The Queen's Castle

Good Times, Good Times

2009-01-31T12:04:00.001-08:00

Tired of the Love Dare post.... Here's our kiddos.

Don't you love the 'guns'?

The Love Dare, Day 3

2009-01-15T18:54:00.000-08:00

Uhhh, HeLLo!!! Day 3, says we're supposed to buy each other a small 'something' to let them know we were thinking about them. I found out HE hasn't EVEN started reading yet. So glad I discovered this prior to me getting my hopes (for a diamond or somethin')!

Why, you may wonder? hasn't Jason started reading? Well, he said he wanted to wait until he could put the proper 'time' into it.... to really start when he was ready & dedicated. What?! Ready & dedicated!?!

Close call!

Ugh! Men!

I can't complain too much. Last night, on his way back from the Aggie game (in a RV), the guys played poker. He won!! ....AND he gave me his $120 winnings.

Ok, I'll keep him! Wait a sec; last night he was at the Aggie Game, the night before he was at the Rockets Game, and tonight, he's gambling in Lake Charles.......

Let's see if he keeps the same philosophy as he did last night: I get the winnings?????

In the meantime, I'll keep reading. Not only is the Love Dare a focus on me towards my spouse, its about life in general; God's Word, Jesus' love, what He expects. Some Good Stuff!

Love is patient.... (Day 1 of the Love Dare)

2009-01-13T08:10:00.000-08:00

Ugh! I tried, I really tried!

I asked, "Honey, are you ready to eat dinner?" (yes, I asked just that nicely.) When he said yes, I heated up his steak.... TheN he said, "I'm gonna take a shower first" (WHAT!!!???)

Ok, then he's out of the shower. "Honey are you ready to eat NOW?" (asked mostly nicely).... Yea, sure. ....SO, I heat up his steak again, add salad...... THEN he goes outside to 'touch up' on his table project.

"HONEY, YOUR FOOD IS READY! Are you ready to eat?"

His response.... "Why are you yelling? I've been ready". I would have seriously hurt him if he would have asked why his steak was 'well done'!

UGH... is this satan testing me. Day 1 & I broke the first dare....

NOT to mention once we relaxed in front of the TV, he drove me crazy with the remote control! He FINALLY settled on the Blues Brothers (!?&(^%!!) - I didn't remember all the bad language. H-E-L-L-O... the kids are still awake.... they can hear this mess!

Oh well, let's pray day 2 goes better.

I double-dog DARE you!

2009-01-10T09:55:00.001-08:00

The Love Dare

My hubby and I are about to start this book. We each have a copy. I'm not sure if you saw the movie, "Fireproof", but this is the 'Love Dare' mentioned in it. You can get the book here.

It should be a quick read..... Well, actually, it SHOULD take you 40 days. Its something you should read daily, AND I believe there's a daily "dare" (easy stuff: be nice, patient, etc).

Try it... what do you have to lose..... whose marriage is perfect? Everything can use a little help (especially when its based on God's principles); Right?

Let me know if you've already done this, are currently doing it, OR want to start!

I'll let you know how its going with us.

My attempt at art.....

2009-01-03T19:29:00.000-08:00

I found a Christmas picture that I wanted to hang above my fireplace.... only problem was that it was too big. Here's a picture of the Santa picture I WANTED (from Pottery Barn)

from Pottery Barn (here)

Since it was too big AND $149.... I wondered if I could sketch it...

I got a canvas that would fit over my mantle:

I found some art pencils and went to work.....

And here's the final product. I don't think it TOO bad (for costing under 20 bucks) and it fits perfectly.

Anyway, its my attempt at art!

It's 2009!

2009-01-01T16:14:00.000-08:00

We decided to have New Year's at our house this year.

Actually, it was a little sad.... the last several years, we've spent New Year's at the beach house. Since Hurricane Ike, it was a No-Go ;( Its only minor but no one has started the work yet....

Anyway, it was nice to celebrate in our newly renovated home. We had tons of baby-back ribs, red-beans & rice, cornbread, salads, beer & my favorite pomegranite martinis (YUM)! We lit the outdoor fireplace and the fire-pit. It was cool!

I hired a face-painter.

ALL the gals had their face painted (even the grandmas to the little girls; AND of course, us mommas!)

What a treat!

Jessie looked so cute!

Even my mother-in-law got in all the action!

Conservative Audrey, only had a small butterfly on her face and a rose on her arm.

Aren't mother & daughter cute (RuthAnn & Amanda)

Boy, she really went OVERBOARD on me; next time, we'll need to ToNe it down! Me & Regina.

I even had a little sparkle added to my leg ;-)

AND..... just to start 2009 off right, I had a couple of ladies show up in the morning to clean up the party mess (eek!) AND make a good, old-fashioned Mexican breakfast. Buenos Dias!

After the breakfast, I just HAD to have a nap. What a great, lazy day!

Happy 2009!

Fireproof

2008-11-12T19:10:00.000-08:00

I would not consider myself a great blogger, a perfect Christian, nor a movie buff. ..... but if I could recommend just one thing (no, beg you); please, PleAsE go watch the movie, Fireproof.

I would probably say this movie could potentially impact your life as much as watching "The Passion of the Christ". Of course, "The Passion" was a movie (a different kind of movie) that took you to the core, giving a tiny look on the sacrifice Christ made for us.

Fireproof, on the other hand, can take you to the core of your relationship. Go here, to see listings in your area. Really try to see this movie as soon as possible. Supporting this movie, will allow more Christian movies to be made!

Did I say, "Please, please, please"? And really try to go with your spouse. I went to see it with a girlfriend and then went back a second time; this time with my husband.

Question: When was the last time I went to a movie? Answer: I can't remember. However, friends, if you want, I'll go see it with you; making it my 3rd time (willing to go 4, 5, 6 times!)

With many blessings,

BOOM!

2008-11-10T19:25:00.000-08:00

Why haven't I been blogging?

I had (oops, I mean my daughter had) a major volcano project.

The 6th graders were broken into groups of 3 & 4. Each group had to make a homemade volcano.

During the ordeal, we're thinking, "You have got to be kidding me!"

After weeks of work (during science class, after school & at home), the long awaited day arrived! Time for the explosion.

