It's always something . . .

Happy Birthday, Beegee!!!!

2011-04-23T07:09:00.000-07:00

I love you, Beautiful Sister!!! XOXOXO

Head Count

2011-03-30T19:18:00.000-07:00

So . . . the only Gillespie to RSVP has been Adam. Is anybody else coming? :)

Happy Birthday, Gary!!!

2010-07-18T06:21:00.000-07:00

Isn't it funny how you STILL like to play with guns?

Happy Birthday!!! I love you!!!

Master bedroom

2010-07-17T17:11:00.000-07:00

Do you know how hard it is to pick a shade of WHITE? The amount of options is ridiculous! My master bedroom was kind of a caramely, gold, peachy color - which was really pretty with the furniture and bedding I had in it, will not be so good with Marlon's Man furniture. Jenna volunteered to help - yes, she volunteered. She's helped me paint this room before, she knew what she was getting herself into . . or onto. The pot shelf:

I really don't like being on ladders, I chose to paint closer to the ground.

(Notice the HGTV on in the background for inspiration?!)

Even covered in paint, this child is GORGEOUS!!

Thanks for helping me, Jenna!!! It went a whole lot faster with you there. Love you!! XOXOXOX

Birthday update

2010-07-17T09:03:00.000-07:00

So my amazing, wonderful, sweet, thoughtful, kind, good-looking children came over on my birthday to hang out with me. They gave up a Saturday for me!!! I think that's huge for two 20-something adult children to give up a Saturday for their Mama. I requested burgers, fruit salad and a coca cola cake. Don't judge the menu choice. I AM a burger and fries kinda girl. They brought flowers!!

Jeremy was "nominated" to brave the heat and grill the burgers. Sirloin burgers.

Jenna was in charge of bacon. Gary, who's your favorite niece? :)

Mmmmmm, bacon.

They baked a Coca Cola Cake.

Think candy bar meets can of soda. So good!!

Then the doorbell rang and a delivery man was holding these:

from my fabulous sister!!! There aren't any pictures of ME at this birthday celebration, so here is a reenactment of me finding out who the flowers were from:

It was a Saturday, so Marlon couldn't be there. But he did come by after work to spend time with me. It was a really good day. I feel very loved.

100th Post

2010-07-03T04:57:00.000-07:00

100 posts? That's amazing. Who knew I had so much to blog about. What should I blog about for my 100th post? I know: ME!!! Since today is my birthday, let's talk about me. Today is the 22nd anniversary of my 27th birthday. My brothers would like to have you believe I'm 55 today. No, I am not. I am 49 today. Or 27, for the 22nd time. I was just Googling "Anniversary gifts by year" to find out what the traditional gift is for a 22nd anniversary. Most sources list gifts for years 1 through 15, then they skip ahead to 20 and 25. What happens for years 16, 17, 18 and 19? At that point most couples probably have teenage children, so forget about gifts for each other - they have teenagers to deal with, right? One source has all the traditional anniversary gifts listed, it also throws in a "modern" gift category. For a 22nd anniversary they suggest copper. Copper? Are they kidding? "Here's a penny. Love ya, happy anniversary." No wonder they skip ahead to 25. Bring on the silver. That's something I can work with. Silver frames, silver candlesticks, silver earrings. Keep the copper. I'll just wait a few more years for the silver. Unless you REALLY want to throw some copper my way.

Mikie's 50?!!!

2010-06-29T00:29:00.000-07:00

Really? Seriously? This beautiful baby is turning 50?!!!!! Happy Birthday, Brudder Mikie! I love you!!!

Room transformation

2010-06-15T18:07:00.000-07:00

Jeremy hasn't lived here since January (Jenna now has custody of him - not quite sure how that happened). The back bedroom still had his stuff in it, until he gave his bed to his girlfriend when she moved into her own place. That was my cue. I moved the rest of his stuff out of the room (and into the garage) and got to work. The main wall had been painted lemon yellow when it was Jenna's room. (It looked really good with the stuff she had in there, trust me on this.) The wall got primed and painted. It's now the same color as the rest of the room - a shade of white called Crumb Cookie. I don't know what kind of cookies the paint color naming people are eating - any crumbs I've ever had from a cookie are brown.

Jeremy's furniture was replaced with a couple of Mom and Dad's pieces and my bed and look at it now!!! (Why am I hearing that stupid theme song in my head - Transformers, Robots in disguise.) This room hasn't had closet doors in YEARS. Something about children knocking them off the tracks and me being fed up with having to rehang them. I drug (and I really mean DRUG) the doors out of the garage, repainted them and rehung them.

The only thing left to do is make this spot beautiful. It needs curtains and a window seat cushion. I know exactly how I want it to look, I just need help making it happen. Hmmmmm . . . . . who to call, who to call. . . .

Mood altering drugs

2010-04-30T17:49:00.000-07:00

Is there anything better to lift your mood than a new handbag? Specifically, the 2009 Income Tax Refund Commemorative Handbag? 'Cause if it's paid for with a refund, it's really FREE!!!! (do NOT argue my logic. I am most correct on this. Ask any woman.)

Friday's are casual at work - meaning I get to wear jeans. With a black top, these shoes and my 2009 Commemorative Handbag. Cute, right? And, because it makes me giggle, zebra underwear. Too much information?

Hugs for Brenda!!!

2010-04-23T00:13:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday, Brenda!!!! I hope you have a wonderful day, full of hugs and kisses and small children guessing your age to be 14!!! I love you!!!

Try not to overdo it on the pirate juice, 'kay? ;)

Start the water works

2010-04-06T18:46:00.000-07:00

I came home tonight to find these on my doorstep:

Start the water works. There's a note with them - it's not signed and I don't recognize the handwriting. If I had to guess . . . no. I don't want to guess and risk insulting anybody if I guess wrong.

Somebody came to my pity party! (tear) I have the best family!!! I really do.

I'll be out of my funk soon, truly I will. I have just a few more "estate" things to take care of and that chapter will be closed. Three of my broken things got fixed. My kids love me. My family loves me. Marlon loves me. Even my psycho cat loves me. I am blessed.

Thank you, whoever left me beautiful flowers. I'd give you a big hug if I knew which one you were. Oh heck, I'll just give you all big hugs. Mike and Gary like that.

I gave myself permission

2010-04-05T20:46:00.000-07:00

So where have I been? I've been home. I miss my Daddy. I have a whole bunch of stuff that's not working right at my house and I have to figure out how to fix it. It can get overwhelming, all of this broken stuff that I don't know how to fix. Daddy would have fixed it for me, I would have taken him to Chilero's for carne asada tacos. We liked that arrangement. A lot.

And I miss my Mom. Mom loved Easter. You remember the home made Easter candy - the peanut butter cups? And the solid milk chocolate rabbits? And those beautiful panorama sugar eggs? Did Mom ever tell anyone why she loved Easter so much? Easter makes me think of Mom.

So I've been home. Not posting anything, because I've been blue. And not wanting to admit it. I really don't want any sympathy for it - because it's my stuff, and I have to deal with it. I really just want to stay in bed with the covers over my head, but I have to go to work. They pay me and kinda expect me to show up.

I've been avoiding blogger and facebook and talking to my sister. Because she would hear in my voice that I'm not OK and I didn't want to burden her with my stuff. But I talked to her this weekend. And she gets it. I miss her, too.

Anyway. I gave myself permission to be blue. There aren't any comments allowed - I don't want anyone to feel sorry for me, or offer suggestions, or tell me to pull my head out of my a$$. I'll figure it out. Giving myself permission has helped. It's been acknowledged, that's better than hiding it. I'll get over it. And Mom and Dad will be proud - 'cause dang! They've raised some intelligent, resourceful kids.

