My friend posted this on her blog early this morning. Edited to remove names. My 7 year old daughter and I were talking to my husband (in Iraq) via an Internet phone connection. Suddenly we hear a crash and a lot of weird (for lack of a better word) noise coming from him. After not being able to get him to respond, I panicked. I called my friend whose husband works very near to him and she was able to call her husband and ask to have someone run over and check on him. The connection was sti...

Texas Wahine is back in Texas but unfortunately, on the opposite side of town from me.  So after a few encounters when they moved in, we haven't been able to see each other.   But wouldn't you know it?  I got sick of my lame-o school and requested a transfer for Connor.  He made it to the school I hoped for!  Then it occured to me, Brandie is over on that side of town.... Turns out that she lives by the school and her kids go to the same school!  I guess ...

I haven't blogged here in a while.  Free Ice Cream is great and I love having it, but it just isn't my favorite flavor anymore.  I have a bunch of RSS feeds, so I can still see what's going on here. I've had issues with Firefox and Joe getting along and I'm just not cool enough to understand it.  I'll still stop by, but if you want more updates on my life...feel free to check me out on myspace  (rarely updated) or my blogger account which I love 'cause it's linked to...

So Trapeze started today.   I was so so incredibly excited.   Until now.   The first time I flew, I could feel my handgrips slipping, so I took them off and just chalked my hands.  I felt my hands abrading already, so I used tape to make better grips....and it didnt' help.  I tore the heck out of my hands today.  It was so bad that I couldn't even finish the class.  I gave up my last 3 spots to another girl who was doing great.   It...

Boy just said his bedtime prayer. "Blah blah blah....And please keep my Daddy safe and strong...And please keep the soldiers in Iraq safe so when they come home to thier families for not just vacation but for good, they aren't dead." Dang. Why did he catch on to that now? I've tried to shelter him and when we pray as a family, I emphasise the "Please bless Dad, keep him safe and healthy and strong ...etc etc. I've tried to avoid mentioning deaths in other units so that he doesn't ...

The first video was a practice.... And the catch.... I was still letting go early. From my point of view I was coming too close and I'd let go too soon, but maybe I will practice this again....

So I decided that it was time to go flying! Link

Today is my birthday! WHA HOOO!! Actually, make that more of a "whew." Birthdays aren't as exciting as they were when I was a kid. Somehow as you get older, the magic slips away. Maybe it's knowing that you have to budget for your own birthday gifts takes the thrill out of it. All things aside, it is a wonderful day. HW got to come back from the field to be with me (WOO HOO!-that makes 3 birthdays together in 9 years!) That has been one of the nicest things that I could get to...

I love to Ebay. Yes, it can be a verb. It's like windowshopping in your underwear. You can dream about the 1965 GTO selling for $500.....even though you know that when the bidding stops four days from now, it will cost about as much as your house. Seriously though, Ebay is great place. With a little effort, you can find almost anything you want or even didn't know you wanted. And you can get it at a fantastic price. I found a Fisher Price Castle. You know the one. It had the be...

The worst music in the world is the music that phone companies play when they put you on hold. It is enough to drive even the most sane person crazy in a matter of minutes. I am sitting on the Lingo support line. I am trying to find out why I have a dial tone and I can call out, but NOBODY can call me! They get a message that says "The subscriber you are trying to reach in this network is unavalible." Needless to say, this is VERY irritating when I fin out that my boss and my husbands ...

I just realized that I am now past the 100 article mark. Pretty amazing. i also noticed that I am not writing as frequently anymore. I used to get up every morning and write. It was easy to get up and get moving because I went to be fairly early. I had no reason to stay up, so I went to sleep at 9 or 10 every night. I woke up lonely and went in search of IMs from my husband or blogs from Joeuser. I vented my frustrations (so much so that I tended to sound pretty whiny sometimes) a...

I am a yoga instructor. I occasionally teach pilates. I have taken spinning, kickboxing and step classes in my past (before this last pregnancy). What made me think this qualified me to teach a kickboxing class? I have a friend, Amy who teaches15 classes a week. Water, kickboxing, step, pilates, spinning....you name it. She could n't find ANYONE to sub her Thursday night class. Since I have the next class (Power yoga), I offered...after all, how hard could it be? Ahem. VERY h...

I'm sick as a dog today. My head is pounding and my sinuses feel like they are going to explode. My stomach hurts and I would like to just crawl back in bed for a nice long nap. But i can't, so I got up, called in sick to work, fed my kids, packed a lunch for my son and sent him off to school. (at least I had someone who could give him a ride so I could stay home) I put on my fuzzy slippers from Peru and an old high school sweatshirt. Then I looked in the mirror and realized my shirt ...

In the moment of quiet before all hell breaks loose again, I am announcing my return to EverJoe. (If you don't get it, you can read past articles till you find the one where I explain...or you can just move on) I spent 3 weeks with my in-laws because they wanted to see there granddaughter and because I had nothing worth keeping me here in Texas. It was a wonderful holiday. For the first time in my life, I truely felt like I was on a vacation. I didn't spend money or time doing crazy th...