Stats

Let me tell you something crazy.  I started this blog in December of 2009.  I have been at it for about five years.  My posts have petered out, here and there, but I think I have at least written something once a month for the last five years.  If not, pretty close to that.  But sometimes I post way more that once a month.  Sometimes, much more.  Remember that stupid October I tried to post something I was grateful for every single day?  That was crazy town.  Turns out, I was most grateful when that month was in my rear view mirror!

Anyway, I was re-reading some of my earlier favorite posts this morning and clicked on the Stats button of my Blog.  I saw that I have had 157,000 visits to this blog.  What???  I think I probably checked that number a year ago or so and it was 22,000 or something similar.  Most of those were my mother, I am sure.

So I had to investigate further.  What in the world would explain that kind of traffic?  Guess what the most visited page is on my blog?

Christmas Fruit Tree

Remember when I took that fruit tree to Beth's Christmas party?  I wrote an overly descriptive, step by step process of how I did it on this blog.  Well, I posted a picture of it on Pinterest back when I first joined that site.  Since that time, 50,000 times someone has clicked on the picture in Pinterest and been linked to my blog.  In all those 50,000 visits no one made a comment, left a note, or probably ever came back!  HaHa!

I think that is so funny!

I am going to do a little further investigating to see if I can come up with how many times a visitor to my blog links back to my parents!  It is a big number.

Hope you have a spectacular Saturday!

P.S.  If you are interested in what my favorite posts have been...here is a short list:

All Vacation Re-caps
All Conversation with Chip and Harry
All Bob Chronicles
And one of my all time favorites is "A Gentle Leader" - that crazy day I tried to use that dog walking equipment on my boy Astro.  Cracks me up.

Getting Back to a Routine

Let's see if I can, at a bare minimum, do a weekly update, before it turns into another month long hiatus!  It's a new year....routines should mean getting back to a routine.

This week kicked off the start of Harry's second semester of college.  His buddy said during the Christmas break...we are already 1/8 done with college.  Ack!  So the second of eight semesters is underway and Harry said it was a good week.  He is thrilled that he does not have class on Friday.  Three day weekend - every weekend!  That is a sweet schedule.  Here are a few snapshots Harry sent me this week.

It's a great day to be in Phoenix.  Who am I kidding?  Everyday is a great day to be in Phoenix! 

Groceries!

Favorite new sandwich...steak and egg.  

I love getting these little peeks into his day.  I also received a great text from his roommates Mom, telling me a story about the two of those boys trying to jump start BP's car since the battery was dead after sitting over the holiday break.  It was hysterical and I could totally picture it happening and laughed out loud at her text.  BP's dad was trying to walk them through the process of hooking up the jumper cables and neither of those boys could figure out how to pop the hoods on their cars!  BP's dad told them to get their car manuals out, figure out how to open the hood and then call him back.  He was worried they might never call back.  They did figure that step out....but both boys were freaking out about the dangers of the jumper cables.  They got it done, the car cranked and there was celebration all around.  It was obvious to both of us that we would get an "F" in automobile maintenance preparation of our children.  We both agree that we are so happy they have each other!    

And in local news....back in the home state, I got back to the gym. About the time that I took a break from blogging, I also took a break from the gym.  I continued to do my early morning walking but didn't lift any weights.  Between my plantar fasciitis flare up, my freak back injury (remember that whole plugging in the phone thing?), being sick after Thanksgiving, busy work schedule...fitness took a backseat.  Monday was my first day back to working out with Mr. Knowledge About the Human Body.  It was not hard, but I knew I was going to be sore.  I was NOT wrong. I was sore the rest of the week, but it was good to be back.  I worked out again on Friday and we did some fun boxing stuff and slinging those big ropes that was great.  Not nearly as sore after the second work out, so hope the muscle memory comes back pretty quick!  Happy to be back to it.

Tuesday was basketball game day for Chip.  Always fun to hang out at the gym and pull for the Cougars with the other parents.  Our boys got beat pretty soundly, but they all played much more aggressive and it was a much better game to watch than the few weeks before.  Trying to find the positive.

