Did anyone else watch this??

"My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding" was on TLC. It was all about the secret life of gypsies in the UK, and I was disturbed.

Disturbed that girls were engaged as young as 14 and married off at 16.

Disturbed that boys who are interested in dating girls do what they called "grabs". This is when a boy will grab a girl and pull her away from the crowd of friends, and ask for a kiss. If she refuses, he'll twist her arm until she gives in. One 15 year old girl was quoted as saying, "But if they hurt you like that, it means they really like you."

Disturbed that girls are taught that they're "bred to be homemakers". That men are more important than they are because they make money. Most girls drop out of school by age 12 to help with the younger kids at home.

Girls have to ask permission to leave the house and must be escorted at all times. Boys can come and go as they please.

But mostly I was disturbed to see young girls dressed like this...





And you should have seen the way they danced.

It was a shocking show.

I was also disturbed last night when we were watching "The Labyrinth", a movie I hadn't seen since 5th grade, and I went to bed with this image in my head...



David Bowie. In a unitard. YIKES!! :)

This isn't fun or necessarily blog-worthy...

...but in an effort to document for my own records...

Wednesday night Jason and I were sitting in our den talking.

I was across the room from him, facing him, when he said, "Well, I don't know what you want me to say, Julie..."

Then his head hit the back of the chair, rolled over to his left shoulder, and slumped to his chest.

I thought he was being dramatic. (I should've known a flair for the dramatics would be more MY style than his.)

When he picked his head up off his chest, probably 2 seconds later, he was shaking and drooling.

I started doing my nervous laugh. Confused, I said, "Jason, what was that??" That's when I noticed he had tears in his eyes. And he said, "I'm scared, but I think I have control now."

THANK GOODNESS he wasn't standing or driving. The whole episode (whatever the heck that was) lasted under 5 seconds. I asked him what it felt like, and he said, "Well, have you ever been shocked by an electric fence?" What??
Um... No.

But apparently he has and that's what he said it was like. He saw a bright light and felt a tingling in his head. I thought that maybe he was stressed from work and other things. I told myself maybe it was just a stress reaction in the moment.

BUT some people have suggested that Jason needs to call his doctor and have it documented (at the very least) that this happened. He called on Friday, but the office was closed for their lunch break. Aaaannnd he never called again.

We tend to either not react or under-react at times about our own health. I'm sure we're not the only ones who will call a doctor if the kids are sick but blow it off if something's not right with us.

Hopefully he'll get in this week. But blogging about it helps me remember what happened, in case details are blurry by the time he finally sees someone.

The whole thing was just really weird.

Playing around

It's funny that, even with a pool, sometimes it's more fun (and so much easier for Mommy) when we pull out the hopscotch mat that sprays water.






And the sandbox is good too.



Then last night, Jack and Sarah wanted to play Wii. And Jack insisted on changing his Mii. So now this is what Jack looks like...



He was cracking up, but I swear, I've seen this guy before. And I think the mole was a nice touch.

Dinner tonight was...

burgers, tomatoes from the farmer's market, okra from the farmer's market that I fried up and added so much salt that it was impossible to not LOVE, and peaches from-- you guessed it-- the farmer's market.

(Also, we had Sunchips from Kroger.)

Mmmmm... Dee-licious!!!

Some people think boats and lakes when they think of a holiday weekend. I think fresh fruits and veggies are IN SEASON!!

They did NOT disappoint. :)

My guide to doing (or not doing, I guess) household chores that I think my husband should do...(part 1)

I haven't used the below mentioned "tip" (if you will) in a while, but it works... I may have to add to this post at a later date. As women, I think we have lots of ways to persuade our husbands to do the things we want, right? ;)

One of the tricks that I think is good ("good" meaning "an idea beneficial to me" not necessarily meaning "a healthy way to interact in a marriage") is a way that I've found to get Jason to practically beg to do his honey-do list.

And the secret is: attempt home renovations on your own.

