Sunday, June 29, 2008

There's No Place Like Home

Well, we are finally home from our weekend jaunt to Nashville. I always feel I miss Nashville with all there is to do there. That is until we were all three stuck in rush hour traffic. God has a great sense of humor and to entertain himself on Friday....we were stuck in a little traffic jam. Just enough to make me reflect and say....forget this. If we still lived in Nashville, two hours of my life would be spent in a car per day and away from my kids. Here in Cookeville I spend 20 minutes in the car commuting away from my kids. What a nice quality of life that offers our family. Mike has the same commute time. We are truly blessed for both of us to work so close to our home, especially during this gas crisis. Sometimes we forget about little things like that. I guess we will continue to visit Nashville to get our 'big city' fix (yes, I know it is not that big) but return home to our small town blessings.

Thursday, June 26, 2008

Power to Spare and One More Sleep

Michael was so excited after golf camp yesterday. He told me the course pro said he had "power to spare." Now, do not get me wrong. I try to see my kids as objectively as possible. I do not have these crazy aspirations of Michael being the next Tiger Woods nor do I try to live vicariously through him. If he wants to pursue golf....go for it. If not, that is fine too. But, if you truly have a knack for something.....knock it out.....exploit your talents (in a good way). Work with what the good Lord gave you. I have watched Michael swing a driver before and it is quite impressive.
It would just be nice to have a free ride to college and golf would give that to him. Yes, I know that is jumping the gun by about 10 years but one has got to have a long term plan. I will keep this updated on his up and coming PGA debut!!!
On another note, I miss that little guy so much. I have not seen him since Sunday and we are all chomping at the bit to have him home. I am using a trick I stole from a friend of mine to count off the days. Since kids have no concept of 2, 3, or 4 days until a particular occurrence.....you put it in language they can understand. You tell them how many sleeps until that particular event is going to take place. For instance, this evening I told Marshall...One more sleep until you see Bubba. I know he has no idea what I am saying but I like putting it in some sort of perspective for him. He will eventually get it and it will help him count days. Only one more sleep for all of us until we get to see Michael!!!

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Just Call Me Kermit the Frog

It's not easy being green. At least that is what my favorite Muppet used to say! I officially tried on my proverbial green suit in an attempt to minimally do my part to 'save the Earth'. I RODE MY BIKE TO WORK TODAY!!! I can hardly believe it myself. I actually did more than a work ride. On the way back from work I stopped at the utility company to pay my bill in the drive thru (that was funny seeing the look on chics face!) and then I went to the hair salon and had a cut/color! I went to work and ran two errands without using an ounce of gas! My thigh and calf muscles paid a heavy price, though. I have a lot of hills in the beginning on my way to work and a lot of hills at the end of my way home. No matter how in shape you think you are.....I implore you to get on a bike and ride.....I don't know......3-5 miles on mildly hilly terrain. I assure you it is quite humbling. I get the award today for the biggest wimp ever!!
The kids are doing quite well. Marshall is up to his usual fit throwing when he does not get his way and Michael is still with my parents being center of attention. He gets to go to Nashville Shores (water park) tomorrow. He is so excited.
Sorry this entry was all about me for the most part. I promise it will not always be that way. I am an only child and grandchild on one side.....so it has to be all about me every once in a while. That is how I was raised and one cannot fight nurture!!

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

First Haircut and The Bogey

Well, I finally did it. Marshall received his first official haircut. Those golden locks are absolutely adorable but they were getting a little out of control. When his hair was wet at the pool, he looked like some kind of red-neck with a mullet. Think Billy Ray Cyrus pre-Hannah Montana!! Or, even better, when it was dry he looked like Albert Einstein after really tying one on the night before! This was not a good look for the little guy. Do not fret, the little guy did not get a high and tight....just a little off the sides and the back. He still looks totally cute....like anything less than that was possible! If you would like to see his pre-haircut pics go to this website:
http://amycallahan.zenfolio.com/p154199686/ Password: a.bregenzer

Little man definitely misses his brother. Whenever I pick him up from the daycare he calls out, "Bubba, Bubba!" It is so bittersweet to hear. I hope they always love each other that much. We only have three more sleeps (code for nights of sleep before you do something) until we see Bubba. I miss him terribly.
When I talked to Michael yesterday, I found out he bogeyed a hole at golf camp. That is great for a little guy. His golf coach states he has quite a golf swing for an eight year old. Don't worry, I do not have any pipe dreams of the next Tiger Woods but a college scholarship for golf would not be half shabby.

