Sigh...

Today, my son turned 13. Isn't he handsome?! Wait! I'm not old enough to have TWO teenagers. Oh, yeah - I am old enough. Hmpf!!!

He's been talking about his birthday since before Christmas - dropping not so subtle hints about an XBOX360. Earlier this month, we gave him the choice of a birthday party or an XBOX360. Guess what he chose?! Here he is playing it.


It's very strange to hear him talking and no one responding. He and his friends play HALO3 and chat over the internet.

Puberty has struck! For the last month, he's been lauding the fact that he is now taller than me. I'm 5'6" and he's 5'7.5". Not to mention that his voice has gotten substantially deeper, which he uses to scare me to death when I'm not paying attention. Actually, both of my children love to sneak up and scare the living daylights out of me. Guess I'm an easy target.

I've really enjoyed watching him grow into a young man. Over the last year, he has really matured and has started taking notice of his appearance. Guess shaving will be next on the milestone list. I am definitely NOT ready for that. My only hope is that he as he grows up, he won't outgrow telling his Mom goodnight or giving her a kiss before bed.

Respect

In this instance, it's respect for other's property.

I was raised that it was rude and disrespectful to cut through another person's yard to get to one's destination. That's what sidewalks are for, right?! I have taught my children to respect other people's property, regardless of what their friends are doing.

Well...today, I happened to be stepping out onto our back patio when I see two young, black men cutting across my backyard. I, politely, told them that this was private property (it is posted) and they were trespassing. One of the young men was polite and left the backyard. However, the other one proceded to curse me out (calling me a F***ing B****, among other things). I told him that the only area that was common grounds is over by the clubhouse/pool and the rest of the property backing up to the lake is PRIVATE. If the developer had wanted the area around the lake to be common property, he would have put in a walking path - he didn't.

Anyway, the young man continued to argue with me, stating that he was an adult and that he lived in the community. I told him that it was posted private property and that he should know better...you know, being an adult and all. He did leave and mosey over to the clubhouse/pool area, cursing me the whole time. I watched him walk all the way around and then called the sheriff's department to find out what exactly I could do. I was told that because it's posted private property and they are trespassing I could call them; however, the trespassers must still be on the property when the deputy arrives for a ticket to be written for trespassing. Good luck with that - it's a good thing that I carry my cell phone with me all the time.

I really hate being the bad guy and I'm wondering if I should've even confronted them. I hope that I've made my point and won't have to resort to calling the sheriff's department. If not, then they can deal with it.

Ahhh...Summer

Woo!Hoo! Today is the first day of our summer break.

There are so many things that I need to do. My house needs a deep cleaning - top to bottom. I still have pine straw to spread in the flower beds. I need to pack up clothes for donations (and deliver said donations). These are just a few of the things that I've been putting off since mid-April.

Here is what I want to do: grab a good book (I have several on my end table), go over to the pool and waste the day reading and lounging.

Hmmm...decisions, decisions.

Have a great summer, y'all!

I love this mug!

I received this from my Mom & Dad in honor of my 40th birthday earlier this year. I just have to laugh when I use this mug because, quite honestly, there are days that I feel this way.

I'm just thankful that they didn't send me a cane or black roses. LOL In all seriousness, I really do love this mug because it represents my parent's sense of humor (which is wonderful and sometimes warped) and that they're not worried that I might be overly sensitive about hitting that "dreaded" 40.

P.S. I still get carded at the grocery store. What's up with that?! I don't looked harried enough with two teenagers in tow?! BWAHAHAHAHA!!!!

Two More Days!!

Yippee!!! Two more days of school. I can hardly wait, especially since this year I don't have to be there for the teacher workdays. I never understood why I needed to be there anyway - all my stuff finishes when the kids are through.

On May 20th, School's Out for Summer!!

Thanks to Alice Cooper for the mantra.

Hmpf!!!

I had a great picture to post this morning. However, I couldn't get the format right on it. I'll keep working on it and possibly get it posted later.

New Addition

Here it is:



This is my 40th birthday/Mother's Day gift. I LOVE it!!!

We had been talking about getting a new vehicle for quite awhile when we went test driving cars. I thought that I wanted a Toyota Sequoia, but after driving one decided that it was just too big and clunky. I, also, didn't like the changes that Toyota had done to the body style - it just didn't look cool and I wanted something cool. See, I was tired of driving the mom-mobile, aka my Windstar minivan. After driving the Sequoia, Hubby suggested that we drive out to the GMC dealer and drive an Acadia. It was just what I was looking for and fell in love with it. I did check out the new Explorers, too. However the 3rd row didn't offer much in the way of leg room and with a growing teenage children, we needed the leg room that the Acadia offered. By the way, the kids love it.

Wonder how long before our daughter asks to drive it?!

Happy Mother's Day!!!