From trying to tackle a plumbing issue to things as simple as hanging a picture on a wall, if it's something you don't want to do (or don't feel you should have to do) then call your hubbie at work and innocently ask for something ominous-sounding.

For example:

Say the project is changing out an ugly, dated faucet to a more modern, appealing one. You've asked your significant other time and time again to do it, but he's always too busy or too tired.

You wanna get that chore bumped to the top of the "must do" list? Then a phone conversation like the following might be in order...

Wife: Hey, babe, where's that thingy you use to shut off the water at the street? Ya know what I mean? That tool that shuts off the water so you can't accidentally flood anything???

Husband: Why?

Wife: Oh, I'm trying to be helpful and gonna tackle changing out that faucet.

Husband: Um, why don't you leave that to me? I'll do it this weekend.

Wife: Well, I know you say you'll do it this weekend, but you've been saying that for several months. And I know you're just really really busy on the weekends and tired after work. So I'm gonna give it a shot. The best way to learn is to try, right?

Husband: Honey, just leave it. I'll do it.

Wife: I'm just about to start. I know this is something that's only important to me. And it really shouldn't have to be your problem. I'm sure can do it. I just need the water-shut-off thingy.

Husband: It is important to me. I swear. I'll do it tonight!! Just leave it!

Wife: [not sounding sarcastic] Are you sure? I don't want to bother you. I know you're busy.

Husband: It's not a problem. Really. I'll do it after the kids go to bed.

Wife: Ok. If you're sure...

:)

And that, ladies, is how it's done. :)

Picture hanging... The lead-in question can be something like...
"How important is it to find a stud before nailing into the wall?"

or

"How hard is it to spackle over a hole in the wall if you hang a picture in the wrong place?"

I have this theory that...

female members of the "Fresh Beat Band" are forced to tape their boobs down.

I had this same theory about "Hi-5". Did anyone else's kids get into "Hi-5"? It was on Discovery Kids before DK became the Hub.

I loved it. It was cheesy but the cast was talented.

But with all the singing and dancing there was ZERO-- and I mean ZERO-- shaking... if you know what I mean. ;) (Not that I look for shaking. I'm not weird like that. BUT I do notice lack of shaking. Maybe because I can relate. Hmmm.)

Marena (don't know her real name, sorry) is endowed about like me so no taping is required. But I'm pretty sure KeKe is locked and loaded.

Those are my thoughts on that subject.

The best part of baking...

is licking the bowl..




And yes, I make them eat on the floor if it's gonna be messy. And I SWEAR most of the time, Sarah's hair is fixed... Just not in any pictures for some reason. :\

It's no secret that...

God used my babies as a way to teach me patience and humble this teacher who (like an idiot) thought "I have a degree in early childhood education. Kids are what I do. How hard can a baby be?"

Now we're getting to the good stuff more often with Caroline.

And part of what I consider "good stuff" is hanging out in a shirt, diaper, and tennis shoes.

How come when I go out dressed like this people stare??




Love those squishy thighs and that smile!!

And LOVE that these girls love each other so much. Sarah came home from school and put on her snow boots for some reason. So Caroline was right there with her, wearing Sarah's rain boots





Caroline loves when Sissy comes home.

BTW... C calls Sarah "Sissy" and it's the first time any of the kids have ever had a nickname. It's not something we've ever called Sarah, but it's sticking. I think it's pretty sweet. :)

Water Day? We don't need no stinkin' water day...

Yesterday was Jack's Water Day at school and he could not participate because of the surgery recovery situation.

But we took his friend to school and picked his friend up from school so he saw all the fun things and festivities all set up. TERRIBLE.

So I tried to make yesterday super fun WITHOUT water day.

So where did we go?

Chuck E Cheese's of course!!!

Caroline had fun...



In case you can't tell, we had the place to ourselves. Literally the ONLY ones there...



And Jack was willing to stop playing for a second to take a pic...



He shot spiders. I thought of you, Michele...



They drove cars...



