Doin' a little happy dance!

Dun.. dun.. dun... :::with a dramatic flourish::: I now have HIGH SPEED INTERNET... and digital cable and telephone (but those aren't as important!). Been rather giddy tonight, and I'm not one bit sorry for it either. I now have four email addresses too, but who's counting.

The best part of getting high speed... watching the cutie crawl under my computer desk. Oh, come on, you know you look too... no matter how happily you're married! He knew I was happily married and gave me a cute wink when he caught me looking... and that's ALL, thank you very much!

Yes, yes, yes... I'm rather hyper right now... deal with it! LOL
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Happy Belated Mother's Day to all the moms out there! Thanks for wishing me one on time.. if you know me you know I'm almost ALWAYS late... sorry.

And Amy, isn't it great that our guys want to better themselves? I'm so proud of him my buttons could just pop right off! And the 6 year old seemed to get over it pretty quick... the 3 year old too, although we had a harrowing experience when Daddy thought he was all better and gave him ice cream! BLECH! I'm feeling quite a bit better, thank you for asking! See below... :-)

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YAY... the creeping Ickies seem to have worked their way through our house and out the door! It seems to have been a rather quick "little-over-24-hour" type flu. I was still a bit weak after the fact, but only had about a day of the real icks... same for the rest of the family. It seems that me and DH felt the effects of it much longer than the boys did. They didn't seem to have any of the lingering weakness that DH and I both experienced... which was a bit frustrating on our parts when we were still so weak and the monkey boys were ready and raring to go!

Thanks, everyone, for your thoughts! I'm just glad it's moving on so quickly... don't know what I'd have done if it hung on like some of the other bugs we've caught before.

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And now for a less than upbeat note... I don't understand the way some people's brains work. What makes it okay in their minds to stomp on someone else's dreams/ideas/wishes and make them to feel as though they have no real value?

I'm not speaking for myself (at least not it this case) but for a friend and fellow author. Let's just say that she brought up a less than supportive person who was supposed to be otherwise and leave it at that! Okay, not entirely leave it at that, but how can another woman tell someone that they shouldn't do something based entirely on their sex? Hello! :::taking a deep breath:::

Anyway, I just couldn't understand why someone would systematically break another down just so that they could feel better (? at least I think that may be why she did it?). GAH, okay I'm done with my little rant (and a much shorter rant than it was originally let me tell you!). On to nicer things... lol.

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Your Stripper Song Is

Dirrty by Christina Aguelera "Too dirrty to clean my act up If you ain't dirrty You ain't here to party" You're so dirty, you make Christina look clean.

What Song Should You Strip To?

*SIGH* Alright, FINE, be that way...

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Today's kiddie quote:

"But, Mommy, I want a banana... let HIM have the chocolate!"

WOW... knock me over with a feather! Who knows my kids? Wanna take a guess at which one gave me this gem?

When it rains... it pours!

Cliche... I know... but it suits. I was looking at Marianne's blog and realized... it's been WAY too long since I updated my own and I can't say as I really have the time now... but here I am. LOL

A few months before the baby was born, DH was given an opportunity to earn his Master's Degree in Public Administration. His work will pay for everything (even books!) so how in the world could we even consider passing up this opportunity? We couldn't, that's how! SO... shortly before that our desktop PC had crashed... we still have my laptop, but our internet connection is dial up. When he has assignments or discussion questions due he needs to use my laptop to get his schoolwork done. Now, maybe a part of me is selfish as I get very frustrated when he commandeers my laptop and I have to sit back and wait for him. I get behind (I HATE being behind!) in my AABH duties and in my reviewing and writing... uurrgghh! Our PC has been in repairs for what feels like forever but there does seem to be an end in sight. I think all we're waiting on is a hardrive with a compatible operating system. At least, I think that's what DH said.

Another HUGE plus... WE are getting High Speed Internet on TUESDAY!! WOO HOO! I bugged DH and told him it would SO help with my AABH stuff and his schoolwork (which was forcibly driven home today when he couldn't get his homework assignment to load before the session timed out) so it's a go for Tuesday! HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY TO ME!

