Yes, it's been a month of Sundays since I posted last. There's been more terribly bad news around my little corner of the world but I refuse to dwell on it here. Life is too short. One good, positive, wonderful thing that happened in the past few weeks is that my amazing friends from Wyoming came to see me and my family for a short visit. Too short if you ask me..... Ugh. Why must I work? LOL Why must I have to NOT devote my life to shopping and merry making?
The last several weeks has been a literal mad rush to get things done before Cruella and the ol' Cody Coyote get here. Bob has been trimming out the windows that we bought, what, three or four years ago, that he finished installing last year but never had time to trim out. Well, all but TWO are now finished. The two that need sanded and stained are in my bedroom and I can live with that. Bob has crawled under the house and jacked up the floor to make it more sturdy (ah, life in an older home.....) and now since he did that I moved my living room furniture so that my entertainment center is not up against a wall. My living room, which is 13 x 35, is now divided better into a family room, a computer area and a dining area. Right after Christmas, my mom gave me her dining room table and chairs and buffet and hutch. She bought the set in 1985 or so and it's not the top of the line but it's held up for the past few decades and still looks nice. I think it looks fantastic in my home and I really do enjoy having the set here. It really feels like home here now. So we've been doing a crap load of home improvements lately in addition to the frenzied cleaning regiment that has just completely unnerved me. I like a little bit of clutter and dust. If there isn't dust then I'm just not sure I'm home. Helloooooooo, you can't cold turkey me with a clean house!!
So, Cruella and the ol' Cody Coyote get here Wednesday evening and we have a wonderful dinner and some great conversation. Thursday, Cruella and I went to Joplin and did a little mall crawl and hit Sam's where we bought some of the best shrimp you can buy in bulk. LOL Cruella introduced me to Pandora and I fear that my life will never be the same again. She bought a bracelet for me and even gave me several amazingly beautiful charm beads and now I am hooked!! Oh, I love me some European silver!! The charms are just so cute!! I love (and have!!) the rabbit, the easter egg, the snake, the love bokay, the amazingly beautiful One World Health charm and the precious heart lock and key to name a few. Even thought there are several charms on my bracelet, there are still a ton of charms on my wish list and I'm so glad my birthday and anniversary are coming up soon!! I can't believe how sweet, kind and generous Cruella is to me!! I truly don't deserve a friend like her! Friday we trinkey dinked around town, found the local Pandora dealer, Goforth Jewelry, and tried to build our energy levels up for Tulsa!! Even though we stayed close to home, we still enjoyed ourselves immensely!! Saturday we went to Tulsa and hit a ton of Pandora shops where Cruella and I added some charms to both her bracelet and mine!! While I was driving, I called several Pandora dealers in Oklahoma and I found her a retired strawberry (they only had one though) that Cruella really wanted to find. In the shops in Tulsa we found retired dice and 8-balls for each of us. Cruella spied an ugly duckling before I did and I am sooooooooo jealous!! I seriously wanted that one, oh well, we found that one, surely there are more. We had lunch at PF Chang's with our hubbies who were in Tulsa too spending the day at the gun show. After lunch, we hit more Pandora shops and the mall where Miss Whineyhiney failed in finding clothes for her Key Club convention. Ugh, that kid is the hardest to shop for!! We hit The Cheesecake Factory for dinner and I had the BEST crispy artichoke hearts and MWH ordered a salisbury steak and a kahlua, coffee, mocha cheesecake that she ended up wearing because we fought over a few bites. LOL I won, of course!!!!! Sunday I cooked breakfast burritos, read my Sunday papers and we went BACK to Joplin for another mall crawl (MWH was still searching for clothes!).
Sadly, Monday came and my friends went home and I went back to work. *sniff, sniff, tear, tear* They're home now and I'm sad to see them leave..... So much fun, so little time. I can only hope we are able to head that way this summer! Weeeeeeeeeeee, more adventures!!!!!
Showing posts with label Vacation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Vacation. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 07, 2009
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
only to appease the mass(es)
Apparently a few folks miss me. I don't know how boring your life is but it's gotta be pretty high on the boredom scale to be asking ME to blog, but hey, who am I to judge? LOL
Alrighty then...... let's see........ what's been going on........
Ah, Vegas.
My mother took me to Las Vegas for my 36th birthday. My birthday was (is) April 25th, which was on a Friday this year. We actually left the Sunday before and returned the Thursday before so that I'd still be home for my family on my actual birthday because, well, that's just how things are. Our flight was scheduled to depart at 3:00 p.m. so of course we left the house shortly after 8:00 a.m. My dear, sweet, gambling addicted mother wanted to make a pit stop at Cherokee Casino in Tulsa before we went to the air port. I, of course, was on vacation so I did not care what was going on, I was just out to have FUN. We both played a little and we both lost what little we played. Mom's a smoker and that particular casino has "no smoking" areas and the lines are a little blurred on where exactly the boundaries are so Mom asked a casino employee if this one particular section was smoking or non-smoking and she was told that it was smoking so she lit one up. Dang near immediately, three gamblers verbally assaulted my mother and treated her like a freaking lepper. We spent a minimal amount of time and money in that casino and headed off for the Tulsa International Airport.
The TIA is pretty big. Lots of gates, lots of restaurants, lots of bathrooms....... However, amongst the lots and lots, there is only ONE smoking area. My poor, poor mother had to go outside to smoke. So sad..... Hmmmmm, I have no pity for her. LOL
We got to the TIA oodles of hours early to guarantee that we'd be seated on the plane together. It worked. We were seated together, the only problem was that we were in the farkin' absolute rear of the plane and I couldn't hear anything. We sat next to a real estate agent who lived in the Las Vegas area. She was in Tulsa to handle her father's business. She talked my ear off. Oh, how I wished I had an MP3 player....... seriously. I just wanted to sit and relax, but she had tons of legal questions. Damn, why did I tell her I worked for an attorney?
So, we land and the views are amazing. You can see the tarmac and the Luxor pyramid and the mountains and palm trees and so much more!! So beautiful, so much to take in. We take our shuttle to the MGM Grand and oh my was it amazing!! The MGM Grand lobby was phenomenal. You walk in the doors and the scent of the most amazing roses just envelopes you. It's a virtual assault on both your eyes and your nose. Truly amazing. Our room was on the 20th floor. Sadly, we didn't have a view of the strip, we could see the monorail train though. Our room was plush. Very plush. We had the most divine beds! They were so soft and cushioney and the pillows were wonderful! Our bathroom was marble and HUGE!!!!!!! I love it.
We didn't spend too much time in the room at first. We had the strip to explore and did we ever! We went to New York, NY, M&M World, Tropicana, Flamingo, Belagio, Treasure Island, Planet Hollywood and more...... so many more! We walked until after midnight. I think we ate dinner at Panda Express, a quickie Chinese restaurant, on the strip. We were just overwhelmed with all the options.
Monday we shopped and gambled and explored and made plans to go to the Hoover Dam. It was an amazing day!! We had so much fun! The casinos have some of the same games as our local haunts do but there are a lot of different ones too. One thing I didn't like was how you had to hit the "bet" button each time before you hit "spin" or whatever. It was rather annoying. Their machines don't pay out as well as these do either. Oh well, I was there to shop, not gamble.
Tuesday we went to the Hoover Dam and took the whole damn tour. hehehe Or was it the whole dam tour? I had a ton of damn dam jokes.....
After the dam tour, I had plans to go to Trader Joe's. I had spoken with the Concierge at MGM Grand and mapped my route. I was told the taxi would cost me around $40 each way. I was prepared. I wanted to go to Trader Joe's. So, we leave the dam and stop at heaven, er, um, Ethel M's Chocolate Factory in Henderson, Nevada. Henderson, Nevada. A good 20 minutes from Las Vegas. I load up on $3 chocolate bars and walk through the factory like I own the place. Oh god the aroma was amazing....... Sadly it was a short stop and we were back on the bus within minutes. Then, about 5 minutes later we were approaching an intersection and I looked up and saw Trader Joe's! The bus driver had just said we didn't have to depart at our hotels, he'd drop us off where ever we wanted as long as it was on his route. I quickly asked him if I could get off HERE, HERE, HERE at Trader Joe's and he slowed down some because there was a traffic light and I hopped off the moving bus. After I walked across the street it hit me. I was only about 15 minutes from the dam. The dam was a good 40 minutes from the hotel. SHIT. I wasn't at the Trader Joe's in Las Vegas, I WAS STILL IN HENDERSON!!!!!!!!!!! SHIT!
So I'll spare you all my panic but basically a I had a melt down in the check out line and a very nice Realtor who promised me she wasn't an ax murderer drove me back to Las Vegas. She dropped me off at the Hard Rock Cafe and Casino which was where I wanted to go. Major screw up folks, major. But hey, what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.
