Gloomy

What a gloomy, gloomy day. It is literally gray outside. Not the fall gray that is beautiful with scattered leaves all around of all different colors. I love that gray when there are specks of yellow, orange, and red all over. When the hot smoldering summer starts to slowly morph into those days where it’s too warm for a jacket but cool enough for a sweater. Nope this gray is the icky, make your bones creak, stay in bed gray that no one likes. I swear it’s enough to throw any sane person into a deep, deep depression.

I suppose it could be the fact that the boys and I just spent a great week together doing absolutely nothing and everything. There was no differentiating between bedtime and rise and shine time. Most nights were spent just hanging out, watching movies, or playing games until the wee hours. There was no set time for wake ups. We got up and took the dogs out at around six and then it would be back to bed until whenever. It was nice to be lazy for a week and not worry about much. It was nice playing, cooking, and cleaning with the boys. We had so many great conversations and a ton of laughs.

One of the things that we did was watch an old stand up act of Bill Cosby. We all laughed and laughed. At one point I laughed so hard I was crying. I hadn’t watched it in years and it felt like the first time watching it again. I wish that more comedians today had clean stand up shows for the kids that they could enjoy. My boys also watch all the old reruns of the Cosby Show that come on. I have fond memories of the show and am so happy that my children will as well.

Happy Easter

Easter has always been a fun holiday in our house. I was so worried last night that it was going to be different since the boys announced that they didn't believe in the Easter Bunny. I am happy to say that we had a great time and that we still did our Easter Egg hunt and the boys loved their Easter baskets. After a hearty brunch we are all relaxing. The boys munching on candy, Donte asleep on his chair and I blogging.

Our nephew is being Christened today. Donte and I are the God parents but we only had a weeks notice and the flights were super expensive and we couldn't drive because the kids and I have work/school tomorrow. My Mom is standing in for us. I am disappointed but what can we do? Not much I am afraid. Anyway, we have been discussing what to get for Carson. In our family we often give money but I wanted this to be personal and truly from all of us. We went to the stores this past week and couldn't find anything perfect enough. Well we finally came to a decision.....let me explain before I reveal what it is.

My brother is six years and one day younger than me. I had/have a teddy bear that I have had since birth and that is my security blanket. My baby brother had a blanket. He loved this blanket took it everywhere with him. He sucked on it, cuddled with it, and was totally in love with it. Now Adam was rough and tough, he had his fair share of stitches, scabs, and bruises but he turned into a big ball of mush with his blankie.

My sister-in-law Chrissy loves the color green. I do believe that her house would be covered slab to roof in green if she could.

My brother and I can pick up stuff with our toes. Most people can but when I was pregnant I got to a point where it was easier to pick up things with my toes rather than bend down and get the object. My boys are both pros at this as well and Donte always jokes around that we have monkey feet. I often call my boys little monkeys, as has just about everyone in my family.

So we are hand making Carson a hand made fleece blanket. On the front are lots of cute little monkeys and the back is the perfect shade of forest green. I know that he is in GA but with the heat comes air conditioning, and there are a few months of cold. We are making it bigger than the average baby blanket because we want him to enjoy for years to come. It took about 2 hours to make and we all poured a heap of love into it.

I tried to post some pics but blogger is being a pain. I will try again later.
Happy Easter everyone!

The Tax Man Cometh

Today was the day of reckoning.....we had to get our taxes finalized and sent in. I hate this part of the year because if we have to pay it means that I didn't take enough out and if I get a huge refund it means that I let Uncle Sam have my money for year and that he gained profit from it and not me. We also have two different state returns on top of our federal. Between our home and the different states and all the other crap I swear our returns start out like a Where is Waldo. At least this year it was little over 2 hours and we were done. We walked out with the knowledge that we will be getting a return but here's the kicker I didn't account for the fact that Donte and I are now full time college students....can I say "YEEEEEE HAAAAA" Wow what a difference. We more than doubled our return and can now pay off some bills, go on a great family vaca, or just honker it in our savings and watch it grow. It sure is nice when you walk in with a headache and walk out with a smile.

