Now that's a big COOKIE!!

Like I said...that's a BIG cookie...well, it's Taylor's big cookie, LOL! It was all part of gift bag of goodies from Max! I wish I would have taken pictures of everything...but I'm lucky I got a shot of the cookie before all the kids consumed it, LOL! Anyway...this was all part of his Homecoming Invitation to Taylor. Let's see...along with the giant chocolate chip cookie and a fresh bouquet of flowers...there was a bottle of "Orange Crush" (cause he has a crush on her), a box of "Red Hots" (cause he said she's "hot")...I know there was something else, but I can't remember! Anyway...homecoming is this Saturday night....awwww...I'm excited for her!!

Where does the time go?

I was just sitting here pondering my next, uh ummm...birthday, when I realized that with said birthday approaching in a couple months, I have been with Nolan HALF my life! Wow! Yes...I met him when I was just a wee 23 yrs. old, LOL! We're well into our 23 yr. together (18 of those, married) and I wonder where has all the time gone? Where did all my babies go? Seems as though for a time, babies were coming quite frequently, LOL...and at a time when I thought I'd never be out of the diaper stage...it now seems like a flash...a blink of an eye! And...with so many relationships falling apart around us (2 neighbors on our cul-de-sac are splitting up...my sister's 27 yr. marriage is ending...my BFF's 12 yr. marriage is over...and on and on and on), I'm wondering what really is the secret to a long, happy marriage.

While I can't speak for everyone, I can speak for myself and honestly...I think most people are good (in general)...but it's the "mixes" of people that are bad. Kinda like when we mix certain foods. For example...pair milk and mustard together...and it's just a bad mix all around...but take the milk, pair it with chocolate and pair the mustard with a hotdog and it all tastes pretty good (good mixes). I think sometimes people just aren't paired up with the right person (mix)...that and...it really helps if you LIKE your spouse, LOL! I mean...it's fairly easy to love someone, but it's not always easy to LIKE them, kwim? I think for Nolan and I...we're a good mix because we honestly enjoy one another's company...there's no one else that we'd rather hang out with...and we're all in all "best friends"! Is our marriage "perfect"?? Ummm, NO...but it's good! Do we agree on everything? Ummmm, NO...but most of the time! Are there things we could improve on? Ummm, YES...and we work on it everyday! Nobody said marriage was going to be easy...in fact...it's work! Hard work at that...

Whether it's good times or bad...there's no one else I'd rather have by my side than Nolan...so babe, just gotta say, I'll be your wing man anytime!

Taylor's first car!

Well...our patience and faith finally paid off! We have been worrying for months how we were going to afford a car for Taylor. We're in full FPU (Financial Peace University) and do not want to finance anything and we didn't have the money saved. We were able to work out a deal with the company (Nolan's) for an advance on some money they owe us, which is awesome so we don't have to have a car pmt! Taylor really needed to have her own car. Firstly because I cannot afford to fill up the tank on my Expedition 3 times a week because of all her running around...secondly, with Taylor's busy schedule (varsity cheer, student council, etc.) she really needs to be able to get herself where she needs to go, when she needs to go...Thirdly, as of the second school semester, she will have a P.A. first hour and would have lost her ride to school...and lastly, I want MY vehicle back, LOL!!

We were fortunate enough to find this car from our neighbor right around the corner from us! It's a little 2002 Ford Focus Hatchback! They bought it new and both of their kids (who are now in college) drove it thru their high school years. It's obvious from the records that they took very good care of it. It would be nice if this car could get her thru the rest of high school and maybe even college! It's got leather seats, cd player/stereo, cruise control, FWD, sun roof, etc...Hey...it's much better than my first car, LOL! It does have one dent on the rear driver's side door...but as a first car (in a high school parking lot), it's bound to get a few dings and dents anyway!

Pie anyone?

At last...I have accomplished something that I never thought I would. It may not be a big deal to some, but it's something that has weighed heavily on me for years. My mom had always wanted me to learn how to make a pie from scratch...she would call me whenever she was making a pie and ask me to come over and watch her...but it seems I was always too busy, and said I would come the next time...well, then one day, there wasn't a "next" time and she was gone. I know that I had tried to make a pie once when Nolan and I first got married, but it was a complete disaster...and I just never tried it again. It always seemed easier to just by a ready-made or frozen one.

Well...last night, I decided it was time to get back in the "pie" saddle (so to speak). I had bought a couple baskets of peaches at the farmers market and wanted peach pie. So after processing the peaches (removing skins and slicing them), it was time to make the crust. Surprisingly...I actually had enough peaches to make two pies, so I froze half to use later. I just followed the pie crust recipe on the back of the Crisco box and it was easy. The dough just rolled out beautifully! Needless to say...the pie is gone, LOL!!

All the lovely peaches, mmmmm...

The top dough added...ready for the oven!

Out of the oven and ready to eat!!

Hair??

Oh boy...I really should get my head examined because I've embarked on a new journey of growing...hair that is, LOL! I have had very short hair for so long, I can't even remember the last time I grew it out...so now the agony begins. It has grown past the length of it's normal style, but it's far from long enough to do something different with...so I guess you could say that at the present moment, I'm in hair growing "limbo". I'm trying to do a little flip with the sides and back...but it is just so NOT in a style and I hate it! I just keep setting my sights on next year and where it will be by then (if I don't crash and fall off the hair growig wagon). I saw a hair style on "It's Always Sunny in Philidelphia"...where Dennis was at a night club, and the cute girl who offers him  a "pill" has the most adorable hair...it's a chin length layered bob. I'm just ready for a change I guess...something new! We'll see, this is going to take a lot of will power to stay away from scissors, LOL!

