Back to work for me and back to school for Tyler

It seems like since my birthday I have been so busy. I have had so much going on. We had to get everything ready for school. Supplies, clothes and bedtimes. I am going to start from yesterday and work backwards. I started back to work yesterday. It was awful. Our school hours changed so we start 45 minutes earlier. Normally that would be great but this year they changed the school boundaries and Tyler is going to a new school. His school starts at 9am. We are both so bored in the morning. We are all ready and have to wait to leave. Stinks. My hours for this year are 9-2 again. This is because of Tyler's schedule. I will not go to work until I know he is safely on the bus. The bus stop in on the corner of our house so it is perfect!! Here are the pics from his first day of school....

He loves the new school. I must say that I was impressed when I walked in the door. I took him the first day because we missed meet the teacher night. We were out of town. His teacher seemed nice. Tyler said "She looks pretty nice". The school is only 3 years old now. He said even the playground is better. He has come home with a big smile the past 2 days. I wish I could say I was coming home with a big smile. I am not. I am coming home HOT, TIRED & SMELLY!!!!! It is so hot outside. I hope I can make it. I am afraid I am going to have a heat stroke out there and the kids are going to just leave me there on the field to die. I don't have anything positive to say about work right now so I will skip to the next subject. The doggie door!!!!

Holy cow what a job that was. Todd installed a doggie door for Daisy. It was a long hard project to say the least. We spent a great deal of the weekend doing it. Well about 8 hours between the two days. It was a huge pain to do but well worth it. We installed it in Todd's poker room downstairs that way when we are not home we can put her in the room and shut the door. She can still be inside where it is cool (or warm) but can go outside to take care of business. The first day she went right through it with no problems, pooped and came back inside! Yeah Daisy!!!!

We went to Tucson last week. Todd has a conference he has to go to every summer there. This is the ninth year we have made the trip down. We did skip last year because Tyler had his tonsills out but Todd still was able to go. Todd gets to go listen to a bunch of lawyers talk for three days and Tyler and I hang out by the pool. This year the conference was at a new resort. It has always been at the El conquistador in Oro Vally but this year it was at the Westin La Paloma. It was nice there. The pools and slides were much better. Tyler was most impressed with the swim up bar. We sat there one day and had smoothies and nachos. He loved eating in the pool. I must admit I thought it was kinda cool also. Here are the pics....

This kid loves the water. He makes friends everywhere he goes so it's no surprise he would find them at the pool. We had a great time.

I have recovered from the two crowns I got and will be getting the other two before the end of the month. The calender is empty for the rest of the month. We are going camping for Labor Day weekend but that's about it. With school starting we wanted to keep things low key.

Are you smart enough to be a citizen??

Click on the link below and take the test. I took it and got a 95%. I got 19 out of 20 right! I guessed on one and it was a lucky guess!!!!!

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25461301

The Shout! House

What an awesome time we had Saturday night! Myself along with 24 of my friends celebrated my birthday at The Shout! house. That place is soooo fun! They played so many fun sing along songs. We were hardly able to sing by the end of the night our voices were so hoarse. We reserved 6 tables. We were lucky because they put us right in front of the pianos. Best seats in the house. They have 2 pianos going at all times. They also play some drums and a guitar for some songs. There are 4 people total that take turns performing throughout the night. We had so much fun we were there until they closed at 2am. We went to Humberto's on the way home because nothing tastes better than a burrito from there when you are out late!!!! I love it now that you cant smoke in bars and restaurants. It was nice to come home and not reek of smoke. I can't believe I am 36 already! It seems like yesterday I was in high school. I would not go back for the world. There is something to be said for getting older.

They called me up to the stage and had 5 of the guys that were with our group come up and sing to me. They sang the song from Top Gun "You've Lost That lovin Feeling" It was so funny!!! And so hot up there on that stage. The theme of the night was lets call the birthday girl up to the stage and sing to and embarrass her!!! It was fun.

After they were done singing the piano player called me over and slapped a Shout House bumper sticker on by BIG old butt!!!! Nice panty line don't ya think? He needed 2 to cover my cheeks!

On stage again.

Singing our hearts out and then doing the chicken dance.

Billy and Michelle. So glad they came. Don't get to see them often enough. Todd and Billy grew up together and I went to high school with Billy and Michelle.

