Lazy 5 Ranch

Will and I took our boys on a little day trip today to Lazy 5 Ranch.  We had a fantastic time and really enjoyed feeding and petting all the animals.

Here are some of our favorite animal photos:

The giraffes and the scottish cows were our favorites to feed.  The Bison were....stinky.  I think the Bison waited until a tour wagon came by to pee or poop.  The boys laughed and laughed....

After we left the ranch, we stopped by Kerr Mill for a quick tour.

The boys enjoyed the park at Kerr Mill despite the cold weather--

What a great way to close out 2009!

Merry Christmas 2009

Wow-- Santa left Spencer all kinds of cool stuff!

Oh..and Bowser and I got some great gifts as well...

After a couple of hours of goofing off at home, Spencer and I went to Nana and Boppa's for our traditional Christmas breakfast and our family Christmas.

Christmas evening was also wonderful-- but I was a slacker and didn't get any pictures.  We had a nice dinner back at Nana and Boppa's house.  Will joined us for dinner. Amanda and Zach stopped by as well. (Shame on me for not getting pictures! )

Christmas Eve 2009

Cooking, shopping, presents, family and church--- a nice relaxing Christmas Eve.
After church, Spencer put out reindeer food in what's left of the snow in the front yard.  The oatmeal reindeer food was especially yummy to Bowser, he practically tackled Spencer to get to it!

After we fed the reindeer, we set out cookies for Santa. Of course Spencer had to sample a few of the cookies to make sure they were yummy enough for Santa!
This year, Spencer decided to set up a "taste test" and left Coke, Pepsi and Milk to see which was Santa's favorite.

A few years ago, Spencer and I started a new tradition of reading all of our Christmas cards before he went to sleep.  It gives us an opportunity to look at the pictures and/or say something nice about people we don't get to see often.  It helps both of us to appreciate the cards. This year, even our kitty, Inez, wanted to be part of the tradition!

Loving the holidays!

Christmas is all about the meeting up with friends and loved ones.  I was a little slack with getting photos this season but here are a few:

First, here are pics from Christmas dinner out with the Godwins.  We started out at Sir Pizza but sat there for 30 minutes without getting waited on so we packed up our presents and walked over to Pizza Vino.  This makes the THIRD (and last!) time we have left Sir Pizza because we couldn't get service! 
We didn't let it ruin our evening-- we all had a blast and the kids were little angels!

And of course, my first Christmas with Will was wonderful. Despite our dogs not getting along for their Christmas playdate, the evening was still very nice.  His poor little Chi-weenie dog, Lacie, and my big shepherd mix (Bowser) were definitely on Santa's naughty list that evening!

Yeah...good luck with that...

All I wanted was a picture in front of our tree.  Just a simple picture of Spencer smiling.  Well evidently that wasn't going to happen....sigh...little boys, geez!

Okay...that's enough...melt already!

Ughh--- I am already tired of the roads being a mess, everything being closed, the wet mud tracked in the house....  AND let's not forget the huge pile of wet clothes from Spencer playing in the snow all day---coming in every hour and changing into warm, dry clothes and then going back outside. Snow days just aren't as much fun when you're an adult.

Spencer and IV had a blast riding the four wheeler, sledding, snowball fighting and playing football in the snow with Jimmy and Melissa.

Spencer's poor snowman resembled the congestion monster from the Mucinex commercials dontcha think?
I'm scared to ask what he used for the mouth....and sincerely hope that Bowser had nothing to do with it....

Cold and wet isn't my bag, baby --- so I was on hot chocolate patrol.  I made the homemade good stuff !

Then Spencer and I cranked up the heat and made some Christmas cookies. He had more fun swirling and playing in the sugar sprinkles than the actual cookie making!  I thought we were going to make red ones and green ones (not mixed!) but Spencer decided that green alone looked like troll bogeys and red alone looked like the bare baboon buttocks...sigh.....

Snow-- Already?

It rarely snows in NC-- especially in December. But we got a few inches of snow today and we're expecting 4-8 inches total by tomorrow.  Now to my friends in the North, that's piddly.  But to others here in NC...without plows, salt trucks, etc.-- that's a show stopper.

