My 3 New Loves!

I have a few new loves or shall I say obsessions!

1. My smart phone. Until now, I only had a basic phone where I could call and text. I never wanted to pay the extra expense of a monthly data plan. I finally said "screw it"! I work hard and I want an Iphone! The Iphone was my original plan. I ordered it online, only to get a message from At&t saying we had exceeded amount of phones that you could order online. Huh? Never knew we had a maximum amount we could order. Anyway, that night Steve went down and got himself an android. My plan was to go to the At&t store and get my Iphone the next day. That was until Steve started messing with his phone and couldn't figure it out. He hated it! So, I started playing with it. I loved it! So, in the end, I ended up keeping his android and I went down the next day and got him a different phone that was a little more friendly to the technologically incompetent. I love, love, love this phone!

2. Pandora Radio. My kids have had this on their laptops for awhile. I downloaded it to my phone and I can listen to any kid of music I want while I am at work. Sometimes I am in the mood for country. Other times hip hop. Other times pop or rock. I have never found a radio station that can satisfy my diverse music tastes and I usually grow tired of listening to one certain genre of music all day. This is perfect! Most times, I just hit the "quick mix" on Pandora and it mixes all my stations together. So one minute I can be listening to a Jason Aldean song, then the next song is an 80's hair band song, then a 90's Cypress Hill song! It is freaking awesome! http://www.pandora.com/

3. Pinterest. A co-worker was asking about this about a month ago. She wasn't sure what it was, so we all started checking it out. This site has everything! And I mean everything! Recipes, crafts, fashion, home decorating, photography.... And you create your own pin boards to display the things you like or in my case, save the things I like. If you see something you like, click on the picture and it will give you the recipe or directions on how to make whatever it is. It took me awhile to get it figured out. But, I am hooked! And I must warn you, it is addictive! So, I have started setting time limits on myself, because it can waste hours of your life away! http://pinterest.com/

Now I just have to take time away from new obsessions to do yucky things, like clean house and cook dinner. Yes, I like recipes from Pinterest, but I would like them better if someone else was cooking them for me! This chic hates to cook!

Getting Old Isn't so Bad As Long As You're Having Fun!

Yesterday was my 38th birthday. 38th??? I feel 23! I had a wonderful day! Way back in August before we knew that Peyton Manning wasn't going to be playing this year and before we knew the Colts were going to suck, Mom bought tickets for her, my brother Travis and I for the game on my birthday. Not that we didn't have fun, but had she known, she could have gotten the tickets MUCH cheaper now! Anyway, it was perfect because for years we thought it would be great to get Travis home for the Veteran's Day program that our school puts on every year. So, this way he could come home for the the program and my birthday. Seeing him walk down with the rest of the Veteran's in his uniform brought tears to my eyes. I get emotional at the program every year, but this one was extra emotional! I am so very proud of my little brother and all that he's accomplished in his military career. My other brother Allen and his wife Abby also came in for the weekend. Needless to say, it was a wonderful family filled weekend. I didn't get much rest. We did a lot of hanging out at my Dad and Sharon's house. My stomach hurt for the better part of the weekend, because when we all get together we laugh-a lot! Yesterday, we got up and headed to Indy for the game. We decided to stay down there because we thought we might like to partake in a few adult beverages. We had a blast! We hit the bar next to our hotel before the game. The weather was windy, but nice so our walk to the stadium wasn't too bad. Usually we go when it's freezing, so the warm weather was nice for once! There was a surprise soldier homecoming at the game. The guy's wife thought she was just watching a video of him since it was Veteran's Day weekend, but he was actually there! That stuff chokes me up everytime I see it on TV. I've never witnessed something like that in person, so boy was it emotional! The Colts lost, but it was fine, because when you are with Travis everything is better! He is one funny dude! I always say there is nothing more contagious than a Travis laugh. Even if something isn't funny, he laughs and you are in stitches! Afterwards, we hit up Weber Grill for dinner. Ate way too much, so we were all hurting when we got back to the hotel. Between the food, the drinks and all of the yelling from the game, we were beat! So, we sat in the room like a bunch of stuffed toads and ending up calling it a night around 9:30. Travis headed back to Maryland this morning and Mom and I headed back home. This birthday will be one I will always remember. I am so thankful for the family that I have. Times like these are a great reminder of how truly blessed I am!

Dad and Travis at the AHS Veteran's Day program

Since she is part of the student council, Bry got to serve her uncle and grandpa breakfast!

Mom and Travis

Hanging out at Dad's by the fire.

Allen, Sharon and Travis watching Turtle Man on Allen's phone

Hanging out at Kilroy's before the game

The three of us waiting on the game to start

Here come our Colts!

Military Tribute

National Anthem

Me and my little brother. Who knew I would ever grow up to like this guy!

We know our team sucks, but we still love them!

This may sound mean, but I wish the Colts would recycle Curtis Painter!!!

Too much food and drinks will do this to a guy! No, really he was just goofing off in the elevator, but that's about how we all felt!

He's my brother and I love him!

Veteran's Day

Friday is Veteran's Day.Please take a moment to thank our brave men and women who have fought and are still fighting for our freedom.