Tuesday night mom got sick. Very sick. She didn't eat breakfast that morning and then since we separated I didn't make her eat lunch and even though I told her to she didn't so when she did eat she ate too fast and made herself sick. Sick like puking up bile while we were in the elevator. Then stopping on the 19th floor and puking like nobody's business. Then back in the elevator and puking in the 20th floor elevator lobby area. All across the marble floors....... there was no escaping her vomit volcano. Nasty.........
She spent all of Wednesday in bed. I, of course, went shopping after I made sure she had plenty of water, soup, Pepto Bismol and anything else she wanted. All she wanted though was to sleep and have quiet. She wanted me to go but be available if she needed anything and I was happy to oblige. I toured Ceasar's Palace, the Forum Shops, the Belagio Hotel, the Miracle Mile, the outlet mall, oh, I did sooooooo much and had so much fun ALONE!!!!!!! It was amazing!!!!!!!
Mom got better and Thursday we had a wonderful early breakfast and headed off to the airport for the ride back home. I came home with $50. Not broke but nothing to blog about.
Since I've been home lots has happened but I've been a terrible shit and haven't shared anything. I'll try to keep up better now that I've posted this.
Here are a few of the highlights:
Miss Whineyhiney had her 8th grade promotion, she will be a Freshman in the fall..... oh my god!!!!!
Miss Whineyhiney also had a speaking part in the National Junior Honor Society induction program, I'm so proud of her!!
Bob was transferred from production to a different department, service, at work.
Then they laid off 15 people and he was transferred back to hell, er, production. FOR ONE FARCKING DAY. After one day, they "lent" him back to service.
Then they opened up his old (new) service job for bidding again and he re-bid for it.
Then he spent a miserable weekend worrying that he didn't get the service job again because he was "bidder 3" for the 2 open spots.
BUT ALAS HE DID GET IT! WOO HOO! So now he's happy, today.......
He's had it, lost it, had it, lost it so many times I don't know for sure but as of today he's still there.
I'm done with PTSO.
We bought a pop-up camper and we're ready to camp, as long as the weather holds up and the ATV's run...... nope, we haven't used it yet. LOL
We did get our "stimulus check". Then the Jeep broke down and the there went the stimulus check.
Mother's Day weekend, Bob got sick, went to the ER twice in one day, ended up being admitted and he spent Mother's Day and our 18th wedding anniversary in the hospital.
Also Mother's Day weekend, my best friend had a stroke and I spent the majority of the weekend with her in the ER and hospital.
And, also on the Saturday before Mother's Day, an EF-4 tornado wiped out nearly half of the city of Picher, Oklahoma. Sadly, there were lives lost....... I can't write any more on that topic.
Gas is $3.859 around here. Bob put in $93.xx+ yesterday and I cried........
Again, I know there's more but I'm brain dead. Stay tuned, I'll try to post pics in a few days.
I started this post on May 10th, I'm ending it on June 10th...... so sad.
Alrighty then...... let's see........ what's been going on........
Ah, Vegas.
My mother took me to Las Vegas for my 36th birthday. My birthday was (is) April 25th, which was on a Friday this year. We actually left the Sunday before and returned the Thursday before so that I'd still be home for my family on my actual birthday because, well, that's just how things are. Our flight was scheduled to depart at 3:00 p.m. so of course we left the house shortly after 8:00 a.m. My dear, sweet, gambling addicted mother wanted to make a pit stop at Cherokee Casino in Tulsa before we went to the air port. I, of course, was on vacation so I did not care what was going on, I was just out to have FUN. We both played a little and we both lost what little we played. Mom's a smoker and that particular casino has "no smoking" areas and the lines are a little blurred on where exactly the boundaries are so Mom asked a casino employee if this one particular section was smoking or non-smoking and she was told that it was smoking so she lit one up. Dang near immediately, three gamblers verbally assaulted my mother and treated her like a freaking lepper. We spent a minimal amount of time and money in that casino and headed off for the Tulsa International Airport.
The TIA is pretty big. Lots of gates, lots of restaurants, lots of bathrooms....... However, amongst the lots and lots, there is only ONE smoking area. My poor, poor mother had to go outside to smoke. So sad..... Hmmmmm, I have no pity for her. LOL
We got to the TIA oodles of hours early to guarantee that we'd be seated on the plane together. It worked. We were seated together, the only problem was that we were in the farkin' absolute rear of the plane and I couldn't hear anything. We sat next to a real estate agent who lived in the Las Vegas area. She was in Tulsa to handle her father's business. She talked my ear off. Oh, how I wished I had an MP3 player....... seriously. I just wanted to sit and relax, but she had tons of legal questions. Damn, why did I tell her I worked for an attorney?
So, we land and the views are amazing. You can see the tarmac and the Luxor pyramid and the mountains and palm trees and so much more!! So beautiful, so much to take in. We take our shuttle to the MGM Grand and oh my was it amazing!! The MGM Grand lobby was phenomenal. You walk in the doors and the scent of the most amazing roses just envelopes you. It's a virtual assault on both your eyes and your nose. Truly amazing. Our room was on the 20th floor. Sadly, we didn't have a view of the strip, we could see the monorail train though. Our room was plush. Very plush. We had the most divine beds! They were so soft and cushioney and the pillows were wonderful! Our bathroom was marble and HUGE!!!!!!! I love it.
We didn't spend too much time in the room at first. We had the strip to explore and did we ever! We went to New York, NY, M&M World, Tropicana, Flamingo, Belagio, Treasure Island, Planet Hollywood and more...... so many more! We walked until after midnight. I think we ate dinner at Panda Express, a quickie Chinese restaurant, on the strip. We were just overwhelmed with all the options.
Monday we shopped and gambled and explored and made plans to go to the Hoover Dam. It was an amazing day!! We had so much fun! The casinos have some of the same games as our local haunts do but there are a lot of different ones too. One thing I didn't like was how you had to hit the "bet" button each time before you hit "spin" or whatever. It was rather annoying. Their machines don't pay out as well as these do either. Oh well, I was there to shop, not gamble.
Tuesday we went to the Hoover Dam and took the whole damn tour. hehehe Or was it the whole dam tour? I had a ton of damn dam jokes.....
After the dam tour, I had plans to go to Trader Joe's. I had spoken with the Concierge at MGM Grand and mapped my route. I was told the taxi would cost me around $40 each way. I was prepared. I wanted to go to Trader Joe's. So, we leave the dam and stop at heaven, er, um, Ethel M's Chocolate Factory in Henderson, Nevada. Henderson, Nevada. A good 20 minutes from Las Vegas. I load up on $3 chocolate bars and walk through the factory like I own the place. Oh god the aroma was amazing....... Sadly it was a short stop and we were back on the bus within minutes. Then, about 5 minutes later we were approaching an intersection and I looked up and saw Trader Joe's! The bus driver had just said we didn't have to depart at our hotels, he'd drop us off where ever we wanted as long as it was on his route. I quickly asked him if I could get off HERE, HERE, HERE at Trader Joe's and he slowed down some because there was a traffic light and I hopped off the moving bus. After I walked across the street it hit me. I was only about 15 minutes from the dam. The dam was a good 40 minutes from the hotel. SHIT. I wasn't at the Trader Joe's in Las Vegas, I WAS STILL IN HENDERSON!!!!!!!!!!! SHIT!
So I'll spare you all my panic but basically a I had a melt down in the check out line and a very nice Realtor who promised me she wasn't an ax murderer drove me back to Las Vegas. She dropped me off at the Hard Rock Cafe and Casino which was where I wanted to go. Major screw up folks, major. But hey, what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.
Tuesday night mom got sick. Very sick. She didn't eat breakfast that morning and then since we separated I didn't make her eat lunch and even though I told her to she didn't so when she did eat she ate too fast and made herself sick. Sick like puking up bile while we were in the elevator. Then stopping on the 19th floor and puking like nobody's business. Then back in the elevator and puking in the 20th floor elevator lobby area. All across the marble floors....... there was no escaping her vomit volcano. Nasty.........
She spent all of Wednesday in bed. I, of course, went shopping after I made sure she had plenty of water, soup, Pepto Bismol and anything else she wanted. All she wanted though was to sleep and have quiet. She wanted me to go but be available if she needed anything and I was happy to oblige. I toured Ceasar's Palace, the Forum Shops, the Belagio Hotel, the Miracle Mile, the outlet mall, oh, I did sooooooo much and had so much fun ALONE!!!!!!! It was amazing!!!!!!!
Mom got better and Thursday we had a wonderful early breakfast and headed off to the airport for the ride back home. I came home with $50. Not broke but nothing to blog about.
Since I've been home lots has happened but I've been a terrible shit and haven't shared anything. I'll try to keep up better now that I've posted this.
Here are a few of the highlights:
Miss Whineyhiney had her 8th grade promotion, she will be a Freshman in the fall..... oh my god!!!!!
Miss Whineyhiney also had a speaking part in the National Junior Honor Society induction program, I'm so proud of her!!
Bob was transferred from production to a different department, service, at work.
