Now that's what I call art!

Ok, last weekend YB and I went to a Christmas party for our Wednesday night church group. We had a white elephant gift exchange (my first one ever!! FUN!!) and the gift I took was the plaster bust sculpture that I made at WSC in my undergrad studies. We took a group photo at the end of the evening with one person holding the bust (against my protests). Then, a group member did some photo magic and replaced everyones head with the bust. It actually is pretty funny, a wee bit frightening, but mostly amusing. So, now my "art" is being freed from the confines of my home to be enjoyed among the masses.
The person who actually took it home is using it to perform practical jokes on her teenage children. No wonder they look at me funny at church!

Merry Christmas from Lola and family! 

Nothin' like a late afternoon high speed chase...A first hand account

I was almost asleep for a little siesta before boogs woke up, and I hear sirens. I say a little prayer that whoever was getting rescued was going to be ok, as were the people doing the rescuing. Then I hear more sirens, and even more sirens and then cap, cap, cap, cap, cap... (I'm not sure how many there were. I was a little freaked out at the time and I know that "cap cap" sounds pretty ghetto, but that's what my students say when there is gun fire in the projects) I launch off the couch and look out the front window and I see several police cars zoom by, stop, back up, going this way and that in the intersection shown above (before the police tape was put up, of course). Apparently they were after some robbery suspects and they caught them just a block from my home. I called my husband, but he thought I was joking (were the really gun shots? he asks, like I could make that stuff up), then I called my mom and she was much more sympathetic.

They've got the neighborhood taped off pretty well to the north of our house and now I hear the police helicopter overhead, circling, looking, I assume for another suspect.

It just seems sort of surreal. This kind of stuff doesn't happen in my neighborhood. Why would those people choose this street to careen unsafely down, and in the process scare the sh*t out of me? I guess now I have an interesting story to tell at parties, huh?

I must go out and commiserate with the neighboors, who are all still gathered on the corner, putting their two cents in and coming up with a theory.

Enough is Enough...or is it?

It seems like I can't ever get over wanting more, something new or different, whether it is a book, a pair of shoes, or a tube of lip balm. How does a person get to the point where enough is enough? Why am I always left craving more stuff? I have been thinking and praying on this for a while now, and it seems like God is taking his time letting me know. I try to be good, I really do, but I guess there is some part of my DNA that is missing.

The story: After church on Wednesday evening, the bus driver who brings children from all over the city to our church needed help delivering the kiddos back home (the church bus was at camp for the week). YB and I offered to take a child home (we could only take one 'cause of Boog's car seat). Bus driver pointed out a 'tween boy for us to deliver, and we all got settled into the car and off we went. The boy was so talkative and friendly, and he said "Wow, this is a really nice car!" Now mind you, our car is 5 years old and nothing spectacular (see here) and I have actually been dreaming of a new car for some time now, even though Monty is perfectly fine, I just feel like something NEW and BRIGHT and SHINY and CLEAN with that NEW CAR SMELL.

We get to the child's neighborhood (a run-down trailer park) and see the sort of conditions he lives in on a daily basis and here I am complaining about my perfectly nice car when the child has plywood covering several of the windows of the trailer where he lives, along with junk all around the trailer and some rather unsavory fellows chatting across the road. Will this boy ever know the life that it seems I am so ungrateful for? My "not good enough, more, more, more" is his "oh my gosh, you are so lucky".

I have no reason to be so unthankful (if that's a word) for all of the blessings that God has bestowed upon my family and me. I have a wonderful husband and son, as well as parents and siblings, we have a nice home, a reliable automobile, good paying jobs, clean clothes and a full pantry. How can I get myself to realize that "enough is enough"? I have all that I need and I should be sharing the blessings with others instead of always wishing it was more.

Backseat Driver

I am so glad that the eight hours of traffic class are over. Why does it seem that sitting on your arse for an extended period of time is more taxing than chasing after a toddler for 14 hours a day? I was exhausted when I got home yesterday.

However, I did realize that there are certain types of people in every class you may take. The same profiles would fit for traffic class, childbirth class, a wine tasting class, etc. Think about a class you have taken previously, and I know that you will remember having all of these people present. You may have to look deep in your memory, because you have probably tried to bury the experience of having to deal with these folks.