Monday, June 23, 2008

A Wonderful Weekend Ending With Minus One

We had a wonderful and relaxing weekend. Friday I took Michael and his friend Ben to the pool to swim for a couple of hours. This was capped off with a couple of margaritas and some dinner at Cinco de mayo....guess what kind of food it is!?!? Saturday morning my mom came into town and we all fiddled around the house and played outside with the kids. Mom also helped pick up while Marshall was napping so I could get ready for my cookout.
The cookout Saturday evening was great. The weather was mild and a little humid but everyone had a great time. The menu included 6 racks of ribs grilled by yours truly...and yes they tasted great. I do believe it is a good sign when you attempt to take them off of the grill and the bones start to fall out of them. That is some good eatin'! Each guest also brought a side dish. It was relaxed with good conversation. We had 15 adults and three small children under age of 2. Marshall was the oldest of the three and he was so good to little one year old Gracie. He wanted to show her something in the cooler so he put his hand in the small of her back and graciously led her over to the cooler. It was sweetest and most gentle thing I have ever seen him do. He was quite the gentleman. Now that I think about it..Michael has always been extremely polite, too.
Michael had so much fun greeting the guests in the driveway in his John Deere Gator (the kid kind) and leading them around to the back of the house. He hung out with us for a while and later would take random adults upstairs to play the Wii.
Mom spent the night and Sunday we had a great breakfast. This was followed by another 2 hours of swimming. Marshall gets so excited in the pool with his little floaties. I do believe the water level recedes just a bit by the time we leave. This is due to Marshall drinking half of the pool water because he cannot quit laughing while swimming! By the time we got back home it was 1:00 and mom needed to get back to Nashville. The only thing with that is....she was taking Michael with her for the week. He attends golf camp every summer in Nashville for a week. When he and mom started to leave, Marshall started to cry a little and say bubba over and over. It was so sad. That little guy is going to have a hard time this week and so is the momma!

It is amazing how quickly you start to miss your children when they are not around. It is also amazing how quickly you wish for some downtime when they are around.

Thursday, June 19, 2008

Face Glass Smooshing

Sorry I have not had any posts for the past 3 days. There is actually nothing going on and I am enjoying the hell out of it. It is sometimes good to have a boring life and just sit, watching the full moon come up at night. I am adding some pics of the boys. No, they have not been maimed by some type of accident....they have discovered/rediscovered the art of face glass smooshing. As we all know, this is a timeless art treasure that will entertain many generations to come. It is so refreshing to know good ol' fashion fun is still around. The funny thing is anyone who reads this post has done this and it was most likely followed by a pooting noise against the glass!! You know you have!!

So, my weekend starts today....yeah....TGIT!! Michael also finds out when his braces come off. We are both very excited about that. It will be weird seeing him without all that in his mouth.

Well, back to the party drawing board.....rehab cookout at my house Saturday for coworkers. I knew the peace and quiet wouldn't last too long. I won't allow it.

Sunday, June 15, 2008

It's Father's Day

I know many guys do not read my blog but by a small chance one does so today-Happy Father's Day.(if applicable!) This post is in honor of my devoted husband/father. Mike is a great Dad. He spent today at the pool with the kids, while I sat in a lounge chair reading magazines and talking to a friend of mine. This went on for almost 2 hours. Where some men would be thinking...Hey, this is my day. I will relax and you can be with the kids...Mike never batted an eye during that one on one time. He even got Marshall to swim by himself with floaties without his mouth going under. That in itself is momentous. Now do not get me wrong, Mike is not perfect and I definitely am not either. He puts up with my mood swings, girls night out once sometimes twice a month, and my 'Only Child Syndrome' which he has so cleverly diagnosed.
Marshall is now asleep and Mike and Michael are at the driving range. It is so nice to be in a quiet home to read,reflect, and mess around on the computer. It almost feels like Mother's Day!