Then they laid off 15 people and he was transferred back to hell, er, production. FOR ONE FARCKING DAY. After one day, they "lent" him back to service.
Then they opened up his old (new) service job for bidding again and he re-bid for it.
Then he spent a miserable weekend worrying that he didn't get the service job again because he was "bidder 3" for the 2 open spots.
BUT ALAS HE DID GET IT! WOO HOO! So now he's happy, today.......
He's had it, lost it, had it, lost it so many times I don't know for sure but as of today he's still there.
I'm done with PTSO.
We bought a pop-up camper and we're ready to camp, as long as the weather holds up and the ATV's run...... nope, we haven't used it yet. LOL
We did get our "stimulus check". Then the Jeep broke down and the there went the stimulus check.
Mother's Day weekend, Bob got sick, went to the ER twice in one day, ended up being admitted and he spent Mother's Day and our 18th wedding anniversary in the hospital.
Also Mother's Day weekend, my best friend had a stroke and I spent the majority of the weekend with her in the ER and hospital.
And, also on the Saturday before Mother's Day, an EF-4 tornado wiped out nearly half of the city of Picher, Oklahoma. Sadly, there were lives lost....... I can't write any more on that topic.
Gas is $3.859 around here. Bob put in $93.xx+ yesterday and I cried........
Again, I know there's more but I'm brain dead. Stay tuned, I'll try to post pics in a few days.
I started this post on May 10th, I'm ending it on June 10th...... so sad.
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Out of the loooooooooooop
Tomorrow I leave for vacation. MY vacation. No kid, no husband. Just me. Ok, my mother is going with me, I'm supposed to be her chaperone, but hey, she's a big girl. There will be a pool and shopping and a spa. I will be there, who the hell knows where she'll be?
Yesterday, I had a wonderful spa pedicure, it was their deluxe kind..... don't ask me what that means, I have no idea. I think the deluxe is when they dip your feet in hot wax AND you get an extended massage. Sweeeeeeeeeeeet. Either way, I had a coupon, I was goin' for broke. LOL
So I'm all packed and ready to go. I've just got to wait another 25 more hours or so...... sheesh, who said time flies?
Yesterday, I had a wonderful spa pedicure, it was their deluxe kind..... don't ask me what that means, I have no idea. I think the deluxe is when they dip your feet in hot wax AND you get an extended massage. Sweeeeeeeeeeeet. Either way, I had a coupon, I was goin' for broke. LOL
So I'm all packed and ready to go. I've just got to wait another 25 more hours or so...... sheesh, who said time flies?
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
complete and utter randomness
I just put an Atomic Fireball in my mouth. Soooooo stupid of me. I can't talk. I should have known better. Sometimes my lack of self control amazes myself. Idiot.
Miss Whineyhiney had a Rotary Club luncheon yesterday where she received an award for being in the top 10% of her class. I am so damned proud of her it's insane. She's such a remarkable young woman. There were only 15 students there, she's wicked smart. I don't know where it comes from.
I have two amazingly adorable nephews who have a super-fantastic mother who sends me the most freakin' adorable pictures and little cell phone videos of them. She rocks. My youngest adorable nephew, Danny, has a strong resemblence to Uncle Fester on the Addams Family. He's too cute for words. I just know that someday he'll dress up in a mink coat and put a light bulb in his mouth. I just hope it's for Halloween or for money, not merely for my personal pleasure and enjoyment. LOL
Here's the latest and greatest pic of this little mischevious cutiepatootie.
There are only 3 weeks and 4 days left until I depart for VEGAS. I'm so freakin' excited! WOO HOO! Anyone care to send me some money to gamble on? I'll split my winnin's with ya!
Bob is making plans. Plans to build a garage. Plans to remodel the back part of our house. Our laundry room and my pantry will be converted to a 3/4 bath, my new pantry will be about 4 feet wide and go from floor to ceiling. My laundry room will be moved to where my back door is now. The back door will be where one of the windows is now and we'll add on a nice, large deck. And, here's the kicker, I'll get a new kitchen too. Sweeeeeeeeeeet. And, if that ain't wonderful enough, Bob even said he'd try to put down tile in all of the remodeled area. Holy shit. He wants something....... *tap, tap, tap, chews on end of pencil* What could it be? Oh, yeah, he's getting a garage. First.
Our friends, Cruella & the ol' Cody Coyote will not be joining us for our usual April rondevouz. Bob is leaving for a turkey hunting trip during the time that they come down. I won't get to see them until CHRISTMAS! Dammit!! I miss my friends........
I know there's more to write about but I'm starting to lose the Atomic Fireball heat in my mouth so I think I'll go get myself some coffee.
Miss Whineyhiney had a Rotary Club luncheon yesterday where she received an award for being in the top 10% of her class. I am so damned proud of her it's insane. She's such a remarkable young woman. There were only 15 students there, she's wicked smart. I don't know where it comes from.
I have two amazingly adorable nephews who have a super-fantastic mother who sends me the most freakin' adorable pictures and little cell phone videos of them. She rocks. My youngest adorable nephew, Danny, has a strong resemblence to Uncle Fester on the Addams Family. He's too cute for words. I just know that someday he'll dress up in a mink coat and put a light bulb in his mouth. I just hope it's for Halloween or for money, not merely for my personal pleasure and enjoyment. LOL
Here's the latest and greatest pic of this little mischevious cutiepatootie.There are only 3 weeks and 4 days left until I depart for VEGAS. I'm so freakin' excited! WOO HOO! Anyone care to send me some money to gamble on? I'll split my winnin's with ya!
Bob is making plans. Plans to build a garage. Plans to remodel the back part of our house. Our laundry room and my pantry will be converted to a 3/4 bath, my new pantry will be about 4 feet wide and go from floor to ceiling. My laundry room will be moved to where my back door is now. The back door will be where one of the windows is now and we'll add on a nice, large deck. And, here's the kicker, I'll get a new kitchen too. Sweeeeeeeeeeet. And, if that ain't wonderful enough, Bob even said he'd try to put down tile in all of the remodeled area. Holy shit. He wants something....... *tap, tap, tap, chews on end of pencil* What could it be? Oh, yeah, he's getting a garage. First.
Our friends, Cruella & the ol' Cody Coyote will not be joining us for our usual April rondevouz. Bob is leaving for a turkey hunting trip during the time that they come down. I won't get to see them until CHRISTMAS! Dammit!! I miss my friends........
I know there's more to write about but I'm starting to lose the Atomic Fireball heat in my mouth so I think I'll go get myself some coffee.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Happy Belated Thanksgiving!
The Thanksgiving holiday is behind us, or under our belt (ha ha, puns intended!) and I'm so glad that Christmas is coming! I'm ready for the cold weather that we're experiencing and simply can't wait for snow! December looks to be a rabid month. I have Christmas parades, my office party, Bob's work party, a trip to Kansas City to see an old grade school friend and to go shopping, a Girl's Night Out with my bestest and oldest friend from 3rd grade AND I have plans to go dress shopping with another friend! Dress shopping!? Seriously!!!!!!!!! Ok, maybe I won't get a dress but I will be getting something festive! I've got two holiday parties to go to so by God I'm going shopping!
Like an idiot, I did the Black Friday shopping in Joplin. The sales weren't great but I did get a few decent buys and I'm glad to have gone. Too bad Mrs. Coach wasn't with me or Zale's would be short one pair of 5/8 carat earrings. Maybe next year.......
Friday afternoon I got to see my amazingly funny sister, her super nice husband and their fantasticly awesome boys (MY NEPHEWS!!!!!!!!!). We had a wonderful visit and I really do hope we can make it to St. Louis for Christmas! I keep saying that and it never works out but dammit I'm going to try again!
Thursday, Miss Whineyhiney is getting her braces put on. That sounds scarey but so wonderful! It took me almost eighteen months but I got the money saved up for it and it's finally a reality! Sadly though, her trip to Washinton, DC, has been cancelled. I'm going to lose almost $200 in that fucking ordeal and I'm sooooooooooooo not happy about it. I'm so angry right now that words just can not express my fury. That's a lot of money and my refund won't be here before Christmas so I can't even use that money for the holidays! DAMMIT!
This weekend we went to Fayetteville and Rogers, Arkansas to go shopping. I am sooooo happy that we went! I found TWO new shopping centers that I freakin' adore and can't wait to go back to! First we hit the Northwest Arkansas Mall in Fayetteville. Which is a traditional indoor mall. We didn't get to crawl the whole mall but we did make a nice dent! I can't wait to go back and hit the other half! The second we hit was Pinnacle Hills Promenade in Rogers. This one is an open air, outdoor mall like the Branson Landing! They have a Williams-Sonoma and a PF Chang's!!!!!! YUM!!!!!!!!
This weekend, with any luck, I may be going back to Tulsa and I want to hit Utica Square! We'll see...... the parade is Saturday night so I'm not sure if we'll make it or not.
I have more to write, more to say, more to do but unfortunately no time.