So, today I'm running behind on reviews and other stuff but hope to get it at least partially caught up in the next day or so.

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Then again... things may not go the way I'd like!

DH was up all night the other night with ... um the ickies... let's just say he had a very intense conversation, several in fact, with Mr. Commode and leave it at that. The part that I worried about... he NEVER gets sick. So, something has to be super virulent for him to show any symptoms from it!

My fears were realized tonight as my 6 year old came trotting down the hall holding his stomach. At least he's old enough to recognize when he's going to hurl and we were able to get him to the bathroom before a mess was made all over the house. Now, he's my more fragile child, he usually gets ill the quickest and stays ill the longest, but not everyone always gets sick with him. So while it sucks that he's sick, it's not necessarily a given that everyone else will get it... just a probability right now.

SO... no church tomorrow with my angels singing "Mommy" songs to me... and probably no dinner at Mom's house. But, that's a part of being a mother along with the wonderful times. I just hope the poor thing doesn't stay sick for too long, as I hate seeing my children in pain.

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I don't have a kiddie quote today... I'm just too flutterbrained right now to remember any that don't involve the creeping ickies! Sorry, hopefully next time!

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Your Superpower Should Be Manipulating Fire

You are intense, internally driven, and passionate. Your emotions are unpredictable - and they often get the better of you. Both radiant and terrifying, people are drawn to you. At your most powerful, you feel like the world belongs to you. Why you would be a good superhero: You are obsessive enough to give it your all Your biggest problem as a superhero: Your moodiness would make it difficult to control your powers

What Should Your Superpower Be?

*SNICKER* Evil-doers... BEWARE!!!

Just because... well it looked like fun!

Okay, first - Marianne: You laughed again, though didn't you?; Amy: *sigh* I know, I have one older brother and a couple younger boy cousins... they continue to gross me out!; Brat.. er Briana - Well... like I said... I think it depends on who I've been hanging out with at the time of taking the test... or how many Hot Bod pics I've been looking at for the Fun Friday Captions! *snicker* I'll bet if I retook it again it would be NC-17! :-)

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Snagged this meme from Judy who snagged it from Groovy, and I just thought it looked like fun... so:

A meme about ME!

A meme from the Cozy Reader

1. Go to http://www.photobucket.com/
2. Type in your answer to the question in the “search” box
3. Use only the first page
4. Insert the picture into your Blog.

1. What is your current relationship stat?


2. What is your current mood?


3. What is your favorite band singer?
Yeah, that's right... Evanescence!

4. What is your favorite movie?


5. Where do you live?


6. Where do you work?


7. What do you look like?


8. What do you drive?
97 Dodge Avenger

9. What is your favorite TV show?


10. Describe yourself?


11. What are you doing today?



12. What did you do last night?


13. What is your name?
Chris

Ok, that's it... I had fun. Talk to y'all later.

Gimme a ReBeL Yell !!!!

So, I know it's been a bit since I updated... it has just been SUPER crazy around here lately. Will get into all that in a minute.

First, thanks Marianne, Amy and Marty for your responses. It's nice to know I'm not the only one who has feelings of envy even though we're happy for our friends' successes.

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Now, for the ReBeL Yell!!! Over the weekend several of my friends from the RBL Romantica Message Board and website came into Vegas for the yearly RBL sleepover. What a fun group of ladies who love books as much as I do. Here we are:


Front Row: (from left to right)Linda, Rosie, Sandra, Debbie & Ann - Back Row: (left to right) Briana, Me(Chris), Kandy, Bo & Barb

While they were here we went to dinner a couple times and hung out in their hospitality suite. We had a book exchange and I got a couple books from a new-to-me author that looks pretty good: Christine Warren. They've since been added to my almost out of control TBR pile and I'm looking forward to reading them ... whenever I have the time. LOL


Fun in the hospitality suite....

