Girls' Night Out

OMG - we had SUCH a good time last night. Let me set the scene - 8 very good friends (should've been 10, but 2 couldn't make it - we missed them!), 1 upscale restaurant and 1 espresso martini (yes, we all had a sip). Some of us have known each other since we first moved to the Rocket City and some we've added along the way. While we've had some ups and downs, we always manage to get through them. I don't get to see them as often as I'd like because we're all busy being wives and moms, but watch out when we do get together. Last night was one of those nights.

We were celebrating the June birthdays in our group. Dinner was good - I actually ordered sushi (but not the tuna - not THAT brave yet) - it was smoked salmon & cream cheese - and a salad. It was yummy! Everyone else had either crab cakes or the fish special. The best part came when we ordered dessert. J ordered the chocolate souffle, M had the raspberry sorbet, R tried the tiramisu tower (yum), D sampled the fruit tart, C had a dessert coffee (Black Magic), I went for the raspberry truffle cake, JJ didn't want anything and B had an espresso martini. B's martini was the hit of the group. Of course, we all had a sample taste of everyone's 'dessert'. By far, B's Martini was the favorite. I believe it was decided that we must have this drink at all of our get togethers - I know that I'll be serving it at our annual Christmas party. Speaking of which, it was mentioned that we make it an all girls party. Hmmm...have to think on that one.

We're all looking forward to another girls' night out.

Nest Watch, Part Trois (Updated)

They're here! The ducklings, that is. Well...only 4 of the 12 so far. We're guessing that they hatched sometime early this morning because when Hubby & I checked the nest last night all 12 eggs were still intact. We suspect that there will be a new duckling everyday for the next 8 days, since that's the way that she laid the eggs. We'll just have to wait & see.

All the eggs have hatched and Mama has taken them down to the lake. We ended up with 3 yellow ducklings and 9 brown & yellow (from what I can tell - they're across the lake).

Interview

Today I had an interview at the 9th grade school. I think that it went really well, but one can never tell for sure. I always get very nervous - the kind of nervous that makes one sick to one's stomach. I don't know why - just do.

The principal is very personable. He made me feel right at home, which was nice. We talked about the position and its responsibilities. The position is very similar to my current job. He asked why I would want to make a lateral move. I told him that I want to be available to my children and this position affords me that flexibility, i.e. M-F 7:30-3p with summers off, etc. I couldn't really tell him that I was fed up with the politicking and cat-fighting in the office (not very professional). He seemed pleased with my answers.

On the upside of this, the principal did tell me that he had 40 people apply for the position and that he only interviewed 6. I told him that I was pleased to hear that I made the short list. Inside, my heart was jumping for joy - I MADE the short list!!! He said that I had two people highly recommend me. I don't know who they are, but I just want to say "Thank You!"

He said that he'll make his decision Friday. I hope to hear from him.

Too hot!

Okay ~ I'm not usually one to complain that it's too hot. I'm from Arizona where it gets to 115 in the summer time. However, when the temp is in the 90's and the dewpoint is 65 or higher - it's HOT. It's no fun to spend time making oneself look presentable only to walk outside and have it all flop or melt. Hmmm...maybe I should invent some humidity-proof makeup. Thank goodness Hubby doesn't mind the no makeup (I do have a natural tan - not a fake one) and baseball cap look, 'cuz it's a waste of time to get made up. Oh well, maybe the kids and I should go to the pool since that's the best way to stay cool during the 'dog days' of summer.

Today's the day...

for braces and a good book. The girl went this morning to have them put on, while the boy stayed home & read.

Doesn't she look beautiful?!










Here's my handsome guy reading.




They're growing up way too fast.


Sigh...

Nest Watch II

Still no babies. It's coming up on 4 weeks. Just bet that they all hatch at the same time. I wonder if Mama will bring the babies back to the nest each night or if they'll stay on the lake. I think it's pretty cool that Mama chose our flowerbed for her nesting site. :)

Stay tuned...

Finally!

It's RAINING!!! Yes, I'm very excited about this. We're almost 19 inches behind for the year and it shows.

Maybe, just maybe, this will be the beginning of the end of our drought.

One can only hope.

Blogging with Hubby

Hey!

Hubby and I have created a new blog (see link at right): Adventures in Cooking with a Rocket Scientist. We hope to provide a little laughter as well as some cooking tips. While we are NOT professionals, we do enjoy experimenting and branching out in our cooking.

If you know of some good sites for us to visit, please let us know and we'll post them at our sister site. :)

Duke

The prosecutor in the Duke lacrosse case has resigned his position as District Attorney. The disciplinary committee has agreed with the bar that his handling of the case was dishonest, fraudulent, deceitful and misrepresented. Now they must decide if Mr. Nifong should be disbarred for his actions.

Um...duh!

Yes, he should be disbarred. He made a royal mess of the case and put those players through hell. While I'm sure that those lacrosse players are no angels, no one deserves to be put through the ringer when the evidence points to their innocence. Don't get me started on the alleged victim.