Our boys also told us over the weekend that they no longer believe in the Easter Bunny.....CrUsH, BoOm, BaNg....there went my heart. They have been asking since last year and Donte and I kept up the charade. It was time though. They are 9 and 11. I remember when I figured it all out. My parents were stationed in Germany and we were going to England for Christmas. I was helping my Mom pack...or just being nosy....who knows, and I saw the cutest little purple cabbage patch kid. In my head I thought it was for my Cousin Michelle and thought no more of it. We arrived in England and let me tell you when my family gets together it's a lot of laughs and fun. Especially when you are a kid. I remember watching the adults and giggling at the jokes even though I barely had a clue as to what was going on. My cousins from the states were there as well as my Granny and Grandpa, it was safe to say that I was in my own little slice of Heaven. I can remember the crowd that seemed so large to an eight year old, the giggling and playing, the tickling and cooking. The smells that would snake through the house were divine. To this day when I smell them it takes m back to my childhood. I remember Christmas morning that year and opening Santa gifts.....we did stockings for decoration but we put pillow cases out for the Santa gifts.....how else would he be able to give us everything that we needed? I remember going through my pillow case at warp speed as was my brother and cousins and guess what was in my bag? You got it that little purple cabbage patch. Was I heart broken? No I can honestly say that I was proud in the fact that I figured it out.

It still doesn't make it any better that both of my babies are all knowing now. I had a moment yesterday with Donnie as I was redeeming an itunes gift card. I scratched the back of the card and input the numbers....it wouldn't take...Donnie comes up behind me and swiftly points out that the i is actually a t and that the other letter was a z..........enough said.

A Great Deal!

My mom is the best bargain shopper that I know. She can find a sale anywhere and if what she wants isn't on sale she will go to store after store to find it and wont leave unless she finds it at a great price and has it tucked safely in the back of her car.

Donnie and I both love to take pictures and can go through a memory card like it is no joke. Donnie has a 2 gig and does well with it. My parents bought him a Nikon coolpix and he does all kinds of stuff with it. He would have it firmly adhered to his hand if he could. I soon realized that I should have got Donnie a memory card with more space. I myself have a 4GB and find that I fill that up pretty quickly as well. Well my Madre informed me that Best Buy had 8 GB memory cards on sale for $29.99. The original prince was $59.99 So I basically got 2 for the price of one. I have a Canon Rebel xsi and I can now take 1375 pictures on one memory card at 12.1 mega pixels. Donnie can now take 2005 pictures on one card. Watch out world here we come.

Donte and I also finished our finals and have 2 weeks off from college...wooohoooo. I can also proudly state that we will both be receiving an A in the class. On the 27th we start statistics....can I go ahead and say ewwwww!!! Our whole reasoning is take the hardest classes first and then take the easy ones closer to graduation so when the oil is burning low we can still sail right on through.

Tomorrow we are getting our taxes finalized and submitted....YUK....I will post more on that later :0)

Finally!!

We had a decent day today...by decent I mean it actually hit 57 degrees. The funny thing is that in the past that would translate into "It's still too cold to go outside" here in Illinois it translates into "Woooooo doggy time to hit the great outdoors"....funny how life changes. We did spend about 5 hours outside. I read for about an hour until the sun started to shine down so hard that my legs felt like they were being burned, spent another hour cleaning my car out, then sat and chatted with my friend Daisy for a few hours. Of course the boys played basket ball, base ball, and catch. They should be good and tired tonight.

Our dinner turned out fantabulous last night. I had two very eager helpers that helped me whip everything into a yummy dinner. In fact here's a picture of Dannie before he dove in.

Both boys had two servings and are excited to eat the leftovers for dinner tonight. I've got a few hours until Donte comes home so I think I will now plop myself onto my couch and watch the Oprah that I DVR'd this morning.

You Know I'm Bored When.....

I have time to post three times in one day. I think I shall turn my restlessness into a yummy dinner. Donnie and I have been dreaming up some yumminess and now we are going to get started. What shall we make????
Shrimp and Scallop Curry
Cucumber and Onion Salad
Milk Rice.....

