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I Dare You.....

2010-03-19T22:01:00.000-07:00

We've all heard how fierce a momma bear can be when it comes to protecting her cubs. One of my cubs has been severely attacked in the last two months and the other cub scratched at. I've never had the "momma bear" instinct strike so fiercely as it has during this time.

Tomorrow I'm taking my cubs back into the wild to see how they fair. Please keep in mind that I will be standing upright, with the hair on my neck prickled, watching. If I feel that for any reason one of my cubs is being knocked around undeservedly I'm fully prepared to show my teeth, growl and take them back to my den for protection.

Just try to test me, or any other momma bear.

Three Times This Weekend.....

2010-03-07T19:48:00.000-08:00

First off, get your mind out of the gutter.

Three times this weekend my family has sat at the table and shared a meal together. Most of you know that I don't generally cook. I'm not sure what's gotten into me but I have had this strange to cook. This can be a dangerous thing.

Three weeks ago I cooked noodles and managed to clog our drain pipes. It took D-Rock six dirty, frustrating hours and a couple trips to Lowe's to get it fixed. Then, the next week I was allowed back into the kitchen and managed to set off the smoke alarms in the house.

Well, I was left alone Friday evening and was really craving mac-n-cheese and hot dogs. I was warned not to set the house on fire. I promised to get the animals out if it happened.

I successfully made the dinner Friday and then again on Saturday. I'd never made fettuccine alfredo with chicken but I was feeling very adventurous. It was also a success. I wore the apron twice and spent more time in the kitchen this weekend than I have in the last month.

I've been laughed at, pictures taken, made fun of and praised. My favorite part was when Jubee asked that we all sit at the table together. It made me feel like we truly are a family.

Thanks to my family for being so trusting with my culinary curiosities. No Eris I'm not the pod version and yes he does like it!

What a Weekend.....

2010-03-02T19:19:00.001-08:00

This is before.....

This is after.....

We've had an incredible trip! The boys met so many people while at the track. They met owners, drivers, pit crew, you name it. We enjoyed new friends and caught up with old friends.

Bubba's favorite driver, Jeff Gordon, led most of the race but in the end D-Rock's driver won the race. It was all ok though because after the race Bubba caught up with Jeff Gordon and was able to get an autograph! We've been told his is one of the most difficult to get.

I hope to share pictures some time, just need to figure out the best way. Since there are so many I don't think this would be the best place, probably will post them on Facebook so keep your eye out for them, I know you are all interested (especially you Eris)!

A Beautiful Day in LV.....

2010-02-26T07:48:00.001-08:00

This will seem like a long post but it's mainly pictures. We like to do new and different things whenever we visit the same place twice.

We started the day with a visit to my jobsite. We are building a Lowe's in the north-west end of town and I thought it might be fun for my family to see a little of what I do. It's amazing how quick these stores are built and how enormous they look when they are empty.

Some of us climbed a ladder to the roof.

Some of us didn't.

Then it was off to New York New York where Bubba and I rode the roller coaster.

After the roller coaster we went back over to the MGM Grand to see the lions. This is a repeat adventure but it's something that Jubee loves. They were very active and fun to watch.

After that we headed to In-n-Out Burgers for lunch. The kids had never eaten there and they've heard us rave over the food. It was a fabulous lunch! I'm still curious on how many "styles" you can order your burger. D-Rock and the kids had theirs animal style. I think the only difference is sauteed onions versus raw. They make all their fries from fresh potatoes and it's interesting to watch. We are very excited to have one moving to Centerville.

In the same parking lot is a really neat cigar shop. We stopped there for a couple sticks and ended up bringing home three cigar boxes that we are all fighting over. I guess we'll have to stop there again in four weeks for more!

After that we headed back to the strip for a looksy at the NASCAR themed rides at the Sahara and Bubba and I decided to ride both of them. They have a ride called Speed and then stock car simulators. This picture is from the Speed ride and I must say it's my favorite ride I've ever been on. D-Rock and Jubee were able to go up and watch us launch. Now when I say launch I'm not kidding. They told us twice to put our heads back and the next thing we knew we were doing 70MPH down an incredible track! We flew straight up into the air and then did the entire ride backwards! D-Rock couldn't believe how quick we were gone. There was no movement of the car before it just flat out took off.

We drove around for a while and then stopped at the famous Las Vegas sign for a picture.

After this we headed to Fry's, an electronics store, where Jubee and I found the massage chairs and just about fell asleep. If I every have a few hundred dollars to blow it will be spent to purchase one of these magnificent chairs. Then off to Rollie & Donna's for a fabulous dinner and visiting.

We got back to the track just after 9PM and our fun neighbors were here so we sat and chatted with them for a few hours.

It was a very fun filled day and having the kids with us makes it even more so.

The Pilgrimage.....

2010-02-24T17:23:00.000-08:00

My name is Athena, I am an addict, I love NASCAR. We made our yearly pilgrimage to the Las Vegas Motor Speedway today. We have an infield campsite that we purchase every year and we have a wonderful time.

Our departure was scheduled for 6:00am this morning, actual departure time was 6:25am. We knew that weather was coming and we wanted to beat it as much as possible.

Lets just say it was an interesting ride. We had great luck with traffic, not so great with the weather. This is a picture of somewhere between Fillmore and Nephi. Yeah, lots o' fun.

