Rocky Mountain National Park

We spent a weekend in Grand Lake, CO with friends, who graciously invited us to stay with them. We went to the local music fair, roasted marshmallows at the fire, and generally had a good time.


For our trip back, we decided to take the long way and go for a drive on Trail Ridge Road, the so-called "scenic wonder road of the world." Let me tell you, it is AWESOME!! Not only are the views from the trail magnificent, they are also truly awe-inspiring. The fact that you can drive right up to the tree-line at all is just...unbelievable...and very very cool. ;)


The road peaks at almost 12,000 feet above sea level. Up there, the wind is biting cold and easily knocks around those who are foolish enough to be out in it (like us, hehe). In fact, the wind is so strong that trees and most vegetation are unable to grow (i.e. tree line). Though we didn't get to touch it, road signs alerted us to the fact that we were also in a permafrost zone. Yes, that's how cold it gets!

Pumpkin slept through most of the drive, which was just as well since he would've wanted to get out of the truck whenever we stopped, and it was just too windy and cold for him. Fortunately, he woke up in time to see a herd of elk that we saw on our way back down. It wasn't as cold there so we all got out of the truck for a bit to get a better look at the elk.

We had planned to stop in Estes Park on the way out, but it had started raining by the time we'd wound our way back down the mountain so we ditched those plans and stopped a bit further up instead at Roosevelt National Forest, which was also beautiful though on a decidedly smaller scale than RMNP.



Pictures:
1-View from our friends' house in Grand Lake
2-Pumpkin and "Pals" enjoying the swing at our friends' house
3-View on the way up Trail Ridge Road
4-Tree line
5-QT freezing his butt off at the Visitor Center (note the elevation)
6-We are above the tree line!
7-Pine at a stop just past the permafrost
8-Pine & Pumpkin with elk in the background
9-Pumpkin & QT at the trailhead at Roosevelt National Forest

Day Out With Thomas

So much time, so little to do! Wait. Scratch that. Reverse it.

Sometime in September, we took a drive down to Golden, CO (hence, the Golden Ticket reference) for a Day Out With Thomas the Tank Engine! Pumpkin loved seeing, not only Thomas, but also a real-life roundhouse, train engines, the mail car, etc. He also got a chance to climb aboard a caboose...and oh my goodness, there were model trains galore! We must've spent half the day at the model trains alone. Who knew the kid was such a train buff?

The Wiggles (again)

Those of you who know us and/or have been reading this blog know very well that Pumpkin LOVES the Wiggles. The show we attended in Houston was our 2nd Wiggles concert, and the kid is just 2 YEARS OLD! Ack!

As you could've guessed, Wiggles shows are quite the spectacle, I suppose the better to keep their young audiences' attention. Despite that, it took Pumpkin half the show to warm up, but he was happily singing and dancing along by the end.



Here's Pumpkin, all smiles, with his daddy, and a snapshot of the madness that is a Wiggles show ;). After the show, Pumpkin proudly posed with his brand spanking new Wiggles backpack on "like Daddy" before they both walked off. (The two of them are soooo cute!)



The following day, we took a trip down memory lane (aka Seabrook) before heading down to Galveston for a day at the beach. Unfortunately, we spent so much time in Seabrook, visiting our old haunts and even our old house, that we didn't make it to the beach that day, or the next as it turned out b/c it rained. So, our beach plans were all washed out, but we still had a little fun at Baybrook Mall before it was time to pack up and head back to Laredo to catch our flight back to Colorado. Here's a picture of our luggage, hehe.

Hot Everything in Houston

We got back about a week and a half ago, and it's taken me this long just to get all our vacation photos in order. Sorry for the delay (she says yet again).

The good news is that both of my comptuers and my nifty little portable external hard drive all now have their own identical copy of all of my digital photo albums so, should there ever be a crash, I'll be fully covered...hopefully.

Anyway..Houston. We spent about 5 days in Houston, and it was just as hot and humid and exciting as I remembered. As you may have derived from my previous post (or not), I was on campus on Friday to attend a class pertaining to my upcoming internship. The class was interesting enough, but the best part was when I found out that I would NOT have to attend the Saturday class after all. Yippee!

