Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Spring Grades and Photos
This week is AIMS testing in the Arizona schools so Nicole and her friends have been a wee bit stressed. I thought I would lighten it up by posting her Perfect Attendance, Grade Point Average and Spring Pictures.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Twilight Release
Call me crazy, but it's all Kristin's fault. I had no desire to read any of the Twilight series books, but Nicole was interested in reading it and my friend, Kristin was OBSESSED! At the prodding of Kristin, I started reading the first book and got addicted. I thought it was clean enough for Nicole to start, so she did. Both of us read all 4 books in the series. We had seen the movie back in December at the theater.
Friday night at midnight, the DVD was released at Walmart's and across the country. I cracked under the peer pressure and waited with Kristin and Nicole in line for 1 1/2 hours in the middle of the night. I could've been in bed as a slight cold was just starting. Enjoy the craziness.
Friday night at midnight, the DVD was released at Walmart's and across the country. I cracked under the peer pressure and waited with Kristin and Nicole in line for 1 1/2 hours in the middle of the night. I could've been in bed as a slight cold was just starting. Enjoy the craziness.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Happy St. Patrick's Day!
Pause the song on the playlist at the bottom of the blog so you can hear the live band at Westgate
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Flat Stanley goes to a Luau
When we first moved to Arizona from Warren, Michigan, Nicole's third grade teacher, Mrs. Yee, read the class a story about a boy named Stanley that got flattened. Each student cut out a paper Stanley and colored it. Nicole mailed her Flat Stanley to her friend Allie in Michigan as a school project. Allie took pictures of Stanley at Nicole's old school with her 2nd grade teacher. Mrs. Silverstein. Allie also took pictures of Stanley at McDonalds and other adventures. When Stanley returned, Nicole made a poster that went on display with all the other 3rd graders.
So now two years later, my niece, Christine, mailed Nicole a new Flat Stanley that she is doing for her school project. We think this Flat Stanley's name must really be Flat Stanella,because he has a curl in his hair and really long eyelashes. Nicole has had so much fun being on the other end of the adventure. We went to a Hawaiian luau today at an "active adult" community and we brought Flat Stanley with us. Enjoy the pics.
Make sure you select the Play > button to watch the slideshow. You may also want to press the pause button on my Playlist of music at the bottom of the blog.
So now two years later, my niece, Christine, mailed Nicole a new Flat Stanley that she is doing for her school project. We think this Flat Stanley's name must really be Flat Stanella,because he has a curl in his hair and really long eyelashes. Nicole has had so much fun being on the other end of the adventure. We went to a Hawaiian luau today at an "active adult" community and we brought Flat Stanley with us. Enjoy the pics.
Make sure you select the Play > button to watch the slideshow. You may also want to press the pause button on my Playlist of music at the bottom of the blog.
Friday, March 6, 2009
Vistancia School's Daddy Daughter Dance
Tonight was Nicole's school's Daddy Daughter Dance. Last year Nicole didn't have any interest in going. This year was the opposite. Her and her friend, Emma, were so excited to get all dolled up. Talk about the star treatment!
Once I blow dried their hair, I wouldn't let them peak in the mirror until after everything was done (nails, makeup, hair, clothes). Then at the count of 1-2-3, they both looked at themselves in the full length mirror. I didn't think of it at the time, but I should've videotaped their reactions. They couldn't stop staring at themselves.
They had a "ball". The dance was two hours long. They arrived home around 9:15 p.m. and went promptly to bed after cleaning up (their choice). Maybe tomorrow morning, I'll get to hear more scoops........
Once I blow dried their hair, I wouldn't let them peak in the mirror until after everything was done (nails, makeup, hair, clothes). Then at the count of 1-2-3, they both looked at themselves in the full length mirror. I didn't think of it at the time, but I should've videotaped their reactions. They couldn't stop staring at themselves.
They had a "ball". The dance was two hours long. They arrived home around 9:15 p.m. and went promptly to bed after cleaning up (their choice). Maybe tomorrow morning, I'll get to hear more scoops........
Brownie Vet Field Trip
Many thanks to Kristin and Dr. Brian for allowing us to tag along with Brownie Troop #1955 to their Vet Field Trip. Press Play.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
My Sister Rose's Visit
It's been almost 2 months since my last post. Things haven't been that exciting except for the many hours of work I've been putting in. And then as Emeril would say "BAM!"
My sister, Rose, flew in from Bartlett, IL on Saturday. This is her first visit to Arizona and she came by herself and left the 17 degree temps behind. She has a husband, Mike, and two grown sons, Michael and Anthony. We've been having a ball with Rose while she's here. Nicole has been laughing non-stop and Dan has been fantastic about chauffeuring us around.
