An Eventful Week

It's been quite an eventful week around here, what with the last day of school on Wednesday, and Mikayla's 13th birthday party that same afternoon.  She's not officially 13 until July 3rd but she wanted her party at a time when kids would be less likely to be away on summer vacations, so the last day of school it was!


This was, by far, the largest party Mikayla has ever had, 13 being a pretty monumental birthday.  So, when she requested an inflatable water slide I was only too happy to make it happen.




Little did I realize the damn thing would be this enormous!

You'll notice the dead queen palm tree.  Just more evidence of the exceptionally cold winter we had up here in North Florida.

Becau$e a water $slide tend$ to be quite expen$ive I kept the cost of the party down by not serving actual food.

Wait.  That made it sound like I served them crap on crackers or something, but no, I just kept it to light munchies.  Chips, pigs in a blanket(s) and a fresh fruit cocktail I made and put into a hollowed-out watermelon.  Please, if I ever get the idea to try and be creative with a knife again, implore me to drop the idea.  I suck at it.  My "basket" looks like it's lined with jack-o-lantern teeth.

Jagged fruit aside, the party was a smashing success.  About 16 bikini-clad teens in my back yard, squealing constantly while flying down the slide.  What impressed me so much about these girls is that none of them seemed put- out by 4-year-old Gianna and 3-year-old Jasmine, that wanted to be escorted down the slide.  Many of them pitched in with nary a complaint.

Look at my Poopy Pants in her 'kini!

Mikayla's biffle, Katy.

There goes Alexa, catching some air!

Jessica on the left, Mikayla holding baby Jasmine on the right.

At one point Jimmy started filling bowls with ice water and threw it on the girls as they came down the slide.  I got some pretty cool shots of flying water.

Of course there was cake.

And presents!  Mikayla made out like a bandit with tons and tons of gift cards.  Yay!  Shopping!

Some slide video...










That night, Mikayla went home with Jill to spend a few nights and met up with us yesterday at my brother's house for my nephew, Jonny's graduation party. I don't think I ever showed you any of the pictures from the play of his I went to months ago, so I'll throw some in here now.

Sunday Scramble 3-14-10

I cordially invite you to join me each week in the Sunday Scramble.  The SS gives you a chance to write down your scattered, random, or just plain stupid thoughts.  No rules apply here.  I give you permission to write anything that's on your mind, whether it makes sense or not!

Okay, lemme know if I'm out of line here.  Each day, I bring Madison to the bus stop and then pick her up in the afternoon.  The girls' stop is half a mile from our house, as it is for many of the kids that take the bus.  So I totally understand all those moms and dads taking the time to bring their kids up there.  But tell me.  Is it really necessary to not only drive them up there, but walk them straight to the damn doors of the bus?  I'm not talking about the littles, but the kids who are 8, 9, 10, and 11 years old.

Then there are the moms that take it even a step further.  They accompany their kids on their bikes.  I have seen a some of these moms send their kids out a couple minutes ahead of them, and then they're seen pedaling like lunatics to get to the bus stop just to see their kid mount the stairs.  I watch all this, sitting in the comfort of my car, where I actually let me child walk from point A (my car) to point B (the bus) all by her lonesome.  The whole 30 or so feet.  Gasp!

Is it any wonder why there are so many children out there that are afraid of their own shadow and have no sense of independence?  It has to start somewhere, and dammit, I think walking 30 or so feet without holding Mommy's hand is a good place to start.

Okay, vent over.


Now you can tell me how wrong I am.



Yay!  Saturday night is my nephew, Jonny's, play!  I'm too excited for words.  Of course, I'll get home too late to add anything about it on this post, but hopefully I'll have plenty to say next week.



I've been rather quiet, haven't I?



Now, we must all bow our heads for a moment in recognition of TAPS  Yes, The Atlantic Paranormal Society.  My beloved Ghost Hunters.

Their little office front in Warwick, RI.

Founder, Jason, and Co-Founder, Grant

Last week they celebrated their 100th episode on the SciFi network and they investigated...

Get this...



Alcatraz!!!!