And we did a picture frame exchange where we each brought a frame and it was exchanged... you know the type of exchange where one person picks then the next person can "steal" any previous frames that were opened or pick one of the unopened packages. This is notoriously hilarious as some of us try to hide our frames if we loved em and don't want to give them up... and others steal just to "welcome" a newbie to the group!


Me and the Brat... a.k.a. my sister!

It was great to see the ladies and to spend time with my sister, who came into town to meet our new baby and meet the RBL ladies as well. It was a blast and fun was had by all! LOL


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In honor of my RBL sisters... I HAD to take this test:

Your Mind is PG-13 Rated

Your mind is definitely a little dirty. You're naughty, but not trashy. You don't shy away from a dirty joke, and you're clearly not a prude.

Do You Have a Dirty Mind?

Hmmm.... I think this one is subjective... I have been accused on more than one occasion of hanging out way too much in the gutter. *snort* Maybe it depends on the company I'm keeping at the time! :-)
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Last time's Kiddie Quote was: "My head, we clocked 'em!" and no one even ventured a guess as to the question behind that one. Basically, I heard my 3 year old screaming and he came running out of the playroom saying his brother hit him. I promptly jumped all over big brother's case, "What did you hit him with?!" The above was his answer as to what he had hit his brother with. Kind of hard to be mad at them for getting out of hand when you're laughing!

Today's quote doesn't have a question that goes with it, but it's pretty darned funny.

Kiddie Quote: "Mommy, I had a HUGE fart in my butt!"

I'm not kidding I swear he said that!

So that's that... at least for today.

I am so jealous!!!!

Have you ever been jealous? You know, not covetous but jealous, like you wish it were you but you're happy for the other person?

I have a few things I'm feeling a bit jealous about. Okay, the other day my friend Michele came back from vacation (the first thing I'm jealous of...) and promptly got signed up for high-speed Internet (the second thing I'm jealous of). *sigh* I haven't had a vacation, despite what my bosses think, in a long time because taking time off to have a baby is NOT a vacation! And, I would so love if my DH finally got on the danged ball and actually signed up for the high-speed Internet he's been "talking" about for the past four months. But, I love to see how Michele is so excited about her new capabilities, and she makes me giggle each time she figures something else out. I think I'm just as excited for her as she is for herself.

Then, my dear friend Marianne gets another contract for one of her books... and I'm jealous again, but in a great way. I'm incredibly happy for her and I can't wait to read this one. She says, "So when do I get to celebrate with you?" So, not so jealous as to begrudge someone their happiness, but wishful that it will happen to me soon. The good kind of jealous, the motivating kind where I can be happy and supportive of my friends while hoping the same will happen for me soon. Guess I need to keep on plugging away at my stories and get a move on so Marianne can celebrate with me one day!

Does anyone else know what I'm talking about? It's not a bad thing, just a motivating thing... you know?

Dancing, Flowers and Pain Pills.... OH MY!

Alright, I figured I needed to update this... as I know it's been a bit since I did so. But, I'm just drawing a blank right now. Probably has something to do with the pain pills and Benadryl that I took earlier. *sigh* Aha, inspirations strikes!

I started up my dance classes this past week, after being gone for four months to have a baby and recover. Part of me was so happy to be back in the studios, I really missed my girls and was gratified to see that they missed me too. Another part of me though, wasn't as excited and just wanted to be back at home writing or working on reviews or playing with my kids! Does anyone else ever feel like things that used to be our favorite things to do have suddenly become chores?

I'm hoping that I can maybe change up what I do in class and get the excitement back again. Dancing has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember, and I just hate it that it seems so trying now. Gah, enough whining, I'll figure it out. LOL.
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So, I was wondering about something:

Has anyone ever seen a rose like this before?



My poor mom had to have knee surgery to repair a pretty severe meniscus tear. When we went to make dinner for her and my dad tonight, she had this gorgeous bouquet of flowers on the table. They were given to her by a family friend to keep her spirits up while she is basically bed-ridden as her knee heals. Anyone who knows my mother knows she doesn't handle inactivity well (something we have in common... lol), so the flowers and the books I brought her to read were to keep her distracted a bit.