Veronica, Michelle & Patti. These girls love to dance and have their pictures taken.

Max and Gio!

Gio, sandy and Sandy's sister. Love Gio and Sandy. We meet them when Todd was working for the city of Peoria. Very fun to go out with. Gio on the right and her hubby serge are awesome salsa dancers. We always have a good time with them!

My best friend Traci and her hubby Kris! Love you guys!

Karen and Kelly! Love em. Thanks Karen for paying the piano players to play brick house and dedicate it to me. Nothing like a 600 pound woman shaking her brick house for all to see!!

Ya make me wanna SHOUT!!!!!
Come on now SHOUT!!!!

I love my birthday!!!!

The three amigos. J.R. Billy & Todd. All three grew up together and were in our wedding!

Brad heard "we need volunteers from the audience" That's all he needed to hear. He was on the stage in 2 seconds. Can't remember the song they were singing but I remember is was funny!!!

200 Things About Me

I read on my friend April's blog a post that had 100 things about her. I loved it. It was interesting to read. By the way what child did you run over with the car? Anyways I started listing things and before I knew it I had over 100. I then decided to push myself and come up with 200 things. I am sure many of these things you already knew but who knows, if you stay awake long enough to read all of them you may learn something new about me.

1. I will be 36 on August 1st
2. I meet my husband when I was dating his best friend
3. I dye my hair because I am full of grey
4. I love scary movies, full on slasher films
5. I tried gelato for the first time on Monday night
6. My second toe is longer than my first
7. Once when I was waxing my own eyebrows I accidentally waxed off the middle section of my right eyebrow
8. I need to have my tonsills out but am to big of a baby to get it done
9. One time in church youth group we were talking about the gentiles and I accidentally said genitals
10. I am going to Disney world for the first tome on December 30th
11. I worked at Taco Bell for 3 months when I turned 16
12. I have owned 6 vehicles in my lifetime. I now drive a Nissan Titan
13. I think Dog the Bounty Hunter is awesome
14. I have a 1/2 sister I have never meet
15. I was hit by a car on the same night I graduated high school
16. I was once in a fight at a night club
17. I love rain. I love the smell, how it sounds and the way it makes everything look
18. I have been stung by a scorpion
19. I have 10 crowns in my mouth and still need 4 more
20. Traci is my best friend
21. I had to wear a dunce cap in JR high. It was a florescent orange pylon street cone thingy. It had the word dunce on it. It was heavy and it sucked
22. I was brought up going to church but have not been since I was 18
23. I failed my drivers test the first time I took it
24. I wasn't allowed to wear make up until I graduated from 8th grade. My youth leader helped me put my make up on for the first time. Thanks Susie!
25. I was a HUGE wrestling fan in JR high
26. In high school I let a boy sneak in my room and sleep in my closet.
27. I have 2 bone spurs in each foot
28. I have had psoriasis all my life
29. My husband and I spent 3 weeks driving across the US before we decided to have Tyler. It was so awesome!!!
30. I fall a lot
31. I broke my first bone the days after Thanksgiving 2005. I was dancing without shoes and a girl with boots stepped on my toe and broke it. The day after Thanksgiving 2 years later I broke the same toe again.
32. I love my birthday. I celebrate it every year. I even wear a birthday tierra
33. My grandma Daphne and I had the same birthday
34.I miss my grandma Daphne
35. I was almost arrested in DC for having a hand gun in the car. Todd and I carried one on our cross country trip. Hand guns are illegal in DC. We were pulled over for turning into a prohibited area and spent the next several hours being searched and investigated.
36. I am upset that Hillary Clinton is no longer in the running for president
37. I am a horrible speller
38. I ate guacamole for the first time super bowl Sunday 2008 and am now addicted
39. I have never done drugs
40. I love Dr Pepper
41. I cant get enough Mexican food, it's my favorite
42. I only gained 9 pounds when I was pregnant
43. I had my gallbladder out August of 95
44. I hate needles. The sight of them makes me feel like I am going to pass out or vomit. The strange thing is that I am perfectly fine with needles in my mouth when I get dental work.
45. I have a Myspace page
46. I think that my husband is the smartest person I know
47. I love to go to the movies
48. My new favorite saying is chill-lax it means chill out and relax. I heard it on a movie last week
49. I love reality TV. I have watched Big Brother & survivor from the first season
50. I love Sunday night TV. Desperate Housewives & Brothers & Sisters are a must see each week
51. I have to have a ceiling fan on at all times
52. If I squeeze the fat on my stomach together from the side my belly looks like a bagel
53. I have small ears
54. I love to have parties
55. I want a Mickey tatoo but am too scared to get one
