Reality

 So I would like to tell you that my diet is going swimmingly and that I am exercising like a fiend and that Sports Illustrated has contacted me for their "old ladies" swimsuit edition. But we all know that is not the case. And today is the last day of March, when I should be ever-so-much lighter. Oh well, tomorrow's the first of April - isn't that when all diets start - on April Fool's Day??

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Today is a gift because: taking Everley to school and picking her up; chatting with the Clinard dude

Seek And Ye Shall Find ... Or It May Just Show Up!

This morning I went over to Maribeth's to take Everley to school (after she got up, ate breakfast, and got dressed). Being Monday and having about a million things to do, Maribeth prepared to leave the house (keep in mind this was about 6am-ish). She started looking for her keys, but couldn't find them. Since she has only two sets for her car (thanks to being a key-less starting car), she keeps one set at my house (this as a result of a lost key incident a few years ago). Anyhow, today she could not locate her keys.

As a result, Maribeth got in her car, drove to my house, picked up the extra keys, and returned to her house to switch cars and return my keys so I could provide school bus duty later on in the morning. Maribeth left and I started looking for her keys. She had also suggested that I ask Everley when she woke up, as Everley might have put them in a "good spot."

I could not find the keys, even looking in the places that a 3-year-old (well, almost) would have thought of as a "good spot." After a few minutes, I heard my phone ding, indicating a text message. As I started retrieving my phone from the pocket of my jacket, I also noticed a jangling that sounded like a set of keys. Which seemed sort of odd, since my keys were clearly in view on the kitchen counter. And what was the jangling? Maribeth's keys, of course!  We do not know how they got there, and only Everley was in the clear since she was still asleep. I guess I put them in there, although I certainly didn't remember it.

Moms and Mondays - what can you do?

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Today is a gift because: key fun; taking Everley to school; family dinner at the Doik

Just A Sunday Thought

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Today is a gift because: Spending time with family; Sam, Lynnette, and Lindley's safe travel back home

Sugar Saturday

This morning Molly and I picked up Everley and started our morning of fun. First we went to Krispey Kreme for doughnuts, because every morning should start with an overload of sugar (for the record, I ate no doughnuts, Molly ate one or two, and Everley had a chocolate covered one as well as the special Easter egg filled one - if you're going to do sugar, you might as well do it in a big way!).

Once that was over, we headed to Sonic to see Charity and get a bit of protein (along with a lot more calories). Successfully fueled, we decided to head to the Disney store at Opry Mills. The store was having their anniversary sale, and we were hoping to score a Merida playset for Everley's birthday cake (we didn't, although we did find a Merida figure that will have to do). Molly and Everley played in the play area while I stood in line with the other Disney customers - who are crazy, by the way (no comment on my crazy quotient). The deal was that the first 28 purchasing customers would get a "free gift." I guess they (no, not me) were hoping for a free week at Disney World. The other crazies (including the lady who was behind me in line, then started talking to the complete stranger ahead of me in line, and ended up getting ahead of me in line because she was "talking" with her new BFF) immediately rushed to the checkout, grabbing some random item in the checkout line to purcharse. And our fabulous prize? We were treated to a free reusable Disney Store shopping bag . Score?

Anyhow, I left with my new reusable shopping bag and Merida figure and retrieved Molly and Everley from the play area (not without some high-level negotiating in order to get Everley to leave). We then went to Molly's house so Everley could play with Rambo - a successful outing.

By this time it was time for more food, so we ordered from Cheesecake Factory and picked that up (note we did not order cheesecake - the sugar from breakfast was still tiding us over). Fully full from that meal, it was time for naps (for whomever, which would be everyone).

Eventually Steve and GDizzle drove in, Maribeth got through delivering the mail, and we all ended up at Cracker Barrel for dinner. Because we hadn't eaten in several hours. After a final stop at Publix to see if they could make the Merida birthday cake they advertise (they couldn't because they didn't have the Merida cake set), everyone ended up at their respective homes and beds.

It was a very good day!!