Like an idiot, I did the Black Friday shopping in Joplin. The sales weren't great but I did get a few decent buys and I'm glad to have gone. Too bad Mrs. Coach wasn't with me or Zale's would be short one pair of 5/8 carat earrings. Maybe next year.......
Friday afternoon I got to see my amazingly funny sister, her super nice husband and their fantasticly awesome boys (MY NEPHEWS!!!!!!!!!). We had a wonderful visit and I really do hope we can make it to St. Louis for Christmas! I keep saying that and it never works out but dammit I'm going to try again!
Thursday, Miss Whineyhiney is getting her braces put on. That sounds scarey but so wonderful! It took me almost eighteen months but I got the money saved up for it and it's finally a reality! Sadly though, her trip to Washinton, DC, has been cancelled. I'm going to lose almost $200 in that fucking ordeal and I'm sooooooooooooo not happy about it. I'm so angry right now that words just can not express my fury. That's a lot of money and my refund won't be here before Christmas so I can't even use that money for the holidays! DAMMIT!
This weekend we went to Fayetteville and Rogers, Arkansas to go shopping. I am sooooo happy that we went! I found TWO new shopping centers that I freakin' adore and can't wait to go back to! First we hit the Northwest Arkansas Mall in Fayetteville. Which is a traditional indoor mall. We didn't get to crawl the whole mall but we did make a nice dent! I can't wait to go back and hit the other half! The second we hit was Pinnacle Hills Promenade in Rogers. This one is an open air, outdoor mall like the Branson Landing! They have a Williams-Sonoma and a PF Chang's!!!!!! YUM!!!!!!!!
This weekend, with any luck, I may be going back to Tulsa and I want to hit Utica Square! We'll see...... the parade is Saturday night so I'm not sure if we'll make it or not.
I have more to write, more to say, more to do but unfortunately no time.
Sunday, September 02, 2007
Vacation, baby!
I'm home from Wyoming. We left Thursday, August 23rd I think. I know it was a Thursday. Bob's been sick for the past week and it's been very bad, very bad...... I can't tell you how bad. He missed work Tuesday, I thought we were going to have to go to the ER. We didn't but he missed work Tuesday, took off early Wednesday for an MRA (which I think they ended up giving him an MRI instead but we'll figure that out later) and he wasn't any better Thursday so he stayed home again. He should NOT have went on vacation but he did. He's ok now, sort of. This illness is weird, we don't know what sets it off or what helps it, it just hits, debilitates him and then as magically and mysteriously as it reared it's head it disappears.
So, here's a run down of our trip:
THURSDAY:
Bob didn't go to work again today, he was sick again so he rested and tried to sleep. Sleep is very hard for him, he can't unwind. Thankfully he was feeling not so sick by about 3:00 so I took off at 4:00 and we departed Miami at 4:30pm. I was smart and loaded the Jeep Wednesday night. This ain't my first rodeo ya know...... The drive across Kansas is nothing less than boring. Boring..... I hate Kansas (I'm from Kansas, born and raised there). We spent the night in Concordia, KS, I think. We should have driven on to York, NE, but for some reason we stopped.... Weird.
FRIDAY:
More driving...... Nebraska has little to offer in the scenery department. We stopped in Sidney at the Cabela's store. Bob was in heaven. MWH was in awe (again) at the mounted elephant they have in there, it really is cool. We all love the stuffed animals in the store, beautiful. We had lunch in the deli there at Cabela's and Bob had elk. Yummmmm. Back on the road, I got us lost near the Nebraska/Wyoming border. Ok, we weren't lost, we were on a road that was running WITH the road we wanted but at some point in time the roads split and I didn't notice. Both roads ended up at the same place but one was better and one sucked. We were on the sucky one. Bob yelled. I sighed. MWH just read her books. LOL We lost about an hour of time due to my little navigational glitch but we still got there. We crossed Wyoming in record time and arrived in Cody at 8:30 pm. What did we do when we got to Cody? Cruella and I went to Wal-Mart. Yep, I drove 1,100 miles to go to Wal-Mart. LOL Actually, their WM isn't all that bad, they've got more things than our store does and the tax is only 5% so it rocks. Tax was only 4% last year but they're putting in a pool in Meeteetse (about 25 miles south of Cody) and they raised the tax county-wide. Hmph, politicks.
SATURDAY:
We got up bright and early and headed to the main drag and for shopping! I went to the Wyoming Buffalo Company for some jerky for my office homies. LOL I got some souvenirs for myself too, I rarely ever do that...... I even got myself a beautiful sterling silver anklet at Greg and Sue's B-Dazzled... Again. Greg and Sue are friends of friends of ours (we went to a 4th of July party at their house a few years ago too so I guess they are OUR friends too and Greg resized my rings last year for free so he must really like me) and Greg just lost his leg in a motorcycle accident a few weeks ago. His son, Shawn, is watching the shop, he's a great jeweler too. I feel so bad for Greg..... he's such a sweet, sweet man.
After I bought the souvenirs, I mailed a care package to the office and we went to lunch at the Willow Fence Tea Room. Beautiful, elegant and very refined...... It's pretty much reservations only and it's off the beaten path so you've got to know about it. You don't just drive by and see it. The lady sells a million different kinds of loose tea and oh my god it's all so good! She has the best scones and devonshire cream! TO DIE FOR!!!! I wanted to bring back Butter Bells for my friends but she didn't have all the colors I wanted and I wanted a discount off the price because I was buying so many. I can get them online for less but I do like Loretta and wanted to support her but damn, I didn't want to be treated like a freakin' tourist! I didn't buy the bells there but I did find two different kinds (one marble one and one porcelain one) at Love's (a wicked cool kitchen store) and some mini crock ones at a store in Powell. I wish they had the bigger ones in Powell because they were exactly what I wanted to bring back...... but they were sold out. My luck! UGH!
SUNDAY:
Cruella & the ol' Coyote went to church so Bob and MWH and I went to town for breakfast at the quarter coffee shop (remind me not to go there again, it was ok, but not repeat worthy). We trinky dinked around town and drove out to the east gate at Yellowstone. Cody is about an hour from the park and the drive is beautiful. It's pretty much all Shoshone (translated: stinking water) National Forest and you're pretty much guaranteed to see some wild life. Sometimes black tailed deer, sometimes antelope, sometimes elk or moose and we even saw some big horn sheep once! Way kewl!!!!! We stopped at the Pahaska gift shop at the gate and looked around a bit, they have some boxer shorts that I'm seriously eyeballing.... Very funny drawers. This road goes through this town called Wapiti, I love saying Wapiti, I say it fast, three times. It cracks me up. Yeah, it doesn't take much. LOL
MONDAY:
Cruella and I headed north to Montana, big sky country. Billings, Montana, about 2 hours due north of Cody. The boys took the ATV's to Shell (about 2 hours away too but in a slightly different direction, northeast). Cruella, MWH and I hit the big city in due time. If you've never been to a Costco, it's an experience unlike any other. They are similar to Sam's Club but are a slightly cheaper on some things, their stock isn't quite as good as Sam's but they sell a few items that Sam's doesn't carry, like coffins. Yeah, when I die, could someone please run to Costco (there's one in Kansas City I think) and buy me a coffin so a particular local mortician who shall remain nameless doesn't defile me? LOL Actually, I'm totally joking, I want to be cremated.
Montana has no sales tax so people buy things in bulk. Major bulk. I kid you not I saw one family loading toilet paper and basic necessities in the back of a campered truck, when I first noticed them by there were about 7 flat bed carts full of merchandise (staple things like cereals, paper goods, two coolers, charcoal...), the man loading was deep in the bed of the truck, when I saw them again, all but one of the flat beds were empty and the man was standing outside the truck bed.
We went to Costco, Office Depot, Shopko, Target, Best Buy, Big K, Wal-Mart and I don't know where else. I did find me one super bargain I couldn't resist. I found two microSD cards for my and Bob's cell phones. Now we can download more ringtones and take more pictures and we can save them to the SD cards rather than bluetooth them. Sometimes I can't get the camera kiosk at Wal-Mart to accept the bluetooth, now I can save it to the SD card and be done with it! The cards are between $25 and $30 and I got them for $13 each! I love me a good bargain!! I loved Shopko, I wish we had one of those stores here! They are like an upscale Target, they have LEI (junior's jeans) and nicer stuff but at truly decent prices. I was impressed!! I also love, love, love the fact that Montana has no sales tax! Even Wal-Mart is OK if you don't have sales tax! LOL Actually, the Wal-Mart stores up here carry a lot of different things so it's really like a whole different store, sorta.
We got home and went to Zapatas for dinner, yummooooooooo! They have some mighty fine beans! I normally don't like beans but these were good!
TUESDAY:
We just hung around town and shopped, ah, to relax on vacation..... that's the good life!