Isn't that bouquet gorgeous? I know that the flowers are Tiger Lilies and Roses, but I'd love to know how they got the rose to have that color striation. Was it grown that way? Or, is it like with Carnations how you can let them soak in colored water and the petals take on the color of the water? If it's the second... how in the world did they do that? Either way, I think it's utterly gorgeous!

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From Marianne's blog the other day:

Your Inner Child Is Surprised

You see many things through the eyes of a child. Meaning, you're rarely cynical or jaded. You cherish all of the details in life. Easily fascinated, you enjoy experiencing new things.

How Is Your Inner Child?

This about says it all! Maybe because I love to see through my kids' eyes? Or... it could be that I'm sometimes a great big kid myself and am usually easily amused.
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Last time's Kiddie Quote was self-explanatory for my sister. The question that prompted that response ("Ummm... Mommy is!") came from my DH. He was ranting a bit at the boys about how they just don't listen... well, yeah, they're kids! LOL Anyway, in the middle of his rant he asked, "Who in the heck do YOU think is the boss around here?" It made me laugh when I saw that all the wind just slipped from his sails! Now, it's a standard answer when anyone asks who's the boss in our house. I swear, it's not true... :::batting lashes:::

Today's Kiddie Quote:

"My head... we clocked 'em."

Can you guess the question behind that gem?

MY signs of Spring...

So, I've been visiting some of my friends' blogs and they're all talking about the signs of Spring all across the country. I know that I've already sort of addressed this, but it got me thinking... what do I consider the signs of Spring?

Now, I don't have a garden, I haven't ever really liked having my hands in the dirt... yeah yeah, I know... I am SUCH a girly girl, but at the same time I love flowers and have even gone so far as to get flower seeds and soil to plant in the little patch by my front door. *sigh* But something always comes up... usually my children.

We DO have sagebrush in our front yard, and they have some gorgeous purple flowers that bloom after it rains. I guess one sign of Spring is when the flowers on the sagebrush start to bloom, without rain.


This is one of the sagebrush in our yard just starting to bloom. See how pretty that color is.

And I was still thinking... What else do I consider a sign of spring? And it came to me... (now cover your eyes if feet make you squeamish):


Okay, you can uncover them again. It's warm enough that I get to pull my poor abused feet out of those stifling tennis shoes and put on my open toed sandals (these are wedges as I HAVE to add a few inches) and paint my toenails. Nevermind the fact that I have dancer's feet, besides... they don't look like they used to when I was dancing all the time, I just love changing my toenail colors to match my moods! A different color at least every week, sometimes every other day! Those things to me are signs of Spring.

Sorry if the foot picture freaked anyone out... :-)

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I'm heading to the dentist in the morning, and I am NOT a person who goes easily to the dentist. A couple of bad experiences when I was younger have basically given me a phobia. My wonderful DH went the extra mile and found a dentist for us that is actually a good friend of ours, so he's gentle and understanding and gives me Xanax before I have to come in for major work!

Well, the problem tonight? I don't get any premedication this time... I have to be able to drive myself to the dentist in the morning so that DH can get the kids off to school on time. *sigh* I guess I can take solace in the fact that it doesn't seem likely that what is wrong will be anyting major (sounds like a quick fix) so hopefully I won't have too much time to get myself worked up. We'll see how well I'm doing when I get home tomorrow!
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Last time's Kiddie Quote came from my three-year old. When I called him on the fact that he had ahold of his Easter basket full of candy, which he had been told was off-limits due to the sugar rush he had recently experienced! When I told him to put the basket back, he very innocently told me that he only wanted to carry his basket around the house. How ignorant do our kids think we are? It did however make me smile as I took the basket away from him and emptied all the candy from it and then handed it back to him. "Well, I don't want it now!" he huffed. *snort* Yeah, that's what I thought!

Today's Kiddie Quote:

"Umm... Mommy is!"

Yeah, I know, you have no idea what this means, but there is a story behind it... you'll just have to come back later and see!