We saw a Tahoe off the side of the road but didn't stop. We felt a little bad but UHP was less than a mile behind us and we could see the driver on the phone. Looked like they were just going too fast for conditions. Us, we went about 35 miles per hour until the roads cleared up after Beaver.

It took us about eight hours and some white knuckle miles but we made it safe and sound. We even got to drive ON THE RACE TRACK!!!

We have fun things planned over the next few days. We will visit one of my jobsites here in Las Vegas, hoping to get a few good rides on the strip, meeting up with old friends and are excited to meet new friends.

Seriously.....

2010-01-28T17:10:00.000-08:00

I have worked since I was 16. With the exception of one month I haven't been without a job for over 20 years. I take pride in any job or task given to me. I respect others when their work depends on something that I must do, no matter how small or mundane.

I came to a realization today. Returning phone calls, emails, messages or completing what you agreed to and when you agreed to have it done is altogether a lost art. This is really bothering me. I am very proud to say that I respond to every phone call, email or message within a reasonable time frame, even if I don't have the answer. At least responding with an "I don't know but I will find out" or "I'm sorry, I just got super busy" is better than not responding AT ALL! This is a HUGE pet peeve of mine.

Well, I was promised on Tuesday at 10:00am that I would receive certain documents from his girl in the office quickly and was also told that if I didn't see it by 2:00pm that I should call this guy back. Hmmm, apparently my "quickly" has a completely different definition than theirs. I still don't have what I need / want.

Being the persistent and relentless person I am (this was actually a compliment made to me today by a co-worker) I have called, emailed and text the guy to no avail.

Now I've probably been put on the "this person sucks and is a pain in the ass" list.

Great.

Family equals.....

2010-01-27T17:31:00.001-08:00

For the most part, family members learn to co-exist without much of a problem. You have the occasional teenager fight, they yell, you yell, they stomp off, you continue what you were doing before they interrupted you.

The last little while I've decided that family equals tears. You cry when you loose someone, when you are reminded of someone, you even cry when a long lost person re-appears. Well, let me just say I'm tired of all the crying. I'm officially boycotting the wetness that seeps from my eyes and makes me speak in a terribly high voice and all blotchy and silly looking.

Numi, go ahead and try me.

Can you ever forgive me . . . . .

2009-06-06T09:33:00.000-07:00

Let's just say that I have been waaaay less than diligent on my blogging. This spring has held many changes and duties in the Athena household. Not so much the parents, but the kids.

Here we go:

Bubba - Has completed his first year of high school, drivers ed and now has a job. The job is the weirdest part for me. I can handle the girlfriends, the kissing, the driving . . . but the job has me spinning into the reality that he is truly growing up.

Jubee - Has completed her last year of elementary and is ready to move on to Jr High, her school put on a wonderful play and she is now looking forward to a quiet summer alone! She is taking her first plane ride on July 1. She has always wanted to spend time in California with my grandparents, not sure why I haven't made that happen until now. She will fly to LA where my aunt will pick her up. I will drive to CA a week or so later and pick her up

I'm extremely grateful for how well my kids do in anything they attempt. They are both wonderful students and generally decent teenagers.

I'll do my best diligence in keeping you updated.

Broken Home . . . .

2009-04-13T20:40:00.000-07:00

I have very mixed feelings about Mel Gibson's pending divorce. I'm saddened for what his family will go through, yet elated with my new possibility. I've had a mega-crush on this man for a long long long long long time. When I read the news just after getting home I literally gasped and covered my mouth in surprise. When I told my family the news Bubba thew his fists in the air yelled out "Yeah! Two Christmas's".

I'll be sure to let you all know when I move.

I think it's rubbing off . . . . .

2009-04-09T14:07:00.000-07:00

They had to move the vending machine at work. Two guys are in there working on it. I was in the break room getting more water (bleh). I look at the gross floor where the machine usually sits and guess what I found! I told them that if they weren't going to snag it I would! $0.70!

Sisterly Love . . . . .

2009-04-05T12:51:00.000-07:00

Last December while waiting for a dinner date I spent some time at Eris' house. She was studiously working and hole punching a bunch of stuff. She broke the hole-puncher and handed it to me to fix. As no good deed goes unpunished, the puncher exploded little round paper pieces all over me. I giggled and then started throwing them all over her office not once, but three times. Then she took a handful and threw them in my car!

At dinner that night she neurotically played with sugar packets, making patterns and driving everyone nuts with her behavior. Little did everyone know, she was taking them to stuff into all the nooks and crannies of my car. Grrrr.

Since that night my coworkers and I have been saving punches. Knowing this had to be timed correctly, because she was staying at my house for the weekend the end of February, the opportunity hit me Friday afternoon that that was the night. The guys play poker once a month and the girls hang out at another house, this time the girls were at Eris's.

I left my purse in her office on purpose so that I could make the deposit just before I left. I had linked a bunch of her paperclips together (little ones and big ones together in the same link) earlier in the evening and staked out the perfect spot to leave my little gifts.

She found the gift 30 seconds too early. She returned the favor with "tripping" into the back seat of my car and throwing them all over me and the front of the car, I had a hard time getting my seatbelt hooked up since it was jam packed with punches! I thought that I ended up with the raw end of the deal, but it only took $2.25 and ten minutes at the car wash to get it cleaned up. Pretty sure her kids and animals will be dragging them through the house for a while!

