The Adventures of Spray Painting

I admit I have not used spray paint much. I don't know much about it other than it's stinky & nice when you need it for graffiti... But, I have decided that I need to buy stock in a spray paint company, because the 'good stuff' ain't cheap & the cheap stuff is EXACTLY what graffiti artists use.

We went to Wal Mart last night because I wanted needed to get spray paint for the craft I mentioned yesterday. So, we went as a family (NOTE TO SELF: DO NOT TAKE KIDS TO WAL MART AFTER 8:30p.m. We were *that* family last night) because we needed to get more than just spray paint, I needed to get some other stuff for this weekend.

SO, off to WallyWorld we go... After the worst trip to WM I have ever taken with my kids, we left with no spray paint (I did get cake mix, though!! That was on the list!!) First of all, their selection STUNK!! I found ONE primer, and it was GRAY!! I needed, of course, NOT gray!! And, do you think they had any colors I needed? Either teal/turquoise & hot pink are VERY popular (& really, why shouldn't they be?!?!), or WM's selection was awful. Their prices on Rust Oleum or whatever was really good, though...

Today, I decided to take the kiddos to Hobby Lobby (they had, after all, gotten a great night sleep, right?!?!). Their spray paint prices were kinda painful...and the cute little bottles of spray paint were the EXACT colors I needed, but will only paint something the size of a thimble.

The kids were actually REALLY good @ Hobby Lobby, and I left there with baby cans of spray paint & a WHITE primer... (NOTE TO SELF: DON'T BUY IT IF YOU DON'T HAVE THE 40% OFF COUPON!!).

I laid out my drop cloth on the patio (you're welcome, Steve ;) I would find nothing wrong with turquoise & hot pink concrete, but I don't think he'd appreciate it!! HA!!), got my little treasures ready, already envisioning their metamorphosis into cuteness. Shook my primer...sprayed...and then there was.....NOTHING. The primer didn't come out of the can. So, I will be going back to Hobby Lobby, because I am NOT going to eat $5 for a can of paint.

Now, it's naptime, and both of my kiddos are asleep (Abbey is taking a self-initiated nap...I'm a little flustered!! HAHA!!), and my hour/hour & a half that was supposed to be spent spray painting? Gone... I'm kinda at a loss as to what to do, now!! Abbey might have the right idea!! HAHA :)

We Interrupt This Regularly Scheduled Cruise Recap....

I just have to share something. I {heart} Joy's Hope blog!! Julie is an awesome person & very crafty!! Her 'boyfriends' have become MY boyfriends (sorry, Julie!! LOL), and she is just all around inspiring. And, in a blog world that is full of too-wordy posts blogs like mine, hers is refreshing in its simplicity. Plus, she has a pretty cool etsy shop...

Anywhoo... while reading Julie's blog, I came across THIS... so I have been stalking regularly checking out my local Dollar Tree, and guess what I'm gonna make?!?!?!

No, it's not catchup, Diet Vanilla from Sonic, or Abbey... but the TRAYS!! :) If you clicked on the link above, you can see what Julie did to these same components :) I'm hoping they turn out half as cool as hers!! LOL

OK, next time I'll give you the FINAL recap on our last night & the trip home from the cruise...although that one involves a lot of waiting & isn't quite as long...aren't you glad?!?!?! LOL

Love ya!! :)

How Do You Know You're A Grown-Up?

When you start parenting your Mother!! LOL No, no, we're not talking retirement home or anything, but Chelle & I had to break out the "Mommy Look".....on our Mom. Weird.

Some of you who know my Mom get this. It's a weird story. My Mom is calm, cool & collected 99.9% of the time. When she freaks out, there is usually a very good reason and no other appropriate reaction BUT to freak out. It has to BIG. Monumental. We're talking natural disasters, terrorist attacks, major accidents, that sort of thing. We rarely see her FREAK.OUT.

As we were leaving the beach, and Chelle & I had gotten waylaid on our way from the beach to our shuttle bus because of the gift shops along the way. We were checking out & got wind that it was time to GO, the shuttles were leaving. So, thinking that our very calm cool and collected Mom was probably already on said bus, Chelle & I proceed to the bus, get a great seat considering the bus was packed & looked around. Mom was nowhere to be found. Then, we saw the rest of our Posse heading towards the buses & thought, "Oh, there she....wait, nope, she's not with them." So, we sit on the bus, our "wise" cousin Jodi sitting across the isle from me, and Chelle & I are going back & forth, "Maybe she thinks we're still in that gift shop. Maybe she's waiting on us. What should we do? Should we go back & get her? I don't know, they're telling us this is the last shuttle back to the dock. Should we just leave her to her own devices? Should we go back?" We look longingly at our wise cousin Jodi, just knowing that she will share with us a nugget of her vast wisdom... Uh, yeah, she shrugs and says, "I don't know what to tell you to do." LOL So, then we're really worrying.