And rode the virtual roller coaster...



I played air hockey with Jack (which was tough to take a picture of)...



And, while I wanted him to score and have fun, I couldn't let him win... Bad mom, I know


And they were willing to kinda smile while looking over and around me to watch the mechanical Chuck E sing...



But then the "real" Chuck E came out TWICE and gave us free tickets if we would dance with him. Which of course, we did!! And we ended up with 300 tickets, which is good considering Jack's not that great at any of the games and Caroline can't play any of the games. Jack got prizes for himself, Sarah, and Caroline.

Then we headed to play at the library for an hour and a half.

I met another mom there with a son Jack's age, a daughter Caroline's age, and she was pregnant with her third. I had a great time talking to her.

Then we headed to Baskin Robbins for ice cream. I had a coupon for buy one, get one free. I let Jack pick out both flavors so he had 2 scoops of ice cream that he shared with Caroline.

We left our house at 8:45 am and didn't return til 2:30 pm yesterday. I was TIRED!! But more than once, Jack said he had a great day! :)

And that was the point.

Sometimes...

I miss teaching.

But then, on days like today, I take Jack and Caroline to school to eat lunch with Sarah, and I'm reminded that lunch duty in May SUCKS.

A walk on the wild side....

Jason said a mockingbird defacated (to be polite and sound smart-ish) on our bags in the alley.




But I don't know what kind of mockingbird leaves something like this....




What is flying overhead???? Gross.

But on a tangent... Look at all that hard work that SOMEBODY *ahem, ahem* has been doing in the flower beds. LOTS of bags filled...




And then...

These, my friends, are not human hands in my garage...





I walked around the corner of our patio and saw something that I thought--at first--was a cat. Oh no. Raccoon. DISGUSTING!! Not possum/armadillo disgusting. But still. It was FAT and BIG. And it ran away when it saw me and climbed our fence with a THUMP THUMP BOOM BOOM. That's how big it was. And then it went into our neighbor's yard.

I, of course, called Jason and left him a vmail telling him that I saw a raccoon and was pretty sure it was rabid, since it was out during the day and (for some reason) I had it in my head that they're nocturnal.

I tend to be dramatic, remember??

He went to Academy and armed himself with the correct ammo to kill it. :)

Are you supposed to kill things within city limits? No. But cut him some slack. We can't afford a lease to hunt on. Squirrels and raccoons will have to do for now.

But these experiences have taught me that I AM NOT a country girl. And I make NO apologies for it. Doesn't mean I'm prissy. I just don't like wildlife THAT close to me.

Isn't it ironic...

Don’t ya think?

So after my hissie fit over cast covers, it looks like Jack won’t be needing one after all. His cast was cut off a week early!!

Unfortunately it was cut off because we were concerned. Well, I wasn’t really concerned. I was grossed out by the smell of that cast. Anytime I helped Jack put on shorts and was anywhere near his foot, I had to hold my breath. It smelled TERRIBLE.

Even Jack would heave a little when he got a big whiff of the cast. It got worse day by day.

We first noticed it when we noticed that he had a spot on the heel of his cast that was rubbing off on his cast shoe. We thought he had stepped in poop. Seriously. It was on the heel. It made sense he had stepped in something. It made no sense really that it would have been poop (We have no animals and our kids don’t poop on the floor. Neither do we by the way.) but that’s what it smelled like.

When he had this procedure done as an infant,




he had bled through his cast but they didn’t do stitches on him then. THIS time they had done stitches and they had stitched him on his Achilles tendon… behind his ankle. So the thought that the spot on his heel was blood just didn’t make sense to us.

So we let it go.

Every day for 2 weeks the smell became more and more unbearable. We changed the bandage around his cast. We scrubbed his cast as best as we could without getting it wet.

Then Jason just couldn't let it go any longer. He said, "Something's wrong. I've had a cast before. This is not normal. This smells like a rotting carcass."