Wednesday was Lakeside day!  Hubby helped me fill 168 cups with some goodies for each of the apartments at Lakeside.

Our dining room was an assembly line production center and it went pretty efficiently.  Cup, spoon, oatmeal pack, granola bar, Bible verse, Hershey kisses.  On Wednesday, I ended up delivering the cups door to door with my friend Nancy, instead of hanging out in the community room.  We were hosting a Bingo game instead of doing a craft so I didn't really have any set up or instructions to give out and we needed another team to do the floor deliveries.  It was great knocking on all the doors and inviting everyone down for brunch and bingo, but I sure missed the interaction with all the regulars!   After we got all of our cups delivered we did get down in time to visit.  It has been four years of serving at Lakeside and I am sincerely happy every time I walk in the door.  It feels good to do something that touches a heart instead of just pushing paper in a job or doing the same household chores.  Fills up the joy tank.  

The rest of the week was pretty quiet.  Chip had his buddy spend the night on Friday night.  A little house cleaning, laundry, shopping, cooking, the regular.

I did spend some time this weekend going through my nieces wedding photos.  She got some great ones.  Here is one of my favorites - taken with my camera phone on the computer.

Love this one so much. There were so many great shots!

I got in a little extra cardio workout with my girl Beth on Saturday.  Always better to workout with a friend!  Makes it go by so fast!

Today, I took my Chipster to get a haircut.  He needed it!   All cleaned up!

This afternoon we hung out with our friends and watch the SeaHawks in that crazy game they ended up winning.  Harry loves the SeaHawks and was super happy.

These are the kinds of snacks you take to a football game when you are back to regular workouts and sessions with Mr. Knowledge.  Tried a new recipe for some jalapeño bacon cauliflower bites I found on Pinterest.  Interesting texture and I think I loved them. Going to see how they reheat tomorrow before I decide if it is a keeper recipe. 

Chip and his buddy worked hard all afternoon moving logs, rocks, dirt to erect the start of a fort.  They have big plans for shooting bow and arrows and such.   Boy fun!   It has been a lovely weekend in Texas. 

The best news of all, we still have one more day to the weekend!  Woo Hoo!   

Happy New Year!

Hi.

Remember me? 

I used to blog here pretty regularly, but then I got distracted by life and didn't feel much like writing.  So, I took a break.  Did six million other things.  Now I feel like writing again.  

I don't even know how to tell you what you missed...so I will just give a bullet list of what I can remember from photos on my phone.  Then we will just start fresh. 

• Chip's first season of middle school football ended.  I love me some Cougar football!  Chip had a blast. He can't wait to do it again in 8th grade. 

• Fall baseball also ended.  It was a busy autumn.  The A's played some great baseball.  Earned some trophies. This is the Chip and his pal MJT.  They both play trombone in the school band.  They anchor the corners of the baseball diamond.  They play football for the Cougars.  I love cheering for these boys.   

• You know what else I love?  Crafting and my niece, Malarie.   Those two favorites were perfectly melded together when I helped host a wedding shower for her!  The shower was set for the Saturday after Thanksgiving, so I had to get everything ready to take to Alabama.  Here are a few shots of the shower/wedding crafts that happened this Fall. 

Mal and Brett were having a New Year's Eve wedding and I was helping with the New Year's Eve party favors.  I couldn't find any cute blowers and horns, so I made these!  Aren't they cute!  I made them out of scrapbook paper!  My sweet friend Karen helped me and we cranked them out in big volume!  Pinterest inspired! 

The wedding shower was actually a Brunch!  This little sign I made was perfect for the Mimosa Bar. 

"Happily Ever After" cupcake toppers handmade with love.

Banner for the fireplace made with my Cricket machine.  I shipped all the goodies to Bama so they would be ready and waiting when we flew in for Thanksgiving. 

• We were able to check in on Harry while he was away at college by turning on the TV and tuning in to the MLB Network!  He was attending the Fall Baseball league championship game out in Phoenix and was on TV behind every right hand batter.  It was so fun to watch.  I kept sending him texts like "What are you eating?"  "Is Brandon having nachos?" "Quit looking at your phone and watch the game."  Can you imagine how much he enjoyed receiving my texts?  