Obsession???

In 'love' terms, Obsession is when you are trying to control someone that you think you are in love with. You get them or try to get them, to do what you want them to do. If you break up with them you get all angry and want to destroy their lives and hurt them (inside). This is true obsession. Thinking about someone loads is NOT Obsession.

or

something that you can't stop doing because you are officially addicted with it.

There's a new song by Sky Ferreira called "Obsession"...and I love it!!! So...it got me to thinking about my "obsessions"...and I have a few, LOL! Okay...I'm obsessed witht the movie, "The English Patient"...and I know that part of it is the amazing story and then there's Ralph Fiennes:

okay...so yeah, I'm a little obsessed  with him, LOL!! What is not to love here???? LOL

Then...there is my obsession with Pumpkin Pie Blizzards... which are only available for one month out of the year, thank God or else I would be 800 lbs...because as I stated earlier, I'm obsessed with them!!

I am also obsessed with perfume! I cannot NOT wear it...even if I'm just hangin' out at home...I have to "smell" good! For years...my signature scent was Coco Chanel Mademoiselle:

But...I have since found a new "obsession"...and it's a scent by Jessica Simpson (the only thing about her that I actually like, LOL), called: Fancy Love:

I'm also obsessed with having my toenails painted. They are always painted...winter, spring, summer or fall...always! I cannot stand unpainted toes!!

I'm very obsessed with music...always have been all my life. I do not play my piano as much as I probably should...but music in general is very much an obsession to me. When I download a new song, I will listen to it over and over and over until I get it out of my system (so to speak). I drive my kids crazy in the car cause they can't understand why I have to listen to a certain song over and over and over. I literally listen to music all day from the minute I get up, all day at work and before I go to sleep! I'm lucky cause I can pretty much listen to what ever I want to at work!

I'm obsessed with mexican food. I could seriously eat mexican food 6/7 nights a week!! I love, love, love it!

I'm just recently obsessed with "It's Always Sunny in Philidelphia"...OMG, I can watch that over and over!!

I know there's more, LOL...but my Benedryl is starting to kick in so it's nighty night for me!!

9/11, a day to remember...

Hard to believe it's been 9 long years since that fateful day...and yet, I remember it like it was yesterday. Jimmy was a sophomore in high school, Taylor was in the 2nd grade, Chase was in preschool and Paige was a newborn. I had just gotten all the kids off to school, grabbed a cup of coffee and settled down on the couch to nurse Paige, when my phone began ringing. It was my sister asking if my tv was on (it was, but it was on cartoon network as the kids had been watching it before they went to school)...so I immediately switch the channel over to CNN. With my sister on the phone and my eyes glued to the screen...I couldn't believe my eyes. At this point...no one knew that the plane that hit one of the twin towers was anything other than a bizarre accident. I quickly hung up with my sister and called Nolan and told him to come home immediately. He came home and we sat glued to our tv. To our horror, while watching the news and listening to the commentators...the second plane hit the other building. I think we both gasped at the sight...like we couldn't believe what we were seeing with our own eyes. By this time, the reports that another jet had hit the Pentagon began filtering in...and then those of the doomed Flight 93 which was taken into the ground to avoid it hitting another government building. Nolan never went back to work that day...we just sat there and cried...helpless to do anything. We cried for those on the planes...we cried for those brave firemen and police officers who risked and gave their lives to save others'...we cried for those who didn't make it out of the buildings...we cried for the horrified citizens of New York who were watching all this unfold before their very eyes...we cried for mothers, fathers, sons, daughters who would never come home and for their families...we cried for the sense of freedom and security we had always known that would no longer exist...we cried for the day our world, your world and everyone's world changed.

Finally!

Awwwww...finally a real day OFF! I can't remember the last Friday that I didn't have a million things going on, but....

today is different! No appts to attend, no meetings or obligations...and as luck would have it, the kids are in school today (since they had Monday off for Labor Day)...so, it's just me and Zoey & Maddie (the dogs) and Jordan & Luckee (the cats) enjoying peace, quiet and coffee!!

I really should be doing "something" like laundry for instance or paying bills...but, I'm thinking, NOT! In fact, I may just stay in my pjs all day!!

When honey's out of town...

Well...you know what they say? When the cat's away, the mice will play??? Yeah...that's kinda true here too, LOL! Nolan's out of town for a few days and while I do miss my honey...it's also a time when the kids and I can break from tradition. For instance, this week on the menu so far...hot dogs, sloppy joes, etc...no meat and potato meals here! We watch whatever we want on TV (or surf the web) and it's all good!

One of my favorite things about honey being gone <> is that I usually share my my bed with someone else. Now...before you go gasping and jumping to conclusions, it's probably not what you think! Yes...there's dogs and cats, but usually, one of the kids sleeps in Nolan's spot! At this point in time, it's usually Paige as the others are "too big" to sleep with mom. I can recall when Taylor, Chase and Paige were all little, I often had all 3 of them with me. Now I'm down to just my baby...and at 9, not sure how much longer she'll take these opportunities to bunk with mom, but I know I will cherish it and enjoy it for as long as it lasts!