We went to Sedona all day on Sunday. Since all of us but Rose have been there before, I always like to add something to the agenda that none of us have seen. As we drove in from route 260, we first stopped at Red Rock State Park by accident. Years ago, friends of ours (Jamie and Michelle) had taken us to this cool scenic area and I thought it was this Park. It wasn't. The Ranger was nice enough to refund our money. Then we took a dirt road for about 10 minutes to "Red Rock Crossing". This was the place that I remembered! Alot of photos are taken from this one particular lookout point for magazine shoots. When the water is higher, it covers the rocks, but it was low for our visit. We ate lunch at The Wildflower Bread Company. I highly recommend it if you like sandwiches and soup. Everything was fresh and it was packed which is a good sign for any restaurant. Then we browsed around the shopping district. I don't even think any of us bought anything.
As we left Sedona via Route 179, I wanted to visit the Chapel of the Holy Cross. We tried once last year to go there, but it was raining and my Mom, unknowingly, was coming down with pneumonia. It was strange, because we remembered that Chapel Road was closer to the city and we thought we had passed the street. It was late and there was alot of construction. I said "oh well, maybe next time." because I really didn't want to find a turn around it the traffic mess. Then about 5 minutes later, I see Chapel Road and we turned off to visit the church. Someone was watching out for us. We found a parking spot at the top of the hill, 2 spots from the walk up path. Another bonus. My Mom saw how high and winding the path was up to the church and didn't feel like she could climb it. We kept telling her it wasn't that bad and so she pushed herself. Was she ever glad she did. We all were! This was the most awesome experience to see this church and the views of the city. I can't even describe it. Lastly, as we walked into the church and the gift shop below, my sister hears this music playing that a dear friend of hers from Illinois always plays at her house for prayer services. As they say "It was meant to be!"
I took my Mom and Rose shopping the last three days. Nicole said "Mom I like it when Grandma comes in because we don't go shopping for the other 9 months of the year". My Mom said to me "Oh good, she caught the bug". As you can tell, I don't take after my Mom or sister.
Today after dinner, Dan drove all of us to Lake Pleasant, which is about 25 minutes north of our house. It's really funny driving through the the desert covered with cacti and all of a sudden there is this huge lake. We had some awesome views. But we didn't see any wild burros.
Tomorrow Nicole has a half day and we plan on going up to the pool after lunch. Our heated pool is closed for maintenance, so I don't know how long Nicole could last in the regular unheated pool. We'll see. Stay tuned because Friday is the Daddy/Daughter Dance at Vistancia and Nicole is Dan's date....or is it the other way around?
My sister, Rose, flew in from Bartlett, IL on Saturday. This is her first visit to Arizona and she came by herself and left the 17 degree temps behind. She has a husband, Mike, and two grown sons, Michael and Anthony. We've been having a ball with Rose while she's here. Nicole has been laughing non-stop and Dan has been fantastic about chauffeuring us around.
We went to Sedona all day on Sunday. Since all of us but Rose have been there before, I always like to add something to the agenda that none of us have seen. As we drove in from route 260, we first stopped at Red Rock State Park by accident. Years ago, friends of ours (Jamie and Michelle) had taken us to this cool scenic area and I thought it was this Park. It wasn't. The Ranger was nice enough to refund our money. Then we took a dirt road for about 10 minutes to "Red Rock Crossing". This was the place that I remembered! Alot of photos are taken from this one particular lookout point for magazine shoots. When the water is higher, it covers the rocks, but it was low for our visit. We ate lunch at The Wildflower Bread Company. I highly recommend it if you like sandwiches and soup. Everything was fresh and it was packed which is a good sign for any restaurant. Then we browsed around the shopping district. I don't even think any of us bought anything.
As we left Sedona via Route 179, I wanted to visit the Chapel of the Holy Cross. We tried once last year to go there, but it was raining and my Mom, unknowingly, was coming down with pneumonia. It was strange, because we remembered that Chapel Road was closer to the city and we thought we had passed the street. It was late and there was alot of construction. I said "oh well, maybe next time." because I really didn't want to find a turn around it the traffic mess. Then about 5 minutes later, I see Chapel Road and we turned off to visit the church. Someone was watching out for us. We found a parking spot at the top of the hill, 2 spots from the walk up path. Another bonus. My Mom saw how high and winding the path was up to the church and didn't feel like she could climb it. We kept telling her it wasn't that bad and so she pushed herself. Was she ever glad she did. We all were! This was the most awesome experience to see this church and the views of the city. I can't even describe it. Lastly, as we walked into the church and the gift shop below, my sister hears this music playing that a dear friend of hers from Illinois always plays at her house for prayer services. As they say "It was meant to be!"
I took my Mom and Rose shopping the last three days. Nicole said "Mom I like it when Grandma comes in because we don't go shopping for the other 9 months of the year". My Mom said to me "Oh good, she caught the bug". As you can tell, I don't take after my Mom or sister.
Today after dinner, Dan drove all of us to Lake Pleasant, which is about 25 minutes north of our house. It's really funny driving through the the desert covered with cacti and all of a sudden there is this huge lake. We had some awesome views. But we didn't see any wild burros.
Tomorrow Nicole has a half day and we plan on going up to the pool after lunch. Our heated pool is closed for maintenance, so I don't know how long Nicole could last in the regular unheated pool. We'll see. Stay tuned because Friday is the Daddy/Daughter Dance at Vistancia and Nicole is Dan's date....or is it the other way around?
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