:: Okay, What's Going On Around Here?! ::

Weird things have been going on around here today.

Cue creepy Twilight Zone music...

It started off with all three of us getting up at a relatively decent hour this morning. I had cleaned the house and had a shower before 10:15 a.m. Odd.

Then I walked into the living room and found this...

Chloe and George. Sworn enemies for over eight years. There they were. Together. Peacefully sharing the best seat in the house. Creepy. Seriously creepy.

Ben and I decided to run to JoAnn's to get some fun crafty supplies. (Side note... I have really been getting my crafty vibe on lately. But more about that later this week.) I went to check out with my 40%-off coupon in hand, and the super sweet JoAnn's employee ringing up my goodies told me to hold on to my coupon, that she had a 50%-off coupon she would let me use. Awesome! I spent less than $18 at JoAnn's. That's like... well, unheard of really. I was so happy!

The absolute oddest thing that happened today took place about 6:45 this evening. Now, for those of you who don't know, my family is addicted to take-out and fast food. And I'm not exaggerating at all when I say we eat out at least once a day. We do. It's sad. I'm not proud. But tonight I decided to MAKE DINNER. A homemade meal. I actually cooked a homemade meal for my family. And it was damn good. I give you Exhibit A:

Fusilli with Sausage, Artichokes and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

I saw Giada make this the other day, and I thought it looked pretty tasty. I bookmarked the recipe in hopes that one day I would actually cook again. So, I printed out the recipe and got to work. I threw some nice crusty bread in the oven and voila! Dinner! Here is the recipe, in case you are interested.

What a strange day. Good strange... but still strange. I hope tomorrow is just as odd. Odd is kinda fun.

:: Inspiration ::

Well... here it is!  My newly remodeled blog.  What do you think?

I probably spent about three or four hours looking at blog templates.  I had two picked out that I liked, but I wasn't super excited about either one of them.  So, I kept looking...

That's when I decided to forgo the free layouts I was searching, and I found a site that offered pre-made designs for a very fair price.  When I came across this layout, I knew it was the one for me... because the colorful dots along the top of the page reminded me of Sprinkles Cupcakes.  I am a huge fan of Sprinkles... their cupcakes are fabulous!

I guess you never know where inspiration will come from.  :)

:: Time to Spruce Things Up Around Here ::

You know what I just realized?  May 8th marked the first anniversary of my little blog.  With so much going on around this crazy household, it completely slipped my mind.  You know what else I realized?  That I have not changed a thing on this blog in over a year.  

I guess while I was out enjoying all my "fabulous adventures" as the "perfect wife and mother," I didn't pay much attention to the layout of my ramblings, er... I mean, blog.  So, I think it's time to redecorate this place a bit.  Maybe even create a new banner.  I still plan to adhere to my 1950's Housewife Motif, but I definitely think I could make this place a bit more fancy and maybe even a bit more modern. 

So, be sure to check back in the next few days... 

:: One Year Later ::

My husband, Jason, posted this note on his Facebook page today, and I thought it would be a wonderful tribute on this, the one-year anniversary of his parents' passing.  I hope that all of you are enjoying this beautiful day and spending it with the people you love. Happy Sunday everyone. :)

One year ago, today (6-7-08), my parents both passed away.

We've had a year to process our loss, and the good news is (as my dad often used to say) "... life goes on." I miss my parents, and I am grateful for what they gave me: life (with, and from, God), reasonable intelligence and a dry sense of humor (from dad), and art (from mom). Both of my parents taught me to be grateful for what we have. Life has brought us many things, but I am most grateful for the love of my family and friends.

My mom (above), with my son Benjamin. Ben's 'Nana' loved him very much, I am sure. She was in the middle of what would become 10 full courses of chemo-therapy when Ben was born. My mom was a fighter, and fought the good fight until the very end. She gave me a love for art, and the creation of art. My very first knowledge of art, joy of creating art, and technical skill came from her. I am an artist, today, because of her, my mom. You know, my mom never smiled more in life than when she was sick with cancer - this was a good thing. THIS is the way that I prefer to remember her, smiling ... and with a heartfelt, familar, yankee-accented, "Oh, Geeeeze?!" as she used to say, smiling.

