Friday, May 21st 2010

We were in Willy's (the setting for many intimate occasions) Sweetbreads had just delivered a snarky comment... amused, I paused and with all seriousness my gut urged me to blurt "Will you marry us!!?" (Yes... with exclamation points.) 

That evening, I knew without hesitation that Sweetbreads, Just Fit.  I wanted her in.  Flag Girl cutely and enthusiastically nodded in agreement.  Sweetbreads, was Golden.

On Friday, Warhol FiNaLee made it official.

And I could not be more thrilled.

 

 

Sweetbreads:

Welcome to the cast, the crew, the good times and bad (they are definitely mostly good!). Welcome to our world, our show.... our Family. 

You have become my yogi, my buddy, my friend and now... my sister. (well... sister-to-be)

Warhol:

Thanks for FiNaLee... makin this official.

You're a pretty Cool Cat. 

My sincere and heartfelt Congratulations to the both of you.  We have enjoyed countless hilarious memories over the last couple years.  I can NOT wait to create countless more.

Not since Coach and I... have I witnessed two people, use two such twisty and rocky paths... to lead each other to love.  Also just like me and Coach, I am certain the journey will make your love more cherished.  (It's possible... I'm about to break into a Firehouse song '...found the love of a lifetime..') 

 

I'll try not to bring a snake to your wedding. But if I find one lying around... I can't make any promises.

All my love,

And Without ANY Further Adieu...

I VERY happily bring to the world, the writings of an Honored Guest Blogger (my 'broder') Warhol:

 

I'll Have the Sweetbreads, please..

My Erin-

You came into my life, out of no where (a garage, in fact.) A very "odd place for such a classy lookin girl."... With your quiet wit, you quickly lazered in my full attention.  I asked you on a date and you said YES!!... and then No... then YES!! again. After spending only a little time with you, I learned several important things:

You carry yourself with class

but are willing to down a Busch Light with the boys.

You prefer the finer restaurants

but loves Katsup on your Mac n Cheese.

Your eyes glaze over, when I recite the entire (Classic) "Hey Mikey" Life cereal commercial but you can name all of Brad and Angelina's children.

You are smart, funny, caring

and Beautiful.

All of this and more, is why I fell in love with you.

Now. It is time... to look towards Our Future.

 

"I said, I think that we can stay here,
Cause I feel our time has come.
And we can walk down to the ocean,
And sit with the rising sun.
So unpack your bags this instant,
No more running from town to town
And now that we've arrived so safely,
Baby you can..."

So... Erin Michelle Wrigley....
____ ___ _____ __ ????

I Teach Yoga.

I tried yoga once but took off for the mall halfway through class, as I had a sudden craving for a soft pretzel and world peace. Quote By: Terri Guillemets



This morning, I scheduled 2 hrs to work on "My Job".
(Not too worry, Sesame Street is currently molding the minds of my daughters. Which is probably more productive than their Mother's influence.)

It is funny to refer to Yoga as "My Job". Often, the 6 hours each week, I spend at "Work" are some of my Favorite moments.

During class, I find exercise, relaxation, humour, a moment of quiet and peace. AND...I am given the opportunity to speak to adults!

I began yoga, 10 years ago. With a friend, in Arizona. I wanted an exercise that would improve not only the fit of my jeans but my health.
I love watching a fierce-sarcastic non-believer
(um, lookin at you Warhol) become a dedicated yogi.
Today... Yoga has made me more of myself.
And I Heart the Namaste Heck out of it.


Side Note-
If you happen to Google "Pictures of Yoga" be prepared to view, some sorta disturbing images.
And maybe... ask the children to leave the room.
No, we DO NOT practice Naked Yoga, in my Studio.
At least, not until, Warhol starts the petition.

I Heart our new Furnace.

5 days into the New Year and I have spent a cumulative 2 hours on Expedia.com researching warmer vacation locales.

Ahhh, January in Illinois.
How I loath thee....


Dear Expedia:
If you want to award my blog, a free 3 night trip to Na'Olens... we are totally game. We'll jump at the opportunity to run from our State and our Children.

So...Ya know You've Thrown a Great Party When.....

You find leftover traces of said party for several days following the event.

The most peculiar clue, would be these:



Allow me to pose 3 Questions:
Which one of our Friends...

A.) Claims The Slippers as a part of their wardrobe?

B.) Actually chose to wear The Slippers to our Party?

C.) Enjoyed themselves so very much,
they left our December Party barefoot?

Just the fact, that I am completely baffled and find it difficult to narrow the list, to even a few....
Sadly, defines the character of my group of
friends and/or family.

And I must say...
I Heart That.

I Heart Thursday Lunches.

A conversation at the lunch table.
Cast...
Coach, One and Tink.
(I was just eating my tacos and minding my business.)

Coach: Are you going to Three's game on Monday?

One: Monday...? I thought he played JV on Fridays?

Coach: He's playing both Freshman and JV. This will be the greatest year of his life!
(Me...quietly ignoring that the Greatest Year of Coach's life was at 15. Ouch)

One: He plays both? I thought kids didn't do that so they don't hurt themselves for Varsity?

Coach: Those kids need to grow some N**s. I can't get over how the kids now-a-days in this town need to find some N**s.

