kids did a little photo album project called (here's another hint) "Sixty Things we love about Mimi". It was full of pictures, but also, they came up with (hint) 60 things they love about her. Some were sweet & serious ("She cares for her friends and family") and some were hilarious ("She lets us pick any restaurant but Chuck E Cheese" and "I like her flip flops"). It turned out very cute!

However, Sunday, she went to see my crafty cousin-in-laws Kim & Catherine. You see, Kim is one of those Martha Stewart types. She has a sewing machine and she knows how to use it. She can cook. She can garden. A true Kim-of-all-trades.

So, look what Crafty Kim and her crafty sidekick-in-the-kitchen Catherine did for Vicki's birthday dessert:

They are little owl cupcakes that are saying (here's another age hint), "Look Whoooo's Turning 60!" (OK, OK, I'll tell you how she made them: chocolate cupcakes, chocolate or white frosting, topless oreos for the eyes, a junior mint for the pupil, a banana runt for the nose, 1/2 oreo for each ear with frosting piped over them.)

And, here is our dear Mimi with the recycled birthday cake we ate with her (aren't we so eco-friendly & green?). My birthday was the day before we celebrated hers and we had lots of cake leftover. AT HER REQUEST (please don't think we're that cheap!) after we left Red Robin where she was serenaded by the kitchen staff with a birthday tribute, she said she just wanted to come back here and eat the rest of the cake from the night before.

Look WHOOOOO's been outcrafted and outcooked by Kim & Catherine...ME!

On the road again...

My heroes: Michael & Will.

They braved the roads at 6:00 a.m. this morning [yes Will was up super early again], on the hunt for a few gallons of gas since the van was on "E" and.....they found it! They had to drive all the way to Smyrna, TN for it, but the needle is now sitting on full and it is just beautiful to me.

You see, the gas shortage didn't really bother me too much on Friday. I figured it would all be over within a few days and we'd be back to normal, plus Michael still had 1/2 tank in his car.

However, it became real personal yesterday. Real personal. Let me tell you, I was in dire need of a pedicure and figured a few miles to the nearest Asian nail salon wouldn't really matter. Plus, I NEEDED a pedicure.

REQUEST DENIED.

I was told that a pedicure was not an emergency and the vehicles were to be used for food and work functions only until the gas shortage was over.

I'm thinking we need to come up with a standard definition for what constitutes "emergency" around here.

Please, dear readers, I ask you to keep your eyes and ears open for news on the Nashville gas shortage. If there are any reports saying that it is over, I BEG you to pass along the news source. I, and my feet, thank you for your attention to this matter.

Signed,
Stranded and Sandal-less

Down to the last few drops...

We're offically in the gas shortage zone here. I'm "38 miles to empty" in the ol' van, according to my gas gauge and there is no gas in town! Yesterday, my friend found some at Kroger and had to wait in line for 1 hour and 20 minutes. She had just finished drinking her Route 44 Sonic drink and said the longer she sat there, the more she was reminded of my post about the double duty Sonic cup

Seeing as how we attend church 30 minutes away from here, we hope they ship some gas into town today or else we'll be attending Bedside Baptist with Pastor Pillow in the morning.

Ummm, I said it first!

A few years back, I came up with this awesome game to play on road trips or late at night on retreats. Whoever was lucky enough to room or ride with me got the privilege of playing "The Umm Game." I would give you a topic on which you were to give a compelling speech. The topic might be tube tops or it might be the book of Revelation. You could be called upon to speak of the virtues of the United States Postal Service or about Honeymoons. Your first kiss might be of interest or perhaps we want to hear about your first job.

Whatever the topic, it was sure to be interesting because you had to give your speech with nary a stutter, "umm" or a stall.

This summer, we went to Atlanta with 5 other couples and I was in charge (self appointed, of course) of the Forced Fun aspect of the road trip. You betcha "The Umm Game" made the rounds.

All of this is backup to the real reason for this post. Imagine my surprise when I was listening to the radio this morning and the two co-hosts asked callers to phone in & play "Don't say UMM!" This game is very suspiciously similar to "The Umm Game." The only difference is that they bribe you to play by saying you'll win a CD or something like that.

Umm, I need to speak to my attorney about this...

Stockholm 2022?

JOHN:

Anthony broke his leg this week and hasn't been at school.

ELLEN:

Oh my! How'd he break it?

