A Year in the Life

Would someone please stop the record player in my head?  I can not stop singing the soundtrack to Wicked.  Right now it's 'No Good Deed' that's playing, but in a little bit it will change to another song from the musical.  You know who I solely rest the blame for this on?  Hoppy.  Yes, my sweet 17 year old.  He had the opportunity to go see the musical with his AP class for $25.  I asked if they needed any chaperons.  Yes it was a Thursday matinee, but hey, you can't beat that price.  (going to see stuff is expensive)  He came home singing the songs...thank you photographic memory.  Popular  (click the link to see the song) We promptly bought the album on iTunes & now we're all hooked.  We have a very eclectic taste in music.  Well, everyone but big Hopson, he only likes to listen to country music.  When Hop's writing a paper for class he listens to classical music or music fr...

My side of the fam has never had a problem with having a flat bootie.  Quite the opposite actually, we tend to pack a little too much booty especially if we've gained weight.  I was excited when everyone started to love J.Lo & Beyone's booties because it meant curves were in.  I think the appropriate term is 'bootylicious'.  Hopson has the flattest bootie I have ever seen.  His pants sag in the back because he literally has nothing.  Luckily, since he has nothing and I have too much all our children are pretty normal.  They have the potential to build some glutes if they want, but if they don't it will be good too. Elizabeth & I were shopping today & found these at a shop, called Serendipity, that a friend owns.  We had a HUGE laugh at the thought of people actually wearing underware that have bootie pads in them.  I asked DeDa (that's what we call Samantha, the owner of Serendipity) if people actually bought them...

My friend Cathy has the greenest thumb.  Her yard is immaculate and she grows the prettiest flowers.  She is a master gardener & you can tell because her yard is mac-daddy.  I appreciate people who grow things because I kill everything.  I would love to have that talent, but when I try to grow stuff it just dies.  :/  I'm also am highly allergic to poison ivy & every time I dig in the dirt I get covered in it.  Boo poison ivy! Cathy's boys, David & Joe are good friends with Hop & Harry.  Hop said he and David made the mistake of offering to water her flowers for her last summer.  He thought it would it would be just a few live plants like we have at home.  Not with a master gardener...lots of living plants that need water in the very hot Alabama sun. Cathy and I did a tablescape for our community's annual Dogwood Festival luncheon today.  Actually she did most of it,...

Lauren, Ryan, Hannah, Alex & Abbey Sweet Girls! The phrase pretty is as pretty does is so true.  The group of girls Hopson hangs out with describe this phrase to a 'T'.  I love these girls.  (I love the boys too, but I don't think they want to be considered pretty...or at least I hope not.)  They are some of the sweetest teenagers to be around!  My friend Cathy & I talked about how cute the girls were sitting on the sidelines before the varsity lax game talking to each other and cheering for the boys.  I wish the whole group had been there for the picture so you can see them all, but school work & other activities called, but these girls were here when the game started, so their picture is the one I'm using.  Hop is blessed with some great friends...girls and guys. These girls are kind to each other; to adults; and little brothers and sisters.  They all have a ready smile and are...

I really hope this works because I'm doing it from my phone :/ The last time I tried to do this it deleted my posting Stupid phone , so here goes nothin'. Well, it's so obvious spring break is over. I've been trying to catch my breath since we came home, but no such luck. We are back to going ninety to nothing like every other family. An acquaintance told me today she was going to be going back and forth picking up and dropping off kids four different places today. I'm at the lax fields and that's a 20 minute trip one way. (and that's if you hit it just right) She told me she looks at it as a little vacation in her car. It's all about perspective. She said it's the only time someone is not asking her for something or needing anything from her. I thought she was clever. Right now is nice. The sun is out; it's in the low 80's; there's a nice little breeze;I'm going to get to see my boys practice/play lax; dinner is planned/some...

