Shouldn't I get paid for this?

Dead Eye

2008-11-13T19:01:00.001-08:00

For a number of reasons, I am currently contemplating the purchase of a firearm.
I went to an indoor shooting range at lunch today with two guys from work to actually see what firing a gun would feel like. And also to try a couple different guns out so I'd be able to make an informed decision. I found out two things:

1. I liked it.

2. I'm a pretty good shot.

There's a cluster of holes in about the "1:30" area of the target in the second black ring that were from the .22.
I shot that one pretty consistantly high.
Then I tried the .357 with .38 shells. That's the cluster of green tinged holes in the middle.
It had a really nice sight on the top, so was a bit easier to aim.

Any suggestions as to a suitable choice for me are welcome. I'm going to exercise my 2nd amendment rights while I still can.

Score!

2008-11-08T13:28:00.001-08:00

Our local scrapbook store is relocating. They have to be out of their old place by tomorrow. I was there last week when everything in the back room was 75% off. Let me tell you, that was nothing!

The deal today was anything left in the store that you could fit into a shopping basket (flush with the top) for a set price.

Here's what I got...

The best deals were the Making Memories date stamp I've actually been coveting, the girls each picked out an 8 x 8 album, a couple more mini albums and chip board albums for me, and then tons of embellishments and BLING!

Emily and I figured out the retail value of everything after we got home.

$551.80. Pre-tax.

I spent $40!!

It's going to be a crafty Christmas!

Intimidation

2008-11-03T04:55:00.000-08:00

I was at the mall yesterday and came to a realization. I cannot bring myself to cross the threshold of a Hollister store. Is it because I know none of the clothes will fit me? I don’t think that’s it. Maybe I’m afraid that the skinny little girls that work there will be looking at me and judging me. “She’s not thinking that will fit her, is she?” Not that I’d buy anything there for myself anyway, but I’d shop for Katie. She can wear anything. And it would be obvious that the size 2 I’m looking at is a gift. Right?

But I can’t do it.

Does this look inviting to you?

Happy Gotcha Day!

2008-10-31T09:42:00.001-07:00

It was three years ago today that Zhu Jian Xia became Maggie Jian Xia Berridge.

The memories are even more vivid for me because a family from the dance studio just came home with their new daughter, who is about the same age Maggie was. Every time I see her, I think "Wow, did Maggie look that shell shocked?". But to see Maggie now, you'd never guess how difficult those first few months were.

Here's a few reminders of the special day.

This next one's a family favorite...

And to prove she eventually got over it, here's a recent photo...

We love you, Maggie!

Identity Issues

2008-10-29T05:38:00.001-07:00

Maggie is aware of, and often bothered by, the fact that she looks different than most of the people in our community. She routinely laments her shiny, straight, dark hair, her beautiful dark skin, her non-existent eyelashes and her little, flat-ish nose, all the things that we think make her beautiful. If it were up to her, she’d be Barbie.

We were at a party this weekend where Maggie was playing with Katie’s two cousins, who are Japanese. Martha witnessed this exchange in the kitchen as they ran through.

Maggie: “So we’re the same, right?”
N and L look at each other, then at Maggie, shrug shoulders and respond “Yeah”
Maggie again says : “We’re the same?”
N and L say “Yeah”

And off they run.

Wii -ner

2008-10-28T05:39:00.000-07:00

Thanks to all of you who contributed to the 08-09 Dance Fund for the wii giveaway.
In order for those that do not get chosen to have time to procure Christmas gifts – we gave it away today. There were 11 different contributors, all with numbers from 24-50.
I went to a trusty online random number generator to select the winner

With 5 of the 11 contributors as witnesses, the ‘Get Numbers’ button was pushed…

And the winner is…..

Tim Laird!!

Thanks again to all who participated.

Star Girl

2008-10-21T05:27:00.000-07:00

Emily is currently reading Star Girl by Jerry Spinelli in her English class.

The novel recounts the junior year of a boy named Leo at Mica Area High School, when a new student, "Stargirl" Caraway, sends the school, which up until that point had nothing unusual about it, into an uproar. Her unusual antics include wearing kimonos, Indian buckskin, 1920s flapper dresses and pioneer dresses to school. She carries her pet rat, Cinnamon, around with her in a bag with a life-size sunflower painted on it. During every class periods she puts a table cloth and a vase with a daisy in it on her desk. When it rains, instead of running inside like the other students, she runs outside to dance. She strums a ukulele during lunch every day and sings "Happy Birthday" to kids she has never met. She cheers for everyone at football games, including the opposing team.

At conferences last night, I was told by the English teacher that Emily is their Star Girl.

I couldn’t be prouder.

OK, OK

2008-10-08T09:26:00.001-07:00

I've been told to update. I was trying to leave the wii post up in order to make it easier to get in on the fun, but apparently Katie needs to know what's going on at home.

The fall school, dance, soccer schedule is in full swing and seems to be manageable, thanks in large part to the car pool participants.

Last weekend I took Emily's Girl Scout troop up to Newaygo for the night. The girls planned all the activities and the menu, then rotated prep and clean-up duties. The weather was perfect and we had a great time. Especially because I didn't have to do all the work!

Maggie has been tearing up the soccer fields on weekends. She has scored at least one goal in her last three games. Last night at practice, her coach told me she was a 'little spark plug'!
GO ORANGE TIGERS!!

This weekend we will miss the soccer game, but are looking forward to the Halloween Haunt activities at King's Island with our friends. The Cedar Faire season passes have been well worth the money.

Wii!!!!

2008-08-12T12:54:00.001-07:00

OK ladies and gentlemen.

In an effort to generate some much needed revenue for the upcoming dance season I am giving away a Wii!

That's right, I said GIVING AWAY.

How do you become the lucky recipient of this technological wonder? It's easy. Just look over to your right a bit and you'll see the CHIP IN button on my sidebar. For every $10 donation you make you will get a number assigned by me. (I'll email you with your number). Once I've got 50 numbers, I'll use a random number generator online to choose the lucky number that will receive the wii. Easy, eh? So, donate!! My girls will thank you, and I will thank you, and you'll have a 1 in 50 chance to get a wii! If you want better odds, just donate more!

Books that cause me distress

2008-08-11T18:28:00.000-07:00

I took INKSPELL up north with me this weekend. It's the sequal to INKHEART by Cornelia Funke. The first book was very imaginitive and wonderful. I had high hopes for the second. Imagine my dismay as I neared the end of the 633 pages and realized with about 20 pages to go that there was NO WAY the book would be able to wrap up all the loose ends in a satisfying package within the remaining pages. I kept reading, hoping I was wrong and Cornelia would pull some amazing twist to tie a neat little bow. Alas, it was not to be. How can an author expect us to read through that many pages and NOT FINISH THE BOOK!?!?!