Saturday, June 14, 2008

Wasting Time

I truly feel I am the queen of wasting time. It is currently 1:46pm and I have officially done nothing but fart around the house and play on the computer all day. There are things I could be doing...my plate is far from empty, i.e. organizing pictures, putting Marshall's clothes on Ebay, clean up the basement, sorting through Michael's clothes he cannot wear anymore. The list is endless as most peoples are. I ask you, which sounds more fun.....nothing or tackling some of that list. I know I would feel better if even one thing on that list could be crossed off.......psychologists say so!!! However, that does not offer one iota of inspiration. I may talk myself into going to the grocery store, go swimming with the boys for a little while, and following that up with a wienie roast with the kids. I think I will enjoy crossing things off that list much better. Hot dogs and marshmallows for everyone......and a glass of Cabernet for mom!!! That is the cherry on top of my wasted time sundae.

Friday, June 13, 2008

It's That Pathetic

Our family has now entered the sacred coven of Wiiville. I was finally able to commandeer one after bidding on Ebay until 11:30 one night. This much anticipated birthday present for Michael finally arrived on Wednesday. We were soooooo excited. By we, I mean, Michael and I. I have no problem being a self proclaimed kid at heart!
We start of with bowling followed by multiple harrowing tennis matches. Granted this is all against my son who has been playing with Wiis at random friend's houses for months and has a lot of experience. The short is...he kicked my butt. I was a little scrapper....I refused to give up....I gave it my all.
I WAS SORE THE NEXT MORNING!!! I have never felt so ridiculous in my life. It would be different if I did nothing day in and day out. I have a gym downstairs....I use it. I try to run 2-3 miles a few times a week....I have a job where lifting greater than 50 pounds multiple times a day is commonplace. I ask you, how can this be?!?!?! If anyone says anything about age I will promise to assault them the next time I see them!
I have decided to try and play equally with my left arm, too. I don't want to have one fit side and one non-fit side. This ought to be very interesting.

Thursday, June 12, 2008

Pink Eye and Baseball Camp

This has been a very exciting week for Michael. Baseball camp is going on through Friday and it is so much fun. Tennessee Tech sponsors it. The camp is at their baseball fields and taught by the Tech baseball players. These boys think they are really something big being able to play at the college fields. I love watching them. Michael received the door prize the first day of camp.....pink eye...in both eyes! I have personally never seen pink eye manifest itself equally in both eyes but if it is going to happen...it most likely will happen to us!! He woke up yesterday morning feeling his way down the hall to our room with a wet washcloth. He made it to our bathroom and handed me the cloth and said:

Him: "I cant see!"
Me: "What do you mean you cant see?"
Him: "I mean, I can't see!"
Me: "Cant see because your eyes are stuck together or can't see because when you open your
eyes you see nothing?"
Him: "I can't see because my eyes are stuck together"

Doesn't this vaguely sound like an Abbott and Costello routine? Anyway, I got him on the bed and proceeded to pat his eyes with a warm cloth and slowly pry them open. It was like something from Alien as the started to open!! When he could open them on his own (without finger assistance) he shut them back quickly stating it hurts his eyeballs to have them open. Fine, I thought. I grabbed the remote control and turned the TV to Nick where the Fairly Odd Parents were up to their typical shenanigans. He rolled over...eyes still shut...and pitifully asked "Mom, am I facing the TV?". I told him yes. Maybe 15 seconds later he told me he could keep them open now! REALLY.....it must have been a cartoon miracle!!

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

What Is Your Carbon Footprint

I have never considered myself a tree hugger. I feel I am more of tree petter. I am not comfortable enough to fully embrace the tree but I will pet it and maybe rub it's tummy! I recycle everything to the extent of harassing coworkers for plastic bottles and picking up cardboard boxes on the docks at the hospital. I guess it just hurts my feelings to see all this go into a landfill to rot or whatever it does. I also try to keep all the lights turned off in the house when not in use.
My carbon footprint is 16.974 tons/year. I am actually below average with the national rate being 20.4 tons/year. I feel I am somewhat environmentally friendly but I have not converted to fluorescent bulbs yet. I still drive a gas guzzling Tahoe but it does switch from a V8 to a V4 on the interstate when you don't need the other cylinders. Make no mistake...I will not be buying any carbon offsets. I am not that gullible. If you would like to know what your carbon footprint is....
www.carbonfootprint.com.
If you are silly enough to buy carbon offsets, this will take you to the link that will let you do that, too!! Take care of your Earth....it is the only one you have.

