Big Trouble

What do you do when you have an unstable neighbor with three kids and one in particular that is very mean? I'm talking rock-throwing, fort-breaking, name-calling mean and a mom who either doesn't believe it or turns the other way. I have tried to teach Jacob to be the "bigger person" and to not learn from or copy the things that this boy does. We discuss why what this boy does is wrong and Jacob gets it. But he still wants to play with this person sometimes and today I flat out told him he couldn't anymore. I feel bad - for taking a "friend" away from Jacob (even though this kid isn't worthy of the title) and that the situation isn't likely to improve any time soon.

We also have a big problem within the walls of our own home. LUCAS CAN CLIMB OUT OF HIS CRIB!!!!! AAarrrgghghhh!!!! I was hoping to get a few more months out of him. Time to resurrect the use of the upper door chain in case his escape artist tendencies take him on a jaunt around the block. So now when he doesn't want to take a nap, he just gets out. And now, he's not wanting to go to bed at night either. Maybe we'll have to gate his doorway and lay some blankets on the floor.

Any other ideas?

Jennifer Massey Designs

I'll be building a web site for Jennifer in the next couple weeks, but in the meantime, here's some of her most recent designs. These necklaces come in other colors too. The hot pink with black "flowerball" was especially popular at the Dallas Market.

The rhinestone ball in the center is a real eye-catcher.

This would be great for Saints fans.


The Mardi Gras necklace.

Hippy Chic, part II

I had an MRI on my hip today. Luckily, I wore the "right" clothes and didn't have to change into one of those miserable gowns. I glared at the hole in the machine I was about to be slid into and laid down on the table. I thought "That doesn't look too bad. The hole is huge!" Then, the tech said he was going to raise the table up before he got me "comfortable."

So up goes the table. I get a pillow for my head. Then come the stabilizers. One under my back strapped to one on my stomach. One strap between my legs to keep my left hip in the correct position. He used a sheet to tie my feet together so my toes would point skyward instead of out to each side. Then a sheet over my whole body. Then he hands me the "panic button" and puts headphones on me to drown out some of the noise. I ask for music and he switches the headphones to some cheesy Phil Collins greatest hits station.

And the conveyor belt to hell starts moving me deeper into the hole but because the table was raised so high, instead of having two feet between my face and the top of the tube, there were two inches! No wonder people get claustrophobic!

And by the way, DON'T MOVE! Or we'll have to tack on more minutes to the end for every scan that needs to be re-done.

Once I was in there, it got noisy, warm, almost peaceful...except for needing lumbar support, it wasn't that bad. I think I fell asleep for a few minutes. And voila! Results next week.

Birthday Blues

Yes, I had a wonderful birthday. But the Vikings lost. They hadn't been to the Super Bowl since I was 5 and didn't care. Sigh. I feel very deflated today.

But my birthday was really fun. I was anticipating a quiet weekend at home and a crazy, spontaneous girlfriend (Charisse - as if there was any question) decided we needed to get away for a night so we packed a bag and 20 minutes later we were on the road to the Horseshoe Bay Marriott Resort in Marble Falls. Gorgeous hotel. GORGEOUS! The grounds were amazing. The Lantana burger was delicious! The hot tub burned off five layers of skin! They had grass, clay and hard court tennis courts! Breakfast in bed! I could stay forever! We didn't even go to the spa, but I'm sure that would have been fabulous too.

Came home to my wonderful husband who so generously lets me go away whenever I want and cooked dinner; a card from the kids and a moist chocolate cake with icing (that's what you need, Connie!).

Then, we sat on pins and needles until Brett threw the game away late in the fourth and I finally exhaled after hopes were dashed for good in OT.

Still, I guess I'll have to root for the Saints in the Super Bowl. Geaux NFC!

Dance Party

I love it when an impromptu visit from a friend turns into a casual dinner with her family and a rocking dance party!

Hippy Chic

I have been dealing with a sore hip for almost two years now. Hurts to lift my leg into the car, hoist it up to shave my leg, crossover step in tennis... enough things that I finally had it looked at by my GP last July. They x-rayed it and said they couldn't see anything. Gave me an anti-inflammatory medication that I took for a month but didn't do anything and now I just manage it with Aleve. The GP told me to see an orthopaedist because I might need an injection, so I did some research online and my treatment plan came to a screeching halt. Horror stories about painful injections, side effects, unskilled shot-wielders... yikes! It took me four more months just to make the appointment.

So today, I met Dr. Frank Garcia and he was great. Alleviated my fears of early onset hip replacement (you know it can be hereditary Dad?!) Got an injection in my outer hip and scheduled an MRI for next week to see if there are any other causes.