Never thought it could be beneficial to be married to someone who knows what rotting flesh smells like. But lookie there.. it is! :)

I was annoyed. Not gonna lie. We were going to get the cast off in a week; why is Jason being so dramatic? Ironic that I think Jason’s dramatic considering how dramatic I usually am… I know, I know. Hush. ;)

He called Scottish Rite and got Jack an appointment that same day at 1:30, which is a miracle to get in that quickly. They cut off his cast and found that he had opened his incision site and rubbed it raw. The surrounding skin was red and inflamed. The incision itself had been bleeding and was now pus-filled. And the skin was beginning to rot.

Bless his heart. He never complained… other than the occasional “Mom, my ankle hurts back here.” And I guess that should've tipped me off, but the next minute he'd be jumping off the couch. How was I to know??

So now the cast is off and we are in charge of changing the bandages twice a day and keeping him in a walking boot. The bad deal of this whole thing is that he rubbed the incision site open RIGHT ON his heel cord. And since the success of the entire surgery hinges on how his heel cord heals, this could prove to be a big problem. It could affect the success of his operation. Dr. Johnston just isn’t sure yet.

We go for a follow up on Monday.

Given the way this has turned out… I wish I had a need for a cast cover. I’d even be willing to put a trash bag on it and “get creative” ;) if it meant that he was healing the way he was supposed to.

I bought this magazine

Because I want to look HOT FROM BEHIND. You do too. Don't lie.

No, really I bought it because...

I love Julianne Hough. She's so cute, isn't she? I don't know what she's doing with Ryan Seacrest, but that's her problem not mine. ;)

But this is the part of the cover that I laughed at.




"Shares her secrets to being THIS fit, happy and glowing"???

Uh... This article better be all about how she's 22 and has never had a kid and not about some BS diet and exercise plan she's on.

Julianne, I love you, but if you think you've got some secret to share with me, let me share a little secret with you....

I've cracked the code on how you look the way you do: Early 20s and childless.
(But you looked great in the magazine... xoxo)

A big thank you to my friends...

who read my crazy, off the wall post about needing a cover for Jack's cast and offered real solutions.

LOVE Y'ALL!!!

Love that I can lose it over something stupid. And that y'all come to the rescue with ideas of things that could make it better!

I'm still embarrassed that I FLIPPED OUT over a cast cover, but y'all didn't judge and helped instead!!

Gracias, mi amigas.

BTW, been on a Spanish kick lately. I blame the yardwork. ;) JOKE. NO ONE TAKE OFFENSE.

I know that my posts about flower beds are getting old...

and they make me sound old. Like after I do some gardening, I'm gonna go play bridge and see why Medicare isn't covering my prescriptions.

BUT... I'm a woman on a mission.

And today I moved to the front beds. DISASTER!! They look terrible and I've always known it. It was emphasized, however, when Ben (my 10 yr old across-the-street neighbor) came over yesterday just to talk. And while we were talking even HE was picking weeds out of the beds. EMBARRASSING!!

I filled 4 of those big Home Depot bags with weeds and leaves from those beds.

My back is killing me!! That's a lot of bending over and standing up.

And here's what I've learned:

1. You don't want to fill those Home Depot bags too full.

2. They are a PAIN to move from the front yard to the back once they are too full

3. When you have to move them anyway, it's easier to move them on the grass than the sidewalk.

4. Even though yard crews will be packing up all around the neighborhood and driving past, watching you struggle with the full bags, they will not stop and help.

I think chivalry is dead.

And then--after having Caroline out there with me for 2 hours-- when I finally leave her inside for just half an hour and instruct Jack to come get me if she starts to cry, it turns out that he will NOT do that because his computer games are more important.

So he got in big trouble when I walked in and she was hysterical and all he had done was turn up the speakers so he could hear his game over the screaming.

I raked up mulch and leaves.

I pulled weeds.

I trimmed bushes.

I cut the little off shoots that spring up on the trees in the beds.