Sunday, June 8, 2008

Acting Like A Crack-Addict

I know that is a strange title for my blog but before you all worry that I am a drug addict...let me explain. I will start with the comment that I do have a life, however there are certain small and menial pleasures one can extrapolate from the every day humdrum of life. I am referring to the ABC series 'Lost'. For those of you who watch it....no explanation for you is needed. For those of you who do not...It is a very complicated series full of twist, turns and subtle nuances that can be hard for the simple minded to pick up on. I am included in that simple mind group but I am not alone. Apparently there are thousands (I do mean thousands) of people that depend on one particular person to do recaps of the Lost episodes and put them on YouTube for all of our viewing, lucid pleasure!
This person is named Sean and he has 4,742 subscribers (loyal subjects) to his "channel". His last entry stated the recaps for the last two episodes of Lost would be up by Saturday night, Pacific time. Well guess what.....they are still not up and it is Sunday afternoon and let me tell you.....anarchy is afoot. I have never seen such angry people from as far away as the UK and Holland saying his name in vain! I have to admit that I am checking his site every 30 minutes or so agonizing over when these new recaps will be posted. Yes, I know that sounds pathetic but I am addicted to this like Crack. If you want to check out his recaps they are highly thought out and wonderfully filmed, not some stupid person in front of a camera hammering along. Here is a link if anyone is interested. http://www.youtube.com/user/smolesiuk?ob=1

On a side note....if you want to totally be depressed/entertained by the decay or dumbing down of society......read the comments other people have posted on his channel. I think people are either dumb as hell or are so addicted to texting....they just don't know or care to know how to spell anymore. Please people....if you are texting use abbreviations,your perceived hip code and acronyms. If you are sending email or leaving comments on a chat board......use ENGLISH unless you like looking like a dolt!!!

Saturday, June 7, 2008

Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

The Indiana Jones birthday sleepover went off without a hitch. The boys started out with water gun fights and playing in the water/snake pit. (child's pool) They enjoyed the kiddie pool so much, I thought....who needs a 30 thousand dollar pool when you can get one at Walmart for $12! It was quite a site seeing 7 boys in a plastic pool. I will post pics of that later. They noshed on some hot dogs and hamburgers followed by being blindfolded and putting their hands in gross textured food. ie. chocolate pudding with grapes and spaghetti with gummi worms and bugs. They loved it. After that, it was obstacle course time. This consisted of crabwalks, tires, low crawls, hoping on one foot, balance beam, rolling down the hill and the rope cross over the snake pit of death!!! This video is rather entertaining and I will try to publish it on the site, too.
The boys were up until 1 a.m. and finally went to sleep but they were all awake by 7 a.m. donning swimsuits and outside for water gun fights again. They got to eat pancakes for breakfast on the patio to be ready for pick up at 10 a.m.
This event was more enjoyable than I thought it would be. I did not even have to break up any fights or disagreements. Oh, to be a kid again!

Thursday, June 5, 2008

My Sick Baby And Another Party To Plan

Marshall is sick once again. I swear, if what they say is true about building up immunities every time you are sick, Marshall is going to be the SUPERHERO of immune systems. He will have such an efficient immune system....he will be able to leap tall buildings in a single bound and donate his immunities to others let fortunate. Either that or if he gets sick when he is older nothing will help him!! Let us hope the first part is true.....the non-sci fi part!
Anyway, he has a low grade (101 or so) fever, incredibly stuffy nose and a horrible cough that wakes him up at night.
This is all, of course, on top of the Indiana Jones birthday party sleepover for my 8 year old tomorrow. That much talked about event is in 36 hours and I have not even gotten a birthday candle.....much less all the things needed for the obstacle course and prizes for the treasure hunt. Holy grails, rubber snakes, fake eyeballs...you get the point. I guess lunch for Angela today will be running all over town....YIPPEE! I cannot wait to see them all in their little fedoras acting like crazy kids. I am thinking about turning on the sprinklers while they are running through the obstacles course. That will make it more adventure like....I am sooooooooo excited.