Tink: Dad...day don't need any N**s...dere are pine cones all ober the street!

Check Mark!

This weekend, a few family members will be marking one Big Check Mark off their Bucket List.
I marked one off today.
My first official Harvest Day, from my New Garden!



(Yes, I realize I was premature on the onions. I had to make room for my exploding Tomato plants.)

Thanks to the Jungle-like conditions,
the garden had a teenage boy growth spurt.

Unexpectedly, I am a pretty hard-core Dork.
I was very excited to gather my home grown veggies.

From her chubby hand,
Coco appears to be, as well.
One step closer to never grocery shopping again.

Rain, Rain Go Away...

Gosh, ya know what would be super neat?
If it would rain.

I can barely remember, the last time it really rained.
It has been so gosh darn long, since I walked across a wet, squishy lawn.
Or woke up to a Glorious Cloudy morning.




It has been Ages! since I fell asleep to the sound of thunder gently rolling in the distant evening sky.
The weeds have barely had the opportunity to flourish AmazonJungleStyle, thanks to our Monsoon-like environment.
My children, get giddy with the excitement of a fun little storm and hardly EvEr talk about another Tornado.

I just Heart the BeJesus out of humidity and keep my fingers super, tightly crossed that we can get whole bunches more of it. As my hair just thrives, in Ultra Groovy Muggy conditions.

I also Heart when:

*I consistently sit on wet lawn furniture.

*We receive/make 47 calls a day, in regards to which baseball/softball game may be Rain Delayed.

*Mud.

*The Pleasant Surprise of realizing we actually live in Louisiana Swamplands, rather than the Midwest.

*Visiting the Weather Radar Website, 4-7 times a day.

*My son's Fantastical attitude, after Golf Camp is cancelled. Because the look of Utter Broken-Hearted Disappointment is much more endearing than the Joy-filled smile after the purchase of his Brand New clubs.

Mostly, I Heart to teeny, little pieces
sharing nifty quality, indoor time with my children,
while they grow paler and more Vitamin D deficient each and every day of their Summer vacation, as it
rains.. and rains...and bleepin rains.

Who really enjoys the swimming pool, anyway?

Oh,
even more rain is expected today!
Fun, something Different!

Sunday Funday

Tell me,
is there any better scent,
in the entire world...
than sunscreen, blended with the outdoors, sprinkled with your little child's sweat, swirling around their wind mussed hair?
I Heart that.

I Heart....Fall.

Fall is my favorite season. As we race into the winter holidays, I should send Fall a shout out. I am lacing my "I Heart" with pictures I took of the kids, on a perfect Fall afternoon.

I Heart...the transition from Shorts to Sweatshirts. Isn't life always better in a sweatshirt?
I Heart...the smell of fireplaces, in the air.
I Heart... the colors. (They have been beautiful this year. When it wasn't raining!)

I Heart...dressing my kids in Halloween T-shirts. (Though, orange and black were my school colors. Sometimes the reminder, gives me the heebie jeebies.)
I Heart...eating 8-10 (or more like 12-14) pieces of Halloween candy a day, for a week straight. Being shocked when I gain two pounds. Washing down that self hatred, with a bag of candy corn, I snagged on Halloween clearance. See you again next year, Lack of Self Control.
Maybe, I don't Heart that.

I Heart...Our Family birthday season. It is crazy. (Asked if the Kid could sign up for Saturday bowling league, I responded, 'No. He is in Saturday, Birthday Party League'). The cake doesn't hurt my mood. May contribute to those 2 pounds. Alright! It was 3, if you are going to harass me, over it!

I Heart...the festivals.
I Heart...football. The actual game, not fantasy. Is that becoming redundant?
I Heart...breaking out the hot cocoa.
I Heart...the new TV shows being back. Nice to see you, my friends. I was bored all summer, loving my children, in the evenings.
I hope you enjoyed your Fall. Unfortunately, the season is not, gently falling, into winter. More like leaping, jumping and pushing it's way in.
Do not, stay tuned, for the 'I Heart Winter' post.
Never gonna happen.

I heart....

I Heart....Crunch Berries
I Heart....that Coach knows every word to Aladdin.
I Heart....nearly every single time Six loses his balance. (Sorry Edie and Warhol)
I Heart....that the burning bushes are turning red.
I Heart....the very rare times we return our rented movies on time. Why don't we have Net Flix?
I do not Heart....that wet parade candy was shoved into my candy drawer.
I Heart....having a candy drawer.
I Heart....falling asleep on the couch, under a blanket, during the Bears game.

The 'I Heart' label...

Someone has 'Wordless Wednesdays'. Someone else has 'What I learned today' (which someone has been known to steal from someone else.) I will have at least 3 of these labels on a regular basis.
The first being the "I heart...' category.
For example.

I Heart....when you get a beer at turtles and there is still ice on the outside.
I Heart....it more when that happens on a Saturday afternoon.
I Heart....when Tink says she can't when I know she most definitely can.
I Heart....when Bryson says he and his Grammy are twins. Cuz I am sure they are not.
I Heart....when my father-in-law text messages me.
I Heart....the Camp Connorfest self declared tether ball champ. At least that is what his shirt said.

You get the idea.
Stay tuned for the 'Why the F...' and 'They say it's your birthday'....labels.