"Flashback Friday"

I love this idea of "Flashback Friday"! This is going to be fun to go back into my picture file and find some old pictures to share. Heck, I might even go waaaaay back and scan in some photos pre-digital camera. (Thanks for the idea Shannon)

I couldn't decide who I should highlight for my first "flashback". Miss J would be the obvious, but wanted to go a different route. After looking through files and files of photos, I decided I would go back to 2004.


This is a picture of Max and I heading out for my 25th Class Reunion. No, I didn't graduate in Hawaii. We had a luau for our reunion. Kinda cheesy, but it was fun.

Political Humor

I just had to chuckle when I saw this cartoon. Democrat or Republican, you just have to find this funny.

This has been one of the most interesting presidential campaigns, and this just sums up the humorous side of it! Enjoy!

How many cliches and metaphors can you find? I'll start the list off with the obvious:

1. "Joe the Plumber"

Miss J Mondays

I know most people hate Mondays and look forward to Fridays. I used to be that way too....countdown to the weekends!

But now, as many of you know, Mondays are my favorite, and I just countdown to whatever exciting event is coming up.

Here is why I pick Mondays to be my favorite:

As you can see I think she likes her Mondays too!

This 'n' not much of That

Not much has been going on lately.....just enjoying each day.

Funny thing happened the other day. Shannon and I took Jaden to the mall to play. They have the cutest little play area. (that's not the funny thing.) After playing, we have a few minutes before meeting Mike for supper so we decided to go through the Disney Store. This is a corner of the mall that many parents and grandparents would try to avoid. Well, when we get in there I see they have their little stuffed characters on sale for just $5. I decide to treat Jaden to a small gift.....she is in her stroller and I start showing her cute little stuffed characters.
"Do you want Pooh?" she pushes it away!
"Awwww, look Jaden, Piglet is soooo cute!" she pushes it away!
"Tigger! boinnng...boinng" I get no response.
Then I find the perfect one! "Look Jaden! It's Ty!" and I show her the cute white Aristocat. Looks like her kitty, Ty, except Ty is a he, but she doesn't know that yet. She does hold on to this one, but not a big interest.
We continue through the store and when we get to the back I see their large stuffed characters are on sale too! Just $8. Oh I KNOW she will want one of these.
She won't have anything to do with Mickey, Minnie, Pooh, Piglet, even characters Shannon and I didn't know. Then I found a large Aristocat...and soooooo soft and cuddly!
She did take to this one, kinda.
This new kitty has become her bedtime friend along with her other kitty. I gave her the name Ty, but she changed it to "Jude-Ty" It's what she calls her two cats. (Jude and Ty)
Funny thing about that whole ordeal.....here we are in Disney Store where kids are usually begging, "can I have this, can I have this" over and over. Not the case for us. Shannon and I are TRYING to get Jaden to like something and she just shakes her head.
I am not gonna give up on this girl.....we will teach her the art of shopping!

Ingenious Idea

I have a great idea....inspired by Shannon.
And since I haven't figured out a way to sell it, I am gonna share it with you at no charge!

How many of you have a birthday in the winter and wish it was summer? Is your birthday too close to another holiday that it gets lost in the shuffle? Are you sharing your birthday with someone else and wishing you had your own day? Have you gone to a birthday party and thought, "I wish this was my birthday, it's the perfect time of the year!"?

Well I have the solution: You get to pick the month you celebrate your birthday each year! There are a few rules though:
1. You have to decide at the start of the calendar year what month you will be celebrating.
2. You have to celebrate on the numerical date of your actual birthday.
3. If your "new" birthday falls after your given birthday, you are not allowed to receive gifts from your immediately family on your given birthday. However, casual friends and relatives you see on a limited bases are welcome to send you well wishes and shower you with gifts.
4. If your "new" birthday falls before your actual birthday you MUST remind your immediate family and friends that you already had your birthday when your actual birthday rolls around!
5. Each year you get to choose your month to celebrate as long as you always abide by the above rules.

I am sure you are saying, "So how did Shannon inspire you to come up with thins Ingenious Idea?" Well, I am glad you ask. Shannon's birthday is Jan. 9 and Mike's birthday is Dec. 15. As you can imagine their birthdays can get lost in the holiday celebrations. Not to mention the two big holidays of the year fall within weeks of each other. So they decided their gifts to each other would be to pick anything, anytime and call it a birthday present. He chose wrestling match, she chose Vera Bradley. Now when their birthdays roll around they will still celebrate with friends and family but their gifts to each other are done.

