RIP #21 - We'll Miss You :-(

I thought yesterday was bad, but this morning it went completely downhill when I learned about the passing of Redskins safety Sean Taylor. Shocked, stunned, at a loss for words - that describes exactly how I felt and how I continue to feel hours later. I've cried, I've listened to radio coverage and read every article I can to try and make sense of this...but I just can't. Our home game this weekend is going to be extremely emotional, but at the same time, there's no other place I'd rather be than surrounded by my Redskins "family". Thanks to Karen for finding my mom and I a Taylor jersey this morning on her day off - we sincerely appreciate it and will wear it with pride Sunday.

My thoughts and prayers are with Sean's family and friends...we'll never forget you #21.

#21

SEAN TAYLOR

1983-2007

In our thoughts and prayers

It's been a terribly sad day for Redskins fans today, but not because of the loss on Sunday, but because of the scary news that came out of Miami this morning. #21 Sean Taylor is fighting for his life after being shot and all football fans - whether they cheer for the Skins or not - are in shock right now. He's been on my mind all day and I can't do much beyond pray for him to recover. I hope anyone reading my blog will do the same and say a quick prayer for him and his family.

Wrappin' Up The Weekend

It's hard to believe, but the long weekend is already coming to a close! It's been a really nice weekend and our transformation to a Christmas house has begun. David & I had the most relaxing, fantastic Thanksgiving we've ever had....and it was so nice. We stayed home - he cooked - and my mom, Kerry & Michael came over for dinner. After we successfully stuffed ourselves, we played a dice came called LCR and it was soooo fun! For anyone who enjoys games, you gotta get this one. It involves some light gambling....or heavy if you prefer....but it's fast paced and really fun. You can buy it at Spencers. After that ended, we played Cranium and laughed so hard we cried at times :-) What I can't believe is that I didn't take one picture all day of our Thanksgiving holiday....that's so unlike me!

Friday I experienced my first Black Friday shopping day! It wasn't as bad as I expected. My mom and I went to Central Park in Fredericksburg and the worst store there was Kohls....the line was from the front door to the back of the building. We both agreed there wasn't anything in that store worth an hour long wait! In the end, we both had a successful day of shopping and by 9:30 we were home and exhausted!

Saturday I found my way to the gym (woo hoo!) and then had a movie marathon. First I watched "Evan Almighty" with the kids while David went deer hunting (he wasn't successful). That was a really cute movie! Next was the all time classic "A Christmas Story" which the kids thoroughly enjoyed. And then once they were nestled in their beds, David & I watched "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry" which was hilarious!

Today was all about football and Christmas decorating!

Our Christmas Tree

Once again the Redskins completely let me down (boooo) - you'd think by now I'd be getting used to this, but I just can't :-( We managed to get 2 of our 3 Christmas trees up and the one that's not up yet is our Redskins themed tree....after today I'm not sure I have the heart to put that one up! We'll see.

So as I close out this post, the long weekend is almost officially over and Christmas is only 30 days away....are you ready?!!! If not, let me take you back a few weeks and get caught up on my pics....see below!

Flash - aka Brennan - on Halloween

Batgirl (Alyssa) and the Cheetah (McKenna) on Halloween

Daddy's Birthday Party!

Mommy & Brennan at his school's Thanksgiving celebration.

Alyssa, McKenna & Brennan showing their holiday smiles!

Even Snickers is getting in the Cmas spirit!!!

Seven Random Things About Me

I was tagged by Karen to list seven random things about me so here goes...not sure if they're interesting or not...but they are random!

1. I've held many jobs in my life...including a waitress, bank teller, travel agent (I even went to a special school for this!), Mary Kay consultant, secretary (and I'm terrible at that) and now a Meeting Planner...finally I've found my career place in this world!

2. I break bones on things with wheels...I broke my arm on rollerskates in my house when I was 12. I was on my way outside when my wheels got caught in this woven rug at my mom's house. I broke my leg in 9th grade trying to show off my skateboarding skills...I'm no good!