• Me, Hubby and Chip flew from Texas to Bama and Harry flew directly from Arizona to Bama for the Thanksgiving holiday.  We met him at the airport and we were finally all back together again!  It was great!  Thanksgiving Day was excellent with great food, fun games and wonderful people.  Bob had coordinated a full afternoon schedule of games and events - frisbee football, basketball shoot out, BB gun target shooting, frisbee target toss, Left Right Center for big money and Bingo.  He sent out an itinerary for the day that said "As you prepare for the Thanksgiving activities, please remember the family motto:  Show me a good loser and I will show you a loser."  Now if that doesn't provide a spirit of unity and thankfulness I just don't know what will! It was all done in good fun and we had a blast!  

• The day after Thanksgiving was all about bridal shower prep.  My sweet sister, The Nice One, helped me make all the food for the brunch.  We were making it a vegan affair and we were whipping up lots of new recipes.   I couldn't have done it without her!  To repay her kindness, I agreed to help with a craft project for The Queen's room.

• Aren't these so cute?  They were 12x12 canvas boards, covered with four different black and white fabrics and we cut out the turquoise felt into flower petals and then glued them directly on to the canvas.  Another Pinterest project for the win!  I loved the final result and I think the Queen did too!  

• The next morning was the much anticipated Bridal Brunch!  My sister-in-law, Debbi and I had fun pulling it together!  Here are some pictures of the festivities: 

How is it possible, this is the only picture I have of Malarie with her mom and sister?  Terrible.  

We had a great turnout and a fun time was had by all! 

• We all flew back home to our respective cities and all hell broke loose on the health front. Shocking, right?  A least it wasn't while we were on vacation!  I was sick with a cold.  Bob and Lana were sick.  Really sick.  Like two weeks sick, with multiple visits to the doctor and even a scary emergency room visit that turned out not to be too bad.  Callie was sick.  Harry got the flu while at school during finals week. Crap!  I hated not being able to be there to help nurse him back to health. Hard to be so far away from your baby when he is laying on the bathroom floor telling you how awful he feels.  It took a lot of restraint not to book a flight ASAP.  We stayed in close contact and his friends checked on him and he bounced back pretty quickly. Grateful. 

• Back in Chip's world was a science project of a 3D model of a cell.  He knocked this one out of the park!  Good work Chip!  

• The band holiday concert was excellent!  My two favorite trombone players.  I don't think I know any other trombone players...but don't tell them that. 

• Chip also made the middle school basketball team!   Woot, Woot!  Everybody do that Cougar Rumble!  

• Not sure if you can view this video or not, but here is my Chip #45 sinking a shot from three point range!  Cougars haven't had much to celebrate this basketball season as they have been struggling a bit, but we sure enjoy supporting them! 

• Then it happened!  Harry was home for the holidays!!!  Harry and his buddy RV drove 14 hours to come home for the Christmas break.  I was so happy that they made it safely with no problems.  That is far!  

• Hey, Homie!  Welcome Homie!  You cannot get a picture of this boy without him throwing up that Fork 'Em sign.  

• It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!  Everywhere you go!  Sing along with me! 

• Even though Harry was done with his school work, he was still doing his reporting job for the ASU women's basketball team.  He sent in three or four articles while he was home.  So proud of him!   

• We didn't arrive in Alabama until December 23rd so there was lots of wrapping of presents to do!  The Nice One again came through and helped me!  Then a selfie session broke out.  The Queen tried to teach two old farts the art of selfie making.  It is not as easy as it looks.  

• This was my favorite from our selfie session - mostly I just love the look on my sweet Chip's face.  Pure joy of Christmas on the way! 

• Christmas Eve and Christmas Day were wonderful!  Again, surround yourself with great food, lots of laughs and people you love. It just doesn't get much better than that. 