Orphans, year one

2010-02-24T00:00:00.000-08:00

Doesn't seem like it's been a year already. I know we still miss them both, every day. Sometimes it just smacks you in the face - how much you miss them. At odd times. Like driving to the tax accountant's office. Out of the blue it hits and the tears flow. Not as often to be sure, but still as sorrowful. It depends on what I'm doing, which one I miss more. Groundhog day: I missed Dad. Baking a red velvet cake: I missed Mom.

We made it through the first year. I love my siblings. The GFource. Us orphans. We are strong people, with senses of humor that get us through and keep us laughing. Because if we're not laughing, we'd be crying. And laughing is better. I'm so glad we have Gillespie humor. Not everybody understands it . But they should.

Project Runway, Episode 5

2010-02-17T17:26:00.000-08:00

This is so much fun to watch with Marlon (he sleeps through most of it, I wake him up when Monique is onscreen) When he saw her walk out in this dress, he says, "oooohhhhh, My Baby. She's so beautiful." I agree. She looks beautiful. He was a little peeved that she didn't have much face time on Models of the Runway this week. I thought it was a good thing as most of the episode was about the drama Alexis is creating. She's not part of that. Good girl!!!

Posting at my own risk

2010-02-17T17:13:00.000-08:00

Marlon might not be happy that I'm posting this, but this video showed up on YouTube. It makes me smile.

Project Runway, Episode 4

2010-02-10T18:30:00.000-08:00

I'm seriously late posting about Episode 4, it's almost time for Episode 5!!! As you all know, since you have all become faithful followers of the show, the models weren't featured on Project Runway this week. Instead, there were guest models that had been affected by heart disease in some way. Some beautiful, strong women. Did you love Amy's dress? It was soft, floaty and feminine. Really, really pretty. Jesus, Jesus, Jesus!!! Maybe if he was designing for Rue 21 it would have been pretty. It was very tacky. I wonder how much of it was his model's input. So, no Monique this episode - but if you stuck around for Models of the Runway (which is required viewing for this class!!) you would have seen her teaching her lady how to walk the runway, they worked out with a trainer at the park, and then got to sit down and hear the stories of how these women were affected by heart disease. Really touching to watch it with Marlon, when the cameras picked up on Monique wiping away a tear as she talked to her lady. His reaction: (tear) sniff, "ahhhh, my baby". Watch her Video Diary, talking about working out with weights. She's too cute.

Happy Groundhog Day!

2010-02-02T05:00:00.000-08:00

Pancakes and sausage, anyone?

Project Runway, Episode 3

2010-01-29T17:34:00.000-08:00

I got to watch this week's episode with Marlon. If I told you he tears up watching Project Runway it might sound totally weird, but when you know his daughter is on it, it makes perfect sense. Aren't we all over-the-moon proud of our children? Monique got SO much face time again on Models of the Runway!!! Favorite Monique line from this episode: she's talking about growing up a bi-racial child, and it wasn't 'til she moved to New York that she realized that "being different is fun". Not so fond of the dress she wore - but she looks amazing in anything. It was time for Ping to go. Her bizarre creations make me wonder how she was chosen for the show in the first place. Are you loving Anthony? He cracks me up!!! Telling Seth Aaron not to argue in front of company. I hope he stays around just for the comic relief.

Project Runway, Episode 2

2010-01-23T18:25:00.000-08:00

Wow. Sooooo glad Monique was not paired with Ping!!! And completely shocked that Ping was not eliminated. She does make for some interesting TV, though. Maya created a colorful look for Monique. If you watched Models of the Runway, Monique got a lot of face time on this weeks episode. She's shown meeting an editor from Marie Claire magazine - and I can tell you that right now, Monique is in South Africa working - on an assignment for Marie Claire magazine. She must have made an impression!!! Favorite Monique quote of this episode is actually from her Video Diary. She's talking about the poor girl with her booty hanging out of her dress. She says that she would have asked the designer to sew her booty back in - she didn't come on National TV to have everyone see that much of her. "My Daddy's going to be a little upset", she says.

Project Runway, Episode 1

2010-01-18T18:30:00.000-08:00

In case you missed it (how dare you!!): Monique's designer was Maya. She created the champagne colored dress with the ruffle down the shoulder. I thought it was beautiful - but the model made the dress!! Not a lot of face time for Monique but there will be more - I promise!!! Favorite Monique quote from this episode: Heidi Klum asks the models how their first runway show was for them and Monique says, "I'm glad I didn't fall."

Check out Monique's page on Lifetime for more.

Set your DVR's!!

2010-01-12T16:44:00.000-08:00

Just a reminder to set your DVR's for Project Runway Season 7 AND Models of the Runway. Thursday on Lifetime at 11:00 p.m. I went to the friendly Cox Communications store on Saturday and picked up a DVR just for this occasion. It's hooked up, ready to go and the FIRST thing I programmed was Project Runway. Then Desperate Housewives, Grey's Anatomy, The Practice, Biggest Loser . . . I'm such a girl!!! I really, really missed my DVR.

So, Thursday, Lifetime (Cox Channel 24) 11:00 p.m. Watch for Monique. There will be a quiz later.

Do you do this?

2010-01-03T16:47:00.000-08:00

Taking the lights off the tree. I went around and around and around . . . so many times that I got dizzy. Had to go sit down.

EEOC Nativity

2009-12-20T15:01:00.000-08:00

Something to make you go: Whoa

2009-12-16T18:36:00.000-08:00

Perhaps you saw this headline today: Police: Man torn by guilt confesses to '88 killing. I saw it, but didn't take the time to click on it and read it. I should have. The victim in this 21 year old crime was Marlon Darton. Yes, you read it right. Marlon Darton. It was Marlon's paternal grandfather. Marlon's family had lost touch with his grandfather after Marlon's own father passed away in the 1960's. Marlon wasn't aware that his grandfather had been murdered until a reporter from Channel 12 News called him at work today. Did that just make you go: Whoa? Me, too.

Project Runway Season 7

2009-12-16T18:21:00.000-08:00

Get ready. Project Runway Season 7 starts on January 14th. Write it down somewhere, I'll wait.

Done? Good. Remember I told you Marlon's daughter will be on the new season? I can't wait to watch it!!!! To tide us all over until then, go here: Meet Monique .

Merry Christmas

2009-12-12T09:35:00.000-08:00

I miss you, Daddy.

Bad Bunny Is A Wild Hare

2009-12-01T20:27:00.000-08:00

Saturday morning. Brenda and Cassie are going to be gone ALL DAY!!!! Yippee!!! What should I do?

I know!!! I'll get all dressed up and GO OUT!!!! Uh huh, I'm lookin' good!!!

Oh. I didn't think about this. I can't reach the door handle. Hey, Arnold? Somebody? Anybody? Dang. I'll have to think of something else to do.

I know!!

I'll play Rock Band!!! I'm awesome!! Awesome? Did somebody say Awesome? A-W-E-S-O-M-E. Awesome, awesome, awesome, awesome are we. WAH!! Huh. . . . isn't quite as fun by myself, having to play ALL the instruments.

Maybe I'll use the treadmill instead. Work off some of that pumpkin cheesecake and Portal Cake . . . and Apple Tart. I probably should have stopped at two desserts, but it was so hard to choose! OK - 5 minutes. I'm done. Time for some internet.

Bugs Bunny. Ooooo Baby!!! He is HOT! Whew!!! Mmmm Hmmm. Is it hot in here or is it just Bugs? I need something to drink. Hmm . Gary likes this pirate juice. It makes him really happy . . . I'll try it.

OOOOHHHHH. I don't think this pirate juice is good for bunnies. I don't feel so good.

Coffee . . . I need coffee. I think that's what Brenda drinks after too much pirate juice. Maybe that will help. And these little blue pills . . . they'll help.

