Friday, September 28, 2007

I'm here!

I'm in California! And would you believe that both of my flights (though Phoenix, no less) were EARLY!! I made it to Bako with no problems, and mom was waiting outside for me.

We headed straight to Me & Ed's, one of my favorite pizza places. After we stuffed our bellies so full, we came home so I could see all the remodel work my Dad has been working on non-stop since he retired a few months ago. Their house looks great!

Mom and I were tired, so we hit the hay shortly after, and now I'm sitting here, all packed for the beach and on my way to coffee with a good friend, and then over to the coast for a relaxing weekend with the girls.

See ya all later!

Thursday, September 27, 2007

Leaving on a jet plane

Somehow, and I don't know how, I've neglected to mention my super fun trip that I'm leaving for today. Maybe it was all the excitement of so many babies being born at once? Or the cooler weather of fall? Or, I don't know what...but I forgot to tell you all.

I'm heading to California this afternoon! I've been looking forward to it for months, and it's finally here. It's time again for our Annual Buddy Weekend. Usually we have this weekend closer to Christmas, as it started out as a Christmas party, but the holidays are so busy, and the weather so unpredictable, that we changed it to a fall weekend this year.

And, I have gotten smarter in the last year, too. I added 2 days to my trip this year, so I have time to go the beach (yay!) with the buddies, and still have time to hang out with my Mom (Dad is off helping sis and BIL move into their new house), and see several other friends.

So, this afternoon, I escape the doldrums of corporate America, and fly off into the wild blue yonder...hopefully with no issues and no delays, so Mom and I can go hit my favorite pizza place as soon as I get off the plane. Yum, I'm hungry already!

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Scores all around!

What a busy weekend for good things to happen!

Sometime late last week, my buddy Paulette's third SIL gave birth to a little boy...that makes 2 boys and one girl added to that family in about 5 days. Wow!

Then on Friday afternoon, my best buddy Virginia gave birth to a gorgeous baby boy. He was 7 lb 2 oz, and 21" long, and what a cutie...don't ya think?



I'll even forgive the Redskins outfit, this time.

(So, to summarize the last week...there have been 5 babies born to close friends and family, 4 boys and one girl...all arrived healthy and beautiful and mamas are doing well. Praise God!)

Friday night was another home game at B's alma mater, so off we went to Small Town, KS. And did those boys play! They KILLED their opponents 50-0! It was an all out blow-out!

When I woke up Saturday morning, I grabbed the local paper to read the write-up on the game. Was it there?? Oh no! What was there was an article about how another (more wealthy, popular) school had "crushed" their opponent. What could the score be if they didn't write about the 50-0 win?? It was 21-17...now, I don't think that's "crushed," do you??

All that was said about our game was a little box of statistics on the bottom of another page. Where is the justice?? Obviously, there is none!

Saturday night, we attempted to cheer on my sister's favorite college team, but to no avail...Alabama stunk it up pretty bad...although the score was close, they didn't play so hot.

So, imagine my glee when on Sunday, MY BOYS won their first game of 2007. That's right, the mighty Chiefs pulled it out...and beat the Vikings. I don't know how self-respecting football players could wear purple anyway. It was a close game, and I still don't think they played spectacularly, but they won, and that's the bottom line. I hope this gives them the morale boost they need to turn things around...Go Chiefs!

Monday, September 24, 2007

Coming this fall

This is my absolute favorite time of year...fall, that is. I've read on several other blogs about the love/hate relationship that people have with fall. Some love it, but others say it reminds them that winter is coming and spring is far away. Yes, fall means that winter is around the corner...but we can enjoy the autumn for 3 or more months (depending on your part of the country) before the bitter cold of winter arrives.

Fall has been my favorite season for a long time - I used to think it was spring, but that was before I was attacked by spring allergies. Besides, there are many more reasons to love fall. Here are some of them...

1. B and I both have birthdays at the kick-off of the fall season...what a way to start, with celebrations!


2. The air cools off, the trees start to change, and you can open your windows at night.


3. With the cooler air comes more top-down days...


4. And the sweaters come out of the tote in the basement...


5. Football kicks off, and lazy days in front of the TV and exciting days at the stadium are here again...


6. It's time to decorate the house with pumpkins and scarecrows and warm colors.


7. It doesn't seem weird to break out the hot chocolate...


or make a big pot of chili...