Whenever we go on vacation as a family, Hopson always declares it to be a no complaining zone. Well, I'm going to do that over my life...starting right now. To be honest, my life is cake.  I have a wonderful husband, 4 healthy children who are active and becoming independent; and a job that is pretty easy.  We have a comfortable life.  If you wondering where this epiphany came from,  I ran across a blog of someone who has twins who were born with a rare genetic disorder; spent their first eight months of life in the NICU, and will be undergoing kidney transplants in the very near future.  We also have several families in our community who have lost their moms or dads this year.  Like I said, my life is cake.  Being in a no complaining zone is often about perspective.  So here is my perspective for today... Today I'm going to be thankful for the dirty clothes/sports gear/dance clo...

Helicopter parents just about do me in!  Y'all, I'm getting my soapbox out on this one.  I mean it, they really bother me.  If you're a self-admitted helo parent, you need to read this posting. First off, let me say, I am not a perfect parent.  I am blessed with wonderful children, but I know they didn't get that way by accident.  It's hard work to let your children go & let them learn how to stand on their own two feet.  Their standing starts when they are young & progresses as they get older so when they are about to go to college they are actually semi-responsible young adults. (semi-responsible because they are not completely supporting themselves  yet, and yes there is a HUGE difference!) You may be wondering where this ranting is coming from?  At church 2 Sundays age I had a mom totally wig-out about leaving her child in a room of other 5 years olds.  The child was fine:  she came in & was gett...

The fam on top of Storm Peak Mountain. (I was taking the picture) I had a great week.  The children had spring break & we went to Steamboat Springs, Colorado.  If you like to ski & have never been there, you have to go.  It's one of our new favorites.  They have tons of runs, but it's not overwhelming to find your way around.  If you have children (or adults) who like to do jumps, Steamboat has 2 terrain parks and a half pipe. Our first two day of skiing were tough.  Colorado has not gotten a lot of snow this year, and it was very icy in the morning and then slushy by the afternoon; it was tough on the old knees.  There were big brown patches everywhere.  We're from the south so one reason we go out west is to get our fill of snow.  Sunday afternoon something wonderful happened...it started snowing.  I love me a groomed run with about 2-3 inches of fresh powder.  It's like skiing on butter.  Over 48 hours w...

Well the fam had a great spring break!  We were blessed to be able to go to Steamboat Springs, Colorado to go snow skiing.  I grew up going to the beach, so I didn't learn how to ski until I was 32.  I really enjoy it.  The biggest reason is because I love spending the time with the fam.  My kids are good skiers.  Much better than me.  (I guess that's what happens when you learn when you're young.)  My goal is to not lose anyone on the mountain and to not get hurt.  I'm ok with falling, just not hurting myself.  Yes, there's a difference. I'll be posting about the vacay tomorrow, but today is Friday!  Yes, it's farcical Friday. Before we get to the funny stuff, just know that I couldn't be a flight attendant.  You need to be nice & I'm not that nice.  You deal with some cranky people and some rule breakers.  I don't do well with either.  I heard a a supposed 15 year old (not my 15 year old) be disres...

 The Birthday Girl on the plane today 12 years.  12 years ago today Miss. Priss made her appearance into our family.  Elizabeth couldn't have arrived on a better day.  March 22nd fits her to a T.  She shares her birthday with my dad.  He would have been 64 today, and I know he would have loved her so much, maybe as much as we do.  I know her GiGi & Pop love her! She was supposed to be a planned induction; funny how babies don't keep to the schedule their parents plan.  March 21, 2000, two of my friends, Amy & Jennifer, called me around 10 pm to wish me good luck.  They jokingly asked me if there was any chance of me going into labor.  The chances were about zero and none.  (Both the boys were scheduled inductions.)  Let's face it, my body didn't know how to go into labor by itself, but not this time.  It's now 11:15 pm, two sweet boys have been kissed and tucked in bed, grandparents briefed...

I love spending time with my family.  I don't care what we're doing as long as we're together.  I could stay at home with the fam, and be happy as a clam. (I would be a great hermit!)  This past week we've had a lot of quality time; it is spring break after all.  No matter what we're doing we try to have fun. I feel very blessed that my kiddos don't treat me with disdain.  (I don't think Hopson and I would allow them to anyway)  We try to do things that our children think is important, and we respect what our children have to say.  Hopson and I have found that respect is a two way street, and while we will get onto our children if they need it, we also give positive reinforcement when it is deserved.  We also don't allow our children to talk to us disrespectfully.  How something is said is just as important as what is said.  If they can't say something to me in a nice way, how can I trust them ...