Monday, June 2, 2008

The Birthday Boy and Cute Toddler

This entry goes out to both of my wonderful children. Firstly, today is Michael's 8th birthday. He officially entered our world after much work from me at 2:29 pm. After much searching...I finally stayed up late last night and won a Wii off of eBay for his birthday. This was after being outbid on 22 other Wii auctions last night. I had a price in my head I was willing to pay and no more than that! Last night, I was at the kitchen table and Michael was a good 15 feet or more away on the couch watching Hook. I was talking to my mother, whispering about the wii into the phone with my hand cupped around my mouth. Michael pops up suddenly, turns around and says, "I hear you talking about a Wii!" How in the world is this possible? This is the same child I have to repeat myself to when he is sitting right next to me. It must be a miraculous auditory repair.
My youngest wonderful child is turning into such a character. He is really trying to talk up a storm (I don't know where he gets that.) but I can only understand about 10%. He, however, is having an in depth conversation.

Him: "Mommy"
Me: "Yes, Marshall"
Him: "Mommy"
Me: "Yes, Marshall" (more emphatically!)
Him: "garbleyflapadooytremecadoggy!"
Me: "Oh, I see."
He also loves asking for 'High Fives' and pressing the Staples easy button and repeating, "That was easy!" Hide 'n go seek is another favorite of his but he only likes to play it in our closet. He will hide behind the lower pant rack and just stand perfectly still like a sniper. We have to yell out 'where is Marshall?' Again, standing perfectly still. After we yell for him four or five times...he comes running out laughing his butt off. Oh, excuse me, his bottom off!! He so thinks he fools us. I love it!

Sunday, June 1, 2008

When Will the Ride End

Well, I made it to Sunday in my whirlwind of a week. Of course, you know about the baby shower on Thursday and all the stress involved in planning something of that caliber. And, it is so like me to compound that stress with a trip to Spankie's (restaraunt in town) on the Wednesday before the shower with my husband and 4 other couples. I remember the haunting words of my husband...."Are you sure you want to go out with all the things you have left to do for the shower? Why would you want to do that to yourself?" His foreboding words resonate through my mind...unheeded, of course!!! I actually had an evening off on Friday but this was only because I ditched my friends who were doing dinner and a movie.
Saturday.....We had a party to go to in Nashville which started at 4pm. Since compounding stress seems to be the order of the weekend....I opted to take the kids swimming and not start packing any of us or bathing myself until 1:45. This party was 45 minutes away and we were spending the night at the Embassy in Nashville. The people at the party were ones I had not set my eyes on in over 20 years. It was great to see them all and introduce my family. We got to the hotel at 7pm and invited my parents and a wonderful woman I used to work with and her significant male other to join us for cocktails. The kids were asleep in the bedroom part of the suite and Mike and I enjoyed some adult time with other adults in the living room part of the suite sans children. This is a rarity to have us both together socializing.
Sunday......"I want to go swimming" This was the first thing out of Michael's mouth after we ate breakfast. So we all four went to the indoor pool at the hotel. It was like bathtub water! Marshall and myself thoroughly enjoyed not having to ease ourselves into the water. After swimming, we checked out at 11am and headed to my parents house. We had another birthday party in Brentwood at 2pm and needed to waste some time. This was a party for a little guy turning eight. We are also good friends with his parents. It was nice to visit with the Vachon's. They are great. On the drive home, we ran into some incredible weather which slowed traffic on I-40 to about 15 mph. Finally, we are home at 5pm.
Next weekend starts another whirlwind including evening VBS every night, Michael's 8th birthday on Monday, dinner and a movie with the girls on Tuesday, with a sleep over birthday on Friday for Michael's official birthday party. Eight boys in the house.......................I will keep this updated if I survive this ride!