I'm hoping to have everything up and running (and by everything, I mean me) by the first week in February when my tennis coach comes back from Thailand!

Dallas Market

On Thursday, Charisse and I left for Dallas to work at the Cash & Carry jewelry booth of our friend Jennifer. The first thing we did when we arrived was set up the booth. It's hard to see the detail or beauty of all the items in this shot but maybe it will give you an idea of the sheer quantity! We brought more than 1500 pieces - necklaces, bracelets, earrings - but mostly necklaces. Jennifer has a really distinctive style. Big beads, lots of bling and bright colors.



The next morning, the show began at 9 a.m. From 9 to about 1 p.m., we didn't have time to breathe! Jennifer and I worked the register and wrapped purchases nonstop. Charisse and Jen's husband, Jon, restocked jewelry. They would hang ten necklaces on a fixture and reach down for more. By they time they came back up, those ten would be gone! People waited in line for up to 25 minutes! It's a real testament to Jen's products. Everybody loved, loved, loved them! At one point, Charisse saw stars and had to go get some food for us. The day continued it's crazy pace until 6 p.m. when the show closed for the day. Jennifer did better on that first day of market than she had ever done in an entire multi-day show! It was very exciting! We grabbed dinner at the hotel and went straight to Jen's room to make more necklaces until almost midnight!

Saturday morning, Jen and I went to the show while Charisse and Jon went to the bus station to pick up some more boxes of jewelry her other two employees had made back in San Antonio the day before. We restocked the booth and settled in for another fast-paced morning. Overall, the day was much slower, but jewelry was still flying out of the booth. New necklaces we had made the night before were already sold out, so Charisse and I spent most of Saturday afternoon back at the hotel beading even more while Jen managed the booth.

Saturday night, we visited Charisse's friend Sarah in the hospital. She had just given birth to Tatum, her third daughter. So cute and tiny! Six pounds and something. My smallest was 8 lbs. 3 oz.! Anyway, we grabbed dinner after that at CPK and headed back to the hotel for ... more beading!

Sunday we slept in, actually ate a good breakfast, packed up the car and hit the market for shopping! I got a couple cute tees and some flip flops and boots and sunglasses. We drove home all afternoon and then I had to work at Bath & Body Works until almost 2 a.m.! You can bet I'll be asleep on the couch tonight by eight!

Meanwhile, Mark was home with all four kids with his bum ankle encased in a walking boot. He must not have been in too much pain because he sent this picture of Lucas Friday night from Buffalo Wild Wings!



Mark's ankle isn't broken. He got the results of the MRI Friday and they said it was a partially torn ligament. He'll have to wear the boot for a couple more weeks, but he's walking around a lot without it too.

I had lots fun and hope to be able to do more shows in the future. But it's also good to be home. And it will be even better tomorrow when the kids go back to school and I can come back home and take a nap!

Happy Birthday Mom!

In honor of your birthday, here's some super-cute puppy pics. Hope you have a great day!

Beads!

I work on bead projects from home a lot. These particular necklaces had so many different beads. My living room floor was covered.


The end result. Two dozen necklaces and counting.



Leave for Dallas market on Thursday. Super excited!

It Could Have Been Worse

Much worse. Mark fell off a five-foot ladder in the driveway while taking down the Christmas lights Sunday afternoon. I didn't know he had fallen until Sarah opened the front door and I hear him tell her "Go. Get. Mommy!" He thought his right ankle was broken.

After wrangling children and neighbors to help watch them, we were off to the urgent care center. As we walked in, he was leaning on me - using me as a crutch - and the staff asked immediately, "What happened to you?" Mr. Jokester replied, "I hurt my eye." haha! It was pretty funny!

So they x-rayed his ankle and found it inconclusive. Couldn't tell if it was broken so they put a temporary cast on it. A splint made of fiberglass that hardens after it has been wet. Pretty cool stuff actually.

Then today we visited the orthopaedic doctor. They took more x-rays of the top of his foot and the shin bone but still couldn't determine what happened. Good news is that it looked like nothing was broken. Bad news is they want him to have an MRI Wednesday because he might have torn a ligament. Meanwhile, he's wearing a walking boot.

Selfishly, I'm concerned that I might not be able to go to the Dallas market this weekend. I was going to work for a friend who makes jewelry. Mark says I should still go. I have rearranged every bit of the schedule so that he won't have to drive anywhere. But like most men, he is a reluctant patient - with no patience - and will likely be driving before he should. (Are you reading this, honey?) He's been walking around the house tonight without the boot. I asked to see his discharge papers but got nothing.