After that pronouncement, the rest of my trip was gravy. Here, then, is our mini-tour of the Best of Houston:

Friday eve, we joined our "old" friends, the B's, for a ballgame at Minute Maid Park, where Pumpkin scored (and ate) the tallest chocolate cupcake I've ever seen! Meanwhile, Tere and I spent a majority of the game catching up and probably only watched about 3 of the 9 innings, hehe. Make that 3 of the 15 innings. The Astros weren't able to get the job done in 9, which, for us, meant that we had to either miss the post-game fireworks or have one over-tired little boy on our hands. Naturally, we chose the former, and even though we missed the fireworks, we loved going out to the ballgame, singing along to our favorite Texas song, and especially, going out with the B's again. It felt just like old times. :)



The next day, we met up with our "even older" friends the Moles for some Star Pizza. Take a look at their website. Pizazz not required b/c the pizza speaks for itself! Anyway, enough gushing. Everyone knows that we miss our Star Pizza. Below is a picture of Pumpkin playing a sit-down version of "follow the leader" with Bri at the aforementioned Star Pizza. For those just tuning in, QT & I have known Bri pretty much since the day she was born, and we couldn't get over what a mature and lovely young lady she's become. She's a great kid and smart too! We've known her parents since the dawn of time, and we still maintain that Bri must've been switched at birth b/c there's just no other explanation (of course, our theory is totally messed up by that pesky little "looks just like her dad" thing, hehe). Incidentally, I'm still waiting for the Moles to send me copies of their pics, and I can't post a picture of them until then b/c sadly, mine did not turn out well at all.



Moving right along.
Sunday morning, we jumped onto a light rail train, which ran right past our hotel, and headed over to Hermann Park. QT read on the Chron.com that the miniature train ride at Hermann Park was going to be closed down for renovations, and he wanted to ride it before that happened. From the light rail stop, it was just a short hike over to the mini-train stop, but I want to take a moment to point out to our Colorado friends that hiking in Houston is NOTHING like hiking in Denver. It's hot and extremely humid in Houston, and walking (and breathing) outside is considered an extreme sport by most (hehe). Breathing the air there feels a bit like having a ball of warm, wet cotton held over your nose (or in your nose, whatever). I was surprised to find that I was having a bit of trouble catching my breath at times. When we first moved to Colorado, I expected to experience shortness of breath due to the high altitude, at least until I acclimated, but I never expected to have to go through that in Houston! My Houston! I'm confounded.

Pictures 1-2 are of a bright-eyed and bushy-tailed Pumpkin and QT waiting at the light rail station a block away from our hotel in downtown Houston and then standing in Hermann Park after we'd just arrived(with the light rail train in the background). The 3rd picture is a rider's view of the miniature train, and the last picture was taken at the end of our adventure, while we waited for the train to take us "home."













By the time we got back to our room that afternoon, we were wilted, drenched, starving, and badly in need of a nap (and showers), but we didn't care! We were buzzing in happy anticipation of our big date with (who else?):

The Wiggles!
stay tuned

Hot Feet in Houston

Apparently, nobody at the University of Houston wears Crocs. Too bad for them.

End of Days (in Laredo)

I must admit that I cannot recall the details of Days 5-8 in Laredo. I remember taking Pumpkin to visit his Grandpa and Grandma Q at their house, and I also remember taking Pumpkin and his cousins Ed & Al to the Children's Museum on Tuesday (and finding it closed). Other than that, I'm drawing a blank pretty much up until the day before our departure: I can still clearly picture the Wal-mart shopping carts being propelled by heavy wind through the parking lot and into the parked cars. It was freaky having to dodge said shopping carts as I attempted to maneuver into a spot safe from their vicious and unprovoked attacks. hehe

Before I forget, here's a picture I took of Salsa's crack administrative team hard at work (aka watching telenovelas).

