Hula Challenge

You may remember from last night that I am taking the Shrinking Jeans Challenge for WiiFit's Hula Hoops. Last night I went did 21 spins....tonight I did 97 spins in the 70 seconds they give you in the first level! I'm pretty proud of myself if I do say so myself!
Come check out how everyone else is doing here.

Tiny Talk Hockey Edition

Tiny Talk Tuesday celebrates our children and their view of the world. They continually make us laugh and by recording their Tiny Talk we can focus on one of the many JOYS of parenting! If your kiddos made you laugh this week (don't they always), then feel free to share the humor! Check out more Tiny Talks with Mary.

This weekend was the last weekend of the winter hockey season for That Other Kid. We celebrated all weekend long with practice and trophies Friday night, then a birthday party and a Dallas Stars game with a MiniMite Shootout during 1st period intermission Saturday. Then Sunday they had their last game which they won 5-2 to a team they had previously always lost to! It was an award winning weekend to be sure.

That Other Kid was in the shootout and was VERY excited all night Friday night and Saturday during the day. However, on the way to the American Airlines Center I think it started sinking in that he would be doing a shootout in front of thousands of people! He said, "I don't think I can do this. I'm sooooo nervous! I don't feel very good! How many people will be there?" This was repeated for the whole 45 minute trip downtown. Then once in the locker room getting dressed in his hockey gear...he repeated it again. I told him to relax and do his best! He would do fine....and he did! I think the thing that got him was that he was 1st in line to do the shootout!!

I was so proud of him...and honestly I would have been incredibly nervous too! We don't do well in crowds!! Anyway here are a couple of pictures from the weekend...Enjoy!

Another Challenge

Over at Shrinking Jeans they are hosting another Weight Loss Challenge this time with the possiblity of winning a 30 Day Shred DVD to help get me moving. Based on the past few days I think I need something that will get me moving at home. I seem to be having a hard time getting to the gym, but after That Other Kid goes to bed I can get some exercise in. It's only 20 minutes long and I can give up 20 minutes of computer time to lose some weight, I think! If you are interested you can go over here and enter, too. But wait do I really want more competition???

Update For Today's Challenge

My Dh bought me the WiiFit for Christmas and I've only used it 3 times prior to tonight...but this challenge has encouraged me to get it out and use it. I did it tonight for 25 minutes!! yeah for me!!

I had only done the hula hoop event for 2 spins before tonight! Pretty pathetic doncha think? Anyway, I practiced and practiced and practiced tonight and got up to 21 spins!! 2 times!! so at least I'm improving...I know it's not much but any improvement is IMPROVEMENT! and besides I actually worked out on the WiiFit today!

I also started cleaning out the garage which needs some major overhauling and restructuring! Think President Obama would give us a stimulus package since our garage is in such sorry shape?? Sorry I couldn't resist!!

This weekend That Other Kid had some major hockey events! I have a great picture of him before his final game of the season that I just knew you would want to see....



Thanks for humoring me!! Btw, if you like this picture and live in the DFW area you can have your kids pictures taken by the man who took this one. His name is Trey Hill and his website is here. Tell him Ann sent you!

A Weight Loss Challenge

Over at the Sisterhood of Shrinking Jeans they are having a fun Challenge to help get you exercising this week. It sounds like a ton of fun and I've been needing a good excuse to whip out the Wii Fit that DH spent the whole weekend before Christmas looking for so I'm gonna participate. So far my total spins on HulaHoops has been 4 --- but I've only been on the WiiFit 2 or 3 times so I don't guess that is too surprising. Let's see how I can improve, between now and Saturday night!

I had a great weekend, and I'll share that with you a little later tonight. But I will say that I haven't had any coke or caffeine since Wednesday afternoon!! Whooohoo!!

Day 2...

Yeah, I have made it through another day without Coke/caffeine! Tomorrow will be really tough. We have to be out a lot and are going to the Dallas Stars Hockey game tomorrow night. How am I going to watch a hockey game and not drink Coke?? I guess I'll have to be really dedicated and have awesome WILLPOWER!! We'll see how it works out.

Although I didn't have any coke/caffeine I did have a 12 oz strawberry shake and a small order of french fries from Braums. They didn't serve me the chicken strips that I ordered so I guess I saved those calories, huh? Other than that slight faux paux I guess I have done pretty well since Wednesday afternoon when I really started watching what I'm eating/drinking again. I just fixed myself a grilled cheese sandwich and had a few chips with it...unfortunately I didn't eat it till 10:30 p.m. so those calories will be sticking to my b*tt, no doubt!

