Life With Frenchie

I’m still a “baby” when it comes to this whole blogging thing and making my presence known out there. Everytime I visit a friend’s blog and jump around and check out others, I start finding more and more things that I have no clue. I am determined to make myself more knowledgable. My current target is Technorati. I have a Technorati Profile but am clueless as what it is for. Some days I just feel so dumb!

Stumble it!

Well, we made it home safely from our visit with the family. We got on the road around 5:00 PM Thursday and made it to my father’s house just after midnight. EP made it most of the way to Macon before I took over driving. I was worried at first because I was feeling pretty tired myself, but we stopped for gas and coffee and I was amazingly wide awake once I got behind the wheel.

Friday morning we took our time getting up, having breakfast and getting ready. We spent the early part of the afternoon visiting with my best friend from high school and her family. It was good to see them and just sit back and talk. Unfortunately, there’s so much to catch up on, even a few hours is nowhere near enough time. But still, it was great to sit with them for a while. It was even better to walk through the front door and have their two older girls run up and wrap around my legs yelling “Frenchie!!!” (and yes, they call me ‘Frenchie’)

After leaving their house, we made our way over to my brother’s place. My sister-in-law (SIL) was busy cleaning the house for the arrival of my mother (and for our arrival) and the kids, as usual, were everywhere! I LOVE their home!! We relaxed that evening and just ordered Pizza Hut (which reminds me, I need to submit my complaint to them because it was an AWFUL experience) and watched tv.

Saturday, we were up early to go get my mother from the airport. MAN! Has the Atlanta airport changed, or what? Luckily, we were in and out fairly quickly. The only snag was when we got back to my dad’s side of town, there was a motorcycle parade or something going on, so we got stuck in traffic as cops stopped traffic for, literally,  hundreds of motorcycles! UGH! We visited with my dad for a while then headed back to my brother’s place. EP and I promptly planted ourselves on the couch to watch some college football! He was particularly interested in the SEC Championship game since Tennessee was playing. After the first quarter, we made our way to the Japanese steakhouse where me, EP, mom, brother, SIL, dad, my friend, and her fiance celebrated that most glorious of events (c’mon! If you’ve forgotten already, shame on you!!). I had a great time. After dinner, my dad and my friends went their separate ways and the rest of us stopped at one of my brother’s employee’s house where they were celebrating the christening of their daughter. We left with all these neat keepsakes the mom made which, according to them, is tradition to give to the families that attend.

We left Georgia around noon yesterday and were home by 7:00 PM. We were all pooped, but it was very nice to get up to Georgia to spend some time with my family and friends. Needless to say, my eating this weekend wasn’t stellar. I did do my best, but I came back home two pounds heavier than when I left. I don’t think this week will be any easier with going out to eat with EP’s dad and step-mom and the office holiday party Friday night.

Oh, and yeah, there’s a point to the title of my blog entry…I think I got sick on the trip. My throat has been feeling not-so-happy since yesterday! I don’t want to end up getting sick!!! I escaped it last year when MM & EP both came down with miserable colds when we visited at Christmas. This can’t be my turn!! On top of that, I’m pooped!!

Stumble it!

So, we had decided that we would not go anywhere far for Thanksgiving this year because we were tired of constantly being on the go for holidays. Like I told you in my recap of Thanksgiving, we did go over to the other Florida coast to visit EP’s family, but that was only a 2 hour drive. So what do we decide to do the week after Thanksgiving? Drive to Georgia of course!

Turns out my mother will be in Georgia for the week on business, and it just happens to be the weekend prior to the anniversary of the most glorious of events (my birthday of course!!), so EP agreed to load ‘em up and head out!

We leave this evening and will spend the night with my father and probably get some visiting with friends in tomorrow while my Sister-in-Law and Brother are at work. Saturday we’re going out to eat and more friends are joining us to help celebrate the most glorious of events (refer back to the 2nd paragraph in case you’ve already forgotten). Since we’re not going anywhere for Christmas this year, except back over to the other coast, this will be my holiday visit with the family. MM will also get a chance to see her cousins and hang out with them for a day or two.

The point still remains though - I need a real vacation!!! Visiting family does not count!

Stumble it!

I’m forever getting e-mails forwarded to me with “funny” stories and videos. Every now and then, one of them actually is..you know….funny! Like this one.