On Day 7, I decided to skip the wine dinner at Salsa's in favor of taking Pumpkin to an impromptu birthday celebration for his cousin Ed at Peter Piper Pizza. Alas, Ed's parents and his grandparents all neglected to buy a cake for his little party so there was no "cakey" and no candles to blow out, which was disappointing for Pumpkin though probably not as disappointing as it probably was for Ed. When I mentioned it to QT later, he said that pretty much summed up the story of his childhood too. How sad. :( it also explains a lot!)

All talk of sadness aside, the kids still managed to have a lot of fun at Peter Piper cake notwithstanding. Here's a picture of the happy cousins and their grandparents.


The other picture is of Pumpkin with yet another playrug, this one courtesy of his Grandma Toni... though she may not yet be aware of that fact, hehe. She actually gave Pumpkin another toy, but I took it back b/c it kept pinching his fingers (hence my last-minute trip to Wal-mart and the attack of the killer shopping carts). I ended up exchanging the toy for this rug, and he loves it! In fact, he loves it so much that I rolled it up, threw it in the back of the truck, and brought it all the way to Houston just so that he'd have something with which to play while in the hotel. Thanks, Grandma Toni!

Day 4: High School Daze

Things melt so fast here that it's easy to fall behind on one's blogging. Here's the scoop from our past few days in Texas.

On Day 2, Pumpkin and I met his Gwandma Toni at our usual fun spot for some air hockey and bad pizza.

The next day, I lunched with my sister Anne then met my Cuz (aka The Godmother) for a couples massage. We'd planned to chat during the massages, but we were both so relaxed that we just dozed off (at least I think I did). Ahhh...

Unfortunately, our relaxation was short-lived. After our massages, Cuz took me to pick up my truck, which was being serviced at the GMC dealership. After I got out of her car, she was getting ready to leave, and some dolt backed his F-350 right into her brand, spanking new Maxima crushing her car's bumper and trunk. What a shame. :( At least the dumbass had insurance!

Anyway, that evening, I took Pumpkin and his cousins Cas and Van to my sister Chela's house, as planned, for our HSM 2 party (that's High School Musical 2 for you uninitiated folks). We ate popcorn, drinks, burgers, and sweets while watching the big premiere! Ron had announced earlier that he wasn't going to watch the "stupid movie," but he sat through the whole thing same as the rest of us, hehe. Unfortunately, I was so engrossed in the movie that I failed to snap many fotos, but here are a couple:













Today is Day 4 of our Texas trip. Today, I permitted Ron to babysit Pumpkin for the first time ever while Chela and I met Coach Vic for some good ole' Texas Whataburger! It was actually Ron's first time being left alone, period, and I think he proved his mettle. He prepared mac-n-cheese for Pumpkin for lunch, watched Barney with him, and even tried to put him down for a nap (though Pumpkin apparently refused to stay in bed). We were so impressed that Chela even agreed to let him stay home alone again that evening while we went to our cousin's daughter's birthday party.

As you can see, it was a swimming pool party, and the kids had a blast. We hung out for a couple of hours then we gave the Mans a ride back to their house and went back to ours (aka Grandma & Grandpoo's) to shower and change. After we were dressed, I took Pumpkin back to the Mans' for a little impromptu slumber party with Ron and Lis. Pumpkin didn't seem at all bothered that I was leaving and actually sent me off happily with a "Bye, Mommy!" I came back home and settled in on the sofa to watch HSM 2 again (b/c there was nothing else on). I've been half-expecting to get a phone call asking me to pick him up, but it seems he's fine b/c it's already 2am and no phone call. Whew! I'm so glad....and now, it's nite-nite time for me too. Gotta pick up my rugrat bright and early tomorrow. NOT!

Damn that HSM2...I can't get it out of my head! You are the music in me....Grrr.

Day 1-August 2007

Captain's Log:
We walked into "Grandma's house" just before midnight last night. Pumpkin's 1st words upon waking up and realizing that we'd arrived were "I'm going to see my beautiful Grandma. Grandma's going to make me rice and beans." Then, he corrected himself and said that, no, actually, Juanita was going to make him some rice and beans, hehe (this may have been true if we'd arrived a few hours earlier, but alas, Juanita was long gone by the time we walked in the door).

