Wait.. What?

I went to see "My Sister's Keeper" today and didn't shed a single tear. EVERY other audience member was sobbing.

Is something wrong with me?

Blog-a-versary GIVEAWAY!

I'm celebrating my ONE YEAR BLOG-A-VERSARY, so that means...

it's time for a GIVEAWAY!!

I'll be giving away the makings for a summer night to remember with someone special! Wine goblets, beautiful bbq plates and matching napkins, and a photo album to document the special summer night! I'll also be tossing in another sneaky little surprise for the lucky winner!

Here's the deal...

1. Leave a comment for one chance to win.
2. Become a follower for another chance to win. (be sure and let me know in your comment if you are a follower or if you become one!)
3. Send a friend my way and I'll put you down for one more chance to win!

That's right, 3 chances to win!

**Enter before July 6th at 12 midnight**

Winner will be announced July 7th!

New Vocabulary

I know, I know... I'm totally the person you turn to when you want to be hip with the lingo.

Well, I have a new term for you:
Bipolar driver - a driver who simply cannot travel at a consistent speed and often can be found speeding or traveling below the approved speed limit. These drivers may force other drivers (who are, of course, driving on cruise control) to shout explitives or other equally demeaning words at them. At which point the bipolar driver will continue on with their happy little shenanigans until an opening becomes available and other drivers are able to pass them.

Who knew driving could be so much fun?

Oh, I should also mention these drivers love to do this on two lane highways with heavy truck traffic, thus making it virtually impossible to pass them.

Sigh...

Only in Michigan...

Definitely just heard about RV racing not far from my hometown in Michigan. It's drag racing for RV's. Couldn't be anymore klassy with a capital K....

Bad Luck..

They say bad luck travels in 3's...

I'd have to agree after my luck today. Went out on the jet ski, it stopped working. Got the trailer stuck while pulling the jet ski out of the lake. Then blew the tire on the golf cart. Awesome.

Thank goodness I was with some pretty fun people who all have a great sense of humor or it could have gotten tricky.

Annnnnnd.. I escaped a major sun burn. I guess the day wasn't a total loss.

Blog-a-versary!

My one year blog-a-versary is coming up on the 29th of June.

You may want to tune in for a give away...

You know, because I'm not cool enough to have 50 followers, so I'll let the rest of the readers benefit from my blog-a-versary! After all, life doesn't always have to be about me.

ETA: Blogger doesn't recognize the word blog-a-versary. Whatev.

Updates..

Sorry for leaving you all hanging.. but I've been in Michigan visiting with the family and the internet has not been working.

I'll admit.. it was kind of liberating to not be able to jump on the internet (or my phone-- cell service stinks in the middle of nowhere) whenever I wanted. It was freeing, almost.

On the flip side of that, I totally missed all of you! I'm STILL catching up on your lives and trying to comment. I missed hearing about your lives- it sounds crazy, I know- but I feel connected to so many of you. I found myself talking about some of you to family and friends and referring to you as "my friends". Even though we're bloggy friends, I really appreciate you!

In case you wondered what I've been up to.. go here. Yes, that's me in a bee suit. I'm the blonde on the left. I also spent 3 hours in a car with my parents. That's always an adventure. It's even more of an adventure when dad puts the gps on Spanish so I can "work on my Spanish while driving", mom gets confused with the time zones, and I'm generally a wreck when others are driving in busy traffic. Needless to say, there were plenty of laughs. And no panic attacks. Phew.

Yesterday, I spent time with my in real life best friends from high school/college. I love those girls. I wish they lived closer. There's just something about having girlfriends...

Prep 101

The ultimate in preppy? Golfing with your dad for father's day!

Weird...

I am at a shoe store and the people behind me are clucking like chickens at each other. They are like talking to each other, but clucking. Weird.

True Love

I know I married my soul mate. Allow me to explain...

My mother and I have this wonderful attitude about shopping- basically, if we can justify it.. we needed it. We also have a theory about parking spots- if you park close, you're meant to get a lot of things because you don't have to carry it as far. However, if you park far away, you're meant to get a lot of things because you had to park far away & it just isn't fair.

Hubby hasn't always agreed with this philosophy. However, he finally saw the light.

Yesterday, puppies stepped in poo and tracked it in the house and onto our sheets and bedspread. One might think, "Ugh. I'll just bleach it and all will be well." Well.. I had a hard time thinking that. I could only think about sleeping in poo stained sheets and I knew it wouldn't be good. So, I bit the bullet and went to Home Goods to grab some new sheets (to replace the others I would be throwing away, of course) and a new bedspread- both bright white so I can bleach them if the dogs get dirt or something spills. I was a little worried about what hubby would say.