These 3 guys are just a few of the many reasons why Veteran's Day means so much to me

Another Halloween Has Come And Gone :(

It was a gorgeous night for trick or treat this year! Our town decided to have a Halloween parade and costume contest this year too. I was so excited about this! My dad and Aunt Tedi have always talked about the town doing this when they were kids. So, it looks like they are trying to start that tradition up again.We started out downtown. Dusty was in the contest and Bry went with the school band to twirl her flag. Jordan, being the brooding teenager he is, decided to stay home until trick or treat time. Dusty won first place in his age group. And went on to win the grand prize overall! Yippee!!! Not bad since my mom and I were literally putting this costume together on Sunday afternoon. We finished downtown and headed to my dad's. The family always gathers there every year. They always have dinner and snacks. The kids trick or treat on their street. It was so nice that we hung out on the porch and handed out candy there. Steve hung out at our house and handed out candy to the kids in our neighborhood. He enjoys seeing the little kids come around in their costumes. Jordan headed out with a friend. Bryson went trick or treating with the student council collecting food for the food pantry. It was a fun night! And as always, I am sorry that it is over!

Dusty-It's what's for dinner!

I've been told that I have a sick mind when people see our costumes. We've done the cutesy costumes when they were little. They are older and now they want blood and gore. I fought it for years, but I lost the battle. Now they are creepy, disgusting and scary. And more often than not-over the top!

Jordan went as a plague doctor. He made the mask himself. I couldn't figure out what he was trying to do when he asked me to pick up a hockey mask, a long styrofoam cone, plaster, sandpaper.... How in the world could those items turn into this.....

I must say, I was impressed with his work!

Bry decided to take it back to the 80's! I was trying to help her get her big hair and she asked "Mom, did you guys really use this much hairspray back then?". Ha! If she only knew how much money Aquanet was making back in those days!

I had to laugh with a friend last night. My teenage daughter was out on Halloween night trick or treating for food for the food pantry. Not exactly what we were doing on Halloween night as teenagers! Not that we were doing mean things like stealing candy and smashing pumpkins. I hate pumpkin smashers and even did back then! Ever since Dad painted Bert and Ernie pumpkins for Ryan and Allen when they were little and some punk smashed them! The boys were so sad! No, we weren't doing mean things, but I will just say, we were a little mischievous and leave it at that! :)

Bry twirling her flag

Dad's dog, Piccadilly watching for trick or treaters. She kept shoving her head through the rails on the porch! Crazy dog!

Jordan's pumpkin.

All lit up

Dusty's pumpkin

Footloose!

Normally, I HATE remakes! Normally, they just don't get them right. I believe my hatred for remakes started after I saw The Parent Trap with Lindsey Lohan. The original was and still is my very favorite movie of all time. The remake just didn't do it justice! So, when I saw they were remaking Footloose, I was worried that they wouldn't get it right. I remember when the original came out. I was 11 years old and in the 5th grade. I remember seeing it at the theater and thinking it was probably the coolest movie ever! I remember when it came out on video. My mom rented the movie, plus actually had to rent a VCR so I could watch it again. I had the soundtrack on tape. I wore that tape out! Dancing and singing! Let's Hear For The Boy, Footloose, Almost Paradise, Dancing in the Sheets, Holding Out For a Hero-It was awesome! So, while I was reluctant to see the remake, I had to see it. Plus, the previews made it look pretty good. I loved it! It was very true to the original, down to the storyline, the characters and the music. It was all very nostalgic for me. And it was so very hard to keep myself in my seat and refrain from breaking into a total white girl dance and singing at the top of my lungs! There were a few changes. A lot of the music was remade. But, I think it did the original Footloose justice. It brought me right back to the 5th grade! And I have been singing Let's Hear It For The Boy all day!

The Trailer:


Blake Shelton's remake of Footloose:


Let's Hear It For The Boy-Original movie scene


Kenny Loggins Footloose

Pumpkin Picking

Monday was Columbus Day, so it was a federal holiday for me. And it meant that I got one whole glorious day home alone while Steve was at work and the kids were at school. I slept until 9. Cleaned a little. Just enough to make my house somewhat presentable if someone were to drop by unannounced. Which no one did, thank goodness! And for the rest of the day until the kids came home, I vegged out in Steve's recliner with a stack of People magazines and a ton a neglected DVR'd shows to watch! Bliss! Pure Bliss!!! And then... the kids came home. But the weather was beautiful, so I took them to the pumpkin patch to pick out some pumpkins. They are already getting their carving ideas in their heads. One of their favorite parts of fall is carving their pumpkins. So, the pumpkins have been purchased, so when the kids are ready, the pumpkin carving can begin! Happy Fall Everyone!

Dusty with some of the pumpkins that they each carefully chose

In a rare happy sibling moment!

Typical Jordan running from the camera. Seriously, I don't like the other two more than him. This is why I have so few pics of him!

Sometimes a little bribing works!

And this one here, is always ready to pose for the camera

Dear Ricky, next time Mom sends you to the car to get her wallet, you may just want to grab the wallet and not the whole purse. Especially when we have our cameras in hand and your shirt matches her purse! :)