Are you sitting down?

I suggest you consider taking a seat, the update for today is way exciting. NOT!

I took the boys to school then headed to church to start my week off with 8:30 AM mass. That went just like it should have and after dropping off a check in the office I headed home. I decided that the task that I would tackle today would be checking our DVD collection for damaged DVD's. I did a visual inspection of the disks themselves then randomly chose to watch a few here and there if the disks looked iffy. Well, I have no idea how many discs I checked. I could count, but I only came up with 2 that are damaged and 6 that are missing. The missing ones may have been in such bad shape that they were tossed by the restoration people or lost in the process. No matter, I will add them to the list and we'll pick out a replacement or two or 8.

I need to go through the same process with the VHS tapes but we don't have a VCR that functions so I may only get to the do the visual inspection on those. The packaging was soaked so I am not sure how the tapes fared. They looked OK, the few I checked out yesterday, but who knows. I guess I should borrow a VCR and try them out.

After the first couple of rounds of DVD's I needed to get out and about. I fed myself leftover pizza for lunch then went to Sam's Club. Did you notice that smart move I made, eating then shopping? I still spent $150 but it was all stuff we needed or will need and I am sure I got out with far less than if I had taken the boys. After the shopping I came home and straightened my pantry that was a real mess. Now it is in pretty good shape and I need to label the shelves so people know what goes where. Not that they ever put things away, they tend to get stuff out and I replace it. GO figure. Maybe if I put in some labels they will feel empowered... maybe not.

I finished up the pantry and headed up to the crispy house to check mail and get the boys. No mail before school so we drove by again after school and found a nice big pile waiting. A check from the insurance company and only two bills.

We headed home, some of us in tears from a rough Monday at school, and had snacks and took some deep breaths before we dug into homework and the pile-o-mail. My personal treat was getting the SWAP album from my scrapbook group in Iowa. We had swaps throughout the year where we did multiple pages and swapped among members. We always made an extra for an album that would be raffled off in the end. I lost most of my swap pages in the fire so in another twist of fate and perhaps by the hand of God I WON THE ALBUM! Lori sent it to and I can not wait to throw pictures on the pages and call it done! What a great treat in so many ways.

OK, I finished another BIG pile of DVD's and it is now time to make dinner. I think we'll either have pizza leftovers or meatballs. I need to clean out the fridge a bit before trash day tomorrow. Oh the exciting life that I lead. Are you jealous?

Saturday already?

Yesterday was a bit of a blur. Nic had a friend over after school and Will went to a friend's house. I went to get the dog cleaned up for a VERY reasonable price at PetsMart and then went to a fun Pampered Chef party smack in the middle of the day. After the party I went to look at some of our repaired furniture then ran to get the dog and get the boys. I made it with time to spare, even it was only 5 minutes.

The good news for Friday was the Nic got accepted into the Quest program at school. This is the Frisco gifted and talented program. He was pretty excited. Will has opted to not pursue the program this year, just too much pressure for now, and may reconsider in the spring. Fine by me, he'll do it if and when he is ready. He is not the most confident student and may just need some encouragement to show off those brainiac genes! We'll get there, or not.

Today we got kicked out for a showing of the house right in the middle of the day. What a pain! Fred was going to mow but we had to leave so now I will probably have to mow tomorrow. UGH! Nic is at a friend's spending the night tonight. He had a tough evening, got injured and homesick in one fail swoop. I ran up to see him, give him some encouragement then left him to the party. He and his buddy will have a blast, they'll probably be hard to wake up in the morning for church but that's all part of the fun right! Will is reasonably bummed that he is stuck here at home with us but I did make his favorite dinner of walking tacos so that hopefully helped a bit.

Not really anything else too cool going on. Fred got home before bedtime last night and leaves again tomorrow in the evening. We have a mellow week ahead I think. I start my MOMS group at church on Thursday morning so I am looking forward to that. I need to go to the restoration place to check on some furniture and that is a 2 hour round trip. I should see if there are any scrapbooks stores over there in Arlington. Make good use of my time you know. I need to spend some time on the blue van this week getting it cleaned up. That may be a whole day? Won't really know till I start digging in. I need to vacuum first and see what is revealed once I get all the crumbs up. Aren't you jealous? Stay tuned!

Winner winner chicken dinner

Yes, I know I stole that line but it is a good one. I'm just borrowing it.

Despite my misfortune this past summer I have also been a BIG Winner this summer. I was the recipient of a HUGE box of Artsy.licious goodies from Melody Ross. Shortly after that goodness arrived I also won a totally cute mini-album from Teresa Collins and a fun Mini-Album magazine from Aby Garvey. Last week I won again on Teresa's blog and today I hit the JACKPOT!