Well I'm beat and I have another incredible headache so I'm off to bed to try to get a decent night of sleep!

The Day's Almost Over.....

and I haven't had a single drop of caffeine or coke and I have one of the worst headaches of my life! But I ate healthy and didn't add on any extra calories by drinking any coke!! I need to find a healthy alternative so that I can have at least some caffeine. I won't survive this withdrawal period without something to give me a little "buzz"!

So...in short I ate and drank well but I didn't get any exercise in. Oh well, there's always tomorrow, right?!!

Oh, and on a totally unrelated note -- I signed onto FaceBook and I even have a couple of "friends"! If you wanta be my "friend" just let me know...and we'll hook up!

Reflections ...

I'm not the best of photographers but I do tend to take a bunch of my boys! This is a picture that I took of That Other Kid while he was playing goalie this past weekend and I took it up against the glass while using my flash -- so I got this funky looking reflection. It makes it look all foggy in the rink! It wasn't, but sometimes in the summer it is...so maybe I'll just pretend!

If you have some great pictures that you want to share with the blogging world you can hook up with Beth at I Should Be Folding Laundry. She's having a great meme that is called "You Capture" where she gives you an assignment to take pictures of something in particular then post them. I thought it was fun! Hope you do too...

Time To Shrink the Jeans (and Waist)

I went to the Endocronologist today...and he gave me a talkin' to! I need to lose some SERIOUS WEIGHT. He is concerned about my long term health and the distinct possibility of diabetes...then I found out that the Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans is starting a new challenge. It starts today and runs through May! What better time to start up again than NOW!! I need to get this weight off and I obviously need to some motivation!

So here goes...I weighed 225 pounds today at the doctor....pretty sad and disgusting for a person who weighed 123 pounds in 1990! That's over 100 pounds in 18 years...VERY, VERY, SAD and SICKENING! So here's what I'm doing --- I'm going to check in every day with the Sisters (and 1 brother) and I'm going to join Weight Watchers and stop drinking the Cokes that I am so addicted to!! Not to mention....visiting the gym that I have been a member of for the past 3 1/2 years and doing more than reading my books and watching stupid music videos...I mean really kickin' my booty with the exercise machines! So help me and keep me motivated and honest.

I'll be checking in here every week and letting you know how I'm doing so please comment and let me know you are keeping tabs on me!

Tiny Talk Tuesday -- Sibling Edition

Tiny Talk Tuesday celebrates our children and their view of the world. They continually make us laugh and by recording their Tiny Talk we can focus on one of the many JOYS of parenting! If your kiddos made you laugh this week (don't they always), then feel free to share the humor! Check out more Tiny Talks with Mary.



"You are too weird to be in this house." This came from That Other Kid, my 5 year old to That Kid, my 18 year old!

Ya think he's trying to get rid of his big brother???

Big Brother's response...."Ok, I'll go pack my stuff and leave."
He proceeded to go get a suitcase and put a couple of things in it.
Little Brother's response...."No, you can't leave....I'll miss you too much!" and he started crying!!!

It may be a tough fall, when That Kid goes off to college or moves away to work in Minnesota! It's a good thing That Other Kid has a puppy now!

Meet Mack

The newest member of our family....we met him yesterday afternoon, and picked him up this morning. He is about 4 months old, part Blue Heeler, part Black Lab, part Terrior...a nice mix if I do say so myself. So far he loves to be outside and stand at the back door and look out. He hasn't barked once and is not too sure about the leash and That Other Kid. He still hasn't met the "Queen of the House, Ms. Sheaba" our 11 year old cat. She's a snot and has been out a couple of times to hiss at the crate. She eats and runs back to the bedroom.

It should be an interesting ride....doncha think?!!

Hockey Game....

Before the game.....ready to take the ice in his debut as goalie for a game. They won, btw, 7-4!!!





During warmups!! Both my boys on the ice at the same time. I never dreamed this would happen....Big boy, little boy!! And I didn't even have to ask for this pose!!


A great way to spend a Friday night...if I do say so myself!!

Mom's Night Out....

At 3:45 this afternoon my friend called me and said, "What are you doing tonight?" My response, "Uh, nothing. Why???" Her response, "I need to go out...I need some MOM TIME!!!" I said, "Ok, I'm in but I don't have a car and I'm not sure when That Kid will be home to take care of That Other Kid. Let me call him!" I called and he said he would be home in a couple of minutes. I said, "Great, don't make plans I'm going OUT!!!" So I call my friend back and say "Come get me, I'll be ready in 30 minutes (which is how long it would take her to get here).