Whooo hooo!!! I'm feeling FRISKY!!! What is in those little blue pills?!!! Hey Ducky . . . How You Doin'? You're looking good today!! You wanna play with me?

Ugh. Bad Bunny just can't hold her pirate juice.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-26T07:39:00.000-08:00

Yes, Mike, Gary and I made it to Alaska. And YES, Brenda was VERY surprised!!! Thank you, Kent, for helping us pull this off. There is nothing better than surprising someone you love.

Have a very Happy Thanksgiving. Enjoy your day. Sorry, Jeremy and Jenna, the Friday morning pumpkin pie will have to wait until I get back.

Crash, boom, bang that didn't involve Jenna

2009-11-22T08:57:00.000-08:00

It is time for things to turn around for Marlon. Really. It's time. On Thursday, he was rear-ended while driving his motorcycle. That is not a call I want to ever get again. He has whiplash, he is very sore, but we think he'll be fine. His Harley - we don't know yet. It's at the repair shop for an estimate, we'll find out next week how bad the damage is.

He really thinks the 19-year-old girl that hit him was texting while driving. This is my public service announcement: DO NOT TEXT WHILE YOU'RE DRIVING! The person you run into could be my man, and trust me, you don't want to be on the receiving end of that conversation!

Happy Birthday, Jeremy!

2009-11-21T17:56:00.000-08:00

A bit of a late post - but it is still Jeremy's birthday. My amazingly talented, wonderful son. He's 24 today. I was going to list 24 things I love about Jeremy, but I got to #3 and started crying. So I'll summarize what I love about Jeremy: most everything. He's incredibly talented (I can't even draw stick figures), he's really smart (please fix my laptop soon!!!), he's kind to others (maybe not to the cat - but that's understandable) and he's caring (you ought to see him jump into action if something has made me cry!!!) Since I only got one, I'm so thankful I got a really, really good son!

Happy Birthday, Jeremy. I love you!!

Monique sightings

2009-11-16T18:01:00.000-08:00

Marlon is such a proud Dad!!! Last week we were finding his baby girl EVERYWHERE!!!

First sighting: November 29th issue of Family Circle magazine, page 64.

Next sighting: the exercise and fitness aisle of Target. (No, I wasn't in there to BUY exercise equipment - don't be ridiculous!! We went in because Monique is on the packaging!!)

Editorial note: DANG!!! My man is handsome!!!

Last sighting (Jenna gets the credit for this one): the most recent episode of Project Runway - where the remaining designers are choosing models for their runway show. You'll catch a glimpse of Monique.

Photo courtesy of Jenna's DVR.

For Project Runway fans, you'll see lots more of Monique in Season 7. She was chosen as one of the models for the season, she'll also be on the companion show "Models of the Runway". It's set to air in January.

Twins

2009-11-07T16:36:00.000-08:00

My friend Rena was my date for the Reeve's Halloween party. I didn't have a costume, but Rena is very clever and had something we could use. We went as Siamese twins.

The costume lasted all of 10 minutes - we made our entrance, had our picture taken, made our way into the house for drinks and decided we were done with it. It was quite an entrance, though!

Makeover America

2009-10-17T16:34:00.000-07:00

Rita, the GM's Assistant at work wanted to know if I'd like to go to Macy's today to see Makeover America, with Clinton Kelly from TLC's What Not to Wear. Ummmm . . . . YES!!! He's going across the country, selecting 15 women from each area, taking them shopping at Macy's and making them over. I happened to sit next to a lady whose daughter, Blair, had been selected for a makeover. Clinton shows the before photo, talks about each woman's challenges, then the "new" woman struts the runway in her Macy's outfit. Blair's challenge was that she is a 23 year old plus size young woman, having a really hard time dressing like she's 23. The stylists put her in a gorgeous purple empire waist dress with tights and boots. New hair, new makeup - she looked fabulous! Her mother was so proud! And Clinton is as adorable up close as he is on TV. What a fun afternoon!

Happy Birthday, Jenna!!!

2009-10-15T02:31:00.000-07:00

Dear Jenna,

October 15th, 1989, 2:31 a.m., you made your debut. What a beautiful baby you were! And what a beautiful young woman you've become. I'm so proud to be your Mama. There have been times when it hasn't always been easy to be your Mom (your Junior High years were challenging), but I've ALWAYS been proud of you. ALWAYS. You are smart, funny, talented and stunningly beautiful. I look at you and just can't believe (to borrow a phrase from one of our favorite shows) that I made you from scratch. I can't help but think, "Dang - I did something right!!!" :)

I love you so much, Jenna. Happy, happy birthday.

Love you forever,

Mom

New York, Sunday

2009-10-14T19:29:00.000-07:00

This is our last day in New York, and our plans are jam packed. Unfortunately, it rained all day long. Not a huge deal - but when you're from Arizona, you don't have rain gear. Yes we had trench coats and umbrellas, but not waterproof footwear. The first stop on our agenda was the Statue of Liberty. Because I'm kind of sick this way: what kind of bird leaves droppings so large they look like they've been left by a small dog? Seriously!! I've never seen such huge piles of bird doo! There should really be a warning when you get close to the statue - if one of those fell on you, it would leave a mark!!!

OK, moving on. We had planned to visit the World Trade Center site, but decided to leave that out. Instead, we headed to Soho. Still raining, a LOT. We wandered around Soho for awhile, then decided we'd hang out in a sports bar, have some lunch and dry out.

From here we headed to Union Square - we wanted to visit my all time favorite shoe store: DSW. Yes - they have them here, but this was in New York . . . and in this store they have designer shoes . . . right out in the open where the general population can get to them. Look what they had . . . . Jimmy Choos!!! They leave them unattended, no sirens go off when you go near them. I SOOOO wanted to try them on . . . I want to know what makes them $800! Are they really that much better? BUT - it's been raining, I don't have proper rain gear and my jeans are soaking wet. It would be disrespectful to try them on under those conditions. (I did touch them all, though!!!)

Back to the hotel to get ready for our next show. We're going to the Orpheum theater to see Stomp! Stomp is one of my all time favorite things. And to see it in New York!! I'm really excited about this. The Orpheum theater is fairly small - but every seat was filled. We were in the third row - close enough to make eye contact with the performers. It never disappoints. Once again, I loved it!

The very last thing on our list for our New York adventure was a little restaurant I'd read about called S'Mac (www.smacnyc.com). A restaurant devoted to macaroni and cheese - 12 different kinds of macaroni and cheese. Jenna had the All American, I had the Napoletana. ONE of us liked it!! I refrained from actually licking the skillet clean - it was DELICIOUS!!!

We fly home on Monday. It went by so fast! I'm sorry it's over. I had the best time. I loved it all and I'm so thankful I got to spend this time with my Baby Girl.

New York, Saturday

2009-10-10T21:08:00.000-07:00

This day was all about SHOPPING!!! First on my list of priorities: the NYC Harley store - Marlon needed a shirt.

Then we stopped at New York and Company, Victoria's Secret, Dooney & Bourke, Sephora . . . . and then of course, the Coach store. You didn't think we would pass it up, did you?

Do you see how excited I was to be going to the Coach store? And while we were there we HAD to purchase . . .

wait for it . . . . . . . the Commemorative Handbags!!! Oh like you didn't guess. You KNEW that was gonna happen!!! And these styles were introduced the day we arrived in New York. Fate? I think so!!

We also had to find Grand Central Station. We changed subway cars at Grand Central Station - but underground it looked like all of the other subway stops - we wanted to see the GRAND part of the station that you see in the movies. It didn't disappoint. It really was grand.