JOHN:

Riding his scooter down a hill.

ELLEN:

[eyebrows raised]--Hmm...well, you know what I'm going to say about that. No more riding scooters down a hill. That's why I'm always telling you it's so dangerous. If you break your leg you couldn't play basketball this year.

JOHN:

Yeah, but I could still compete in the Olympics when I grow up.

ELLEN:

Maybe, maybe not.

JOHN:

I'm talking about the Olympics for special people, mom. I could still play in those.

ELLEN:

You mean the Special Olympics?

JOHN:

Yep! That's what I'm talking about. Told ya! So there! Ha!

[shirt pop, high fives himself in the air because he is so pumped about the point he thinks he just proved.]

************

[Perhaps he meant the Paralympics? Not sure. Either way, I'm thinking I need to get him examined if he thinks the risk of riding his scooter down the neighborhood hill is worth an entry in the Paralympics or Special Olympics, depending on what sort of bodily damage is sustained.]

Tough Love: Operation Sleep Later, Day 3

It's working. No wakeup call until 6:30 this morning!

The Biggest Loser, Week 1 9/16

It's finally on!

I'm watching it as I type--will sort of do a "live blog."

Oh, y'all, I get so emotional when they're emotional. These opening shots in the gym where Bob & Jillian are pushing them beyond their limits always make me tear up. They don't think they can do it...tears...anger...Jillian cussing...it's just too much for me sometimes!

Red Team: Amy (229 lbs) & Phillip (331 lbs), Greenville, SC. RED TEAM. Love her mother's accent. Yes, people really do talk like that in the south. Man, is she excited to see Bob. I think I would be too. Minus the tattoos, of course. Is Bob wearing a button down church shirt with sweat pants here? Doesn't matter. I'd still be glad to see him.

Gray Team: Tom (314) & Tom (LT) (357). Father & Son from Boston, MA. Oh my. That alfredo recipe he's talking about is something else. Sounds delicious...but breakfast, lunch and dinner?

Orange Team: Ed (335) & Heba (294) Newlyweds from Raleigh, NC. He's a chef. He eats Cheese Doodles while he's cooking.

Purple Team: Shellay (216) and Amy (239). Mother & Daughter from Detroit, MI. I have a feeling Amy rocks this season, a la Ali from last year.

Brown Team: Vicki (246) & Brady (341). (All-American Family) Houma, LA. Bob is hilarious! Coming out there all cute in the donut uniform.

Pink Team: Renee (267) & Michelle (242), Estranged mom & daughter from Dallas, TX. Oh my...the issues are vast here--we're going to need an on-site psychologist for this season. Jillian's mom may need to come back and do some one-on-ones again.

Green Team: Adam (340) & Stacy (221), married. Washington, DC. My money's on them. Seems like they have a good marriage and that will take them far here. How funny would it be if you were eating lunch and Bob Harper walked in all cute & said "what are y'all having for lunch?"

Yellow Team: Jerry (380) & Colleen (218), policeman father/daughter team from Cleveland, OH. I love that he just said "she's no joke, she's a superstar." Love that sweet daddy talk. Oh, and Jillian, you don't need a gun. You could take anybody, anyday with no guns but your biceps.

Final Weigh In:
Yellow Team: Lost 27 pounds. Pretty good for one week's work...especially since Jerry couldn't workout all day like everybody else (Dr restricted him to 30 min/day).

Orange Team: Lost 29 pounds.

Pink Team: Lost 31 pounds.

Gray Team: Tom & LT...lost...an AMAZING 42 pounds. WOW. Can you imagine losing 24 pounds in 1 week?!? Simply amazing.

Red Team: Lost 39 pounds.

Green Team: Lost 28 pounds. Stacey looks so bummed--only on this show would you be disappointed about losing "only" 9 pounds in a week. Still awesome to me.

Purple Team: Lost 29 pounds.

AND...as the brown team steps up to weigh in, I know from previous seasons that they will do a big lead up...drama...beep beep beep beep as the scale numbers bounce around...show everybody's shocked expression...and COMMERCIAL BREAK. You must torture yourself for the next 2 minutes during a commercial break wondering just what happened on the scale for the brown team.........and, we're back:

Brown Team: Lost 47 pounds. WOW. They stay above the yellow line. Blowing kisses to Bob. The 2 pound penalty from the challenge didn't even phase them!