Fear not! He totally agreed with me and even stated he would never sleep on sheets that had poo on them at one time.

I love that man. For more reasons than justifying a shopping spree, of course. But that was the icing on the cake. AND he let me change my flight to go home a day earlier. I think he likes me!

Annoyed, slightly.

As you may recall, our trash can recently went missing. We're not sure how.. but we have our guesses.

Anyway, as I was driving through the neighborhood.. I had to check out every one's garbage cans. The neighbor that drives me nuts (read: I want to run him over every time I see him or his kids...) has two trash bins that look like ours. I'm slightly suspicious.

On another note, the annoying neighbor added another notch to his annoying-ness belt.. his son and his friends skateboard in the freakin' road. And to make matters worse, they don't care to move out of any one's way. Let's see here, dude... little kid or car? Who is going to win that battle?

Seriously, who plays chicken with cars?

Ugh. The case of the missing trash can continues. Until I find it, I'm totally blaming the annoying neighbor because he has two trash cans just.like.mine.

While we're on the subject of neighbors, one of the neighbors recently was trying to get the gutter cleaners' attention. They were of Hispanic decent. He says to one of the guys very slowly, "Excuse.... me..... do...... you..... speak.... Ingles?" The gutter-dude's response? In very clear English, "Yes. Why?" I chuckled under my breath and walked away.

Nice.

Don't worry, S & C-- you're clearly not the suspects OR the gutter mishap.

Bathroom Tour

Here I am tearing up the horrible flooring. You can't see it very well, but the top layer was peel and stick tile. The bottom two layers were the same puke green vinyl and yellow color.

Now I'm posing with the toilet in the bathtub. It was the only way to make it all work!

Here's a picture I framed using scrapbook paper and a matting from Michael's hung with brown and teal ribbon.

Now we're on to the good stuff! I forgot to take a before picture, so you'll have to pretend the P monogram is not there! And.. I promise my hangings are not crooked.. it was a little difficult taking the pictures in the small bathroom!

Look how they turned out! I wanted something masculine for hubby and feminine for me. The L is the same font we used for our wedding favors!
*Again, not crooked.. just the way I had to take the pictures.

The towels are mis-matched right now because I'm doing a load of towels as we speak-- don't judge!

Big Dog was *helping* me take pictures. She LOVES the bathtub (sans water, of course) and was playing around while I was taking pictures.

All in all, I think the bathroom remodel turned out well. I'm very happy with the vinyl letters-- I think they add just a hint of sophistication, while creating a personalized bathroom. Plus, they were super-easy to hang!

New favorite

Just found my new favorite beer....
Leinenkugel summer shady. It's a beer with lemonade flavor. Might change from a glass of wine a night to a beer a night. I'm sure that's just as klassy.

Randomness...

We just got back from a mini-vacation and noticed our garbage can is gone. Neither of us remember bringing it from the curb this week and it's nowhere to be found. Who steals a garbage can? Weird.

My summer vacation has started and I'm secretly so excited to make my to-do lists and check items off. I cannot wait to make my daily lists. It makes me feel like I actually have accomplished something other than sitting on my butt all day. I LOVE checking items off.

First item on the list? The monograms! I will be taking pictures of the before/after of the bathroom and I'll post them tomorrow. Lack of work=lack of blogging topics, so I can't possibly waste the topic today!

Just picked the dogs up from the kennel and I can't help but wonder why they are so stinking thirsty. Do they not give them water at the kennel? BOTH dogs have gone and gotten like fifteen drinks in the last 5 minutes.

Giveaway!

Head on over to see what LuLu is giving away!

Vera Bradley? Note cards? Cupcake and kitchen goodies? This sounds like me!

Tell her I sent you! :)

Chiropractor

Thanks to Kristi, I headed to the chiropractor today for the headache problem.

Prior to my appointment, I spent a good four hours worrying about whether or not the doctor would paralyze me. Honestly. I had to google "paralyzed by chiropractor" to be certain.

After he adjusted my neck and back, I feel awesome. I feel like a million bucks now. And the best part? My homework is to relax my beck by laying down with a rolled up towel supporting my neck. I'm thinking it's a totally good excuse to be extremely lazy. "Sorry, hubby.. I can't do the dishes, the doctor said I had to relax!"

No more headache AND school is out.. what a wonderful day!

Headache Help...

Okay, Ladies..

I'm looking for some help here. I've been having some pretty bad migraines and headaches lately. What can I do (besides prescription-strength meds because clearly, I have no access to a doc at 7:00 pm) to make these go away? We're talking wake up with a headache, go to bed with a headache. Regular 'ol asprin just isn't doing the trick.

