Heavy Traffic

We had a longer than usual ride home this afternoon because the traffic was a little heavy. It wasn't that bad, but enough to be noticeably different than usual.

We were about 5 minutes away from the house and Apple said:

"Mom, are we almost home cuz I'm smokin' hot."

I thought it was hilarious. She got mad at me for laughing. :)

Too break or not to break??

That is, bloggy break. :)

So, a dear friend wrote on my Facebook wall asking if I was taking a 'bloggy break'. I guess I have been. And, I probably should explain why.

You see... I just got a new job at work. Remember that management position I interviewed for a few months ago? Well, it was made official and I am now a manager in my department. I have two people reporting directly to me. Two wonderful software developers. I know they are going to make my job easy, but I am SOOO busy at work that I end up coming home with work most nights.

And, by the time I get done? All I want to do is crash on the couch. So, my posts will be hit or miss here until I can get a handle on my new responsibilities at work.

But tonight, I felt like I needed to let you know where I've been! I promise to be back, but it just won't be a predictable situation. :)

Here's a funny story from dinner tonight though...

Apple got these for Christmas. Tonight's game went something like this...

• The youngest person in the family starts by naming one food that's on the table or in the kitchen, such as milk.
• The next player repeats the word and adds another word that starts with the same sound, such as meatball. In other words, that person would say "milk, meatball".
• Continue around the table, trying to say the words as quickly as possible, until it's too much of a tongue twister.
• When no one can do it, start over with another food.

So, it was going like this... "bread, banana, baked beans, butter... " It was getting tough and it was Apple's turn and she said, "bread, banana, baked beans, butter, beer". For a lot of people, this wouldn't be so shocking, but for us, it was very shocking. See, we don't drink. We've never had alcohol in our house. Apple has never seen us drink anything alcoholic. (She has seen other people drink, but not us nor in our house.) So where in the world did "beer" come from??

I looked up at hubby. We both had a shocked look on our face and started laughing. Then, I asked where that came from. He said that they pass the ABC store every day on the way to school. This morning, she asked...

"What is the ABC?"

"It is an Adult Beverage store."

"What's an adult beverage?"

"Wine, beer and stuff like that"

"Beer? What's in beer?"

"Wheat, barley... yucky stuff"

:)

I think I might be feeling better... FINALLY

So, this weekend was busy... busy, busy, busy...

As you know I was still feeling horrible Friday night. I forced myself to get up on Saturday, get dressed and go to Apple's birthday party. She only turns 6 once, right? There was no way I was going to miss that.

The party was excellent. It was downtown at a museum during the same time the governor was being inaugurated. Surprisingly enough, traffic wasn't bad at all. We got there about an hour before the party was supposed to start, but that's ok. We just looked around the museum for a while.

The party was a mad scientist party. The kids got to do experiments that were pretty exciting for them... for example, mixing baking soda and vinegar to create a gas to blow up a balloon... and mixing cornstarch and water to create a polymer (to them it looked like a liquid, but when they touched it, it acted like a solid)... the kids also got to see/pet four different exotic animals. There was a hedgehog, a odd looking turtle, a lizard and a python. Most of the kids were very brave and petted all the animals. They had a great time and Apple really enjoyed it.

After the party, I was completely wiped out. I fell asleep in the car on the way home and when we got home, I crashed on the couch for about 3 hours. I was miserable. I really wanted to go out that night with our neighbors so I was trying to rest as much as I could. Hubby was a HUGE help and entertained Apple the entire time. By the time I got up, I had started feeling a tad bit better. So, I decided that we would still go out.

We went to this really fancy restaurant downtown and it was fabulous. Our reservations were at 7:00, but we didn't start ordering until 8:00. We had a three course meal. My first course was a lobster risotto that was SO yummy. My second course was a Filet Mignon that was de-li-sh!! (it was $54!!) Then, I had a spiced apple crumb cake for dessert. Hubby's meal was similar to mine. I think it had to be the most expensive meal we have ever eaten, but it was so good. It is definitley a place to go to for very special occasions!!

We didn't get home until after 11 on Saturday so it was a long day... especially since I wasn't feeling well. Today we just stayed at home and I think I have finally turned a corner with my virus or whatever it was. I can swallow today without cringing in pain and I haven't had to take a nap all day. (That's the first time I've been able to say that for a week!!)

Apple's Mad Scientist Cake

Happy Birthday Sweetie

Tomorrow, my baby turns six years old. I honestly can't believe she's been such an integral part of our lives for an entire six years already. Time has flown by since the moment she was born. We have enjoyed every minute of it too... even the tough times!!

So, tomorrow and Saturday are big days of celebration in our home. Tomorrow starts off with her opening her birthday present before breakfast. This year, we decided to get her an American Girl doll. I, of course, have these fantasies of taking her on a Mommy/Daughter trip to Chicago, NY or Atlanta to the American Girl store for a day. But, who knows if she will even like the doll. She hasn't been too much of a doll girl, so hubby was a little leary of giving it to her.

I chose to give her Kirsten. Her class has been reading Little House on the Prairie. The teacher reads it to the kindergarteners a chapter at a time during group each day. Apple has been fascinated with this book and actually got her own copy for Christmas. Since Christmas, she's been reading a chapter a night to hubby and I before bed. Kirsten lives on the prairie and comes with a book about her life on the prairie. I think Apple will enjoy her. I guess we shall see.

Then, she has her 'celebration' at school. We will be there at 11 for 'special snack' which Apple was allowed to choose. (We just made two batches of brownies tonight!) Then, they will celebrate each year of Apple's life. It should be cute.

Saturday morning is her official birthday party. It is going to be held at a museum downtown. It is a 'Mad Scientist' party. The kids will be doing experiments and seeing some exotic animals. The kicker to this? Tomorrow is the inauguration of our new governer. Downtown is going to be a nightmare. We are going to have to go to the party WAY early in order to find parking. I hope it doesn't deter too many of the party participants. If I had known about the inauguration before I booked the party, I wouldn't have done so. Ugh!!

Regardless... with all the birthday festivities and me still being sick, it should definitely be an eventful weekend!!

SICK... (yes, AGAIN)

I had one day of feeling good and bam, I'm down again.

I woke up this morning with a really bad sore throat. I tried to will it away all day... to no avail.

This afternoon I went to The Minute Clinic at CVS for a strep test. It was negative. Honestly, I don't feel like I have strep, but considering how sick I recently was, I wanted to be tested just to be sure. They are sending off a culture just in case it is positive in 24 hours or so.

I can't catch a break...

But, The Minute Clinic? OMG!! It was awesome. I was in and out of there in 20 minutes. The nurse practioner I saw was better than some at my doctor's office. I'll definitely be going back for quick things like this in the future. It sure beats waiting f-o-r-e-v-e-r in the doctor's waiting room!!!

Curls!

So, my sis got me into the whole beauty craze again...

I went to get my hair cut today and my hairdresser showed me how to do
this with my hair. Think I can do it myself?

The jury is still out on that one. :)