Room To Grow

The only thing Brynna asked for her 12th Birthday, was a room make-over. The difficulty being that she is in the in-between stage of not being a little girl, but also not being a teenager. When we were talking about different styles, I knew I had to come up with something that would take her from the teen years...until she leaves the house. :) So, for the last few months, I have been slowly gathering things I find. I had the vision in my head and kept my radar on for things that caught my eye to fit into the image in my mind. For instance, I found the chair at one of those hotel furniture liquidators. It was as ugly as could be, but still in great shape, so I bought it extremely cheap and gave it a face lift. It's those little things that made a huge difference. I asked if she wanted to help me or be surprised. She opted for being surprised. I'm grateful she had that much trust in me. As I was covering the last piece of the old pink paint, memories came to my head of when I painted it on and the little girl she was. It seems like yesterday and I know these next few years will pass in a blink of an eye. No matter what age, I always will strive to do things that make her happy, she deserves it. The other night she was lying in bed with the light on and I asked her if she was going to be saving on the electricity anytime soon. She said she just wanted to lay and admire her room. It wasn't the words, it was how she said it. THOSE are the moments I live for, strive for, and do things like this for:

Can Old Men Still Rock??

YES, THEY CAN!!! I would say this is probably one of the best concerts I have ever been to. I grew up listening to these talented men and have always wanted to hear them live. The whole concert experience for me has always been more for hearing music in its purest form over seeing the artist. I was wondering if seeing their age would have an effect. It was different at first because I still envision them in their younger years. After the first couple of songs, it went away because they sounded exactly the same. Although I own full CD's of both, my preferred favorites have come from Elton John....'Tiny Dancer' and 'Goodbye Yellow Brick Road' being the top two. And although he did great, Billy Joel blew him out of the water. His stage presence was outstanding. I couldn't take my eyes off of him and he continually engaged the crowd. Although, not one of my favorite songs of his, 'Movin' Out', was great live. At the beginning and end of the concert the two shared the stage and played each other's songs in duet...THAT was worth it alone. They ended with 'Piano Man' which made a perfect end to a perfect night.

My Issues with People with Issues

WARNING: For those of you who have grandmas or (heaven forbid) mothers belonging to this cult called the Red Hat Club, you may want to stop reading now, or you WILL be offended.

First, I am all about having groups to socialize with, go to movies, dinner, and the zoos(?), but you don't see me buying a (ridiculous) hat to do so. I once heard these fine ladies complaining and disgusted about the youth of today with their saggy pants and gothic piercings...which left me asking myself, how are these ladies any different? It's all about drawing attention to themselves.

I was at a restaurant on a separate occasion, trying to enjoy a meal, when they broke out in song and poetry. It wasn't even half bad...it was horrible. Leaving me with the question, why must we suffer this? I couldn't even hear my own conversation. I started to talk louder, and that's when the glares came. Am I being fair saying all of them are crazy? No, but it's the haughty attitude they carry with their hats on....to them it's a badge to be obnoxious.

EVERY time I have come across them, they only worsen my opinon by doing something disrespectful. The zoo was no exception. Am I being disrespectful? Yes. Am I going to reap my reward for being judgemental? You bet. Yet, I am at my limit. BURN THE RED HATS (not the people, just the hats.)

Other than them, this is pretty much how our visit to the zoo was....

The animals not cooperating.

The animals being lazy.

The animals being obnoxious.

The animals being totally inappropiate.

All this for: $61.00 with coupons $30 for Red Baron pizza and a hot dog.

A Week with My Kids

We had a wonderful spring break. Arizona weather in March is the best and we love spending time outside. We had events planned everyday, leaving me feeling like I needed a spring break from my spring break. Usually we go out of town, but Jason was not able to get any time off. Sometimes doing things around home, not pressed to go anywhere, just feels good. We focus more on one another rather than the world around us. Some of our activities included:

Monday: Spring Training

Tuesday: White Tank Mountains

Wednesday: Wildlife Zoo

Thursday: Dentist. :( This was Nathan's first trip to get cavaties filled. Since he has been traumatized in the ER twice, we opted to go with the nitrous oxide. The dentist was able to do the fillings without any anesthetic, BUT Nathan's stomach did not agree with the nitrous. He explained it like this: "Mom, I threw up like a volcano, it just kept erupting!" Later, in the afternoon, Nathan had to see an oral surgeon. He has a third front tooth, which will need an extraction surgery in April. He heard the word 'surgery' and has been nervous about it ever since. Plus, they told him he will have nitrous before they give him an IV.....this oughta be good.

Friday: Fun with Grandma and going to the mall.

By Friday, the kids were back to arguing and riding my nerves, but I absolutely love having them home. The house is alive with energy and full of love.

Spring Training

We learned the best way to have a great game day at Surprise Stadium is 1.) get seats in section 122 and 2.) bring your kids. In 122 you do get full sun, but you also get the direct path the players walk. We've also learned that being an adult doesn't help the cause for autographs. Most adults get the shaft, but once a player sees a child, either the guilt steps in or they genuinely care. So yes, we used our children to get what we wanted. Actually, the kids were excited to meet 'celebrities.' We love going to Spring Training games every year. Today, we saw the Rangers vs. Dodgers. We specifically came wanting the Dodgers to get creamed. Why you ask even when we lived in L.A.? The Dodgers are an evil organization. Anaheim, baby. We are Angel fans through and through.

Omar Vizquel

Omar and Eddie

Greg Golson

Derrick Turnbow

The most flexible pitcher in baseball.

Nathan's foul ball.

My new camera came in handy for zooming.

Especially zooming Joe Torre.

Classic example of the players (Mike Maddox) waving off the fans.....

.....until he sees the kids. :)

Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Eddie, & Stephanie

The kids showing off their autographs...and Jason waiting to steal them.