As it first started snowing earlier today, Spencer took Bowser for a walk in the dusting.  They both came home soaking wet and tired!  As more and more snow fell, Spencer opted to stay inside.  That's *my* kid after all... 

Ugly Ornament Exchange Part 2

Okay-- so if you read my previous entry, you know my team does an ugly ornament exchange.  I thought mine was a winner until I received my ornament from Laura, my teammate in Cincinnati, Ohio. She really outdid herself!

Notice the silver and neon green duct tape, twinkling lights, and a working Elvis centerpiece that plays Blue Christmas--all hoisted up on a toilet paper roll so that this ornament can be the "king' of all ornaments and be the tree topper. And she even used older, fatter Elvis...

I literally laughed out loud when I unwrapped this thing!  This bad boy will be the ultimate in Dirty Santa gifts for years and years...  Thanks Laura!

Vegas Baby!

What better way to celebrate Will's milestone birthday than with a trip to Vegas! It was just a quick weekend trip--but we had plenty of time to lose money gambling, spend money shopping, and eat, drink and be merry. Actually Saturday's gambling wasn't too bad, I managed to almost break even for the weekend.  I love me some Roulette....

We toured several of the hotels and did a few of the touristy spots like World of Coca Cola and M&M World. Like usual, the people watching was the best part of Vegas. It's never a trip to Vegas until you spot a cowboy, a tranny, newly augmented breasts and a "wait till he gets in a crowd then farts" kid with a purple mohawk.  I really should market a people watching bingo card.

This was my first trip with Will and he is a wonderful travel companion/pack mule/drink fetcher/tour guide/boyfriend.  I have no idea how I am going to begin my scrapbook--but somehow I will find a way to weave our "you had to be there" moments and goofy pictures.

(click on collage to enlarge pictures)

Happy Birthday Will!

It's official. I'm dating an older man. My sweet Will turned the big 4-0 today.  Putting up with me has tempered him so the milestone birthday was a piece of cake.  Actually, there wasn't a piece of cake.  We had the donut dunker thingies at Mimi's Cafe and I gave him an IOU for a cake at another time.  But don't worry-- I promise to keep him spoiled ♥  We have lots of plans coming up this weekend!

He wasn't the only one getting presents today. He INSISTED I open an early Christmas present.  He gave me a beautiful antique Weiss pin. I bet it's difficult for a State boy to embrace Carolina blue, but I, and my pin collection, certainly appreciate his good taste.

Ugly Ornament Exchange

We are doing the ugly ornament exchange at work again this year.  We find the ugliest ornament possible (or make it) and send it to a coworker.  It sounds silly--but the laughs are awesome.  Here is the one I found for this year's swap:

Can you imagine the quality and productivity discussion at the factory about this little gem???

Uhmm Boss, This one is not exactly attractive. In fact, it is damn creepy. Are you sure we should ship it out?

Yes! Some idiot will buy it.

But, did you notice her eye shadow was accidently painted all up under her eyes? Sorta like a 70’s whore version of Alice Cooper.

Yeah—so?

Did you notice her head garland didn’t match her dress?

Yeah—so?

Did you notice the bodice of the dress didn’t fit and her boobs hang out the see- thru part?

Yeah—that totally redeems it dontcha think?

Well—why is she holding a stick?

She is an S&M angel—how the hell should I know???

And we even packaged her upside down…..And the printing on the back with the bar code is not centered so whichever loser who actually buys this piece of crap will have to stand in line and hold everyone up in Dollar General while they try to find one to scan—and all of them are printed this way…(true story)

------

Oh well-- I think it's a winner for the exchange!

Tis the season...to relax a little.

It is a tradition for Mom, Dee and I to go to Myrtle Beach for a weekend to shop at the local Christmas craft show, then to the outlet malls-- and have some casual time oceanfront.  Lots of time to relax--plus we get our holiday shopping knocked out. It was fantastic again this year! I enjoyed  getting almost all my shopping done and Bowser enjoyed the gourmet pet treats I brought him home from my trip. 

Happy 9th Birthday Spencer!

Can you believe my little guy is 9? Yeah, me either...

We had a Pokémon themed pizza party tonight to celebrate!
Since we couldn't find a Pokémon cake anywhere, I got an ice-cream cake with sprinkles, candles and decorations and let Spencer decorate his own cake--HE LOVED IT!