Back to the hotel - ordered room service for dinner this day - shopping is exhausting!! Then it was back out again to see "Wicked". If you haven't heard of it, it's the story of Oz - before Dorothy got there. It's how the Good Witch and The Wicked Witch knew each other. It's hilarious - and will make you look at the Wizard of Oz in a whole new way. Favorite song: Popular. You're gonna be Pop-U-Lar. Loved it!!!

New York, Friday

2009-10-04T08:55:00.000-07:00

BIG plans for today!!! Starting with the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Doesn't Jenna look tiny sitting on the steps? We headed to the right and started in the Egyptian wing.

This is the Temple of Dendur. I don't know who Dendur is, or why he has a temple. We're not real big on actually READING all of the descriptions. We came, we saw, we took pictures of what we liked and moved on. Oh . . . and NO Flash Photography. We made that mistake . . . a couple of times. Ooops.

Admit it, you glanced at the statue over there --->
and thought, "I wonder who she's texting?" That's EXACTLY what WE thought, too!!! OK, we're not serious museum goers. And?!!

From the Egyptian wing, we wandered upstairs to the European paintings. Maybe it's just me, but these painters have some anger issues. A lot of death and stabbings depicted. And boobs! Everywhere, women with their boobs hanging out. I don't know how it was then, but nowadays we have laws about letting your ta ta's hang out.

Next stop: Central Park.

This is the view from Belvedere Castle. It comes in handy to travel with your own supermodel. (Go ahead, Jenna, roll your eyes at me. You're gorgeous!)

From Central Park to Times Square. Crazy place!!! Almost sensory overload with everything going on. Giant TV screens, traffic, people, shops, food. Police officers everywhere. When you take out your camera for pictures, you immediately label yourself a tourist and are surrounded by people trying to sell you tickets. Tickets to a comedy show, a sight-seeing tour, whatever.

From here we headed to Macy's at Herald's Square. Of course we had to go there. The store is HUGE!!! At least two city blocks and 9 stories. Then it was back to the hotel to get ready for dinner.

Dinner was at the Habana Room - the Latin restaurant in the hotel. Jenna had Ropa Vieja - isn't it pretty?!! I had Chicken Chino Latino. It was really, really good. No pictures, though - chicken on the bone really isn't attractive once you start cutting into it, know what I mean?

Last item on today's agenda: Phantom of the Opera. I'll just say it was FABULOUS! A Broadway show!!! I'm STILL ecstatic to be here.

New York, Thursday

2009-10-03T16:16:00.001-07:00

We're on the plane, going to New York! I was so excited, I could hardly stand myself. Brief layover in Chicago, then on to the Big Apple. Whoo hoooo!!!

We had a car pick us up at the airport - doesn't that sound fancy? I could have booked Super Shuttle for $32, or the car for $35. Which option would you have chosen? Yep - the car. The driver's name was Mazhran. I couldn't understand a word he said, but he was very nice and got us to the hotel in one piece. You have to be very brave to drive in New York City.

My beautiful daughter, with her amazing hotel connections, booked us into the Radisson Lexington. It's a "petite" room - and they mean "petite". Enough room for a desk, a nightstand and the bed. You need to inform the other person in the room when you need to move from one place to the other - you can't both move at the same time. I never did find out what this was, but looking out the hotel window, there was a kitchen below us.

Kitchen . . . food . . . mmmmm, we were HUNGRY. Across the street from the hotel was a pizza place. Almost every seat was filled with a police officer - the pizza had to be good - AND nobody will mug us, right? The pizza WAS good!! Jenna had her favorite pepperoni - I tried the spicy chicken. Yumm.

Next stop was the subway to buy two week long passes. We took the subway "Uptown" to the stop closest to the Empire State Building. The pictures don't do it justice - it was gorgeous! I'm really glad we got to see it at night.

So far, New York has been just like you see on TV. People everywhere, lots of traffic and lots of cabs. Tiny store fronts wedged next to each other. One might be a liquor store, next to a restaurant, next to a flower stand, with a supermodel. By now it's midnight, and one of us is tired. It's back on the subway, back to the hotel to get some sleep and get ready for tomorrow. I can hardly believe I'm finally here!

Sneak preview

2009-09-30T17:25:00.001-07:00

New York was AMAZING!!!! I absolutely loved it. Except . . . I came home with a cold. Until I get around to downloading all the pictures, here's a sneak preview - me and Jenna in our LBD's after seeing Phantom of the Opera.

It needed me

2009-09-18T20:56:00.001-07:00

It's a sickness, I know. But I couldn't help myself. I saw this and knew immediately that it NEEDED me.
It's very happy in it's new home.

Retail therapy

2009-09-12T15:03:00.001-07:00

It's been awhile since I had some really good retail therapy. I'm due. Plus, I NEEDED a dress for New York. Did I mention Jenna and I are going to New York?!!!! I'm sooooo excited!! We've got a whole bunch of stuff planned: Wicked, Stomp, Phantom of the Opera. So, I needed a dress. I was dreading shopping for one - I really hate the overhead lights, the fun house mirrors (oh you know they are!!) and the fact that you have to get almost completely naked over and over again with all of your "stuff" out there in the open, spotlighted and nothing ever fits right. Ugh. Surprisingly, it turned out to be really fun. Linda at Dillard's was really helpful and picked out at least 12 dresses for me - most of which I would never have tried on. I got this one:
It looks exactly like that on me, I just have shorter hair. HA!!

Subtle Reminder

2009-08-11T21:49:00.000-07:00

Warning: This post may contain Too Much Information for sensitive minds.

So . . . Marlon tells me I NEED to be taking a daily vitamin. If you've seen Marlon - it's obvious, the man knows what he's talking about. So I drag him to the vitamin store and have him pick out a girl vitamin for me. I started taking it last Monday morning. Monday afternoon, I'm in the Ladies room, doing what ya gotta do after you drink two bottles of water. Reach back to flush and. . . . whoa. I'm peeing bright yellow. Like holy cow, what the heck is wrong with me bright yellow. I call Marlon. What the heck!!! He says, "That's the Vitamin B - I should have told you." Oh. Gee. Thanks. Well good - I don't have some bizarre lemon bladder disease. That's good news.

I keep taking my vitamin every morning. Every afternoon . . . same thing - bright yellow. Until Thursday. No bright yellow. Huh? Oh yeah . . . I forgot to take my vitamin. See what I mean? Subtle reminder.

The Hurt Locker

2009-08-03T20:09:00.000-07:00

It's too hot to do anything else. Marlon and I went to a movie Sunday night, nothing was looking interesting. Neither one of us had ever heard anything about The Hurt Locker, so we thought we'd give it a shot. Wow. Have you heard of it? It's about troops in Iraq who defuse bombs. They are crazy people! This movie is seriously intense. Not knowing anything about it, we were sucked in right from the beginning. I wasn't sure if we were watching a documentary or a movie. It is really, really good.

Happy Birthday, Mikie!

2009-06-29T05:00:00.000-07:00

Television Preview

2009-06-22T06:00:00.000-07:00

So Marlon received tickets to this special event, which he couldn't attend 'cause he had to do that whole "gotta be at work" thing. He gave the tickets to me, and Jeremy agreed that it could be interesting and agreed to go with me. The tickets were for "Television Preview". We would be previewing television pilots and giving our opinion on whether it was a project worth going forward with. Sounds kinda cool, right? It's NOT!!!! If you EVER receive tickets to "Television Preview" throw them out immediately - OR - give them to someone you do not like. At all.

You do watch two television pilots and give your opinion on them. What they don't tell you is that NOBODY CARES about your opinion on these two pilots. Why? Because the pilots were filmed in 1997 and they are HORRIBLE. What you are really there for is a marketing survey. Yep. TWELVE pages of marketing survey. Do you buy dog food? Do you own a dog? (Why would you buy dog food if you didn't own a dog?) What is your opinion on toilet paper. And facial tissue. And how important is it to you that your facial tissue doesn't fall apart when you blow your nose? Lesson learned here, which I feel it is my duty to pass along to the people I love: DO NOT attend a Television Preview event. EVER.

