dear diary

Hello.

I've been awake since 2am. I have a little bit of a headache and my nose has decided to start running. I have a song stuck in my head from "Sound of Music" that I watched last week, and plans for a blog I'm going to do later rolling through my head.

I just can't sleep.

I'd take some Nyquil but I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to function when I need to in about 4 hours.

I'd go out in the living room and read my book, but the boys are sleeping out there tonight. Guess I could go to one of their bedrooms...

So, update on my life.

Gained 2 more pounds this month. *shrug* Having a great summer, eating well (I mean, not well, but eating yummy foods) not exercising much, but enjoying my summer. I'll get back into it, it's just not happening at the moment.

Went to the lake again last Saturday with friends in the 109 degree weather. It felt hotter, but once you got in the water, it was just nice. I love going to the lake.

Dan started a crazy set of shiftwork and OT on Sunday. His schedule: 24/12/12/24/12/12/24. He'll end up with around 100 hours by the time we see him again on Sunday! I'm guessing by Thursday we'll all be a little cranky, but so far, so good.

Am reading "New Moon" out loud with Sean and he's really getting into it. I think he's going to end up being a Jacob fan. Takes after his Dad.

I think my garden is trying to die, due to the increased temps. The leaves are all starting to brown and I've had a lot more produce rot before it grew to harvesting size. But I'm happy with what I got this year--made four more loaves of zucchini bread yesterday and love it so much. Too much.

Found or was directed to this site, which has an awesome giveaway every weekday! What a great site! Check it out! I'm addicted. Just seconds ago I found this site which does a giveaway every Friday. Cool!

My stomach is growling...I'm thinking of raiding the kitchen for some more zucchini bread. :)

Have a good Tuesday.

dramagenics winners!!

Congrats to Ashley B. and Stephanie D. who each won 2 free admission tickets to a future Mixed Nuts show!! Let me know how you want to get your tickets, girls!

Thanks again to Brian for making this giveaway possible!

Just a side note, this Saturday, Dramagenics and The Mixed Nuts are running an Independence Day special. Show admissions are only $1!! You almost can't pass this up. It's so fun and such cheap entertainment! (The website says tickets are technically sold out, but to call for more info.)

Go check out Dramagenics and lets make sure to keep them open for business. Good clean family humor on the west side at a great price--you can't go wrong.

lately uploaded on my ipod

Here's what I'm listening to these days...how about you?


"Fire Burnin'" -- Shawn Kingston

"Falling Slowly" -- The Frames (LOVE this song. Love.)

"You Belong With Me" -- Taylor Swift

"No Surprise" -- Daughtry

"Please Don't Leave Me" -- Pink

"Careless Whisper" -- Seether

"American Music" -- Violent Femmes

"If You're Not the One" -- Daniel Bedingfield

"Crazier" -- Taylor Swift

"Heartless" -- The Fray


(don't forget to enter the giveaway for Dramagenics tickets here!)

if you have 6 minutes, this will give you a laugh, a chuckle, a guffaw, a giggle, and otherwise make you shoot liquids out of your nose

"Total Eclipse of the Heart" by Bonnie Tyler has been literally one of my favorite songs for the past 2 decades. Not joking, it's always been in my top 3. The odd thing is, I don't know how it's possible that it's been among my favorites for over 25 years and yet I have not seen the odd perplexity that which is the video to this song. I mean, seriously...It. Is. Bizarre.

So I was quite amused to find this version of the song on youtube recently--the video is the same, however instead of the original song, a song has been rewritten to translate the video, or in other words, the words of the song detail what is happening in the video.

Enjoy.

PS: Please make sure to swallow all beverages before you proceed. You've been warned.



(don't forget to enter the giveaway for Dramagenics tickets here!)

because them oranges are dangerous

(don't forget to enter the giveaway for Dramagenics tickets here!)

dramagenics tickets giveaway

For a while now we've been going on date night to see this improv group out west, The Mixed Nuts they call themselves, or Dramagenics. It' s clean family humor-they never let the topic get even PG really, which is just refreshing and fun.

They take odd-ball suggestions from the audience and come up with on-the-spot skits and games that just leave the audience rolling. Some of my favorites they do are the Blind date game, Da-Doo-Run-Run-Run song, Party Quirks, and lately my newest favorite, Heckler. Every show they'll bring an audience member or two up on the stage and have fun with them or have them participate in skits. (See Danny doing the statue game with them last year here!)

