RIP MOOSE...

My favorite tv dog, Moose aka Eddie on Frasier, passed away on Thursday. He was sixteen and a half. He lived a full life. He was rescued from a shelter. His new owners were having problems controlling him (he even killed a neighbors cat). They took him to a trainer and VOILA! a star was born!

I adored him on the show and he's the reason I wanted a Jack Russell for a dog (Ranger is half Jack Russell).

So, rest in peace, little buddy!

YAY!!! MY BABY'S HOME!!!

Big Brother came back from Florida today. I'm so glad to have him home (even though he's already getting on my nerves).

We picked him up at the airport at 3:15 today. His flight came in at 2:45 but his Papa told me the wrong airlines so we ended up at Terminal C but should have been at Terminal A. I was disappointed because I always like to see the way he lights up as he comes through the tunnel.

Here are a few of the pictures he took with his VCam:


He took pictures of buildings while in Fort Lauderdale. I liked this one the best.



I think this picture is beautiful!

He took a boat ride and got a little too close to the gaters for my taste.

He's glad to be home and I'm glad to have him home.

WALK CHALLENGE UPDATE

JUST A THOUGHT...

"Be very careful if you make a woman cry, because GOD counts her tears. The woman came out of a man's rib. Not from his feet to be walked on. Not from his head to be superior, But from the side to be equal. Under the arm to be protected, and next to the heart to be loved."

I wish I knew who said it.

A WISE MAN ONCE SAID...

There is a blog that I visit often because I find it very entertaining and interesting. I've posted about Kelly Stern before. He has added a really neat thing to his blog. He requests questions from his "viewers" on Wednesdays so I thought I'd post a question for him. Here is my question and his response (Kelly is in bold):

First of all, I want you to know that I adore your blog and I visit often (I'm mommeee from It's a Mommeee's Life).
I wanted to post a question for your Wednesday Questions but I felt the need to explain why I'm asking this question so I figured I'd ask in email instead.
I'm the mom of 2 boys, a 10 yr old and a 5 mth old. I want to raise my boys so that they know that whoever they are as men, I will love them and support them always. I grew up with no boys in the family, I have 2 sisters. I've never raised a boy so every day is full of surprises for me.
Ok, my question is this: What could your parents have done or maybe what did they do to make your life easier as a gay man? Was there anything they could have done that would have made your realization easier?
I think my parents did a wonderful job of raising me and my brother...they never really pressured me to do much and were very trusting of me as a kid and teenager, pretty much letting go where I wanted...and the fact that I always told them the truth about where I was probably helped...I was raised in Lynchburg, Virginia...the home to a thousand churches and the home of Jerry Falwell...so as you can imagine, it was pretty conservative...My parents never really spoke down about gays, and never really brought it up...and I never really brought it up either...I kept it to myself because I just felt it would not be accepted too well...and I did not want to push any issues...but I think even if they would have been more open and liberal, I probably still would not have come out too early...I came out to Mom when I was 32 and have never officially come out to my father...but I feel he knows...some bridges are best crossed quietly...My advice to you would be to let your sons grow up and just let them know that you can and will be there for them no matter what...I have some friends who came out to family and became very close with them, others the opposite happened... Just raise your sons to love people for who they are inside, not their sex, political views, religion or anything else...meet and appreciate people for the person inside...your sons will appreciate it and so will their friends...also..one more note...you have to remember I was a teenager when the AIDS epedemic really took off in the 80's...so it made it a little hard to come out at a young age...these days there is more openess and more visibilty of alternative lifestyles....teach your sons to embrace diversity...race, sex, nationality, or sexual preference.
Thank you so much for taking the time to answer this for me.
You are welcome and sorry I rambled a bit...please feel free to ask me questions anytime...about anything...

This answer should go for everyone. If we all embraced others for who they are and not what they are, the world would be a much more peaceful place.

OH SO EMBARRASSING...

One of my favorite things to do is sit out on the front porch in the evenings after the sun goes behind the hills. It's an opportunity to chat with the neighbors and for Ranger to get to run free for a short while.

Ranger is a really good dog. He knows his boundaries and pretty much stays within them. All the neighbors know him (some I don't even know) and they greet him with as much enthusiasm as he greets them. Well, some of them, anyway. Two nights ago, while sitting outside, a neighbor from up the street came out to put out his garbage. He came by to say hello and of course, Ranger greeted him right back. Only, Ranger got a little too friendly and started to hump his leg! I was so embarrassed!

