350

Today was the Gasparilla Children's parade. Katey glammed up in her do-rag, tattoos and pirate shirt and we headed down to the parade with our friends Laurie and Phil and their boys. As usual, we got reserved seating which is so much nicer with all the insane crowds. This year the seats were assigned and we got Row 2 and it turned out to be "the" place to be. Katey and the boys were able to get right down on the ground behind the gate and they were literally pelted with beads. Actually, Katey wasn't as much pelted, as people were spotting her, walking right over and handing her beads. She was SO adorable (yeah, we already know that, right?), waving and yelling that people were making bee-lines over to give her beads. While all of that was happening, we all were in our seats catching beads for her too. By the time we left there, we had 350 strands of beads.........no kidding, we counted! That's not to mention the Frisbee, the football, the stuffed animals (3) and the candy that she got. (I tossed the candy......not from strangers, thank you very much!) At one point, some one pelted a huge strand of big silver beads our way and, while the girl behind me got them, they hit me in the face on the way over my head and knocked the lens out of my sunglasses! They hit me so hard that we couldn't even find the lens.......it must have flown out of the general area. I have wanted new sunglasses for a while, but I didn't want to HAVE to go buy more. Lucky that I did have them on though because I might have lost an eye and been a true pirate, patch and all! ;) The parade lasted for 3 hours and then there were fireworks. We watched those for a while then bolted to beat the traffic and get dinner. Katey didn't get into bed until about 9:20.........exhausted. I'm not too far behind. Great day though.........glad it only comes around once a year!

Just an update on us.....

Not a whole lot going on here. Katey woke up Sunday night crying of a headache and feeling like she'd just walked through a forest fire. It was pretty scary. I gave her Tylenol and put her in a cool bath for about 15 minutes. I will say she was a trooper. If someone had tried to put me in a cool (or even luke warm) bath, I would have told them to take a hike. Took her to see Dr. Baker on Monday and her temp was 103. Ran a bunch of tests, but nothing. We've ridden it out with Tylenol, Motrin and cough syrups. She's better.......I can tell because she's got her little "attitude" back. I kept her home today but think she'll be heading off to school tomorrow. She was doing a puzzle today so I snapped a picture.....just to update the blog. Lesa, notice her jammies......the top is the nightgown that she had, the bottoms are the bottoms to the pj's you sent to her. That is her nightwear of choice(so comfy!)....I had to pry them off of her yesterday to wash them.....getting a little stiff.....yuk! Hope everyone is well.......it's in the 30's today here!!! BRRRRRRRRRR!

Circus fun!

Katey's friend Ty invited us to the Ringling Brother's Circus tonight. I expected a typical circus like I remembered growing up.......my how things have changed! It was incredibly entertaining, but it was more of a Cirque de Solei (sp?) feel than a "typical" circus. Guess I should redefine "typical." Katey and Ty starting doing some sort of acrobatics during intermission. :) We had a lot of fun......thanks Ty (and her Mom!).

.....just checking in.....

Hello! Not a whole lot going on here. Working like crazy to capture as many refinances as I can while the rates are down........it's exhausting, but will hopefully pay off! Haven't gone to the grocery store in a while so we had nothing to speak of in the house for dinner. Katey chose sushi so off we went. Hope everyone is doing well. I'll try to send some more exciting photos soon!

Merry Christmas!

As usual, we are off to my Mom's for a few days, but wanted to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas! It's been rather hectic around here lately, but yesterday Katey and I spent about 6 hours making about 5 different kinds of cookies. Then, after Greg read Katey several books and she was in bed, and had heard Santa's bells (thanks "Santa!"), the wrapping began. It's funny how you wrap and wrap and it's ripped apart in a matter of minutes. We're having a great day so far.......hope you are too! Merry Christmas!!

Christmas Program, Party and the Virgin Mary

We had the annual Christmas program at Katey's school last night, followed by the class party this morning. Katey was ALL excited that her program was at night, since she's one of the "big" kids now! Her part (besides singing.......and boy, did she sing this time around!), was to be one of the "Frosty" kids. We had them bundled up in hats, mittens, etc. and it was 80 outside! So much for a chilly Christmas.......not this year. We'll find a way to muddle through. If you were wondering, the first picture is Katey dressed as the Virgin Mary........pajama bottoms and a blanket double as the head wear and her kitten as Jesus, I guess. :)

Ho Ho Ho!

Stopped by the mall after school this afternoon to pick up a few things, and there he was! Had I given it a bit of thought ahead of time, I would have brought something a little more festive for Katey to wear. Don't get me wrong, we LOVE our Seminole attire......especially when the mall was swarming with Virginia Tech and Boston College fans who are in town playing for the ACC Championship game that WE should be in........but, that's a different story! Last year Katey asked Santa for a Princess coloring book, today she told him she wanted the Kung Fu Panda movie (done!) and some tape and envelopes so she doesn't have to use mine! :) Such an EASY child to buy for. As was the case last year, I have gotten her a few more goodies! Ho Ho Ho.......have a great weekend and GOOOOOOOOOOOO Bama! (yes, I am bitter!)