WEDNESDAY & THURSDAY:
Wednesday night when we checked in to the Old Faithful Inn at Yellowstone, we heard someone say something about NBC's Tom Brokaw being there. Then, later, Robert and I went to the bar and this half Australian half Swiss man was cracking me up telling me (and Robert) jokes and he too said that Tom Brokaw was there at the Inn shooting footage for the Today Show. Robert and I walked around for a while looking for him but we never saw him.
We get up to leave the Inn Thursday morning, we were circling the parking lot so I could take a picture of the Inn from a distance and I said out loud "Darn it, I wish we could have seen Tom Brokaw!" and I kid you not THERE HE WAS!!!!! Not 15 feet from us!
So, big mouth me, I yell out of the window, "Hey Tom! May I take your picture?" (yeah, I asked and said "may I"). He replied back "I'd rather you not, once the cameras start for the day they never end" and he kind of sighed. I said back to him "Thank you anyway, I was just getting ready to take a picture of the Inn" and he said "Just tell all your friends we talked". There were a few other sentences of banter but that was the jist of it. He was very nice but looked like the park had kicked his butt already that morning. It was barely 8:00 am, if then, he looked rough. So, I did NOT take his picture then but as I was taking pictures of the Inn (which was truly my intent to begin with) I did get his back side. I have four other witnesses who can vouch for me, this truly is Tom Brokaw (he's got the orange parka and the tan pants). Tom looked very, very tired. He didn't have any make up on and his face was very blotchy (he had super red cheeks like me). He didn't look like he had a good night at all.
FRIDAY:
Sadly, this was our last day of Cody. Of Cruella & the ol' Coyote..... so sad.
We were on the road shortly after dawn. Yawning and gassed up, we headed south towards Colorado. The drive home was long and challenging. Colorado kicked my ass. Denver, Colorado Springs..... damn. I could write about it but I'm exhausted and it's just not going to happen. LOL
SATURDAY:
We hit home around 10:00 pm and wow were we exhausted. We drove through Dodge City and Wichita today, a very long day. I'm glad to be home.
So, here's a run down of our trip:
THURSDAY:
Bob didn't go to work again today, he was sick again so he rested and tried to sleep. Sleep is very hard for him, he can't unwind. Thankfully he was feeling not so sick by about 3:00 so I took off at 4:00 and we departed Miami at 4:30pm. I was smart and loaded the Jeep Wednesday night. This ain't my first rodeo ya know...... The drive across Kansas is nothing less than boring. Boring..... I hate Kansas (I'm from Kansas, born and raised there). We spent the night in Concordia, KS, I think. We should have driven on to York, NE, but for some reason we stopped.... Weird.
FRIDAY:
More driving...... Nebraska has little to offer in the scenery department. We stopped in Sidney at the Cabela's store. Bob was in heaven. MWH was in awe (again) at the mounted elephant they have in there, it really is cool. We all love the stuffed animals in the store, beautiful. We had lunch in the deli there at Cabela's and Bob had elk. Yummmmm. Back on the road, I got us lost near the Nebraska/Wyoming border. Ok, we weren't lost, we were on a road that was running WITH the road we wanted but at some point in time the roads split and I didn't notice. Both roads ended up at the same place but one was better and one sucked. We were on the sucky one. Bob yelled. I sighed. MWH just read her books. LOL We lost about an hour of time due to my little navigational glitch but we still got there. We crossed Wyoming in record time and arrived in Cody at 8:30 pm. What did we do when we got to Cody? Cruella and I went to Wal-Mart. Yep, I drove 1,100 miles to go to Wal-Mart. LOL Actually, their WM isn't all that bad, they've got more things than our store does and the tax is only 5% so it rocks. Tax was only 4% last year but they're putting in a pool in Meeteetse (about 25 miles south of Cody) and they raised the tax county-wide. Hmph, politicks.
SATURDAY:
We got up bright and early and headed to the main drag and for shopping! I went to the Wyoming Buffalo Company for some jerky for my office homies. LOL I got some souvenirs for myself too, I rarely ever do that...... I even got myself a beautiful sterling silver anklet at Greg and Sue's B-Dazzled... Again. Greg and Sue are friends of friends of ours (we went to a 4th of July party at their house a few years ago too so I guess they are OUR friends too and Greg resized my rings last year for free so he must really like me) and Greg just lost his leg in a motorcycle accident a few weeks ago. His son, Shawn, is watching the shop, he's a great jeweler too. I feel so bad for Greg..... he's such a sweet, sweet man.
After I bought the souvenirs, I mailed a care package to the office and we went to lunch at the Willow Fence Tea Room. Beautiful, elegant and very refined...... It's pretty much reservations only and it's off the beaten path so you've got to know about it. You don't just drive by and see it. The lady sells a million different kinds of loose tea and oh my god it's all so good! She has the best scones and devonshire cream! TO DIE FOR!!!! I wanted to bring back Butter Bells for my friends but she didn't have all the colors I wanted and I wanted a discount off the price because I was buying so many. I can get them online for less but I do like Loretta and wanted to support her but damn, I didn't want to be treated like a freakin' tourist! I didn't buy the bells there but I did find two different kinds (one marble one and one porcelain one) at Love's (a wicked cool kitchen store) and some mini crock ones at a store in Powell. I wish they had the bigger ones in Powell because they were exactly what I wanted to bring back...... but they were sold out. My luck! UGH!
SUNDAY:
Cruella & the ol' Coyote went to church so Bob and MWH and I went to town for breakfast at the quarter coffee shop (remind me not to go there again, it was ok, but not repeat worthy). We trinky dinked around town and drove out to the east gate at Yellowstone. Cody is about an hour from the park and the drive is beautiful. It's pretty much all Shoshone (translated: stinking water) National Forest and you're pretty much guaranteed to see some wild life. Sometimes black tailed deer, sometimes antelope, sometimes elk or moose and we even saw some big horn sheep once! Way kewl!!!!! We stopped at the Pahaska gift shop at the gate and looked around a bit, they have some boxer shorts that I'm seriously eyeballing.... Very funny drawers. This road goes through this town called Wapiti, I love saying Wapiti, I say it fast, three times. It cracks me up. Yeah, it doesn't take much. LOL
MONDAY:
Cruella and I headed north to Montana, big sky country. Billings, Montana, about 2 hours due north of Cody. The boys took the ATV's to Shell (about 2 hours away too but in a slightly different direction, northeast). Cruella, MWH and I hit the big city in due time. If you've never been to a Costco, it's an experience unlike any other. They are similar to Sam's Club but are a slightly cheaper on some things, their stock isn't quite as good as Sam's but they sell a few items that Sam's doesn't carry, like coffins. Yeah, when I die, could someone please run to Costco (there's one in Kansas City I think) and buy me a coffin so a particular local mortician who shall remain nameless doesn't defile me? LOL Actually, I'm totally joking, I want to be cremated.
Montana has no sales tax so people buy things in bulk. Major bulk. I kid you not I saw one family loading toilet paper and basic necessities in the back of a campered truck, when I first noticed them by there were about 7 flat bed carts full of merchandise (staple things like cereals, paper goods, two coolers, charcoal...), the man loading was deep in the bed of the truck, when I saw them again, all but one of the flat beds were empty and the man was standing outside the truck bed.
We went to Costco, Office Depot, Shopko, Target, Best Buy, Big K, Wal-Mart and I don't know where else. I did find me one super bargain I couldn't resist. I found two microSD cards for my and Bob's cell phones. Now we can download more ringtones and take more pictures and we can save them to the SD cards rather than bluetooth them. Sometimes I can't get the camera kiosk at Wal-Mart to accept the bluetooth, now I can save it to the SD card and be done with it! The cards are between $25 and $30 and I got them for $13 each! I love me a good bargain!! I loved Shopko, I wish we had one of those stores here! They are like an upscale Target, they have LEI (junior's jeans) and nicer stuff but at truly decent prices. I was impressed!! I also love, love, love the fact that Montana has no sales tax! Even Wal-Mart is OK if you don't have sales tax! LOL Actually, the Wal-Mart stores up here carry a lot of different things so it's really like a whole different store, sorta.
We got home and went to Zapatas for dinner, yummooooooooo! They have some mighty fine beans! I normally don't like beans but these were good!
TUESDAY:
We just hung around town and shopped, ah, to relax on vacation..... that's the good life!
WEDNESDAY & THURSDAY:
Wednesday night when we checked in to the Old Faithful Inn at Yellowstone, we heard someone say something about NBC's Tom Brokaw being there. Then, later, Robert and I went to the bar and this half Australian half Swiss man was cracking me up telling me (and Robert) jokes and he too said that Tom Brokaw was there at the Inn shooting footage for the Today Show. Robert and I walked around for a while looking for him but we never saw him.
We get up to leave the Inn Thursday morning, we were circling the parking lot so I could take a picture of the Inn from a distance and I said out loud "Darn it, I wish we could have seen Tom Brokaw!" and I kid you not THERE HE WAS!!!!! Not 15 feet from us!