Especially when the third book isn't even available in the states yet!

Reading is supposed to make me happy.
I am not happy.

conflict of interest

2008-08-04T05:37:00.000-07:00

I’ve done quite a bit of buying and selling on Craigslist recently. I’ve sold Katie’s Honda Spree and our pop-up camper. I’ve bought our new vacation home, many of the items to furnish it, and most recently I found uniforms for Emily to wear at Blue Lake this week, saving myself about $80.

My problem is the incredible guilt I feel using Craigslist when I know that the newspaper industry, our bread and butter, is struggling so much to survive.

Kidefinition

2008-08-01T06:15:00.000-07:00

Inspired by Maggie after using the port-a-jons at Picnic Pops last night:

Hanitizer: A supplement or alternative to hand washing with soap and water. A variety of preparations are available, including gels, foam and liquid solutions.

Dance placements

2008-07-30T04:15:00.000-07:00

You may have seen the waiting mailbox post a few days ago. The days before and after dance placements for the coming year are recieved are very stressful. We love our studio and all the teachers and know that they do their best with placements and have the best interests of all the dancers in mind. The follow-up 'what teams are your girls on?' and 'can we carpool?' phone calls are at a frenzy for a couple days.

This is going to be a great year for the Berridge girls, although it might be a bit hard on Emily. Emily has been dancing for longer than Maggie has been alive. She takes it very seriously and has worked hard to improve herself in all disciplines over the years. She got great placements on 3 small groups - tap, jazz and ballet, and then large groups and lines also in tap, jazz, hip-hop and lyrical and will also be in the production number.
It was a bit difficult for her to see the dances her little sister was offered. Small groups again in tap and jazz, with a ballet added. The large groups to go with those as well, along with hip-hop and production. And here's the hard part...Maggie was offered a tap trio and solo. We are very excited for her, but it did take a couple days for Emily to come to terms with the hard facts, summed up beautifully by Aunt Stacey "Cute always trumps hard work."

Projects

2008-07-29T14:37:00.000-07:00

In an attempt to justify the large amount of scrapbook supplies I have in my basement, I occasionally whip up some sort of crafty home decor item.

Check out the sign and memo board I made for the kitchen up at the lake.

The words for the sign are courtesy of my friend Cara.

And the memo board was a kit, but it came with some dark black and red papers. I replaced with the fun, bright colors to go with the kitchen.

Contest!!

2008-07-28T05:55:00.000-07:00

Ok faithful readers (both of you!) , here's my chance to actually give something back to those of you who follow along with my goofy life.

Rick and I walked around the lake Saturday morning.
At one point, in the middle of the road, we come across a spread out pile of poo with about a 10 foot trail of toilet paper streaming from one of the 'nuggets'.
We were cracking up and for the life of both of us could not come up with a plausible story for how it got there.

We finished our walk and told Em and her friend about it. Of course they wanted to see. So I grabbed my camera and we drove back.
Someone had cleaned it up by the time we got there so you'll have to use mental pictures to inspire you. The contest is simple. Come up with the best story of how that little tableau appeared in the road. You have until Friday, August 1. Keep it family friendly, as the favorite will be chosen by majority vote of Rick, Em, Maggie and myself.
Winner gets a custom made, refillable journal hand made by yours truly.

Cue Tom Petty

2008-07-28T05:06:00.001-07:00

Emily thought dance team placements for next year were supposed to be here by last weekend. I thought they were supposed to be mailed by the weekend. Either way, she'll probably be out there every half hour this afternoon.

The waiting is the hardest part...

Sold!

2008-07-24T16:52:00.000-07:00

She's been good to us for the brief year that we spent together, but we have a new relationship now. We've moved on to bigger and better. But don't worry, we've found a family to step into our shoes. It's a lovely couple from Grand Haven who will take her away for nice weekends and appreciate her for who she is.

Buh bye little Jayco.

Now to decide how to spend the money...

In the market for a camper?

2008-07-18T06:50:00.001-07:00

http://grandrapids.craigslist.org/rvs/759442830.html

Where have we been?

2008-07-10T14:11:00.001-07:00

At the lake, of course!

We had a fabulous 4th of July weekend with our friends, despite some plumbing issues.
Jay was incredible and probably saved us a couple hundred dollars in potential holiday weekend plumbing fees.
I've reserved a copy of The Complete Guide to Mobile Home Repair at our library so we'll be prepared for the next crisis.

This week is dance auditions. A gruelling two weeks will follow, with the girls running to the mailbox each day to see if their team placements have arrived. At least Emily has camp for the first week, so her mind will be otherwise occupied.

Girl Scout Day Camp

2008-06-27T18:11:00.000-07:00

After a very busy, mosquito filled week, I am happy to say that my first attempt at Girl Scout Day Camp Director was a success. The girls all seemed to have a great time. I couldn't have done it without my good friend Joy
and her daughter Kendall.And of course the highlight of the week was our special guest author, my sister Stacey.

She was awesome and all the girls loved learning about the writing process and secrets about The Fairy Painting. Thanks to all who made it a great week.

Random 'tweener thought

2008-06-13T07:02:00.000-07:00

We were driving home from Cedar Point the other night and Maggie asked where we were.
Mom: Canton
Maggie: What's next?
Mom: Novi

Emily: Those are both very negative sounding places, CANTon and NOvi.

Hair Hair!!

2008-06-11T16:50:00.000-07:00

School is out.

Dance performances are done for the year.

Time for a fresh haircut!

Maggie went first.

This is before, of course

She complained the whole time that I told them to take too much off.

Here's the results. Healthy and shiny.

Mom was next. Here's before - frumpy dumpy

And after.

Let's use the summer humidity as a styling too.

Also note the V-neck Cedar Point suntan.

And here's the most drastic.

This chickie's hair was getting so long.

It was also very damaged due to all the dance ponytails and buns.
So...
How stinkin' cute is this?
Look how shiny and healthy it is.

And what a kid.

She made sure that they took 10 inches off

so we could send the hair in to Locks of Love.

Of course by the time we were done Maggie wanted to get

back in the chair and get hers chopped off, too.

Troublesome new friend

2008-06-04T12:50:00.001-07:00

I brought Mary Boleyn to work with me today (The Other Boleyn Girl). I thought we'd be able to get aquainted over lunch and then she'd sit quietly next to me while I finished my work day. She's been distracting me all afternoon, practically nudging me at times so I'll pay attention to her.