We have had to get rental cars over the years, and have been fortunate to never had a problem with them.  But for some reason this past week we have made up for that in spades.   It's not the end of the world kind of problems, just somewhat of a pain. We got our car through Hertz, a national company with a good reputation.  They gave us a brand spanking new Dodge Grand Caravan minivan; there were only 680 miles on it for the love.  It had new car smell.  I love new car smell.  New car smell doesn't last with four smelly children.  I would have been happy to hang out in the van, it smelled that great, and for a minivan it was pretty cool, and had a smooth ride. Two nights ago Hopson & I went out to dinner, and while we were coming home we hear this flopping sound coming from the left front of the car.  A flopping sound is never good.  It's 11:15 pm, which is way past our bedtime.  We...

you can see the blisters on his fingers Sometimes children have to learn things the hard way, and they have to get burned, literally.  As a parent you hate it for them & never want them to hurt themselves.  Thank goodness Henry's injury is not too bad. He decided he wanted to see if the glass in front of the fire place was hot.  Well, duh, yes it's hot.  Fire is hot, and it heats the glass, so therefore the..glass..is..hot.  It's called deductive reasoning, learn it, live it, love it.  He ended up burning the tops of three fingers on his right hand.  At least he's not in school right now.  Things can always be worse. the fireplace in question... Right now that crazy little worm has his hand soaking in a bowl of cold water.  I'm going to play Dr. Mom on him later, but I figured the cold water is helping it as much as anything else will.  I guess he won't be touching anything else that comes in contact with fire anym...

You already know what kind of dork I am...a pretty big one.  I have found that I don't hurt myself in a small way.  If I'm going to get hurt, it's going to be BIG.  It all started when I was a child.  At 5 I remember trying to change the channel on the TV & pulling it over on myself.  This was before remote controls, and I climbed on our rocking horse while my mom wasn't watching.  As I tried to change the channel, I lost my balance & grabbed onto the TV to get myself rebalanced.  Not the best of ideas, but hey I was 5.  Needless to say, the TV came crashing down on top of my foot.  Big gash...trip to the emergency room...5 stitches. In grade school we were playing soccer in our circle, and I went to head the ball & it hit me in the face.  I spit and the tops of my new bottom permanent teeth were broken off.  I had to wear bands around the nubs that were left, and then get them rebuilt.  That's not ...

Well, I  almost forgot to post, so this is going to have to count.  It is now spring break for my kiddos and we're out of school for the next week. I think we all needed the break from school and sports.  For us, it's a chance to catch our breath before the last BIG push at the end of school. My posts this week may occur late, sorry.  Today I took a huge nap & needed it.  I found myself awake at 4am.  So not cool.  Oh well, y'all have a great night & I'll see you tomorrow! Celebrating Life & down time with the fam! ~ashley

...and 'what were they thinking' or it's just plain Farcical Friday!  I am not a good interviewee.  I get so nervous.  I don't know why.  I can stand up in front of hundreds or thousands of people, talk into a mike or whatever you need me to do, and not get nervous.  But if I have to explain strengths and weaknesses about myself, it can go bad.  I tend to ramble, (I know you're shocked) and not give a clear concise answer.  It's something I'm working on.  Luckily, Hopson is a great interviewer and he helps me get prepared. I read this article  about 10 unsusal interview mistakes, which I will call 'what were they thinking' and then 6 common ones aka 'you are lying to me'.  Even I know not to say some of this stuff in an interview.  It is too weird not to share, so if you don't want to click on the link, you can read them below.  I laughed at quite a few of them, because there are some people that j...