BTW - I found more sugar packets while vacuuming out my car! Love you too Eris!

Every Vote Counts . . . . .

2009-03-31T20:26:00.000-07:00

Pretty sure if you counted them right now, I would get Mother of the Year.

Jubee has decided that she wants to run for 7th grade class officer. The schools that end up at the Jr High each vote in two students from their elementary. She called on Eris, who has ran for office in the past, but we had to get moving if we wanted to get FIVE posters thought up, supplies purchased, and actually created tonight. Shopped, pulled all the craft stuff out, made and all cleaned up in three and a half hours.

If you know a 6th grader at her school please tell them to vote for her!

See if you can find the penguin on each poster!

I heart Utah . . . . .

2009-03-29T08:53:00.000-07:00

Utah decided to change it's tax rates mid-stream last year. Screwed a lot of people. Needless to say, we owe the state more than we got in a refund from the Feds. Conveniently I have a box of checks that I only use to send lunch money to school with the kids. Sending the state about a dozen checks that all add up to the amount due is going to turn my frown upside down. Guess it's my way of breaking a plate.

Day One . . . . .

2009-02-26T21:28:00.000-08:00

From Ogden to Las Vegas it took 6 hours, we only stopped once in Beaver. We made a quick stop at the holy land (Las Vegas Motor Speedway) to see if any shopping was available, only the gift store was open, not much there. It was a weird sensation driving into LVMS knowing that we weren't spending the entire weekend camping there, feels like something is missing. Then back on the road.

The accommodations at Chez Bell are more than acceptable. We were greeted at the door by the sir and madam of the establishment along with their trusty canine Tuff. Too bad Lily didn't join us, she and Tuff would have had a ball! We had a wonderful sit down dinner of spaghetti, salad, fresh asparagus and french bread. We sat around the table for about two hours chatting.

Once dinner was done and cleaned up we shared pictures and chatted some more. Then came the relaxation session in the spa. A balmy 92 degrees for about 30 minutes will relax anyone!

Yes kids, you were talked about, bragged about and shown off; missed a little too. Sorry no pictures yet, hope to get some tomorrow.

D-Rock insists that we are out the door by 6, that's AM not PM, so we are off to bed.

PS - Dog Lovers - Message and hugs were given, they are very excited that you are going.

Twinkle Twinkle . . . . .

2009-02-10T20:20:00.000-08:00

We live in a very cozy house of only 1,600 square feet. Three bedrooms and 1.75 baths for four humans, two dogs and a cat can be tight at times. Bubba has always had his own floor, the basement. D-Rock and I have always wanted to move down stairs but had just never made it a priority, until it kept me up ALL night Thursday two weeks ago. The next day I sent Bubba a message to pack his stuff, he was moving in one week, he was excited since he would then have the largest bedroom in the house!

I was apprehensive on whether or not the move would really happen. Thursday hit and stuff started to move but could we really pull it off in one weekend? We didn't move the beds but did have to clean under them. I'm glad I have two big strong guys around so they could handle the desks and dressers that needed transplanting.

After all was said and done we were moved and sleeping in our new basement hide-a-way Saturday night. There are so many differences between the old and new rooms. They are geographically as far apart as they could get in our house. The old room was bright, stark white, light carpet, small closet, three big windows, a TV and a soft mushy cozy bed. The new room is dark, has 70's wood paneling, forest green carpet, double the closet, one eensie weensie window, no TV and a hard bed stuck against the wall. I was more than a little worried about the transition.

Last night was the best night. See, when Bubba was little D-Rock put up glow-in-the-dark stars and planets on the ceiling in the basement bedroom, they are still there. As we crawled into bed and turned off the lights they were shining so brightly that we just laid there, cuddled up, and looking at the stars. D-Rock even found the little dipper, he doesn't think he installed a big dipper. It was very serene and even though I missed my nightly sleep helpers I slept extremely well.

Why did we wait so long. I never want to change it.

Who ya gonna call . . . . .

2009-02-03T18:56:00.001-08:00

the FAA? Bubba and I horse around quite a bit. He hits, I hit, he kicks, I kick. Friday night he kicked me HARD, I mean hahahaaard, and not with his toes, with his heel. I am now sporting an incredible bruise the size and shape of South America. It keeps growing and growing down my shin. I'm not savvy enough with the camera to get a shot of this bodacious bruise but if I see you I will be proud to hike up the pant leg and show it off.

Sunday Bubba, Tay, Randa and I stopped by the Buddhist church to see Numi and Zeus. I showed the bruise proudly. Bubba maintains the story that I fell down the stairs, I would have a bruise on the back side and not the front if this was the case.

Anywho, he stated that he was going to turn me into the FAA. Numi and I started laughing out loud. The he said the CPA, more laughter. I said how about DCFS? He has decided that the FAA stands for Fisical Abusees Anonymous. I then proceeded to explain that physical starts with a P.

He still maintains that it's FAA. I've said many times before and I'm sure many more to come, he is the dumbest smart kid I know. I wouldn't trade him for the world.

Eeeeew . . . . .

2009-01-15T17:00:00.000-08:00

I hate feet. I don't like to look at them, rub them or smell them. They are super ugly, however, mine are completely adorable.

