I Love My Family!

My Kindergarten Graduate

I just have to say how fast time goes these days. My lil boy is graduating Kindergarten already.. I donno to whether to laugh, smile, cry, hold my head up or all of the above! It was just yesterday I was visiting him in the NICU everyday for 2 weeks praying for his lil butt to come home and him yankin a feeding tube out of his nose by himself , and dealing with his temper tantrums and the potty training, and here he is movin on to first grade in the fall! Boy this year went fast! Too fast! I had a baby , and even HE'S past the one year mark already! ssomebody stop the clock for just a minute so I can catch my breath and just stop and watch for just a fleeting moment please!! My Gahd! Where does the time go??! Congradulations baby Boy! You did it! Onto 1st grade we go!

Day at Universal

Yesterday we decided to to go to Universal Studios in Orlando.First We decided to pack the night before and lay our clothes out so we would just have to make breakfast and be on our way and get there early. Well, Thomas, As excited as he is, Wakes up at 6:30 in the morning, gets fully dressed, comes in our room, and says, "everybody, it's time to get up, " it' s time to get ready and leave..'" I was like {half asleep}" dude, it's 6:30 in the morning, the park doesn't open for another 3 hours.." He didn't care ,he was rarin to go ! So we got up and got ready to go - it was gonna take a couple hours to drive there anyway, by the time we got there it was 10 anyway, so he was right on time.. Back to the story,- What a blast! We decided to purchase the express pass for 30 bucks more that took us to the head of the line and not wait in line for the whole day on each ride- What a concept! The longest we waited was 5 min! Thomas had a blast ! Jaws came up right in his face! He nearly fainted on the spot!I wish I had pics for that but no cameras were allowed for the ride- bummer! Brendan Had a blast too- They had kiddie things for him so he had just as much fun!Thomas' favorite ride was the Spiderman ride of course but the 3 D rides I think were the coolest! Tom n Thomas went on this water ride that got them absolutely SOAKED to the bone! they were wet for the rest o fthe day! LOl Terminator 3d was cool- Thomas was reaching out to touch the robots that looked like they ere right n the audience, then Tom n Thomas went on an E.T. ride that you pedaled across the sky which sounded cool- I watched Brendan- we took turnes watching the baby and taking Thomas on rides so we both had fun going on rides and watching the baby . All in all it was a really nice day. We did the park hopper, so we did Islands of Adventure too-we did that first, then did Universal second. We ate at The Hard Rock Cafefor dinner and ate upstairs amongst The Who memorabilia and Woodstock stuff - Very Cool! They had awesome Food And we an awesome Day! Kids were passed out by the end of the day and was a silent ride home which is always nice for reflecting on the day and grabbing a moment of peace and quiet with your sweetie .;)

Happy Mother's Day '07

Today started out quite beautifully for Mother's Day if I do say so myself. Vibewise, as well as weather wise. Forecast called for hazy,partly sunny, but in the 90's no rain. Alhough we need it so desperately. My Mother's Day actually started last night, when Tom coooked me an AWESOME crab raviolli in vodka sauce dinner from scratch with shrimp which tasted just too good to say! I also recieved a dozen yellow roses, and wasn't allowed to lift a finger to do anything, so I took the time to give myself a manicure and pedicure. We watched T.v. with the kids, and went to bed and had fun. This morning , Thomas woke us up, and I was greeted with more presents { did I mention I LOVE getting presents?} I got a picture frame with a picture of Brendan and I from Brendan- TOO sweet! A shadow cutout and card from Thomas that he made in school that is WAY cool that I want to frame, and a star sapphire necklace from Tom {Brendan's birthstone} he was gonna do half amethyst { Thomas' birthstone} and half star sapphire, but it had to be ordered, so he did all star sapphire- I love it- I love ALL my presents I feel so lucky to have such Awesome men in my life! After that, we had breakfast, and got ready for church, then after church we went to the marina where there's fountains and a park there to play at so the boys had a ball playing at the park and cooling off from the heat splashing in the fountains. Then after that { 4} it was time to head home and think about dinner . We decided we'd pick up some subs from the supermarket and some chips and call it a night and Tom would play some X Box with Thomas, and I would chill with the baby. All in all I would have to say it's been a great Mother's Day. Now to pop Brendan in his swing with a cup of milk, wrap up loose ends, put on Home Makeover and my day to night is just perfect. I couldn't have asked for a better Mother's Day if I tried except to have spent it with my family up north. Someday, Someday.

Bathtime For Two

Tonite the boys took a bath together to save some time so they could wind down and get ready for bed and I could actually watch some t.v and have some me time without it getting too late and get to bed at a decent hour. Brendan brought in his Little people I had from This Fisher Price train set I bought off Ebay, and Thomas just hung and splashed around. They love each other to death its so great to have them get along so well! Even in the tub. Usually, I'll wash Brendan and have Thomas jump in, But this time he wanted to take a bath w/ him so I was like fine by me! Now The little one's out cold and ready to be put in his crib, and Thomas is about to be put to bed. I finally can watch my Thursday shows in peace! Thomas is a little leery because theres a lizard lurking around his room and he's afraid to go to sleep afraid itll attack him in the middle of the night!LOL .I told him it's more afraid of you than you are of it- you're like a giant to it so just relax and go to sleep. He was cool with that logic. Having two boys has its perks I guess - save on water by bathing them at the same time.. Only for a while though I'm sure ...