So, big mouth me, I yell out of the window, "Hey Tom! May I take your picture?" (yeah, I asked and said "may I"). He replied back "I'd rather you not, once the cameras start for the day they never end" and he kind of sighed. I said back to him "Thank you anyway, I was just getting ready to take a picture of the Inn" and he said "Just tell all your friends we talked". There were a few other sentences of banter but that was the jist of it. He was very nice but looked like the park had kicked his butt already that morning. It was barely 8:00 am, if then, he looked rough. So, I did NOT take his picture then but as I was taking pictures of the Inn (which was truly my intent to begin with) I did get his back side. I have four other witnesses who can vouch for me, this truly is Tom Brokaw (he's got the orange parka and the tan pants). Tom looked very, very tired. He didn't have any make up on and his face was very blotchy (he had super red cheeks like me). He didn't look like he had a good night at all.
FRIDAY:
Sadly, this was our last day of Cody. Of Cruella & the ol' Coyote..... so sad.
We were on the road shortly after dawn. Yawning and gassed up, we headed south towards Colorado. The drive home was long and challenging. Colorado kicked my ass. Denver, Colorado Springs..... damn. I could write about it but I'm exhausted and it's just not going to happen. LOL
SATURDAY:
We hit home around 10:00 pm and wow were we exhausted. We drove through Dodge City and Wichita today, a very long day. I'm glad to be home.
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Sooooooo much of life
It's Sunday night and I don't have Desperate Housewives or Brothers and Sisters to watch. I don't have any DVD's waiting to be viewed before I take them back. And there are no urgent things in my life so I find myself here, blogging.
Last weekend was in-fucking-tense.
Saturday I had a Pampered Chef party and even though my house wasn't dirty it wasn't clean. Bob took Miss Whineyhiney to Silver Dollar City at first light and I sat there, alone, in an empty house....... grinning ear to ear like the Cheshire cat.
I had made plans with my mom to come over and help me finish the cleaning. We bleached, we mopped, we folded, we vacuumed (with the Rainbow) and we crashed. I went to Wal-Mart for groceries for the recipe I had chosen, Spicy Shrimp Ceviche Cups, and for paper goods and what not for the party. Oh my gawd was I excited!! The last party I had thrown, a House of Lloyd party, had not turned out well and I was seriously doubting my sanity. (Seriously, the last party I had, the consultant FORGOT about me and she even called me the night before to remind me! UGH! So I sat there with a house full of people ready to buy shit and no seller..... oh yeah, a real fucking nightmare!!) Mom and I had the house cleaned and candles burning and oh it smelled yummy. The air conditioner was going so the house was almost too cold. I had my new trifle bowl on the table with ice in it (very creative if you ask me). I had cookies and cheese its, sodas and tea. I was ready. My table cloth was coordinated to match my cups, plates and napkins. I was ready! The consultant showed up at 4:00 as promised and things went well, very well. I had room for everyone who showed and I think we had a great time! I had one come late, two leave early and everyone else just stayed and had a few laughs, some good ceviche cups and a few laughs. I really was surprised. For a small party I don't think I did too bad, I had nearly $600 in sales and to me, that was awesome! I've even decided to become a Pampered Chef consultant. Yeah, I know, that is a big step, but hey, I might like it and if I don't I'll still have some really cool cooking gadgets that are all mine to play with!
I really liked my ceviche recipe, I can see me making those with other fillings. Very yummy, the pan is in the consultant kit that should be here Monday. Sweeeet.
After the party my new friend Dr. T invited me to go to the Stables with her. I'd been cleaning all day and really needed to get out so I decided to take her up on it. We had barely sat down and T hit $1,500.00 on a quarter machine. I nearly fell out of my chair I was so excited for her! She decided that we needed to celebrate so we headed to the bar and well, that's where my night gets a bit blurry. I had 2 glasses of wine and got completely drunk. I hadn't eaten dinner and that is a bad thing for someone like me. LOL
We'd only been at the casino for about 45 minutes when we decided to leave but Bob and MWH were home and I was drunk and it was not a warm homecoming. LOL Bob had never (in 17 years of marriage) seen me that drunk. I went straight to bed, I didn't give a rats ass about himor anything else. I had such a fantastic day and NOTHING was going to get me down. I woke up Sunday morning with a hang over. I hadn't had a hang over since I was about 15 or so, that is a weird feeling.
Bob wasn't too upset with me Sunday and considering we had a kitchen window to replace and he wanted my help he was pretty darn nice to me. LOL
It took forever, but he (we) got it in and it looks great. I even made curtains for it Tuesday (see previous post) and they still look great if you ask me!
The week at work went well. Busy, busy busy. I'm getting a new job soon and I'm terribly nervous. I'm going from the front reception desk to a desk in the back. I'll be a legal secretary again and I'm nervous and excited about it. I've been with this firm for a year this month and wow has time flown by!!!!!
Friday after work I went to babysit for a friend of mine. She fosters kids and the baby she has now is absolutely adorable. She is a chunk and giggles a lot. She's so spoiled but she's starting to get used to me....... finally.
We had made plans to go camping this weekend and it was after 9:00 before I met up with Bob and MWH at the dam. I'm so lucky, they got there early and set up the tent and it was all good to go. Sweet.
We woke up early Saturday morning to the sound of birds calling and other nature sounds, it was so refreshing. I slept so well Friday night. Bob had a nice fire going so I cooked catastrophe on the open fire in my cast iron dutch oven. It was amazing. I didn't burn it and everything tasted so yummy. After breakfast we all donned on our safety gear and loaded onto the ATV's and headed out to the wild blue yonder. The dam was still wet and muddy and we slid around like nobody's business. I ruined my Nikes (ok, I deliberately wore them so I would get them dirty and have an excuse to buy new shoes) in the mud and I giggled like an idiot when Bob slid around in the loose mud going up hill. We truly had a great morning. We headed back in to town to get some lunch and to buy some meat for dinner. We ate lunch at this little Mexican place and I had the best carne asada sandwich. I couldn't tell you the name of what I had but it was soooooooo yummy. Bob had crispy tacos and MWH had soft tacos, we all decided that place was definitely one to go back to! We bought cheesey hot dogs for dinner and headed back to camp to put our groceries in the cooler and change into our swim suits. We drove by Little Blue but it looked crowded so we headed over to the state park to swim. Holy shit the water was cold. Nipple hardening cold. It took me forever to wade out to where the water was up to my neck, I kept moving around for warm spots, obviously Bob wasn't peeing enough. LOL
We swam for about an hour and the beach seemed to triple with beachcomers so we headed back to camp to clean up. Our camp has hot showers and man that felt good!!!!! We cooked hot dogs and sat around the camp fire and read. Bob and MWH went for a ride and I read some more. I went and laid down in the tent and read until I fell asleep. It was heaven, pure heaven. They came back and we all went for another ride. The sky was blue, the air was cool and the wind was blowing perfectly. Every now and then though we'd see a bolt of lightening off in the distance....... giving us a hint of what was to come. We ignored the threats and rode on. I was riding with Bob and MWH was riding alone and grinning from ear to ear. A perfect day. We got to the end of our path and headed back and it started sprinkling. We were riding in the rain, smiling, enjoying the cool breezes and boom, it started pouring. I hopped off our ATV and got on with MWH while Bob raced back to camp to close the flaps on our tent. MWH and I rode back in the pouring rain and she was so happy. She just couldn't get enough. Bob came back and met up with us and we all rode in to camp together, parked the ATV's and hopped into the dry Jeep to towel off and laugh like hyenas!!!!!!!! That was sooooooooo much fun!
We went into town and had ice cream at Sonic and waited for the storm to blow over. It took about an hour but it did. The rain didn't get inside the tent and our beds were dry so we went to bed and had a good nights sleep (ok, maybe not Bob, but I sure as hell did). I'd had a great day, lots of good food, a great book, fresh air, a nice ride and my kid grinning from ear to ear on that last ride...... perfect.
Sunday we packed up and headed home. We were home and unpacked by 10:00 and Bob took a nap and I read my Sunday papers. Ah, heaven. I sorted through the first 3 boxes of my Pampered Chef orders and got them ready for delivery. MWH and I did loads and loads of laundry. And I fondled over items I should have bought but ran out of money before I could. LOL
The afternoon was also good, a typical Sunday Wal-Mart run for groceries followed by relaxation. We even decided to go to an afternoon movie. MWH saw Surf's Up while Bob and I saw Knocked Up.
It sounds like the storm is getting stronger, I think I'm going to get off here for now but I will be back, it may be a few days but I'll be back........
Last weekend was in-fucking-tense.
Saturday I had a Pampered Chef party and even though my house wasn't dirty it wasn't clean. Bob took Miss Whineyhiney to Silver Dollar City at first light and I sat there, alone, in an empty house....... grinning ear to ear like the Cheshire cat.