Bubba's are no exception. A month ago Numismatist saw just how "not attractive" his feet are, toes in particular. She came up with the word Toeliosis (toe-lee-o-sis) which is a condition in where the appendages that protrude from the foot are less than desirable. This condition generally doesn't improve, however, can temporarily worsen at times.

Bubba has had an extreme break out of Toeliosis. He jammed and possibly broke the second toe on his left foot on a floor threshold while chasing and screaming "get out of the house" at Jubee as she was leaving yesterday. Due to this outbreak he had to wear his camo slippers to school, I'm pretty sure he will have to sit on the bench for his basketball game on Saturday and more than likely his nail is going to fall off. Karma's a female dog.

What kind of fun names do you have for feet/toes?

It took a year . . . . .

2009-01-10T23:48:00.000-08:00

D-Rock knows that I have always wanted to jump out of a plane. He wasn't too thrilled with the idea, so for Valentine's Day last year he gave me a gift certificate to iFly. For those of you not familiar, iFly is an indoor skydiving experience here in O-town. This attraction is in the same building as Fat Cat's arcade, bowling alley, and pool hall and I hadn't taken the time to go redeem my Valentine's gift, until today. It's not cheap and I wouldn't fork out the money for someone else to join me.

A close family friend was having a b-day party for her son at Fat Cat's. I decided to take the voucher "just in case". As the party crew was starting to bowl, my Lobster and I decided to run upstairs and check out the iFly. Soon we were joined by the b-day boy's father. After watching for about five minutes I left the two and went to the counter to get a flight time. Next thing I know the father AND mother of the b-day boy signed up too! Ugh, we had to wait four hours!

We returned for our training and found that the mother couldn't fly, cast on broken arm. Her daughter stepped in. As we were sitting in the training room all of a sudden here comes Jubee. WTF? Come to find out the mother that couldn't go decided that since she had missed Jubee's b-day she would treat her to this.

Well, after the training we went . . . . .

It's not hard, but not easy. Does that make sense?

Thanks D-Rock, I love you!

p.s. A special shout-out to Numi and Zeus for sharing this with us, especially Numi for the pictures.

I know, I know . . . . .

2009-01-06T19:34:00.000-08:00

Phew, the holidays are over. If I'm gonna have a melt-down it's generally in the month of December, always has been, always will be. Here is my list of why:

1. Generally seems to break the bank.

2. My family, his family, their family, this family and that family. Does it ever stop?

3. Staying up ALL night long more than once in a week.

4. F-ing Christmas cards.

5. You are expected to be nice to everyone.

In light of this I decided to make some changes. Here they are:

1. No credit cards, only cash, didn't overspend.

2. Made sure everyone saw who they wanted.

3. Spent the weekend in between the two "all nighters" being a complete slug.

4. Enjoyed the ones received, not going to fret about not sending ours out, see #2.

5. If you are dumb, I shouldn't have to be nice.

As for the new year . . . I will report again in a few days.

My two Princesses . . . . .

2008-12-16T20:00:00.000-08:00

So tonight was the last Athena Tuesday with the kids. Our ritual is a kid's meal and tons 'o fun. We have had Tattoo Tuesday, Wii nights and tonight was Princess night.

We picked up dinner and brought it home to eat. Immediately after dinner we began the Princess transformation!

We had to wash away our non-Princess dirt with special Princess bubble-bath in the biggest most amazing amount of bubbles ever! Lily was super curious and even joined in!

Next, we had our own Princess nail salon . . . . .

Once our transformation was complete, we anxiously awaited fresh baked peanut-butter chocolate chip cookies (thanks Uncle D and Jubee) and ate candy canes while watching The Nightmare Before Christmas.

A big thanks to Little Mr Eris for being such a good sport. His favorite activity by far is spending time with Bubba. Unfortunately Scouts is also on Tuesday. He usually only gets to snarf down dinner with him before Bubba runs out the door.

I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do on Tuesdays now. Oh, and one other thought. Does the bath count if you put on the same dirty clothes from before?

Bring on the big guy . . . . .

2008-12-10T19:31:00.001-08:00

Everything is purchased, everything is wrapped.

Ready for some fun!

Finally . . . . .

2008-11-23T16:02:00.000-08:00

So, a group of us finally went to the movie this morning. My Lobster, her three girls, MJ, Jubee and me. We have been preparing for this for ever! In the most recent days the girls made their movie t-shirts complete with iron-ons and fashionable cutting down the side. Lobster wasn't too excited about the cutting, but hey, they looked adorable. I have watched these girls grow up together and flourish into beautiful women. T started this whole Twilight phenomenon in our group, damn her (finger waiving). This book series has bridged gaps between moms and daughters, I think it just really gave us something in common that we could talk about.

MJ, Lobster's co-worker that has turned into a good friend, has two adorable boys, 11 and 9-ish. MJ was worried about them going to a movie alone that started 15 minutes after and ended 15 minutes before ours. Well, it was either they go with us, or Bubba goes with them. Doesn't he look super excited?

Comments on the movie? Not sure what to say. The scenery was fantastic! Rob Pattinson did grow on me a little. I really liked Charlie and Sam. "I'm gonna roll you into the mud" "I'm gonna run over your ankles" Jasper, come on! You have unlimited wealth, knowledge and a smoking hot girlfriend, SMILE! Emmett, mmmm, I may need a moment alone. James, too bad he ends up dead, would like to see some more of him half clothed, must see Never Back Down.