OMG I am hungry!

Lazy Days of Spring.....Not So Much

One of the perks in being a military family is the joy we get of living all around the world. I have lived in Sri Lanka, Pennsylvania, Texas, Germany(twice), Georgia, North Carolina, and now Illinois. I can say that Illinois is my least favorite place of them all. Here we are on the 8th of April and it is cold....not like in the 60's cold but the high today is barely hitting 50 and with the windchill it is even colder. It snowed on Monday and there are still a few rem rents here and there. What a spring break....don't get me wrong we have found things to do. The boys went to a birthday party yesterday and swam at the indoor pool at our local YMCA. We have run errands and done crafts. The mornings are usually spent lounging around until we decide to drag ourselves downstairs. When I say drag I mean drag. Every morning we open the back door in the hopes that the wind that blows in will be a doable cool but nope we get slapped in the face with the icy cold wind that seems to cut straight through to the bone. The only good thing that has come out of the cold is staying in and having family movie time. We all cuddle up in the living room and have watched Marley and Me, The Secret Lives of Bees, Mama Mia (boys mysteriously disappeared), The nutty professor, Seven Pounds (didn't like it), and the boys watched Max Payne with Donte (I suddenly disappeared on this one). Our DVR is almost empty and the local Barnes and Noble now know us on a first name status. It's nice to have so much free time but I wish the weather was nicer to do more outdoor activities without getting bundled up.

Our recruiting time is dwindling down. We have been her for two years now and I for one can not wait for our orders.....*fingers crossed for Germany or anywhere warm*

Update

I know that I have been slacking with my blog…….but…..I have been cheating on blogger and MySpace with FaceBook. I can’t help myself, it has got be one of the most addictive indulgences that I have had to deal with for awhile. Not only have I reconnected with tons of people but the layout is really easy and the thing that I like most is that you can make it all private. That way only the people you know will have access.

I would like to say that it is finally getting warm here but it’s not. Our spring break is next week but they are calling for snow on Monday and Tuesday!!! Seriously??? We should be approaching our last 12 to 24 months here depending on what happens. I have made some really great friends here but I am over the Midwest weather. I need warmth and sunshine. We aren’t traveling home this year instead we will be at Great Lakes for a few days and hanging out around home for the rest of the time. We are all looking forward to a little bit of down time.

Donte is busier than ever with recruiting and let me tell you it is wearing thin. He is good at what he does and his outlook is positive but mine is not. He hits 15 years this month and I can honestly say that I saw him more in any other assignment. I know, I know cry me a river right. I am grateful that he is not deployed and that he is home every night, even if its midnight when he gets home. I suppose we are both ready to get back to a military base and the military of life. There is a difference between a military infused community and a civilian one. I just prefer the military one. I for one would love to go back to Germany *wink, wink*

Donnie is doing great in school. He continues to break out of shell and has made some really good friends. Girls have started to call the house and I can’t say that I am happy about it but I am happy for him. He is so tall now and I know the day is coming soon that he will be taller than I am. It’s hard to believe that time has flown so fast. He is active in so many things from sports, to band, and everything else under the sun. He has definitely learned how to schedule himself. He reminds more and more of Donte everyday. He makes me so very proud.

Daniel is doing great too. School is a breeze for him and he is excelling. He is so tough it blows my mind. That child has had a trip to the emergency dentist, a jump rope burn on his neck, and a black eye from playing “get the bacon” in less than 3 weeks. If you had asked me 9 years ago if I could handle all that I would have said no…but I can now say proudly that I handle it all with just a few more gray hairs. I would go into detail but the trauma would have my blood pressure shoot through the roof. Daniel is growing by leaps and bounds too but he still loves to cuddle with me. I know it won’t be too much longer until he pulls away a bit so I am enjoying every moment.

School is going well for Donte and me as well. We start statistics on the 27th and I am not looking forward to it. However, I am looking forward to getting it done and over with. School is much easier the second time around though. I find that I have the patience and the knowledge to get me through what I need to do. All the hard work is paying off though. So far I have a 4.0 and Donte has a 3.8.