Get Away

2008-06-02T04:13:00.000-07:00

Don't have the vacation time or budget for an exciting vacation this year?

Read this article by my sister for a low cost alternative.

Keeping the balls in the air

2008-05-29T04:41:00.000-07:00

Here's my weekend -
Friday night
4-8 Dance end of year picnic/carnival
6-7:30 Maggie goes to birthday party of a friend (on Maggie's birthday. I warned the mother)
6-10 Em has school Bible study end of year hoo-hah

Saturday
8 am - Maggie soccer game - bring snack
10 am - Emily soccer game - team picnic after at assistant coaches house

Sometime Saturday I have to bake and decorate two cakes for the Family Partnership fundraiser for the Girl Scout end of year bridging/celebration at 6:00. And not forget to bring 2 crock pots, 2 coolers, rolls of tickets and the 'bridge' that's stored in my attic, plus all the cakes.

Between now and then I have to order two cakes from Costco (do I need 2 for 100 people?), come up with a 'carb' side dish for the dance picnic. Buy a birthday gift for Lindsey. Make a dozen leader thank you gifts. And somehow make Maggie feel special on her birthday - Friday.
We'll probably drive up to the lake on Saturday night right after the GS thing so I can decompress all day Sunday.

Stay tuned to see if I actually pull all this off!

It's official

2008-05-28T05:21:00.000-07:00

We met in the parking lot of the Bunker Hill Chillin’ Grill to complete the transaction. I felt like a junkie. We handed over the big check, signed a few papers (ok, that never happens in drug deals) and then were given the key to our summer place –hereafter named the “cottage” (quotes required!). It’s on the shores of Brooks Lake in Newaygo, a mere 47 miles from home.

We take possession this weekend.
Sometime between birthday parties, end of year picnics for dance and Girl Scouts, and final soccer games, you can bet we’ll be making the drive up to check the place out with the eyes of new owners. Picture us now, standing arm in arm, surveying our domain.

Oh yeah, life is good.

Get Out!

2008-05-20T05:16:00.001-07:00

Here it is...our new home away from home!

Let me know when you can come visit!!

Dance Comp IV

2008-05-19T09:45:00.000-07:00

This past weekend was Spotlight, our last competition of 2008. Adjudicated awards are Emerald, Sapphire, Ruby and Diamond
Maggie's dances were entered in the Novice category and did extremely well.
Small Groups
A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes-Diamond
Overall Ruby (second place novice small groups), Special Judge's Award - "Future Stars"
Crazy Little Thing Called Love-Diamond
Category Winner (novice tap small groups), Overall Diamond (first place novice small groups)
Large Groups/Lines
Who Let The Frogs Out?-Diamond
Overall Ruby (second place novice large/lines)
Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo-Diamond
Overall Diamond (first place novice large/lines), Special Judge's Award -"Stars of Tomorrow"

Emily's groups did very well, also, especially her jazz small group, Hamster Dance

Small Groups
Dance to the Music-Ruby
Hamster Dance-Diamond
Overall Emerald (4th place Jr. small groups)
Large Groups
The Green Room-Ruby
Lines
Seasons of Love-Diamond
Wild Wild West-Diamond
I Saw Him Standing There-Diamond
Sister Act-Diamond

I'm very proud of both of them, plus the rest of our dance family. It was a fantastic season.

Grand Rapids Festival of the Arts is June 6-8 and will be the last time the girls will be performing these numbers.

GOOOOOOAAAALL!!!!!

2008-05-11T16:33:00.000-07:00

Rick is coaching Emily's AYSO soccer team again this year and they've had a rough year. Saturday's game was finally a turning point. The girls all looked confidant and played really well. In the third quarter the game was tied 1-1.
Then came this awesome play by Emily.

She was playing stryker and was set up in front of the goal just as she should be. The ball came in from the side, right past a pink defender. Em positioned herself and then launched it right by the goalie.

Here are a couple of close-ups of the action.

Notice the ball going past the goalie's shoulder.

Then look at the happy face of our girl!

Our team got their first win of the season.

Way to go, team!!

Politics

2008-04-30T11:22:00.000-07:00

From First Lady to Vice-President...

No, I'm not talking about Hilary.

Katie's boyfriend Andy is the current President of student government at LTU. We've been jokingly referring to her as the first lady for quite some time. Well, Andy is now a lame duck, but Katie was elected as I.F.C. Vice President today. She'll be the person responsible for planning social events for the Fraternities and Sororities.

Way to go, Katie!!

Dance

2008-04-28T10:35:00.001-07:00

Team pictures were this weekend, so of course I took my camera to get some shots in costume.

Here are my two favorites.:

Spring Time in Michigan

2008-04-26T17:49:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we had a high temperature of 81 degrees.
Two 8:00 soccer games this morning and what was the temp? 43.
It's just wrong.

Both girls played hard but I won't post the scores.

How about some pictures, instead?

Super goalie Em stops a few...

...

Maggie up the side And trying to stay warm

Dance Comp 3 in 3D!!!

2008-04-25T12:10:00.000-07:00

Not really in 3D.
I did want to make sure I posted the results from the last competition in Detroit because both the girls' groups have improved so much.
This competition's adjudicated awards are Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze.

Maggie
Crazy Little Thing Called Love - Gold - 3rd Place Overall Petite Small Group
A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes - Gold - 5th Place Overall Petite Small Group
Who Let the Frogs Out? - Silver
Bibbidi Bobbidy Boo - Gold - 4th Place Overall (tie) Petite Large Group

Emily
Dance to the Music - Gold
Hamster Dance - Gold
The Green Room - Silver
Sister Act - Silver
Seasons of Love - Gold - 5th Place Overall Jr. Large Group
Wild, Wild West - Platinum - 4th Place Overall (tie) Jr. Line
I Saw Him Standing There - Platinum 1st Place Overall Jr. Line

Way to go girls!

And the best news is our studio was able to negotiate a fantastic price for pictures of every dance, so I'll have tons of photos in a couple weeks.

Animal Kingdom

2008-04-22T13:48:00.001-07:00

We spent our first day at Disney at Animal Kingdom. None of us had been there before, so we were excited to see it. The best ride by far was Expedition Everest. Very cool. The train even goes up to a piece of track that has been ripped out by the Yeti that lurks everywhere, then you go backwards for a bit to escape. Kilimanjaro Safari was also great. Lots of animals about and it was arranged so you really felt like you were driving right through their yard. It's Tough To Be A Bug was really cute too, but not for anyone with a phobia of creepy crawlies.
We rode all the rides we wanted to and were heading to The Lion King show when it started to pour! At least it was warm out so we didn't mind too much. We would have loved to spend more time there, but due to the rain and waiting family we watched the show then went back to the condo to dry off and drove to Grandma and Grandpa's. It was great to see them, Aunt Becky and Uncle Terry, and Curt and most of his kids. And of course Aunt Jeanne and the Laven's who were down for break, too.