AHHH!! IT POPPED AND OTHER RAMBLINGS...

Yesterday was Father's Day so I got up early and made stuffed artichokes and a bourbon kahlua cake. In the process of getting things done, I jammed my thumb on the railing. The nail was pulled half way off the bed (OUCH!! and other inappropriate words!) and all day yesterday it throbbed. I knew if would feel better if the knuckle would just POP! Finally, today it did.

8-)~

Saturday, Big Brother left for Fort Lauderdale with Bams and Pops (the grandparents). I miss him so much but I know he's having a good time. I don't want to dwell on this because it makes me sad.

8-)~

Little Brother turns 5 months old today! Woohooo he's growing so fast. He's trying to roll but he can't quite make it yet. He'll get there soon, I'm sure.

He looks so cute in daddy's hat!

Notice the big spit bubble on his chin.

Here he is trying to roll over.

MONDAY AT WOF...

Here are a few pictures of our day at Worlds of Fun. We had a very good time and walked and walked and walked. My feet were so tired.

Here's Hubster and Big Brother riding the Scrambler.

This is how Little Brother spent his day...and eating.

Big Brother was the one climbing the walls instead of driving his mother up one.

YES, I'M A HARRY POTTER FAN...

Where would the sorting hat place you?

I'm
a Gryffindor!

WOF, HERE WE COME...

Tomorrow morning we're getting up early and going to Worlds of Fun. They open at 10 so I plan to have a lunch packed, diaper bag refilled, and at the gates when they open. Hubster and I haven't been since we were dating 13 years ago. Big Brother has never been (neither has Little Brother, for that matter). Big Brother doesn't know.

We're going to let him figure it out when we get there. He's going to be so thrilled. He already said, though, that he won't ride the Patriot. He wants to drive the Taxis. I don't plan on riding anything. Rides make me sick and I don't want to feel bad tomorrow.

I'm getting ready now to clean off the camera so I'll have plenty of pictures to share tomorrow night.

Catching up...

I've left a few "I'll post about that later"'s so I thought I'd use today to catch up.

A while ago I posted about our neighbor who we call Walnut. He's this man that lives across the street and he's lived there, well, forever. I grew up in this neighborhood, along with A's dad across the street. A's dad calls Walnut, BugEyes. This man will stand in his yard and hold a conversation with the tree. I'm not joking.

When we first moved back to this neighborhood 2 years ago, I was sitting in the backyard and he came by. He asked me if I got laid off from Ford. First of all, I've never spoken with the man, plus I've never worked at Ford.

He tells stories about how he served in wars (he's never been in the service according to his wife).

Last night, Hubster and I were sitting in the backyard. I saw Walnut come cruising around the corner so I hightailed it in the house with the baby. I was going to let Hubster stay out and not tell him but I thought that would be just too mean since once you're in a conversation with this man, you have to plan on being there for a while. I couldn't be that cruel.

8-)~

Another update: The waterpark on Monday.

Since it was so cloudy and the water was cold, we sat and people watched. It was a good thing too. Hubster pointed out this man because he looked like Billy Bob Thornton. He really did, too. So we began calling him Billy Bob.

Billy Bob was there with his 2 children (I'm assuming they were his). A little boy about 4 years old and a girl about 3 years old. He wasn't paying any attention to them. Instead of watching his kids, he was on his cell phone.

The little boy just wanted to get warm. He kept wrapping himself up in his towel and laying down on the sidewalk. He would just lie down anywhere. One of the staff came along at one point and asked him if he was ok. She took him to find Billy Bob.

The little girl wanted to play in the water. She wandered all over that park.

After we went out for our lunch, we moved to a different section of the park to watch the kids. The little girl was over near the lazy river, all alone playing in the water. I couldn't take it anymore. I said something to the lifeguard, who BTW, looked just like my friend, Chris, who passed away last year.

The lifeguard went to his manager and they found Billy Bob and made him watch his kids.

I wonder where the children's mother was.

8-)~

So yesterday was 6/6/06. I thought all the hype was kinda silly. One of the local radio stations offered $1000 if someone had a baby boy yesterday and named it Damian or $10,000 if they had a girl and named her Lucy Fer. How cruel that would be to do that to a child.

My favorite thing I saw yesterday was a picture of George W. It says it all. I'll leave you with that picture so you can laugh too.

DAY AT THE AQUATICS CENTER...