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Today is a gift because: Doughnuts and Sonic and Opry Mills with Molly and Everley; Steve and GDizzle's safe trip from Columbus; Cracker Barrel with Steve, GDiz, Maribeth, Everley, and Molly

Hooray! It's Friday!

Today Everley came over for lunch and naptime since daycare was closed again. After a totally nutritious lunch prepared by LaLa (chosen by Everley), it was time for a nap with Minnie (and maybe LaLa). Later it was time to take out the braids from the cruise - who knew those braiding ladies could make a braid so small??

Steve left for Columbus to visit GDizzle and bring him back for a visit next week. The weather has turned a bit cool again, but no worries, as it will turn warm again next week. The grass is turning green and the plants are beginning to bloom - so I do believe spring is coming. But with Nashville, one does not put one's winter clothing into storage just yet - May is a tricky one around here.

Anyhow, at least today I know what day it is. Small steps, people - small steps!!!
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Today is a gift because: Everley time; quiet night at home; Steve's safe travel to Columbus

It's Thursday - I Think ...

Along with the other stellar stuff going on this week, it's been hard to keep track of which day it is (I know - if I had a job to go to, maybe it wouldn't be such a stretch). Today Everley's day care is closed, so she came over to LaLa's for the day (although Lindley also goes to the same day care, she's in Ft. Worth for the long weekend). Today's been great, except for one thing - I kept thinking it was Saturday. Or Sunday. Mainly because those are the days that Everley is usually over for the day.

Anyhow, other than waiting for the Sunday paper ads, which weren't there since it was Thursday, it's been a fairly uneventful day. I've gotten some future cruise planning done as well as some future Disney trips. I probably did some other stuff, but it's hard to remember - especially after a week - wait, what?

Anyhow, in the end, maybe it doesn't matter what day it is, especially if you're with the ones you love and doing the things that you enjoy.

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Today is a gift because: spending the day with Everley; getting s few things accomplished

And Now It's Wednesday ...

It's been a downer of a week. The sweet mom of a childhood friend of mine died, as well as the wife of a staff member of a church we used to attend. Then I facebook stalked for awhile, and read heartbreaking stories of children who are sick from various ailments or ill from various accidents. If you add into the mix my utter lack of commitment to anything related to my health and well-being, then you just may get the gist of my mental and emotional state of being. Meanwhile my desk is still piled high to the sky with who-knows-what kind of paperwork. Oh, and there are still about a billion "household projects" that need to be tackled - or at least addressed (as in "Hello Household Project - what up?"). And we won't even get in to the whole "Gee, I'm caught up on my blog" issue.

So I guess you could call this a slump week. And I guess that's okay, because eventually I'll get out of it - right?

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Today is a gift because: taking Everley to school; cleaning dude here; taking Lynnette and Lindley to the airport

And Now It's Tuesday ...

This morning started off much better, since by the time I got to Everley's, she was awake. We got to school before morning snack and everyone was happy to be back on schedule.

Even better is the fact that this March creeping respiratory crud is just about gone. No more hacking my lungs out, no more decisions about which Mucinex to take, and no more draining resulting in dripping, sneezing, coughing, and just general yuck.  Here's hoping that I will actually make it through the spring pollen sprinkles without another extended reign of respiratory terror.

Anyhow, life is back to normal, sort of, if normal is being behind in everything, having a messy cluttered house, and still eating too much and exercising too little. Yup - things are back to normal!!

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Today is a gift because: taking Everley to school; feeling better

Monday

 This morning I went over to Everley's to wait for her to get up so I could take her to school. Only she decided to sleep in - until 10am. Which meant by the time she had breakfast and adjusted to being up, there was no point in going to school (at least according to LaLa Logic). So instead Everley and LaLa decided to have a day of fun (again, according to LaLa).

Once we were finally out of bed and on speaking terms (sometimes this takes a period of adjustment), I fixed Everley some breakfast. And then tackled the result of Tangle Monster's work during the night (aka bedhead with a tangly mess - thank goodness for No More Tangles!). Then it was time for a wardrobe (and diaper) change. Thankfully the clothing items I chose were acceptable (not always the case).