In all, the movie was slow. Maybe because I knew what was coming or because there was so much dialog and not enough action. Oh well, glad I saw it and glad it's over too.

Always speaking the truth . . . . .

2008-11-18T18:46:00.001-08:00

K - so tonight is Aunt Athena Tuesday. Littlest never ceases to amaze me. When I picked her up tonight she pointed out which teacher is her favorite. Then she said these random things during the evening:

- "Aunt Athena, I have a teacher that has your same name." "Cool!" "What is your full name?" "(enter my name here)" "My full name is (enter her first, middle and last name here)"

- "I love my daddy because he is so cute!"

- She pouted and didn't want to get out of the car when she didn't get to carry any of the dinner into the house. I showed her that I wasn't carrying anything either, she got out.

- Bubba walked into the house and she blurts out this: "Girls rule and boys drool!" I about fell off my chair.

I really think she was sent to the wrong mother, she should have been mine!

PS - Little wouldn't sit still AT ALL. Little Mr Eris was ecstatic when he could resort to the man cave downstairs for some Bubba video game time!

From Manilow to Metallica . . . .

2008-10-30T17:39:00.000-07:00

I really really REALLY like music. As the title hints, I love all sorts of music too. I make music videos in my head, pretend to play the piano or lead the orchestra quite often. I used to carry what was lovingly called my 'suitcase' full of almost 300 CD's to and from work (yes, they were cataloged via a spreadsheet).

My boss knew that I didn't have an iPod, he'd mentioned it only about a dozen times. One morning I showed up to work and this was on my desk. I found him an hour later and asked if he was responsible, he said yes and that he hoped he didn't step on any one's toes by getting it for me, ARE YOU KIDDING ME? (fyi - my husband thinks this man could walk on water, ie NASCAR tickets) He had had a very successful meeting with an owner the day before and felt like I deserved some of the celebration.

I studiously started importing all the CDs I had, this took weeks and a lot of patience from the fam. Not just me being distant but also hogging the computer for hours at a time. I love organizing, creating and doing new things with it. My kids told me I have a problem. I said yes, it's an addiction, but it's the iPod or drugs, you choose.

I'm proud to report that my iPod is currently the home to 5,147 songs by 479 artists on 483 albums; 50 movies, 13 TV shows, 10 music videos and 1 audio book. Yeah, I'm hooked.

ps - Christmas is coming, stuck on what to get me? Easy, iTunes gift cards.

Damn Women Parts . . . . .

2008-10-21T18:09:00.000-07:00

I have been a raging "female dog" the past two days. I can't get enough sleep, get frustrated / cry at the very thought of confrontation and even snapped at my boss today.

I don't have the main sign that a certain womanly event still happens every month. I took a glorious week off in May 2005 and fixed that problem, lucky me! Though APPARENTLY I still morph into something that is not me, a "me" that I don't even like to be around. A coworker gave this new "me" today a name, Beatrice.

So go ahead ask "are you hormonal?", I guess I am.

YOU GOT A PROBLEM WITH THAT?

Update: After an evening of Kid's Meals and cartoons I'm a little better, but don't push it.

OM. . . . . DOG!

2008-10-14T18:13:00.000-07:00

I have always laughed at people who dress their animals in clothing. I mean come on, get a life, they are animals not humans. I have crossed to the dark side, again.

This is our Lily, our baby. We brought her home in August '07 with severe discontent from Bubba (we're talking a crying, cussing fit). He has since become very smitten with her, as we all have. When she was "fixed" in December she had a cone and wouldn't move, walk or eat with it on her head, she just stood there head down. We ended up having to put her in baby onesies so she couldn't get to her incision. Ahhh, it was super cute.

Well, last weekend my Lobster and I shaved four dogs, my two and her two. I know this sounds like an awful task but we could do anything together and have a great time. Anyway, I thought I had the 1/4 inch guard on the razor, nope, the 1/8 inch. Needless to say at the end of it all Lily was pretty naked. We laughed, oh it will grow back, not expecting a foot of snow the next morning!

After she shivered all day and night Sunday I decided to promptly go buy her a sweater Monday after work. Bubba was disgusted that I would do such a thing! It's a damn dog! It took me about 15 minutes and going threw the rack at least 7 times to find the perfect outfit for her. Once she had it on she was warm and cozy.

She looks adorable! Help! I think she is gonna need her own closet!

And I Lost It . . . . .

2008-10-12T19:08:00.000-07:00

One of my biggest pet peeves is that a garage is for my car, not crap. This is what I found when I woke up this morning. The reason she was outside you ask? We sold our trailer two weeks ago very quickly (it was in our driveway for only 7 hours) and in order to get it ready for the new owners we unloaded everything straight into the garage.

We purchased some bins, I got out my label maker and we went to work. D-Rock and I spent four hours cleaning, organizing and going through all sorts of stuff filling our both recycle and regular garbage can.

During the cleaning spree we would randomly come across items that would send us back. Baby cowboy boots, old music tapes and then this . . . . .

The Nose Knows . . . . .

2008-10-06T16:54:00.000-07:00

For K.