Some went off wonderfully and sadly, some did not.

Luckily for us (I mean, them), the volcano went "Boom" with 'Red Lava' and all!

Congrats to Jess' Volcano Team! Bada-Boom!

Green (ish) Acres

2008-11-10T13:13:00.001-08:00

A trip to the country

Moo from Madisonville, TX

A down home visit with our friends from Alaska!

I don't know about you, but I'm thinking about milk & oreos!

Horses and cows and bulls .... oh my!

Blessings from God's Country :)

Boo!

2008-11-07T14:08:00.000-08:00

Even my girls are nagging me to post.... what has the world come to???

Happy, belated Halloween !

We had a great, laid-back, slow-going Halloween. You only make it to a few houses when each house is 1/2 an acre apart. Whew, its a work-out. The smart ones in our neighborhood had golf carts!

Jessie, the babydoll

(We had to come up with our own costume, as all the teenage-ish ones were WAY too sexy). I was actually thinking about wearing one of them; but for an 11 yr old??? - Either the belly was showing, too tight, or too short (& the thigh highs)

Audrey on the other hand, insisted on a homemade costume. She's a (cute) scary spider. She had me dusting off my sewing machine for all those legs!

Hope your Halloween was full of sweet treats!

Viva Las Vegas

2008-10-13T23:24:00.000-07:00

We're back from Vegas! Sometimes you & your spouse just need to get away! Jas & I have had so much on our plate lately, we haven't spent any 'real' time together. So it was very nice. For 2 people that do have an opportunity to travel quite a bit, we hadn't traveled in a pretty long time.

We did have a blast! Especially when I was playing the $5 slot machines & hit 2 different jackpots!

I hit both of them within about 15 minutes of each other! An attendant had to pay out my cold-hard cash! Woo-hoo! .... That's the great news!

As for the bad news.....

What do you think happens when you win money as soon as you get there? Duh???!!! AND anyone that knows me, knows I LOVE to gamble...... So if you put 2 & 2 together; what do you get....

Someone that loses a lot of money! Especially when you're playing $5 slot machines.

Luckily I have a little (itty-bitty) extra that I came back with. Oh, well, maybe next time I'll learn my lesson!

..... but knowing me, probably NOT!

All in all, a fun time!

Blessings,

More Galveston House Pics....

2008-10-09T19:27:00.000-07:00

Ok, here are some more pictures from our Galveston trip :(

Actually it could have been SO much worse. We are so blessed that this is just our vacation home. We'll continue to pray for those that loss much, much more.

The below picture is of our garage downstairs.

Yuck!
Many of these toys were water toys... so we COULD wash/soak them, which my hubby will probably require versus just tossing this stuff. If that's the case, its a hubby job!
Sometime during the storm, one of the doors blew open and water came in the 3rd floor master bedroom. (carpet had to be torn out)
Water can do major damage.
I took some pictures of the girls' areas. They were worried about all their stuff. Here's their bathroom.

Here's their bedroom. All nice & neat....
I will have to say, once the girls have been at this house for a few days, it does look like a hurricane went through it! Luckily, its clean now.

Yeah, our master bedroom is just fine.

.... so is my Latin Man!

Well, we're headed to Vegas in the morning.... I need to get off this blog & finish my lists & lists of instructions for granny & granddad with the girls (& soccer pics, soccer game, church, etc) - yikes! Sometimes, you just need to wonder: "Is it worth it?!?"

I still have our regular house pictures to post... one of these days. In the meantime, wish me Lady-Luck!

Blessings!

Galveston O Galveston

2008-10-08T18:23:00.001-07:00

My Thursday appointment cancelled, so I tagged along with Jason to Galveston to check on our beach house. He had me a little worried about looters...

Here's some pics of what we saw.....

Below is I-45 S. This picture is not the greatest, but keep in mind we are on the freeway, driving 65 or so....

Again, driving on the freeway and this is SOME of what you see.

It was difficult to take many pictures because my small camera couldn't focus that fast.

I probably should have put my camera on 'Sports/Action' Mode... what is hindsight????

This is on 61st STREET. We saw plenty of "Looters will be shot" signs. Scary!

Once we got to the seawall, it was amazing how pretty the surf was. Green/blue water, and as smooth as glass. It was probably one of the most beautiful days I've ever seen in Galveston (it actually made me a little sad, huh?) All stop lights were still out.

As McCain would say, "Friends...." for those that know us, here is the old Callegari home. Seemed in pretty good shape. This house is about 4 from the beach????
Zoomed in from the Callegari house, towards house #1 & beach-front. Those big boulder things USED to be the sand dunes.

No sand dunes.... not even much sand

Here's our house. Looks good. There's some wood/siding that needs to be replaced but looks good from here.

Downstairs. Door 1 is to garage, Door 2 is to downstairs kitchen (kitchen only had a full-size fridge, and cabinets full of paper products & the like). We couldn't get into door #2, key lock rusted, due to water & blocked by tipped over fridge.

Oops, bedtime. Maybe I'll be able to post more pictures (from upstairs) by tomorrow.

All in all, we had a good day.... spending time with my hubby and seeing the aftermath really made us appreciate all we have.

Blessings,

I thought it was over....

2008-10-07T21:24:00.000-07:00

Once we moved into our renovated house, I thought all the chaos would be over.....

Duh... it has just begun. Time to decorate!

Here's some catch-up pictures....

I know.... not funny, but after the 30 minutes it took me to import this darn ketchup packet, I'm using it!

Ok, finally .... a post AND some home pictures.

Below is a pic of my dining/breakfast room. Because we really didn't use our formal dining room, we made it into a study/office and made what would be our breakfast area bigger to accommodate 12 people if necessary.

Below is the Great Room. We currently have our old furniture & things from different places just to have a place to sit while watching TV aka/Dancing With The Stars & Amazing Race! Furniture will be next on our list.

This is a picture of our Living Room. Nothing changed except the ceiling fan. The furniture that goes in here, is currently in the Great Room.

I knew I was home when I was able to bring my picture over. I still need to hang it, but its atleast back where it belongs. I love this Wine & Women series! The artist is Kathy Womack, check her out here!

The last picture (for today) is of my new 1/2 bath. I just love my vanity.