Now for the vote off--
And, it is the green team. Confession: I thought at first that they were going to be a force to be reckoned with. Ellen-o was wrong-o.

Michael just said, "Ow! It kills me when the turn the light off in their refrigerator."

Updates...Green team has ROCKED IT since they got home. They look tremendous! Way to go Green team.

Funny Lines:
"This is a great gym. This is an awesome gym. I'm gonna throw up all over this place." Orange Team guy

"We're gonna do this one of two ways. My Way, or My Way MAD." (Jillian during 1st workout)

"Do not touch that treadmill, Jerry. I'll break your hands off." (Jillian again.)


Hope you got to watch along with me! Looks to be a really exciting season.

Oh, and in case you're wondering, if there are any typos, it's because my keyboard is a little sticky...I was eating Publix Tiramisu Light Ice Cream while I watched The Biggest Loser. Irony, anyone?

Tough Love: Operation Sleep Later, Day 2

Update on Day 2:
SAME as day 1. He woke up at 5:30 am and we didn't go in until 6:15 am. I'm tired. Will is not so tired. In fact, he seems quite happy and content.

Hmm.....

Genus Wakeus upus Earlyus

We get lots of questions about Will's look. True, he is the only tan blonde in a family full of very dark brunettes and I'll be the first to admit that it looks a little strange but I finally have the 100%, without a doubt, confirmation you've all needed to show that he was not switched at birth in the hospital nursery.

You see, our other two children went through a stage for about oh, 3 years or so, in which they woke up before the sun. Seriously. There was a time when John was about 2 when he woke up at 4:30 EVERY MORNING and was up and ready for the day. Have you ever been so tired you thought you might throw up? It's not a good feeling.

As you can probably guess, Will is now following in his brother and sister's footsteps and joined the Early Risers Club.

6:45 a month ago was just fine with us. We are 6:45-type of people, so that was just mighty fine. Well, 6:45 quickly turned to 6:30 which turned to 6:15....which is now 5:30 am.

The problem is that he shares a room with John, so when he wakes up that early hollerin' about starting his day, he gives John a quick jumpstart to his day as well.

We've just completed Day 1 of Tough Love: Operation Sleep Later. John slept in the guest room so he could complete his morning sleep cycle uninterrupted. Will was up at 5:30 on the nose and you wanna know what we did about it? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. He stayed in his crib fussing off & on until 6:20. (By the way, in case you are worried about his health & well-being and feeling abandoned...he was just fine when I came into his room. Big smiles for mom. No hard feelings.)

Our theory is if he gets used to waiting until sometime in the six o'clock hour to be tended to...maybe his little body will just decide that sleep is a better way to spend that time instead of scraping his pacifiers along the crib slats like a prisoner scraping a metal cup along the bars of the pokey.

Stay tuned.

The Biggest Loser

This is a big week--The Biggest Loser premieres on Tuesday night and I will be watching. If you've never watched this show, do yourself a favor and tune in. It's reality TV, true, but it is reality TV that changes people's lives for the better! SO inspiring! Now granted, I watch it most of the time while I am eating my nightly bowl of ice cream, but it does make me push it a little harder at the gym the next day. (And, of course, my ice cream is always Edy's Slow Churned 1/2 the Fat).

The theme this season is "Families." Bob & Jillian will be back with a vengeance to turn these people into pictures of health & wellness.

So tune in & follow along as I blog about it this season.

NBC, Tuesday nights at 7pm.

Goodbye 31, Hello 32!

Sept 13, 1976 was the day my life changed forever: the day I was born. Today, I shall celebrate!

However, because 31 was simply fabulous, I want to give it a proper farewell. Here's my list of things that made 31 what it was:

*I gave birth! Will was born shortly after my 31st birthday last year.

*I set a personal record by running the Country Music 1/2 Marathon in 2h:15m.

*I lost 40 pounds...baby weight. YIKES!

*We celebrated 10 years of marital bliss in May by cruising to the Bahamas.

*We took Maddy off a horrible asthma drug that made her act psycho.

*Had a hilarious and extreme-fun weekend away to Monteagle with my girlfriends in June.

*Spent a great week in Florida with my family.

*Neighborhood Driveway Happy Hours this summer were a blast.

*I started a blog. You're reading it now.

*I joined facebook. Yes, I know, it was long overdue.