I had made plans with my mom to come over and help me finish the cleaning. We bleached, we mopped, we folded, we vacuumed (with the Rainbow) and we crashed. I went to Wal-Mart for groceries for the recipe I had chosen, Spicy Shrimp Ceviche Cups, and for paper goods and what not for the party. Oh my gawd was I excited!! The last party I had thrown, a House of Lloyd party, had not turned out well and I was seriously doubting my sanity. (Seriously, the last party I had, the consultant FORGOT about me and she even called me the night before to remind me! UGH! So I sat there with a house full of people ready to buy shit and no seller..... oh yeah, a real fucking nightmare!!) Mom and I had the house cleaned and candles burning and oh it smelled yummy. The air conditioner was going so the house was almost too cold. I had my new trifle bowl on the table with ice in it (very creative if you ask me). I had cookies and cheese its, sodas and tea. I was ready. My table cloth was coordinated to match my cups, plates and napkins. I was ready! The consultant showed up at 4:00 as promised and things went well, very well. I had room for everyone who showed and I think we had a great time! I had one come late, two leave early and everyone else just stayed and had a few laughs, some good ceviche cups and a few laughs. I really was surprised. For a small party I don't think I did too bad, I had nearly $600 in sales and to me, that was awesome! I've even decided to become a Pampered Chef consultant. Yeah, I know, that is a big step, but hey, I might like it and if I don't I'll still have some really cool cooking gadgets that are all mine to play with!
I really liked my ceviche recipe, I can see me making those with other fillings. Very yummy, the pan is in the consultant kit that should be here Monday. Sweeeet.
After the party my new friend Dr. T invited me to go to the Stables with her. I'd been cleaning all day and really needed to get out so I decided to take her up on it. We had barely sat down and T hit $1,500.00 on a quarter machine. I nearly fell out of my chair I was so excited for her! She decided that we needed to celebrate so we headed to the bar and well, that's where my night gets a bit blurry. I had 2 glasses of wine and got completely drunk. I hadn't eaten dinner and that is a bad thing for someone like me. LOL
We'd only been at the casino for about 45 minutes when we decided to leave but Bob and MWH were home and I was drunk and it was not a warm homecoming. LOL Bob had never (in 17 years of marriage) seen me that drunk. I went straight to bed, I didn't give a rats ass about himor anything else. I had such a fantastic day and NOTHING was going to get me down. I woke up Sunday morning with a hang over. I hadn't had a hang over since I was about 15 or so, that is a weird feeling.
Bob wasn't too upset with me Sunday and considering we had a kitchen window to replace and he wanted my help he was pretty darn nice to me. LOL
It took forever, but he (we) got it in and it looks great. I even made curtains for it Tuesday (see previous post) and they still look great if you ask me!
The week at work went well. Busy, busy busy. I'm getting a new job soon and I'm terribly nervous. I'm going from the front reception desk to a desk in the back. I'll be a legal secretary again and I'm nervous and excited about it. I've been with this firm for a year this month and wow has time flown by!!!!!
Friday after work I went to babysit for a friend of mine. She fosters kids and the baby she has now is absolutely adorable. She is a chunk and giggles a lot. She's so spoiled but she's starting to get used to me....... finally.
We had made plans to go camping this weekend and it was after 9:00 before I met up with Bob and MWH at the dam. I'm so lucky, they got there early and set up the tent and it was all good to go. Sweet.
We woke up early Saturday morning to the sound of birds calling and other nature sounds, it was so refreshing. I slept so well Friday night. Bob had a nice fire going so I cooked catastrophe on the open fire in my cast iron dutch oven. It was amazing. I didn't burn it and everything tasted so yummy. After breakfast we all donned on our safety gear and loaded onto the ATV's and headed out to the wild blue yonder. The dam was still wet and muddy and we slid around like nobody's business. I ruined my Nikes (ok, I deliberately wore them so I would get them dirty and have an excuse to buy new shoes) in the mud and I giggled like an idiot when Bob slid around in the loose mud going up hill. We truly had a great morning. We headed back in to town to get some lunch and to buy some meat for dinner. We ate lunch at this little Mexican place and I had the best carne asada sandwich. I couldn't tell you the name of what I had but it was soooooooo yummy. Bob had crispy tacos and MWH had soft tacos, we all decided that place was definitely one to go back to! We bought cheesey hot dogs for dinner and headed back to camp to put our groceries in the cooler and change into our swim suits. We drove by Little Blue but it looked crowded so we headed over to the state park to swim. Holy shit the water was cold. Nipple hardening cold. It took me forever to wade out to where the water was up to my neck, I kept moving around for warm spots, obviously Bob wasn't peeing enough. LOL
We swam for about an hour and the beach seemed to triple with beachcomers so we headed back to camp to clean up. Our camp has hot showers and man that felt good!!!!! We cooked hot dogs and sat around the camp fire and read. Bob and MWH went for a ride and I read some more. I went and laid down in the tent and read until I fell asleep. It was heaven, pure heaven. They came back and we all went for another ride. The sky was blue, the air was cool and the wind was blowing perfectly. Every now and then though we'd see a bolt of lightening off in the distance....... giving us a hint of what was to come. We ignored the threats and rode on. I was riding with Bob and MWH was riding alone and grinning from ear to ear. A perfect day. We got to the end of our path and headed back and it started sprinkling. We were riding in the rain, smiling, enjoying the cool breezes and boom, it started pouring. I hopped off our ATV and got on with MWH while Bob raced back to camp to close the flaps on our tent. MWH and I rode back in the pouring rain and she was so happy. She just couldn't get enough. Bob came back and met up with us and we all rode in to camp together, parked the ATV's and hopped into the dry Jeep to towel off and laugh like hyenas!!!!!!!! That was sooooooooo much fun!
We went into town and had ice cream at Sonic and waited for the storm to blow over. It took about an hour but it did. The rain didn't get inside the tent and our beds were dry so we went to bed and had a good nights sleep (ok, maybe not Bob, but I sure as hell did). I'd had a great day, lots of good food, a great book, fresh air, a nice ride and my kid grinning from ear to ear on that last ride...... perfect.
Sunday we packed up and headed home. We were home and unpacked by 10:00 and Bob took a nap and I read my Sunday papers. Ah, heaven. I sorted through the first 3 boxes of my Pampered Chef orders and got them ready for delivery. MWH and I did loads and loads of laundry. And I fondled over items I should have bought but ran out of money before I could. LOL
The afternoon was also good, a typical Sunday Wal-Mart run for groceries followed by relaxation. We even decided to go to an afternoon movie. MWH saw Surf's Up while Bob and I saw Knocked Up.
It sounds like the storm is getting stronger, I think I'm going to get off here for now but I will be back, it may be a few days but I'll be back........
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Fun!!!!!!!
This weekend was incredible for me. Mrs. Coach and I took our girls to Branson. We. Had. Fun. No men, no responsibilities, no regret! LOL
Mrs. C picked me and Miss Whineyhiney up first thing and we hit the road with both feet running. The girls were in a great mood, we were chatty and happy and the weather was outstanding! Our first stop was Silver Dollar City (as we all have season passes) and actually, the traffic wasn't too bad, just the last 3 miles or so was slow, not nearly as bad as when I chaperoned the chorus trip though! We entered the park and headed towards the Wildfire ride and Nati got stung by a bee. Poor child, she's allergic! Mrs. C comforted her and I sprang into first aid mode and asked a restaraunt for a food serving glove full of ice. Nati cried a bit but was fine after all the attention and ice and we went on, nothing was going to stop us from having a great day! We had honey sticks and walked and talked and made it to Wildfire. Mrs. C and I had never ridden it before, Mrs. C because she usually had to stay with the kiddos and me because I was too fat, so we left the girls to fend for themselves and we rode it together. Wildfire virgins we are not! That was soooooooo much fun, never had I ridden one like that before! WOW!!!!!!!! After our wild ride, Mrs. C rode it again with MWH so I could take a gander at the gift shop. I bet Nati will be tall enough next year though...... Although, there were kids smaller than her riding it, I just don't understand why parents are so freakin' stupid. Helloooooo, there is a minimum height requirement!
After plunging off of Wildfire and getting that milestone out of the way we walked more and headed over to the exposition area which is mostly for kids. We rode the kiddie swings and that was pretty much it for me. I'm so afraid of heights it's not even funny. I am OK if I'll die from the fall but if I'm just gonna get hurt and break something I don't want any part of it. I did NOT like those little kiddie swings at all. Nope. Not at all. MWH was next to me and I kept kicking her seat, the ride operator had to come over and show me how to put my seat thing on and it nearly embarrassed me but hell, I was having so much fun! I fit into the seat, the first time in about 20 years!!!!!!! He teased me about kicking MWH and said I'd better behave or he'd kick me off the ride. LOL That would have been right up my alley....... LOL
After the swings, I'd had enough of being lifted off the ground for a while so Mrs. C and I sat back and enjoyed the sun and the cool, spring breezes. We also gawked at the idiots around us and enjoyed our girls entertaining each other. That is such a great feeling, being able to sit and chat while your kids are safe, happy and having fun. Loved that part......