Next it was time for the trip to LaLa's, carefully negotiated so that we could indeed move locations (LaLa had stuff to do at her house). Once there, some of us watched television while others of us did stuff. Eventually a nap was involved (not saying for whom) and we ended the day with dinner at Red Lobster with PawPaw and Moo, compliments of my friend Pam. And of course before I could return Everley to her home and her mom, we did have to make a Target stop.

It was a fun day, even though somebody didn't go to school and somebody didn't get a lot of stuff done. Some Mondays are just like that!!

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Today is a gift because: spending the day with Everley; dinner with Everley, Steve, and Molly; Target shopping with Everley

And Here We Are Again!!

And where would that be? We are caught up yet once again. And since I don't have any trips planned anytime soon (at least as of this moment), let's hope it stays that way. And maybe I will finally get over this cold thing so my head will be clear and I will get back to those deeply thought-out, provocative blogs that we all love - well, maybe I'll start writing those.

Anyhow, I am still buried under a load of stuff to do, although I did get my den and kitchen floors mopped (relatively speaking). I also got some laundry done and put a new roll of toilet paper on the spindle (and we all know which one of those is the most important).

So here's one less thing hanging over my head on my to-do list. Now I just have to decide which one to do next ...

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Today is a gift because: Lindley time at the Doik; Steve's return home after his stint as a volunteer at the golf tourney; future cruise planning; clean sheets on the bed (mainly because some recent visitors might have left cracker crumbs in the bed)

Just A Little Shopping

Today Everley spent the day with me while her mommy delivered the mail. First we had to go to Target to get chocolate-chip muffins since Lindley had informed me we were out. However, we could not find them at Target (although we did locate colored paper for cutting and bumble bee wands for blowing bubbles). So, this necessitated a trip to Kroger (I have plenty of gas, thank you) to procure the much-needed food item (along with some cocoa krispies for Net Net, bread for PawPaw and a lunchable for E's lunch).

As you can see, I had help since little grocery baskets are available. The only difficult part was keeping her from racing down the aisles - LaLa doesn't move as quickly as she used to. Everley also managed to scan and bag the items, although the bagging got a little complicated since she kept wanting to take the bags off, resulting in a weight difference, resulting in the message "attendant has been notified to help you."

Oh well, now we have mini muffins!

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Today is a gift because: spending the day with Everley; avocado toast dinner at Sam, Lynnette, and Lindley's; shopping with E

Who Do You Believe??

So I've been meaning to get gas, but just haven't gotten around to it. Today as I was travelling about to run errands, I noticed that my gas was getting low. The gas police said I had only two miles left while the gauge police said I had two bars. So exactly who was I supposed to believe?

Had I passed by gas stations? Why yes, I had. But they were in Brentwood and gas was ten cents higher than in my neighborhood. I was bound and determined that I was NOT going to pay that extra ten cents. Because in my Prius C, which holds maybe eight gallons, that would amount to a whole eighty cents. And eighty cents saved is eighty cents earned. Never mind how much it would cost me if I ran out of gas and had to call somebody. Or rent a gas can. Or something like that.

So I kept going, coasting as needed (because I was certain that would save me a few ounces) and eventually made it to my Kroger gas station to save my ten cents. I still don't know who to believe, the gauge or the miles left, but maybe next time I won't wait until dilemma time!!

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Today is a gift because: taking E to school; picking up completed projects; meeting Everley's neighbor

What I'm Not Doing

Well, actually that would be a lot of stuff. I had planned to start this jogging thing up in earnest after the cruise, but this respiratory junk has rendered me unable to do much except take various forms of OTC meds and carry around Kleenex boxes and take naps. And so, in that vein, I leave you with this brilliant thought ...  And yes, that model lady could easily be a photo of me - if I rolled my hair and filed my fingernails. Which I don't because there's plenty of other things to occupy my time ...