My Dad (above), shown here holding his grandson Benjamin at their very first meeting. Ben's 'Grandpa' loved him so much. My dad would hold Ben, and laugh with him, until they both were tired out. My Dad gave me a love for laughing, the ability to see things in other, more humorous, ways ... and all, while sharing his incredible gift of intelligence and quick wit. It took brain cancer (and the resulting brain surgery) AND three heart attacks (the last when he found my mom, passed, we believe), to take this 'iron man' from our world. My dad, simply put, is the finest man I shall ever know. To me, he was: a best friend, a loving father, and mentor like no other. It sounds cliché, but if I can be 1/2 of the dad, husband, and man that he was, I will be an astounding success. My Dad would often say to me "I love you" and "I'm proud of you, kid." Today, as I raise my own son (with a lot of help from my incredible wife, Melanie), I am working hard to keep my dad's words and truths (my last and best memories of him, his voice), alive. I miss my Dad with everything I have, and I always will.

:: Random Internet Goodies ::

That's right folks!  It's the second installment of my Random Internet Goodies. I actually made a list of several online gems I have come across in the past few months that I wanted to share with you all... but I can't find the list. Figures, right?  This particular goody was one my husband introduced me to just this afternoon.  It's a hoot. Seriously.  You *must* check it out. 

The site is called Oddee.  Here is the description: 

Oddee.com is an entertainment blog on oddities, attracting over a million visitors each month. Focused on the odd, bizarre and strange things of our world, its daily articles and sections explore subjects from Science to Advertising and Technology; over 8.2 million pages are read at Oddee every month. 

I haven't had the chance to look through all of the site, but so far my favorite collections are the "15 Sexist Vintage Ads" and the "12 Most Unfortunate Product Names."  Gaytime Ice Cream, anyone?  Now, be warned, there are some possibly offensive entries on the site, but for the most part, they are just funny. REALLY funny.

So, if you are in the mood for a good chuckle... head on over to Oddee.com.  It's fun.  And who couldn't use more fun, right?

:: Swimming Hats and Hungry Monsters ::

As far as weekends go, this one has been pretty good.  We didn't go anywhere exciting and we didn't have any thrilling experiences... but it was a good weekend.  We slept in, watched TV and just hung around the house.  Not bad. Just what a weekend should be, I guess.  Relaxing. Fun.

On Saturday, while Ben was taking a bath and I was getting his clothes ready, I heard him call for me... "Mama, come look at me.  Come look at my swimming hat!" I looked through the bathroom door to see Ben wearing one of my mixing bowls on his head.  It was his hat.  His "swimming hat." It made me laugh.  

Quite a number of my kitchen utensils have found a new home in Ben's bathtub.  He has tons of bath time toys to play with... we have bought him rubber duckies, plastic boats, dinosaur water squirters... but nothing seems to be as much fun as my whisks, mixing bowls and spatulas. During the summer, I usually lose about two strainers and at least one tea pitcher to the pool in the backyard.  I'm not even going to bother with buying beach balls and floaties this year.

On Saturday afternoon, Ben climbed up on our bed with a book in his hands and began to read us his favorite book "One Hungry Monster." At first, we just thought he was going to pretend to read it... he knows certain words and can spell, but he has never actually read a series of complete sentences, and certainly not a whole book. Well, guess what? He read the book.  The entire book. He really concentrated and sounded out the bigger words... we were so happy!  I went and grabbed several other books from his closet and asked him to read each one, and he did. He can read so well.  He's only four years old, and he is reading like a superstar! So, I told him this week we would go get him a library card, and he can pick out books all by himself.  He was so excited.  I am so proud of him.

Today we went to a birthday party for Ben's friend, Gabrielle.  She turned six years old today. Ben stayed in the pool the entire time we were there.  Well, he did get out of the water for cake and ice cream, but he jumped right back in after he was done. So, he was pretty hungry and very tired when we got home. It made bed time so much easier.

So, that was our weekend... not bad, huh?  

:: Easter 2009 ::

This year, we spent Easter with my parents in Dallas. My Mom's birthday was April 13th, and to celebrate, we took her to the Dallas Arboretum. The Arboretum is one of my absolute favorite places... I could spend an entire day there. So could my Mom. For her birthday, we got her a year's membership to the Arboretum, so she can go as many times as she wants. We plan to visit every time we go to Dallas... yeah, the place is *that* amazing.

We had a pretty low-key Easter... we decorated some eggs and hid them around the house for Ben, since it rained the night before and we couldn't have an egg hunt outside. He had a blast.

I put together a little slideshow... enjoy.  :)

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