The girls rode tons of rides in the expo area and I cried. Ok, so I didn't cry but my eyes looked like I did. I had put on a ton of sun block and it was running down into my eyes and tearing me up. I kept washing my eyes but it wasn't helping. Mrs. C said it was probably the bushes around me and I think she was right. They smelled like body odor, NASTY!!!!!!!
Again we walked and talked and hit a few shops. Mrs. C found the mill and bought Mr. Coach some freshly milled flour and baking stuff so she can do some kitchen magic for him. The mill was really neat, they showed how they do it all and the girls thought it was neat! It smelled soooooooo good in there! YUM!
We had lunch at Mary's Springhouse, a little Italian eatery and it really was good. The food is really expensive but the portions were plenty big enough that MWH and I shared and still threw a lot away, I'm so glad we didn't get two meals! Actually, one dish would have probably served all 4 of us if we'd really thought about it. LOL
Next I think we went to the Lost River. We were in line for about 15 minutes or so and a ton of people in front of us left. They were all muttering that the ride was closed or that it was going to be a 2 to 3 hour wait. Mrs. C said they'd done that last time too and it wasn't that long...... so we waited. Poor Mrs. C and her ankle....... The line did seem to go on forever, we waited for right at an hour and finally did make it up to the raft. Just us 4, no one else, that was nice. Mrs. C and I got freakin' soaked, the girls, not so much..... Why is that? LOL They wanted it, we didn't!! LOL Ah, kids! Here is a pic of the girls on the rocks while we were waiting in line for the Lost River.
After that we did some more shopping and walking and bought some fresh pork rinds and talked more. We decided to hit the candy store and make our way out of the park. It was such a great day!!!!!!
It's hilarious too though how you run into people you know when you're on vacation. Mrs. C ran into a relative of hers, I know her from Girl Scouts and she's also a Mary Kay rep. I ran into a guy I went to grade school with, Brandy Williams, and his family. MHS's chorus and WRMS band was there so MWH saw lots of her friends. And I ran into Angie and her family as we were heading out!! Lots of people out and about, you just can't go anywhere anymore! LOL
We left the park and went to the Settle Inn to check into our room and unload before we hit the Landing. We were VERY impressed with our room, not bad for $59.98 plus tax! Here are some pics of the girls with the midevil statues.
Mrs. C picked me and Miss Whineyhiney up first thing and we hit the road with both feet running. The girls were in a great mood, we were chatty and happy and the weather was outstanding! Our first stop was Silver Dollar City (as we all have season passes) and actually, the traffic wasn't too bad, just the last 3 miles or so was slow, not nearly as bad as when I chaperoned the chorus trip though! We entered the park and headed towards the Wildfire ride and Nati got stung by a bee. Poor child, she's allergic! Mrs. C comforted her and I sprang into first aid mode and asked a restaraunt for a food serving glove full of ice. Nati cried a bit but was fine after all the attention and ice and we went on, nothing was going to stop us from having a great day! We had honey sticks and walked and talked and made it to Wildfire. Mrs. C and I had never ridden it before, Mrs. C because she usually had to stay with the kiddos and me because I was too fat, so we left the girls to fend for themselves and we rode it together. Wildfire virgins we are not! That was soooooooo much fun, never had I ridden one like that before! WOW!!!!!!!! After our wild ride, Mrs. C rode it again with MWH so I could take a gander at the gift shop. I bet Nati will be tall enough next year though...... Although, there were kids smaller than her riding it, I just don't understand why parents are so freakin' stupid. Helloooooo, there is a minimum height requirement!
After plunging off of Wildfire and getting that milestone out of the way we walked more and headed over to the exposition area which is mostly for kids. We rode the kiddie swings and that was pretty much it for me. I'm so afraid of heights it's not even funny. I am OK if I'll die from the fall but if I'm just gonna get hurt and break something I don't want any part of it. I did NOT like those little kiddie swings at all. Nope. Not at all. MWH was next to me and I kept kicking her seat, the ride operator had to come over and show me how to put my seat thing on and it nearly embarrassed me but hell, I was having so much fun! I fit into the seat, the first time in about 20 years!!!!!!! He teased me about kicking MWH and said I'd better behave or he'd kick me off the ride. LOL That would have been right up my alley....... LOL
After the swings, I'd had enough of being lifted off the ground for a while so Mrs. C and I sat back and enjoyed the sun and the cool, spring breezes. We also gawked at the idiots around us and enjoyed our girls entertaining each other. That is such a great feeling, being able to sit and chat while your kids are safe, happy and having fun. Loved that part......
The girls rode tons of rides in the expo area and I cried. Ok, so I didn't cry but my eyes looked like I did. I had put on a ton of sun block and it was running down into my eyes and tearing me up. I kept washing my eyes but it wasn't helping. Mrs. C said it was probably the bushes around me and I think she was right. They smelled like body odor, NASTY!!!!!!!
Again we walked and talked and hit a few shops. Mrs. C found the mill and bought Mr. Coach some freshly milled flour and baking stuff so she can do some kitchen magic for him. The mill was really neat, they showed how they do it all and the girls thought it was neat! It smelled soooooooo good in there! YUM!
We had lunch at Mary's Springhouse, a little Italian eatery and it really was good. The food is really expensive but the portions were plenty big enough that MWH and I shared and still threw a lot away, I'm so glad we didn't get two meals! Actually, one dish would have probably served all 4 of us if we'd really thought about it. LOL
Next I think we went to the Lost River. We were in line for about 15 minutes or so and a ton of people in front of us left. They were all muttering that the ride was closed or that it was going to be a 2 to 3 hour wait. Mrs. C said they'd done that last time too and it wasn't that long...... so we waited. Poor Mrs. C and her ankle....... The line did seem to go on forever, we waited for right at an hour and finally did make it up to the raft. Just us 4, no one else, that was nice. Mrs. C and I got freakin' soaked, the girls, not so much..... Why is that? LOL They wanted it, we didn't!! LOL Ah, kids! Here is a pic of the girls on the rocks while we were waiting in line for the Lost River.
After that we did some more shopping and walking and bought some fresh pork rinds and talked more. We decided to hit the candy store and make our way out of the park. It was such a great day!!!!!!
It's hilarious too though how you run into people you know when you're on vacation. Mrs. C ran into a relative of hers, I know her from Girl Scouts and she's also a Mary Kay rep. I ran into a guy I went to grade school with, Brandy Williams, and his family. MHS's chorus and WRMS band was there so MWH saw lots of her friends. And I ran into Angie and her family as we were heading out!! Lots of people out and about, you just can't go anywhere anymore! LOL
We left the park and went to the Settle Inn to check into our room and unload before we hit the Landing. We were VERY impressed with our room, not bad for $59.98 plus tax! Here are some pics of the girls with the midevil statues.
We went to the Branson Landing for dinner at Waxy O'Shea's and it was simply divine!! We walked and talked and saw a beautiful water and light show which is simply amazing. We did a little shopping, I can't say no to a Build-A-Bear store....... ever. I swear we have 5 animals (or is it 6 now?) and enough clothes to clothe a 3rd world nation. MWH's almost too big for BABW stuff but I'll never outgrow it! LOL
The girls were exhausted and ready to swim so we headed back to the castle, er um hotel, and swam a little. Mrs. C got the cutest swim suit! I'm so jealous. She's proportioned right and doesn't have all the lumps like me....... if I didn't like her so much I'd have given her dirty, go to hell looks and splashed her 'cause I'm mean like that........ LOL
I don't remember what time we crashed but let me tell you we all went to sleep fast, it didn't take long at all, everyone had spent every bit of energy we had running around all day!
Sunday we had the continental breakfast at the hotel lobby and I kid you not we were the youngest people in the room. There was a seriously tacky Elvis impersonator singing gospel and he was seriously not good. Seriously.
The Settle Inn has lots of theme rooms and Mrs. C wants to stay in the Gone With The Wind room so we asked the front desk to show us some of the theme rooms and that was entirely awesome! The GWTW room was booked so we didn't see it but I do believe we'll get a theme room the next time we go!
Our next stop was at the Amish store where we indulged in chocolate milk mix lots of other yummies. We headed back to the Landing so we could Ride the Ducks and finish up our shopping. The girls got to play "Captain". Here's MWH in the captain's seat! (I'm sure Mrs. C will put up Nati's pic too.)
We ate lunch at Famous Dave's and had the best freakin' BBQ I've had in years! YUMMOOOOOOO! Mrs. Coach and Nati sure do know how to pick 'em!
If you still haven't been to the Branson Landing you're really missing something. You've simply got to go. All I can say is that it's brought Branson into the 21st century. They have shops, REAL shops, not outlets. It has atmosphere and style. It's just very modern yet comfortable.
I know there was more that I wanted to share but it's Thursday and I've been working on this one single fucking post since Monday so I'm done.
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