We get in her car and she says, "where to?" I reply, "Wherever there are NO CHILDREN to care for." She agreed!! So we drove and found a great mexican place and spent the next 3 hours eating, talking, laughing, and basically being WOMEN WITH NO CHILDREN TO CARE FOR!!! It was the best night I have had in weeks...and it was sooooo needed.

Have you had a mom's night out lately? If you haven't I highly recommend it....no matter how broke you are or how tired you are; you will come back with a better attitude and ready to battle the next adventure with your child/children!!

Thanks to a great friend....I am in a better place now than I was at 3:30 p.m. this afternoon!!!

Time for Tiny Talk Tuesday

Tiny Talk Tuesday celebrates our children and their view of the world. They continually make us laugh and by recording their Tiny Talk we can focus on one of the many JOYS of parenting! If your kiddos made you laugh this week (don't they always), then feel free to share the humor! Check out more Tiny Talks with Mary.

Yesterday was a BEAUTIFUL spring day here in North Texas after a week of rain, clouds, and cold weather. Believe me EVERYONE was excited about the sunshine. I made it a point to enjoy the weather by arranging a park day with our homeschool group. Granted alot of people are on spring break this week so they were off doing their "spring break stuff" but we are pretty laid back around here.

We went to the park and spent 3 entire hours...it was fun, fun, fun!
I got to have mom time and That Other Kid got to run, ride bikes, and play tag and other little boy stuff! After a while he came up and got a drink and I noticed his freckles were more pronounced! Now, if I were smart I would have thought "more freckles means upcoming sunburn". I need to remember my fair skinned boy needs SUNSCREEN EVERY TIME HE GOES OUTSIDE!! But I never claimed to be smart....On the way home I notice his cheeks look pretty red, not to mention his arms.

Later last night his little arms and cheeks were bright red, and his comment to me was, "Mom, my arms hurt...ya gotta remember to put sunscreen on me when we go to the park." Just another "duh" moment for mom!! Hopefully, I will remember to put sunscreen on him next time we go to the park...I don't want my kid to end up with skin cancer someday down the road because of my laziness.

My Little Hockey Player!!

Ain't he tough???!!! of course the gear makes him look a lot tougher!! and bigger!! Without the gear he weighs a whole 40 pounds, with the gear he probably weighs close to 50 pounds!!

I Saw The ENT Today....

and now I have a little tube in my right ear! She sucked the liquid gunk out of my ear and put the tube in all during an office visit. All this while That Other Kid sat in the chair writing his alphabet and asking his normal "millions" of questions. The nurses and doctor were all very supportive and even helped to keep him interested in everything but the actual procedure. The doctor did let him look inside my ear with the big microscope...but I don't think he really understood what he was looking at!

Apparently, they only put little kids under for this procedure...NOT grownups! I can understand why. It was uncomfortable, but not UNBEARABLE...kind of like labor pains before you are able to get drugs...ya know?? Only these pains were in my ear! and it already hurt. But NOW I CAN HEAR OUT OF MY RIGHT EAR!! Whoooohooo~~ what a great feeling!! I really do appreciate my hearing now that I haven't been able to for a while. It only took about 10 minutes, which really surprised me. The most time consuming part of the whole procedure was explaining everything to me then That Other Kid! lol and collecting all the right instruments and such!!

I should be able to stay ear infection free now....I'm praying that it will be so!!

I Hate Grumbling, But It's All I Got!!!

Thursday night while putting That Other Kid to bed, I noticed my right ear hurt a little. I ignored it as usual, figuring it was just a result of the allergens moving through the air. Within 30 minutes I was in full blown PAIN....and couldn't remember the reason I drove to Target (to buy cat food, milk and tp). I walked through the store and finally remembered to get the cat food, milk and tp.

I then drove down to pick up That Kid from work and came home and immediately crashed in bed, after feeding the cat (who thought she was starving to death) and taking a pain killer! I was asleep LONG before MIDNIGHT, which I'm tellin' ya just doesn't happen in my world! I woke up Friday morning feeling much worse than when I went to bed Thursday night. I let That Kid drive himself to school, and made a doctor's appointment for the afternoon. I sat around and moaned and groaned about how miserable I was all day, then went to the doctor.