Some of us are sensitive to smell, other's aren't. There are a few very distinct smells that I will never forget and will always scream home.

Cypress Street - I could sit for days, months or even years in that back yard.

Pipes - Hmmm, Papa.

Numi's Garage - Ok, I know this is a weird one. It reminds me of the house in ID that my grandparents lived in MANY years ago.

Hair Grooming Grease - Numi's dad put this stuff in his hair and when we were small children he used to lay there and pretend to sleep while we put newspaper rubber bands all throughout his comb-over.

Dog - I love the smell of a wet and/or warm dog.

Last night we had an October babies birthday party at my aunts. As we were leaving Aunt P gave Jubee a big hug and was almost instantly in tears. Jubee smelled just like K. Once we nailed down that it was the same hair product that K uses Aunt P had tears in her eyes. K we miss you and hope all is going well!

Ahhh, Lake Powell . . . . .

2008-09-28T20:08:00.001-07:00

The second of our two last minute trips was a five day jaunt to Lake Powell. Of all places we have ever been together as a family, this is the one that seems to connect us back together. All we have to do down there is play, have fun and then play again. We eat when hungry, sleep when tired, wake when ready to go again (sometimes earlier than wanted). We have amazing friends that have incredible toys and enjoy sharing them.

This trip we kept the house boat in the slip. We took the boat and the sea-doos out and found an amazing beach that we set up a volleyball court on, watch out Misty May & Carrie. Most mornings / evenings you would find Bubba and one of the other boys fishing off the dock. We were lucky that the slip across the "street" was vacant, sure made it nice. We had a tattoo party (included the cleaning crew from another boat) and painted toenails green and orange. D-Rock got racing stripes, yep, he's still sporting them.

All in all, there were eight adults and eight kids. No fights, only super tired people at the end of the trip. Sometimes the kids kept the parents awake, other times the parents kept the kids awake.

We love this place, in the slip or in the wild, and we love the crew.

Tattoo Tuesday . . . . .

2008-09-23T19:15:00.000-07:00

I heart tattoos.

Sunday I asked the girls if they would like some ink when they came over Tuesday night, they thought that would be a great idea! Dinner was barely on the table, tonight we had McD's, and they were asking when we could get started.

After much deliberation here is the low down:

Little has a heart on the left and a star on the right.

Littlest has a girl pirate on the left and a purple kitty on the right.

I have an octopus on the left foot and a lady bug on the right, compliments of the girls. Yes, my toenails are painted, to be explained in a later post.

Jubee has a frog on her left wrist.

Then the girls decided that they were tough enough to take on the big beast D-Rock! Armed with their new super-powers of ink they proceeded to thump on him 'til he cried uncle! It was super cute. Yes, the Littles won.

The girl with cute shoes . . . . .

2008-09-20T19:46:00.000-07:00

Bubba is a sophomore in high school this year. This means a whole new group of nice young ladies. He came home the second day of school and kept talking about the girl with cute shoes, she was awesome, cool and super cute. During our trip to Carter Creek he informed us that they are a couple and that he asked her to the Homecoming dance. Shit.

I managed to get a picture of her dress with strict instructions that he wasn't to see it. Now, the task of matching his outfit to hers was not easy, two hours in a mall, lots of "gosh mom" and rolling of the eyes. Side note, we walked past a formal wear shop and he said "I hope her dress isn't poofy". I immediately sent her a message to have her tell him that it in fact was SUPER poofy. She played along, it was great.

Well, today Bubba had his first date. (Is it really a date if your parents have to drive?) They went to a local fun center to play glow-golf and have a bite to eat. Then off to get ready for the dance, both of them so nervous. We went to pick her up and he was pleasantly surprised, probably relieved that there was no poofy dress.

They stayed at the dance for 45 minutes then came to our house to play the Wii and snuggle on the love seat watching random crap on the TV while she force fed him all sorts of candy. Hope he doesn't puke.

It's been a while . . . . .

2008-09-20T07:29:00.000-07:00

So, I know, I've been MIA for a while. I thought that once school started things would calm down, no-o-oh. Our family decided to take a couple vacations.

My family likes to camp. We went to a spot called Carter Creek. This is a military sanctioned facility in the Uintah mountains about 45 minutes outside of Evanston WY. This is an incredibly beautiful area.

The kids spent the weekend exploring. They found numerous beaver ponds, Bubba decided he wanted to find out just how deep this particular one was. He lost a battle with a tree and ended up bruised and scraped up, then he made sure that he wore shorts to school on Monday to show off his battle wounds.

Following in their grandma's footsteps, many pictures were taken.

The evenings were spent playing washers, watching the wildlife and chasing the four fur-children we had with us.

My kids are super goofy, we could have a great time just about anywhere.

Donkeys and Elephants . . . . .

2008-09-03T20:00:00.000-07:00

Duchess, Eris and Numimatist . . . . . please sit down.

As I write this I am listening to the RNC. Not only did I not watch/listen to the Dems, I fervently avoided it all together. I only mention this to help some understand my point. We are all donkeys and elephants. We all live in a world where we keep those that agree with our views and beliefs by our side and banish all others.

I had an epiphany today. See, I have a situation that most wouldn't understand. I myself am an outcast. Not because of what I did but because of what others did that I completely disagree with. Not to infringe on a major network, but for clarification, I am going to call these people the Others.