I am going to be hosting a House Party. This is an event sponsored by House Party, and ultimately Cartoon Network, as they debut their new cartoon, are you ready for this?, Star Wars the Clone Wars! My kids have not a clue that I even registered for this gig and will be stoked when I tell them the news. Basically we get to invite as many friends as we want to preview the new cartoon a full week before you can see it on TV. I get a goodie box with favors and such and the reputation of being the coolest mom on the block! Good times, good times.

I think maybe I should start playing the lottery. Well, nah, I have nothing invested in these past wins, just a comment or two on a blog and such. The lottery requires cash so I guess I'll pass on that and keep surfin!

Maybe Will's reaction will be something like this. That kid is crazy when he gets his hands on my camera! Hope you are enjoying your day! I actually slept with a window open last night and have had a window open most of the day today. It is a beautiful day in Texas!

Hey jen...

I am NOT going to Ikea to take advantage of this special offer. Just wanted you to know. #1 I don't need a sofa and #2 Who wants a second cover in WHITE even if it is free? I suppose they have taken to giving them away since no one would buy white on purpose right?

Boys are in bed, I am watching jon and kate + 8 and loving life!

I got specs!

Remember that I went to Target and had an eye exam last week. Well, I placed the order for my glasses at about 1:30 PM and got a call late yesterday that my glasses were ready. I ran some errands this morning after I took the boys to school and ended up at Target before I was ready to head home. I think this is going to take a lot of getting used to. I have never been one to wear even sunglasses because my whole head is crooked and misaligned so glasses never set right on me. Well, same deal today, I am still out of whack, so I guess I just need to live and learn to love.

Enjoy this silly photo. I laughed out loud really loud and am still grinning about it! Amazing what you can manipulate on a web cam! Happy humpday!

Seriously?

So my mutt needs a bath and a nail trim BAD! I can take care of the bath part myself but would prefer to let someone else. We don't have a shower with a hose so it is a pain in the tookus to wash the guy. So, I stopped in at a local "puppy spa" to inquire about their prices and services. Are you sitting down?

The cheap deal was $55 and the higher end was $70! Now, I have been out of the dog grooming circuit for awhile, between amazing mom and generous Auntie I have gotten off pretty cheap but MY HEAVENS! I don't even spend $70 on my own beauty routine no way I am spending that on my mutters. Yes Joan, today he is my mutters. I went to PetsMart, bought a new set of clippers and a pair of trimming scissors and will do my best. I figure if I make a routine of it he won't get too shaggy between and I just need to figure out what to do about the shower. Wish me luck.

The boys had a decent day at school. Nic took some liberties at lunch that will cost me in the end but I think we just need to talk about limits and being reasonable. And if that doesn't work then I will put a cap on his daily spending. It can be done and it will if he doesn't get it taken care of on his own. The Willman forgot a worksheet at school but will have time in the AM to get it done. He was bummed at himself but we all forget stuff sometimes. Like me, I forgot I was supposed to call and get insurance on the new van. Better hop off the computer and get that call made!

A non-laborious Labor Day!

We slept a little too late and had to scramble to get to the Honda dealership in good time. We made it eventually and got right to work finalizing the lease deal. The dealership had a little theater room but the only movie they had was Antz and the had computers for surfing but couldn't support any of the kids' websites. UGH! They suffered through with Sunkist and popcorn for the hour and a half that it took us to complete the transaction. I drove off the lot in the new van with my faithful passengers and Fred followed in the Truck.

I need to call about insurance and such tomorrow, fun stuff and I need to start cleaning up the old van but I have time, not like we are turning it in next week. I at least want to get the tank of gas pretty used up.

After we got the van we celebrated with lunch at Applebees. Three of us ate out fill, Will ate too much popcorn to be hungry, and we parted ways. I ran to Target and everyone else came home. Not sure what else we did today. I know I took a nap and we worked on insurance receipts before Fred took off for Mexico. We are slowly but surely getting through the depreciation difference and should have a batch to turn in soon. No really big ticket items on the list, just a BUNCH of little things. I think it's nearly $3000 in differentials though, it all adds up.

Fred took off around 5:30 and I worked on the spreadsheet for another hour before it was time to hit the pool. We had been planning all weekend and this was the available time. The boys had fun, I chatted with Denise and tried to read but I think skipping dinner meant I was getting a bit of a migraine. I have since eaten, the boys have showered and will be hitting the hay very soon.

I'll leave you with a few shots of the crispy house. Sorry mom, the name fits for now. It will be HOME when I get to sleep there!

A view of the front garage peak. This is where the damage was the worst in terms of holes through the roof.

This is to the left of the first shot. The black papered roof has been replaced and the shingles part will be replaced once masonry is repaired.