• The Know-it-all- This person characteristically has what they think is the correct answer to every question the teacher may ask. They are very vocal in sharing that answer, often throwing common courtesy out the window and hollering out the answer. They are usually wrong.
• The Smartaleck- This person has a sarcastic quip for a majority of the information the teacher may discuss. Comments are usually made under their breath, just loud enough for the teacher to ask "excuse me?" and request the person repeat their barb. They are sometimes comical, but usually not.
• The Idiot- This is the person who asks the stupid questions, and yes there is such a thing as a stupid question (i.e. in childbirth class, the girl who asked what to do about heartburn and in traffic class, the girl who asked if there is a difference between dough-nut and do-nut). These questions are usually met with groans of agony and loud "oh my gosh, they really asked that!" sighs from fellow class members.
• The Storyteller- This person has an anecdote for a majority of the discussion topics brought forth by the teacher and is not afraid to share. Yesterday, I heard about somebody's 1957 such and such car that could blah blah blah, even though so and so and her sister and their cousin Walter knew how to dismantle the whatchamacallit to make said car drive faster even though the whosiwhatsit wasn't really even supposed to be in the car in the first place. These are the ones who make you want to pull your hair out!

Now, I know that all of us probably have some of the above characteristics embedded in our DNA, but most of are able to curb the need to dump our stupidity, sarcasm, smarts, or stories on the unsuspecting public.

Next time that you take a class, no matter what it is, please control the urge to act like the above profiles. Just sit quietly, politely raise your hand to answer a question (make sure you are 100% correct), resist the urge to tell about Aunt Sophie's recent hip surgery, and when in doubt, please remember it probably is a stupid question, so don't bother asking it!

Ijoboko

Well, we are back from vacation. It was nice to get away, but the weather was backwards for our long weekend at the lake. It was beautiful on Thursday (see photo!) Perfect Lake Okoboji weather. YB got to fish (nothing caught) and we got to take boogs to the beach for awhile. But then it all went downhill. This Canadian cold front moved in and Friday, Saturday and Sunday were windy, damp, and cold. YB couldn't fish and boogs couldn't swim.
Being at the lake is not fun when the weather is gloomy and chilly. You can only go to Wal-Mart for entertainment so many times (Yes, we were there 3 times in the span of the trip). You can only look at used car lots for so long (Yes, we did this for one whole evening. YB's lookin' to buy a "new" used car this fall). You can only go to so many resort boutiques when you have only enough funds to window shop (Yes, I hit all the high spots).
The cabin is only so big. Even with three people and a dog in there it seems crowded when you can't go outside to play. I wanted to tell YB that we should pack it up and come home Saturday morning, but he really wanted to try and get out and fish again SO, we packed up the car Saturday night and left by 6:30 Sunday morning.
The lake...definitely more fun in warm summer weather!

Take a little trip...

A beautiful Lake Okoboji sunset

It is official. Tomorrow my family leaves for beautiful Lake Okoboji in northwest Iowa. I am very excited to go to the lake and open the cabin up for the summer. The first visit of the year is always great. You put the key in the door, open it and whoosh, the moth-bally, sea-weedy summertime smell hits you. It is such a distinctive scent, and one that always brings back pleasant memories.
I am not however looking forward to the drive there. I know it is only 3 1/2-4 hours, but even one hour in the car with boogs is too long. He has got to be the strangest toddler out there. He does not sleep in the car. I don't know if there is too much to see, maybe he's too uncomfortable, it could be he's just stubborn (like his mama). We thought maybe he'd like to watch movies, so last time we took a trip we borrowed my parents DVD player. No go with boogs. So, I have packed a small arsenal of new and exciting things to entertain him on the trip up. Grams just bought him a new Elmo guitar at Target today, so hopefully that will entertain him for at least 20 minutes.
For the next four days, I will be lazing around the beach with my boys, window shopping at all the fun shops, and sitting on the dock watching the beautiful 'Boji sunsets while YB tries to catch our dinner, boogs tries to jump in the water and Zeke-dog sits on shore and whines about being at the lake.