What the Others do is not right in my mind, or in the minds of those I keep company with. The epiphany came when I realized that the Others live in a universe where they think their decisions are right. Therefor, those around them must think they are right also. What I don't understand is that they continue to make . . . um . . . decisions that concern me.

Not sure if the Others are donkeys or elephants; however, they are definitely jackasses.

ps - if McCain/Palin win . . . what a fine looking second-husband that will be. Oh, and how did they get through the red-tape to exhume Johnny's mother so quickly?

Dog days of summer . . . . .

2008-08-27T19:33:00.000-07:00

I'm so glad summer is almost over. I was elated to see snow this morning on the tips of our mountains! I know it won't last but it's a good sign.

However, this is how I spent most of my Saturdays and I will miss it tons!

I'm really not old enough . . . . .

2008-08-27T17:29:00.001-07:00

Check this out.

Hanging with the kids . . . . .

2008-08-26T19:36:00.000-07:00

As many of you know, I don't particularly care for large groups of kids. They smell, are noisy, are dirty and usually touch things they shouldn't.

Not sure what compelled me, but I agreed to "babysit" Eris' kids EVERY Tuesday evening. In the past it was Mondays, nice to get it done for the week. I think this time will be different. As I have aged, I have become more tolerant of these little demons.

The Littlest disliked me from the beginning. It wasn't until an Easter miracle a year ago that this changed (sure it had nothing to do with the bubbles I was blowing). I needed to pick her up from "school" today and I wasn't sure how she would react, she did cry when her dad dropped her off this morning. She was excited, took my hand and said "Do you have a car seat for me?" How grown up! She chatted the entire time it was just the two of us. Her brother got in the car and they started bickering.

As always, I don't cook, I make it extra special and the kids get whatever they want for dinner. Tonight it was Wendy's, ice cream and all!

We ended the evening with a friendly game of Wii bowling, Little and Littlest battling it out. Littlest was in the lead until Little bowled a spare in the tenth frame, Little won by 4!

Their father showed up at 8:30, the first thing out of Littlest's mouth was "I don't want to leave". This almost put a tear in my eye. I walked her out to the car and since I forgot to show her our twinner backpacks walked her back in the house for a quick peek. I gave her a hug and reassurance that we would play again next week. She reluctantly left.

I enjoy these kids more than my sister will ever know. It's so different being around small ones when a. they aren't yours and b. I'm this much older. I now understand why my friend, who is 56, amazes me with how he deals with his kids that are 13 and 10. Thanks sis!

My Olympic boyfriend . . . . .

2008-08-19T20:03:00.000-07:00

I've been happily married for over 14 years. This is somewhat of an accomplishment in my family.

However, when I go places I get new boyfriends. I met a golfer, that was easily the same age as my dad, on a flight from SLC to Las Vegas. We shared quiet moments on the plane, both of us reading until the final approach, it was surreal. He is my St. George boyfriend.

My boss referred to himself as my Las Vegas boyfriend once while talking to my husband, it's a complete joke. He is also happily married with two beautiful daughters, let alone a gorgeous wife!

I have a subcontractor who brought me flowers, my husband was standing right there! He was good with it, glad to see I am appreciated. A co-worker calls him my boyfriend.

I would like to introduce you to my Olympic boyfriend. His name is Alexandre Despatie. He is a Canadian diver. Jubee has her own, American diver Troy Dumais. Hmmm, all I can say is Eh? YES!

Takes more than one to win a RELAY . . . . .

2008-08-18T17:08:00.000-07:00

Just have to get this off my chest. Yes, Michael Phelps is amazing. But the coverage of his last relay award ceremony has me super bugged!

First, a team of swimmers made the preliminaries. Not just him.

Second, some bonehead reporter had the nerve to ask the anoother swimmer how he liked earning Phelps his gold. Hmm, I think they all earned it.

Third, all swimmers on the relay team swam the exact same distance. But who was talked about more?

Here is what I'm bugged about. During the award ceremony they showed the men as a team briefly. Then, they focused in on Phelps the entire rest of the National Anthem. All men had an equal share of the work, all men should have been treated equally in the award.

Crazy is as crazy does . . . . .

2008-08-17T16:47:00.000-07:00

We all have that special someone in our life that is certifiably crazy. It could be a mother, an uncle or a neighbor. I live in an older area with not a lot of space between our houses.

Here is what we get to look at from our back yard.

Let's not forget the signage that was posted a few years back.

Are you serious? We have never done this!

I don't mind if Lily barks anymore as he's far more annoying and she is clearly scared.

ps - be sure to click on the scarecrow pic to get the full effect!

Held hostage by my zipcode . . . . .

2008-08-14T18:48:00.000-07:00

For years my Lobster has more than disliked my zip code. She complains that to get to many places you have to drive through it, with only two streets in the entire city maxing out at 30 mph. I like it for these two reasons. Until this week.

Ugh! I had internet issues Tuesday night. I did what all others would, called technical support. I spoke to someone who's primary language was English, go figure, for 45 minutes. He couldn't fix my problem. Amazingly he put me on hold and disconnected the call, he had my number, I didn't have his. The next morning I call again and this time the girl wanted to troubleshoot before she sent out a tech. Can't do this, I'm at work, she doesn't get this point for quite some time. Also, I can't call from my house as my phones are down too! I call Qwest to get internet service and this is what I get "I'm sorry ma'am, it's not available in your area. We don't know when, or even if, it will ever be." SHIT. I'm stuck with the dimwits. Call provider back, DEMAND a tech, apologize for being a not so nice person, get a tech, kinda fixed.