If the committee decides to disbar Mr. Nifong, he will have plenty of time to think about what he's done. I'm betting that in the near future someone will approach him about writing a book on the whole thing.

Work

As most of you know, I work at a local elementary school as a receptionist. Actually, I'm the punching bag for all of the irate, difficult parents that come in and all I can do is smile. I must've been wearing my rose colored glasses too long 'cuz I don't remember people being such pains in the posterior. Good grief! But I digress...I wanted to tell y'all that I put in a letter of interest at the local high school.

Being the dutiful employee that I am (*snicker*), I went to my current boss, i.e. principal, to tell her that I had turned in a letter of interest. I thought that she was going to cry. Yes, I'm THAT good. ;) Jokingly (I think) she said that when the other principal calls, she's going to give me a horrible reference and tell him that I'm so terrible at what I do that she has to keep me. I'm not sure if I should be flattered or worried.

I have really enjoyed my job this past school year. However, I have a child moving up into the high school and I'd like to be around to keep an eye on her. No, I'm not an overbearing mom. I'm actually very hands off when it comes to dealing with my children's schools, unless there is a problem. I believe that they need to take responsibility for their actions and deal with the consequences. Anyway, D thinks it would be cool to have Mom working in the office. I guess she thinks that she can bum a ride to/from school, which is true since the bus comes by at 6:15 in the morning. Ugh!!!

Nest Watch

In our new home - I still call it that 'cuz we've only been in it 3 years - we are fortunate enough to back up the the neighborhood 'lake'. This has provided us with many evenings of entertainment watching the vast array of birds coming to visit and the fish/frogs jumping in the water, etc. In addition to the usual birds, we've seen blue herons, green herons, grebes, mallards, Canadian geese (unfortunately - they are nasty birds), catfish (we have several albino ones), bullfrogs, frogs and tree frogs. Also, we have raised several broods of bluebirds.

One of the bonuses (for us anyway) is having the mallards take up residence at the lake. Little did we know that they were actually scoping out my flowerbeds for their next nest. On a Saturday three weeks ago, D thought she heard the computer making funny noises and came out to investigate. Well, it wasn't that but Mama duck making all kinds of racket in the flowerbed outside the kitchen. We didn't think much of it until we went out on the patio that evening and startled her out of the bed. Lo and behold, she had laid 4 eggs that morning. For the next 8 days, she laid one egg daily. She is now sitting on the nest of 12 eggs and has been for 2 weeks.

We are now on 'egg' watch. I did some research on how long it takes from laying the eggs until they hatch. 23 - 28 days is the incubation time frame for Mallards. This weekend will make it 3 weeks, so we should be seeing little hatchlings soon. I hope that we can get a picture of them before Mama whisks them away to the lake.

On a side note, there is another mama mallard & 7 ducklings swimming happily on the lake.

Funny, we've only seen one male mallard. He's been a busy guy... :P

And so it begins...

D and I just got home from our first (of many) orthodontist appointments. Today's appointment was to put in spacers - those things they put between your teeth to make room for the bands. Funny...I don't recall ever having to do the 'spacer' thing. I do remember having to wear that awful thing - the headgear - to correct an overbite for a couple of years before getting braces. Thank goodness D doesn't have to wear one of those.

Being the 'good' parents that we are, dad and I told D that her mouth would likely be sore after today's appointment. She comes waltzing out less than 5 minutes after we get to the ortho's office saying "That didn't hurt a bit. I don't know what you and Dad were talking about." *snicker* She'll be up during the night wanting pain meds 'cuz her mouth hurts.

Hmmm...wonder how next Thursday's appointment will go. Better stock up on lots of soft, easy to eat foods - i.e. ice cream and yogurt.

Dinner with Friends

Last night was my book club night. It was soooo much fun! I had not seen my friends since March for one reason or another - anniversary, dance recitals, end of school year activities, and just generally feeling a little anti-social (I do that sometimes, though I'm not sure why). It was a wonderful evening - I really needed a night out with the girls. I've been a little stressed lately and needed to decompress. It was fun just to talk about our book (The Secret History by Donna Tartt) and then let the conversation digress as it will with 9 women in the room. Boy oh boy, could we write some stories. :) As a matter of fact, I mentioned creating a blog so that we could share our conversations with y'all. Still waiting on the consensus about it. Anyway, when my friend, B, dropped me off at home afterward, I had no idea it was 11:30pm (didn't wear a watch). Thank you to my friends - you made my week. Love you all!!!! :)

Me from A to Z

This meme comes courtesy of Tense Teacher, one of my favorites.

