Sunday musings

I have invited three people - whose opinions matter most to me - to be authors on my blog. In no particular order they are - my friend April - we have daughters who are three days apart and spent their Kindergarten year together at school. And since their birthdays are so close, April graciously purchased everything that was needed to have an awesome birthday party at school. Granted, this was last year, so why am I blogging about it now? Because April and her family are in Avondale and no longer at the same school and I miss them terribly.

Second is my daughter-in-law Becki who has let me in on her blog about being pregnant with her first baby (a girl whom she & her husband have aptly named Basil Isabella). I love Becki, not only because she loves my son unconditionally, but because she is so willing to share her thoughts, upsets and daily musings about what is currently going on in her young life. Thank you Becki for accepting me for who I am and not wanting to change me.

Finally last, but certainly not least, my stepdaughter Carrie - who blogs about her daughter Lilliana Mae. I have not officially met her yet, Carrie, that is, but we talk like we have been friends forever. She too has allowed me to visit her blog and see inside a day in the life of - which means the world to me. To finally be accepted by my stepchildren has gone far in my getting back to a normal mother, stepmother and beloved wife - makes me feel better.

Someday I may blog about my previous life or not. I tend to want to stay in the present and not look back at my horrific past.

Ok, so on to more current events. Carli and I went to the ASU Museum on Friday as planned, walked around and checked things out. Unfortunately, I was not able to take my camera and take pictures of anything. Sad because there was so much to see and do - but I am only able to talk about it and somehow it doesn't seem to be as much fun if you can't share what was seen.

So...Carli put on a puppet show for me, yes a puppet show! At the museum! It was awesome. There are about 20 puppets to choose from and she picked a boy and a girl - had them have a conversation and then lock lips. It was so cute - but I wonder where she got the idea from? Ha.

We walked around a little more and then went back downstairs to the gift shop to check things out there. There were so many pretty things and lots of jewelry and toys and you name it, it was there. I found a really pretty bezel set silver Peridot ring - I ended up buying it (woo hoo) and I bought a brown tarantula spider for Carli (she loves bugs).

After the museum we walked across the street and had lunch at Subway. We split a sandwich and shared a bottle of water. It was so much fun hanging out with my 6 year old - she was so well behaved. Lots of people complimented her on her good behavior and I think some of them were surprised. When we finished lunch we took a walk down Mill Aveune to see what was going on. We popped in to a couple of the shops so Carli could try on some shoes (high heels to be precise). She loves trying on shoes, don't ask me why.

Then we walked around some more and came to a little mom & pop book store called Old Town Books. We love going in there to look at all of the books they have on the shelves and laying down in boxes on the floor. I asked the owners if they had any sociology books and Carli asked if there were any Dinosaur books. She found one out front on the 'sale' table. Granted it is old (from 1959 - but it says its a 1968 edition) on sale for $4.95 - now normally I would not pay that much for a book so old, but Carli is so into dinosaurs and I figured it couldn't hurt a bit to buy it for her.

Needless to say I didn't find any books I wanted (or could possibly afford) and besides it's more important that Carli have good books to read to continue her love of reading. Funny thing about the book, her dad had the same book when he was little, how cool is that?!

When we left the book shop we headed down the street and walked around a little bit more and Carli saw another mom & pop shop - Ice Cream, that is...called Cookiez. This place is so cool, little and cramped especially if more than one or two people are inside. This is such a cute little place and the ice cream costs a lot less than the ice cream store next door. I can get Carli a scoop of ice cream for $1.00! and one for me too - can you believe it? And the place next door charges $1.79 minimum for a scoop of ice cream!

Anyway, I have probably gone on long enough. NASCAR is on and I must pay attention or my favorite driver Kasey Kahne (#9) will not win - and he's currently in 4th place - yeehaw!

ASU Art Museum

I'm taking Carli to the ASU Art Museum on Friday. It's free and it will be a lot of fun. Besides, we'll have to do something since that's her day off from Summer School - why not be entertained and get an education at the same time. What a great idea - she'll never suspect a thing.

First Day of Summer School

It all started out so wonderfully and ended the same way. Carli picked out her first day of Summer School clothes last night so that she would be ready in time to leave with Dad. I decided to take a picture of her before she left and then one more when we arrived at Summer School. I wasn't with her like I am when she goes to school and let me tell you, it wasn't easy not being there for her. Obviously, when she walked herself into the cafeteria from where we'd dropped her off, she did not need me to walk her in. She was quite confident and had no issues. We (Dad & I) drove away (as difficult as it was) and went to run an errand. Dad happened to be out and about when school was over and picked her up. She started to run out to meet him and the teacher called her back because Dad needed to walk over to the parent pick-up area and walk her safely to the car. I'm sure she'll remember tomorrow!

Carli and I took a walk around the block just to get out of the house for a little while and enjoy the cooler weather we've been experiencing recently. I took the digital camera along in case we came across anything I might want to get on 'film.' I took a picture of a Pear Cactus with blossoming flowers, an American Flag flying in the breeze, some daisies (my all time favorite flower) and a shot or two of Carli with her sunglasses on. Check out my pics!

D

Strep Throat and Forced Vacation

Well, Carli was sick most of the week with strep throat and I was forced into a 5 day vacation. Needless to say, I wasn't too happy to miss 3 full days of work to take care of a sick child. However, it turned out to be a good thing that I was off work because I took Carli to the doctor on Thursday only to find out she has strep throat and needed an antibiotic (Amoxicillan). She takes it three times a day for 10 days. She gets to go back to school on Monday and I am so happy about it. I can't wait to get back to work!

New Digital Camera - Canon PowerShot A550

I had to blog about my new digital camera. It's a Canon PowerShot A550. While it is secondhand, I am still very excited to have it. It came with a USB cable, a memory card (don't ask me what kind, 'cuz I dunno), a soft case and shoulder strap. Now I get to play with it and figure out how it works. I can also take 8 minute videos with it, which will be awesome, especially when Carli is singing at her concert on the 23rd. It takes AA batteries (no more expensive camera batteries - yeah!) and NO MORE FILM! We have finally joined the 21st century.

Tempe Art Festival Spring 2009

Hello...just wanted to say I enjoyed the Tempe Art Festival this spring. I was able to go by myself (what a treat that was!) and actually do some shopping for things I wanted to buy. I purchased two pairs of earrings (one dangly and one posts) the dangly pair are amethyst (my birthstone) and the posts are made from glass and depending on the angle of light hitting them the color can range anywhere from blue to purple. I also bought a spoon ring that I wear on my pinky finger that is also purple. The last thing I purchased before I left the festival is a purple candle that actually glows in the dark. Pretty cool candle - hence the name "Waycool candles". I spent $20.00 for everything, which I think is a steal, considering that a lot of the stuff there starts at around $25.00 for one item. I went back later in the day with Carli because she'd been at Bug-O-Rama with her dad and I wanted to get her a ring too. She picked out a blue stone ring that the lady resized for her no charge. I thought that was a pretty nice thing to do.