Did you watch it yet, Sara?  If not, you're in trouble!

I somehow even got Jimmy to watch it a couple of days after the fact, and I could tell that he was intrigued.  He won't come out and say he's a believer, but I know he is.  The TAPS team is so professional and at the core, skeptics.  Not like some of those other ghost hunting shows where they're finding demons behind every closed door.



Congrats to Jason, Grant, Steve, Tango, and the whole TAPS team.  I heart you guys.  And Steve?  I still want to lick the outline of every tattoo you have.


Among other things.

Call me the next time you're in Saint Augustine, investigating the lighthouse, mmmkay?

Let me just say.  I hate blogs that have music playing on them.  How can I concentrate on reading when there are words being thrown at me through my speakers?  Eeks!

I don't know how I forgot to share these pictures of Strudel with you, but I did.

They're scary, so brace yourself.

This is what happens when three people stand inside the slider and the dog wants to get in.

Now this is attractive.

A short video to show you just how spastic this dog is.

Bless her heart.






Now what are you waiting for? Link up!!!





Pssst! If you love me, you might love my stupid sister more. Go visit her at Jill's Believe it or Not, and tell her I sent you!

Too Proud For Words. Or Maybe Not THAT Proud.

It's not often I talk about my three nephews and, that is certainly not because I don't adore them.  It's more that I don't get to see them very often.  My brother, Jeff, and his wife, Pat, only live an hour and a half or so from me, but with me not being able to drive long distances and Jimmy's work schedule, it's not always easy to get together.

But when we are together laughter and pee pee accidents are sure to follow.

I've got a few different things to tell you about this past weekend with my family, but I'll save that for another day and instead tell you a bit about my  nephew and godson, Jonny.  He's always been an extremely loving, caring, affection guy, even as a baby.  He has also always been a bit on the shy side.  So when he took up acting in high school I never could have imagined him overcoming that shyness to become a great thespian.

Sure, I'd heard all the stories from every family member after every one of his plays.  How funny he is, how he totally embraces the character he's portraying.  His stage presence, etc etc etc.  But I never got to see him!  Me.  His godmother.  I am the only one in the whole damn family not to see him perform!

That is, until this past weekend.  This wasn't a play, but instead a fund raiser dinner for family of the thespians.  Each table would get one of the actors as their waiter or waitress while little skits from different plays and musical performances were put on.

We were not in a theater.  We were not even in an auditorium.  We were in a church hall of some sort with horrible lighting.  But I tell you what.  When my Jonny took the floor (because there was no stage to take) everything else faded away for me and all I saw was this young man exuding incredible talent that I was just now getting to see.  No matter how many eyewitness accounts I'd had, there was just no way I could fathom his talent without seeing it for myself.

And oh, I saw it.  I was stunned.  Awed.  Brought to damn tears.  There he was, doing a scene with his friend Kris, using a British accent (when the hell did he learn that?) and throwing out funny lines and I?  I was choked up and with wet, glassy eyes.

My nephew is friggin' brilliant.

I shit you not.

And he can SING!

I swear, the moment he steps out there he becomes a different person.  His body language changes, his facial expressions change, he morphs into whomever it is he's portraying.

I honestly didn't meant to go on and on about Jonny.  I was just going to post a video clip of their group musical performance and leave it at that.  But then I sat here, thinking back on watching him and I just had to try and describe the way it (he) made me feel.

Old, for one.

But proud.  Oh so very proud.

I present to you, Jonny, as male lead, in their group musical performance which won best in show at district level (and is going on to state soon!).  I'll apologize in advance for the crap quality, but Jimmy didn't bring in the tri-pod, we were at the back, and like I mentioned earlier, their lighting sucked.

But look at him with that slick vest on!





You have to admit that their talent is incredible considering they're still in their teens, no?


I cannot wait to see his last performance as a high school student next month in their rendition of The Princess and the Pea, called Once Upon a Mattress.  Once again?  Jonny's got the male lead part!  Woot woot!


Pssst! If you love me, you might love my stupid sister more. Go visit her at Jill's Believe it or Not, and tell her I sent you!