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Today is a gift because: taking Everley to school and picking up Everley and Lindley after school; getting some stuff accomplished

The Art Of Being Lazy

Since I have returned from the cruise, I have been lazy. As in "get only the absolutely necessary stuff done." In other words, I washed the dirty dishes, but a day later, they are still in the dishwasher. I put the dirty clothes in the sorting bins, but they have yet to make it into the washing machine. In other words, I may survive a condemnation from the Health Department, but only barely.

But it's been sort of nice. This afternoon I took a cat nap. Complete with two cats. Who aren't exactly the best of friends. But we all managed to get a snooze in a bed that hasn't been made in a few days.

There are about a zillion things that I need to do. And I will get them done. I've even started a list. But it's been nice to take a few days to do nothing. To get caught up on some missing sleep. To take a break from all that is going on and just do nothing.

So in case you're thinking of taking a "doing nothing" break, here are a few words to encourage you ...

"Doing nothing feels like floating on warm water to me. Delightful, perfect."

- Ava Gardner -

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Today is a gift because: taking Everley to school; watching "The Sound Of Music" show on tv; watching the "Annie" movie

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

Here's my idea of a pint on St. Patrick's Day. At first I considered cancelling my appointment at the Red Cross, but then decided to go ahead with it. The good news is that I had to wait a bit because there were several donors in line, which means more pints will be available for those who will need them. The other good news is that I had a good tech and it all went pretty flawlessly (except I had to have two finger sticks because my right finger did not meet the iron content requirement, but my left finger did). I was also entertained watching the other donors - some who did not want to watch the needle going in and those who brought an entourage with them.

And here's my little leprechaun Everley, who is still sporting her braids from the cruise. She was very excited to be wearing green, especially the shirt from Ireland that her babysitter Miranda brought her.   I tried to get a picture when I picked her up and when we first got to school, but she told me we didn't have time. Luckily her teachers convinced her to let me snap a photo!

Anyhow, here's hoping you had a great St. Paddy's day - whether you had the luck of the Irish or your own pint to celebrate!

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Today is a gift because: taking Everley to school and picking her up; donating blood and watching the office group that came in together

Hackity Hack Hack

So today I spent most of my time coughing. And coughing. Welcome to Day One of my cruise-caught cold. It always starts the same - my lungs feel like rubber bands are wrapped around them and I have to cough every other moment in an effort to get the rubber bands off. Sometimes it's rather violent, and I do expect some body part to come flying out. And no, I do not have a fever - just a tight cough that must be hacked out.

The next step if to decide which meds to take - to loosen and lessen or to dry up and expectorate? A combo of both? A four-hour dose or the big 12-hour dose? And if I take the four hour one, will I remember that I took it or will I think I did the 12-hour? And how will I know which works best? Should I be keeping a diary?

The lovely part is that this just will lead to the next phase - the dripping phase. This is when my nose apparently grows a spigot that cannot be turned off and the best thing to do is stuff Kleenex up it. Because I will be carrying around a huge box of Kleenex to handle the atomic-size sneezing that will commence.

I'm hoping that I will be over this by the time the flowers and trees start blooming. And pollen starts flowing. Because then it will start all over again.

I just love Spring!

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Today is a gift because: I have a nice bed to burrow in with meds and drinks and a television to watch while I burrow

And Vacation Is Over!!

This would be me. Today. Lots of post-vacay stuff to do. Lots of other stuff to do. Don't want to do any of it. Catching the respiratory junk that others had on the cruise. Halfway through March and still haven't developed any good healthy habits.

But I WAS on a cruise. And we DID have fun. So I'll just sit in my chair and sniffle and decide on which cold meds to take. And that's the way it is ...

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Today is a gift because: Everley time; gazing and suitcase and wondering if it will unpack itself

Road Trip! Again!

The sign of a great cruise!

Well, it had to end sometime. And today was that sometime. Marilyn, Lucy, Rachel, and Tilly had an early flight, so they disembarked as soon as we were allowed to. They boarded a Disney cruise line bus and headed for the airport. Lindley, Lynnette, Maribeth, Everley, and Anne had later flights, so they waited and then boarded their Sunshine Limo shuttle for the airport. And KB, Molly, and I boarded the infamous mini-van for the ride home - with everyone's luggage who lives in Nashville.

