Why the World is Going to Hell in a Handbasket

Mark and I went on a date Saturday night. Dinner and a movie, as per usual, but that's what we like and it's too hot to do much of anything else. We were going to go see Get Smart, but looked at the wrong theater and due to some sangria and a swirled sangria margarita we were not able to drive to the correct theater. We ended up seeing Wanted, which is a movie basically about training assassins. It was actually pretty funny and had a good story line to it, but was completely entirely violent and very graphic. Slow motion shots of bullets through people's heads graphic. I hid my eyes through about 25 percent of the movie. Which made it all the more disturbing to me that there were children there. I'm not talking teenaged boys children, I'm talking 9 and 10 year old children, 4 year old children and toddlers. There were at least 10 children between the ages of 2 and 10 in that theater.

I was disgusted. You want to know why kids behave the way they do these days? It's partially because they see things that their brains can't properly process. It's because their parents are too immature to be parents. They can't see that showing this stuff to their kids causes it to take more and more to excite these children as they get older. I have a couple of thrill seeking kids myself. I can't imagine how much more thrill seeking they would be had they been exposed to that type of violence earlier. I'm just appalled, sickened and scared. And you should be too! Because they children that watch two hours of people getting shot in the head? They are in the same schools and churches and malls that your kids are, that my kids are. And their parents don't seem to care what they do.

Pilates...again!

Sb and I made it to Pilates again tonight. I have to say I'm mighty glad the classes are 3 days apart since we took the class on Monday, felt a little tired Monday night, a little achy Tuesday, and in major pain yesterday. but today we were fine. The class seemed harder tonight as it focused on some different areas, but we made it! There was some comic relief as someone new came to class and her boyfriend/husband came as support. He was really klutzy though and she kept laughing at him. It was pretty funny!

Does this sound fishy to You?

So a couple of weeks ago I mentioned that I had won a cash prize from a sweepstakes I entered. It was from a major magazine that gives away hundreds of prizes every month. The prize actually ended up being 5 American Express traveler's checks, which is fine as they spend like cash. The prize envelope arrived Friday afternoon. With only 4 checks in it. Mark took the envelope directly from the UPS driver's hands and I opened it immediately. I double and triple checked the envelope looking for that last check. Not there.
I placed a call immediately to the promotions person from that magazine, as well as sending her an email telling her that a check was missing. I knew she would be gone for the day because of the time difference (she's in New York) but wanted to do it right away anyway. I waited all day Monday never heard from her. Yesterday I called and emailed again and heard back from her with the following email:

Hi Marlene,
I am trying to figure out how that could’ve happened, I mailed all certificates to you unless they were taken out by UPS I will see what we can do.
Thank you,

I replied back that I was willing to give her all the serial numbers, which were consecutive, and maybe AmEx could help with tracing them. I never heard back.
This morning I emailed her again, frustrated with her lack of communication and movement. I let her know that if I didn't hear back today I would contact someone higher up at her magazine and then i would be contacting her state's Attorney General (Sweepstakes are governed by the laws of the state they are conducted in and overseen by the Attorney General's office!). The email i got back from her was this:

We will be sending you another American express gift certificate this week via UPS, you will most likely receive it by Monday or Tuesday. However, please note that our financial offices are tracking the numbers of the 5 certificates that were sent to you. We will check on them when they are spent and we will let you know who spent them.

Maybe I am being sensitive, but to me it sounds like she is insinuating that I am lying. Mark thinks that she had something to do with the missing certificate and is trying to cover her butt. But her email made me feel like I did something wrong even though I know I didn't!

What is your opinion???

Pilates

Sb and I went to a pilates class at our gym last night. Oh. My. Gosh. My body is so tired! Even SB, who is in great shape from dancing, was hurting last night. It did seem to really help my back feel a bit better though, so that's a good thing. And we will be going back again, if we can manage to maneuver our sore bodies back into the car!

18

18 years ago today, my life changed forever.

Happy 18th Birthday to my first baby. I love you Bubba!

This is our song:

I'm not so sure I'm proud of this...