And of course this idea wouldn't have come to mind if her idea hadn't gotten me to thinking about my own birthday. The time of year of my birthday is ok, it's May, the weather is usually nice. However, my birthday is on the 13th and it always falls on or within days of Mother's Day. Given a choice, I would spread the "special" holidays throughout the year. I doubt I could convince the nation to change Mother's Day, so I could just change when I celebrate my birthday.
This brings me to my last thought.....when is the perfect time for a birthday, or for my birthday?
January? nah, too close to Christmas
February? Valentine's Day
March? not a bad idea, but in Indiana it could mean blizzard!
April? I'll let Jaden have this month until she decides to "choose" her new birthday.
May? as I said, Mother's Day.
June? it's ok, but not much change for me.
July? ok, maybe too hot, but it would be fun to have a cookout on my birthday!
August? Max gets first dibs on this month.
September? If Shane wants to share the month I think this could be the next to perfect month.
October? This is my pick! I love the fall....I love getting the hooded sweatshirts out....I love curling up on the sofa wrapped in a blanket....I love my fleece robe!
November? Nope, this is the month for my favorite holiday.
December? Gonna leave this month for Christmas parties!

So now I bet you are thinking....why didn't I think of that idea? Well I am happy to share my idea. But just remember, if you make any money on this ingenious idea, i get royalties!

Heck, maybe I can sell this idea to Hallmark....."Happy Perfect Birthday" "Happy Choice Birthday" "Happy Unbirthday" hmmmmmm.....think I gotta work on that!

Super Saturday....

Saturday was a day jam packed with fun!

My day started with a pancake breakfast at Eastside Park, just behind our house. It was a chilly morning, frost on the ground, but the brisk morning air was nice....and just made the hot pancakes and sausage taste even better! The event was a benefit for Vascular Disease. Mom and Dad were helping with the event so I was happy to support it....and everyone knows that Grampa Wayne makes the best pancakes!

Following breakfast it was on to the zoo! Shannon and Jaden took me as their guest for a final trip to the zoo this season. Thanks, Miss J, I had a blast. It was a beautiful fall day and the zoo is decorated for their annual fall halloween festival. The animals were very active too. The cutest thing was how Jaden pretty much lead the tour! She sure knows her way around that place. She even helped by pushing the wagon....which basically was just to hall around our stuff. Also along on the trip was Jaden's cousin-to-be, Marissa. The two girls are just too cute together.

Feeding the ducks was one of the highlights of the day.....Jaden started "quacking" before we even got to the duck pond!

After the zoo we met up with Marissa's mom, Kelly, at Pizza Hut. Just the mention of pizza had Jaden chanting "pizza, pizza" while pumping her fists in the air! That was enough to do the little girl in, it was back to their house for a little nap. Unfortunately, I wasn't one of the lucky ones to get a nap.

The third event of the day was the District Marching Band Contest at Homestead High School. I have been trying all season to get to one of Tabitha's competitions. (It brought back a lot of memories from when Shannon was in marching band. ) Tabitha, you were great....you have a great band that is going to continue to get better each year! Congrats on the Gold....good luck at Regional!

You would think that was enough for one day....heck, enough for two Saturdays, but nope....after band competition we went out for supper, glad you were able to join us, Max!

Gee....did I just have 3 meals out today?

Then we ended the night with some dominoes at Mom and Dad's. It was just before midnight when we got home so the day was definitely jammed packed with fun!

Then to finish off the weekend, Sunday Shannon, Jaden, and I made another trip to the Vera Bradley sale! We got in line at 8:40 with about 500 people in front of us. Jaden showed she was a real trooper learning the ropes of shopping. She stood, sat, played in line for an hour and half with us. Then she zipped around the place in her stroller....she caught on quickly too, she was pulling things off the table like a veteran! And a smart shopper too, she got a cell phone holder to match her Vera Bradley purse!

Phew.....that wraps up my weekend as I sit here on the couch watching Desperate Housewives. I do believe it is time to say Good Night!