But if you do, take someone with you that shares your Gillespie humor and can laugh about the whole thing. Like Jeremy. My good child.

This is us at the end of the presentation. Yeah!! it's OVER!!

Happy Father's Day, Mom!

2009-06-21T07:55:00.001-07:00

For 15 years, that's how my children have greeted me on Father's Day. I have been the parent that is involved in their lives, who lets them know on a daily basis that I care and that they are important, special and loved. I think I love them enough for two people, I'm always there for them no matter what they need, and have tried really hard to be both Mom AND Dad. So I think I get twice the love back. Even though I'm not the center of their worlds anymore (which happens when our babies grow up), I am still one of the first people they call when something bad happens, something good happens, something funny happens or they just need someone to tell them that everything will be alright.

This Daddy's Girl is missing her Daddy today. But I am blessed to have had him for a Dad, to be my role model when I needed to be a Dad to my kids. Thank you, Daddy. I love you. I miss you.

Lunch date

2009-06-09T20:33:00.001-07:00

I had a lunch date, today. A gentleman came to work to pick me up and take me out to lunch. We went to Miracle Mile Deli. It's close to work, really good and since I only had an hour, we could eat, converse and get me back to work on time. We had a chance to catch up, share some stories and learned a few things about each other. He asked about my family, he was quite concerned about all of us and how we are doing. We had a really nice time. Chuck Hughes sends his love to all of you.

Hug from Mom

2009-06-01T18:15:00.000-07:00

I have Mom's chair. It's in the corner in my bedroom. When you sit down in it, it creaks a little bit. When you rock, it squeaks a little bit. When you get out of it, it groans a little bit. It sounds just like it did when Mom used it. And sitting in it is kinda like getting a hug from Mom. When you need a hug from Mom, let me know. Her chair is waiting.

Day off

2009-05-25T20:42:00.000-07:00

We had the same day off!!! Marlon threw me on the back of his Harley this morning and we took off. Headed to Sedona for breakfast - at the Coffeepot, where else? Then headed over to Payson 'cause the drive is pretty. When we got back into Phoenix at two in the afternoon, it was 98 degrees which is NOT bike riding weather. But it was still fun. I have my very own helmet, now. Ironically, it's the SAME helmet Marlon has - only in a smaller version. Pretty hot, huh? :)

ctg

2009-05-24T03:15:00.000-07:00

I miss you, Mom.

Summer Fashion

2009-05-23T07:12:00.000-07:00

Seriously?

Favorite child

2009-05-22T18:14:00.000-07:00

Email from Jenna today which made me totally crack up:

Mother's Day Weekend

2009-05-11T19:50:00.000-07:00

My work took the employees to the Diamondback's game on Saturday. Our seats were in the new all-you-can-eat section. Who better to go with me to an all-you-can-eat event than my favorite boy!!! The all-you-can-eat is typical ball park food: popcorn, peanuts, chips, hot dogs, soda and water. I guess there was a ball game going on - we were too busy playing with the cool features on Jeremy's cell phone and eating hot dogs to watch it! Have you ever noticed that Jeremy has his Mother's smile?

On Sunday, Jeremy was out of town. He was given tickets to the Diamondback's game - so Jenna and I used them. We're not huge baseball fans - but Jenna is a huge fan of nachos and I am now a huge fan of Gordon Biersch's garlic french fries. Seriously good stuff. The Diamondback's were playing the Washington National's, I have no idea who won the game we were distracted by all the eating, and posting this really cute picture on Jenna's Facebook. Umm, Jenna? Has anybody told you that you look like your Mother?

When we got home from the game, Jenna, my good child, gave me the ultimate Mother's Day gift: she cleaned my bathroom. I love a clean bathroom - that I didn't have to clean myself! And she showed off the skills she's learning in college. She made Chocolate Mousse, from scratch. Not my kind of scratch: chocolate pudding and Cool Whip. Nope. For real from scratch: whipping cream, eggs, sugar and Ghirardelli chocolate. Five bowls, four spatulas and a double boiler later we had Chocolate Mousse. It was Sooooo good! My mother-in-law, Jeri, came for dinner and got to share in the chocolatey goodness. (Jenna put on that apron for you, Brenda!!)

I have good kids. I really do.

Serves who?

2009-05-08T17:37:00.000-07:00

Brenda has me addicted to these Pita Chips. She serves them with hummus, I didn't know I liked hummus!!! So I'm chowing down on these things, eating my way through the bag, when I glance at the back. Serving size: 6 chips.

Who are they serving?!!! SIX chips? Who is going to eat SIX chips? I think I need to write to the Simply Naked people and tell them that SIX chips is NOT a serving. Six chips is a taste test. See if you like them. After six you would have a pretty good idea whether or not you wanted to eat any more. You wouldn't put 6 little chips on a plate and serve it to somebody. They would think you were crazy. Or stingy. Or really, really weird. Or that you really don't enjoy their company so eat your measly SIX chips and get out. Puhhlease.

THIS is a serving:

Small treasures

2009-05-02T18:59:00.000-07:00

Dad's desk. At first glance: OMG!!! What are we going to do with this!!! It looks to be full of STUFF, until you dig through it and find a little treasure.

One of Mom and Dad's favorite authors is JA Jance. I think they had ALL of her books and had met her personally at book signings in the valley. She writes a couple of different mystery series: The Joanna Brady mysteries (about a female sheriff in Bisbee, AZ), and the JP Beaumont mysteries (about a detective in Seattle). Before her first novel was published, she wrote a book of poems called After the Fire which she wrote while dealing with the end of her relationship with her alcoholic husband. Dad was touched by one of her poems, "Insomnia" and sent Ms. Jance an email to thank her, a copy of which was in a pile of papers on his desk:

Sept. 26, 2008

Dear Judy,

Just a thanks note. I'm the Paul from the signing in the Chandler Hamilton Library that mentioned that you had me crying at the removal of Dan Sloan's body. And it gets me everytime I re-read that chapter.

I'm also the Paul part of Paul & Carol. However, Carol passed about a year and change ago from cancer complications and other things. We had 50 years together so that was good. The 50 years, that is. The thanks part comes from you bringing along "After the Fire" to the signing. When I got to "Insomnia" that hit me squarely. Like you have been looking in the windows. It made much sense to me and finally I can begin to encroach upon the "other side" of the bed. So thanks ever so much.

Hugs,
Paul

Ms. Jance replied:

Dear Paul,

Thank you for writing. Please accept my condolences on the loss of your wife. Compared to the fifty years you shared, a year and some change isn't long. I hope After the Fire gives you some comfort. Grief takes time.

JAJ

Flagstaff

2009-04-27T14:45:00.000-07:00

I'm just crazy about Marlon. Have I mentioned that? With his work schedule, we only have two of the same days off in a month. I took Monday off to spend with him - we headed to Flagstaff to enjoy some coolness since it's getting so hot here. When we got in Saturday night at 11:00 p.m. it was 30 degrees. brrrrrrr. Sunday we had breakfast at Crown Railroad Cafe, then went to Walnut Canyon. We decided that the Indians who lived here must have been teeny tiny little people. My Handsome Man could barely stand up in one of the "condos". The children that lived there must have been very well behaved - if they didn't listen to their mother's and played too close to the edge. . . oh well. They were warned. You wouldn't have to tell those kids twice.