8. Fall festivals, county fairs...need I say more?



There are lots more reasons why I love fall, but this is a good start...now if only the weather would cooperate...enough of the 90 degree days!

Friday, September 21, 2007

Go Leslie!

Last season I was finally able to wean myself off Survivor. I just thought that the show was getting ridiculous. I couldn't stand all the bickering and idiotic behavior, so I stopped watching it.

Then I heard about Leslie, the Christian radio DJ, who is on this season of Survivor. She has auditioned many times before and was finally chosen for this season. I listen to Christian radio all the time...Way-FM is my favorite radio station here, and I know that those DJs are outspoken and sincere in what they say, so I was curious about how Leslie would play the game.

So...I watched part of the first episode last night. And I wasn't disappointed in Leslie...but I'm angry at how Jeff Probst singled her out and how the idiot below portrays her. Read the commentary below and then I'll respond to it at the end...

COMMENTARY
By Andy Dehnart
MSNBC contributor
Updated: 10:12 p.m. CT Sept 20, 2007

Leslie, the Christian talk-show host, began her time on “Survivor: China” by leaving a ceremony at a Buddhist temple that host Jeff Probst explained was not a religious ritual. Instead, he said, “the people of this land want you to feel welcome.” While she professed to be “not a religious person,” she said her “relationship with Jesus Christ” prevented her from participating in the ceremony, which “felt like worship.”

Perhaps she should be commended for doing what she thought was right. But leaving seemed unnecessary considering the nature of the ceremony, and standing out so early and so obviously by refusing to participate in a group activity is generally not the smartest move. Jeff asked her if she was worried that this would affect her game play. “I’m just going to play the game and be me,” she said, as if the game hadn’t already started.



Ok, I'm sorry, but ANY buddhist "ceremony" is a religious ceremony. And even if Jeff insists that it's not, the contestants were still asked to BOW before an IDOL. Whether in a worship setting or not, the Bible strictly speaks against this. Leslie did the absolute right thing, and I'm so proud of her for it. When she's standing in front of Almighty giving an account of her life, Jeff Probst will not be able to go to bat for her for asking her to bow to a piece of metal...Go Leslie!

The other thing that greatly irritated me about the show last night is that when Leslie made her statement about having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, the camera panned to the puny wimpy waitress from NYC just so we could see the disgusted look on her face. Not necessary...but it was my first clue that this wimpy girl is going to be one of my least favorite players.

I don't think that I'm going to continue to watch this season, but I will follow Leslie's progress online. I'm routing for her! I hope she keeps playing the game with integrity and faith...and I hope that her example rubs off on some of the other players.

Thursday, September 20, 2007

Sucked In

Did anyone else watch Kid Nation last night? My intention was to watch one episode to see what it was all about. It sounded like a cool concept, and maybe a little more interesting than watching a bunch of so-called adults fight it out on an island somewhere. Of course, I would NEVER let any kid of mine participate (I heard parents had to sign 24 pages of disclaimers), but I have no qualms about watching other people's kids on TV.

It was awesome! I'm only a little embarrassed to say that. And I'm hooked after ONE episode!

These kids are awesome, and WAY more mature than 95% of the Survivor contestants. The kids were dropped off in the middle of nowhere, told to haul a bunch of wagons to a deserted town, and set up shop. They did it! They cooked for themselves and split themselves into teams and bunks, and the tears they shed b/c they are so homesick were just adorable.

These aren't your every-day ordinary kids. One of the girls walked into her bunk and said, "Wow, this room is in such disarray!" And the little 8-year old boy who chose to go home after 3 days was so cute. He sat in a corner crying about how much he missed home and how hard it was and how young he was to be there, and the big older 11 year old came over to comfort him and volunteer to be his stand-in mom until he felt better...that worked for a day or so, but he still decided to go home.

Of course, it wouldn't be a "reality" show if the producers didn't plant some drama in there -- like the two 15-year old boys who already spread graffiti around town and who are hitting on the self-proclaimed 10 year old beauty queen.

