Julz got her hair cut!

Well, after years of begging and pleading my youngest daughter FINALLY got her hair cut. Now, it's not as short as I'd have liked but then again not as long as she would like it to be either so we compromised and I think it looks adorable. Ultimately we are both happy with it. In the end I guess that's the most you can ask for.

Nathaniel got his cut as well but he has always been the easy one. Every couple of months he lets them take the shaver to his head and he's good to go. I ask you, can the boy get any cuter!!! He's already got girls of all ages after him and the guy (not unlike most guys) hasn't got a clue! He's still my little man and I adore him.
Well that's all the excitement I can handle for today so... How was your day?

I love where I live

Can I just tell you how much I love living in Melbourne? I love our neighborhood (although not necessarily all the neighbors!). I love our house.
I love the fact that several times a day and especially at night when things are settling down and getting quiet I can hear the train that runs very close to us. It's not a loud intrusive noise but a quiet calming moment in time. You almost have to stop and listen to hear it but there is something so nice and soothing about it.
I love that my kids take the school bus from just a few doors down and in the morning a group of us moms meet there too and get some time to just chat. I love that while it's not a gated community it's not a thru street either. You have to turn into the neighborhood and there is only one way in and one way out. It's really just 4 or 5 blocks with a nice lake (fountain included) right in the middle.
I love passing by this lake on my way in. It always looks so nice and peaceful. They say there is a possibility of alligators in the lake and have signs warning of this but hey, it's Florida. If there is water, there are probably alligators although we've never seen one in there. What we do have living just off the lake is a family of Sand Hill Cranes~ 3 of them. They sometimes wander the neighborhood but mostly they sit right in front of the lake as if to greet all the residents home.

I love the little neighborhood park that is just 3 doors down from us with the swings and basketball court and the gazebo with benches. I love that several times a year the home owners association throws a party at the park so all the neighbors can get to know each other. I've heard tell that even Santa comes to the park at Christmastime. I love that all the neighbors say "hello" as you come and go or just wave as your car passes by. I love that my kids feel safe and that I feel they are safe too. I just found out today that we have a bobcat and her two cubs living in the brush between the park and the railroad tracks. Richard has even seen a little fox while taking Sadie out for a walk. I love being so close to these little creatures.
I love that I can get to the beach in 10 minutes. I love love love that I can see the space shuttles lifting off from here. I went out to the beach for the last one and everyone on the beach counted down the last 10 seconds and cheered when it went up. It made us all feel a part of something very special. I was amazed at the sound of the shuttle coming back in too. Sounds like something has crashed into your house ~ but once you realize what it is, it's cool to know that the shuttle has come home safely.
I love that my kids made friends the first day in the neighborhood and that sometimes they are all in here playing together and I really love when they are all over at someone else's house playing even more. I love that the zoo is just down the street and that you can take canoe trips right from there.
I love that there are at least a half dozen quilt shops within a 15 minute drive from me and I really love that I'm not teaching at any of them just yet and hope to get a lot of "my" projects done before I get back into teaching. I love that although we've only lived here for two months we've had oodles and oodles of company including Nathaniel's birth mom (Hey Angie ~ how's your mommanthem?), my bestest friend and evil twin Maryann and her daughter Hannah (who may never come back after what I put her thru), my dearest mother in law (who can now just come up for lunch any time she wants) and my (not so baby girl) Jennifer and hubster Jeremy who came up for a few days before leaving for a year in Alabama to get their master's degrees.
I love that I am finally getting the boxes unpacked and things put into their proper places. I love the rounded curved walls painted wonderful muted colors in this house. I love all the ceiling fans that keep our house nice and cool and our electric bills fairly low. I love the refrigerator that has filtered ice and water in the door (unlike the last one we had...) and the oven that actually has a temperature control and I can bake again.
I love the ribbon curtain that Julianne and I made for her room a couple of weeks ago and that she is finally getting over the whole "Cheetah bedroom" thing.

Mostly I love that I have a wonderful network of family and friends and that even though we may live far apart ~ I can still tell you all about my day and ask "So, how was your day?"