From there we headed to Bellemont. There's a Harley dealership there which I have passed numerous times on my way to and from Parks but never had a reason to stop. Nice little store, really nice staff. We picked out a couple of shirts and headed back towards Flag. Next stop: Salsa Brava. A little Mexican restaurant on Route 66 that Little Treat recommended. Yummy! They have a salsa bar with 5 different kinds of salsa in varying degrees of hotness. I had Sunday's special, some pork tacos with mango salsa. They were HOT! Really good, but HOT. Then there was the required trip to Target to pick up whatever it was I forgot that trip. And look who was posted in the Electronics department: Marlon's baby girl!!!

Monday we headed to Sedona for breakfast at the Coffee Pot - our favorite place in Sedona to have breakfast. Even at 9:30 in the morning on a Monday the place was packed. Then we stopped at Chapel of the Holy Cross, which is stunning. From there we headed home. Two whole days with Marlon. They are rare!

Happy Birthday, Brenda!

2009-04-23T17:47:00.000-07:00

It's my beautiful, fabulous, wonderful sister's birthday today! Happy Birthday, Brenda! Wish I was there to toast you with your latest Vitamin Water creation. I love you!!!

This is one of my favorite pictures, taken two YEARS ago when I got to have dinner with Brenda, Cassie and Arnold on Brenda's birthday. She was using my cell phone, sending her first ever text message, to her niece Leona. And TODAY - Brenda has her very own cell phone. You go, girl!!

Mikie said . . .

2009-04-18T19:00:00.000-07:00

My dryer doesn't work all that well - it seems to take a LONG time to dry a load. It's fairly new, I was thinking that the problem might be with the ventilation. Mikie suggested I use my leaf blower to blow all the lint out of the wall vent. So I did. I looked outside to see if my house was covered in lint - but I didn't see anything. While I had the dryer away from the wall I thought I'd clean out the tubing. Hmmm . . . what to do, what to do. Ah!! The leaf blower! I took the tubing outside - turned on the blower . . . oh my! There was a lot of . . . . stuff in there!!! And then I was thinking, hmmmm. What else could I use the leaf blower for - since I have it out already? I have a cat - the cat creates a lot of hairballs that collect behind the couch, behind the piano, under the TV cabinet. I have tile floors and french doors in the living room. Ha!!! I opened the doors, turned on the leaf blower and blew it all out of the house! I really hope I didn't create a high pollution advisory for tomorrow!

They're here!!

2009-04-14T20:37:00.000-07:00

The commemorative tires are here!!! They had to be ordered, I guess my car takes a strange size - don't ask me what size, I don't know, I'm a girl. They came in on Monday and of course I'm at work and can't leave to go have them installed. Jeremy started another semester at the Art Institute on Monday. He called at noon on his way home to tell me about his class. Hmmm . . . He's on his way HOME, the tires are near HOME, he has to sort of pass my work on his way. So, My Good Child, would you mind trading me vehicles and getting the tires put on my car for me? Of course not - he LOVES me!!! What a good son. The commemorative handbag is way prettier than the tires, though.

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T08:56:00.000-07:00

Isn't this cute? Jenna, my good child, came to help me with the bunny rolls yesterday AND she brought ME an Easter basket. Full of CHOCOLATE! Mmmmm. She's beautiful, smart AND thoughtful. I did a good job somewhere along the line. I love her!!

Happy Easter - I'll see most of you this afternoon.

Looks ARE deceiving

2009-04-11T17:53:00.000-07:00

Rizzy looks very cute and cuddly. On rare occasions, he can be. Very rare occasions. Don't be fooled. When he's done being cuddled, he WILL bite you.

He is a very strange cat.

How to make bunny rolls

2009-04-11T14:30:00.000-07:00

Borrow an extra bread machine.Let the machines do their thing, then call LittleTreat to help you.

Roll the dough into a strip, twist it . . . .
...add a tail and let them rise!

Yummy!!!

Remember?

2009-04-06T20:22:00.000-07:00

Introducing . . .

2009-04-04T15:45:00.000-07:00

. . . the 2008 Income Tax Refund Commemorative Handbag.
(It's way more photogenic than the Commemorative Tires I have to buy.)

I crack myself up.

Happy Birthday, Daddy

2009-03-29T05:52:00.000-07:00

Daddy had saved this letter from Mom - written six years ago. We were so lucky to have them as an example of what love really is. She wrote:

"Happy Birthday, Love,

Rachel Minteer asked one time what mature love was. My answer, as usual, was duh!

This year you have shown me in so many ways the meaning of love.

It is not material gifts - okay, you have gifted me with a dish drainer, lawn mower and weed eater.

Love is sitting thru numerous test & doctor's appointments & waiting thru surgeries without complaining.

It is looking at my scarred body & not flinching.

It is cleaning my overnight bag, fixing meals, washing dishes, making the bed, vacuuming, feeding the dog & all the other daily chores.

Without you there wouldn't be four fabulous children & a passel of grands & greats.

But don't get too puffed up. You can still irritate me - you wouldn't iron my pillowcase!

I love you,

Carol"

Happy Birthday, Daddy.

My 5 Things

2009-03-28T21:24:00.000-07:00

5 things I was doing 5 years ago:

Working for an Infiniti dealership
Dating Marlon and keeping it a secret from everyone at work
Remodeling my house
Watching my son graduate from High School
Teaching my daughter how to drive

5 things on my list to do today:

Laundry
Search for a volt meter at Dad's house
Lunch with Jeremy
Balance my checkbook
Make a grocery list

5 things I would do with a million dollars:

Pay for Jeremy and Jenna's college
Payoff Brenda and Marlon's houses
Go to Hawaii
Put in a pool
Build a shoe closet

5 places I have lived:

6th Avenue
Alma School and 8th Ave
Stewart and Southern
Brown and Center
Southern and Higley
(those are ALL of the places I have lived!!!)

5 jobs I have held:

Clerk at Card and Camera Corral
Accounting clerk at a mortgage company
Fabricator in a computer chip clean room
Full time Mommy
Payroll Goddess

For Kathy

2009-03-28T09:55:00.001-07:00

Kathy couldn't picture me wearing this kind of shoe. My sweet Kathy: Your Aunt Lori has quite the shoe collection! Maybe I'll post some of them sometime. Love you!!! <3

She's cooking now!

2009-03-28T08:19:00.001-07:00

Jenna called and wanted to know if I would teach her how to make one of her favorite meals. I guess she's getting tired of the Wendy's drive thru or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

She is a fast learner! It turned out really, really good. What did we make? Paprika chicken, smashed potatoes and roasted asparagus. Who knew that a vegetable would be something that Jenna would actually request?

My Good Child

2009-03-26T20:55:00.000-07:00

I got an email from Jeremy today with this picture attached.

He was out with his girlfriend and saw these. He thought they looked like me. I couldn't agree more. They're pink! They're covered with those little letters that Brenda likes so much! They were on sale! And - what a coincidence - they had my size! He didn't have a choice. They HAD to come home with him.

Aaahhhh. Wasn't that sweet?

Spring

2009-03-25T18:20:00.000-07:00

On page 22 of the Gillespie Fun-Times Cookbook (under a recipe for Ground Beef Chop Suey, submitted by Ginger Mullins Gillespie) is this from Mom: "A baby is God's opinion that the world should go on." Maybe that's why there is Spring. To remind us that the world keeps going on. With us or without us. Three weeks ago the tree in my front yard was completely bare. Today, it's a reminder that life goes on.

Happy Birthday, Marlon!

2009-03-18T17:43:00.000-07:00

Saint Patrick's Day also happens to be Marlon's birthday. He got an early birthday present when his daughter, Monique, came to visit a couple of weeks ago. Do they share a smile, or what?!!

We had dinner at PF Chang's (avoiding any Irish type pub - he may have a St. Patty's birthday, but not the craving for green beer).

I'm just crazy about this man!! Happy Birthday, Marlon Darlin'!