Now FINALLY our front beds are ready for new bushes (since 4 are dead and 11 are dying) and new top soil this weekend.

We are bypassing mulch because it is the devil i think. It gets everywhere and washes away when we have heavy rain and I hate it. (And I'm sorta depressed and feel like a loser for even having an opinion about mulch.)

But now half of my day is gone and I've done nothing inside. OOPS! So I'm taking Advil (b/c seriously I'm hurting), drinking some water, and then will pull out the ol' vacuum.

JOY!

BUT it's Friday!!! :)

Well...

I just reread my last post... Whoa. That was a rant. So sorry! Maybe the weather is getting to me. Or maybe I'm tired.

Or maybe sometimes I just get PO'd and it only takes something little to set me off.

Yep, that's probably it. ;)

Really fast... Wanted to say...

That ever since I've assumed responsibility for and planted flowers in our flower beds, I stress out every time the wind blows and petals fall off. I think that I didn't plant them deep enough, and they're already dying. HAHA I need to caaaalm down.

"Frankie says RELAX"

("Friends" reference. Anyone? Anyone?)

Pride.. and not the good kind

I called Jack's pediatrician JUST TO SEE if they MIGHT have something that is designed to go over his cast to keep it waterproof. I know such things exist, and I know that they're medical supply type things. SO JUST THOUGHT I'D ASK.

I'm ALSO AWARE that I can put a trash bag on his cast. I ALSO KNOW that the pediatrician is not in orthopedics. I JUST THOUGHT I'D ASK!

And the answer I got is the kind of answer that pisses me off. (Can I use that word? Does that offend anyone?)

It's the kind of answer that starts with some receptionist/phone answerer laughing at me like I'm a first time Mom (No offense to first time Moms!! But you can appreciate how first time Moms are treated. Like we're morons or something. And my point is I'm not new to the game, so don't treat me like that.) and says, "Just put a trash bag over it and tape it shut. As a parent, sometimes you have to get creative."

SENT ME OVER THE EDGE!

Don't give me parenting tips. (Even though I need them.) This is my first time WITH A CAST but don't laugh at me because I thought that MAYBE JUST MAYBE a doctor's office might have the cover that I'm talking about. I was just curious.

But listen, lady, I've been doing this STAY AT HOME MOM THING, NOTHING ELSE GOING ON BUT HAVING BABIES AND RAISING BABIES for SIX YEARS. I know that to survive you have to "get creative". So shut your pie hole. :)

But.. I don't mind asking all kinds of questions and looking stupid when it comes to Sarah. She IS my first. And I AM STILL a first time mom when it comes to ALL things that deal with Sarah. My first Kindergartener. My first time figuring out bus routes and recitals and everything. Just don't treat me like that when it comes to my other kids.

Ugh. That drives me nuts!!!

And--just so you know how prideful I can get--when I'm out with only Caroline, sometimes there's something in me that wants to tell people that she's not my only one. Especially when she's throwing a fit and they look at me like, "Twos are hard." or "Get that kid under control." Something in me wants to scream "I've done the terrible twos twice before. And I have control of my kids. You should see my other ones. Caroline's just having a moment right now. So don't look at me like that."

I don't know why I get so riled up. I think I feel disrespected. (Which I know means I'm entirely too sensitive!) And I feel like I've served enough time that I deserve some respect. And not some flippant parenting advice and laughter as though I'm the dumbest person on the planet for calling and asking a question.


THANK YOU for letting me vent. :) HAHA
Feeling better now...

Thanks to the mom...

who actually WENT to Field Day and sent me these pics. As she said, they're not the greatest quality because she took snapshots from video.

But as I said to her, "Hey! You're so nice to send them to me. And THANKS for documenting the day. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have seen any of it."

AND THEY'RE A HECKUVA LOT BETTER THAN PICS I TAKE.

So today

I was inserviced on how to vacuum the pool. Our automatic one is broken and we save the money on a new one if I will just suck it up (no pun intended) and add this to the ever-growing list of things I do around here. ;)

Being the maid, the gardener, and now the pool guy... I can see where we're saving a lot of money, but we're also missing out on our hook-ups for homemeade tamales.