It's been a while...

2008-04-21T14:36:00.000-07:00

So sorry to all (both?) of my faithful readers regarding the lack of updates.
I'll start with the Disney trip which, aside from traveling, could not have gone better. We checked in to our condo booked through www.allstarvacationhomes.com on Saturday afternoon. Fantastic place! Maggie insisted we call it our 'New House' all week. The girls had time for a dip in the pool and then we headed to dinner at Whispering Canyon Café.

Before we left, I picked up a copy of The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World With Kids and HIGHLY recommend this book to any obsessive-compulsive travel planner. I compiled a trip binder with maps from our condo to all of the Parks, Grandma and Grandpa's, and to Downtown Disney. I also included detailed touring plans for each park from The Guide in a heavy duty sheet protector. Each day I grabbed the map and the touring plan, plus frozen water bottles, camera, sunglasses, etc., and off we went.
The touring plans can be customized on a website to fit your specific family's likes and dislikes. I cannot say enough good things about these touring plans. You make a specific plan for each park with details on when to pick up and use the FASTPASSES, plus what order to do all your chosen rides/shows in order to minimize your wait in line. AND IT WORKED! Magic Kingdom was at capacity the two days we were there, and we did so well with our touring plan that we were able to get more than what we had planned done, leave the park for the afternoon (that's in the plan) and come back and repeat our favorites that evening. Maybe I'll rent out my binder. Or even loan it if you ask really nicely.

Happy Birthday Emily!

2008-04-05T19:52:00.000-07:00

We celebrated Emily's birthday as our first day in Florida. We couldn't check in to our condo until 4, so we decided to drive a little ways along the ocean so the girls could see it. We ate lunch at a little cafe and got our feet wet, then drove on to our place very close to Disney.

Maggie had to wait forEVer (45 minutes) for the pool to re-open after some severe thunderstorms rolled through. But the girls eventually got to take a quick dip and then we went to Whispering Canyon Cafe at Disney's Wilderness Lodge for dinner. Much fun was had by all. Emily got to lead a hobby horse Pony Express parade around the dining room and also got a yummy dessert.

Will try to post pictures tomorrow. It's taking too long tonight and I'm egg sauce, Ted!

Dance Comp. II - The Sequel

2008-03-31T14:46:00.000-07:00

The girls had their second competition of the season this weekend at the Macomb Community College Performing Arts Center.
As this is relatively near my sister Stacey's, we used that as an excuse to visit. Plus, I'm cheap and didn't want to spring for a hotel. Plus, she let Maggie sleep in a little on Sunday, and even did the mini dancer double bun hair-do and got her to the venue for me.

We went to dinner Saturday evening with Aunt Stacey, Alicia and Beau, and Katie and Andy (her boyfriend of one year as of tomorrow - YIKES!). Also got to try out Rock Band. If you think Guitar Hero is fun, add a drummer and vocals!
Sunday was a long day for the girls, but they did really well I'm sure in large part due to the support of all who came to watch -Stacey and Alicia, Katie and her friend Holly, and then later, Uncle Chip.
This competition had a rare opportunity - photographs allowed, as long as no flash was used. So Stacey got pictures of a few numbers for us. Maggie's are a little blurry. We figure it's because she was so much smaller on stage.
We got home shortly after 11 and I sent my crusty haired dancers to bed. Thanks to all who came to watch. Results follow the pictures, if you're interested.

Hamster Dance - Em's Jazz small group.
I think there are 10 in the group.

Crazy Choir - A.K.A. Sister Act. Tap Line (a bunch of girls)

A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes. Jazz small.
She's with the same 4 girls for the small tap, too. And yes, I meant 4. I know there are only two others pictured, but there are a total of 5 in the dances, including Maggie.

Scoring for this one was a little different than last time. Highest is Diamond, then Platinum, Gold, Sterling Silver, Silver and Bronze

Maggie
A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes - Gold, 4th Overall
Crazy Little Thing Called Love - Gold, 1st Place Overall
Who Let the Frog's Out? - Gold
Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo - Gold
Overalls for Maggie's groups were for all intermediate entries regardless of age (less than 3 years dance experience or less than 3 hours a week) and I believe the first place for Crazy Little Thing even earned a cash prize!

Emily
Wild, Wild West - Platinum
I Saw Him Standing There - Platinum, 1st Overall for Mini Lines and a choreography award.
Sister Act - Platinum
Hamster Dance - Gold
Dance To The Music - Gold
The Green Room - Gold
Seasons of Love - Gold, 3rd Overall for Jr. Large groups

If you're curious as to why Emily is in both Mini and Junior, those are based on average age of all the dancers in the group. So three of her dances were mini and 4 were junior.

Our studio was by far the largest group there. Chip and I got a chuckle out of the Studio Appreciation "Award" - Body Language got recognized for having the most entries. I think the other studios were pretty sick of hearing our name during the awards. It was a good day for our dancers.

Thanks again to those who shared bedrooms, allowed their lives to be 'taken over', shared video games, did hair, watched, photographed, applauded, etc…

Obsessed

2008-03-26T18:28:00.000-07:00

Emily and I are both weirdly obsessed with this song.

Yael_Naim
We are both pulled toward the television whenever the mac notebook commercial comes on.

Just thought I'd share.

Family

2008-03-24T15:53:00.000-07:00

And now a little salute to my family. Not the one I've built, but the one I was born into.

Here's mom and dad. They are an awesome team in the kitchen. This Easter we had Roast Beast (Prime Rib) to celebrate the sale of their boat Fortune Cookie.

And here, faithful readers, are my siblings. I love them one and all, parents and siblings, for who they are and who they've helped me become.

Yes, that's me in the middle.

And now another family story. I got to take Aubrey with us to mom and dad's for Easter. Everyone had left for church except me, Maggie and Aubrey. Not knowing what the Easter service kid care situation would be, I filled up my big 'grand-mom' bag with snacks, paper and pens, and a small Magna Doodle. Maggie saw that and said "I'll carry this one", meaning the larger (Laptop size) Magna Doodle. I said "No, let's go". She argued a bit, but finally came downstairs after me, grumbling about how she wanted a nicer family.
Later that afternoon as I'm packing up to leave I come across this:

Lucky for her I am not afraid to let my children vent their frustrations.
It actually gave me quite a chuckle.