56. Shawnette and I once chased some boys down the alley in my Chevette. We were yelling at them telling them that they were hot and we wanted to have "relations" with them. They got so scared that they jumped a fence and ran the opposite direction of their house
57. I fell asleep at my wedding reception
58. My favorite lotion is Cotton Blossom from Bath & Body (re-read line 1)
59. I have wrecked my Titan 3 times four years. I have not had a speeding ticket since 1/97
60. I love to tee-pee houses. I did it as a kid and still do to this day. The most recent tee-peeing event was 1/08. Sorry Traci you shouldn't of been the first to leave my New Years party!!!
61. I think tampons make great ornaments for trees when you are tee-peeing
62. My friend Karen and I have the same birthday
63. When I was a kid I collected stickers for my sticker books and key chains
64. I was only allowed to listed to country music growing up. I hate country music now
65. I used to pray to God at nights for my period. I thought it would turn me into a woman and make my boobies grow. I was blessed with this inconvenience when I was 12 1/2
66. I stole a pair of shoes from K-mart when I was in grade school
67. I have IBS
68. I took piano lessons for 5 years
69. I am a neat freak. A place for everything and everything in its place!
70. I love the ocean
71. I don't like sports, there is not one that I will watch
72. I love to watch ice skating. I would put on my skates as a kid and pretend that my back porch was a skating rink. I would skate for hours
73. I don't like hamburgers cooked on a grill at home. I can eat one at a restaurant though
74. In 6th grade my teacher put a refrigerator box around me and my desk. I was moved to the front right hand side of the room. There was a window cut out of the front so I could see the chalk board and the teachers desk. The right side of the box was removed so I could get in and out. This was to prevent me from seeing and talking to anyone
75. I have picked up a hitchhiker. Todd was with me. We were coming home from California and there was a guy in camo with a flat tire on the side of the road. We gave him a ride to the next town. He was in the Air Force and on his way back to Luke. Now that I am a mother I would never do that again
76. I was sick a lot the last 12 months
77. I hate to wear shoes that require me to wear socks. I hate socks!!!!!
78. I have to have my feet uncovered when I am in bed
79. I love coupons. I get so excited when I get a good one
80. I am very moody sometimes
81. I cant watch the TV unless the volume in on an even number. The same goes for the radio
82. My credit score is 793. I have never been late on a bill ever in my life
83. I bought an old phone and use it in my house because my granny had one and it reminds me of her
84. When I am sick I use a blanket that my granny crotchet for me when I was 8. I stays in the closet until I get a fever
85. I scared my granny to death with a fake snake once
86. I only have one child, a boy that is 8
87. I had my first kiss when I was 16
88. I think 9/11 is the saddest day I have ever lived
89. I make friends very easily
90. I cant stand to be lied to. That is the best way to end a friendship with me
91. I let my child get away with to much. I think it is because my mother was so strict
92. I am very proud of my husband for how he takes care of our family. He is such a great father and not to bad as a husband if I do say so myself
93. I laugh when someone gets hurt I cant help it. It is a nervous reaction. My mother fell and broke her ankle when I was in JR high. I laughed so hard that I had to go outside. The neighbors heard me and came to see what was going on. The girl next door went in to find my mom laying in the middle of the kitchen floor screaming and yelling. All I could do was laugh
94. My son has jacked up teeth & psoriasis like I do. I feel bad because it was passed by me to him
95. I love to be alone in the house
96. I love Carmel macchiatos. Tully's is my favorite place to get coffee
97. When I was pregnant the smell of broccoli made me sick. I have only been able to start eating it again this past year
98. I don't have a favorite color
99. I need glasses to drive at night
100. I flunked 5th grade
101. I was paddled 2x's in 3rd grade in front of the class
102. I love karaoke
103. I love to scrapbook
104. I hate horses
105. I was beat up in 5th grade. A girl jumped me and beat me with her back pack. It was the last day of school. She put broken bricks in the back pack and went to town on me. Once I was down she jumped on my head. My eye was so jacked up. I swear it still bothers me at times
106. I moved out of my mothers house when I turned 18. I moved into my own apartment all by myself. I loved it. I turned 18 the summer before my senior year so I still had to make sure that I went to school and graduated
107. I always wanted my childhood best friends mother to adopt me
108. I am very creative
109. I have been married 12 years
110. I don't like to gamble
112. I love margaritas
113. I love to camp
114. I am a huge Disney fan
115. I just saved 41% on my grocery bill today
116. My favorite veggie is corn
117. I don't care much for the grand canyon. I don't see what the big deal it. I have been there 4 times ans I think I am good for the rest of my life
