Balloon Attack

Right off the bat, let's get the weather conversation out of the way.  It was 84 degrees here on Friday and when I walked Cooper on Saturday it was 39 degrees!  Holy Mackerel!  That is a big drop in temperature.  I had to get my heavy winter coat out again.

For the most part the weather did not bother me much.  Well, there was this horrific scene I made in the grocery store parking lot that did bother me quite a bit.  My next door neighbor, Judy was having a birthday party for her sweet little granddaughter from Chicago.  I offered to pick up some balloons on Saturday morning because the party started at 9:30 a.m. and I knew Judy would be busy.  I rolled into my awesome HEB at about 8:20 this morning and there was a very kind young woman working in the floral department.  She was able to fix me right up with my eight balloons.  She even put them in a giant plastic bag because it was really windy out with the cold front that blew in last night.  I paid for them and arranged them really firmly in my hand to get them out to my car.  I exited the grocery store and the wind was whipping like crazy and the bag was making all kinds of racket. I made it to my car and opened the back seat door to shove them in.  When I tell you I battled that damn bag of balloons for five minutes it is no lie.  I would get one part of the bag into the car and the wind would gust and blow the whole contraption back out and right into my face.  I was flapping and floundering and trying not to let the plastic suffocate me!  Finally, I got them in and slammed the door shut.  I felt like I had been accosted. I wish I could have video taped it.

The precious little nugget had a great time at her purple dinosaur party, so it was totally worth it!

Here are the balloons that tried to kill me. 

All this sweet baby wanted to do was push this grocery cart EVERYWHERE! 

And eat goldfish! 

Grandma's pride and joy! 

In other news....I went shopping this afternoon for something to put on my new coffee table. 

Now, if my dog would only let me put out my throw pillows without tearing them to shreds! 

And last, but not least, I finally hit the button on my tax return.  Happy to have that finished!  

Hope your Saturday was great! 

What's Up?

Wow - It has been a hot minute since I posted!  Lana filed a formal complaint last night while we were talking on the phone....so here you go, Mom.   Let's get caught up!   I will start with the pictures I currently have on my phone.

Puppies.  Seriously.  Adorable.  Beth's family is getting one.  Her name is going to be Presley.  I got to pet them and they were delicious.

I bought a new coffee table for the living room. Chip was a tremendous help in putting it together.  We both remained calm, even though we made a mistake that required us to undo some work. However, I can firmly state for the record that we do not love allen wrenches.  Hand cramp! 

Last weekend, my niece came down from Dallas and we spent some time at Texas State visiting her sweet daughter.  She is working through college as a barista at Starbucks and thinks she always smells like coffee.  I think that is a terrific smell and wouldn't change a thing.

It was a gorgeous day and after enjoying a coffee we all went to a Bearcats softball game.  The Bearcats' pitcher had something like 15 stikeouts in the six inning game.  She was on fire! 

After the game we drove over to the Gristmill in Gruene for a late lunch.  It was a really cool place.  Bob and Lana - remind me to take you here the next time you are in town!  Look at these flowers!  I had the ribs.  They were fantastic.  But, the star of the day was the zucchini and squash side dish that was cooked with bacon.  AMAZING!

The weekend ended with a diagnosed case of lice on the younger head.  You want to talk about some drama. Lice diagnosed at 10:30 p.m. on the head of a fourteen year old girl!  Lord, we sprung into action.  There was an immediate trip to the pharmacy, laundry started, and of course everyone's head started itching.  Ugh.  It was a VERY late night, but because it was caught super early, everyone else seems to have escaped unscathed.  Good times.

On Monday, my neighbor was in a pinch and asked me if I could possibly pick up her Kindergartner from school.  I was happy to help!  Her little guy is the cutest and reminds me so much of when my boys were little.  I LOVE our little elementary school and it brought back so many memories waiting to pick up that little pumpkin. What a great throw back! 

I took Cooper to the dog park on Tuesday and he wrestled with a four month old husky puppy.  Adorable. 

The rose bushes in my backyard are covered in blooms!  They are gorgeous and they smell nice.

Here is my first attempt at some fake color in my front yard flower pots.  I like the yellow flowers a lot, but I think I missed on the green variegated ivy stuff.  Sadly, it looks really fake, especially up close.  However, if you are kind of far away and driving by or looking from the sidewalk they look great!  I may try something else for summer.  Stay tuned for a super exciting update.

And lastly, I finally received the last piece of artwork for Harry's revamped room and got it hung up.  It is a Fenway Park sign that I thought could act as sort of a headboard for the bed.  I also had to move the wall mounted lamp, which I did with no trouble.  Installed it with three wall anchors like a boss!  Proud of my handiwork!  

In other non-picture news:

• I have raked and swept up 7,012 bags of leaves and pollen since we last visited! 
• Chip is passing Pre-AP Chemistry by the skin of his teeth.
• I have started a food journal.  Not really changing much, just trying to write it down.  Step One of getting what goes into my body under control. 
• I am back to occasionally walking with Martha in the morning.  Makes me happy.
• It is going to be 84 degrees here today and 57 degrees tomorrow. 
• I am going to a two year old dinosaur birthday party tomorrow morning!  Can't wait! 
• I went to a Mom's YMSL dinner meeting this week and during dinner we talked about all the places our kids have thrown up.  Only mothers could do that.  I also told the story of when Chip tripped and ripped the gas hose out of our rental car while we were filling up in New York City.  The hose was writhing all over the ground with gas spewing every direction, including into the car and all over me.  It was epic. 

That is all I have for now!  Have a spectacular Friday!