It’s obviously staged, but good for them for having fun! Dance white boy! Dance!

Stumble it!

Seriously, I am not sure if I would ever wear any of these things out in public, but then again, I have a hand painted coffee mug with Actuarial symbols all over it. I am a true geek at heart. C’mon! I work with math! I think math! By definition, no matter how cool I may appear to be, I really am just a dork!

Aside from math, my other passion is coffee! That means that this shirt which has the molecular formula for caffeine on it! Mmmmmmm!!!

So, when you’re racking your brain to find something to buy me, stop by Think Geek! I want to let my dorkiness shine through this year!

Stumble it!

So, there really was more to last night’s episode of Kid Nation than just Taylor being annoying and talking about “ugly chickens”.

In the town Journal, there were included some history books which gave the history of the town in which the kids are living - Bonanza. The leaders figured out that their Showdown was going to most likely be a test of the information included in those books. They got all the kids in town to meet with their respective districts and study the books. Well, almost all. Who was the lone holdout? You guessed it….Taylor! (Oops! I guess I lied when I said there was more than just Taylor being annoying!) Actually, it was her and Leila. But, Taylor quickly learned that your “friends” will only stand up for you for so long. Once the town council told them that if they refused to participate in the studying, they would not be allowed to participate in any reward that may be won after the Showdown. That was all it took for Leila to become the model student! Taylor, however, insisted she was tired of being “told what to do”. EXCUSE ME?!?! Seriously folks. Does she have amnesia? In case any of you missed it, go back and check out the episodes where Taylor was on town council. Again, I say “Kettle!”

Anywho…as they predicted, the Showdown was a quiz on the history of the town and the reward was a good one - an arcade. Well, they had the choice between arcade and library. Hmmmm…a town full of kids without adult intervention. I wonder which they’d choose. Taylor, as promised, was not allowed to visit the arcade and boy was she pissed! She finally decided to do her chores. MAN! There was a crapload of dishes just piled up that she had to wash. A couple of people took pity on her. Zach actually said he didn’t think the current council was being fair. Whatever! She got off easy considering that she absolutely refuses to put any effort into doing anything for the town!

In the end, Taylor earned the right to go to the arcade, but things quickly went downhill for the town after that. Apparently, kids can’t be trusted to take care of their responsibilities before spending all day and night in a free arcade! Whod’ve thunk it?!?! Well, it ended with the town council deciding to put a padlock on the door and not opening it until the kids take care of business and they put Sophia in charge of the “law” in the town. Looks to be a real showdown coming next week! This show is like a car wreck. It’s so awful the way these kids act, but I just can’t turn away!

Stumble it!

I just have to say this because this show is just really aggravating me! Just like my friend, Colleen, I seriously can not stand that girl Taylor! Oh…my….god! She actually said tonight that she didn’t care if the ugly chickens were killed because she doesn’t like ugly animals. For humans, it was okay to be ugly because they can put on makeup, but you can’t do that with animals. She knows this because she tried it with her dog. Seriously, her parents must be so proud of their deep, insightful, benevolent little….WENCH!

I just sat here for the past 20 minutes or so shaking my head in disbelief everytime the girl opened her mouth! She had the nerve to tell people that she didn’t like being bossed around. Say what?! If you’ve seen any of this show, that’s the pot calling the kettle black! Or, as EP would say “Kettle!” If you haven’t had the pleasure of spending an hour with this charming miss, then check out full episodes online.

 And please…someone…just try to justify this one’s behavior! There is no justification. She is horrible - plain and simple. And if MM was ever on this show and had the nerve to act like that, as soon as I saw it (I don’t know if the kids are home already or if there’s simply a few week delay), I’d be calling the studios telling them to get my child off the show right now cause she needed to come home for her butt whooping!

Okay, now that I got that off my chest, I can un-pause the DVR and finish watching this episode.

Stumble it!

Okay, this has got to be one of the most hilarious things I’ve read lately. I will only post the link here because there is language on this site that is definitely Not Safe For Work (NSFW). However, it is just too good to pass up.

This link alone has also prompted me to create a new category - “Patently Offensive”. I mean, what humor surrounding the Bible is not going to offend someone?? If you are offended, I am sorry. But, don’t say I’m not warning you.