THEN THIS . . . . . SAME NIGHT!

We have lived in this house for nine years, pretty much know what our monthly bills will be. Opened the water/sewer bill normally around $60 and it's freaking $236!!! WTF!!! The meter read that we used 30,000 gallons of water! Being the filer that I am, I pull all this years statements, we average 10,000. I requested a re-read. They came out this morning and re-read the meter, it matches. However, we have only used 4,000 so far this month. The nice lady from the city called me tonight and all but told me that I'm screwed. The water went somewhere is what she continually told me. Really braniac? But where? We have no soft spots in the lawn, no leaking faucets/toilets, no pool, no swamp cooler, no garden, where in the hell did all the water go? I told her that I don't trust my jerk neighbor and wouldn't put it past him to sabotage us. Now we have a guy coming tomorrow and looking things over to see if there is an issue somewhere. Hmmm, don't you think we have already done that? Then they can MAYBE take it to the City Treasurer for a possible adjustment. Great.

Another one bites the dust . . . . .

2008-08-10T19:02:00.001-07:00

So, the kids went to Lagoon today. D-Rock went to console a friend. The race was a road course, not a good nap race. Hmmmm, what to do.

As many of you know, we are great with starting projects, not so great on getting them completed. Well, as the others were out, I completed a project!

I designed, painted and installed our new "coat closet" into a media mecca. It houses all our dvd's and Wii games. Props to D-Rock for getting the wood cut. I freaking love it!

I will be hosting tours if you are interested.

What can I say . . . . .

2008-08-08T19:52:00.000-07:00

Done with the book. Not sure how I expected it to end. How do you end a series like that? Everyone always wants a happy ending! Unless you're my mother!

I'm glad it's done. I have never been one that reads much, but I get into a book/series and get sucked in and the rest of my life gets put on hold until I'm done. For example, I spent the night in Las Vegas Tuesday, flew home on Wednesday. What did I do in my spare time? READ!!!

I would agree with others stating that it wasn't as intense and exciting as I expected. It really couldn't have ended any other way. Seriously, how could she have written anyone out of the book? Just not possible to have anyone important die and still have a happy ending. We all have our favorite characters, some other than Bella and Edward!

Some of us prefer keyboard players, not lead singers.

Can't . . . wait . . . must . . . . read . . . .

2008-08-03T16:21:00.000-07:00

Couldn't wait, bought my own copy of Breaking Dawn. This is the first book of the series that I have owned, my Lobster and her family have so graciously let us read, and re-read, the first three. I have a multitude of people I can borrow this book from.

However, I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one that was anxious. My Lobster had ordered one from Amazon, yet to be delivered. A book "accidentally" fell into her shopping cart at the devil store yesterday.

Following Eris's words, don't call and don't visit. I'm gonna be busy for the next few days, I don't read as fast as Eris.

New Toy . . . . .

2008-07-28T18:43:00.000-07:00

Ok, so the question was posed in a previous blog comment about what kind of toy I was playing with.

This past school year the kids have hit the point where they are on the computer more than D-Rock (the husband) and I. Then, D-Rock started studying for some work testing and I could never get on! Since then I vowed that by the time school started again in the fall I would have a computer, preferably a laptop of my very own.

Backing up even further you must know that I work for a pretty great place (more on that later) and they cycle in new laptops and sale the older ones. I started mentioning it about three months ago. I don't think they thought I was serious. When I started leaving chips and drinks and treats on their desk three weeks ago I think they got the hint. They cycled one in and replaced a mother board on a 2006 and viola! I have a laptop for a VERY reasonable price!

No, the kids are not allowed on it. I have it all password protected so the power won't even come on unless you know the magic keystroke!

Two hours and counting . . . . .

2008-07-26T20:47:00.000-07:00

As I left my Lobster's house tonight she so graciously reminded me of tomorrow. Come on people, I'm not going to say it out loud. I remind others to buckle up and be extra safe this particular day each year.

I'm sure a lot of good things have happened on this particular day. Case in point, I know a super cute girl born this day. However, I've had not so good things happen this day many times and it makes me super cautious. I do what I can not to dwell on them, but it's hard.

So, to start the day off I'm going to sleep in, probably get breakfast offered to me in bed (I'll get up to eat at the table cause I don't like to eat in bed unless it's ice cream!) and then probably curl up on the couch for my race nap and put off a shower until the very last minute possible so as not to be late for any festivities.

Wait, this isn't any different than any other Sunday.

Like a virgin . . . . . hey!

2008-07-24T16:05:00.000-07:00

Ok, so, not really. But I definitely feel that way.

I have recently acquired a new toy, a laptop, more of that story later. Anywho, my mom insisted that I be wireless. Keep in mind that I have been wired since I got my first bra, so this is quite the change!

Long story short I now have wireless internet at my house. Fppt to Comcast, they said I HAD to have them do it. Hmmm, a trip to Circuit City and a computer savvy husband and I'm set!

Oooh, I'm sooooo hooked!