We managed to make it home with only a few stops (once for a Zaxby's lunch and another rest stop - possibly because KB stopped drinking liquids after lunch). And we only got misdirected once (on my driving shift) because I missed the correct lane in Atlanta (you'd think I had never driven this route before). The traffic was thick at times and it rained on and off, but we made it home with any catastrophe. Of course the cats were happy to see me and after dropping KB off, Molly helped me unload the suitcases in the den to await their proper owners.

It was a great cruise and a lot of fun with our group. Here's hoping to doing it again soon!

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Today is a gift because: everyone getting back home safely; safe road trip home; sleeping in my own bed

Castaway Cay!

KB and I watched as we docked at Castaway Cay. Then it was time to head to The Tube for the 5K meet-up. Yes, KB, Anne, and I decided to do the 5K. It rained but had stopped by the time we disembarked the ship. We headed to the start line and wogged along with the rest of the group (well, not the runners who were off and finished by the time we arrived at Mile 1). We eventually finished and headed to Family Cabana 8 where the rest of our group had assembled (well, almost all - Marilyn and Rachel were getting their cabana massages - they joined us later).

The rest of the day was spent enjoying the beach. It was breezy and a little cloudy - in other words, perfect weather. We straggled back onto the ship at different times, with Marilyn, Rachel, Lucy, and Tilly getting back onboard last. Anne, KB, Molly, Lindley, Lynnette, and I watched the new "Cinderella" - well, Molly and Lindley left a little bit after the start.

With this being our last night on the ship, Marilyn and Rachel had possession of the muu-muu, and they didn't disappoint. I think Nannie would be proud of our efforts!

Jasmine x 3!

Fashion #1 by Rachel

Mae-Mae's church meetin' hat!!

Fashion by Rachel #2

KB gets a little reading in.

Moo and Lindley do some tubing

Moo and Lindley do some eating and hammock-ing

Lynnette and Lindley and a friend

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Today is a gift because: finishing the 5K with KB and Anne; beautiful day at Castaway Cay; seeing Cheddar Cheese at lunch; cabana fun; watching "Cinderella", saying farewell to our servers at dinner

Sea Day Part Three!

I have to admit, I like the sea days. Even if the seas are a bit rocky (although today they're quite calm), I like to be on the ocean. And although they can be a bit crazy and loud on the upper deck where the pools are, I still like to find a quiet spot onboard and enjoy the scenery.

Today there was cupcake decorating and meeting characters and shopping in the gift shops (where somebody got a Jasmine costume). The cruise is winding down, so we've got to get everything accomplished!!

Just somebody we happened to see on deck!

Minnie in her pirate dress!

Mickey in his pirate outfit and Lindley in her pirate eyepatch!

The captains of this cruise!

Two Jakes and an Everley

Let's make cupcakes!!

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Today is a gift because: fun aboard the ship

Hello San Juan!

This morning I got up early. Well, I woke up early and rather than just toss and turn in bed, I decided to go out on deck to watch us dock in port. It rained a bit on and off for about 30 seconds at a time, and at one point those of us on deck got to see a beautiful rainbow. I stayed around to watch a boat come in and dock beside us.

Once everyone else was up, they made their own plans for the day. We had planned to do a segway tour, but it was booked, so we missed out. KB and Anne went out for their own tour about town (and met a few interesting people). Molly went to the local Starbucks to do a bit of work. Lucy, Rachel, and Lynnette went out to walk about the area.

The rest of us stayed onboard and played with the kids and the other usual stuff.  Later in the afternoon, Lynnette, Lindley, Maribeth, and Everley went to the kids club and did some sloppy science.


I must have missed getting Lucy's muu-muu picture. With all our comings and goings at dinner, sometimes it's hard to get a picture!  Tomorrow is another sea day - where has this cruise gone?!

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Today is a gift because: beautiful day in San Juan even with the sporadic rain; beautiful rainbow; fun aboard the ship

Hello St. Thomas/St. John!