But, I'm hooked...and my DVR is set. B kept walking through the room making fun of me, but I don't care. I think it will be a refreshing show to watch. And I think these kids can do it -- they'll make it through the 40 days with flying colors! Hey, they already chose 7 outhouses over a TV as a reward...not sure what those Survivor guys would do.

And those producers need to re-evaluate their commercials during this supposed family-friendly show...I don't think we need to see any more ads for Vaginal Screening Kits during KID NATION!

C'mon, join in the fun...check out the show if you didn't last night...that way we can gush over it together.

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Ahoy Matey!



My pirate name is:


Red Bess Flint



Get your own pirate name from piratequiz.com.
part of the fidius.org network


Passion is a big part of your life, which makes sense for a pirate. Like the rock flint, you're hard and sharp. But, also like flint, you're easily chipped, and sparky. Arr!

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

I'm going to lose count!

My sister and I added up something today...we each made lists and then combined them to get the grand total...what grand total, you're asking? Well, how many babies of friends and family will (or have already) make their appearance from Spring 2007 through Spring 2008.

The number is staggering...we think...21 pregnancies to produce 22 childrean. Wow!! But, that's not all that is amazing.

Two of those children were born to sisters-in-law of a very good friend of mine, Paulette (who is due with her own new baby in November), on THE SAME DAY -- this past Saturday. Please welcome the too cute for words cousins shown below...



Then on Monday, another cutie pie entered the world...his mama is the little sister of my good buddy Marge and one of my sister's very best friends. Here's Mo, as we've nicknamed him already...



And, if that's not enough...there are still 2 more babies that will make their appearances in the next 6 days. One will belong to my best friend from college, Virginia (she is my friend who I met in NYC a couple months ago). The other baby will belong to Paulette's 3rd sister-in-law...yes, you caught that right (if you were paying attention)...4 sisters were pregnant at the very same time.

God is amazing! And He has blessed so many families who are special to me with so much joy and new life this year!

Monday, September 17, 2007

A Wedding and a Gun Show

No, it wasn't a shotgun wedding...in fact, the guns came hours after the wedding, but still on the same day.

A week ago Saturday B's uncle got married. It was the sweetest wedding that I've ever been to. See, Uncle J lost his wife to ALS several years ago. I was only able to meet Aunt B once at a family reunion, but it only took that one time to realize what an amazing woman she was. She also made the yummiest salsa. She'd come up with her own recipe, found someone to produce it and bottle it (after it got popular and she couldn't keep up with it), and she had herself a little business. She was loved deeply by her children, grandchildren, Uncle J's many many brothers and sisters, and their kids. She is missed to this day!

But...life must go on. And it did. Uncle J met the sweetest woman (HER daughter introduced them!), and a little romance started. She's also a widow, and Uncle J and her make a great couple.

As we drove up to the church that morning, it was overcast and a lot cooler than it had been in months. But, that wasn't the strange part. The parking lot of this little church was packed! And there was a line of people that stretched all the way across the lot. I had never seen so many people at a wedding before. We parked the car (on the grass b/c there weren't any spots open) and started to make our way to the end of the line. We had driven out to the little town west of Wichita with B's brother and his wife, so the four of us kept looking at each other wondering why there was this big line. We didn't recognize anyone in line, so we just took our places quietly. A few minutes later, my FIL came out and found us and told us to follow him. Oh man, you should have seen the looks we got as we were pulled out of line and walked straight for the side door and into the church! I wanted to turn around and yell to everyone that we were family, we weren't REALLY cutting in line.

Well, the line turned out to be for 2 reasons. The sanctuary was packed with people...the cry room was packed with people...and the fellowship hall was packed with people. And they were all trying to sign the guest book before they fought for space to stand or squat or whatever they were going to do. We took our seats in the second row on the groom's side, and I'm not kidding you that there were no less than 12 people in the pew we were sitting in. And even though it was 60 degrees outside, it had to have been almost 90 inside!