3. I didn't graduate college until I was 27...not because it took me 10 years to complete college, but because I went for a year after highschool, quit b/c I had no clue what I wanted to study, and then decided at 24 that a degree was necessary if I ever wanted to be successful. So I went back, paid for 2/3 of it on my own and graduated right before my 27th bday. It was a proud moment!

4. I was born on King Kameameah's bday...He was the King of Hawaii when I was born, my grandparents were in Hawaii visiting at the time, and wanted my parents to name me Kameameah and call me Kami. THANK GOD my mom had more sense than that!

5. I conceived my twins naturally...which I find is unusual these days with all of the fertility drugs in our world now. Not that I'm against them - I'm so happy they've found a way for people who can't conceive to get pregnant - but multiples are much more common now and conceiving them "natural" is less and less common.

6. My grandmother, mother and I graduated from the same highschool...yes, that's totally true. Not just one of my grandmother's, but both of them graduated from the same highschool as me...we all attended in a different building, but it was always Lackey Highschool!

7. I didn't get my driver's license when I turned 16...even though I could, I opted not to because 4 days before my 16th bday my girlfriend wrecked the car I was in, throwing me through the windshield and scaring the CRAP out of me. I was too scared to drive after that so I waited until 3 1/2 months after I turned 16 to finally take the leap!

Now it's my job to tag someone, so I pick Ruhiyyih!

It's a sad day for Redskin's Fans

BOOOOOOOOOOOOO :-( I am so completely annoyed with the Skins after today's disappointing loss to the Eagles...33-25. We had that game - we out played them almost all day - key word ALMOST! It's the same story, different week - we're winning and then enter the 4th quarter - the quarter that the Redskins forget they have to complete to finish the game. ERRRRR! Once again I sat at the game, horrified at what I saw before my eyes. When will we have a winning team? When? We have a good coach (I think?), we have talent, but for whatever reason, we cannot pull it together at the end when it counts. Next week we face Dallas on their home turf....I can only imagine how that one will end. I'm frustrated, I'm disappointed and I'm just plain sick about today's loss. BOOOOOOOOOO :-(

Other than that, it's been a good weekend. It was definitely great football weather today - there's finding a bright spot in a very dull day!!! ha ha I had a party yesterday with purses, jewelry, baskets and home goods. Thanks to Karen for coming all the way down. I got to visit with Griffin - boy what a cutie! I think he liked me :-) I had a few beers with friends before heading home last night.

Tomorrow Kerry, Jayci and I are going to the movies...with my gang...to see The Bee Movie. I've heard it's good...let's hope. Happy Veterans Day...Happy Monday off!

Just plain disgusted

That's how I'm feeling right now...for a few reasons. First and foremost, my back is KILLING me again today and I know why and I know it's my fault. I haven't been to the gym on a consistent basis since probably September. Between convention hours and my laziness (ok maybe some because I'm busy too!) since we've come back, I just haven't gotten back into the rhythm. Which means that my back hurts and I feel the fattest I've felt in almost 2 years. I've been beating myself up bad tonight - which is fine for one night - but tomorrow I am going to reacquaint myself with my gym and the treadmill in my basement. Any and all encouragement to do that, and watch my diet again, are greatly appreciated :-) Here's a picture of me with Karen & Kristen from my office at Happy Hour the other night...can you see my triple chins?!

Second I'm frustrated tonight because I've had my first run-in with FLEAS :-( EWWWWW! I feel so dirty and I feel like our house is super dirty. Snickers was dropped off at Petco this morning for a random grooming appointment. What started out as random turned into a milk bath, flea and tick bath and me leaving there after dropping $140 AND an appointment at the vet tomorrow morning because he has scratched/chewed his back raw. UGH! I blame us and it makes me mad. A simple dose of Frontline every month and fleas are easily avoided.

I'm in a funk tonight - no doubt about it. I just hope by tomorrow it fades, I find myself downstairs on the treadmill before the vet, find good news at the vet, and then find a good mood at my party tomorrow afternoon...wish me luck with those goals...and more importantly, with the goal to get fit and healthy again.