Today, I spent the morning unpacking and rearranging our room. In the afternoon, we attended Cas's High School Musical 7th Birthday Party at the Children's Museum. Woo-hoo! Pumpkin was having so much fun at the party that he almost turned down a slice of cake. Fortunately for him, he came to his senses before someone else ate his slice. ;)

In other noteworthy news: Pumpkin somehow convinced Grandma to buy him a Brio train set from the Children's Museum, and then later that evening, he finagled a "teta" from his poor Grandma, who wasn't aware that we'd stopped giving him bottles a couple of weeks ago. Silly Grandma!

My Ongoing Tax Saga

As we approach the August extension deadline for those of us who didn't file our taxes back in April, I finally made myself sit down to finish working on our taxes for the past 3 years. We started these in April a week before they were due, and we've had several months to finish them, mind you, so it's only natural that we're finally getting back to it on the eve of the next filing deadline, haha. Really, what I should be doing is packing and getting ready for my upcoming trip to Texas to attend a couple of classes at UH.

So, anyway, I'm finally done with our taxes including the extremely late ones. I commented to QT earlier that it seems that the more time I spend working on them, the more things I find that I could've done differently. Could've or should've? Oh well. I'm really just too tired to care anymore. My only hope now is that the IRS will consider us just too meaningless and unimportant to bother auditing. Ahh, to be inconspicuous. Never thought I'd find myself wishing for such a thing.

It's 2am, and I'm off to bed. Just wanted to take a moment to commemorate the occasion. Wish us luck! Visit us in prison!

Lair o' the Bear

Gotta love that name, dontcha?

A few weeks ago, we took Pumpkin to Lair o' the Bear Park for his first-ever "hike." Actually, I think it was a first for all three of us. Being so, we thought it best to go with a group, and we found one geared especially towards families with children so it worked out beautifully. We went about a mile total with plenty of stops, and clocking in at just over 2 hours, I have to say that it was the best-ever introduction to hiking for a first-timer such as myself. :)











I'm very proud to report that Pumpkin made it through the entire hike on his own steam pausing only to post for an occasional picture with his Daddy-o. Naturally, he fell asleep in the truck the minute we left the park grounds, haha, but we enjoyed ourselves immensely. In fact, we loved it so much that we promised my niece and nephew that we'd take them hiking when they came to visit us two weeks later.

Alas, our plans petered out due to rainy weather, but now that we know how much fun hiking is (at least our baby version of it, hehe), we'll definitely do it again soon.

Next up for the C's, camping!

P.S.

BTW, I did finally locate my trusty, corded drill. It was in the garage, where I'd always suspected it was, in one of the last boxes to be opened. If I would've only waited two more short months , I could've saved myself $70. Oh well. I do enjoy my new drill so it's not all bad. :)

Review

So, although there were a couple of parts in the story that didn't quite hold up to scrutiny (for ex: why didn't Kreacher just use his powerful magic to stop Mundungus from taking off with the locket?), I thought the book, in whole, was a fitting end to the Harry Potter saga. I must admit to being momentarily turned off by the Jesus Christ turn the story briefly took right before the ending....and also, what's with all the breeding that goes on in the future? Haven't Brits ever heard of birth control? Har har

All that aside, HP 7 was a fine, exciting, and enjoyable story. Thumbs-up!

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

I got mine!

Picked it up at Wal-mart of all places and for less than $18! What a steal. :)

I swung by there on my way home a couple hours earlier and picked up a wristband so, come midnight, I was able to walk right past the line at the back of the store to pick up a copy of the book. By the time I got back up to the front (after I detoured for some shampoo), the line at the registers had also gone way down so I was out of the store and on my way home with my new book a mere 45 minutes after I first got in my car to go pick it up. I even had time to make a return!

I could hear the happy ruckus from the parking lot of the BN nearby, but I didn't mind. I'd rather be heading home than at a party waiting to pay for my book, hehe. Now, I'm pretty tired from our long day so I'd best get started if I want to last through even the first chapter. G'nite!

Avon

In truth, I don't know what to say about Avon at this late date. It's been too long, and I did post our vacation pics on our Rocky Baby Picture Show so I guess that's that. I do have one picture from that trip that I'd like to post because it's too cool. Not that there's ever been, but if there had ever been any doubt as to Pumpkin's paternity....well, let's just say that this picture would've silenced all questions.