The intro to the list says it all:

If the Bible had been written by King Leonidas and the rest of the Spartans from 300, it would probably read pretty much the same as it does now. It turns out, the Bible is already chock full of ass kicking.

So, open your mind, make sure no bosses or children are looking over your shoulder, be sure your mouth is free of all liquids, and make sure you have a soft landing spot for when you fall out of your chair laughing.

Stumble it!

With buying Christmas gifts for MM and EP, that is. I all of a sudden realize I don’t know what to do! Well, I’ve got some stuff listed for MM:

• Nintendo DS (EP & I are still discussing this one)
• DVDs (3)
• Outfits (2)
• iTunes $$
• Books
  • A real dictionary. Her current one is a kid’s dictionary and frequently doesn’t have the words she’s asking us to spell.
  • The Daring Book for Girls
• Jewelry Box (already purchased on clearance)
• Jewelry (earrings & necklace set already purchased)

I need more little things now to fill in and for stocking stuffers. I’m just not sure what. EP doesn’t want her to get things like lip gloss, so that’s out. I’m thinking maybe lotions and powders or bath items.

As for EP, I’m at a loss, and since he browses the blog, I’m not listing my thoughts on what I would like to get him. No cheating EP!!

What are you guys giving? Anyone have suggestions for a 10-year-old girl who’s outgrown “toys”??

Stumble it!

It’s been a very busy 3 days for me. This year, we decided to spend our holidays here in Florida and do a little less traveling. We didn’t cut it out completely, but we decided that we didn’t want to spend our entire holiday driving all over the place. El Presidente’s grandparents live across the state and Grandpa is not doing so well, so we headed over there to spend the day with his family. But, of course, it could not be just a relaxing trip cause that would be downright un-American to have a holiday where you rested!

We were on the go from pretty much Wednesday. Along with EP’s Aunt and Uncles, we were all responsible for various parts of dinner, so I prepared a cake and sweet potato souffle Wednesday night along with doing laundry and running last minute errands. MM helped with the laundry and the cake (especially licking the bowl clean!). EP did his part by getting in 18 holes of golf and hitting the bed by 7:30 because he had a headache! We headed out early the next morning and spent the day cooking and playing musical countertops at his grandparents’ house as 5 adults attempted to put together a Thanksgiving meal. I’d say we were all on our feet from about 10:30 AM until we ate around 2:30. Again, after an extremely delicious and filling meal, we were all on our feet making sure the kitchen was clean so as not to leave anything for Nana to do. Of course, you know strong, independent women! There’s no telling them “no”, so she was there by our side making sure all dishes were washed, dried, and put away.

After dinner was had, and things were cleaned up, we sat down around Grandpa and enjoyed such a nice evening with the most wonderful people! Grandpa is not doing well these days and he was home for the day, taking a break from the rehab center he’s living at while he strengthens up his muscles and, hopefully, regains the ability to walk again. We spent several hours with Nana and Grandpa reminiscing about their lives lived all over the world. We laughed and we joked. It was truly an honor and pleasure being invited to spend this holiday with EP’s family. Even though it was only the second time that I have had the chance to meet everyone that was there this Thanksgiving, it felt like I had been a part of the family for years. Nana gave me a tight hug as we loaded up the car and Uncle made promises to MM that there was a paddle with her name on it waiting for her on her next visit.

Today, we did not get much more rest. EP and I headed to Target, at a decent hour, to check out some of their deals. Unfortunately (or fortunately, if you’re my wallet), the deal we wanted was all sold out, so we scooped up a couple of DVDs to add to MM’s Christmas presents and headed home. After an hour or so of rest, MM and I headed out to gift wrap for our Girl Scout troop’s fundraising. Lucky me…I got to spend another 5 hours on my feet!

Now, it’s nearly 11 PM and I’m doing my best to do justice to the past 3 days that I got to spend with my family - both old and new. MM is off at a friend’s house for the night and, surprise, EP is in bed. Actually, he did all the driving and was on his feet all day yesterday and now he’s concerned he may have plantar faciitis, so he’s more than earned his rest. Me? I’m restless and still have a lot to do this weekend, so of course I’m staying up late!

 I am very happy with the wonderful Thanksgiving holiday that I got to spend with my family. I hope that you all had a great holiday, too!

Stumble it!