I love that I live in the south.  Check that, the deep south, aka The Bible Belt.  We say yes'mam and y'all.  We love Jesus, the United States of America, the constitution, and would rather step on our own tongues than say something ugly to your face.  We just use the phrase 'Bless your heart' to communicate that we think you may be the dumbest human alive.  Before you think I am just some dumb redneck from Alabama, please know I am a Cum Laude graduate from Auburn University, and becoming a stay-at-home mother was my choice, and it's one that I don't regret one single day.  I do work part-time from my home, but my main job is being a homemaker. I was listening to some comments made by Karen Finney  on the Rush Limbaugh show yesterday, and yes, I like Limbaugh.  For those of you who haven't heard of her, Karen is a political analyist who works for MSNBC.  She was appaled that any conserative working fema...

At the Good Citizenship presentation There is just something special about my daughter, Elizabeth.  She has one of the most gentle and kindest of hearts.  She will, nine times out of ten, put others before herself.  I so wish I was more like her.  She tried out for dance team, and didn't make it.  She was upset for herself for a little bit, (like 10 minutes) but was happier for her friends who did make it.  God made her so special, and I think she's lovely.  Today she was presented with one of the Good Citizenship awards at her school.  I know that she didn't do anything special to receive the award, she was just being herself.  With Elizabeth, what you see is what you get.  I want to take credit for how she is, but just can't.  God made her this way.  He gets all the credit.  In the past I've tried to make her a little more competitive, and maybe even a li...

This posting is going to be super short today...I have been going non-stop & won't be getting a break until late tonight!  I really need a clone to help me drive children, help with spelling, measure teenagers for tuxedos, cook dinner, and clean my house among other things.  If you see her around will you please tell her to come home asap, the house is a wreck.  leftovers from last night's dinner Dinner last night was a hit.  The picky one even ate it & liked it, and it was super easy.  (my favorite kind of dinner)  I'll post the recipe on MOJ as soon as I can.  Tonight, I have no idea what we're going to eat.  Maybe we'll just fast dinner or have cereal, it's a tossup. Well, gotta go.  Have 2 lacrosse games tonight & one lax practice, it's crazy around here, but it's a great way to be! Celebrating Life! ~ashley 

We don't eat out.  No, I mean it, it is a very rare occasion that we eat out.  I know lots of families who will scoot through the drive through on busy nights, but we don't.  Hopson hates to eat out.  I made the mistake of learning how to cook...just kidding.  I love to cook, but I don't like to think about dinner at 7 in the morning, which is what I need to be doing on days like today. Mondays are CrAZy.  I'm in the car more than I'm not in the afternoons, and it's days like today that I would love to just pick something up for the fam.  Sometimes I'll stand in my freezer door willing something to jump out and be ready to eat.  I'm a little upset, it hasn't happened yet. :/  What's the definition of insanity?  Doing the same action repeatedly, and expecting a different result.  I think that's where I am. Anything with poached chicken is a go around here, so of course I poached some & now what to go with it???...

Varsity practice...Hop is 8. Why is it that boys smell?  I took Henry to lacrosse practice a few weeks ago, and walked by the Varsity & JV lax team, and there was this really bad guy smell surround them.  When I say bad, I mean, it was bad.  When I stopped & told Hop's friend, David, that they all smelled, he made the comment that Hop was the worst & needed to wash his gear.  I told him I would make sure it happened. I was sitting with a group of moms from Henry's team and we were talking about how smelly boys are, even at a young age. One of the moms, Heather, made the comment that boys smell like cookies and dirt, but mostly dirt.  I could not stop laughing.  It's true!  They smell bad, but it has a sweetness to it.  It's a cookie swee, and very weird when paired with the stentch.  Hop left his cletes in my car over night & the smell could knock you down.  It took me some time to figure out where it was ...