I call it "Clones."

Lookit What I Found

Since last night, I've spent probably around 4 hours sorting through my digital photo and video albums. They've been in an advanced state of chaos pretty much since our trip to Avon in April.

Whoops! I was going to include the link, but I just realized that I never blogged about our trip to Avon! What a nincowpoop! What an ultramaroon! What an oversight. I've not had that much fun so close to home in such a long time that I will have to come back and blog it soon just to do our trip justice.

Anyway, back to file organization. I came across this cute little video of Pumpkin with his ultimate buddy Livy at the Denver Zoo, and I had to share it. Keep in mind the kid is only 2 years old!



I think the wagon alone probably weighs more than he does, haha!

More Pictures from Texas

While I'm here, I may as well post a few more pics from our trip to Texas. I have some new vids too, but I haven't downloaded them yet, and QT took the camera with him to their "boys night out" so I'll just go with what I've got for now.

After several revisions, this was my final draft for the addition to the restaurant. At least, that's what I turned in. I don't know if they made changes to it again after I left.

Also, while in Texas, I took my mom to Houston to visit with a friend of mine, who's a Diabetes specialist. We stayed in a posh hotel near the Galleria so, on our 1st night there, we strolled over to do some shopping and grab some grub. Here are a couple of photos from that outing. Just for grins, I also threw in a picture of the Houston traffic that was visible from our hotel room (it wasn't even rush hour!).

Class Notes

Goodness me! Has it really been 2 weeks since I last posted? My, I'm really letting this thing go, aren't I?

Well, here's an update for you guys. I mentioned previously that the Field Office at the UH Grad School of Social Work originally wanted me to move back to Texas to do my internship. Well, after many useless attempts at negotiating, I finally had no choice but to file a grievance against the Field Director to get her to understand that it would literally be impossible for me to leave my family behind and move back to Texas to (basically) take a college class. I mean, if my job right now is SAHM, then what would I do? Quit my job? Anyway, I mailed my grievance letter to the Dean right before we left on our trip to Avon. By the time we got back from our vacation, the Field Director and I had already reached an agreement. :)

I'm happy to report that I will be doing my internship in Denver and from the comfort of my own home base. I've even already found a placement (though I'm not technically supposed to "promise" myself to any agency until I get the go-ahead, but the Field Director seemed to think it'd be ok when I mentioned it to her). I'm actually very excited about this place b/c it seems so different from anything else I've done up to now in the field of social work. The agency is called CHARG, and they have been sooooo incredibly patient in their dealings with me and with the GSSW. I'm not exactly sure how I feel about going back to work after being away for so long. I'd like to think that it's like "riding a bike" and that I'll be able to just pick up where I left off, but I honestly don't know if I'm up to the task. Now, if a client comes in and wants to sing nonstop Wiggles songs, I'm their man! If they have more serious matters to discuss; however, I'm not exactly sure how I'll be handling those. Perhaps I should reread some of my textbooks.......nah!

Anyway, tonight, I'm enjoying a quiet evening at home (which is why I suddenly have time to blog again). QT took Pumpkin and the neighbor boys out for some pizza. He wants to make this "boys night out" a weekly ritual for him and Pumpkin. I know Pumpkin must've really enjoyed himself last time they went out alone b/c he's been asking me all week if "Daddy come to pick up me?"

Ok, I have to say it. That kid is so dang smart even if he can't quite form a sentence correctly. The other day, he was holding a crayon with both hands, and he put his arms up over his head then slightly behind. When I asked him what he was doing, he said "I stretching, Mommy." Now, where the heck did he even learn what stretching means? I have to give the credit for this one to the kids back home b/c it sure didn't come from me, Ms. Anti-Exercise!

So, what good's a post without a pic? Here's a really cute one of Pumpkin and his absopositively favorite cousin Lis. Sure, it's a little blurry, but I love it because he looks so incredibly happy. They both do.