The Breakup

My mom and I went to see the movie The Breakup yesterday. I really enjoyed the movie, except it didn't end the way I pictured it happening. I am the type who loves a happy ending, and this one was happy (I guess), jut not the happy I wanted. I find Vince Vaughn adorable with his think-out-loud demeanor and Jennifer Aniston is a beautiful woman and a great actress.
All through the movie though, I thought about my own breakup with hubs. It was the spring I graduated college (2001) and hubs and I had been dating for a few years already. He was not giving me what I thought I needed at that time, so I broke it off with him. He was devastated, I was devastated, yet there we were, separated.
I met up with a guy I had gone on a couple of double dates with years before, and we decided to give it another go. We spent the summer going out and partying, ball games and the like. He lived in Lincoln, so I would go down to visit frequently.
I was convinced in my head that what I was doing was the right thing and I would get over hubs sooner or later. I knew that this thing with Lincoln guy was the best thing for me and that he was better than hubs. The whole summer, I was happy on the outside, but miserable on the inside.
Well, Lincoln guy and I ended up not making it through the summer (he ditched me and left me dateless before a friend's wedding) and after a couple more weeks, I came to my senses and called hubs. We got back together and got married the summer after I completed grad school.
Looking back, I know that God was giving me not so subtle hints that what I was doing was the wrong thing, and that I was missing out on someone special. He led me back to my hubs, and I thank Him everyday for the wisdom and courage to ask forgiveness of someone I hurt so badly.

S.T.O.P.

Ok, you know how in driver's ed they tell you to come to a full and complete stop before making a right turn? And as a reminder, you are supposed to spell stop to ensure the correct stoppage time? Well, last week I only got to S. And I turned. And Officer Falcon of the fabulous OPD saw me, pulled me over and gave me a ticket.
Today I went and registered for traffic class. 85$ that definitely could have been put to better use than lining the pockets of the Greater Omaha Safety Council. At least I was eligible to take the class, otherwise the fine would have been about 50 bucks more.
Consider this a cautionary tale to all...please make a full and complete S.T.O.P at all eight-sided red signs and save your hard-earned cash for yourself!

Life takes...

Welcome to my new blog. I have been contemplating starting this, and now that school is officially out, I have the extra time to think, write, photograph and post on here.
So, to get us started, some random thoughts from my head!

• softball...My husband and I were watching the Women's Softball College World Series game on tv earlier. Now, I have played recreational league slow-pitch softball since I was 9. I like to think I am pretty good at the game, and a decent hitter and fielder, but those girls...insane! They are ringing hits out of the park, throwing pitches in excess of 60 MPH and launching the ball from clear across the field. I told hubs, I would be up to bat, still watching for the ball to leave the pitchers hand and the ump would be calling a STRIKE on me. It is amazing to watch, and now I know why I never played fast-pitch ball. They are definitely inspiration for my game tomorrow night.
• busy...I am so sick of people using "We've been so busy" as an excuse. Take for example my good friend N. Two weeks ago, we were supposed to take the kiddos to the Saturday farmer's market downtown. We spoke on Tuesday of that week and got the logistics all planned out. Saturday morning came, and went with no word from N. I wasn't going to call her first (childish, I know) but we are supposed to be planning a baby shower for another friend, and yet another friend wanted to know when it was going to be. SO, I called N this afternoon and got the "sorry I havn't called, we've been busy" excuse. Turns out, she never showed up for the market that Saturday because they ended up going out of town, which is fine, but please find the 2 seconds it takes to call so I am not sitting around my house with a toddler ready to go. We are supposedly getting together this Saturday to get the invites signed, sealed and delivered, so we'll see.
• I am of the opinion that you are never too busy to make time for things that are important to you. If our friendship is something you value, then please do something to show me that. I don't want to have to be the one to always call, because then I feel like I am being a bother.
• SUMMER!!! I am officially done with work for two and half glorious months! I had to go in today to check out of my classroom. What a waste of a morning. I definitely could have taken care of all of that yesterday afternoon when I was sitting around in my clean classroom, reading blogs for three hours. Then maybe today I could have spent some time on a summer passion o' mine, garage sales.