And I mean it!!

2008-03-21T13:38:00.001-07:00

When Rick and I were first discussing combining our households and building someplace big enough to put everyone, I explained the 'upstairs kids rooms' philosophy of home design. That is, if the kids' rooms are upstairs, and are not exactly at their Brady Bunch best as far as cleanliness goes, no one has to know. In other words, out of sight, out of mind. Hey, it was good enough for my mom, so it's good enough for me.
Mom did get fed up with our mess on occasion and give us a time frame in which to rectify the problem. We'd go up with the best of intentions. Then we'd find a stack of Archie comics and a bar of the world's finest chocolate left over from the band booster fund raiser and, well, get distracted. Hours later, we'd hear her coming up the stairs (they were old, wooden stairs, so we'd always hear her) and then scramble to get things set to right to avoid the grounding or lickin' or whatever the threatened punishment du jour was.

Em's room has been quite neglected lately. We've been pretty busy so I've cut her a little slack. But I did have one of those "I've turned in to my mother" moments this afternoon when she called to see if a couple of her friends could spend the night.
"Get that room clean first", I told her, "Or I'm going to take pictures of it and post them on the blog!!"

Fresh Fish

2008-03-20T13:37:00.000-07:00

Part of my non-paying job profile is cook. Notice I say 'cook', not 'chef'. I do like to prepare nice meals. Sometimes, however, motivation is hard to find. Especially when I spend my time and energy searching for just the right recipe, then preparing a dish that I think is seasoned to perfection, or has a lovely accompanying sauce, only to present it to the….um…..unsophisticated palates living with me and then watch in horror as they liberally sprinkle my carefully prepared masterpiece with salt. Or cover up a delicate sauce with KC Masterpiece. Or worse yet, ketchup! Not only that, but certain heads of the household who shall remain nameless have recently taken to pronouncing the bland, red condiment 'CAT SUP'. Why, you may ask, when it is clearly spelled KETCHUP on the Heinz bottle would anyone pronounce it CAT SUP? You tell me. I have my suspicions. But I digress.
Every once in a while a rare culinary opportunity presents itself and I cannot resist the temptation to pretend that I'm the next Food Network Star.

Rick brought home some Pompano caught right off the beach on his recent vacation in Gulf Shores. Pictured is the successful preparation of Pompano with Crabmeat and Citrus Beurre Blanc. Positive reviews from all the diners. And not a ketchup bottle in sight.

Mystery Chick

2008-03-18T07:24:00.000-07:00

Ran in to Kristen and Aubrey at Target last night. Aubrey was quite intrigued with all the Easter decorations. She was pointing them all out to me. Then she pointed far away and said what sounded like "There's a mystery chick!" We looked around to see what in the heck she was talking about. Sure enough, a mystery chick.

Results!

2008-03-16T05:58:00.000-07:00

The girls before the glam.

We made it through our first competition without a hitch. The new packing system was fantastic. The girls were great. We got there early enough to stake out a corner spot in the dressing room. And the girls were very pleased to find out that Uncle Chip was in the area and got to see all but a couple of their numbers.

Magpie back stage. Yes, the hair is fake.

We had a great day, then stopped for dinner at Cheeseburger in Paradise with some friends. The girls were quite a hit when the live music started and they made their own dance floor.

Results follow for those that are interested. If you're not, you can stop reading here.

Each number is scored by the three judges and receives an award based on the combined total.

300-270 Platinum
269.9-260 High Gold
259.9-250 Gold
249.9-240 High Silver
239.9-230 Silver
229.9-220 High Bronze
219.9-210 Bronze
209.9 & Below Honorable Mention

For the record, we didn't see any High Silver or below awarded.

Also, if there is more than one entry for each dance style per age group, a First Place for that group is awarded.

Maggie's results:

A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes - Gold, 1st place
Crazy Little Thing Called Love - Gold
Who Let the Frogs Out- Gold, 1st place
Bibbity Bobbity Boo- High Gold, 1st place

Emily's results:
Wild, Wild West - Platinum
I Saw Him Standing There - High Gold, 1st place
Sister Act - High Gold
The Green Room - Gold
Seasons of Love -Gold, 1st place
Hamster Dance - Gold, 1st place
Dance to the Music - Gold

Then all the different groups scores are compared, regardless of dance style, for the overall winners for 8 & Under and 9-11. None of my girl's dances made the over-alls, but our studio did pretty well. We were quite pleased that the studio was also given the Back Stage Performance Award for being good sports, making quick costume changes, and generally being nice to work with. That's why we love it there!

One other thing I wanted to mention. Our friend Katie L. is in a small ballet group. They made their entrance. Then the announcer told them there was a problem with the music and asked them to leave the stage for a moment. He re-announced them. They took the stage and the music began. After about 20 seconds the music cut out. But the girls kept dancing! They performed their entire piece, beautifully together, without music. It was very cool to see just how well trained and professional these young girls can be. We were all quite proud of them.

Almost ready

2008-03-13T19:24:00.000-07:00

In the past two weeks I have spent most of my spare time at the dance studio.
I have:
rhinestoned
tacked
painted
rhinestoned some more
hemmed
trimmed off some awful hot pink tulle and silver ric rac and sequins which were replace with white lace and pearls, and rhinestones
made chokers
helped velcro a table skirt
rhinestoned some more
did I mention the rhinestones?

Em brought her last costume home tonight (see 'hot pink tulle', 'ric rac', 'tacked' and 'rhinestoned' above).
I've got checklists printed, garment bags packed, make-up and hair stuff ready.

I'm exhausted. And very glad I don't have to dance.
The nice thing was, because I wasn't home after work and my hands were busy, I wasn't snacking. I think I've lost a couple pounds.

Check back for results and some pictures on Sunday. (No not of my weigh in, of the dance competition, silly!)

Add 'Dentist' to my job description

2008-03-10T19:23:00.001-07:00

I'll let the pictures tell the story, then add a bit at the end.

We only have about half an hour on Monday's to get home from school and get ready for dance. This loose tooth has been really bothering Maggie since Saturday. She got home today and the whole front root was showing. She really wanted me to pull it but was a bit nervous, of course. I told her it would be just like when she got her ears pierced- it would only hurt for a second. She said "Do it!"
One good yank=One happy girl.

Wowzers! Check me out!!

2008-03-10T08:03:00.000-07:00

I'm now one of carascreations!!

The new, not-too-cutesy, totally 'ME' blog design is all thanks to my awesome friend Cara.

Isn't she the best?

All is well...

2008-03-10T04:32:00.000-07:00

In my world.

Rick is home.