I guess I love my light fixtures, too.

Maybe I'll post some more home pics tomorrow..... Blessings!

Hurricane Ike hits hard

2008-09-17T11:28:00.000-07:00

Can you see the sign?

GOD is bigger than Ike

Yippee, we have electricity! We got 'turned on' about 6pm yesterday.

Our property was a mess but thanks to our great friend, Bruce, we made a big dent in it and things are looking better. I even mowed yesterday (not too tough since we have cooler weather & a riding lawnmower).

Galveston before

Galveston after

As for our bay house in Galveston, we just don't know..... We feel blessed that it is our vacation home & not our permanent residence. Many folks down there are without a home.

Also, Jason did go get his boat on Thursday.... thank God. In the picture above, here are some boats that didn't make.

WooHoo .... school started!

2008-08-17T21:39:00.000-07:00

Yes! School has indeed started. Wednesday, 8/13/08, was the girls first day back! Hunter left back for college on Monday! :( We bought him a (used) new car & he DROVE.... all the way to Virginia! Luckily, he's there safe & sound.

Million dollar question: Are we in the house yet? No! But I think we are on a countdown! Keep us in your prayers! PLEASE!

I'll do some updates soon!

Blessings & Hope your summer was spectacular!

Closed for the Summer

2008-07-24T20:54:00.001-07:00

I know this is the saddest thing you've ever read.... but my blog must be closed for the duration of the summer. It's been real.... real fun!

My home is on the countdown to completion. We're setting up Audrey's room now. Carpet is in, hardwood is in; its just all the details, details, details!

Even though blog is temporarily shut down, perhaps I can update my 'Flickr' with home photos. .... And when I need a blog fix, I'll be visiting your sites.

Thanks friends! Blessings & have a safe summer.

Shore Thing

2008-07-10T09:28:00.001-07:00

There's only a few things I know for 'shore'

Back at the beach.....

Relaxing is a requirement at the bayhouse

You can't help but just sit back & enjoy
Just one of God's creations....

And you must "Go Fish"

House checkup

2008-07-07T19:45:00.000-07:00

This is one of our friends at the beach who comes to visit our back porch sometimes.

Kids also just 'chill'

We're still in Galveston - enjoying friends (One Wired Woman & Brown Eyed Fox) and relaxing. We head back home on tomorrow. Why?, you may be wondering (that's what I'm wondering!). One of my girlies is going with her friend to the Jonas Bros concert in Dallas. So..., I need to take her to her friend's house :( Also, I want to check on the home construction status).

I wonder if the workers have made any progress since last Thursday. Really it hasn't been much time since Friday was a holiday. You never know, maybe every possible worker showed up today and actually worked.... (I won't hold my breath on that one ;-)

Here's pics of the house thru Thursday.

If you were to walk in thru my front door, this is what you would see. This toilet was removed from the master bath so the travertine could be laid. That was 2 weeks ago. PLUS, we're getting new toilets anyway! I hope its been moved!

These are pics of the kitchen. The first is the island with whitish-greenish onyx - waiting for grout. The second pic is of our backsplash. They ran out of the green glass backsplash, so its only 75% complete.

They started on the bench in the shower!

Outdoor kitchen in progress. Walls started & fireplace coming together.

Let's see what they did today & what they will do tomorrow.

Happy 4th

2008-07-04T07:02:00.000-07:00

Just hangin' at the bay in Galveston, TX

Shark attack?

2008-07-01T09:34:00.000-07:00

Does anyone know why sharks are still around?

As mentioned in a previous blog, our friend, Todd, was in town this past weekend. Him, Matt (another friend) & hubby went fishing, fishing, fishing. Todd caught a shark. They kept it to bring it back to show us.

Todd & baby

Luckily, it was just a baby shark (but makes you wonder.... where's the momma?)

They are SO rough to touch & this little sucker was strong! We let it go back into the bay. I hope it doesn't grow up to be like one of the bad sharks.

Here's the Speckled Trout Todd caught. I didn't realize the teeth on those things... yikes!

Well, my hubby is headed back to Galveston this evening for more fishing (& golfing tomorrow). I'm trying to run a tight ship around here. We probably have 25, maybe more (no kidding) workers here working on the house. I'm getting SO excited!

Enjoy your summer,

A great day with a great friend

2008-06-30T09:33:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, my hubby took the girls to meet up with friends at their ranch in Madisonville. What did that mean for me? A whole day to myself! I decided it was a day for antiquing (sp?).

One of my dearest friends, Nancy, & I headed to Brenham. First, we had lunch in the town square at Must be Heaven, it was set up like an old-fashioned diner. And the sandwich & fruit were delicious!

Must Be Heaven its an Old-fashioned diner

We then did a little shopping in town; don't you just love a small town.... You can get a bails bondsman & antiques all at the same place :)

Next, we headed to Leftovers Antiques, outside town. It had some really, really cool stuff but I thought the prices we outrageous - what a drag!

Leftovers Antiques, Brenham

That evening, her hubby, Bruce (aka The expert) took us to get dinner at Babin's. YUM! We ended the night with the best thing in the world.... no, not that. It was bread pudding, it tasted as good as it looked!

The million dollar shot

2008-06-28T14:10:00.000-07:00

Isn't this just the greatest picture?

This is my hubby, Jason. Our friend, Todd, took the pic.

It was fishing, fishing, fishing for the 2 nights Todd met us in Galveston.

We're now back home. Todd went back to Colorado & we're back in Cypress.

I couldn't wait to get back to see how "Magic Week" went at the house. Yes, there were things done; but nothing magical. I'll have to post more pics of the house. We have the black tile in the shower (finally right on the 3rd attempt!), 99% of the travertine is grouted, the granite is all in, the onyx is now on the (outside of the) island & the oven hood is built.

So.... what else needs to be done? A LOT! I'm just getting so antsy!

Schlitterbahn...

2008-06-27T08:16:00.000-07:00

Here's some pics of our Schlitterbahn trip last week. The girls & their friends. It was a great day!

lots of silliness

lots of smiles

lots of sun

lots of great memories

Good times, good times!!!