• The day after Christmas we launched straight into the wedding preparation countdown!  There was a lot to do, but we got it done.  It was a beautiful wedding and we had a blast.  I have some pictures of the festivities that I will share in a separate post.  

• To wrap up this super long post.....It is 2015!  WHAT?  How is that possible?  We are back in Texas after a twelve day stay in Bama.  Ten loads of laundry done.  Suitcases put away.  The Christmas decorations are packed up.  Back to school.  Back to work.  Back to Basketball.  Harry just texted us that he arrived safely back to his dorm after two days of driving.  Sweet relief.  I had a wonderful, relaxing, 2 1/2 hour lunch with my girl Beth today.  It was a really nasty weather day today and we were one of just a few people in the restaurant.  We had much to catch up on and we did just that.  Loved it. 

I hope I do not have as long of a drought between blogs again, but no promises!  Hope you stay warm where you are and that 2015 is filled with good health for you and those you love...prosperity, joy, adventure, tons of laughter and that you give and receive some random acts of kindness!  Wouldn't that be a great year?  Cheers to the New Year! 

Top Ten Tidbits

This is for my mom and Liz who miss my ramblings.  So much to tell you.  Top Ten Tidbits is the best I can do with the time that I have.  Turns out these aren't tidbits as much as they are short stories:

1.  Harry and Hubby went on a spectacular boys trip during Harry's fall break from college.  They met in St. Louis to see a college football game, two Cardinals baseball playoff games and a Monday night football game.   Harry flew by himself and made it just fine.  I worry.  My husband took 579 pictures over the four days.  Some of them were spectacular.  Four of them were of my son that I hadn't seen in eight weeks.  Four.  Four out of five hundred and seventy nine.  What is wrong with him?

Here are some of the great pictures and one of the pitiful ones of my firstborn.

2.  Good thing I was going to see that boy of mine in person a few short days later.  I went to Phoenix for Parent Weekend and got to spend a day and a half with my Harry.  Just me and Harry.  We had dinner, we went to a fall baseball game, restocked his snacks at Target and went to a terrific ASU football game.  That place was rocking and the atmosphere was so electric for the Sun Devils to put it on Stanford!  He was so sweet to me while I was there, although I think he was happy to drop me off at the hotel at night and get back to his regularly scheduled programming.  He is so happy at ASU.  He has a great group of friends.  Really nice guys and they are doing fun stuff.  He is getting his school work done.  Attending tons of sporting events. Staying up too late. Playing wiffle ball. Poker for saltine crackers. Going to the movies - bowling - playing tennis.  They have all chipped in on a tent to spend the night outside of the ASU ticket booth to get great football seats.  Harry has secured a position as the women's basketball reporter. He has been on the field to take photos at an ASU football practice and one of them was published on the Walter Cronkite Sports Network (WCSN) Facebook page - GO HARRY (never mind that he skipped his math class to go take pictures!  Minor details)!  He is going to be on the field taking pictures during the Utah vs ASU football game.  On the field.   During the game.  That ought to be a thrill.  He said to me while I was there "This place feels like home to me now.  I couldn't imagine myself anywhere else."  I am so happy for him but I would be lying if I didn't admit that it felt like ripping a bandaid off again.  He is on his way.  Doing his thing.  Creating a life.  A life that does not include daily involvement of his mother.  That is sucky and stupid and wonderful.  I am a tortured soul.

3.  Funny thing is that Hubby has a work thing in Phoenix this weekend.  Some awards banquet thing he is emceeing.  Anyway, that will make three weekends in a row that Harry has seen one of us. Not sure he is thrilled!  Ha!

4.  Here is a not so funny thing.  In an email exchange I had with Harry a few weeks ago he told me he thought Alabama football was losing its luster for him.  WTH???  Lana, that stands for What The Hell!  I almost flew out there and drug his butt back to the motherland. How did we go wrong?  Weren't we good enough parents?  Eighteen years of pouring into that boy and in eight short weeks all of our work was undone.  He said he didn't know who he would root for if ASU played Bama.  Couldn't believe it.  What are they putting in the water out there???  He meant it too.  