There is a lady coordinating the bus trips back to the dock. I think her main goal is to get everyone on 2 buses so they can save gas on the 3rd bus. I didn't know that then, but looking back, this just makes business sense. We decided that we'd better go after Mom. Just in case she was waiting outside the shops thinking she was waiting on us... The Bus Lady says, "Whoa, whoa, why you getting off?"

We said, "We think our Mom is waiting for us, back there, and we don't want her to get left behind because of us..." We could see her processing this in her business math head. We could see the wheels turning, like, if I let these ladies off, am I going to have to send that third bus?" LOL But, the looks on our faces must've been enough, because she relented & let us off & said, "We'll wait for you & your mother for 5 minutes!" LOL

So, Chelle & I go back down the now deserted areas of the gift shops, and was our poor Mother standing outside, anxiously waiting for her daughters to be done haggling over the price of 2 mini guitars, maracas, and a blanket? Nooooooooo... she was haggling over a RING. She was buying a ring, and Chelle & I both gave her "The Look." She didn't even try to pretend she didn't know what was wrong!! She came out of the shop with her head down!! LOL

We went back to the bus station & watched the bus our cousins were on drive away, and the 3rd empty bus pulled up. Bus Lady says, "You get on this bus!" So, there was the 3 of us, and ONE other couple that rode back on that one lonely bus!! LOL The Bus Lady looked at Mom & shook her finger at her, "You!! You have beautiful daughters! Not every daughter would go after her Mom like that, and you have 2!" LOL So, that was nice :) LOL She got a lecture from the Principal!! LOL :)

Once we got back to the little hot spot back at the dock, we walked around & shopped a little more, then headed back to the ship so we could get ready for a REALLY late dinner & more dancing & karaoke!! :)

And, if you thought the little story above was filled with drama, just get ready for this next doozy!! LOL

We were in our cabin, Chelle had just taken a shower, I was IN the shower, and Mom was cleaning out her beach bag...over the side of our balcony...and while she was shaking the sand out of her bag, her wallet sailed down to the pier and made a little "plop" noise.

Remember the whole little paragraph above about how she never freaks out? Well...SHE.FREAKED.OUT. I've never seen her so frazzled!! LOL I was in the shower, not much I could do, Chelle was at least decent, so while Mom finally got calmed down enough to get a room steward to get ahold of SOMEBODY who could go down & retrieve her wallet, Chelle stands guard over the balcony to, I don't know, look at the wallet? But while she's out there, I hear her yell, "HEY!! That's OURS!!" Apparently, someone on the pier saw the wallet & walked over & picked it up. Chelle then saw Mom & some security officers walking the pier going towards where the wallet was. Once Chelle realized the man who picked it up wasn't stopping to give it to them she yells from the balcony, "MOM!! HE'S GOT IT!!"

I'm out of the shower at this point, and Chelle said that the guy turned around & gave them the wallet.

Mom's sign & sale card was in that wallet (or so we thought at the time), along with her credit card & ID. This all happened around 9p.m. & we were scheduled to leave port at 9:30!! So, there was a time crunch along with the wallet scare. And, evidently, her credit card flew out of the wallet & is now in the bottom of the ocean!!

Mom was DONE. I've never seen her like this. She did come down to watch us karaoke for a bit, but she didn't shower or change from her beach clothes. It was kinda surreal. She doesn't ever leave without makeup or having gotten dressed. But she was DONE. We ate at the Midnight buffet (which was really good) & talked & walked with the Cousins & Aunt Di & Joy & her cousin. It was so nice!! We hadn't all been together at one time like that until that night. Not without dancing & karaoke singing. It was nice to hang out together :) Great night for that :)

I'll have to share the last day of the cruise with you next time. Right now, I don't think I could type any more. I know these recaps are long, and it doesn't look like anyone's even reading them, but I am so thankful for a place to write this out & revisit these memories, if for no one else, than for myself!! :)

Til next time!! :)