The girls are both healthy again.

My car is fixed (It was a bad wheel bearing which chewed up the front breaks and rotors).

Met Stacey for lunch yesterday and picked up the Rac'N'Roll (awesome!)

Got the Nexstar competition schedule and was able to cancel our hotel.

Now if we just get Em's last costume in before this weekend's competition, we will be golden!

You know you're a dance mom when...

2008-03-06T08:50:00.000-08:00

You try to kill a spider on your bathroom floor and realize it's a false eyelash.

Organization

2008-03-05T08:36:00.001-08:00

The girls' first competition is next weekend. Last year with just Em, we had to transport 4 costumes with accessories (gloves, bows, yadda yadda), 2 pairs of shoes, make-up kit, hair stuff, jewelry, etc...

This year with two dancers we have 11 costumes with accessories, 7 pairs of shoes, 2 make-up kits, double the hair stuff, double the jewelry, etc., etc...

I actually bought a sturdy, double bar garment rack and a set of plastic drawers with the intention of mounting the drawers onto one side of the rack, putting all the costumes in separate garment bags, and all the shoes, make-up and hair stuff in the drawers. I spent about $50 on it.

But then I saw this...

It's at racnroll.com
Reviews I've read are very positive and say that the large holds up to 15 costumes. It costs about $125 and arrives within 1-2 days of ordering. Is the convenience of packing everything up and pulling it along with a handle worth the extra expense? I'm sure I could find someone that would want the rack I already bought.

Comments? Suggestions? Offers to come be my dance sherpa/make-up artist/hair dresser/costumer?

Murphy

2008-03-04T18:15:00.000-08:00

I think someone moved in as soon as Rick left for Alabama. His name is Murphy. You know the guy. Yesterday I noticed the ABS light on in my car, and that it was driving a bit stiffer than usual. Today, after discussing it with friends at work, I thought maybe some snow or ice had gotten stuck in the brakes, so I ran through the car wash on my way home. Half way home, on the highway mind you, the stearing wheel started jumping all over the place. I could hardly stay on the road. I limped along to the nearest DOT lot and called a friend that I knew has Tuesday's off. (Thanks Patty!) I then dug out my Mercury Roadside Assistance card and sat on hold for about 5 minutes only to then learn that my roadside assistance expired on January 31. I'm sure it was Murphy that answered the phone. Patty picked me up, then stopped so I could get Maggie, then even got Emily from dance for me later. I owe her big.

I got home and looked all over for Dan's spare key. It's usually hanging by the back door. When I walked out to get the mail I spotted it on his front passenger seat. Sweet! Guess what? I think Murphy locked the doors. I finally got ahold of the boys down south (they were at the casino today). I got Mark's number for the spare key, and the number of our mechanic.

Hopefully ol' Murphy has had his fun and will leave me alone for a while.

Winter Break

2008-02-29T17:52:00.000-08:00

These are our awesome friends. They told us they were going up to Crystal Mountain for 2 days of skiing for Winter Break and said we should come up. We couldn't go for both days (dance, natch), but were going to drive up as far as Cadillac after Em was done with class Thursday night, get a cheap room and be on the slopes first thing Friday morning. "That's silly, crash in our room!" our awesome friends said. So we did!

These are some more awesome friends. They had planned on the weekend at Boyne, but decided to stop at Crystal on the way because their girls, our girls and the girls pictured above really get along great.
That's Jim on the left. He turned 11 today :)
He spent a lot of time teaching the little girls how to snake down the hill instead of barrelling straight down. I think I owe him a six pack of Heineken.

Take a look at Trouble times three.
On second thought, maybe I owe Jim a twelve pack.

How about Maggie's goggles and helmet? I couldn't risk that pretty little head getting crushed by a snow boarder.
I was really glad she was wearing it as I watched her follow one of the bigger girls down one run and take a double jump! She actually made it up and over the first one, then was about 5 feet in the air off the second and took quite a spill.

These gals were off on their own for most of the day. They hooked up with another friend from Hudsonville that was there, too.

Em's hanging out with girls that are a little more experienced skiers than she is. I asked her on the way up if she was worried about being able to keep up with them. She said "One, they're good friends, they'll wait for me. Two, they like to watch me come down the hill because my mess ups are entertaining. "

Yes, I see what she means.

And after we saw these two waiting for one of the little girls at the bottom of our last run down the North Face, we figured it wouldn't be too much of a battle getting them in the car for the ride home.

Single Mom

2008-02-27T05:16:00.001-08:00

Don't worry, it's only for 10 days.

Rick has been at The Press forever and therefore has way more vacation time accumulated than I do. He left at 4 this morning with his friend Doug, and Mark and A.J. (Mark's girlfriend) for some fun in the sun in Gulf Shores visiting his parents.

They took along fishing poles and golf clubs. As long as they make a stop at JoePatti's and bring me back some royal red shrimp and maybe some trigger fish, it will make all the extra work worth while. Poor Maggie had to get up at the crack of dawn this morning so I could drop her off at daycare and get to work.

The girls have winter break Thursday and Friday, so we're going to join the Livingston girls for some skiing at Crystal Mountain on Friday.

Saturday will be extra dance rehearsals due to all the snow days. And then next week will be a long, long week knowing the boys are off enjoying themselves and we're stuck in the snow.

Girl's Night Out

2008-02-25T08:47:00.000-08:00

Saturday night I went to a concert with Toni Kay and Sharon, friends from the GRP. I'm not the biggest country music fan in the world (like they are) but I do appreciate most any kind of music, particularly when it is performed by really nice looking men that know how to entertain a crowd.

That's Dierks Bently.
He's one of the 'really nice looking men' I mentioned above.
Really, really nice looking.

And if you look closely on the ticket stub below, you'll see that one of the opening acts was B. Covington. Yes, that's Bucky Covington of American Idol fame. I wasn't too sure about him before the show, but he was actually a very good performer. Very high energy and not a bad singer.

Had to post my ticket stub because the two super-fans I was with kept accusing me of trying to destroy the evidence.

Thanks for a fun night, girls!

Projects

2008-02-21T12:10:00.000-08:00

The queen of unfinished projects actually completed something!
Mom taught me how to do this spiral bead pattern when she met us in Lansing. I had the necklace finished a while ago, but I actually went out and bought the end caps and put it all together today.

This is made of black delicas and brown size 11 beads.

I love the clasp - it's magnetic!

Now I can't wait to get the swarovski drop mom made for me.