Have a great weekend everyone!

School update and my funny lil man

I had my first parent/teacher conference with the girls school and things went really well! I am so proud of them - they're both doing awesome in 1st grade - and lil Miss McKenna has been pegged for the Gifted and Talented team once she moves to 2nd grade. What a proud moment for her mommy?! They're both exceling in school - McKenna is a math whiz and Alyssa's strong subject is reading....she's in the 1st grade and is already reading at the level of a 2nd grader who is halfway through 2nd grade :-) I always thought they were smart...now I know they really do have it together!

As for my lil buddy - he has been cracking me up lately with the things he says...so I thought I'd share a few!

Tonight driving home I said to him "Who's my baby?" and he said NOT ME. I said "awww come on, why not buddy?" and his response was "Chase is your baby mommy - I am you're BIG BOY!" Chase is my nephew who lives in FL and I thought it was so cute that he remembered him and reminded me that he's small like a baby...not Brennan!

When I picked him up from school tonight, his first question was "where's the cake? where's the cake?" - this in honor of David's bday which is today. Apparently, Brennan had talked about Daddy's bday ALL Day - so much so - that the teachers made him a card with Happy Bday from the GLS staff!

Brennan is constantly reminding me how smart is he too...if it's for knowing what day comes after the current day (like that tomorrow is Friday) or for being able to sing his ABC's. He's the first one to toot his own horn lately!

And last but not least, at my mom's the other night he was hiding behind my truck when he saw a car driving by. I told him to stay near me because someone might take him (I know, I know!) and I said "what would you do if someone tried to take you? I'd be so sad" and his response....welllllll, maybe you would just kick their BUTTS!

He makes me laugh on a daily basis - he is so funny and so cute (not that I'm biased or anything). God I just love that kid!

Is Christmas Still December 25th?!

If it is, I could be in trouble! I haven't bought the first Cmas present and while to some people this might not seem like a big deal, to me it's huge. I am normally in full spirit by now with lists of who I need to buy for, what they want and how much I plan to spend on them. Then once I buy a gift, I write that down along with how much I spent so I can stay within budget....hey I try at least! It's now November 6 and I don't feel a bit of holiday spirit nor do I have any idea what I plan to buy for anyone...least of all my kids. The realization of how spoiled they are has hit me hard this year as I realize there isn't one thing that I can think of to get them. Oh they can think of things...as I type this the girls are beside me composing their lists...but let me assure you, they are copying words out of a toy book without any regard for the item itself! At 6 almost 7 years old, I'm out of ideas. Either they have it, they're too old for it, or they're too young for it. Talk about a tough age! Brennan isn't any better. If anyone has any great gift ideas, please, send them my way.

I don't like to buy just to buy. But I know that December 25 will come and I will need to be prepared. Here's hoping my job stress lets up some and that the Cmas spirit surprises me .... soon!

Time Flies When You're Having Fun

Why is it that you wait so long for your vacation to get here and then before you blink it's over?! That's how I feel about this weekend. I've waited for a long time for my mini-vacation to Myrtle Beach (adults only!) to arrive and before I knew it, I was home again. We had a GREAT time.

Played 3 rounds of golf
Indigo Creek Golf Club - this is where we played today - it was really nice

my scores were on par for me especially considering I hadn't played in almost 3 months (!!!) - we ate way, way too much food (yummy stuff though) and just had fun hangin' out with Robert & Wendy. It's always nice to get away without kids - boy how it rejuvenates the mommy & daddy system - but it's also nice to come home to screams of joy and 3 little monkeys waiting with such excitement for us to make it in the door :-) I'll never get enough of those moments!


Maw Maw Linda survived the weekend and we're so incredibly thankful we have her. They had a good time with her - and even got 2 hours at the park with Miss Kerry & Jayci.


Tomorrow is my mom's biopsy - I'll start the morning bright and early with her at the hospital. I'm thinking positive thoughts, but please keep us in your thoughts.