What do you all do to help these?

On an unrelated note, I think Big Dog has finally wised up to our tricks. First of all, we've always used baby gates to keep her on whatever floor we're on (she's a naughty, naughty devil...) and to keep her out of trouble. We've never had to lock the gates, just had to lean them up and she's left it alone. Well, enter the teen years.. and now she's realized she can knock them over.

As if that wasn't bad enough, she's also decided that NOTHING will get her inside. I used to ask her if she was hungry and she'd go flying in. Or I'd even pull out the, "Where's daddy?" and she'll go running. On occasion, I'd even get away with, "Who's here? What was that?" and in she goes. Now? Nothing. I have to literally chase her inside. We used to do treats and I'm thinking we're going to have to go back to that to train her again. Then, we'll wean off the treats.

We're a little buggy..

Little Dog just got backed into a corner by a moth that was flapping around. Big Dog took note of my attempt to record it (she's such a camera hog, that dog.. anytime I whip out the camera, she has to get all up in my grill!) and decided to see what all the fun was. For a moment, she had to sniff it out. You know, figure out what it was.

Then.. BAM! She ate it.

Little Dog began whining. Um.. hello? The darn moth just backed you in a corner and you were scared of it and your sister comes to your defense and you begin whining?

I don't know about that Little Dog sometimes.

Followers?

Alright ladies (and gentlemen? any of you men out there?)...

I'm planning a sweet giveaway, but I'll only do it if I get 50 followers. I have 39 right now.. so I only need 11 more. I know people are reading... but ya'll don't comment! I know I'm guilty of not commenting because I read at work, but I'm trying to be better about it AND school is almost out so I'll be reading at home with the ability to comment.

So.. the ball is in your court... you want a giveaway? Follow along! :)

Don't worry, I'm not above bribery.

Wine?

While watching Jillian and the boys on "The Bachelorette" consume some wine tonight, I've decided I should be drinking a bottle glass of wine. I'm thinking I'm going to become a glass of wine a night kind of gal.

I'm Horrible..

If there's a hell for doggie owners, I'm going there for sure. Let's examine the evidence..

Exhibit A: In the first 6 weeks of having Big Dog, we came home to find an empty bottle of Tylenol PM on the floor and destroyed. Crap! Call Animal Poison Control and they tell us to induce vomiting. As she begins throwing up, I realize the bottle she ate was the empty one, the full one was put away already. Oops. My bad.

Exhibit B: Within the first month of moving into our new house, Big Dog got into the closet that housed the medicine bin. She tasted like 5 different medicines and the whole time I was on the phone with Animal Poison Control, they couldn't understand how I didn't know what she ate. Um.. hello? She was left alone for 8 hours and could have eaten the whole thing for all I know. Crud. I'm horrible. Again, induce vomiting.

Exhibit C: She consumed cold medicine and Benadryl. I follow the standard operating procedure, call the vet, they tell me to call Animal Poison Control. There, they say.. you guessed it, induce vomiting.

It wouldn't be quite so bad, except when she threw up I found things in there I had no idea she had eaten. You know, things like grass, plastic, a sock. Yes, she threw up grass, plastic, a sock, and the pills. I'm a really spectacular dog owner.

Anyone want me to puppy sit?

Sunday, Funday?

In order to clean and update my living room, I had to bribe the dogs. They didn't seem to mind the bribery. In fact, I think they rather enjoyed it.

Isn't Big Dog simply adorable?
Look at that Little Dog and her cute face. Yes, the bone is bigger than she is.

Ashley, this photo is for you. You said you wanted to see my house. Here's part one. (Yes, I know there is junk in the baskets, but it's the only way hubby and I can co-exist) I'll continue with the rest of the house as soon as the summer begins and I can really clean/organize. AND, I'm waiting for my monogram decals I ordered off Etsy for the bathroom-- thanks for the idea! :)

Summer Swap!

Lulu over at Life with Lulu and Pete is hosting a monogram swap!

Head on over there and sign up! I'm getting all monogram crazy, so I'm pretty pumped for this swap!

Fashion Disaster...

While at the grocery store, I definitely observed two fanny packs. Fanny packs. One was almost acceptable, as the proud owner was over the age of 65 AND it was leather. The other one? It was neon green and neon pink on a 40 year old. Literally, it was like it came out of 1991. I could not believe it!

And.. other fashion mishaps I observed while in Hicktown, MI... a man on a mo-ped with no shirt and no shoes. Immediately following that, I witnessed another shirtless wonder sporting a rockin' mullet while riding his bike. We're talking curly top and long curly back. A true mullet. You know, business in the front, party in the back. Another image circa 1991.