Pi Day

2009-03-14T17:28:00.000-07:00

According to Wikipedia: Pi Day is a holiday held to celebrate the mathematical constant

π

(pi). Pi Day is observed on March 14, 3/14 being the first three digits of pi. So in honor of Pi Day Jeremy made buffalo chicken pizza pies for dinner. Yummy. This was followed by apple pie and peach pie for dessert. Mmm Mmm. Happy Pi Day - enjoy!!

aaaahhhhh, Coach

2009-03-12T22:22:00.000-07:00

Yes, it was I who said, "Why would you spend so much money on a purse?" And then I bought one. And loved it, so I bought another, and loved it, too. And then they were lonely, so I gave them some friends. And my beautiful sister needed to borrow a handbag - so I shared. And now she has been sucked in. And it's all JENNA's fault!!!

Retail Therapy

2009-03-08T15:27:00.001-07:00

I felt this incredible void in my life today - one that could only be filled with a really, really cute pair of shoes. Most of you know that I broke my foot last July which limited my shoe shopping to "sensible" shoes that I could wear after the cast came off and I could get out of the walking boot. That was 2 pair of sensible shoes in October. I'm DUE!!! So . . . . these had to come home with me:

A pair of shoes isn't really going to fill the void. But at least I'll look cute when I'm out and about pretending to be OK.

A Time to Weep

2009-03-04T17:57:00.000-08:00

Saying good-bye to Daddy was hard. I knew it would be hard. What does a Daddy's girl do without her Daddy? Mike prepared a beautiful tribute to our Dad. One of Dad's favorite gospel songs was sung. Friends spoke about Dad's wonderful sense of humor. By far the hardest part was the inurnment service. Seeing both Mom and Dad's names on the plaque was so sad. And I so wanted to touch my Mom, just once. She was right there - waiting for Daddy. I am comforted knowing they are together.

What time is it in Budapest?

2009-02-24T22:27:00.000-08:00

Time for Daddy to go home. I love you, Daddy.

Happy Feet

2009-02-15T14:50:00.000-08:00

My beautiful sister, Brenda, treated her daughter Cassie and me to pedicures and lunch today. Pedicure's by Tiffany, lunch by Carraba's. Mmmmm. Can you tell which toes belong to which girl?

Where Does All The Money Go?

2009-02-05T17:10:00.000-08:00

Dear God,

2009-02-04T18:27:00.000-08:00

Thank you for keeping my baby safe. I'm sorry your angels have had to work overtime watching over her. Remember when she was little and I had her convinced that the car wouldn't run unless the seatbelts were buckled? I hope I'm forgiven for that little untruth. She always wears her seatbelt, it's a habit, and who knows what would have happened if she didn't have it on last Friday. Thank you for giving Allen Breed the smarts to invent airbags. It might have given her a bloody nose, but it also helped keep her from going through the windshield. She walked away from her accident with a couple of bruises because you were watching over her. Thank you. I love her and I'm so glad she's safe.

Love, Lori

Virtual cookie

2009-02-04T05:18:00.000-08:00

In case you wanted the visual of the Groundhog Day cookies mentioned by MisterG below, here it is

(photo courtesy of MisterG)

Honor Thy Father

2009-02-02T18:21:00.000-08:00

It's Groundhog Day. Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow today, there will be 6 more weeks of winter. Hey - it was 72 degrees today. Bring on more winter!!! A tradition started by Daddy (and followed by the rest of us because we inherited his sick sense of humor), breakfast on this day should be pancakes and sausage. Why? Because sausage is: (go ahead, say it with me) ground hog. So, to honor my father, and because I still don't do breakfast, dinner tonight was pancakes and sausage. Pass the syrup.

First act of independence

2009-02-02T18:13:00.000-08:00

My younger baby decided to move out. NOT because life with Mom is excruciatingly painful (or unbearable or anything other than wonderful), but because she wants to be independent. She moved out of the house on Friday morning. On Friday afternoon, she totaled her car. (link to her blog for her version) She's OK, everybody else is OK, the only thing not OK is the poor little Sentra. Welcome to life on your own. It's always something . . . . I heard that somewhere.

Mmmm, meatloaf

2009-01-25T10:45:00.000-08:00

I'm making meatloaf today. Mmmmm. It reminded me of two stories:

Jeremy was probably 9, we went to Black-Eyed Pea for dinner. Do you remember Black-Eyed Pea? I used to LOVE it!! Chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes and gravy. Yummmmy!! I think in a former life I was from the South. I don't know how I don't weigh 300 pounds. My favorite things are fried or covered in gravy. But I digress. We go to Black-Eyed Pea for dinner. Jeremy ordered "Mom's Meatloaf". When the waitress brings it, he looks at it - and looks accusingly at me and says, "This isn't like your meatloaf." Like it was MY fault that Black-Eyed Pea didn't make meatloaf like I do! He didn't like it at all. And that secret little part of me went, "Yeah!!! Mine is better, neener neener neener!"

The other story it reminded me of is my brother Mike the Mechanic. He said once, "The best way to get grease out from under your nails after working on a car is to make meatloaf." He was totally kidding . . . . I think. But just in case . . . . I wouldn't recommend the meatloaf at Mikie's. Go for the Roast Turkey or the Dutch Oven Cherry Cobbler instead. :)

Good news/bad news

2009-01-20T17:08:00.000-08:00

Whenever anyone starts a conversation with you saying, "I have good news and bad news" you know that even if the good news is really, really good . . . it's not going to be good news. So started the conversation with my boss today. "I have good news and bad news," he said. The bad news is that car sales have not picked up. December was a much better month than October and November, but still not great. Two more people were going to be laid off from our office staff. The good news is I wasn't one of them. The bad news, the remaining staff are being asked to take a pay cut. Ouch.

I am very, very thankful to still have a job. Truly.

Real Men

2009-01-15T18:33:00.000-08:00

Real Men use pink computers.

Real Men ride in pink jeeps.

Daddy said . . .

2009-01-10T13:09:00.000-08:00

I got to have lunch with Daddy today at our favorite place: Chilero's. Carne Asada Tacos. Yummmmm. We were talking about how much we like reading the family blogs.

Daddy said, "I don't need a blog. I don't have anything to say."

I cracked up. Full out busted up laughing. I told him, "Oh just wait. I'm posting that. I'm SURE I'll get some comments on that one!" So . . . what do you think? Daddy doesn't have anything to say?!!!

Perspective

2009-01-06T19:54:00.001-08:00

Some see an addiction, I see options.

Breakfast of champions

2009-01-03T15:56:00.000-08:00

My family cracks me up. Chips and dip, cookies and cheetos for breakfast!!! My kind of eating!!! I really don't like breakfast. Yes, I know, it's the most important meal of the day blah blah blah. I'm just not ready to eat until about 10:30 in the morning. And by then I'm HUNGRY. If I could have brunch every day, that would be perfect, especially if it was served with a mimosa. Yumm. But since I'm at my desk by 7:30 every morning the everyday brunch idea just won't work. So what am I supposed to eat? I don't like cereal- cold milk on dry cereal. Yuck. Mushy. Icky. I'm picky about my eggs. I really don't like eggs. I can eat them if they're scrambled - even better if they're scrambled with some ham and cheese in them. But I won't take the time in the morning before work to cook something. My favorite things to grab for breakfast and how I justify them:

Sun Chips. Made from whole grains. Says so on the bag.
Oatmeal cookies. Round granola bars. Add raisins and you also add another food group.
Tater tots. Portable hash browns. Potatoes are a vegie, right?
Cheeseburger. I LOVE a warmed up Burger King double cheeseburger for breakfast! Or a warmed up Arby's roast beef sandwich.
Pumpkin pie. The traditional Lori's family day after Thanksgiving breakfast. Aren't all the food groups represented in pumpkin pie?

