Thursday- Time for fun!

I decided today was a good day to take my son to the new Lego store at the local mall...but I didn't tell him. Just told him we'd have lunch at the mall and I needed to go to a store there. He was excited enough just to eat there because he likes the pizza at Sbarro so much. After he had his pizza and I enjoyed some bourbon chicken, red beans and rice, I took him to the Lego store. He LOVED it. We probably spent 45 minutes in there looking at all the displays and I let him pick one set since I know he's going to have to be super patient etc. in the coming weeks with my Dad having hip replacement. After the Lego store I made him go with me to my favorites...Restoration Hardware, Williams-Sonoma and Pottery Barn. He liked Williams-Sonoma because he likes to cook with me and we looked at all the gadgets. After the mall we did a quick look around Toys-r-us then a run through Walmart where we ran into cousins Stacy, Lauren and Julie and visited a few minutes. I came home, grabbed Chinese for dinner and then off I went to a jewelry/margarita party with neighborhood friends. It was nice visiting with everyone...many I hadn't seen since school let out...we enjoyed visitng and drinking yummy margaritas til 11 ish then I came home and got ready for bed since I knew Friday would be busy!

Wednesday- Getting things Accomplished

No More Gray! My Spiffy new shelfliner Oops! Clean and Organized!
The new fence rocks!

This won't be too exciting....today I just worked on getting stuff done. I washed the gray right out of my hair. Did laundry. Cleaned out my kitchen cabinets and put in new shelf liner. The oldest thing I found was a can of coffee that expired in 2002 - what I can't figure out is why we ha it since we don't drink coffee. Checked on Dad and saw the completed new fence. Made dinner. Talked to six different friends on the phone while accomplishing all that. No reflection today!

Friendship and Fences

I've spent a lot of time thinking about friendship lately. Some friendships are life long and some are short lived and some fall in the middle somewhere. Some are real life and some float around out there in virtual world...friends we've met on the internet...some we meet and some we never do. I have a few of those life long friends...most of whom I met in high school/college...a few during my adult years and one special one I've been friends with since I was 12. I've had lots of those short lived ones- people you meet along the way and you are friends during a period while your paths cross but when those paths go in different directions those friendships go by the wayside. The bond isn't strong enough to make the effort or the common interest is no longer there I guess. The ones that run in the middle though are the ones that confuse me. I had friends who I thought would be forever friends and then it seems those friendships just fizzle. I can't figure out how you can be friends for 10 years and share all your happiness and sorrows and dreams and then suddenly have nothing in common...or at least the other party just falls out of your life and you wonder what you did. I think I've come to the conclusion it's not what you did necessarily because if you are the person confused and wondering what happened it's not a you problem...it's a them problem. They aren't willing to make the effort to remain friends. And if their problem is with you or something you've done they don't have the maturity to just address the situation with you. Again...you weren't worth the effort to them so I guess they aren't worthy of your friendship. A fence is built. Sad. Speaking of fences....to tie this into "my week"...I went to my Dad's today to see his new fence being built. My brothers have told him for several years that they would help him build a new fence. I tried to convince him to just get some estimates and have one built since I know my brothers. He finally got some estimates last year but then again my brother convinced him to save some $$ and let them do it. Didn't happen. Dad finally called the fence company and yesterday they put up his new fence. Now his lab Max can run free without Dad worrying! Very nice!

Graves, Groceries and My Runway

Today my Dad wanted to take flowers to my Mom's grave...he was busy on the Fourth doing the parade and such with the VFW and his hip was really hurting yesterday so today was the day. I usually do go with him...it's a little bit of a drive...(she is buried at the DFW National Cemetery about 45 minutes from us since she is an Army veteran.) Plus...I worry about him falling and such since she is buried down a hill and his hip is so bad right now. (He's looking forward to his hip replacement surgery in August...that's how much he hurts.) Anyway, my son often gets upset about going but he didn't fuss today and it was so nice out...not hot, light breeze. We put an American flag and some beautiful roses on her grave and it was just ok. The cemetery still had all the flags up as they do for most holidays. I don't feel close to my mom there though...instead I picture her body the night she died and think about it rotting in her casket. I am not sure why I have those morbid thoughts. I just feel her more at my parents house and my house than there. And really- the whole Army veteran thing- well, really it was way more important to my Dad than my Mom...he was career, a Major. She was only in a few years as a Captain...a nurse. But, it makes him happy that she is there and that his grave is reserved next to hers. After we left, Dad treated us to lunch at my fav Mexican retaurant...Cristinas. Yum. Came home and decided since the weather was gorgeous to fix my malibu lights out front...the runway as we call it. I had a few lights out and I rewired them and now they all work. Ready for landing. Leftover brisket for dinner and then off to Walmart. I prefer shopping at night when it is 1.) Cooler and 2.) Less crowded. Mission accomplished- groceries bought and put away and now I am going to watch "The Closer" and get ready for bed early (as in before 1 am.)

Blog Peer Pressure

So...my friend Jamie "peer pressured" me into starting a blog so I could play her "week in my life" game. Here I am. I decided to start with yesterday since we actually had a pretty nice day and something to talk about. Following a fun Fourth of July we decided we were sleeping in Sunday...and I slept til 10. Check. Gotta love having a tween kiddo because they sleep too. Beautiful thing. Hubby's sisters were in town so we headed to the in-laws for a lasagna lunch. Yummy. Visited for a bit, argued with father-in-law about the side effects of tylenol- I was cautioning over-use can cause liver damage- he disagreed. Hope he doesn't die from liver damage because he's always right. Came home and hung with my son (while hubby watched TV with his eyes closed) then I got dinner ready. My daughter requested I make my stuffed flank steak recipe for dinner so I got that ready along with veggies for roasting, wedge salads and some yummy multi-grain bread. My Dad and daughter both came for dinner and it was pretty yummy if I do say so myself...everyone else agreed. My kids had a "sing-off" on Rock Band then argued about who won because one was going by straight score and one was going by percentage. Now...one would think that when siblings are 11 years apart in age and one of them is weeks away from turning 22 there would be no sibling fighting. Not so. Almost 22 year old declared herself the winner then left and went home to her casa. So...11 year old son begged hubby and I to play poker...set up the kitchen table and doled out chips. That kid is the LUCKIEST kid ever...for the second time in 3 days he totally spanked us playing poker. It's just not right. I swear to you I was not letting him win anything and he is NOT a gracious winner.