Lord, I'm much too young to feel this damn old....

Sing it to me, Garth Brooks!

I am way to old to stay out so late and get up so early. Well, I didn't choose to get up early, let me rephrase. I'm to old to stay out late and Hank wake me up at ten after seven on a Saturday morning.

Oh well. I'm awake. The coffee has been brewed and I'm starting to function.

I have to say, we had a great time. Joe, Saundra and I went to a little bar to watch a friend of Saundra's play in her band. The beer was cold, the drinks were fruitty, and the music was rockin'

A good time was had by all!

And, tonight it's our monthly Girls' Night Out. I'm going to need a nap before then, that's for Oh, as a side note, I found a great dress for the Kentucky Oaks. Now, it's time to work on the hat.

I'm going to have another cup of coffee and start laundry. And, nap.

Peej

I love this child. But, he drives me insane.

He's an incredible kid. He's smart. He makes good grades. He's a great little brother. He's an awesome big brother. He has great manners. But, he drives me insane! He's compassionate and kind. He makes me laugh hysterically. He loves his family. But, he drives me insane. He's funny and handsome. He's stubborn. He's determined. He still calls me "Momma".....

He drives me insane. He also makes me smile.

Just Say NO!!

Girl Scout cookies are like crack in a box! They are pure evil. I can't just eat one or two. I eat half the box, at a very minimum. I do believe I had an entire sleeve of Thin Mints for breakfast yesterday. Oh, you know you've done it, too! My reasoning was this: if I hurry up and eat them all to get them out of the house, there will be no more temptation! Hey, it sounds good in theory!

Until, the next time I go to the grocery and sweet, darling Girl Scouts innocently ask, "Would you like to buy some cookies?"

It's a vicious cycle that in time I hope to break, but until I am that strong, I'll look at those sweet little Girl Scouts pushing their crack and say, "I'll take a box of Samaos!"

The problem with well laid plans...

Most government offices are closed today in honor of Presidents' Day. My office, however, is not. I would have liked to have been off today. It seems today was another Monday morning where I look around the house and think of all the things that I meant to do over the weekend, and didn't.

This weekend was busy. Saturday we ran some errands, went to a birthday party, and then Joe & I went to Louisville to see 'Mamma Mia' at the Kentucky Center. It was GREAT! I will definitely go again when it comes back to the area. Our original plan was to leave early and go have dinner before the show at The Olde Spaghetti Factory. I was looking forward to this as much as the show itself. But, like most well laid plans, that didn't happen. We stayed to long at my little buddy Jenna's birthday party. By the time we got on the road, we realized we weren't going to have time. So, our yummy dinner at the Spaghetti Factory turned into a quick stop at Arby's! Not what I had in mind, but the stop at Krispy Kreme after the show almost made up for it. Really, is there anything better than a warm Krispy Kreme donut at midnight?

Yesterday, the plan was to buy a new couch. We realized the sectional that we wanted was just too large for our living room. Like most well laid plans, that didn't happen. We scraped the sectional idea, and settled for just a regular size sofa. The money that we saved ended up going towards a new dining room table & chairs. That wasn't in the plan at all. But, I'm very happy with our purchase. I have been wanting a new table, but said that it could wait. Sometimes, I'm just not very good at waiting.

Due to our change in furniture purchases yesterday, we had to do more shuffling and rearranging than we had anticipated. That in turn, lead to not getting all the laundry washed & put away. Again, those well laid plans.... they just never turn out the way I had planned!

That brings me back to wishing I was off today. That way, I could get the laundry done, the bathrooms clean, and everything else that I meant to do and didn't.

I have a new toy!

Last night, in a moment of weakness, I let Joe talk me into buying a new camera. I have been wanting a 'big boy camera' for quite some time, but couldn't justify buying one. I still can't. But, that's neither here nor there, because I have one sitting on the table. I can't wait to start playing with it. I'm going to be a picture taking fool!

Happy Valentine's Day

This picture has been named one of the most iconic kisses in history. I just love this picture. Always have. Because of the era, it reminds me of my grandparents. I wonder if that's how my grandfather kissed my grandmother after WWII. Because of the military uniform, it reminds me of all the welcome home celebrations Joe & I had while he was in the Army.

I can remember every detail from every welcome home ceremony. I can tell you what I wore, what the weather was like, what time they said Joe would arrive, and what time he actually arrived. The old Army motto of "hurry up and wait" was never more true than when the wives are waiting for their soldiers to come home!

Who says Valentine's Day has to be February 14th? Ask any wife who has had that first welcome home kiss after a deployment, and she'll agree that day is the most romantic day of the year.

EDIT: Today has been wedding day at work. And, I have to say, it has been a romantic day. I have loved the couples that have made today their wedding day. One couple, was a sweet, young couple that was full of hope and promise. I could tell they truly loved each other, and Iwish them a lifetime of happines. Another couple made me smile from ear to ear. They're both in their mid-seventies and widowers. I knew the bride in a round about way, their family farm is less than two miles from Mom & Dad's house and everyone on that end of the county knows that family. She's a spitfire! She's the momma of all boys, she cusses like a sailor, she's outspoken and runs their farm better than any man ever could. She can bake a loaf of bread that melts in your mouth, and she can tell you everything there is to know about delivering calves. To see her come in my office all dolled up in her pale pink suit with baby's breath in her hair made me giggle. When I told her who I was she grabbed me in a big hug and said, "Oh honey, I haven't seen you in years!" ..how can that not make you smile?