I'll pass on the cold pizza. That's just gross.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-01T08:03:00.000-08:00

Wishing you all a wonderful new year full of fun and surprises, joy and laughter.

I got up this morning and went to the gym. Then I came home and ate chips and dip. It balances out, right?

electronics overload

2008-12-28T11:26:00.000-08:00

Currently in my house there are:

3 people
1 cat
1 desktop computer
3 laptop computers
2 printers
2 iPods
3 cell phones
3 DVD players
5 televisions

We either have way too many electronics, or we need to learn to share.

Personal trainer

2008-12-26T18:14:00.000-08:00

If you've met my man, it's obvious he knows his way around a gym. I asked him to go with me tonight and show me the proper way to use some of the equipment in the gym. He works odd hours so I don't get to see as much of him as I'd like, so it was good to just be able to spend time with him, but then to spend time with him doing something he's passionate about was really special. But, oh boy, did he kick my bottom (as Sienna would say). I'm gonna be feeling it tomorrow!! It'll be a good kind of hurt, right?

Don't make me cry

2008-12-25T08:40:00.000-08:00

They did it again. They made me cry. I know . . . . you're all thinking, "what's new? you cry at TV commercials." I get that genetically from my Dad. My kids went way above and beyond for me this Christmas. They totally ignored me (gee - what a surprise). They were given a $5 limit for Christmas and they had to spend that $5 at a Dollar Store. They didn't. Instead, they pooled their resources, called in some favors and got me a SWEET laptop WITH a custom paint job.

Equal Opportunity Tree

2008-12-24T15:03:00.000-08:00

Every year, Jeremy and Jenna get a new ornament for the tree. I try to pick one that matches what they are interested in or something they've done that year. It's easy to tell which ornament belong to which child. For the last couple of years, Jeremy wasn't living at home, so there were no boy ornaments on the tree. It was a GIRLY tree: bears, shoes, Barbies. This year, when they decorated the tree, Jeremy was trying to counteract the girly. That last Barbie looks kind of peeved that she has to share the limelight with a Superman lunchbox.

Home again

2008-12-12T13:58:00.000-08:00

My house is once again inhabited by my babies. Jenna moved back from NAU today. She has decided she would rather go to Scottsdale Community College. She can work on the same degree (Hotel/Restaurant Management) at Community College rates. I borrowed Jeremy's truck and my lovely mother-in-law, Jeri, drove up to Flagstaff with me to bring back 4 months worth of . . . . stuff. It will be . . . . .interesting(!) having everybody under one roof again.

Missing Mom

2008-12-09T18:32:00.000-08:00

I get really emotional around Christmas time. I don't know why - if I knew why, I would fix it. But I get very sentimental, and sometimes I get kind of weepy. Last night I was driving home from work and got very sad because I miss my Mom.

I mentioned "the book." A lot of the recipes in "the book" came from a magazine that Mom sent me a subscription for. It's called Simple and Delicious. She ordered it for me several years ago when I was working, going to school, raising two kids and was trying to figure out what in the world I was going to feed them that wouldn't take hours to fix. I've really enjoyed it, and every year she kept renewing the subscription. The January/February issue would come in December with a note attached to it that said "Someone who thinks a lot of you sent you this subscription. Enjoy." So I stop at the mailbox last night and there is the January/February issue, with the note attached, "someone who thinks a lot you sent you this subscription. Enjoy. Love, Mom."
I had a big boo hoo over it. A really big boo hoo. For quite a while. My absolutely fabulous Daddy keeps renewing the subscription, because that's what Mom would do. And I really appreciate it. And it got the reaction you thought it would, MisterG.

It goes in the book

2008-12-02T19:43:00.000-08:00

Years ago, whenever a recipe I made turned out well and met with Jeremy and Jenna's approval, I would add it to my "Recipe" file on my computer. I print them out and put them in a three ring binder (with the plastic sheet protectors so it holds up well in the kitchen). It has become the ultimate compliment when I try something new and one of the kids says "It goes in the book." When Jeremy moved out of the house a couple of years ago, I printed his favorite recipes, put them in a binder and gave it to him with a few kitchen essentials as a housewarming gift. Since he's moved back into the house - he was looking through my book and decided he needed the 2008 updated version - I've added some yummy stuff.

So last night, Jeremy and I are watching Guy Fieri on the Food Network. Guy was making a grown up version of one of my staples when the kids were little and I was working full time AND going to school: chicken tenders and macaroni and cheese. He was making Awesome Pretzel Chicken Tenders and Mac Daddy Mac' and Cheese. You can get the recipes here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/guy-off-the-hook/downhome-diner/index.html Jeremy and I made this for dinner tonight. Oh MAN is it good!!! Man oh man oh man!!! The best part: Jeremy said, "It goes in the book."

Happy Birthday, Jeremy

2008-11-20T17:51:00.001-08:00

Tomorrow, November 21st is my baby boy's birthday. He'll be 23. It doesn't seem possible! Where was I and what was I doing when this happened? Parent's always say, "it was just yesterday when he was a little boy" and it's TRUE!! It was 20 years ago when he met Mickey Mouse for the first time. 20 years!! He was the sweetest, cuddliest little boy with a smile that lit up a room. Now he's a big teddy bear of a guy - and his smile still lights up a room. I'm so proud to be his Mama. I love you, my boy!!!

Must Have Strawberry Pretzel Salad

2008-11-16T14:11:00.000-08:00

Strawberry-Pretzel Salad

2 cups coarsely crushed pretzels
3/4 cup margarine, melted
3 Tbsp + ½ cup sugar
1 pkg. (8oz) cream cheese, softened
1 container (8oz) frozen Cool Whip, thawed
1 pkg. (6oz) strawberry Jell-O
2 cups boiling water
2 pkgs (10oz each) frozen sliced strawberries, thawed

Combine crushed pretzels, margarine and 3 Tbsp. sugar; mix well. Press into a 13x9x2 inch baking dish. Bake in a preheated 350-degree oven 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely.In a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer, beat cream cheese andremaining 1/2 cup sugar until well blended. Fold in whipped topping. Spread over cooled pretzel crust. Refrigerate until chilled.In a mixing bowl, dissolve gelatin in boiling water. Add strawberries with their juice. Pour over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate until firm. Cut into squares to serve.

Serves a bunch. If Rachael AND Ashlynn are coming to dinner, better make two pans.

Date night

2008-11-15T19:23:00.000-08:00

It's not very often that I have an actual date on a Saturday night. I was lucky tonight that one of my favorite dinner companions was free. He's always fun to spend time with. He has great stories, he's a good listener, he can talk to ANYBODY about anything - never a lull in the conversation. And he knows a lot about a lot of stuff! A change in plans doesn't faze him a bit. I had wanted to go to a favorite place for chicken fried steak. When we got there - we found it's no longer open for dinner. It's open for breakfast and lunch. Not a problem - he could name several other places that serve good chicken fried steak, plan B at the ready. I don't know how he does it, but all the girls want to spend time with him! He was bragging about picking up a sweet young college thing just last weekend and having dinner with her. He had lunch with a different college girl the month before. I don't know how he spreads all that love around without making anybody jealous. He has a knack for it - and he keeps us wanting more. I love you, Daddy!

Must haves

2008-11-15T09:50:00.000-08:00

My list of Thanksgiving must haves (in order of importance):

my family
turkey
mashed potatoes and gravy
stuffing
pumpkin pie with whipped cream
strawbery pretzel salad (yes, this is a SALAD, not a dessert. If it was a dessert, it would be called strawberry pretzel dessert)
green vegetable (I don't REALLY want a green vegetable, but you have to have one, Mom said)

What's on your Thanksgiving must haves list?