♫ It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas ♫

We put up our Christmas tree today, decorated the house a little bit and wrapped a few presents...and the all important letter to Santa was crafted.  Spencer was all secretive while writing it and then proudly handed it to me all smiles.  He is so stinkin' cute!

Thanksgiving 2009

For someone trying to learn a new camera, I sure didn't take many pictures on Thanksgiving.  What's was up with me???
Mom, Lucy and I met Holly for lunch, then I finished up some cooking and we all had a great dinner together. Spencer loved having Baylee over for an afternoon playdate.

Thanksgiving meal was wonderful-- I drank some of my Canadian ice wine for dessert and we listened to the rain and storm roll in.  Very relaxing.

I met Will, Jimmy and Lucy at Target at 3am for Black friday shopping-- then Will and I had breakfast and then I came home at about 830 and worked some on Friday.  Later on Friday, Mom, Dee and I met for dinner at Chilis and then went to the movies to see Old Dogs--it was a cute movie!

Spencer is sooooooo ready to put up the Christmas tree so I guess that's what we will do tomorrow.  I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Thankful

As for me....I am very Thankful....

Once upon a time....

Once upon a time, a group of chicks from the east coast decided to gather for a Girls Weekend Away. They had common interests, common experiences and most importantly, bottles of good wine and great senses of humor.

On Friday night all the girls gathered at Chez Drescher, a beautiful home in Fort Mill SC.  Girls from New Jersey, Florida, Ohio and all over of NC/ SC gathered for this prestigious occasion. The Friday night kickoff was a wine tasting by a professional consultant---followed by wine guzzling by unprofessional hoochies. 

The evening started off calm.  After all, these ladies are all professionals in the corporate world, right?

As the evening progressed and the wine flowed freely....well....nevermind.  I can't even begin to describe it or show most of the pictures.....

The next morning, the New Jersey princess made a wonderful blueberry coffee cake despite being a wee hung-over.  Or maybe a lot hung-over.  Most guests; however, chose a breakfast of the medicinal variety....

P.S.  Did I mention that Chez Drescher was in a subdivision built on the old PTL land?  Her neighborhood still has the old amusement park castles  from Jim and Tammy Baker-land.

Late morning/early afternoon was devoted to the fabulous Mrs. Sherry and her extraordinary Mary Kay prowess. She gave all of us facials, hand treatments, lip treatments and makeovers.  I think she used an entire jar of anti-puffy eye stuffs on our hung-over eyes !

Later that evening, we had the Murder Mystery Dinner Party. Everyone dressed their parts and stayed in character all evening. It was fabulous and the dinner was wonderful!  There was a model, rap star, fortune teller, rich heiress, sports star, beauty queen, musician, and a gothic artist.  I was the Goth Girl and actually won for best costume!

The dinner party was a riot--once the murder happened and the clues were flying, everyone was glued to the story! 

After the murder mystery, the party continued on with general craziness and fun.  Here are some of the pictures safe to share.  I love how the girls play Guitar Hero in stilettos.  We really are divas, huh?

We left on Sunday tired, hung-over, loaded up with wonderful gifts from each other--and we were incredibly happy. That was the point of the entire weekend:  to laugh and reflect on how we really are living happily ever after.

Turkey craft that"s totally nuts!

I teach the kids craft class on Wednesday nights at church.  (K - Grade 5)
This week we made turkeys out of a walnut, a filbert, some felt scraps, beads, autumn leaves, chenille stems, and a little wooden heart base.  Aren't they cute??? 

Manly Man Day

Well, if Saturday was girly night, Sunday was all manly man day.  Football, brake repair, dirty, grime covered hands and lots of trips to the auto parts store.....Regardless of all the glitches, it was a great day to be outside.

P.S.  Click on the collage to enlarge and check out my Mom's "dude, your feet stink face" in the top left of the picture!!!

Saturday Night's Alright for Slumming

Saturday night was "Girls Night In" for me and Laura.  Although everyone expects us to be rival-ing up because of the Duke-Carolina game--we both had very long weeks so no football smack talk was on the agenda. Instead, Laura made up some apps and peach sangrias, I made a chocolate cake, she rented a movie for her girls and then she and I vegged out on the couch and watched Gilmore Girls.  Perfect, relaxing night in, huh?