Ugh.

A migraine while working with 6 six and seven year olds, one who is a screamer and one who can't keep his mouth shut, plus an IEP meeting makes for one pretty lousy day.

It was so bad I had to turn off one set of lights so I could avoid any unnecessary light. Of course, I really wish I could have turned off the mouths, instead.

On a better note, only four days left with kids and they are all half days.

A Really Happy Hour..

I went out to a happy hour with Ashley over at Ashley's Antics. We had a TOTAL blast. But a word of caution, ladies: if you ever head out with her, be prepared to make bad choices. We're talking two glasses of wine and having to spend an hour and a half in Marshall's in order to let the little buzz wear off.

Oh, and.. shopping in Marshall's after you've had two glasses of wine.. let's just say your judgement is a little off and any filter you had to keep you from making fun of an outfit? It's gone out the window.

Also, Ashley has a difficult time reading. She can't tell the men's room from the ladies' room. As in, she walked IN to the guys' bathroom only to find a man talking on the phone on the pot. She immediately walked out. We laughed a long time about that one.

And... she'll put a big, fat, mu mu in your clothes to try on and then giggle endlessly while you're trying clothes on. Then plead ignorance when you call her out on it.

As we were leaving, we vowed never to let 7 months pass without seeing each other. I seriously love this girl AND she now lives like 15 minutes closer and only 5 away from my school--- yay!

Wednesday Awesomeness..

It's Wednesday, which means Friday is almost here. It also means, only one more week of school with the kids. I still have to come in on Thursday and Friday, but sans kids.

 

Also, grabbing drinks tonight with a friend- is there anything better? You might know her, Ashley... from Ashley's Antics. Yeah, she's pretty awesome and I get to spend the evening with her. Plus, we're getting drinks- hello! Super!

 

One more awesome Wednesday thing-- my kids have specials this afternoon, so that means I get one full hour without them!

Dancin' Shoes..

Today I had a little one with a bad case of the wiggles. We had to shake our wiggles out like five times (a shaking song for the little ones. they love it and honestly think it gets their wiggles out.) and even then, I was not sure he shook nearly enough. I was about ready to shake him or something when all of a sudden he stops dead in his tracks...

Kid: (pushes down on his shoe and begins dancing) Mrs. L! I have on my dancin' shoes!
Me: Your dancing shoes?
Kid: Yeah, these are my dancin' shoes.. look at me break it down!
Me: Wow, those are some pretty sweet moves.
Kid: Yeah, I love my dancin' shoes. (then proceeds to turn them "off" by pushing down his shoe) I wish I could turn them on all the time. Do you want me to push the button to make them my singing shoes?
Substitute: What about the quiet button? Can you push that one?

Well said, sub.. well said.

Don't think I didn't already ask him politely to never wear his dancing shoes again.

And.. in case I didn't have enough dance moves today, one of the older kids on the playground asks me if I know how to do the stanky leg (mom, it's a dance move). I politely tell him no and then ask him to show it to me. That turned into watching 7 kids do the stanky leg. The same sub walks up and says, "Ask Mrs. L to do it for you"

Dude.. you're 1-1 now. We'll see if I ever call you to sub again. And if you're wondering, I did do the stanky leg and it's a ridiculous dance that requires NO talent if this white girl can do it.

Another Blonde Moment..

A little bit of a cooking oops...

See this? It's the spaghetti squash. Apparently you're supposed to poke it more than three times when you cook it in the microwave or it will literally explode in your microwave.

A close up of the explosion....

The white "tumors" coming out of it? Just the pressure and the steam coming out of the poked holes.

The microwave after the explosion.

Oops. My bad.

But.. it was really good. And totally good for you! That's a double bonus!!

Menu Monday

I decided I'd hop on board with the ladies posting Menu Monday! Mine will be a tad different, as I'm vegetarian, but I'm hoping some of you will enjoy the menu! I think even those of you who eat meat will like some of the dishes, as my hubby (who is a meat-eater) enjoys them just the same!

Mom-- I don't think you'll find anything you'd like. Sorry!

Monday: Spaghetti Squash Spaghetti and salad with balsamic vinaigrette dressing

Tuesday: Me- baked potato, Hubby- on the run

Wednesday: Fettuccine with Fresh Vegetables and salad with balsamic vinaigrette dressing

Thursday: baked potatoes with all the fixin's, salad

Friday: Italian Zuchinni Bake with salad

Saturday: Out to eat

Sunday: Foil dinner (potatoes, carrots, onions, peppers, and any other veggies that need to be eaten up!) on the grill with asparagus