Hanging with La Familia

I told QT I'd be posting entries every so often to let him see what we're up to since we're going to be separated for a while, but most nights, I don't even get to the computer until midnight at the earliest. Sorry, QT. :(

In a nutshell, here's what we've been up to since you left. First, the kids decided to make a clubhouse out of a cardboard box. Next, we're going to make a television set out of a cardboard box and make shows inside it, but we haven't started that project yet. Hopefully, we'll get to do it before I leave for CO, but I think this stomach bug's caught up to me so who knows if I'll feel up to it. :(

Next, we attended a Hannah Montana birthday party for Lis, where partygoers were treated to the sight of Mom (Grandma), Anne, and the party girl on the hula hoops. . The party was held at the Imaginarium at the mall, and it was pretty neat. That was also the first day that I noticed that it felt really hot outside...and even then, I had to concede that it wasn't really all THAT hot since it was still tolerable in the shade, and there were no mirages yet. I think it probably got to 99 or maybe even 100 that day. Yesterday, on the other hand, it topped out at 104, and there I was, like a "lagartijo" running last-minute errands!

Anyway, the kids had fun singing, dancing, playing, and of course, eating ca-ke at the birthday party. Here's a short clip of Lis and Soph dancing the Chicken Dance.


Naturally, there's also been plenty of Wiggly fun going on in between our other activities. I daresay that Pumpkin gets better at it with every trip we take down here, but of course, he's getting better at so many things as the days go by! I swear, QT, you'll hardly recognize him by the time we return! Anyway, enjoy this lovely tidbit:


And, on that note, I'll say goodnight. I've been kind of sick today, and I may have to go puke soon. Shades of San Diego all over again! ;)

Cool Cat

With Father's Day approaching and Daddy-O so far away from us, I'd like to dedicate this post to the Coolest Cat on the block. Daddy-O!! (aka QT-Pie ;)

QT, I'd like to thank you on Pumpkin's behalf for taking the time to play trains with him (endlessly) and for taking him on rides in his wagon and for playing basketball with him and carrying him to the net a gazillion and one times when he couldn't reach it himself. Thanks also for reading the "Baby Bible" to him every night and for helping him brush his teeth and for teaching him to count in Spanish and for explaining traffic rules to him and...and for all those countless other things you do, little and big. I've said it before, and I'll happily say it again: You're truly a great dad, and I would be delighted if Pumpkin grew up to be like his "Daddy-o" (except perhaps a little less Grinchy around the holidays ;).

In your honor, here's a little pictorial retrospective of Pumpkin's 1st year:






1=With Pumpkin @ 2 weeks old
2=Getting ready to attend P's 1st baseball game (Houston Astros) May 2005


3=Learning to appreciate books June 2005
4=Riding the train at the Kemah Boardwalk Aug 2005
5=Disney World Sept 2005
6=House hunting in Denver Oct 2005

Sadly, I could only get through the first year of pictures (not even that), but you get the idea. Happy Father's Day, Daddy-o!!

A Day In The Life

Woke up. Got out of bed. Dragged a comb across my head. Well, sorta. At 6am on the morning we were to depart for Texas, I woke up to the sound of Pumpkin coughing. He quieted, and I drifted back to sleep. Shortly thereafter, I woke up again when I heard him crying frantically. I ran to his room and found him sitting on his bed, crying his little eyes out, and covered in vomit. It seems the stomach virus that had been going around finally caught up to us--and once again on the eve of our departure. To make matters worse, I was on my own; QT having left on his trip the day before.

Well, in a nutshell, I gave Pumpkin a bath, threw his sheets in the wash, put him back in bed, and jumped in the shower. Then, he vomited again; I washed more sheets, cleaned him up again, put him back to bed, and finally decided to just give up on even thinking of getting any more sleep. Instead, I got on the computer to read up on stomach viruses and check us in for our flight. The rest of our day went by in a blur until my friend Mel arrived to take us to the airport. Here's a self-portrait I took sometime that morning. I was so busy after my shower that I never actually had a chance to drag a comb across my hair. As the morning wore on, I was pleasantly surprised to find that my curls still existed. (I'd thought the dry Colorado air had killed them, hehe). So, forgive me, but I had to take a quick moment to snap a photo. It's for posterity after all!