How I feel my hair looks on a bad hair day. I'm surfing the web reading articles that are mindless & at least a little interesting when I see the line:  " Can Bad Hair Really Ruin Your Day ".  Did I really just read that?  Because duh, yes it can.  If you're a guy, ask any woman who has a bad hair day & I bet at least more than half say it will affect their mood.    (if you're a woman, you already know the answer)  What floors me is that someone actually spent money to "answer" that question.  Now, I wouldn't call in sick to work because of a bad hair day, I'm not that vain, but you would be able to tell, just by looking at me that I am not altogether happy about it either.  Usually if I'm having a bad hair day I just pull it back out of my face.  A girls does what she has too & moves on.  I'm just thankful I have a headful of hair.  I guess it's all...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BE1gYMF8kgs I think I could watch some of the vidoes on YouTube for hours!  Hop & Harry come home all the time to show me some new crazy video someone told them about.  We'll watch it and sometimes laugh until we cry.  It's a fun way to spend time with older children. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqEeP1acj4Y They say that laughter is good for the soul, so let me just say you're welcome!  These videos are some of my favs.  We have watched them a lot and they are the first ones that come to mind when I think of funny videos. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r58_bRZLeLw http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7SOOg-5LBg I've posted a picture of the video, but also provided the link.  If you don't laugh at these then you need to go to the doctor because you might be dead.  Have a wonderful time watching & rewatching the videos! Celebrating Life! ~ashley http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZU...

Well, we have the snore guard!  Will there be a good night sleep in store for me tonight?  I've been waking up at least 4-5 times each night because of a certain someone who will remain nameless.  He always tells me to kick him out of the room, but I just don't have the heart to do it.  I just want him to stop snoring...hope springs eternal.   One of my favorite sheep Hopefully I won't be counting any! I so need a good night's sleep.  This past week has been a tad stressful & I've been up at least 18 hours everyday.  I know some of you can function on little sleep, but I tend to get a little snappy if no sleep is had, and right now every fiber in my body is screaming for rest.  My goal is to be in bed by 10, which is early around here.  I have 2 at lax practice, one at a study group & one at a dance clinic...so who knows what will happen.  If you see my sleep, my mind may be with ...

As you already know, my friend, Ashley, and I have started walking together about three times a week.  Today we decided it was time to really test ourselves.  If we're planning on walking 13.1 miles, we better start training like we mean it.  Most of our walks are between 5 and 6 miles.  That's a good fat burning distance, and you get a great workout, but there's a big difference between 6 miles and 13. So today we upped the mileage to 9.2 miles.  This is no flat 9 miles we walked.  We had major hills at miles: 1, 3 & 5.5.  The kind that take you 5 minutes to walk up.  The kind where there is little or no talking until you get to the top.  The kind where you wish you had the Rocky song they played when he ran up all those steps in Philly.  Well, no such luck here, but we made it none the less. We've started noticing crazy random things when we walk.  It's really funny.  The last time we did this walk (the 6....

The car in the front of the line is the idiot. Notice the green light & yield on green sign? If you are an idiot driver, please don't get in front of me, or better yet, just get off the road!  I admit, I'm an aggressive driver.  I am intentional and focused when I get in my car.  I don't meander around, because I usually have several places to be in a short amount of time, and when idiots get in front of me they cut down on my efficiency.  I have four children, I'm Type A personality, I have to be efficient, or my head might spontaneously combust. This morning at 7:20, while driving carpool, I get a call from Hoppy.  His AP Psych class is going on a field trip to a mental hospital today & he forgot to pick-up the Oreos he was assigned to bring.  He was studying all day yesterday & then had lacrosse practice until 9:30 last night, and forgot to let me know to get them or to go get them hims...

Hopson comes from a long line of farmers.  His daddy farmed up until a few years ago.  It must be in their blood because Hopson loves to grow things, and it is something he has passed onto Henry.  When Hopson starts digging in the dirt I call him Farmer Ted, so when Henry came home with a cabbage plant and a HUGE smile on his face, I knew I would need to just start calling him Farmer Ted, Jr. Every 3rd grader at his school received a cabbage plant of their very own.  I think the only thing that would have made him happier is if you gave him Legos.  We love shredded cabbage with a little Hidden Valley Ranch dressing on it.  Yummy!  (but it has to be the kind you mix yourself, the HVR in a bottle is nasty)  Henry couldn't wait to get home & plant his cabbage in the garden in our backyard.  It was so cute!  Since it is March, and March weather is crazy in the south, I talked him into planting it in a pot.  I ...