Well, that should catch everyone up for a bit and I will try to be a little better about blogging. I will also try and post some pictures soon.

Excitement

So it's been over a month since I last posted but it feels like days not weeks that have gone by. Our negative temps have warmed up a little bit but not that much. I have come to the realization is the place they are talking about when hell freezes over. So the next time someone looks at you and says "when hell freezes over" give them a ticket to Illinois. :0) 2 1/2 years here to go.

My family will be here day after tomorrow. We are all so excited and ready for them. I am bursting at the seems knowing that Oprah is less than 72 hours away. The hotel is booked, the outfits are ready, and now all we have to do is wait for the day to come. I wonder what her topic will be....this thought runs through my mind several times a day. My co-worker went last week and had a good time. I still think that I was excited way beyond her level of excitement though. I wanted to know each and every bit down to the tinest little detail. I can't wait to write the post about what I get to experience.

Cold, Obama, and Oprah

Life is busier than ever here in the Arctic tundra they call chicagoland. I have never been colder in my entire life!!! I seriously don't think that people in America understand bone chilling is unless they have lived in the Midwest. Now keep in mind that I lived in Bavaria.....GERMANY for a combined 11 years out of my 33...hey that's 1/3rd of my life, and never felt chilled to the bone like this.

We all watched the inauguration yesterday. What a great feeling to see history taking place. I teared up a few times and still have warm fuzzies from the whole experience. To top it off they reported that no one got arrested, nothing malicious happened, and our nation proved to the whole world that we can stand together, that we are a whole lot more than the "loud Americans" that think they know everything. The winds of change are here and I for one am glad.

I watched a lot of the coverage on Oprah. I DVR'ed Oprah yesterday and when the boys and I got home we rushed to see what she had on. At the end of the program there was song played called "America". Donnie heard it and liked it so when Oprah said that you could download it for free we immediately went to Oprah.com. I was clicking away trying to find the song and I noticed a banner that said to attend the Oprah show click here. I am a pro website surfer so I clicked on it. It gave me a bunch of instructions and a phone number to call. The call line would be opening at 10 AM on the 21st.

At promptly 10 AM I started calling. As I was multitasking....yes I really was.....my co worker L says "oh no one ever gets in, it's a waste of time." My response was "You have to be positive. Don't say the negative, state the positive and it will happen." Corny huh? Well I believe it. I read the book the "Secret" and I for one believe. She went on and on about how she has tried for years and never gotten through. I called her a negative nellie and kept hitting redial. I finally heard ringing and an automated voice got on the phone. So as the story of my life goes I was put on hold. I waited again and at 1142 I GOT TICKETS. OMG can I tell you I almost jumped through the roof. The max you are able to get are four tickets so I got tickets for me, my Mom, my SIL, and my Granny. I wish my Aunt could go but she will be away on holiday already. So of course I am as happy as can be and am counting down the days.

Needless to say L was dumbstruck and started dialing as well. I told her I would help her call. She was constantly saying things like "I wont get through", "It never happens to anyone but lucky people like you." I just kept calling her a negative nellie and telling her that I would get through and GUESS WHAT? I did. So now her and her Sis, Mom, and BFF are going too. See people thinking positive really does work....that and THANK YOU GOD FOR LETTING ME GET THROUGH!!!

Anyone that knows me knows that I love Oprah. In fact the first thing that came out of my mouth when Donte told me that we were PCS'ing to Chicago was that I will get to see Oprah. Seriously if I had a bucket list going to Oprah would be on mine.

Well I gotta run but I will leave you with a few pics from Christmas.

-13

Thats the temp this morning.....and it rained ice all night long. Can you believe we have school today? I seriously cant. I wish we lived in Miami!