It's just been one of those days!

It's just been one of those days today! Started off with me excited to tell you all about my new blog (even if I forgot to give you the link the first time!) and resulting in hearing from an old friend of mine that another old friend had passed away. It's someone I haven't seen in almost 20 yrs but still I feel bad for the loss.

Next I brought my van (otherwise known as "Goldilocks") into the shop for servicing because the brakes were squealing ~ BADLY. 5 1/2 hrs and $800 later my brakes are still squealing and it drives worse than it did before ~ guess where I'll be tomorrow morning. Now the 5 1/2 hrs ended at 3:30 which is bad since my kids get home from school at 2:45. Fortunately the one "friend" I have made in the neighborhood and whose phone number I have, got the kids from the bus stop for me. Phew, one crisis averted.

Had to ground Nathaniel yet again. The good news is he has all kinds of new friends here on our street... the bad news is he keeps forgetting that he needs to let me know WHICH FRIEND's house he is going to be at. He told me he was going to be across the street at Amanda's house with Julianne which he was for a time and then I realized that they (Julz &; Amanda) were back here at our house ~ where was Nathaniel? I was able to track him down and he said "Mom, I'm really really sorry" to which I replied "I appreciate that but you are still really really grounded!"

Richard got home early and thought it would be funny to tell me that he had been fired! Not so funny on this day (is it ever really funny?) but in reality it was just a mix up with his appointment at the bone cracker's. He did clean up a bunch of stuff in the garage (all those empty boxes Jen was supposed to use in her move to Alabama) and move the piles of stuff I left for him in the house into the garage so that was a plus. Thank you Honey!!
I decided since it was really hot and late, to pick up salads and sandwiches at Crispers. I didn't have their number to call ahead so I called directory assistance only to be told that there was no Crispers on Wickham Rd ~ now mind you, we've eaten there a half dozen times so in the car I hopped, drove over and placed my order, waited, got the food and drove home, only to realize THEY LEFT MY ORDER OUT!!!! So I call and the girl thought it was quite humorous ~ "Oh yeah, we gave it to someone else accidentally ~ did you still want it?" HELL YES! I paid for it, I'm hungry but aww crap, now I've got to drive back out there and get it. By the time I got back home from that I really wasn't hungry anymore!

I promise tomorrow's post will be "whine free"!


I'm just ready for the day to be over, hit the sack in our brand new bedroom set and start a new day tomorrow! So.... how was your day?

Not someplace I'd really want to be

I just finished reading a book called "Sweetwater Creek" by Anne Rivers Siddon. It's a different book than I've read before. It takes place in the low country of South Carolina. It's about a 12 y/o girl ~ a coming of age story. I've been reading it for a couple of days but there were times I thought I might just put it down and not finish it. It was not an easy read since it was a bit too dark for my taste. It was very well written and while reading the book I could almost smell the air coming off the river and feel all the things she felt, the connection with her dog, the confusion of trying to understand her family at her age, the grief she felt at losing her brother. This book definitely transported me to someplace else. I'm just not sure it's someplace I really want to be. But again, still very well written.


On a better note.. the kids started their 2nd week of school and without knowing it both of them dressed in "camouflage" pants and looked adorable. I purposely did not tell them that though for fear there would be a last minute wardrobe change and they'd be late for the school bus ~ yes I said school bus. No more 45 minute car pool lines for this mom! Can I get a Hallelujah!

Oh and dinner last night was "Baked Potato" night. I baked up 4 big ol potatoes and then served them up with all the fixins! I sauteed some mushrooms, steamed some broccoli, put out butter, sour cream and cheese. The kids really loved it and Julianne was especially pleased that there was no meat. She's never been a big fan of any kind of beef, chicken or pork and now her new best friend is a vegetarian so she's really having fits about it ~ Jen you want to step in here?

Just want to say a big "HAPPY BIRTHDAY" to my friend Gail in Tampa.

Well that's all the news from here ... would love to hear how your day was!