(By the way, the songs on here are from the previous post. On this trip it wasn't "A 5'o clock somewhere" nor a "Margaritaville" trip - just FYI ;-)

The 3 R's

2008-06-26T17:40:00.001-07:00

... and its not Reading, Writing & Arithmetic! It's "Resting, Relaxing & yes, reading ;)" - my 3 favorite things.

Once again, we're down at the beach in Galveston. I use the word 'beach' loosely. Our house is actually on the bay. The neighborhood is across the street from the beach but because we have a boat, we need a bayhouse. Duh... "need" a bayhouse; that sounds SO funny!

We were coming down here anyway & were going to take advantage of our Galveston Schlitterbahn season passes. Happily, Nancy & Jill decided to join us with their boys. We were a little worried at first since it was raining. But it all worked out great! We went to Schlitterbahn on Wednesday & it was perfect!

Sadly they left today :(

My hubby did show up last night, so he's getting things ready for a couple of his buddies coming into town. They're planning on fishing, fishing, fishing. Hopefully I can coax them into a poker game. (maybe I'll have the winnings to pay for the housekeeper ;)

Jas w/Jessie & AudreyHappy Summer!

Our Road Trip

2008-06-19T20:53:00.000-07:00

Our road trip started with ALL of us being packed up. The girls with everything they needed for camp and us with tons of comfy traveling clothes. I'll need to do a posting about PineCove Camp; needless to say, their letters say they missed us but were having a blast!!

We decorated the car & headed to PineCove Camp in Columbus, TX.

Then we hit the road to Lake Charles, LA.

Bad photo (I hate when your camera fogs!)

We got to the L'Auberge Casino about 9pm. We were supposed to stay Sun & Mon nights.

By the time we got to our room & freshened up, we received a phone call from Pine Cove in Tyler, TX where our 19 year old is a counselor.

He tripped, hit his head & shoulder. He was in a LOT of pain but the real concern was memory loss. They were taking him via ambulance to the hospital to do a Cat Scan. Long story short, he cracked his scapula (shoulder blade) & still had memory loss, so we checked out about 9am the next morning to head to Tyler to pick up Hunter (right after we backed into someone!!!!)

We drove Hunter back to Cypress where his (real) mom picked him up. She made appointments with an orthopedic surgeon & neuro-surgeon. It was scary at first, but just seeing him made US feel better. ...but he still had short-term memory loss, he would repeat himself & forget we had already talked about somethings.

With his broken scapula (which there is nothing to do but keep your arm in a sling), he also dislocated his shoulder, his memory continued to improve but the doctor said it could continue for a couple of months - everything else was okay. (He ended up going back to camp the following week).

So from Cypress, we went to Austin that Monday night (got a speeding ticket on the way). Stayed at the DoubleTree Hotel which had the best Cranberry Mojitos ever!!!

From there, we went to Wimberly. Very cute town! Wish we could have hung out a little longer.

Ino'z Cafe in Wimberly (this is the view).

Next was Fredricksburg. It was nice. We chose not to stay in a Bed & Breakfast. We stayed at local hotel - it was new & pretty nice.

Next was RockSprings. WAY TOO far!! I know no one from RockSprings will read this, so... I won't hesitate to say, There Is Nothing There! We did see many Border Patrol AND there was one funny sight:

Remember King Burger from BonQuiQui (If not, go here now!)

The drive back was VERY nice. I had no idea Texas was so mountainous! It was beautiful! We drove through Concan & headed to San Antonio. We booked two nights at the Hyatt Hill Country. We worried about us see two many kids & then missing our own. NOT a problem, we had a blast! SO relaxing & good to be somewhere for a few days.

From there was the best leg of the trip. We decided to head home that evening but head to Boerne first. I wanted to call our builder & tell him to stop renovations!!! We found a new place to live! Boerne was getting ready for a festival that evening thru the weekend. We missed it by a few hours but had to get on the road to make it home before dark. Next time, Boerne will be a highlight (but probably won't be until next year :( ....)

I wish I would have taken more pictures but they wouldn't do any of the places or memories justice. It was so very nice to be with my hubby and just hang out! We enjoyed our time together!

And Saturday, we drove to pick up the girls from camp.

It was great to see them after a week. They were so happy, singing songs, yelling cheers, praising God! Simply Glorious!

We're home!!!

2008-06-14T18:12:00.001-07:00

We're back safe & sound!

We only left Texas for about 12 hours..... I love Texas!

Its been a ride!

Pics from Galveston

2008-06-06T23:36:00.001-07:00

Wondering when we're leaving? Not until Sunday! ... I should be packing (both girls each need their own trunk - for a week at camp; plus mine & Jas' suitcase) .... instead I'm blogging

Thought I'd post our pics from Galveston (the weekend after school ended)

We have little rules, thus peanut butter & banana sandwiches. Dessert: ice-cream sundaes WITH sprinkles!

We fly kites & just hang out!

Can you see the crane? Its our new visitor (hee, hee, hee - that's our excitement)!

Jason misses his fishing buddy... he had to settle for us (3 girls)

Jessie caught the first & only fish (A REDFISH) (good for her) too bad it wasn't a keeper :(

Audrey was a die-hard, she just wouldn't give up. She fished twice as long (if not longer than anyone else) - No Luck :(

We went on a sunset cruise on our boat.

The name of the boat

After we use the boat, Jason is our Po' Boy. I wonder if its worth it. It takes FOREVER to clean it. Not only the cleaning, but the up-keep & gas. - Boys & their toys !

Stay cool & happy summer!

My dad's retirement party

2008-06-05T22:40:00.000-07:00

Dad's Retirement Party - After 39 years!

Whew, I can breathe! Last Saturday was my dad's retirement party. Of course, since I'm "the stay-at-home mom" that doesn't work or really do anything (YEA, RIGHT! but that's what my siblings think anyway :) - I was voted to be in charge!

Isn't this the cutest invitation? I had to do these 'hard invites' as well as E-vites.

Everything turned out great! There was about 70 people there.... which was perfect. We had it in downtown Houston at a place called Lucky's Pub. I would've preferred kids to be invited, but really this was perfect for my dad.

My dad with his 3 brothers

(On each of the tables, I made the coaster-sized "Did you know cards?" about my dad)

It turned out to be a great conversation starter & very interesting

My dad & (step)mom

(Did you know my dad hit 2 Hole-In-One's? Each was witnessed by a number of people but two important ones! The first one was witnessed by his now-late dad, the other witnessed by the late Mickey Mantle).