Carson Cader

Here he is.....little Carson Cader. My baby brother and his wife brought this tiny bundle of joy into all of our lives on December 8th. He weighed in at 8lbs 2oz and 21 3/4 inches. He is absolutely perfect and I am so proud of both of them. I promise to cuddle, kiss and spoil him with everything that his Mom and Dad wont let him have or do. I will also have tons of great stories for him about his Daddy when he gets a little older. His Uncle and cousins are busy trying to figure out who he looks like and are aching for the day that he is a little older and can join in with all of the high jinx that boys get into. In the mean time I am counting the days down to go home and meet him. Welcome to this world baby boy.....it's a great one.
My Mom proud Grandma for the third time. If we keep this up we will have our own football team when its all said and done.




Carson rocking his Georgia Tech gear......maybe one day he will be a hell of an engineer



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BRRRRRR

It's freezing here. OMG I cant even find words to describe it. It's the type of cold weather that one only thinks that exists in cartoons...you know what I am talking....you have all seen the animated cartoon walk outside and instantly freeze and fall to pieces. That's life here in the lovely state of Illinois. I still find it surreal that we are here. I wonder when we leave what I will say about this time in my life....I know one of the phrases I will say is "IT WAS COLD". Right now it is 23 and snowing. Last year the snow was so amazing. I thought that it was so pretty and to tell you the truth it just dazzled me to bits when it started to gently fall...when it started coming down hard I was like a kid in a candy store just waiting to have the chance to go outside....today I am dreading the shoveling that will have to be done in the morning. If anyone can bottle up some sunny heat please send it my way....

Have I Mentioned.....

....how hard it is to go back to work after having 5 days off to laze around and do absolutely nothing but hang out with your family and friends. When the alarm went off this morning I wanted to smash it with a sledgehammer. Especially since it snowed all day yesterday and through the night. It has been snowing all day today as well. I am no longer enthralled by the soft, white, sparkly blanket that covers the ground and just about everything else....nope, not at all it just means more slush and ice to deal with after the sun goes away. I believe that I am a southerner at heart....I was born on a tropical island you know....this whole cold thing does not agree with me at all.

Another thing I was not prepared for is the fact that it is December 1st already!!!! OMG I have so much to do and so very little time. We have birthday and Christmas parties galore not to mention the usual day to day occurrences. But looking to the bright side I should be an Aunt again in about 7 days.

Well I better run and try to get at least a couple of things crossed off of my to-do list.

Gobble, Gobble

I can hardly believe that Thanksgiving has come and gone already. We spent the morning together just lounging around over a big breakfast of bacon, eggs, and biscuits. We all gathered around the table and just plain enjoyed each others company. We then dragged ourselves back upstairs and got dressed for dinner. We went over to Michelle and Daves and had a blast to say the least. The food was yummy and her family welcomed us with open arms. We laughed literally all night long.

The next day was a lazy one as well. Donte had to run into work for a few hours so the boys and I enjoyed a nice quiet day together. Donnie went over to play with Alyssa for a while and Donte and Dannie were hanging out. I was in luck when Michelle called and was in the mood for a little after Thanksgiving shopping. She came and picked me up and we headed out. I found some pretty great deals and came home with a smile on my face and sore feet.

Yesterday we had to take the dogs in for their shots. So off we went to the vet. We dropped them off and the four of us went and did a little shopping. We hit up Best Buy to take advantage of our $70 in coupons then we did a quick lunch and off to Target we went to get the essentials and I found some really cute outfits for my nephew that is due on the 14th. Then we headed to America and Reeds to have a few drinks. We always have a good time over there and last night was no exception. They are going to be moving soon and we are dreading the day, but we will enjoy our time with them while we can.

Today we caught up on laundry and cleaning. I swear it's never ending. I did a little shopping online and was able to find some great gifts online as well. Tomorrow it's time for work and off we go. Can you believe only 24 days until Christmas......oh how time flys.

Hiatus Interupted

I started this blog in early November because the title jumped into my head........and that's as far as I got. I have a few minutes so I thought that I would catch everyone up. Dontes football season ended with 6 wins and 2 losses. He really did well and enjoyed himself. Daniels ended in the second playoff game, it was cold.....no FREEZING, and snowing. They lost by one touchdown but played one hell of a game. They both did great and I am prouder than heck of the both of them and we are all looking forward to July when the season will start back up again.