76 As a 1930s wife, I am Very Superior Take the test!

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Happy Father's Day

to all the great fathers out there, but most especially to my hubby, the best daddy I know!

We've got the entire day free for the first time in 6 years! This is usually recital day! When I asked Mark what he wanted to do today he was stumped. He hasn't had a choice in so long!lol!

The kiddos and I will be sneaking out soon to get him his favorite bagels for breakfast, and then we'll be heading to the Y to swim and hanging out and playing for the day. Bubba is taking him to see the Hulk movie tonight, so I think he'll be having a great day.

All Tuckered Out!

I'm exhausted!

The path to exhaustion started yesterday when I did a marathon cleaning of the house for today's birthday party for Bubba. I cleaned for several hours while Mark had all of the kids except the baby at the summer movies. He got home, we had lunch and then I very quickly got the girls ready for their dance photo appointment. That appointment took 3 hours!

(The photographer was really enchanted with my girls and all their costumes and took over an hour and a half shooting their photos. She really did a beautiful job. She had me sign a release for both girls when I left as she wants to send these in to be used in the national advertising campaign for these photo studios. So, keep your eye out. You might see the pictures in any Lifetouch studio or brochure, or even in a television commercial!)

After that appointment we came back home and I finished the stuff I hadn't done earlier. Mark went to work and the kids and I had dinner and then went to Karin's for a spa party. It was fun. And there was a big boy to entertain FE so he had a great time as well!

Today was Bubba's party(his bday is actually next week, but that's recital weekend!). We had all the family(minus my brother who is working in Colorado and my nephew) and some of Bubba's friends for a BBQ lunch and pie(Bubba wanted pie instead of cake). It was fun, but I am worn out now! Mark and FE are at church where FE is undergoing altar server training, and the girls are playing dolls. Bubba is off with his friends(as usual). I may take a nap!

I forgot two things!

First, SB got her first prescription for glasses today. She's apparently very nearsighted. The frames she chose are adorable though, so she should look cuter than ever. In a move that surprised me she chose square-ish plastic frames. She likes the look of the thicker frames. I guess glasses are such a part of fashion now that the frames are part of a statement!lol!

And? SB's best friend from dance got a newborn adopted sister last week. We shopped for cute baby stuff over the weekend and I heard a rumor that the baby was making an appearance today specifically so I could hold her in all of her newbornness! Woohoo!!

Titles are for sissies!

I can't think of a title, so there!

I've been suffering from a back injury for over a week now. It's slowly getting better, but standing up from a sitting position, sitting too long, or standing too long are painful. Which means I haven't done much in the last week.

We're having a birthday party for Bubba this weekend since his actual birthday falls on recital weekend this year. I'm still in denial so I can't talk about the fact that he's turning 18 yet.

In some really awesome news...

Mark and I will celebrate our 15th anniversary in August. We usually use part of the bonus money he gets in July to celebrate and had been planning that we would do something big for this anniversary. BUT, his theater has to shut down for the next two summers and the financial picture is not great. So, no bonuses this year. I had resigned myself to just going to dinner, which was fine, but it's our 15th. I wanted to at least go to Sedona! Well, today, in my email I received notification that I won a cash prize in a sweepstakes. Not a huge chunk, but enough for two nights at our favorite bed and breakfast is Sedona. Woohoo!

Four in the morning...

Bonus points to the person who identifies the song referenced in the title. It's the first line of the song and it's from the 80's.

Bubba had two friends over to spend the night last night. I prefer it that way as then I usually sleep better knowing he's safe and sound. But, teenaged boys? Are loud and don't sleep. Actually, Bubba went to bed around 2:30, but I got up at four and his friends were still out in the family room playing Wii. And drinking all my soda. And then they were crashed on the sofa in the living room when Mark got up. It took him a good 15 minutes to wake them up and get them to move to Bubba's room so they wouldn't be all sprawled out when my day care kids got dropped off.
Today they have been all running through the house playing sword fights with the younger kids. Me? I've read my book on the couch and ignored every last one of them.