She made me the photographer, and told the magistrate performing the wedding, "I don't know why you're so nervous, this isn't my first rodeo!" It was however, the first wedding ceremony that he has performed since taking office.

To have a 70-something-plus couple come in to get married and witness how happy and full of joy they are, it is romantic. It made my heart swell.

Oh, Hankadoo!

Yesterday, as we were leaving the high school, Hankadoo looks over at the football field, and says, "Someday, I'm going to play on that field!"
It wasn't so much what he said, as the way he said it that worried me. I could see the drive in his eyes, and hear the determination in his voice. He was serious, he meant it. I think he set a goal for himself yesterday in the back of the van looking at that cold, snow covered field. All I could think about was Kenny Chesney's song/video for "The Boys of Fall"...
I don't doubt Hank. Someday, my baby bear will be on Central's football field, and there will sit Momma in the stands.

Oh, Friday..what took you so long?

This has been such a long week. It's been cold and snowy. The boys have had more snow days (so far they've had 12 snow days this winter season!) we've had weather delays at work, I've been cold & tired. All week, I've just wanted to go home and put on my pajamas and do nothing. But, the problem with doing nothing is that nothing gets done. The laundry doesn't do itself, supper doesn't cook itself, and my butt can't go to the gym without the rest of me attached. Although, that would be interesting to see.

I have waited all week for the weekend. Not that we have big, exciting plans. Unless you count working the concession stand at a high school wrestling meet big and exciting plans! Joe and I both have concession duty tomorrow afternoon for three hours. I can barely contain my excitement. I can think of several other things I'd rather do on a Saturday afternoon instead of selling popcorn & hot dogs to sweaty high school wrestlers. I'd rather go shop for a dress for The Oaks. Or, go see a movie. "Gnomeo & Juliet" comes out today, and Hank said he'd like to go see it. Or, go have a coffee with Maria and shop for shoes. Or, get a much needed pedicure. I did my own toes last night, and even though they look better than they did, I'd much rather have the sweet girl at the nail salon polish my toes. They look so much better that way.

Oh well, I'm just glad Friday is here.

Pet Peeve of the Day

I have many, many pet peeves. I could have done a Pet Peeve Project 365 instead of a picture project and never have to think of something to list. But, I believe that would make me a very negative person, and I'd probably sound like a nutcase for some of the things that irritate me. So, I will refrain from that. I am, however, going to write about the biggest pet peeve I have at this very moment.

My co-worker! I could write an entire blog on her alone. She's a piece of work, that's for sure. She irritates me daily. Some days it's an all-day long thing. My biggest gripe lately is the fact that she can never make it to work on time. Never. I fully believe that she takes advantage of the fact that I'm always at work early. Our work hours are 8 am to 4:30 pm. I'm in the office around 7:30 every morning. She rolls in around 8:10/8:15! This is driving me crazy! She knows that I'm here, so she doesn't get in a hurry. She gets here when she gets here. She knows that I'm here to answer the phones, and that the coffee is made. I leave right at 4:30 every day, why should I stay late? But, I'm curious, on the days that she rolls in 15 minutes late, is she staying 15 late in the afternoons? Yesterday, we had an hour snow delay. It was only an hour, so I went ahead and came in at regular time. Even with the delay, she was ten minutes late. Gah!

Happy Anniversary, Honey.

Yesterday was our anniversary. Joe sent me flowers at work. And, we lived up to 'in sickness and in health'.... we were both puny and feeling bad. He has a cold, and my sinuses hate me. We grabbed a sandwich at Penn Station, came home and were sound asleep by ten o'clock. I'm sure I was oozing sexiness with my Breathe-Right Strip across my nose, and the big cold sore on my lip.

Today, we felt somewhat better, so after I got my haircut, we went to Louisville and poked around. I tried on shoes at the Zappos outlet (I'm really thinking I should have bought those Clark boots!) and Joe did some comic book shopping (Yeah, he's a nerd like that!) and then had dinner at Buckhead Mountain Grill. We ended our afternoon with a stop at Krispy Kreme.

I bought our tickets for 'Mamma Mia' and I'm really looking forward to our date in two weeks. Maybe by then we will both feel 100% and can enjoy the night out.

Ma-Ma---Ma-Ma---Mamma Mia

Joe and I have been having the discussion, "So, what do you want to do for our anniversary?"
We haven't really decided on anything. Our anniversary is Friday.

This morning, while watching the news, there was a commercial for "Mamma Mia" ..... it's playing at the Kentucky Center in three weeks. The commercial prompted me to ask, "Hey, would you want go go see 'Mamma Mia' for our anniversary?"

The more I think about it, the more I want to go. I love the movie, and I know the stage show would be great. The tickets aren't overly expensive. It would be fun!

We could actually have a grown-up date night! That's been a foreign concept lately. Hank actually said, "So, where are we going to dinner for your anniversary?"