Sunday, November 26, 2006

Don't Get Your Hopes Up Kids

"It doesn't ever snow here."

Fast-Forward 20mins, it's snowing.

"Alright, so sometimes it will snow, but it doesn't stick, it just makes the roads wet, like rain."
"There is almost no chance you will ever get to make a snowman here, sorry kids."

Fast-Forward two hours, it's sticking.
Fast-Forward to the next day, today. We made a snowman.

Thanks to Mother Nature's ironic sense of humor, I'm now a complete liar.

Yup, that's about right.

P.S. I love the first two pictures. They look so different, yet they were taken at the same time, one with flash and one without. Photography is cool. I should learn about it sometime. And check out how deep in the snow the stroller is, you can even see the wheels.

Wednesday, November 22, 2006

Saving Money All Over The Place

Ok so, my wife rocks. Seriously, in so many ways. But tonight she rocked it again in one of my favorite ways. No. Not that. Get your mind out of the gutter. She went shopping.

And how can that be great for me you ask? I'll tell you. Half the time she goes shopping, she makes us money.

First, a little background. Vicki loves to shop. Loves to shop. LOVES IT. Ok, you get the picture. And most of the time that kind of obsession would be very detremental to our pocketbook(does anyone still have a 'pocketbook'), but once again I say, I am a lucky man. And this may be the only time I can make this statement safely. . .

My wife is cheap.

Totally cheap. So cheap it actually frustrates me sometimes. We'll be out shopping and the trip will take 3 times as long because she finds what she wants but refuses to buy it because it's not on sale and she wants to check around at other places. Seriously, she'll go to six different stores just to get it cheaper. Don't get me wrong, I'm always happy when she finds it cheaper, but I don't enjoy shopping, so the price I put on my time during shopping is a lot higher than her time price. Thats how much she loves shopping. She can easily go out for a couple hours, buy nothing at all, and come home happy as a pig in shit. I do not understand. When I have to shop for something I go to the store, find the item, bring it to the cashier and pay for it. I don't even look at the price most of the time. If I need it and I came all the way to store for it I obviously know approximately how much it is and what do I care about the details, that would just make it take longer. Get in, get what you came for, get out. That's my way.

So anyway, where was I on all this? Oh yeah, she rocks. As much as I don't understand her in this area, I get to reap all the benefits. I can quite safely send her out for a 'shopping spree' on the weekend and tell her, "Spend whatever you want, have fun, it's your day!" and she'll come home four hours later feeling guilty over the $65 she spent on 3 pairs of pants, 4 tops, a pair of shoes, a couple things for the kids, and lunch.

No word of a lie, a couple weeks ago she went to Old Navy for almost an hour and came out with 5 or 6 solid items for a grand total of $32. She told me to go in and look at a couple nice things they had for me, so I did. I spent 10 mins and bought two shirts for $50. I was stoked at the great deal I got, and she was aghast at how I overspent! She kills me.

Ok, to recap, my wife loves to shop and she's the absolute best and finding deals because she's so cheap. I love her to death. And finally we get to the part where she makes us money shopping.

Even after she's gotten great deals on things, she can always improve her record with her other great talent, keeping receipts forever. And that's what she did tonight. She went out shopping, didn't buy anything new, but found that two previous purchases she made had now gone on sale and proceeded to go through whatever effort necessary to get back the difference.

So, on two items, she came back from shopping $25 richer than when she went out.

Like I said, she rocks, and I am a lucky man.
Did I also mention that she's a total hottie? She is.

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

Apparently I'm Broken

My neck. Ow. I'm seriously considering that it might be partially broken. See, that's the benefit of knowing the bare minimum about things. I don't know if my neck can actually be partially broken so I have the ability to believe that it can and thereby put a solid, dramatic label on my pain.

I have a broken neck. Cool.

It's been hurting since the weekend when I twisted it wrong in the shower and no matter how I twist it, snap it, or crack it, it won't go away. It was much better today and I thought I was on the road to good times, but 20 mins ago I sat down wrong in my chair or looked up too quick or something, and now it's worse than ever.

Being broken sucks.

Maybe a chocolate bar will help. I'll try that.

Monday, November 20, 2006

Meh*

*used with permission.Copyright 2002 Jeremy Freeman.

'Meh' is how I'm feeling lately. I have negligable energy or drive to do anything and my attitude is basically, 'Whatever'.
This is not good. I don't know if it's the weather or the season or what. Even typing the entry is hard, cause what's the point.
So, I've been self-medicating with junk food and not only has that made me feel worse but it is also adding to my muffin top.
My list of things-to-do is getting longer and more urgent by the day. I can't even wrap my head around all that is on the list.
Meh.
Needless to say, I am not a lot of fun to be around lately. My girls have already realized that "Maybe later" is Daddy's way of being too lazy and they've started to call me on it. That hurts. When you're 6 year-old calls you on the fact that your just putting her off with empty words, and she's right. That hurts.
Meh.
From what I hear though, eating healthy, exercising and getting proper sleep could help. Maybe I'll try one or two of those things.
Til then, Your Welcome for this wonderful, absolutely free, burst of sunshine in your day.

Meh.

Thursday, November 09, 2006

In Case You Didn't Know



Oh Yeah! Bring it on!

Monday, November 06, 2006

Happy Birthday Kayla!

Today, my little sweet pea turns 4. It's so hard to believe. You can see a couple great pictures of her over on Vicki's site.

So, Happy Birthday sweetheart, we love you very much.
You are funny. You are silly. You never fail to surprise and amaze me.
You love to color. You love to sing and dance. You love to have things your way.
You are energetic. You are strong-willed. You have the biggest heart in the world.
You are beautiful and you are amazing Kayla, and we are so proud to be your Mom and Dad.
We love you.

Happy Birthday!

Friday, November 03, 2006

Pop Quiz

What caused this?



Run in with a Rottweiler?
Tussle with a barb-wire fence?
Nope.
Kayla. With her mouth. Her mouth. Over the course of an afternoon.
Umm, WTF? I do not even know where to begin to deal with this.

So, please, commence with the advice.

Thursday, November 02, 2006

Call Me, Beep Me, If You Want To Reach Me!

Here's my girls in their costumes. They looked pretty great!

Megan as Kim Possible











Kayla as Belle









Lauren as Peas in a Pod





Wednesday, November 01, 2006

The Day After

November 1st has a lot attached to it. Halloween is over, there's multiple piles of candy and chocolate in various places around the house. Those are good things. Especially when the kids are still young enough to share their candy without them knowing. But you know what else November 1st means? Christmas is coming.
Yup, after Halloween there's nothing in the way between now and December 25. No buffer, no protection. The stores will decorate, if they haven't already, the commercials will start up, and plans will be set in motion for just how to spend the upcoming festive season. Ugh.
Sure, in the states they've got Thanksgiving still before Christmas, but really, those two holidays are both so big and so close together, they're almost the same thing.

Don't get me wrong, I love Christmas. Watching the kids get so excited, putting up the tree, snuggling up with the wife and glass of eggnog while we listen to Christmas music by the fireplace. The problem is, that accounts for about 2% of the actual holiday experience. The rest is shopping for everyone and their dog, overspending on stuff no one really needs, travelling hundreds of miles to see family and then wishing you'd just stayed home.

Christmas is coming. Someone get me a rum 'n eggnog. Hold the eggnog.