Dramagenics, located in Peoria, is one-of-a-kind entertaiment (especially out here on the west side) that I'm really trying to support and rally behind. Cost for most shows is $12 but every now and then they'll give out coupons or offer 2-for-1 discounts. The shows go about an hour and a half to 2 hours or so.

Although I took my 9 year old this last time and he did enjoy himself, I did have to keep explaining the jokes and why certain things were funny. I only say that to promise that it's OK to take your kids, but they may not get it. They'll still have fun laughing, though they may not know why!

Now, the giveaway!!

The troupe has been kind enough to donate 4 free tickets for a giveaway on my blog!

Enter by leaving a comment on this post. I'll pick two winners, (local participants only please) each receiving 2 free admission tickets to a future show. Please have your entries in by Sunday the 28th at midnight so I can choose random winners Monday morning and post the winner's names at that time. Please leave a working email for me to contact you as well. (Much thanks to my new bff Brian K. for helping me organize this. You da man, B!)

So, in short, support Dramagenics even if you don't win this giveaway, and if you're local, please attend a show and get as hooked as we are. You won't regret it!

we were supposed to go camping this weekend but all 6 of the other families involved backed out on us (thank you very much ya turkeys), so this is what we did instead

  

  

We hiked.

 

  

In the 105 degree sun.

 

    

Actually, it probably wasn't that hot yet because we went early morning and the weather was quite pleasant, but I heard rumors that it was supposed to get pretty darn hot on Saturday.

 

  

How have I lived here this long and never hiked White Tanks?

 

 

And when I say 'hiked', I use that term very loosely or liberally or to the best of what I need it to mean at this moment.

 

 

The waterfall trail is precisely that: a trail.

 

 

So the 'hike' is just a trail, a walk through a bit of desert-ey terrain.

 

 

Is it just me, or are Danny's calves all 'the hotness' in this picture?

 

 

And he wears those swim trunks so well.  Though later he mentioned something about chafing.  (Fear not, I personally checked him out and made sure he got the right treatment.)

What?  I'm studying to be a nurse!

 

  

I personally have never found the desert to be pretty.  There's just too much brown on top of more brown surrounded by yet more dying brown.  But ehh.I guess this was a pretty day.  For the desert.

 

 

There are a few points where you climb a bit, but it's quite easy. 

 

 

My 5 year old did so with minimal complaining.

Rather, he complained from the moment his little sneakers left the comfort of our AC-filled van and touched the pavement but we just assured him that if he indeed perished, that he would be missed a great deal and to please try to make it through the rest of the hike.

 

 

The waterfall.  Err.I guess after a rain, there's actually water here.  Go figure.  So, us wearing our swimsuits was all for naught, but at least we were prepared.

 

 

We'll totally have to do it again during another season.

 

  

We were warned of the possibility of snakes and other wildlife but all we saw were these fellows.

 

 

And that one lizard.

 

 

I guess it's almost as good as camping.

 

    

No, not really.

 

   

But it was a good substitute this time around.

 

       

I cut Dan's hair real short this past week and in this picture he looks like a cancer patient.  (don't worry, his hat is just covering it-there's still hair there)

 

 

When Ethan decided he couldn't take it any more, Sean very kindly offered to carry him back.  In this shot, Ethan was saying, "My legs!  My legs hurt!"  And I thought your legs!!  Poor Sean's legs!

Alas, no one perished in the desert this trip and we live to hike another day.

this is why i garden, ladies and gentlemen

My harvest yesterday morning yielded several tomatoes, green onions (always, if anybody needs some just let me know!) and this one honkin' huge zucchini!! *Squeeeeal*



I had to do like April did last week and show the size of my zuke compared to my 12-inch tile. :)



Half of the one big zucchini made two loaves of bread!



The main reason for my garden, right here. Yummm.

we had a free afternoon, so we went to the lake

Monday, June 15th was our 2 year anniversary (?) since our horrific accident of 07. (warning, all pictures associated with the accident are graphic!) Follow up posts can be seen here, here, here, here, here, here, and here. All I can say is, I'm glad it's all done and over with (law suit settlement included) and that I have my whole healthy family in tact.

Onward. =)

I got lucky enough that both daycare kids got picked up early Monday, so we decided to go back out to the lake and try our new innertube toy. We all had so much fun! I could hang out there all summer. =)

Here are some of our fun pictures and videos.

Ethan jumped and bounced all over the place on the tube. It was so funny to watch.