A - Available/Single? Very happily married for 18 years

B - Best Friend? My Hubby
C- Cake or Pie? I make a pretty mean dark chocolate cake!
D - Drink Of Choice? Diet Coke

E - Essential Item You Use Everyday? Lotion and of course, deodorant.
F - Favorite Color? Pink...and black.
G - Gummy Bears Or Worms? Gummy bears
H - Hometown? I was born in Arizona, but now call Northern Alabama home since we've been here for 17 years.
I - Indulgence? My once per week jaunt to Starbucks for a non-fat, sugar-free Cinnamon Dolce Latte - no whip, of course. And Italian chocolate from Perrano's in Torino, Italy.
J - January Or February? February 'cuz it's my birthday month and that spring is just about a month away.
K - Kids & Their Names? Two - daughter (14) and son (12)
L - Life Is Incomplete Without? Hubby, kids, a good book and an even better glass of Italian wine.
M - Marriage date? April 22, 1989

N- Number Of Siblings? One - brother
O - Oranges Or Apples? Gala apples
P - Phobias/Fears? I don't dig carnival rides - they make me sick.
Q - Favorite Quote? "Let us make one point, that we meet each other with a smile, when it is difficult to smile. Smile at each other, make time for each other in your family." Mother Teresa, in her Nobel lecture

R - Reason to Smile? There are many reasons to smile: my hubby, my children, a great book, seeing family that you haven't seen in a while.
S - Season? I have to choose just one?! I love fall the most, but spring comes in a close 2nd.
T - Tag 3 or 4 people? No tagging - as I'm new to all of this, but take it if you want to. :)
U - Unknown Fact About Me - Hmm...let me think about this one. I know - I fractured my right ankle running in P.E. 20 minutes into 1st period in 7th grade. That was fun - NOT!!!
V - Vegetable you don’t like? I loathe eggplant, mushy red tomatoes and fried green tomatoes. Yuck!
W - Worst Habit? I put things off until the last possible minute.
X - X-rays You’ve Had? Let's see I've had one done on my right ankle, dental x-rays, mammograms (are they x-rays?), chest (to rule out pneumonia). I think that's it.
Y - Your Favorite Food? Bruschetta made with fresh bread, fresh mozzarella cheese, garden-fresh roma tomatoes, basil, garlic and balsamic vinegar.
Z - Zodiac Sign? Aquarius

Have a GREAT weekend!

Errands with children

OMG - can we say 'STRESSFUL'? That describes running errands with my children - D is 14 & S is 12. Growing up I was taught if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all. Mind you, I have repeated this mantra to my children. However, it doesn't seem to sink in.

D has just about pushed me over the brink with her hatefulness towards her younger brother. I had a younger brother who used to drive me crazy, but I don't remember ever trying to HURT him (mainly 'cuz he was bigger than me). She does everything possible to belittle him (publicly & privately) and hurt his feelings. S, on the other hand, is no angel. He does things to get her goat on a regular basis, but nothing that deserves the viciousness that she dishes out. Dad & I have told D time and again that one day she'll regret being so hateful toward him. I just hope that she starts to see the light before it's too late.

Sigh...how many days til school starts.

Rest in Peace, Kelsey

As a parent, it is very distressing to me when stories like Kelsey's come to the forefront. I know that I cannot protect my children from everything - although I want to lock them away until they are 21.

This young lady was just finishing up shopping (something we all take for granted) when she was abducted. What is this world coming to when we can't even let our children go shopping without worrying about someone snatching them. My heart is broken for her parents and friends. May they find peace knowing that she's is home.

Parents...give your children a big hug & kiss and tell them that you love them before they go to bed tonight.

Rest in peace, Kelsey.

Birthday meme

I'm new to this thing called a meme, but this one sounds like fun.

Idea borrowed from Cranky Epistles.

1. Go to Wikipedia and put in your birthday, without the year, in the search bar.
2. List on your blog 3 events, 2 births, 1 death and 1 holiday that happens(ed) on your birthday.
3. Then tag 5 more friends to do it!

Here's what happened on February 5th:

Events:
(1) 1778 - South Carolina becomes the first state to ratify the Articles of Confederation
(2) 1988 - Comic Relief holds the first "Red Nose Day", which raises £15 million in the United Kingdom for charity.
(3) 1971 - Project Apollo: Apollo 14 Mission - Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell aboard LM, Antares land on the Moon at Fra Mauro formation.

Births:
(1)1948 - Christopher Guest, American actor (Nigel from 'This is Spinal Tap' & hubby of Jamie Lee Curtis)
(2)1943 - Michael Mann, American film director (executive director of Miami Vice & Crime Story)

Death:
1995 - Doug McClure, American actor

Holiday:
Bummer!!! No holidays for me.

No one is tagged, but feel free to do it and post your results in the comments. I'm interested to see what y'all come up with.

No Rain, Again...

Darn! It didn't rain today. The weather dingbats predicted as much as a 50% chance of rain today. Hmpf! So much for that prediction. As much as I don't want the coastal areas to go through another hurricane/tropical storm, it is what we need to break our drought. Since 2005, our area is 48 inches below normal for rainfall. Besides, I'm already tired of watering the lawn and it isn't officially summer yet.