First Time Swimming '07

Today we went to Thomas' friend Alex's house after school for a playdate. At first it was just going to be just Thomas, but since Tom is out of town on business, Alex's mom Maureen said, "why don't you and the baby come over too, and you can relax and jump in the pool and have some fun for for a couple hours, and Brendan can play here , we've got lots of toys to play with" . At first I was Like" I donoo" this is Thomas' time" But then Thomas asked if I was gonna come, so I guess that made it alright. It DID seem like fun. I had nothing to do anyway , And I DO love hangin' out in the pool! So I said Why not! While he was in school , I made up a bag to take along, - lil swimmers for Brendan, a bathing suit for him, extra clothes,diapers, snacks, bra n stuff for me, sun lotion, extra clothes for Thomas, his swim suit, all the necessities for a fun time. all I needed was a swimsuit- the ones I had were thongs and bikinis and weren't really appropriate to wear to a playdate s house if get what i mean- un cooth. So I went to Walmart and picked up a onepice my age and style. Even Thomas said Nice Mom! now you look like a lady! LOL that could be a good thing or a bad thing! I've been dressing like a Ho in front of my kid for X amount of years it been too embarrassing for him to say, or what! Any way, I'm NOT gonna go dressin like a Hoochie momma to my kids playdates- thats just wrong - I got more class than that! I wasn't raised on no Jerry Springer show { which I HATE By the way! } So i got one the day before and had the bags ready so when I picked him up, we'd go straight to Alex's house which was right on the way home. Boy were they excited! They were yelling and shouting and beaming with excitement they couldn't control themselves! LOL Thomas wanted to ride in Alex's car, so I gave him his carseat and said why not, and followed them there. We got there in 5 minutes or less. Had a snack, and Brendan made himself at home with the toys on the back lanai. He was in heaven! The boys ran around with plastic swords playing pirate and Bionicles, and Maureen and I sat and chatted and played with Brendan. It finally came time for the kids to go in the pool . They had a BALL! At first Thomas was a little leery, because he has this thing about getting his face wet, but once he saw how much fun Alex was having, he forgot all about that . They gave him this swim vest, as he can't swim all that well and is a bit skittish of the water,{ but soon forgot about that too} and was soon jumping in the water and doing the Cha- cha and swirling around on Alex's back and almost going into the deep end ! He didn't want to come out after a while! After an hour and a half, the water rats finally came out . As for Brendan, his first time in a pool, I think I'll have a Navy Seal on my hands! He was sticking his face in the water, blowing bubbles, laughing, floating on his back, kicking his feet, getting his head wet,floating on his stomach, just lovin every minute he was IN the pool! I wish I had pics of it, but its hard to take pictures when you gotta hold the baby as well. So pics of him are limited but he had the time of his life! I enrolled them both in swim class at the end of May, so that looks like they're both going to do very well if this keeps up. Dad has a friend with a pool up north when we go visit him after school's out, so I at least have an idea how they'll do when we go visit in a month. So first time swimming turned out to be a big success. I look forward to many more of these successes down the road if this keeps up- hopefully if life treats us well maybe someday we can get a pool of our own someday. Wouldn't that be something? That would just be awesome!

We Need Rain!

I was getting Thomas ready for school this moring and taking out the trash and recyclables when I noticed the neighborhod smelled like smoke! I thought one of the neighbor's houses was on fire. It didn't look that way, but smelled it, . The sky was also very hazy, and the lake across the street is also VERY bone dry. We SO need rain her it's not even funny. There has been a forest fire up in Georgia for the last few weeks that has annihilated THOUSANDS of acres in Waycross I believe it is like 100,000 I think its up to so far, that the smoke is travelling all the way down to the Tampa Bay area. I asked our neighbor if HE smelled it and he said it was a forest fire in Sarasota . Which I believe, but on the radio, they said if you woke up to smelling smoke, it was the Georgia fire and the winds carrying it down to the Tampa Bay area which I can believe as well. It can also be the combination of the two as well. There was this weekend some thunder rollling through because it was so hot - like 95 degrees , and read there was some lightning, so there was probably some lightning that hit some dry ground and sparked some more fires since we've had like NO rain yet and this is SUPPOSED to be our rainy season right now! Here's a link of the deal so far of what's going on so I'm not making this up http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18541799/ Maybe I'll try and start doin a rain dance soon if these wilfires dont let up because as much as I love the sun, WE NEED RAIN!! And SOON! Before sunny Florida becomes Blackened Florida! Gonna have to chabnge the name from the Plywood state to the wildfire state.