As the day progresses, I may add a few more. If I'm missing something, let me know & I'll add it on!

Home Improvement

We're almost ready to take the plunge: I have been LONGING to re-do the floors downstairs for quite some time and we've just about saved up enough to do it (Thank you, Dave Ramsey). So, naturally, I thought I'd document the changes here for the world to see.

Here's what we're dealing with. These are the "BEFORE" pics, mind you, but once you see them, there will have been no question about that.

First, let's look at the current flooring situation so you can truly appreciate what we've been up against:

This is just a little sample area that is a true & accurate representation of the rest of the carpet. Maddy thinks we have polka dot carpet.


The "transition" from kitchen linoleum to living room carpet. No, we don't even have any pets.

Here's a cushion from the upstairs couch that we'll be replacing with Good Couch from downstairs. My children think we live at "Pump it Up" because they bounce around on the couches as if they are trampolines. The springs have busted out of the bottom of it and it's so faded. It's BROYHILL, though, people! It was supposed to go to college with John (slipcovered, of course). And, now I'm getting ready to sell it at the neighborhood garage sale next weekend for pennies on the dollar. I'm going to have to get real mean when we move Good Couch from downstairs up to the bonus room. No food, no bouncing, absolutely no fun whatsoever on Good Couch.

Here's Good Couch. (Sorry for the bad lighting--I don't pretend to be a photographer.) He'll be moving from our future "Warming Room" up to the bonus room.

Here's the piano and the red chair (again sorry for the lighting--it looks pink! Also, please ignore the Webkin on the floor. I don't know how that got there. We don't normally have toys on the floor in our house.............................) Both of these pieces of furniture will be moved upstairs to bonus room to make way.

Here's the main reason we want to re-do the downstairs though--as you can see, the eating area is small and restricted by the carpet boundary. We are going to do all laminate flooring (it looks like real wood, now!) and will be able to move the kitchen table into toward the main room down there. We're thinking of making it one big kitchen-y room/hearth room/warming room...We'll get a table that is large enough to seat our family (involving no folding chairs for the dad) and then some...get a couple of club chairs and an ottoman by the fire place. So cozy!

If you've walked into my house lately, this is what you've seen--flooring samples all lined up as we have all but prayed over this major decision.

Here's a table & chair dining set that I like.

So...you can now look forward to updates on this project as we go. Can't wait to post the AFTER pics.

EDITED FRI AFTERNOON: When I asked Michael on the phone if he read my blog today, he said "yes--the pressure's on now. I guess we're committed to doing this, huh?" Aahhh...the power of the press! I shall get my new floors yet!

Versatility: an admirable quality in friendship

Maddy, our middle child, loves to have somebody to play with. The thing is, she's not real picky about who she plays with or what they play. Any willing soul with a half-way decent idea is just fine with her. She is, what I like to call, a "versatile friend." The following photos will demonstrate her versatility:

Here is Maddy and our friend Ethan. He's 7 and they get along just fine...as long as they're playing Star Wars or pirates as you'll see in the next photo:

Ahoy there, matey.

Here she is after John has made her play some sort of "guard" in a driveway drama he was producing.

Of course, what little girl doesn't like to play princesses? Here she is with a friend in just 2 of the many princess dresses they modeled that day.

Baseball? Even though I'm wearing sandals and a dress? Why of course!

When Art Imitates Life

Be careful what you wish for...

This is our friend Kevin. He has a knack for wearing a hospital gown to parties.

Imagine our shock when we got a call today saying he was at the hospital...wearing none other than an official hospital-grade hospital gown.

Now, before you panic, he's fine now, folks. Don't worry for one minute. Just an allergic reaction to some medicine, but he's going to be discharged this afternoon.

If I were the nurse, I'd be sure to check his bags before he leaves...he's quite liable to come home with a whole new party wardrobe...

First Day of Pre-K

Betcha can't guess what her favorite colors are...

Another year has officially begun. She walked into her class and didn't look back.

Hey! And first place goes to...Pepe Le Pew!

Tonight in the car:

MADDY:
That was freaking me out. [I can't remember the topic of discussion.]

ME:
"Freaking" is not a word that I want you to say, Maddy....bla bla bla...there's lots of words that you'll hear other people say that I'm not a fan of my children saying...for instance, "shut up"...bla bla bla bla....a good rule of thumb would be if you wouldn't say something to Jesus, you shouldn't say it...