The nurse took one look at my right ear and she said and I quote for emphasis, "NICE ONE!". The doctor came in about 30 seconds after she left and took down the same info that I just gave the nurse and she looked in my ear and told me, "No wonder your ear hurts so bad, not only is it extremely infected but your ear drum is hemorrhaging, too!" In lay terms....I have an inner ear infection and a busted ear drum! I was told to see the ENT this week and take this potent antibiotic. Oh, but it doesn't stop there...no, I'm allergic to said "potent" antibiotic! One of the side effects is that it will "cause severe join pain"....guess who woke up Saturday morning not able to walk, move around, move her fingers without SEVERE JOINT PAIN??? Uh, that would be ME!! Sitting was painful, moving was painful and so was laying down!

I was an utter mess...not to mention the pain in my ear was so bad I was and still am experiencing bad headaches.

I got a new medicine but spent all day yesterday trying to rid my body of the old medicine, while trying to do at least a few things. You know, like move!!!

I tagged along to That Other Kids hockey game yesterday afternoon and watched upstairs in the warmth of the lobby instead of being at rink/glass level, but at least I was there! His team lost, but that's ok...he didn't seem to be too upset about it. I guess the coach truly is teaching these little guys that the purpose of the game is to have fun! Cuz that's what he talks about most of the time...which is surprising to me, since he is sooooo dang competitive!

Today I woke up feeling minimal joint pain, and decided I had to tackle a few things around here...like the mountains of laundry, getting the car to the shop (ie call them and have them tow it!) since the idea of driving a car with a clutch that doesn't work 35 miles down the highway was a little more than my head/ear could handle! I also made an ENT appointment for tomorrow. I also changed the DISGUSTING SAND BOX for the cat. It was getting so bad she was protesting going to it, and she's not usually very picky about it....but it was so bad it made the house smell! I also lit 4 nice smelling candles!

Well that about takes me through the weekend and through today. This evening I'm planning to go to bed early and rest! Here's hoping the rest of this week goes better...

Homeschooling Is Paying Off

Just wanted to let all you struggling moms out there know that there is hope at the end of the tunnel!

For those of you that don't know us, my son (That Kid)is a certified "jock", hates school, and would rather "hang out" than do anything remotely related to school unless that school is "physical education". He is a senior this year and applied to 1 (count them ONE) college, Dallas Baptist University!

Well today he received his acceptance letter!!! He managed to pull off their minimum ACT score, wrote a decent essay and has managed to pull off a 3.7 GPA throughout high school!

I can hardly believe it!!! I'm soooo happy that all the struggles we have gone through the past 13 years have paid off with the acceptance of a college application....

All this to say, there is always hope if we persist and believe that GOD is ultimately in CONTROL!! AMEN!!

Now I'm off to figure out how to pay for it!!

Cars!!!! UGHH

They drive me batty!!! Yes, they do! We are a 2 car family, with "under normal conditions" 3 drivers. Do you see a problem yet? I do, but of course it is my life, so yeah...

Do you know what happens every year around the first part of March while living in Texas? The temperature raises to "unseasonable" temperatures of 80 degrees or more. Did you know that driving around in traffic, on the highway with no Air Conditioning can be rather annoying? No, well trust me on this one it is. The ac is not working in our truck (the vehicle that is actually in working order right now). Of course, the ac works in our other car, but the clutch isn't....kinda hard to drive a standard transmission car without a clutch; did you know that? So we are 3 drivers driving 1 vehicle without a air conditioner...and guess what today the temperature is supposed to be "well into the 80's". Whatever that means, huh? And of course the person who is most sensitive to these warm temperatures is the person who has numerous meetings today! (That would be dh.)

Well I'm off to play Wii with That Other Kid and try to accomplish something around the house today, since I can't go anywhere; not that I really want to anyway....what with the warm weather and the no ac problem...ya know??!!

Hangin' In There

I feel as if I am just hanging in there by a thin, thin, thread. I'm tired and things don't seem to be getting any better. I have some kind of digestive problem...I'm either constipated or I have a mild case of the "squirts" as dh calls it....I know too much information!! but this is what I'm dealing with and I don't know what to do. So what I do is waste alot of time, read a lot of books, and veg out playing stupid computer games. This is my lot in life right now so it seems and it isn't pretty!

I could use a vacation...but I know that's not gonna happen, so I'm just dealing with it the best I can. I have been walking/exercising some, not enough but at least some. And I'm thinking of signing up for Weight Watchers....maybe they will help me be accountable and I can put down those cokes that I seem to be hopelessly addicted to.

Calgon!!! Take me away, PLEASE!!