B and I got the best seats, right on the aisle where we could see everything. Because there were so many people there and they were trying to find seats or something for everyone, the ceremony started a few minutes late. But, when the bride walked down the aisle, and I saw the tears well up in Uncle J's eyes, it was all worth it. The bride and groom only had eyes for each other. She was walked down the aisle by her son, and she wore the most amazing red gown. She was stunning! The attendants were the bride and groom's children, and they were married by Uncle J's son-in-law.

Uncle J sang 3 songs to his new bride throughout the ceremony, and I don't think there were many dry eyes in the place. There was time given for a silent prayer for Uncle J and his bride's first spouses. In fact, Aunt B's sister was there, as well as the bride's former FIL. It was very touching, and I'm sure it meant a lot to the kids (who aren't really kids) to pay tribute to their parents.

The new couple dismissed each row at the end of the ceremony, so we got to hug and congratulate them right away. Of course, this took a LONG time since there were so many people there. The reception hall was packed, but we took some time to make the rounds and visit with B's cousins for a bit. By then, B and his brother were chomping at the bit because next on the agenda was heading back to town for a gun show...you can only ask those guys to hang out at a wedding for so long.

After lunch in a greasy spoon, but SO yummy diner, we headed back to town. The boys ran inside to change out of their wedding clothes and then ran right back out to head to the gun show. SIL and I left at a much calmer pace in search of some retail therapy.

We all headed out to the 'Rents house for dinner that night, where I witnessed the following...



See, Kansas doesn't have a waiting period to purchase a gun (you do have to pass a background check, so that's good), so B took full advantage of it. He'd been wanting a handgun for a while (he says for home protection, which kinda scares me, but I can't win every battle), so for his birthday this year, he got his wish. His brother is a big gun fan, so I know those boys had fun together. Now, B wants to take the conceal and carry class, so he can pack heat. Oh boy!

To end on a lighthearted note, here are my darling nieces hanging out with the boys and their guns in the basement.



By the way, the "gun" on the floor behind the girls is a TOY gun, not one of the uncle's guns just thrown around haphazardly.

Monday, September 10, 2007

A Win and a Loss


Is it scary that the high school team we watched obliterate their opponents on Friday night appeared to play better than the NFL team we watched GET obliterated by their opponents yesterday?

Well, the high schoolers didn't really play better than the pros, but the scores weren't that different.

Friday night we headed out to Small Town, KS, where B grew up to watch the boys win their first home game of the season, 16-0! Woo hoo! They lost their first away game last weekend, so this was quite a victory in front of a packed house. Last year we only made it to one game...the ONE game they won all season, so we kinda think that we are a lucky charm for them.

The thing about high school games, when you're as far removed from high school as we are, is that they are actually quite humorous. Like when the receiver slowed down to catch the pass that sailed over his head by about 10 feet, or when he finally made the catch, but then STOPPED running all together to change direction across a wide open field and then was tackled. Or what about when the kicker fumbled the ball, stooped over to pick it up and kick it again instead of just running with it through the dazed players just standing around. We had some good chuckles, we clapped and cheered and stood up for the fight song, and celebrated with the boys as they ran to ring the bell in the end zone after their victory was secured.

We've decided to go to as many home games as we can this year...and the next one is this Friday, against a VERY good team. We'll test out the lucky charm theory this weekend!

So, after such a great win, we settled down on Sunday afternoon to watch our beloved Kansas City Chiefs...fall on their faces. We knew that the Texans would look different than last year, after all, they have almost as many new players as we do, including a quarterback. And even though there's a special place in my heart for the former Texans QB, David Carr, since he hails from my hometown and my sister's high school class, I guess it was time for him to go. And I will NEVER forgive those lousy Miami fans for booing my Trent Green from the field, we will have to make do with what we have this year.

But, man, was that game hard to watch yesterday...fumbles and turnovers and interceptions, and only 3 stinkin' points!! What's up with that?? I will remain a faithful Chiefs fan through the season, but it might be a little hard to swallow...c'mon, Herm, whip those boys into shape!

The Bills had a tough day yesterday...if you haven't heard, one of their players, Kevin Everett, suffered a back/neck/spine injury at the start of the 2nd half yesterday. He was carried off the field on a stretcher after being knocked out and lying on the field for 15 minutes. He had emergency surgery last night, and I'm sure he and his family could use our prayers. That's the scariest part of football for me -- all the injuries. Everett's injury reminds me of Trent Green's from the opening game last year...these guys take so many risks for us to be entertained every fall.