The boys are doing great in school as well. Report cards came out and I couldn't be more pleased with straight A's and A's and B's. Donte also joined band after the Mom said I have to do it for at least one year speech. He is playing percussion and is really enjoying it. I can't believe that this is his last year of elementary school. Daniel is totally loving his teacher who just happens to be Donnies old teacher from last year. I am so lucky to have my kids get such great teachers. They have learned tons while enjoying it I really cant ask for too much more.

Donnie turned 11 on Saturday. I really still am in shock. He is so tall and such a good boy. His party is on December 5th so I will definitely post pics then. He really wanted to go to Red Lobster so we did that and hung out doing family stuff. Then I went to bed and the boys stayed up until 3 AM playing video games. I think that Donte is in hog heaven he has always talked about the dreams he had of hanging out with his boys. How did I get so lucky to have three great men around me all the time.

I don't talk about politics often but boy am I happy that Obama won, more importantly I am glad that our country came together to pic a candidate that is the best for this country. The winds of change are here and I for one think that they are blowing in the right direction.

ATC was OK this year. We stayed in Lake Geneva at the old playboy mansion. It was huge and beautiful from the outside and when you first walked in it was great. A huge lobby that was starting to be decorated by Christmas lights and top notch restaurant with delicious food. Unfortunately the rooms sucked. They were old and not what I would call grand.....in fact a far cry from last year. We had a good enough time though and had some laughs and partied with some really good friends. The old Guard came and the had the Army riffle team come in. The show was awesome. We had the traditional Grog and there were laughs all around. There were skits done at the ball itself and the skit that our team did was hilarious, I was crying at the end....everyone likes to have some good comedic relief. Donte of course walked away with awards. His awards included Commandants list for ANOC, 2nd Saber, 300 on APFT, and top fire team. For the wives the had the author of Army Wives fly in and meet with us. It was nice and for those of us who were there and were able to have a chance to meet her and get a copy of her book signed. My respect for her went up when I found out that she did not get paid to come and brought us all free copies of the book to say "Thank You" for all that we do. She is an Army wife as well so he is apart of out ranks. Overall it was a good weekend but I hope next year they pick a different location.

Donte and I are going to see Wicked in the city in a few weeks. I am so excited I can barely contain myself. I ran out and bought the book so I could read it before we go. The book is very dark but I have been assured that the play is much lighter. I have wanted to see wicked for a long time.

The dogs are both doing fine. Driving me nuts as usual but I am in love with the fence system that we have. I don't have to worry about freezing and leads and all that stuff. I just put their collars on and let them out. The dogs are not too pleased though because it's cold and they don't much like the cold......whatchagonnado??? LOL

Hopefully now that football is over life will slow down a bit and I can get life on a smooth course. I am still adjusting, it's been awhile since I have had more than a few minutes here and a few minutes there.

Been a Long Time

I know it's been forever but things are crazy wonderful as usual here in the Slade household. Football season is in full swing and I am dog tired boss....dog tired. I will probably not post again until football is completely over. I guess I am going on a blogging hiatus!! See you all soon.

Part II

....As the kids arrived they started a lively game of basketball in the front. There was lots of hooting and hollering, not to mention laughter. I had 9 count them 9 boys from the age of 8 to 10. After it got too dark we all went inside and ate. the Chili's platters and pizza were a huge hit as was the Dr. Pepper in the football shaped bottle. They ate, and ate, and ate...finally time for the cake....um well not your usual type of cake but a Donut cake. I layers the donuts on a platter that had three different levels and tuck candles in 9 of them. We all sang happy birthday and the birthday boy blew out his candles.



I think my family is starting a trend. We haven't done traditional cakes since we moved here. Dannie is into the donuts and doesn't eat cake unless its chocolate and then he doesn't like the icing. Donnie likes cake but wanted his candles in the huge burrito last year. That's right he had a burrito cake. This year it was Donuts again for Daniel, I can't wait to see what Donnie comes up with.