I also picked up a tiger eye cabuchon that I'll try to make a drop out of myself.

spring break

2008-02-15T06:03:00.000-08:00

This winter has been brutal, hasn't it? I mean, I like living in Michigan. I like the different seasons. But if I'm going to be buried in snow up to my armpits I'd at least like the sun to shine a little so I could get out and enjoy it. Enough, already!

So yesterday on my lunch hour I had to stop at a big box home improvement mecca. I walked in and was blasted with the heater. Nice.
It gets better.
I'm wandering around in my quest for the perfect dance competition costume rack. I'm in a well lit, high ceilinged building being hit with a warm breeze and then I stumble across the new display of patio furniture. And there are birds flying around inside.

If there had been a margarita stand close by I don't think I would have made it back to work.

jokes lost in translation

2008-02-11T18:16:00.001-08:00

I've been very lucky that my older two girls have inherited my sense of humor, sarcasm, whatever. They get me.

Tonight I realized that Maggie may need a little extra help.

As she was getting into bed she hurt her toe somehow and, of course, said "Ow, I hurt my toe!".
I, being the sarcastic queen of puns that I am, replied "We'd better call the tow truck!".

Maggie looked at me with great big eyes, paused for just a second while she thought it through and couldn't figure it out, and then said kinda quietly "What will it do?"

I had to explain to her that it was a joke. Toe vs. tow, the whole nine yards.
She wasn't pleased.

sigh

Productive, despite...

2008-02-11T06:52:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I cleaned the kitchen and my room. Did our taxes (not good). Did 4 loads of laundry. Made a yummy pot of chicken corn chowder.

Oh, and read The Sea of Monsters, book two in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. Finished it at 11:51 p.m. It was quite good.

It was all I could do to not sneak book 3 into my bag and take it to work today.

Guilty Pleasure

2008-02-10T08:20:00.000-08:00

I'm a busy person. I'm not trying to make excuses for myself, just stating the facts. But I do have a guilty pleasure that I need to share- kiddy lit. I'm hooked on good books for kids. Those who know me well know I have a freakish obsession with Laura Ingalls Wilder that started back in the 3rd grade. I even dragged Emily and our friends Patty and Abby to the Ozark home of Laura and Almanzo on our first dance trip to Branson. (Ok, they came willingly). I read all the Narnia books as a kids, and again as an adult. I've devoured all the Harry Potter books.

When Emily recommended a series based on Greek Mythology in the modern world I had to check it out. I read The Lightening Thief by Rick Riordan yesterday.

Yes, yesterday. I did have to finish the last couple chapters this morning, but the bulk of the 375 pages was yesterday. Which is why my poor husband cringes when he sees me pick up a new book.

Anyway, if you are like me and appreciate good books for kids that may actually help them get excited about that mythology unit in middle school, you should check them out. I'm going to start book 2 today - The Sea of Monsters.

Don't tell Rick.

Preview

2008-02-09T19:22:00.001-08:00

It was stage rehearsal day. All the larger groups practice on the big stage so they can get their spacing, entrances and exits down.

Maggie's two large groups are hip-hop and tap.

Check out this sick freeze!

That's her above, looking off to your left.

She was very exited that she got to try out her stage make-up, complete with false eyelashes. She said to write "Maggie likes it!"

Emily's large groups are hip-hop, tap, jazz, ballet and lyrical.

Maybe I'm just a proud mom, but I think she has really improved since last year.

Check out her arabesque in the center below. Great form, eh?

Here's a closer look.

2008-02-07T03:47:00.000-08:00

Happy Chinese New Year!!!

2008 is Emily's year, the year of the rat

Super Bowl Sunday

2008-02-03T18:54:00.001-08:00

Rick was off to the annual Super Bowl party he goes to, so the girls and I decided to have a fondue dinner before we sent Katie back to school. I made a chicken broth for the meat (beef and chicken) and the veggies, with asian sesame and dijon mustard dipping sauces.
And of course we had chocolate for dessert, with apples, pears, strawberries and pound cake for dipping.
We just don't get to see this smiling face often enough.
It was sure nice to have her home, even if it was only for one night.

Bittersweet

2008-02-03T07:29:00.000-08:00

Actually, there was nothing Bittersweet about it except the name of the place. Emily and Katie Livingston planned a ski outing for the Girl Scout troop. The rest of the Livingston girls came along. Our Katie was home for the weekend and said she'd help Maggie on the bunny hill, so they joined us as well.

I was a bit nervous about taking Maggie. I wanted to make sure I could be attentive to the Girl Scouts that were new to skiing. But I didn't need to worry. After a trip up the magic carpet (picture a conveyor belt that you stand on) and helping her up the tow rope once, she was off! I think next time we go I'll try to get her on a chair lift.

I hardly saw Emily all night. She was off with the Girl Scouts who had skied before. I did manage to catch her once at the top of a lift before she took off again.Katie decided that since she was on the bunny hill most of the night with Maggie she might just as well try snowboarding. She had gone with a friend once last year. She did get more comfortable and went up one of the chair lifts before the end of the night, but it seemed like every time I saw her she was on her butt!

Here's a picture of her coming down Creeping Myrtle.

I'll have to talk to our friend Holmes about getting the girls properly equipped for next season so we can do this a lot more!

Giddy up!

2008-01-29T18:08:00.000-08:00

This past weekend was also the Park Elementary Daddy-Daughter Round-up!
Maggie wore the pink cowboy boots and jean dress that Alicia picked out for her last birthday. Rick even picked up a 'cowgirl hat' for her to wear.

They had a great time.

Sleep Over

2008-01-28T17:07:00.000-08:00

Aubrey spent the night on Saturday night. The girls love having her over. Rick took Maggie and Aubrey to Playworld while Em and I finished up at the dance studio. (Em danced and I rhinestoned)

They played some Dora Chutes and Ladders.

Sunday we went sledding at Charlie's Dump and then to McDonald's for lunch.

Plug for my sister

2008-01-27T18:25:00.000-08:00

Do you read your horoscope? Do you try to see how it relates to your life? Do you freak out when your horoscope actually looks like it was written just for you on a particular day?

Check out my sister Stacey's blog:

http://www.staceyhoroscope.blogspot.com/

Opinions, please

2008-01-23T17:31:00.000-08:00

I did my nails last night. They're dark. It's a purpley brown color that I thought was kind of cool. I got to work today and some co-workers were giving me a hard time. So I'd like some opinions. Do I go back to my boring, neutral shades? Or can I do the dark? Cast your vote using the poll, please.

Snow Day

2008-01-22T06:23:00.000-08:00

Emily was actually hoping that Hudsonville would be closed, but Jenison still open so she would have dance tonight. Apparently, she flushed a few too many ice cubes or the fork-spoon combo was especially potent. I don't think there was a single school in Kent or Ottawa counties that was open today.