My hubby & my dad (my 2 favorite guys) ... probably a little too many cocktails.

(Did you know my dad loves to fish? He once caught a stingray off the Galveston Seawall Pier)

Me & my bro (not the best pic of me, but a nice smile from him). (See, I remembered.... its not all about me!)

(Did you know my dad said his greatest achievement was being a widowed father to 2 of the best kids - me & my little brother!)

This is me, my dad, my sister, brother & other sis.

(No, I'm not pregnant.... its the dress) ...not about me, not about me - I'm trying!

Did you know, in his 39 years, my dad has had to work only one Sunday - that was the Sunday I was born! ;-)

Love ya Dad!!!!

Best Father's Day Gift Idea

2008-06-05T22:38:00.000-07:00

Father's Day is only 10 days away. (This needed to be posted again - these shoes are awesome)

I have come across the BEST Man gift ever (for the beer drinker - or soda drinker). These are my hubby's favorite shoes.

* THE COOL THING is they have a Bottle-Opener on the bottom!!!

See the bottom-opener?! There are several colors, here they show red, black & green colors. My hubby is a basic color guy (he has a brown pair & a black pair).

You can get these from surf shops or the like BUT I got his from Foley's, Macy's & some other store in the mall. They are about $40 bucks; but well worth it! My hubby loves his! He wears them fishing, gardening, just hanging out (since they're nice enough to add to jeans & shorts); he would wear them hunting, if he could :).

FYI: The name brand is Reef; style: Fanning

There are many places online that have them also (FYI: they now sell them for ladies too, for all you Corona girls).

Its almost time (& Best Father's Day Gift!)

2008-06-04T20:37:00.000-07:00

We leave Sunday!!! 3 1/2 days til the girls go to summer camp! After we drop them off we are making a detour from the hill country down to Louisiana.

Can you guess where.....

It's a pretty nice hotel.

We'll be laying out

Just hanging....

DING - DING - DING (AND GAMBLING!)

L'Auberge DuLac watch out! We're coming for all the money we've lost in the past!

*****

Okay, I have come across the BEST Man gift ever (for the beer drinker - or soda drinker). These are my hubby's favorite shoes.

* THE COOL THING is they have a Bottle-Opener on the bottom!!!

See the bottom-opener?! There are several colors, here they show red, black & green colors. My hubby is a basic color guy (he has a brown pair & a black pair).

FYI: The name brand is Reef; style: Fanning

There are many places online that have them also (FYI: they now sell them for ladies too, for all you Corona girls).

Happy Summer, may you have a safe, cool & fun one!

Blessings,

The 21 Day Challenge

2008-05-30T20:13:00.000-07:00

First, its been one week yesterday since summer has started. I just can't get to the computer. It may be a couple of things: my dad's retirement party tomorrow, getting the girls ready for camp (leaving 06/08), Jason & I leaving on a week's vacation across Tx Hill Country PLUS all the house stuff. Maybe in a couple weeks, I'll have some TIME!

Second, I'm just grossed out with myself. Not only did I NOT do that Sprint-Triathlon, I have not worked out AT ALL. By the way, I went swimming with the girls the other day. I couldn't make it back & forth across the pool 3 times!!! What was I thinking?

In the meantime, I just keep gaining weight & coming up with excuses for my poor eating habits & ZERO exercise. Tomorrow, on Monday, next week - continue excuses & timing delays.

This evening I came across this challenge. Let's see if I can follow through with this (just 21 days right?). Want to join me? Someone needs to keep me motivated. What habit do you need to break or what habit do you need to add to your life? Let's do it!

Happy Birthday, Jessie!!

2008-05-27T23:15:00.000-07:00

My baby girl turned 11 today.....

The Tudors

2008-05-26T21:34:00.001-07:00

Has anyone seen 'The Tudors'? Its the story based on the book (same name), about King Henry VIII. If anyone has seen or read 'The Other Boleyn Girl', this follows the similar time/story line, I think.

Its on Showtime on Sunday nights; we don't have Showtime.... so, I'm looking into renting the first set/series. Because it might be hard to get, I will consider purchasing it. Any comments?

By the way, looking at the king & queen, you can see how HOT they are :)

Happy Memorial Day!

Yea! I have Flickr

2008-05-25T09:57:00.001-07:00

See some of my home remodeling pics

Some beach!

2008-05-23T20:18:00.000-07:00

Made it to Galveston. After a great seafood dinner, looking forward to some R&R!

Hello Summer Vacation!

2008-05-22T19:58:00.000-07:00

Its official..... I have a 6th grader (yikes) and a 4th grader!!!! Today was the last day of school & we start summer vacation!

After a week of parties, ceremonies, awards, etc., we are looking forward to sleeping-in and NO schedules.... that was before I found out I have to be at Lowe's at 7am tomorrow to get some more outdoor light fixtures. But besides that.... and, well, Audrey's 11am birthday party she's invited to, I'm looking forward to some R&R - well, I do have to clean house, do laundry & pack. We are heading to Galveston..... but I really can't complain. Anybody that's been to the beach house knows that the agenda includes 'doing NOTHING'.

Friends, take this as your official invite - come down to the beach house. We are just going to hang out through Memorial Day weekend. Jason is down there now with Hunter but Hunter leaves on Friday afternoon (see below for Hunter's summer work schedule). Anyway, Jason will be looking for someone to go with him to take the boat out (anyone, PLEASE !!!)

As for Hunter, he got a job at Pinecove Christian Camp for the summer. He'll be a counselor there. Friends, please pray for him - I hope he represents God, our family, & himself well ;)

But it is sure to be a blast. He'll be working the one in Tyler, Tx. Unfortunately, the girls were already signed up to go to the one in Columbus, TX.

With Hunter working for 6 weeks and the girls at camp for one, Jason & I plan to do some Texas sightseeing. Any suggestions? We're up for anything!

HAPPY SUMMER!

Countdown.....

2008-05-20T21:28:00.000-07:00

(Okay, I still need HELP; but its for different reasons!)