118. I don't like to watch fireworks. I do however enjoy the ones at Disneyland
119. I took the entrance tests to be a respiratory therapist but decided not to go to school because it would be to much work
120. I never went to college
121. I graduated high school by the skin of my teeth
122. I was a cashier supervisor at Target for a couple years
123. I fell and twisted my ankle at work 3/99. I went home early that day because Todd was receiving the law student of the year award. I crammed my feet into a pair of heels. At the end of the night when it was time to get up and leave I could not stand up on my foot. The ceremony was out side and they had to move tables around so Todd could drive the car to the table so I could get in. We went to the hospital. I had to wear a brace it was sprung pretty bad. I have never been so embarrassed in my life
124. After trying to get pregnant for only 2 months I decided to get an ovulation kit. I was sick of having so much sex and wanted to know when I needed to be ready for the "relations"
125. I pick at my face
126. I am very good with a gun
128. I never forget anything
129. I love to go dancing
130. I love my friends. They are very important to me. I believe that your friends are the family that you choose
131. My favorite ice cream is Rocky Road
132. My favorite fruit is bananas
133. I am a very gassy person
134. I have been to 11 funerals in my lifetime
135. I did a gas run once when I was 16
136. I had a huge party at my mothers house in 93 when she was out of town. I was watching my sister for the weekend and we had a few friends over
137. Almond Roca is my favorite candy
138. I don't care much for breakfast foods. I do cook a big breakfast on Christmas morning every year. Friends and family come over and get their grubb on
139. I wet the bed as a child
140. It is very hard for a doctor to get my blood pressure. I went to the doctor today and they could not get it. It has been a year since they were last able to get it
141. I love to use punch cards
142. I love to go on vacation
143. I have been to New Mexico, Texas, California, Alabama, Mississippi, N. Carolina, S Carolina, Washington DC, Hawaii, Colorado, Iowa, Georgia, Virginia, Nevada, Louisiana, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Indiana, Missouri and Mexico
144. I recycle
145. I hated being pregnant
146. My favorite clothing store is Lane Bryant
147. I hate Walmart but go there once a month to stock up because they are cheap
148. I hate to sleep in pajamas
149. I love to take baths
150. I love to get a massage
151. I love pedicures
152. I have facial hair that I hate. I wax my eyebrows, lip and sides of my face. I do it myself to save $$$$. It hurts like you know what!!!
153. I love to peel my skin off after a sunburn
154. I only wear a seat belt when I am on the highway/freeway
155. I hate when people drive around for 20 minutes to get a closer parking spot. Just park already and walk
156. I am nosey
157. I smoked one time. I don't think I ever inhaled. I don't remember coughing. I just remember that is smelled so much that I wasn't going to smoke it up!!!!
158. I love dogs. I have had 8 dogs in my lifetime. Spanky was the best
159. My nick name was Bahama Mama when I was in high school
160. My nick name now is Big D
161. I call mt husband Re-Todd
162. I call Tyler T-Dogg
163. The Saw movies are my favorite movies
164. I hate the zoo
165. I love Sea World
166. I think about getting old a lot
167. My favorite candle is from Gold Canyon Mulled Cider scent
168. I once found a $100 bill on the ground in Disneyland
169. I love shoes and purses. When Todd met me I had about 80 pairs of shoes and 40 purses
170. Popcorn rocks!!! I love it
171. Peter Piper is my favorite pizza
172. Tetris is my favorite video game
173. Pole Position was my favorite game growing
174. I served on a jury. The case was a child abuse case
175. My mother sent me to therapy for 3 years as a child. I don't think it was helpful
176. I am excited about my birthday this year
177. I love cheese cake
178. I love tea
179. I hate to exercise
179. I am considering the lap band procedure
180. I love to vacuum. I think its because of the Dyson
181. I love games
181. I almost got kicked out of a bingo hall for talking to much
182. I love to talk
183. I still talk to friends I made in high school
184. I was 18 when I got my ears pierced
185. My dream car is a Corvette
186. We had a dog run away once and two years later someone called and said that they had found him
187. I do not have any credit card debt
188. I love the snow
189. Fall is my favorite season
190. Halloween is my favorite holiday
191. I have flown in a helicopter over the Big Island of Hawaii. We saw the top of a volcano with the lava oozing out and a gazillion waterfalls. It was beautiful
192. I was suckered into buying a time share
193. Tulips are my favorite flower
194. have never cheated on a boyfriend.
195. I hate how sunblock feels
196. Pluto is my favorite Disney character
197. I believe in Karma
198. I love to sleep
199. I would die if the world ever ran out of Alfredo sauce
200. I love the smell and taste of garlic