Just sayin'.

Flower bed work

I've been working on the flower bed behind the pool off and on for the last 2 weeks. It is a disaster and I have to look at it all the time so I'm doing something about it!! (or trying to.)

As 1950s as being the little woman at home taking care of the kids can seem, I think staying at home has made me much more independent and resourceful than I used to be. I can't stand that things are getting done around here, and I know I spend more time here than Jason... so I'm trying to figure stuff out.

Flower beds are one of those things.

Growing up.. Dad always did ALL of the outside work. So even gardening seems like a man's job to me or a really old lady's hobby. This idea that I'M doing the work is taking some getting used to... but in some ways I like it.

Anyway, we're removing every pointy plant and every rose bush. They're pretty but they hurt. And the tiny rose petals always blow into the pool. Hassle. So essentially we have removed everything that's pretty other than the palm tree. That has left a weed-infested mess.

Now I have no idea what I'm doing but I found some plants on sale at Walmart yesterday and planted them. Did I plant them deep enough? Are they gonna survive? Who the heck knows. We'll see.

And then we had a big ugly space from all the pointy plants being dug up so I moved a bunch of pavers/stepping stone type things from one side of the house to the back beds.

Have you lifted one of those things recently? Holy doo-doo those things are HEAVY. And then we have the baby gate up around the pool so there's only one entrance and exit to the back beds, and it's not super convenient.

And it was 90 degrees yesterday. And Caroline never napped. So I was doing a lot at once.

I'd take a pic but it's not done and I don't want you to judge it yet. Work in progress kinda thing, ya know.

But here's the conclusion I have come to... While I'm glad I don't need Jason to do work for me, I've decided that if I were meant to do manual labor, I'd have either been made taller or stronger. Just like Elizabeth jokes, "I'm too cute to do math." Well I'm too little and weak for back-breaking work.

I'm hurting in places I didn't know could hurt. But the beds are gettin' there.

My Mother's Day...

This is my day that I get about 80% of it OFF. YIPPEE!! I'm gonna head to the mall and look at a possible iPhone upgrade. EEEE!! :) And I'm gonna go to the gym and stay as long as I want without feeling guilty that I should be doing something else.

I made cinnamon rolls this morning for everybody, and I made lunch. And I'll most likely make dinner too. But that's the extent of my "mothering" duties today. So HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!



My presents from Sarah...
When I uploaded these they were turned correctly. When I put them on the blog, some of them turned wrong. ?? I don't understand, and I don't feel like fixing it. So please pretend that each of these pics is turned correctly.

This book made my day. So sweet when things are in their own handwriting and with their own drawings. I'm a sucker for stuff like that. Add a photo and I'm sure to cry. Guaranteed.









And then she gave me this plant. Truth be told, I'm pretty sure I picked things that looked just like this out of the flower beds this week when I weeded. But it's sweet...




And Jack... Well, Jack looked at me and said, "I thought and thought about what to get you and decided that the best thing I could give you is me."

:)

I said, "I'll take that any day!"

Somehow, though, I bet he'll try that on a girlfriend one day, after he's forgotten a birthday or just doesn't want to spend money, and it won't be quite as cute.

First ever field day!!

Ah, the month of May!! TAKS is over. Teachers are an auto-pilot. Kids are disruptive. Everyone would rather be outside.

So HALLELUJAH-- Field Day is here!!! :)

I think Sarah's shirt says it all...




Field Day IS good! ;)

(And that shirt is as small as they come. Should've belted it and she could have worn it as a dress. haha)

Jack's End of Year Program

Yesterday was the Mother's Day/ End of Year program for Jack's preschool.




This is my 3rd time to attend. I'm really fighting that middle child syndrome.. where a parent can get bored doing things with the middle child. AS A MIDDLE CHILD MYSELF, I know how important it is for parents to be excited for the 2nd child even if he or she is not the baby. But, man--oh man, did yesterday's performance DRAAAAAGGGGG.