On the plane, we were fortunate to be seated next to a very nice man on his way to basic training. When I warned him that Pumpkin had been ill that morning, he said he wasn't worried about getting soiled having two small kids of his own. Other than that, the flight itself was uneventful, though if anything had happened, I'd have been prepared having gone through this once before when we flew out to California earlier this year. So, I carried a couple extra pounds of clothes and barf cloths on my back, big whup! Thankfully, there was no cause to use them this time.

We arrived at the Denver airport shortly after 1pm MST. We landed in San Antonio around 7pm CST and arrived at my parents' house in Laredo around midnight. A long day indeed!

So, what've we done since arriving? Well, we've eaten at Salsa's a few times already. Speaking of Salsa's, Mom & Dad just purchased the suite next to theirs and are planning to expand the restaurant. A good portion of my first few days here was spent drawing plans for the expansion. Here's a picture of the floorplan (contractor's original plan is on the left, mine is on the right).


Next up: dealing with diabetes, investment banking for my in-laws, getting haircuts

Need to get away?

It's been 17 months since we moved into our new house, and I've yet to locate my trusty corded drill. Our almost-new cordless drill died shortly after it was used to install our new microwave oven/hood, and I found out that replacement batteries and chargers cost nearly enough to justify buying myself a brand new drill. So, for the past couple of weeks, I've been scanning the sales flyers and comparison shopping at Home Depot, Sear's, etc hoping to find a good deal. Meanwhile, 17 months worth of projects are piled up around the house just waiting for a drill to magically fall out of the sky and into my hands.

Yesterday, I had to run to Wally World to pick up some yogurt, a loaf of bread, and some bath soap. While I was scampering across literally the entire building to get from the grocery section to the toiletries and back home within 20 minutes, I ran right past the hardware section and thought "why not?"

I skidded to a stop and ended up buying a Black & Decker 18v cordless drill that came with a storage case, 2 battery packs, and a set of drill bits for about $70.
Actually, it wasn't my 1st choice, but they'd run out of the corded model I would've preferred.

This morning, I decided to check reviews of my new drill before I cut open the package, and one of the sites I came across was an online offer from Black & Decker for a free Companion Airline Ticket voucher for purchasing this very drill at this very time. I found this offer very interesting indeed especially in light of the fact that it isn't mentioned anywhere on the drill's packaging. On top of that, the dril was given good reviews by other users so score one for me!

If you're in the market for a drill or some other power tool, check out B&D's offer site first to see if you, too, may qualify for a free airline ticket voucher. Sure, I could probably find this drill cheaper on eBay, but even paying full price from Wally World, I would still end up with at least a $50 savings on the airline ticket (which everyone knows I WILL use sooner rather than later). Happy Hunting!

First Cut is NOT the deepest

Pumpkin had a little spill over the weekend. With his daddy. It was ugly too. A Daytona-like spill with the requisite rollover and everything. Daddy-o and I rushed Pumpkin inside to clean him up and realized that the injuries weren't nearly as bad as the fall had looked. On a cheerier note, Pumpkin's now reached a new milestone. This is his first time wearing "band-aids."
Fortunately, I happened to have some Cars bandages at the ready, and Pumpkin agreed to let me put them on him if I'd use one too. I got Sally on my thumb, and Pumpkin got Tow Mater and Lightning McQueen, and with that, he was a happy camper again.

Meanwhile, Daddy-o's driving permit has been temporarily suspended. >(

Just call me Cap'n Crunch

We've been scrambling to get our taxes done in time this year (for a change), but we've run into a few difficulties dealing with some business property transactions that took place last year. What a bummer. We use TaxCut so I even tried logging on to H&R Block to ask for "live help" but the dratted thing erased everything I'd input so I just gave up.