I love my house

When I first saw this house I was in love. The builder was Taylor Woodrow. This house is about 2500 sq ft. We have 5 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms and a family room upstairs. There is enough space for everyone. We all have a place of our own. A place we can go to when we just need some time to ourselves. Todd thinks it's to big but I think it's just right.
We have owned 3 houses. Our first house was 783 sq ft. It was like being in an apartment. It was perfect for us at the time. We were just married and didn't have any kids. Todd was in law school and I was the only one working full time. After we sold that house we moved to Lake Havasu for a year. The house we rented there was only one year old. It was nice and clean. Perfect for a family with a new born.
After we left Lake Havasu we moved to Cottonwood. Nasty...Nasty....Nasty. There wasn't a clean rental to be found in the whole town. I was so upset. I wasn't sure what we were going to do. We did find an apartment complex that was about 2 years old. We decided to move into the apartment and continue to search for a house that we were not afraid to walk around barefoot in. We stayed in the apartment for 9 months. We finally settled on a house to rent. It was old and funky but the cleanest thing we had seen since we got to town. We stayed there for 18 months.
When we came back to the valley we moved to Surprise. We were surprise how much the town had grown when we moved back. We bought a 3 bedroom 2 bath house. It was a good floor plan but we really needed a family room. We stayed there for 2 years. We sold when the market was just starting to boom. We sold for 70,000 more than we paid two years prior. It was like hitting the lottery. We were able to buy a bigger house and pay off all our debt. We even had some left over to do the back yard and get some new furniture.
I still love this house as much as the first day I saw it. It was fun to watch it be built. Our old house was only a mile away. That allowed us to drive by all the time and watch the progress. We would even ride our bikes over and watch the construction workers. Now the only thing we need is a pool. We are hoping to build one next spring. This is the place that I see myself in for a long time. Or at least until I get old and cant make it up the stairs any more.
I loved painting and decorating the inside of the house. It's so fun to make it your own. I am a very cheap and thrifty bargain hunter. Many of my things were bought on sale or clearance. Some things were bought at antique stores. I also got a lot of my knick knacks (or junk as Todd calls it) at Goodwill. I like to buy a piece of furniture and redo it. It's amazing what a little paint and sanding can do. When it's all done you have something that you love even more because of all the hard work you put into it. Plus it's cheaper than buying new.
August will be three years that we have been in this house. I have been getting the urge to change a few things. That's why we redid Tyler's room and I made a scrapbook room. I think once I add some color to my master I will be satisfied. I don't know. Anyways below are some pics of the house . If you have some pics of your house post them on your blogg. I love to see what other people have done in their houses.

This is our family room upstairs. We are huge Disney fans so we decided because this is the room where we spend most of our time it should be decorated so the whole family would enjoy it.





























This is the downstairs. Its one big room Behind the kitchen is another bedroom. We turned it into a poker / exercise room.

This is our guest room / office.













This is the master bedroom and bathroom. The bedroom is the next room that will be getting a new color. The furniture just gets lost against that tan wall.

Our back yard. Don't you think a pool would look great?

The upstairs bathroom. Disney of course

My new favorite room. This is my scrapbook room I am thinking of painting my master these colors.





















Tyler's room












Our front porch.