JOHN:
Well, there are some words that I know are ok to say that I wouldn't say to Jesus. Like, I wouldn't say "Hey!" to Jesus.

[as a sidenote: John has the textbook "firstborn personality"--very rules-oriented.

ME:
Well, that wouldn't be the worst thing to say to Jesus.....

JOHN:
All I know is that I am not going to say "Hey" to the King of Kings.

Alrighty then...

*****************************
Later that night in the same car ride:

JOHN:
I really want to go to the state fair! I got a free ticket from school today & it looks so fun.

ME:
Bud, we are probably not going to go to the state fair. It's just so hot and all it is are a bunch of expensive carnival rides and smelly animals on display.

JOHN:
They have skunks on display at the state fair?

Various Asundry for September 3, 2008

Song stuck in my head: Magical Mister Mistophiles (CATS)

Most surprising: Seeing the Goodyear blimp AGAIN today flying over Walmart by my house. It's following me.

Most Giggle-worthy: The ease of "making dinner" tonight: pulling a meal out of my freezer from my entree exchange group. I think this means I'm getting old.

Most dreading: Knowing I have to drive to a meeting 35 minutes away during rush hour both tonight and tomorrow night.

Listening to: Maddy sing Alphabet song over and over and over...and then asking me in between "verses" when I can paint her toenails.

Addicted to: Facebook and Goodreads and Diet Coke

Thankful for: My mother-in-law for watching Will while I took Maddy out to lunch and shopping.

Impatient for: hardwood floors and new furniture downstairs

Bored by: this blog entry

Cinderella's Castle: A soap opera

There was a brief period of time last week in which my camera went missing. (You'll notice an absence of blog posts toward the end of the week).

Friday night (the night the Chocolate cake showed up), I mentioned that I wanted to take a picture. Madeline disappears and shows up just moments later with the missing camera. I was so glad to see it that I didn't question what she was doing with it.

Upon downloading the photos later, I discovered that I have a budding photographer under my roof.

She has a Cinderella castle in her room that is home to Troy & Gabriella from High School Musical, Cinderella, Prince, Belle, Prince, Barbie the Island Princess, Strawberry Shortcake, and the nun, Miss Clavel from the story Madeline. I always say that Miss Clavel is the "chaperone" or the house mother. Maddy plays with the castle a lot and always has the dolls arranged "just so".

So, when the camera went missing, I discovered she had decided to document the different moments of the dolls' lives. Here's what she captured on camera. I may provide a bit of commentary for some of the photos. These are just a FEW of the pictures--didn't want to overload your server with the actual amount of photos that she took.

First, you'll notice the self-portrait at the top of the blog entry.

Here's the whole group in two different poses. You'll notice Troy & Gabriella together in the top photo at the top of the staircase, but Troy has taken up with a scantily clad Belle in the photo on the bottom. Take note of Miss Clavel, the nun in the photo on the top as well.

In the photo on the top, Prince seems to be getting a footrub from Belle. Now look in the next photo and Miss Clavel has shown up so they are behaving more appropriately since his feet are now on the floor.

Is a wedding about to take place? The foot-rub couple are posed at the top of the staircase, ready to descend and make an entrance. Miss Clavel is the bridesmaid.

Troy seems to have broken up with Gabriella and is now courting Barbie, the Island Princess. Cinderella is consoling Gabriella in the photo on the top. In the next photo, Cinderella has asked for a moment alone with Troy to confront his carelessness in handling Gab's heart. He is ashamed of his behavior and cannot even meet her gaze.

If you see anything else happening in the backgrounds of the pictures that I missed, please post a comment and tell me what else is going on.

God's redemptive plan: a story told in chocolate

A little theological lesson for you today readers.

My parents came to town to visit this weekend. They were trying to find their way to Steinmart on their way into town and got a little lost and ended up in the Puffy Muffin bakery parking lot.

God does indeed guide our every step. Even our "mistakes" (in this case, taking the wrong turn) can be redeemed, readers! Here's the glorious way God redeemed dad's wrong turn:

If you'll remember my last post, one of my top 5 favorite desserts hails straight from their bakery.

My dad, an avid "welcometomyblog" reader, remembered the post and showed up at my house carrying a....

CHOCOLATE GANACHE CAKE FROM THE PUFFY MUFFIN!