Tuesday, September 04, 2007

Par for Our Course

I hope everyone had a great Labor Day weekend and that you were celebrating mine and B's birthdays with us! Yes, we are now each a year older...where does the time go?

While B and I were out in search of great restaurants to dine at on our birthdays, this is what was going on at home...



I tried to surprise B on Saturday with lunch at B & C Creations. It's a great BBQ buffet that the guys at work introduced me to. They advertise that they are open Monday - Saturday for lunch, starting at 11am. So, at 11am, I told B to get his booty in the car so we could be one of the first in line. Too bad they were closed...on Saturday...on his birthday. I was so sad because I really wanted him to try it. Luckily, we were close to a sports bar, which is actually where B thought I was taking him, so we headed over for mediocre sandwiches, fries and salad, with even more mediocre service (why did it take 30 minutes to cook 2 sandwiches?? And why did the table of 8 who ordered 10 minutes AFTER us get their food first??) at Oscars. B did get to watch some college ball, so it wasn't a total loss.

Later that afternoon, we headed to his parents' house for birthday dinner. We had fun hanging out with our nieces and BIL and SIL and 'Rents. We even got pulled into the K-State v. Auburn game...so much so that we were jaded for a little bit that K-State might actually win...too bad we were completely wrong!

Sunday was our day between the birthdays, so we kinda did our own thing after church. I headed to the gym for a cycle class and B hit the golf course. We hunkered down on the couch that night and watched Premonition with Sandra Bullock...if you haven't seen it yet, I'd say don't waste your time. It was an interesting story line, but very slow.

B woke me up with gifts yesterday morning, and then we got up to make my Grandma's Puffy French Toast for breakfast, after which, I promptly fell asleep on the couch for an hour. I dragged myself up in time to chat with a few friends and Mom and Dad on the phone, and then I headed to the gym for a workout before my big dinner out. After the gym a couple of us ran over to Sonic for some sodas.

B had planned on taking me to a new-to-us restaurant downtown last night...but, par for the course...it was closed! B had looked up restaurants in town that he thought I'd like, so we tried to eat at Larkspur Restaurant. The menu looks pretty good, and it's really cute from the outside...but for some reason Wichita has something against restaurants being open on Labor Day. As we drove around town in search of somewhere else to eat, we noticed that every NON chain restaurant was closed, and every chain restaurant had a PACKED parking lot -- looks like all those independent stores missed out BIG TIME!

We ended up at place we've gone several times before, and it's been so yummy each time, Granite City Brewery. I had a wonderful honey rosemary filet mignon, with red skinned garlic mashed potatoes, sauteed vegetables, and ale and cheddar soup. Yum Yum!! I was stuffed when we left, and I still have enough leftovers for 2 more meals...I think I'll have to dig into that tonight!

We had a great weekend, but like always, it was way too short! The weather was gorgeous, 80's and low 90's during the day and 60's at night. We even shut off the A/C and opened the windows at night. Makes me think fall is right around the corner. I hope so - fall is my favorite time of year!

Update on SIL's Dad

Thanks to all of you who prayed for my SIL's dad last week. Your prayers were definitely felt!

There is good news...here's the latest email from my SIL

Hi.
My dad ate his first meal today. :)

A new doctor came in and seems to be ALOT more interested in getting some answers as to what happened. He told my dad that one of the reasons he thinks the other doctors may have been confused is because he looks different internally than the average person. It's because of the 30 surgeries that my dad has had in the past from his accident (when the drunk driver hit him before I was even born) He had a lot of experimental surgeries. He said even my dad's main artery that goes to his heart is clamped off and it looks like they built one in a different area. (A fact I never knew before)

He sat down and got a full history of my dad's previous surgeries and said that maybe there's a connection somehow (since some of them were experimental).

They ran some new tests and now we are just waiting for the results.



There are still some unanswered questions, but the bottom line is that he was able to avoid surgery and they finally have a doctor who is working towards figuring all this out. Thanks again!