I'm not sure about you other moms and your school schedules but our last day is this Thursday (Woo-Hoo!)! Since our school is so small, they pretty much do things 'their' (our) way. Each of the girls have swim parties plus their award ceremonies, etc. - its been fast & furious.

Also, I've been under the gun, for final picks on the house (everyone seems to be waiting on me)... yikes!

DISCLAIMER:

Dearest friends (especially local ones), if you leave comments (or stop by), I'm only taking positive comments. Background: I wanted a brown on SOME of the trim & on the doors (I know, sounds weird); anyway.... after picking my colors, the painter purchased it & as he started painting - OOPS, I figured out I made a mistake on the brown. The brown looked too gray! Unfortunately, 15+ gallons of this expensive gray-brown had already been purchased, could not be exchanged nor changed. My AWESOME hubby simply said to just get what I wanted.... that it was better to spend some extra money now than live with something I didn't like and pay for it later. I LOVE HIM! Needless to say, I made my paint change & sticking to what's on the walls....

So, here's my brown:

This is called 'Java'. ;)

I felt like Alice in Wonderland. 'What's behind this door?'

If you ever need a gray-brown, go for "Tiki Hut"

By the way, our painter thought I was nuts,

so did the man that worked at Sherwin Williams!

They couldn't grasp the difference between gray-brown & brown-brown.

They just kept saying, "This IS brown (& so is that & that & that)".

Men, ugh!

(except my honey)!

The walls are August Moon.

Another note, I had to threaten our painter NOT

to call it yellow in front of my husband ;)

Hopefully I'll have more pics soon!

(Yippee!)

Help!

2008-05-09T14:43:00.001-07:00

I'm not sure if anyone remembers about a week ago when I blogged that I was addicted to Etsy.

Above, are all prints I bought for gifts (ok, a few are for me). Aren't these the cutest teacher gifts?!?!? Some of the obvious gifts are: The Girl with letters (going to the computer teacher), the Reading is Fun (the 3rd grade teacher), the nurse picture (duh, the nurse), the Bee-Queen print (5th gr science teacher), etc, etc, etc. Check out The Dreamy Giraffe - she is SO Very Talented!!!

This print is beautiful also. The colors are so alive. My picture doesn't do it justice. This is from Mystikart.

This print is superty-duperty cute. You can hardly read it, but it says "Here I am to Worship". This is from Arian.

I already posted the below pics, but wanted to share again.

These 3 are from Little Bit Funky....

This is from Joy's Hope

H-E-L-P! I need to go to an Etsy 12 step program.

Not only will we not have money to decorate because of my honey's outdoor kitchen but because I have spent all my money at Etsy's!

Have a safe, blessed & wonderful weekend!

I've been inspired!!!!

2008-05-08T21:04:00.000-07:00

I've been inspired by my 2 favorite friends/bloggers!!! Do you know who???

Quiz #1:

The above pictures (of guacomole) were from inspiration I received from a "friendly blog" - this is an easy quiz. FYI: The margarita on the rocks was my own idea ;)

Quiz #2 below:

No cracked, rough skin here! After seeing this 'friendly blog', I was out shopping & thought I better 'toe' the line! ;)

Sorry if these don't make sense! Sometimes, "funnies" are just cute to yourself.

Happy Anniversary!

2008-05-07T14:27:00.000-07:00

14 years? Are you kidding me? It really does seem like yesterday. It has been a FULL 14 years: custody battle, raising Hunter, 2 babies, growing business, 4 moves, I don't know how many dogs (& turtles & fish) and all these great memories!!!!

In Cancun, Mexico - pretty hot & steamy ;)

San Antonio drive- LONG! Hot date

Anniversary gift to him Our cards

His anniversary gift to me:

(Luckily, not that kind of apple!) PLUS, he took the day off & we went shopping - He REALLY must love me!

Off to pick-up the sitter, so we can go to dinner - yippee!

(BTW: Kuddos to Joy's Hope for making me the sign - Thanks!)

My cabinets are here!!!

2008-05-06T12:40:00.000-07:00

First things first.....

Did everyone have a bueno Cinco de Mayo? We did! Last night I made Margaritas, Tostadas, Guacamole & Mac&Cheese (hey, Mac should be its own food group!)

On Friday, when I got the call that my cabinets were at my house, I couldn't get home fast enough! BUT, this is what I came home to..... a garage full of boxes & everyone gone! (Evidently, it was payday :(

Atleast, on Monday, they started installing. It seemed like a puzzle putting everything together!

This is the master bathroom.

Also, the A/C man showed up (installed our furnace? and one of the 3 a.c. units?) - Interesting?

Another picture of our door.... I can't wait until its framed in properly & the glass is put in!

I'm not sure if anyone remembers from older posts, that there was an actual POST in the middle of this wall. It was used as a load bearing post... but I HATED it. It would block my view from the kitchen into the living room. After much nagging & complaining. They tore at the post & added a beam across (you can see how the ceiling comes down). This was a HUGE beam -poor guys that had to install it (plus have the sheetrockers back) - but atleast I'm happy :)

We have a house full of workers today. YIPPEE!!!!

Have a Totally Terrific Tuesday!

Securty! Securtyyy!!

2008-05-04T20:26:00.001-07:00

Have you seen BonQuiQui? If you haven't, you MUST play this video. If you have seen it then laugh again!

My girlfriend, One Wired Woman, introduced me to Anjelah Johnson and her Nail Salon comedy act (another MUST See). Anywaaaaaysss, my daughter & a friend were talking about BonQuiQui & wanted to call secuRty! secuRityyy! I Had to look this up on YouTube; Lo&Behold, it was Anjelah.

I needed a good laugh after we had to return Cowboy.

Have a great week!

Cowboy's gone home....

2008-05-04T07:24:00.000-07:00

Update (on the dog we found)

Cowboy's owner called.... they came to pick him up :(

His real name was Blue (I liked the name Cowboy better). We might do some research & try to find a dog similar......

Talk to me....

Here's little Audrey..... now who does she look like?

She would have completely nailed me if she had on high heels, a shopping bag & eating a Hostess SnowBall!

Here's Jessie, although not posing, she's taking after another of my fine qualities: SLEEPING. I can sleep anywhere, anytime!

HELP!!!!!!!!!!!