Today we stopped in St. Thomas for the day. Marilyn and Rachel got off the boat and headed for the beach. KB got off the boat and met our friend KP, who is living in St. John with her husband while he works down here. The rest of us stayed onboard and played with the kids and ate ice cream and sat in the hot tubs and heated chairs in the rainforest room and ate - you know, the usual stuff.  Just another day in the cruise life!

Lynnette's muu-muu day.
She used our multi-purpose muu-muu for a sleeping bag!

I went with Everley and Lindley and Marilyn and Tilly to the kids club.
Everley and I watched the crew lifeboat drill.
The lifeboats look really tight ...

Each night we had a scratch off game for prizes.
Lindley seems to be a lucky scratcher!!

Meanwhile, Tilly REALLY likes Mickey bars!!

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Today is a gift because: getting off the boat to do fun things; beautiful day in port 

Sea Day - Part Two

Today was another glorious sea day. This morning the young set of adult ladies had brunch at Palo while the older set babysat. We went up on deck to play golf, which didn't last too long since we aren't very good at it and the wind was very strong (and we were worried that Everley might get blown overboard!).  Once the mommies had returned and reclaimed their babies, there was swimming and hot tubs and rainforest rooms and naps - the usual stuff for a sea day.


Tonight was Molly's muu-muu night, so this was her offering - pretty snazzy with the hat!

Tomorrow we actually hit land, which I think will be a nice break. The weather has been great, but the seas have been a bit wavy, so it will be nice to walk on solid land!!
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Today is a gift because: playing with Everley, Lindley, and Tilly; chilling in the rainforest room

Sea Day!

After dinner last night, some of our group went to the show. Others went to the Rainforest Room (a place of quiet and heated chairs and private hot tubs). Eventually everyone found their beds for a rather bouncy night's sleep (in other words, the waves were a bit rocky). But nobody got ill and everyone was ready for a day at sea.

The old folks of the group went to Palo for brunch. Our server was Luan, a name that I found interesting. We ate our fill, and then some. The rest of the day was spent doing stuff like eating and sleeping and babysitting and rainforest rooming and doing it all again. In other words, it was a quiet day on the sea!

We also started our muu-muu project. I have this muu-muu that belonged to my grandmother. The plan is for everyone to wear it in some way on this trip. These are KB's and Anne's contributions - not bad for an antique muu-muu!

I'm sure it's time to eat or take a nap, so I'll sign off for now - tomorrow's another sea day!

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Today is a gift because: lovely day at sea; brunch at Palo for the oldies; playing with the kiddos

Let's Go On A Cruise!

Everyone is now in Orlando, so it's time to head for the port!!  Molly, Lynnette, Lindley, KB, and I loaded up the minivan and headed east. Meanwhile,  at the Hyatt, Maribeth, Everley, Marilyn, Lucy, Tilly, Rachel, and Anne loaded up the shuttle and headed the same direction. We pretty much arrived at the same time - thanks to the wrong turn I made on the way (which makes about the umpteenth wrong turn I've made during the past several days). Anyhow, everyone got out of their vehicles, unloaded their bags, and headed into the port building to check in.


In case you haven't counted, that's nine women and three little girls.  Here's a list of who's who:
Me - 'nuf said
Molly - my daughter
Maribeth - my daughter
Everley - Maribeth's almost 3-year-old (on April 2) daughter
Lynnette - my daughter-in-law
Lindley - Lynnette's 5-year-old
Marilyn - my sister who lives in North Carolina
Lucy - Marilyn's daughter who lives in Virginia
Tilly - Lucy's 18-month-old daughter
Rachel - Marilyn's daughter who lives in New York City
KB - our adopted sister
Anne - our sister-in-law who is married to our brother John

We checked in, boarded the ship, and headed to lunch. And maybe an adult beverage or two. Then everyone dispersed to find their rooms, take naps, and begin to chill - we're on a cruise!!

  

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Today is a gift because; everyone made it onboard; we made it to the port with a few course corrections; meeting our dining serving team