Ok back to the party. After the cake he opened presents. Oh did he love his presents!!! Then they were left to the playing and horsing around. I moved the dining table in the formal dining room so the boys had that entire room as well as the Wii room to sleep in. Donte and i escaped to the living room and tried to watch TV but that was a bust the boys were so loud that we couldn't hear it. After a little while had passed I decided that their food was settled and that they could go ahead and play the game that I created. Now you all know that at 9 they don't play games right..........I thought long and hard and came up with a movie game. We picked 12 movies and came up with clues. For example Fantastic Four was Super X 4, and Elf was Spaghetti and Chocolate pop tarts. I taped a letter to each of the movies and hid them in our collection. I then cut out numbers and put them in a baggie. All the numbers were the same color except for the 6, it was red. The red number was the person that would get the first chance to guess where the prize was. After they guessed all the movies they spelt out China Cabinet. Then I told them a riddle of where in, on or around the cabinet the prize was, it wasn't long before they were all throwing out guesses. I had hidden their treat bags under the China Cabinet and hid them with a throw. The goodie bags were stuffed with Mad Libs, Cards, Pencils that were half pencils and half colored pencils, and of course tons of candy. They were thrilled and tore right in. To my surprise they wanted more riddles....WOW......I was so glad that they enjoyed it. After that it was game on with a Call of Duty 4 tournament and lots of eating and farting.....it was lovely I tell you. Finally Donte fell asleep on the fat boy chair and I tried to sleep on the couch. At around 2AM I went in and got the final two to settled down.......they were all up by 7AM. I fed them a healthy breakfast of donuts and juice and they all headed out to play basketball. We were all outside in our Jammies playing basketball and making a ruckus until all the boys went home. They were all gone by 930Am except for one that hung out for the day. We hurried up got dressed and went to Donnies football game. One of Donte's soldiers and his family showed up and followed us home. We again were outside enjoying the great weather for a while. They left at around 3 and we went inside. Dannies last little friend got picked up at around four. I looked around at my house and decided that it could wait. I crashed and when I say crashed I mean I crashed!!! Now here I am suppers on the stove and we are all sitting in the living room, rested, relaxed and awaiting the premier of Heros.

I wish I had a pause button.

Let me tell you how my weekend was.....in one word HECTIC in a little more than one word......Friday was a teacher institute day so I went in super early and got off at one. I hurried up picked up my boys and headed out to the stores to pick up the last minute birthday supplies. We rushed home, unpacked the car and loaded Mr. Murphy up to get his rabies shot. For those of you who do not know Mr. Murphy has allergic reactions to his shots and has to not only be premeded but post meded....sooooo much fun NOT!! He got his 2year rabies shot that covers him until 2010, and we waited our half an hour, got the meds for the post med and came home. I let the dogs out, hollered at the ids to get ready for practice, and watched as the minutes ticked by way too fast. I did a quick once over on Murphy and put the dogs up before we left for practice. Now I am tired already and am annoyed with Donte's coach because the man changes practices every week.....seriously I could scream but whats a girl to do???? SUCK IT UP I KNOW. So practice finally finished and we head home. The boys shower and we get the house decorated for the party, streamers galore, football Dr. Peppers and tons of fun stuff for 9 rowdy boys. I checked on Murphy one last time and put the dogs to bed at about 9pm. At 9:30 Donte gets home and Murphy has thrown up and his face is so swollen that I can barely see his eyes. I shove benadryl down his swollen little throat and give him the coldest water that I can get my hands on. I immediately get him outside into the fresh air and am praying to God that this little fart does not croak on me. 60 min later his swelling is down and I have about 100 more gray hairs!! I got to bed that night at around 130 AM. I am awake at 330 AM to give him his next dose....I swear he looked annoyed with the fact that I had woken him up. I don't even remember getting back into bed but I did and then the alarm went off at 8 finished the house, confirmed the chilis platters and we all headed off to the games. After the game we headed to chilis, picked up the food and rushed home. The boys jumped in the shower and I set out the food, by this time kids started arriving. Thank God for my friend Terri that picked up 4 pizzas at the great price of $6 per pizza....yummy, huge, just right pizzas.........cont, tomorrow I am falling asleep writing this.