Why do my girls fight like cats & dogs? It drives me C-R-A-Z-Y! It is so constant! This is obviously the only time they can be close together. I keep thinking, 'they'll grow out of it'.... I'm hoping its before one goes off to college!

Praying for peace :)

Hunka-hunka- burnin' love

2008-05-02T17:11:00.000-07:00

Okay,

Probably, because I too have been spending WAY too much time on the computer (Etsy is killing me - my bank account, that is), my hubby didn't have any clean clothes IN HIS DRAWER. Basically, no drawers in his drawers. (THANK GOODNESS I had them cleaned & folded!)

So here is a picture of him IN MY ROBE!!! I swear gal-pals, if you tell him its on this blog, I'll kill you; right after he kills me!

If by some chance he sees these, maybe the pictures below will help......

He brought that damn tractor home from the 'land' today! You know we have a nice riding lawnmower here BUT NOOOOOO, he needs to move stuff??? That probably is why I'm doing this post.... its what he gets (hee, hee, hee)

Look at my mailbox!!!! I got some of my purchases in today..... Here is ONE of the purchases:

Super cute! Thanks Little Bit Funky (& for the extra goodies!)

The girls & I made our own pizzas last night - Y-U-M-M-Y!

Have a great weekend!

Babble on in Babylon

2008-05-01T05:16:00.000-07:00

A friend shared this poem with me after she attended a Beth Moore Bible Study. I took the same study - very impressive. Remember Babylon in the bible? All their false idols? Wow!

Babble on in Babylon

Brimming closets, shoe racks bulge, one in every color, I'll just indulge

My wildest whim will oft be met, bigger-faster-give-me-get!

Travel on.... in Babylon

May I go first? Knew you'd not care-

For my times precious, you've lots to spare

I'll slip in front & off I go -See I'm quite fast, and well, you're quite slow

I am, me, fast friends, life long?

Prattle on..... in Babylon

Nip it here, just there a lift;

I just turned 40, it was a gift!

The eyes, the lip, the bosoms do

Sculptured, lasered, injected too!

No wrinkles left ..... the tummy's gone -

Journey on in Babylon

Enough of me .... how do you view me?

You get one, but give me three!

I couldn't bare to just "say No"

It's my desire! And rightly so!

Add another & on, & on .....

Shuffle on in Babylon

No end in sight that I can see

Today is blocked by the mirror in front of me.....

A wreck, a death, Sunami tide

It mildly stirs me, I must confide .....

TV claims tens of thousands gone....

Oh well, let's see what else is on!

Numb to the stunning sight of each new dawn.....

Sinking fast .....in Babylon!

Like a lobster in a pot who begins to like the water hot.....

I've been duped! Been tricked! Been had!

Convinced that truth was somehow bad...

Evil coddled & cooed & purred & beckoned me, and called & lured

Now in a place with the light turned on,

I'm racing home from Babylon....

-by Unknown

Dog Gone It

2008-04-28T17:48:00.000-07:00

Jessie, Cowboy?, & Audrey

Jessie & Cowboy/Buddy? Audrey & Isabelle

Okay, in case you missed it, Jason & Jessie went to pick blackberries from the land this past Sunday. Audrey & I went grocery shopping. As I pulled back into the neighborhood, Jessie was walking this BIG dog.

Side note: Anyone that knows us, knows our track history with dogs. We never did find Daisy; but Isabelle doing just dandy.

Anyway, this dog was on the property (150 acres in the middle of NO WHERE) - STARVING. They fed him their boiled eggs & crackers plus their bottled water (Jessie came home starving herself). There was no way they could leave him out there. There aren't any neighbors, they drove around looking for signs - nothing!

I took "Cowboy" (or "Buddy") to the vet this morning to see if he had a chip; again - nothing. The girls are making signs but they won't go up until probably Wednesday (FYI: Rockets playoff game tomorrow - so Jason can't go; I don't like being in the middle of nowhere trying to find someplace to hang a sign). I'll try calling vets in that area tomorrow. The nurse at the animal clinic, said it was a German pointer, perhaps????

He really is sweet (although he did turn CUJO on Isabelle - if he hurts my little doggie - he's dead meat). He seems well trained. I EVEN LET HIM SLEEP INSIDE LAST NIGHT!!!!

Last quick note, before I even knew about him, & we were running errands, Audrey was in the backseat watching Firehouse Dog. Well, I've never seen it. So while I was waiting for my blizzard (Carissa, I mentioned what happens 'the week before'), I started watching the movie.

Needless to say, I pulled over, ate my blizzard & watched Firehouse Dog. Now that's crazy .... maybe its meant to be; everyone else in the family sure thinks so :)

We're Baaaaack.......

2008-04-27T11:18:00.000-07:00

Hola! We're baaaack .............. from San Antonio. What a super-neat town! I realize how lucky we are to travel (me mostly tagging along with Jason on business trips), but its sometimes these quick get-aways that do you a world of good! Being in this small house, has been fine; but sometimes its just too close for comfort!

We stayed at LaCantera, which was nice. If anyone is ever in SanAntonio, I highly recommend eating at SoLuna on Broadway. Its not downtown, but its worth the drive! The staff is wonderful, its casual & inexpensive, AND the margaritas are to die for!!!!

My honey and his million dollar smile ;)

PLUS, while in S.A., we went shopping. I'm now the proud owner of a laptop; and its an APPLE!!!! I know; S-P-O-I-L-E-D! Learning this new computer is definitely a learning curve! I keep trying to post some pictures here from iPhoto..... Zero luck! Oh well... live & learn!

Another great thing is that there were a couple of goodies waiting for me when I got home: my purchases from a LittleBitFunky.

Aren't these the best! Talk about talent!!!!

I love them, they are just the cutest little piddlies I've ever seen :) The other thing here at the house was MY NEW FRONT DOOR! Anyway, the door isn't installed yet, but its here and fine!

An iron scrolled door - the glass is off to the side for now.

Now to unpack - the worst part of a trip :(

Blessings!!!

My little artist...