And that has nothing to do with sweet Jack. It's too much crammed into one day. They should've cut out a few songs.




And, I'm not complaining because this is the way it should be, BUT every performace is about the 4 year olds. They get the speaking parts. They get the solos. It's always all about them because it's (in theory) their last year of preschool. So these forever long shows are a little more tolerable as the parent of a 4 yr old. Next year will be better, I guess.

Plus next year Caroline might be in Mom's Day Out and won't have to sit through it again. Keeping her entertained was challenging.




After songs and scripture memory and a 25 minute long video and a devotional that was supposed to inspire and a door prize drawing, my rear end was numb. And we still hadn't been treated to our special Mother's Day luncheon yet.

And the luncheon is always nice. It's 3 salads from Cafe Max. The same thing every year. It's tasty but you don't ever sit with your child. Jack sat on the floor with his friends while I sat in his seat, talking to other moms.

It's not quite the sweet, let-me-honor-you,-Mom day that it's talked up to be.

My FAVORITE part of the morning was when Jack got to sit with me after the songs (and before the looooong video) and he hugged me and said, "Happy Mother's Day, Mom." Now THAT meant something.. and that took 2 seconds... not two and a half hours.

Happy Cinco de Mayo!!

OK, I'm not good at explaining stuff, but...

I have to talk about FB and Gmail.

(And seriously, I'm NOT good at explaining stuff. Does it frighten anyone else that I used to be a teacher???)

When I comment or post a status in facebook, there's a part on the right hand side of the screen that has "recommended pages" and it ALWAYS has something to do with what I posted or commented on.

I just commented on Michele's comment. MY comment had to do with wine and pools. The recommended pages on the right side of the screen directed me to a fb page about wine and pools.

Has anyone else noticed this??? Please notice!! So I don't feel crazy.

Gmail is the same way. If you go to the SPAM folder in your email account, it will have a link at the top-ish (it's not the top-top) of the page that gives you recipes for how to cook SPAM (like the canned meat).

Send an email to someone from your GMail account. Mention something. I don't care what. Parks. Or summer sausage. Or Twister. You'll get a link to click on above your inbox or your sent folder about something in your email.

ALWAYS read the link above your inbox or sent folder if you have a GMail account and just sent an email. I PROMISE YOU it will have something to do with the email you just sent.

CREEPY...

Crawfish Boil

This weekend we had our 2nd annual neighborhood Crawfish Boil. Mmm, mmm.

We decided to do it a month earlier than last year so it'd be cooler. Who knew Saturday was going to be so HOT and STICKY. Yuck!

Caroline was thrilled about the idea of going out in the heat.



Sarah had just had a Sweet and Sassy party for one of her school friends. So she was sporting a glittery up do which didn't hold up well in the bounce house.

Look how easily she turns red when it's hot out. Poor thing gets that from me.



And Jack said "Cheeeese" with a mouth full of brownie.




Then Caroline started getting into the groove of things and had a good time...





And everyone got in the bounce house. Jack with his cast (may not have been the best idea) and Caroline too. Even with the big kids. She's our fearless social butterfly.




The little girl with the pants on in the background of this picture is Maddie. She's just 4 months younger than Sarah and lives 3 houses down. We didn't realize that until Saturday.

And one of Sarah's friends from school lives 2 streets over and came to the party.

And then Sarah's favorite substitute teacher was also there because she, too, lives a couple of streets over.

AND AND AND our new next door neighbors moved in. And they're GREAT!! 2 kids. Nice nice people. We're trying not to be weird and suffocate them but I'm going to bring them dinner this week so we can be neighborly.

We LOVED our last next door neighbors but really didn't get a chance to know them until right before they moved to New York. And we are NOT letting that happen again!!!

All in all, it was a great night, met a lot of great people!

We love our neighborhood :)