Cozumel, Mexico

WOW. It's beautiful. And, it's HOT. Now, mind you, I didn't venture off the beaten path in Mexico. It wasn't that kind of trip for me. Keep me in the pretty part that looks like a piece of Disney World. I did tend to tip our drivers a bit more there, though. I don't know why, because the touristy parts are gorgeous, and the beach? Think Kenny Chesney beautiful :) "Toes in the sand, a drink in my hand with no bottom...No shoes, no shirt, no problem..." When we walked from the pier our first sight was the Three Amigos Cantina...yes, from the movie!! LOL That is a family favorite, so we took lots of pictures there, but didn't get anything to drink. I hear they were servin' it up pretty strong!! LOL

My first impression was that the sun was literally boring down on me. I didn't have straps on my bathing suit, and my cover up was halter-style, so my shoulders were bare. Even though I had put on sunscreen before we left the ship, I was starting to worry that it might not be enough, and once we got to the beach, I did, actually, reapply liberally!! LOL

But, before we went to the beach, we perused the touristy gift shops. The buildings were very colorful, and there were palm trees...a very nice part of Mexico :)

Finally, we found our "guide" to the shuttle bus to the beach. Those guys were pretty funny & we had a great ride to the beach. They told us that the last bus back to the pier would be leaving at 6:45. Remember that, it is a clue for what's to come!! HAHA!! :)

The beach was awesome. The ocean, once we got in it, was beautiful. It wasn't a beach that you think of with waves crashing on the sand, it was more like a lake-ish. When we reached the part of the beach where the lounge chairs were, we got umbrellas & started ordering drinks!! HA!! :) It was an open bar included in the price of the excursion, so we took advantage of that & ordered things we normally wouldn't ;) LOL I learned that even though I don't like regular margaritas, I do enjoy a BLUE margarita :) Yum :) There was also a nice buffet lunch there, too. Not cruise ship quality, but it wasn't bad, either :) I believe the beach made up for a lot of the negatives!! HAHA :) They had blue rafts we could use in the ocean that were awesome!! :) It definitely made floating in the ocean more fun :) And, we used those mats when we were done as a lounge chair cushion. Delightful!! Just laying there, with the sound & sights of the ocean, the breeze, the pina colada, it was refreshing!!

But all good things have to come to an end. So, we decided to check out the shops before we made our way back to the shuttle buses. Funny side note... While I was washing the sand off my feet, a couple who had been to Karaoke the night or two before was there & the guy asked in a very thick New York accent, "Hey, you the girl who sang karaoke the other night?" I smiled & said I did. He says, "You were awesome! You should cut a rec-ud."!! LOL It was a struggle to not respond, "You know a guy?" LOL

Then, the co-parenting of my Mother started!! LOL But I think this is enough for one post!! LOL We can revisit Cozumel next time :)

Have I mentioned that I had a blast? I can't wait for the next cruise!! :)

Busy Spring!!

So, while I've been away, I have PLAYED HARD, now have a 2 year old, and am obsessed with cruise ships!! LOL

First of all, homeschooling is going great, even in the midst of our chaotic schedule. I hope to have Abbey tested before the summer is out!! HA!! :) By state law, we don't have to report to the school again until the day before the beginning of school, so I technically have lots of time, but of course, don't want it hanging over my head all summer. So, we still have some ground to cover, and I have learned a lot that will help us next year!! Yes, I said next year :) I'm feeling more confident, especially since she started READING :) I can not tell you how awesome a feeling it is to know that I have had such a major role in her learning to read!! It's amazing to watch her :)

OK, now let's talk about the PLAYING HARD :) LOL I went on an ALL GIRL'S CRUISE just a few short weeks ago!! I can't believe it's been two weeks!! Last weekend all I thought about was "This time last week..." It was an AMAZING time. Of course, there was nothing to compare to the company :) I am not exaggerating or over-dramatizing the fact that I have been so blessed to call my closest girlfriends my family. I absolutely realize how rare that is, but for whatever reason, I have been blessed!! :) Not only cousins, but the "Aunts" were fun, too!!

For those of you interested, or who went, here is a recap of all the fun!! :) If you're bored already, skip down!! LOL :)

Wednesday we met for pedicures & got matching flowers (for FREE) on our toes!! :) They are super cute, and I am going to be really bummed when it's time to re-paint my toes. Anyways, that was our pre-cruise get-together!! LOL :) It was so much fun, & the ladies that did our pedi's were fun!!