Off to San Fran

This morning Tom left for traveling for work again. Kind of a long one- A Week long. He left for San Francisco. Lucky dog. I hear it's really pretty out there,. I also hear there's not so pretty parts as well- Like homeless people strewn all over and and gangs and such , but that's pretty much all over . The last time he went, He brought home some really nice pictures. So I don't see what he's whining about. Its all business, like conferences and meetings but I know for a fact he's going to dinners and even taking in a baseball game paid by the company so it can't be all that bad! I hope he has a good flight there and back. He woke up at 3 this morning, took a shower, left at like 4 to be at the Tampa airport by 5 :15,had a 6:00 flight, landed in Dallas by 9:00, called me then and now I believe is headed to San Francisco which its now 11:30.Basically an 8 hour flight- BORRRRing! Hope he gets to eat or sleep or SOMETHING!As for me, I already was encountered by Jehovah's witnesses this morning at my door- I told them I go to church, but that didn't stop them as they tried to preach to me anyway.. I told them I was working so they left me pamphlets and told me theyd be back- Joy. ;Rolleyes. I can't stand them they're as bad as telemarketers only on foot. So it's Me n the boys this week . The separation of Me n Tom will be good for us - the last few months have been bumpy- we were ready to have a smack down. W ith money being tight, and bills the way they are, and things getting at us, cabin fever is setting in and well, we need this little break. So he's off and I'm in charge of the lil ones. Hope we have fun. I know Thomas is gonna try and take advantage of me as usual - not this time- no more games- I'm on to him. He gets outta line I just hit him where it hurts. In the box- the X Box - just take it away, and hes putty in my hands. Plus I'm DETERMINED to get that kid to ride his bike! I didn't buy him a bicycle for his birthday so it can become a mountain for the spiders in the garage! He's gonna get out there and ride it and lose those training wheels dammit! He's 6 years old for God's sake! When I was six, my mom held onto the back of my bike, and helped me ride it, I crashed ito a tree, but got right back on and rode it , till I was jumping curbs and riding it like a horse! And he's gonna do the same! This weeks gonna be fun! We'll make daddy proud! No son a mine's gonna become an indoor hermit! It's beautiful out there and we're gonna take advantage of the nice weather when he comes home!

Lets Go Bye Bye's

Today Brendan was DYING to get out of the house and go somewhere- ANYWHERE! It was too cute! He has been that way lately. As soon as he sees me or Tom pick up our keys, He hightails it toward the door! Once we were joking around with him said "Brendan wanna go Bye Bye?" and he was like a dog going after an invisible stick just hightailing it to the door, and when he got there, he turned around and was waiting for us to come too so we could put him in his carseat and go somewhere! I felt so bad, I had to think of somewhere to go just to make it up to him. LOL . So I asked, Do we need anything? Maybe for supper? make a southwest salad? I'll go up and get some tomatoes and peppers and cukes and olives and lettuce and onions- got chicken at home, and take him with me for the ride..poor thing - he just LOVES going for rides! I think I found me a new shopping buddy! Just bring a drink and hes good to go -doesnt complain, loves the view and the people LOVE his eyes- he's a people person if I ever saw one - he puts a smile on every persons face that we come across.. My little sweetheart.He can come with me anytime.

Misrun Charity

Lately I just don't get it. And apparently, neither do they! What am I talking about you say? Charities. For a while, I was really on a giving spree. I was just in a really contributing kick- not that I could really affford it either; something just got a hold of me and when the charity felt right,to me,I gave to it. Like Cystic Fibrosis -My friend Tony Jackson from when I was like 11 years old died from it, March of Dimes, myself and brother were both preemies as well as a friend whos daughter was born at 25 weeks. FLorida PBA- My brother's a cop- Epilepsy Foundation- I have a seizure disorder- you get the picture. There's others that have no connection that just came out of the woodwork I guess they saw in the system I was giving and wanted to jump on the bandwagon and suck me dry too. so I figured why not like D A R E - Drug Abuse Resistance Education, Kids wish network and St Judes . But now more and more Charities aren't seeing a penny from their earnest contributors like myself -like D A R E and Kids Wish Network .Alot of the money isnt making it to their destinations - its going to circulations and bills and such and not where its SUPPOSED to go to the charity itself which is sad which is what Kids Wish network 's issue is. [20/20} so i cut them off.and now DA R E isn't owning up to their charity either they aren't seeing much of a dime, so I cut them off as well. I decided Hell, no more. Everyon'e getting cut off if this is the case until further notice! It's sadbecause so many needy people and kids need this money and people- STUPID greedy irresponsible people gotta go and screw the system up. I guess in the long run it saves me a bunch of money, but it's really a shame actually. I wonder where all the money is actually going when you figure all the people donating and the majority of the money isn't even actually making it to some of these charities. Some of the others ARE legit-don't get me wrong- not ALL of them are scammers, in fact the majority are run extremely professional for years,there's just some that that just blew it big time! I just stopped donating because I felt so betrayed. Ah well, whaddaya gonna do? Ya gotta get burned to learn I guess...