Infomercial by me!

Yeah, I don't do many product pitches on my blog; but I am so impressed with my Pampered Chef Covered Baker (aka The Magic Pot) and my Pampered Chef Salad Chopper (aka Choppy Choppys).  Here is a picture of me making chicken salad this morning.

Boneless, skinless chicken boobs are on sale at Food Lion this weekend $1.87/pound so I have been making lots of chicken dishes! I was making chicken salad for "Sit on the couch and drink Sangrias and watch Gilmore Girls" night with Laura but she just informed me that she doesn't eat Chicken Salad.  Hmmmpf! Oh well-- that isn't an integral part of this blog post now is it?
I drizzled a little oil in the bottom of the magic pot, seasoned 3 chicken breasts with salt, pepper, and herbs and microwaved the pot for 12 minutes.  And the chicken comes out of the microwave juicy and not rubbery.  Seriously!
I let it cool for about 10 minutes then used the choppy choppys to dice it up for chicken salad. Spencer stood there with a little croissant ready to make a sandwich.  He was glad Laura didn't want any!

Foxy Lady!

My friend Laura (of Mama Laura's Chocolates) was on Fox 8 News again this morning!  More yummy chocolate recipes-- here's the link cause I know you want to see it!

Wanna see a picture of my nuts?

When I was a little girl, it was a special treat for my Dad and me to eat a bag of pistachios together.  Remember back in the late 70's when they were dyed red?  You would have a pistachio bellyache, red fingers and a huge pile of shells everywhere that would totally freak your mom out if any touched the carpet, upholstery, clothes, etc....  I would take the red shells and smear them across my lips and give myself "nutty lipstick."  Yeah, I was a dork even as a kid. hahaha
Now, pistachios are somewhat of a comfort food for me.  I was feeling crappy tonight (still healing from the surgery) so I got a little bag of pistachios.  They don't dye them red any more.  I had to Google why--and this is what I learned:

Until the mid-1970s, all pistachios sold in the United States were imported, mainly from the Middle East. The traditional growing and harvesting methods used by pistachio farmers in countries such as Iran, Syria, and Greece often left blemishes on the outer shell, which American importers would mask with a red vegetable dye. But with the growth of the domestic pistachio industry, the days of the red pistachio may be numbered. About 96 percent of the pistachios currently sold in the United States are grown in California. These nuts are harvested without blemishes, which makes the red dyes moot.

And since I can't smear pistachio shell lipstick, I guess the next dorkiest thing I could do is blog about it.......

Who's your buddy?

I was checking Spencer's homework the other day and found his phonetically funny spelling of  "nobody"-- poor little guy, but it made me giggle.....

Looks like love?

Check out this picture:

This is an enlargement of a phone pic Will sent on Halloween.  He was in his ruffled tux--spiffied up for his party and giving me a cheesy grin.....I have not altered this pic at all. Can you see the heart-shaped reflection in his pupils?  Seriously--that's how the picture came to me.  Weird, huh? 

Halloween 09

Another fun Halloween! Spencer and IV were cute as Super Mario and Luigi. All of us did our usual meet up at the church for Fall Festival and Trunk or Treating--then to Chilis for apps and drinks--then back to my house for a little social time.

Mom's black cat at trunk or treat was a huge hit! Kids were lined up across the parking lot. Back at the house, Bowser got LOTS of attention--and loved every minute of it!

P.S. yes, I realize that Spencer was wearing his Mario mustache upside down....

Ouch!

As if I didn't have enough scars, I had surgery last Tuesday the 27th. I thought I was just going to have a D&C on Wednesday, but Dr. Louk moved up the date, added a hystoscopy and fibroid removal--and I went ahead and had a tubal while they were at it since I had to have it laproscopically anyway. It was a little rougher than I expected...but then again, nothing ever goes as easy as the doctor makes it sound. Words like "discomfort" and "moderate pain and bleeding" should be stricken from their vernacular and replaced with "you're gonna whine like a sissy and pop Percocet like M&Ms"...

On the plus side, I got several days of rest, magazines and movies from Laura, flowers from Will and lots of calls, emails, etc. from friends and family. Everyone pitched in and helped with Spencer--It's nice to have family so close!