Fortunately, a good friend of mine referred me to Kim, the H&R Block consultant, who'd worked on her taxes. Even better, Kim the Tax Lady was able to squeeze me in for an appointment on the same day I called! Kim not only answered all of my questions for free, she even gave me her number in case I encountered more problems after I got back home and resumed work on my taxes. Now THAT's good service.
***********************************
Well, taxes were due at midnight today (technically, yesterday since it's well past midnight now). By 11:35pm, I had finally muddled through to the point where I felt confident enough with what I'd done to even suggest to QT that we file an extension. By my reckoning, WE WEREN'T GOING TO OWE ANY MONEY! That's right. ZIP. ZILCH. ZERO. I can hardly believe it. I'm totally stunned not to mention completely exhilarated at the prospect of keeping my house and home. Oh boy! This calls for a celebration! I think I'll have some celery. ;)

Itchy and Scratchy!

That's me after having gone into the attic to try and find this elusive pipe thing that's supposed to connect straight from the attic to the basement to make it easier to wire the house for sound, cable, etc. Dang insulation is the blow-in kind so it was impossible to tell what or where everything was. I was thinking of calling the builder's office to ask them where I would find this fabled pipe, but in going through my paperwork to figure out what the heck it's called, I can't find record of it existing at all in our house! It seems the "Design Center" detail sheet is missing from all of our paperwork!! . Coincidence? I think not!

Anyway, I'm done with that. I'm just going back to my original plan of drilling a hole from one room to another in order to run the cable extension that I want. Bah!

My Son the Jr. Super-Genius

The other night, Pumpkin and I were driving home from the store, and he says, "I can't see moon, Mommy." He enjoys looking up at the moon and stars, and he always points them out to us. Well, I made some mumbling noises in response to his statement, and then he says, "Sky cloudy. Can't see moon." Whoa, kid! Where'd you learn that? For starters, even I couldn't tell that the sky was cloudy until I got out of the car to check! Next, he's gonna be telling me what type of clouds are in the sky "Those cumulus clouds, Mommy." hehehe

The next morning, I'm changing him getting ready to head out for our daily whatever, and he starts showing me his toy cars ("That Bastian's car.") I think it's so cute the way he says his name so I ask him what my name is. I tell him I'm Mommy, but he says, "You Cristina" (Actually, it sounds more like "You Kwitina" but still, whoa! My eyeballs nearly popped out of my head when I heard that. Seriously, this is getting painful.)

Hardly anyone calls me Cristina, but I suppose he's heard my CO friends call me that. I'm dumbfounded, not only that he's apparently paying attention, but also that he remembers what he hears. I guess it really is time to start watching what I say...for the reals this time!

Pumpkin sings Wiggles. Ahoy!

Here's another video for the kids to enjoy! He's singing "Go, Captain, go! Go, Captain, go! Go, Captain Feathersword, ahoy!"

I will try and record a better copy where you can hear the music more clearly....and maybe where I don't accidentally almost cut Pumpkin's head out of the shot, hehe.

I did it!

I still haven't finished transferring all the pictures I took while in Texas, but I suppose it's time to move along anyway so here's what's new.

For his birthday, I gave QT a new XM radio that's also an MP3 player, and as usual, he wasn't too enthused about his gift. He put it away and supposedly did not think about it again until Pumpkin & I returned from Texas a couple of weeks later. When I got back from Texas, I asked QT when he was going to have his new radio installed, and he said something like, possibly maybe someday soon he might take his truck to Best Buy to get it done...maybe (hehe, I've taken a bit of artistic license here). I even offered to meet him at Best Buy after work the next day so that he could drop off his truck, and nothing.

The following weekend, I decided that if he wasn't going to get it done, I may as well give it a shot myself. I mean, I've sat alongside my brother and watched him install plenty of radios over the years. I figured it couldn't possibly be that difficult, and besides, I once installed my own radio antenna! ;)

So, I started messing around in QT's truck and somehow managed to remove the previous radio without damaging anything or cutting any wires. From there, it was easy enough to figure out how to install the new radio, and Presto Chango! I did it! (that's one of Pumpkin's favorite phrases, btw)

Here's a pic of my handiwork:
I'm so proud of myself! I think QT was too b/c he immediately set out learning how to use it and has already recorded dozens of songs on it. When he got home from work the following day, it was easy to see that he was truly happy with his new radio. And, when he told me that he LOVED his gift, I even believed him. :)