I had already said my goodbye's to my Hubby & kiddos before I left for the pedi. They were headed to Pennsylvania to spend the weekend with his family while I was gone. It was really weird, and kinda nice, to be home alone Wed. nite. Even if I didn't get to bed until 1a.m.!! I was packing & excited & getting my house somewhat straightened up because Steve was bringing his mom back with him for the week after I got back. More on that later.

We got up ridiculously early on Thursday morning (I got literally 2 hours of sleep before I had to be up & ready). But I was so excited anyway, it didn't really matter!! LOL I took some Bonine because I wasn't sure how I'd travel on a basically empty stomach, and I am SO GLAD I did. Our flight from Dayton to Detroit was pretty scary with some really bad turbulence. My Mom said that all she could think about was that there were an awful lot of people from the same family on that plane!! It was pretty scary, especially first thing in the morning. Although, the view from the window seat was beautiful. I got the side facing East, so I saw the sunrise in the clouds.

Detroit was BREAKFAST!! :) And, we had a pretty easy, kinda bumpy but NOTHING like Dayton to Detroit flight to Miami. Again, I scored a pretty awesome window seat & could see us fly down the East Coastline. SO beautiful!! :)

Then, after getting our bags, we followed all the people with signs that said "Carnival"!! :) We bussed over to the ship & when we got out, THERE. IT. WAS. Those ships are HONKEN. SO AWESOME :) We boarded, found Aunt Di, Missy & Jodi waiting on us, already drinking some pretty "drinks of the day." Found our room, freshened up just a bit, and we headed down to the lunch buffet.

By dinner Thurs. night, I was ready for another Bonine, because I was NOT feeling well. You can ABSOLUTELY feel the boat moving, and I wasn't really prepared for that. So, halfway through dinner, I had to go back up to the room to get some more med & by the time I got back down, I was ready for chocolate melting cake. There are no words to adequately describe that dessert. I am going through withdrawls. Although, Jodi has since found the recipe, but I'm not sure I want to try it, because I might decide it's not hard to make & make it A LOT. Delicious infinity. LOL

By the time we got to the karaoke lounge, I was feeling MUCH better & sang a song with the Cousins ("Cruise Chicks") & sang a solo. I was starting to think it was a bad idea cause Missy sang "Killing Me Softly" & a lot of people got into that one, and my choice was a pretty lesser known country song "I Try To Think About Elvis" by Patty Loveless, and it was fine!! LOL After I got done, it was kinda cute, because the man after me sang "Teddy Bear" BY Elvis :) LOL Fun. I {HEART} karaoke!! :)

I was DONE after karaoke that night, but the rest of the girls went to the live band lounge next door & discovered the best live band I've ever heard that didn't have smoke & lazers on the stage!! We went down the next night, and the last night. The night in between they were on the Lido deck & I guess the crowd was pretty wild.

Friday we went to Key West, FL. Think Yellow Springs meets the beach!! LOL :) Very cool & eclectic place. It would be neat to spend a lot of time on the historical side of things, but we stayed pretty close to the touristy parts. Some of the girls went to the Original Margaritaville, and had I realized it was there I'd probably tried to stop in, too. I do regret not trying some Key Lime pie. I know, weird that I didn't, right? LOL

Friday night was Formal Night, and that was SO MUCH FUN!! :) It's not everyday ya get to dress all sparkly & over the top, but it was awesome :) It was also a GREAT night to people-watch. There were some pretty cool dresses. I also tried lobster tail for the first time!! :) Delish!! :) I don't know if it was the lobster or the butter I liked the best!! HA!! :)

And, guess what I had for dessert? LOL :)

Saturday was a day at Cozumel, Mexico. I have never been outside of the US, so that was neat. It didn't really feel different from the states because we didn't go off on our own, again, we stayed pretty much in the touristy areas. BEAUTIFUL, btw. The water is really pretty there. We went to Playa Mia beach as our excursion that day, and it was pretty neat. It wasn't a "waves crashing on the beach" kind of beach, it was more like a little lake, but it was neat to see straight to the bottom, usually, in the water. It was kinda cloudy, so it probably wasn't even as clear as normal. That was where we just laid on the beach & chilled...well, we were sweating, but you know what I mean!! LOL The sand was white, the sun was hotter than I have ever experienced, and it was most likely a blessing the clouds were around that day, or I would've roasted!! LOL

OK, since this is really long, I'm gonna have to do this in two parts, so I'll leave you there, with that beautiful picture of Mexico as I say goodnight :)

Til next time :)