We took the kids to the local aquatics center. It turned out to be cloudy and cool. The water was ice cold so Hubster, Little Brother, and I sat on the sidelines and watched the older kids play. Big Brother and his buddy, A, played for hours. At least they had a good time. Here's a bunch of pictures from our day.


Dad and Little Brother soaking up some clouds...ignore my finger LOL.


Big Brother's friend, A, floating along in the lazy river.


Big Brother (in front) lounging along (Don't know who the other kids are).

And....a rare photo of me with Little Brother. I'm usually the one behind the camera.



Check back later for my rant about "Billy Bob" at the water park...

IT'S RAINING, IT'S POURING...

We were planning on a day at "The Springs" today. We woke up to rain. Metro Weather says it might rain off and on all day.

Big Brother will be so disappointed. Of course, he's not up yet. He probably won't be up until noon or so considering he was still up watching tv at 3 am. I don't blame him. I remember doing the same thing when I was his age.

My sister, V, who was closer in age to me, would stay up half the night too. It was a summer tradition that we finally got to stay up and watch all the tv shows we normally didn't get to see. The local tv stations played reruns all night of old shows. We didn't have TVLand, Nickelodeon, etc. back then. Heck, we didn't get cable until I was Big Brother's age.

Anyway, since I rambled off my topic, we will have to reschedule our trip to the park until tomorrow. It might be better to go on a Monday anyway instead of on a weekend day. Let's hope.

UP FOR A WALK...

My mommy group, the January 2006 Doodlebugs, is having a walk challenge. Each mommy is supposed to walk 90 miles in the month of June. That works out to 3 miles a day. This includes ALL walking for the day, even a walk to the bathroom. I've measured my stride and figured I have to walk 201,356 steps. As of bedtime last night I've walked 11,982 steps, give or take a few (I'm bad about putting on the pedometer first thing in the morning). It seems like a HUGE goal to me right now because 200,000 is a large number. I think having the other mommies doing it too will help. Big Brother is my "trainer" and is keeping me honest.

I think I'll borrow an idea from my fellow blogger, A Stern Point of View, and post my tally after each blog. He's a little more gutsy and posts his weight...that ain't gonna happen here!

Challenge Update:
Steps taken: 11,982
Goal: 201,356

HIGH PRICE FOR A MARGARITA...

Thursday was my oldest sister's birthday. She turned 42. To celebrate, we went out to dinner last night. She chose El Sombreros, a fantastic, greasy Mexican restaurant we've been going to since we were kids. It was as good as always.

You can't go to "The Hat", as Hubster calls it, without having a margarita. I don't know what they put in them but one will get you off the ground. We ordered a pitcher for Hubster and myself. Now, if you remember from previous posts, I've been having heartburn problems since Little Brother came along. I wasn't three quarters of the way through my first glass when it began. Dummy me forgot to bring anything to take. You'd think I'd learn to take something before I eat or drink alcohol. I was up half the night battling the pain. Of course, drinking half the pitcher didn't help either. Anyway, Prilosec here I come.

Since Big Brother is out of school, I haven't had a chance to spend time with him, just the two of us. Last night I tried to stay up with him and watch a movie. We started "Cheaper by the Dozen 2" at about 11. I think it was 11:30 when I nodded off on the couch. Poor kid, I owe him another night. (Note: The movie wasn't very good...at least not as good as the first IMO)

CELEBRATE GAY PRIDE...

A fellow blogger took this photo of his house. I fell in love with it when I saw it, not only for his meaning behind it but also just for the picture itself. He is using it to challenge others to post it on the internet to promote gay pride. I'm posting it for 2 reasons. The first, as already stated, is that I like the photo. The second is because I promote gay pride. I'm not gay (other than being extremely happy at times) but I don't see any reason why 2 people that love each other can't be recognized as a couple if they feel the need. If that's the life you choose, more power to ya! <---I don't mean that statement to come across as harsh in any way...I just couldn't think of a better way to state it (it's late and I'm tired...mommeee brain and all).

Please, if you feel like it, pass along this photo and the positive meaning behind it.

FORGIVE ME FOR I HAVE SINNED..AND GIVE ME A BURGER!

Big Brother was going with a friend to a baseball game tonight. Before he left, he came in to tell me there would be a consession stand and he needed money. Well, instead of telling me there was a consession stand, he said there would be a confession stand. WHAT? He said there's a confession stand. I had an instant vision of what I believe a Confession Stand would look like. Too funny. (If he knew I was writing this here, he'd be mad. It's too cute to pass up.)