Wishing for a snow day

2008-01-21T18:20:00.000-08:00

I do encourage goal setting so I had to support Emily's attempt to create a snow day for tomorrow. She got Maggie in on the plot, figuring they'd have twice the chance.
Here are the instructions.

1. Wear your pajamas inside out.
2. Flush ice cubes down the toilet
3. Put a spoon under your pillow. Or a fork.

She's heard both the spoon and the fork version, so figured she'd cover her bases and do both. Between the two girls, they flushed 8 ice cubes. While Emily was helping Maggie button her p.j.'s backwards, she did her best to prep her for the possibility that despite their efforts they may still have to go to school tomrrow. Then they went off to bed.

I'll let you know how it turns out.

Yes we do have other children

2008-01-16T06:12:00.000-08:00

Emily and Maggie take up so much of my time that it may seem like they are the only kids we have. But of course there are more. Today's entry deals with the two college students.
Daniel is in his third year at GVSU. Katie is in her second at Lawrence Tech. This semester, both of them have seemed to hit crisis mode in the 'What do I want to be when I grow up?' department.

Through a casual conversation with Daniel I discovered that he has not registered for classes this semester. He doesn't want to continue with engineering, but doesn't know what else to do. I mentioned it to Rick, who proceeded to call Daniel up and read him the riot act.

Similarly, Katie was struggling to fill her schedule and still be able to keep her part time job. She was also trying to decide if she should continue with the architecture program, switch to interior architecture, or go in a different direction all together.

It's so hard to give advice while letting them both make their own decisions. How can I help them decide what they want to do with the rest of their lives? I'm not even sure I know what I want to do with the rest of mine yet! And Rick is really pushing Daniel to at least stay in school so he doesn't wind up regretting it later, not to mention being able to stay on our health insurance.

Do I hold them by the hand? Or let them sink or swim on their own?

And it begins...

2008-01-14T17:42:00.000-08:00

Emily and Maggie attended the New York City Dance Alliance convention in Lansing this weekend. It was a very long weekend of workshops taught by some interesting people. Among them was Sabra Johnson, winner of So You Think You Can Dance.

The weekends from now until early June are pretty much booked with extra rehearsals, competitions, recital and Festival.

The shirt I found for Emily pretty much sums up our lives for the next 5 months:

Karaoke Night

2008-01-10T12:07:00.000-08:00

For those of you that don't know, I'm the leader of both Maggie and Emily's Girl Scout troops, and also the Hudsonville Girl Scout Neighborhood Manager. This past Saturday two Hudsonville Girl Scouts hosted a Karaoke Night to earn their Bronze Award. Of course we went to show our support. They did a great job planning, decorating, and running the event.

We heard about 20 renditions of "Fabulous" from High School Musical 2, but had a good time.

Check us out singing "Complicated" by Avril Lavigne.

And here's Emily getting her groove on!

She worked really hard to earn the 'Silliest Dancer' award, but alas was not chosen by her peers.

Happy New Year

2008-01-01T11:06:00.000-08:00

I was feeling a little disappointed yesterday when I realized we didn't have anything exciting planned for New Years Eve. I stopped at Costco and picked up some jumbo crab legs and spinach artichoke dip to make a bit of a celebration. Doug Shuck joined us for dinner, then Mark came over with A.J. and Josh and Daniel came home. We played LCR and Apples to Apples. It actually turned out to be quite an enjoyable night.

Happy New Year!!

Christmas Camp!

2008-01-01T10:49:00.000-08:00

Every 3rd year, we get to invade dad's hunting camp for the week between Christmas and New Year. We call it Christmas Camp.

This is our third time up there and we had a great time. Dad cooks amazing feasts for breakfast and dinner, and we play games, do crafts, and just spend time with our family.

This year mom got the younger girls little sewing kits and some fabric to make clothes for their American Girl dolls, and I took up a bunch of FIMO clay and tools to make the dolls some food.

Katie and Molly raided mom's bead stash and made some really cool bracelets. The only thing that would have made the time better is if Stacey and her kids, and Chip could have joined us. (And if Mere would have been feeling better)

It does seem to get easier as the kids get older :)

Christmas 2007

2007-12-31T06:58:00.000-08:00

We had a pretty low key Christmas this year. The Berridge extended family came over on Sunday for a while.
On Monday I found I only had to work half the day so I ran home and picked up the girls and drove to Auburn for the Duford family party at the Doty's. I haven't been able to make that since before Rick and I got married, so it was fun to surprise everyone and see some cousins, aunts and uncles that I haven't seen in a while, plus introduce Maggie to some more family.

Christmas Day was a flurry of unwrapping with all the kids and Aubrey, followed by a very relaxing day. The girls and I went bowling.

And would you believe I didn't take any pictures!

Deck the Halls

2007-12-21T11:24:00.000-08:00

Our tree is somewhat bare this year due to a temporary house guest. Katie's kitten, Furgie, has been with us since Thanksgiving. She is quite a character and very playful. She LOVES the Christmas tree and will immediately climb up and start batting at anything hung on it. That means nothing breakable this year.

We have been provided with tons of entertainment 'kitty fishing'. Rick bought some little catnip mice and hooks one up to Maggie's fishing pole. Furgie loves it!

She did it!

2007-12-10T16:52:00.000-08:00

BODY LANGUAGE DANCE COMPANY IS THE BEST!!

Miss Casie got noisemakers for the kids and brought in markers, posterboard and all kinds of decorations for the studio.

J.P. forgot that he needed to be there early, but showed up after a reminder phone call and loaned his shoes to Carter.

Thanks J.P.!

Miss Katy taught Carter a few basic steps, then taught them both a short routine to a Christmas song by Run D.M.C.

The audience voted....

And

My Kid Beat Carter!!

Thanks to 105.3 HOT FM and the Todd Chance morning show for coming out!!

Click this link to hear the contest:

http://www.toddchanceradioshow.com/TCRS%20My%20Kid%20Beat%20Carter.htm

My Kid Beat Carter

2007-12-07T08:34:00.000-08:00

Well, not yet, but Monday at 6:00 Emily will be tap dancing against 105.3 Hot FM morning show guy Carter.
Miss Katy at Body Language Dance Company has graciously offered to teach the combo for the DANCE DOWN. J.P. has also agreed to let a stranger borrow his tap shoes. Stay tuned!

Hello!

2007-11-29T10:46:00.000-08:00

I've been loving how I can keep up with a couple of friends through their blogs, so I'm dipping my foot into the pool as well.

I hope you enjoy!