2008-04-23T19:38:00.000-07:00

Little Audrey, although doing better, is still Audrey. There hasn't been anymore scenes in the morning but there IS whining & complaining! Audrey can be pretty social & makes friends very easily - on the flip side, she can be alone & play by herself for hours. I always thought this was a great balance; especially since Jessie needs to have friends & entertainment - if not, I can't count the times I will hear "I'm Boooooooorrrrreeeedddd".

Her future occupation....... according to her.......... an artist, chef or author.

Its hard to see, but here are some of Audrey's homemade paper dolls. They are in sets of mom & daughters (sometimes their clothes coordinate each other) .....plus they are all named!

Here's the chef in her. Every now & then, she'll make everyone lunch. (IGNORE the mess in the background! Remember, ZERO space. Plus we had a house full of girls!!!)

Another thought with the headaches & stomachaches: could it possibly be growing pains?? She's gotten taller lately. Anyone know the symptoms????

(Super-duper excited, tomorrow I head to a scrapbooking-card-making class. Afterwards, my hubby & I head to Westin La Cantera in San Antonio! yippee!!!)

Blessings,

Fun games: tag....

2008-04-22T20:48:00.000-07:00

I've been tagged! I feel so special! Thanks Jill (http://onewiredwoman.blogspot.com/)!

It's as easy as 1,2,3!!
1. Pick up the book nearest to you & go to page 123.
2. Find the fifth sentence.
3. Type & post the next three sentences after the fifth one.

My book is: One Month To Live (30 Days to a No-Regrets Life) by Kerry & Chris Shook

5th sentence & on:

"..... Our Enemy tries to undermine our confidence in who we're made to be. But God constantly says to us, "Remember whose you are. You are my child. You're a child of the King."

Wow! I've put this book down when I didn't finish the bible study with my group. I obviously, should pick it back up and keep working! God is SO VERY GOOD!

(For more info on this book, go to http://www.onemonthtolive.com/)

*******

And because I don't (really) know any other bloggers than the one that sent this & the ones she also sent this to...... I'll forward this to blogs that I love to visit with the hopes that this little game will continue! Happy playing, happy reading!

The Dreamy Giraffe @ http://thedreamygiraffe.typepad.com/adventures/
Whatever @ http://megduerksen.typepad.com/whatever/
Joys Hope @ http://joyshope.blogspot.com/

Blessings!

No justice!

2008-04-22T20:14:00.000-07:00

Friends,

You know, I obviously haven't been blogging as much as I would like (should). Part of the reason, is I'm a terrible photographer, including not remembering when & where to take a picture. Secondly, even if I were a good photographer, sometimes pictures just won't do the object(s) justice..... see below!

This is a picture of PART of our mudroom. The back wall will be bead-board. I'm hoping they will finish it tomorrow!

These are pictures of our master closet. We will have our drawers in the closet (yippee) and rows/shelves for my shoes! Again, no justice!

Second example.....

Yesterday, I made a REALLY good dinner. Fettucini alfredo w/chicken, salad & french bread - did I take a picture..... NO! I thought about it while I was about to blog tonight... SOOO, I thought, atleast I could take pictures of tonight's dinner:

My dinner: guacamole & wine. Kids dinner: pizza & celery

While the cat's away the mice will play AKA/hubby was out of town so we 'made do' & ate while watching Dancing With The Stars. :)

Where, oh where, have you been....

2008-04-19T21:34:00.000-07:00

Total Lame-o! I'm not sure where I've been & what I've been doing, but obviously not blogging. Well, I will have to say I did go on 2 ALL-DAY field trips (did I say 'All-Day'?). By the way, if you haven't seen a cow eyeball dissected, you should - it was VERY interesting. AND if you haven't been to an observatory, you should check it out. Its amazing what Houston has to offer.

As for Audrey, she's doing okay. Other than Monday, she made it to school on time. She has complained of a couple of headaches, but she's been pretty good. Although, Monday was the worst yet!!!! I had Jason take her to school, hoping she wouldn't be as dramatic with him as me. Boy, oh boy, did he have to see what I have been dealing with for the previous 2 weeks. It was horrible!! Needless to say, she made it to school ..... eventually. The rest of the week was better - still keep us in your prayers.... is it 4 more weeks of school?

Can you believe this is the girl too sick to go to school?

Audrey after the Houston Museum of Science. (Looks fine to me :)

The house has been slow-going. This is the part that will probably drive me crazy. Just doing things SO slowly! This coming week, there should be some real action. Hopefully all the old carpet & mess will be pulled out & I'm PRAYING the painters start!

FYI: Out of town friends, soon we'll have space available - start making summer plans! :0

Wow!

2008-04-10T19:57:00.000-07:00

Rain, rain, go away

Come again, another day

Okay, here are some more pics of my baby girl (not such a baby anymore) in her new desk. My big girl was also doing her homework. Man! I am not smarter than a 5th grader; its hard!

It was such a nice day on Wednesday, they did their homework outside!

Wow! They are really moving on the house! These aren't very good pictures; its difficult to get the picture from the angles that are available.

Can you see the bottom of the butler's pantry - I love it!

(Note: Update on Audrey: She's been to school everyday this week, but the mornings are HORRIBLE! The principal had to come get her out of the car! We went to an allergist yesterday, she has NO (common) allergies. Because the headaches 'magically appear' when I'm leaving her, it seems more of a separation anxiety :( ....again, we will keep researching but the bottom line is she MUST go to school, we are certain there is no one hurting her there, so we're safe on that area. Things are looking up though, once in class, she's fine. Keep praying! ;)

Photobucket src="http://i107.photobucket.com/albums/m296/shaunacallaghan/sophisign.jpg" border=0>

The queen has arrived....

2008-04-08T21:36:00.000-07:00

Greetings friends, family & all the little people out there (just kidding). I think all this queen stuff is going to my head ;)

So, what do you think about this new look? I'm loving it!!! Thanks Shauna! Be sure to check out her designs at http://seemydesignsbyshauna.com/

Other than getting this new look, Audrey has been our priority. She made it through school today (2nd time), although getting her out of the car was torture. The secretary had to walk her to class but once around the corner, the tears were wiped away & she perked up. Now she did go to the nurse BUT it was because she skinned her knee while PLAYING during p.e.! Perhaps we're on an upward swing. We still have her appointment with the allergist tomorrow - so maybe that will shed a little light.

All prayers still appreciated! xoxoxo