5.  More in the not so funny category.  I have hurt my back.  Guess how I did it.  Go ahead.  Guess something physical - like lifting a car - carrying a heavy vacuum upstairs.  Nope.  It wasn't anything physical.  Guess something weird like - twisting around to reach something in the back seat or putting something heavy up on a high shelf.   Nope.  It wasn't twisting in a weird way.  It was plugging in my cell phone. Not even in an outlet near the floor.  In an outlet on my kitchen island. Plugging my phone charger into the waist high, no bending  required, outlet in my kitchen island.  I reached.  It felt like I got hit by lightening.  It immediately felt so hot.  Then the pain. Ugh. Hurt so bad.  I went directly into lamaze breathing and thought for second I might be having a heart attack!  Do I wake up Hubby at 4:45 a.m. or just breathe through it?  I breathed through it.  The pain is right under my bra strap more on the right side more than anywhere else.  Son of a....  How old are you when you hurt your back plugging in your phone?  Old.  It doesn't hurt too much if I am standing and looking straight ahead.  If I sit or God forbid look down at my feet.  YOWSER!  Pain.  I am three days out from the initial injury and it is feeling a little better.

6.  Chip is doing great!  He had another foot injury after his Sever's Disease situation with his left foot.  We are calling it a football injury, but really he was on the bus to head to the stadium to play a game and remembered he left his backpack in the gym.  The coach told him to hurry up and go get it. He was running to the gym and his cleat got stuck in the sidewalk.  His body kept going but his foot did not.  He played the game, but was crippled afterwards.  I took him to the doc in the box the next morning and they did some x-rays on his right foot.  The doctor thought the long bone on the outside of his foot might be broken, but sent it off to the radiologist for an official reading.  Turns out it wasn't broken, just strained muscles that put him in a walking boot for a week. The boot helped a ton and he really felt better in a week. So, he is Offensive Lineman for a week - water boy for a week - Offensive Lineman for a week - water boy for a week.  Dang feet.

7.  Chip had his best game ever against the Cougar's mortal enemies the Wildcats this week.  We hate those Wildcats for some reason.  The Wildcats gave us a firm spanking in the scoring category but the Cougars had some seriously impressive drives.  The last eight minute quarter the Cougar offense was on the field for seven minutes and 45 seconds.   They drove the whole length of the field and punched the ball into the end zone.  Then they added a sweet two point conversion.  It was a great drive and even though they came up short, they were psyched.  I was super proud.  Ms. Beth came out to see Chip do his thing!  And also he was one of the Team Captains for the night.  AND NO FOOT PROBLEMS!  Woo Hoo!

8.  A couple of weekends ago, I had a Friday night to myself.  Hubby was out of town with Harry.  Chip had a band concert (that was excellent) and then he went to a friend's birthday party.  Then he stayed the night with some of his buddies after the party.  So after the concert I was flying solo.  I thought it would be a great opportunity to go to the new Whole Foods in town.  You know, walk up and down every aisle and look at EVERYTHING.  All that organic, natural, awesome stuff I never have time to look at.  Well, Whole Foods is a hot spot. That place was crawling with people.  I made it into the produce department and immediately heard this older lady yelling at her husband.  Loud.  I thought to myself that she must be coming off sugar and that is what was making her cranky.  I know this from experience.  So I am gazing at all the fabulous apples and out of the corner of my eye I see a guy carrying a little baby.  He dips down on the other side of the apple display and I thought he must have dropped that baby's pacifier or blanket.  Then I see him dip down again.  And AGAIN.  That fool was doing lunges through Whole Foods while holding a baby.  I mean, come on.  That is ridiculous, right?  It isn't just me that thinks it is crazy to do lunges all through a grocery store while holding your baby.  I couldn't even concentrate.  I was totally on edge after that.  I am not even healthy enough to shop at Whole Foods.  I better stick to my HEB.

9.  Chip got to run the chains at the 8th grade football games on Tuesday night with his buddies.  He was thrilled.

10.  Good night. Farewell. Running out of gas and interesting tidbits.  May your weekend ahead be exceptional!