So, to be continued. But I'm very thankful he only fell off the short ladder. A couple more minutes and he would have been up on the second-story roof and I shudder to think that it could have been much worse.

Breakfast of Champions

Mark was up early and picked up Krispy Kremes and breakfast tacos. There goes the diet ... and so soon after Jan. 1.

Forever 21

Hey Cuz,
This one's for you and your crazy friends!

My cousin Kim and her girlfriends take a trip every year, usually to Florida, and this fall they opted for a change of scenery and came to San Antonio! I was excited to show them the Riverwalk, make sure they knew where to get margaritas to go and take them country dancing. Two out of three ain't bad.

After a yummy dinner at Paesano's, here we are at Aculpulco Joe's - the three-story dance club. Definitely NOT country unless you count that crazy video of the cowgirl silhouette dancing like a nymphomaniac with a whip.

Ann, Paige, Jane, me and Kim. May we stay Forever 21!




In case you were wondering how crazy cousins spend Christmas... Kim and her family had a best hat contest. I'm going to give the win to Jenny!

Ain't She Sweet?

Oh, I know! They're both sweet! Here's Connie and new baby Layla on New Year's Eve in Paris.


Wanna know something else that's sweet? Julie got a job! The opera community of Sarasota, Florida, will never be the same! And that's a good thing.

Hot Dog!

A train that sells hot dogs? I'm confused about this ride-on toy at the grocery store. And yes, it's cold here. Daytime highs in the 40s. I've acclimated to warmer weather and miss it dearly right now. Especially on the tennis courts. Can't play with mittens on.

I Gotta Feeling

That its going to be a good year! This is Mark dancing with Ethan and Lucas to the Black Eyed Peas "I Gotta Feeling." I use the term dancing loosely as it's more spinning and jumping, but the kids really love it!



The kids are big on bike rides these days.


The other day Ethan popped a tire. He was devastated and thought he was in big trouble. But it was really because Jacob used and abused this bike for many years and skidded a lot! Kind of like how you try and try and try to open a jar and just when you give up and hand it to someone else to open... POP! ... and so the damaged tire was handed to Ethan. We got him two new tires and two new handlebar grips and he's the happiest kid in the world!



Jacob got a new bike too...a promotional BMX bike from NAPA. Pretty sweet. And a skater helmet so he can be just like the boy across the street.



Maybe I'll get a bike (yes kids, and a helmet!) one day and join them.

Resolutions

I was absolutely not going to post my resolutions on here. I mean, really. Aren't they the same for everyone anyway? Lose weight, work less, exercise more, lay off the (insert your vice here). But one that resonates with me today as I reflect on this year spent mastering technological wonders like blogs and facebook - is that I really want to stay better connected to all our friends and family all over the world.

We had such a fun time in NJ with Mark's childhood friend Bob and his family. I'd heard so much about him and even met him a couple of times, but we never spent that much time together until we had dinner together this summer. My face hurt from laughing at Bob's version of all the stories I'd already heard from Mark. And his family - Mary Beth, Brian and Catherine - were icing on the cake. It made me realize how special moments like these can be. I want more.

So what does that mean for 2010? Maybe learning to Skype and some airline tickets? It remains to be seen. But my 20-year high school reunion will be this summer and Connie might only be in Paris for another year or two. Girls weekends and regular GNOs. Carpe Diem! And hope to see you soon!

Never had the joy of a welfare Christmas

*(Bonus points for anyone who names the song this post title came from)

Christmas at our house is always an explosion of excess. Every year, I vow to change it, and somehow it sneaks up on me in the pursuit of just the right thing and equality amongst the kids. But after grocery shopping one night, Ethan and Lucas got creative with the canned goods and it made me glad to know that they could find joy in things that didn't need batteries or come in pretty packages.




*"I Will Buy You A New Life" by Everclear

Christmas Morning

Jacob was up first around 7 a.m. (not too bad) and impatiently waited for his siblings to wake up so they could open presents! Lucas opened this gift first. After that he didn't want to open any other packages. The other kids didn't seem to have that problem!

Sarah's First Sleepover

The Pink Lady Posse was together again for Grace's 6th birthday sleepover. It was Sarah's first sleepover outside of our house and she was terribly excited! I didn't have a doubt she would make it through the night, especially with all her favorite girls together again. Now that they all go to different schools, moments like this are extra sweet!

Bella, Lexie, Camryn, Kaelie, Kylie, Grace, Lakyn, Gwen & Sarah