Furry Friends and Memories...

We have always made donations to non-profit organizations that help animals because we loved our own pets like they were our children. When the Houston Humane Society announced that they were building a new facility and offering donors an opportunity to have a brick with their pet's name on it as part of the walkway, we jumped at it. Our cats, Katie and Gordon, were always a big part of our lives...our furry kids. At the time, it was an "in honor of" brick...little did we know that we would lose them so soon. Thinking about doing another one of their "special donations' so we can have a "in memory of" brick or something.

We lost Katie and Gordon 4 months apart last year and I still have days that I cry about it. I guess that's why I've been putting off visiting the new building to view our brick. Saturday, we decided to make the trek down to Houston to see it and make a rubbing of it to frame and display at home. Little Man kept asking if we were going to visit Katie and Gordon but I managed to explain, without tearing up, "remember, Katie and Gordon went to heaven, so we're visiting their special brick and some animals that need homes".

I wasn't sure how hard it would be to find it or if the staff had some map of where everything was...but there it was, among the first set of bricks right as we walked up to the building.

2nd one down

The Husband and Little Man have both been talking about getting a dog but I didn't think I was ready, until I saw this face. HOW CUTE IS HE?!?! No we didn't take him home but I'm more enthusiastic about researching what the best type of dog to adopt would be. :)

1 month old and so adorable!

We also visited the cats side of the building and we fell in love with this crazy cat. While his suite-mates were trying to catnap, he was jumping around like a maniac and climbing up to the glass to say hello to us. I've always had a soft spot for orange tabbies....best type of cat in my opinion. :)

9 months old and full of energy!

I'm happy that we made the trip! I miss my furries but I think I'll be ready to adopt a new "baby" by the end of the year.

PS- Don't forget to spay / neuter your pets! :)

Just remembered!

Transferred some pics from my phone to iPhoto!

This first pic was taken at Barney's restaurant (love it!) down in Houston. We ordered Little Man a corn-dog from THE KIDS MENU. I thought the waiter was bringing us a billy club with a side of fries! HOLY COW! He did confirm though that yes, this was the kids corn-dog and no, it wasn't a joke. HAD to get a picture of this thing! hee hee! He ate half of it and gave up. :D

I'm one of those people that puts reindeer antlers and a Rudolph nose on her car the day after Thanksgiving. Stop laughing! It's festive!

So when we saw this Cooper Mini out and about, I had to get a picture of it!

How cute is that?!?!?!

Now I just have to find the window shade with eyeballs on it for my car! I'm sure The Husband will be thrilled! :D

Same-O

Not a lot happin' at "Casa B" so I just changed the music. Will update soon!

Ok! New Music!

Jedi Rapper

So the kids music I had playing on this blog WAS NOT as cool as I had hoped. Well...I did like the lady bug song but the others were soon grating on my nerves. It would be fine if they were on Little Man's iPod shuffle I'm sure.

Decided to have a 80's & 90's playlist for your listening pleasure. I know... I'm a giver.

I heard most of these on a new radio station we have that plays "alternative" hits from the 80's & 90's. Very cool! The list is made up from songs I remember hearing back in the day...I graduated from high school in 1987....I know...I can't POSSIBLY be THAT old. :D But yes, I am.

Nothing like the totally awesome sounds of electric drums & synthesizers to rock your world. And watching the rad videos on MTV (back when they actually played videos) was a favorite pastime too.

Anyone else remember this stuff or am I just a total spaz?

Cyndi Lauper & Old School Rapper

Kindie Rock?

Before Little Man was born, I promised myself that I would continue to listen to the same music that I always did. A mix of classic rock, alternative, a sprinkling of country, classical and anything else that I wanted. Not giving in and letting Elmo's Greatest Hits dominate our world.

Funny how we forget about promises that we make to ourselves once we have kids. :D

3 of the 6 CD slots in my car stereo are filled with "Little Man's Music". Music from Yo Gabba Gabba! (not so bad), Soundtrack from Pinocchio, and a CD that guarantees to say Little Man's name at least 28 times!

I admire a friend of mine who exposed her daughter to "regular" music from day one. This kid loves the band Coldplay! How cool is that?!

But today I read an article in the USA today about Kindie Rock. I knew there was cool kid's music out there (thanks to our friends Dave & Stacy) but I didn't realize how much.

So if you peruse iTunes and have kids, look up these artists!

Justin Roberts - Jungle Gym, Caspar Babypants - This is Fun!, Frances England - Mind of My Own, Elizabeth Mitchell - Sunny Day, Lunch Money - Original Friend, Secret Agent 23 Skidoo (cool name!) - Underground Playground and Rani Arbo & Daisy Mayhem - Ranky Tanky.

Now I can maintain my "Coolness". (Honey! I can hear you laughing in the other room!)

Back to Normal...

Well, the holiday season is behind us and I must say that I am SO relieved! Don't get me wrong! I love the holidays, visiting with family, opening presents and stuffing myself like a Thanksgiving turkey (thanks for the help with that Grandma - with all the M&M cookies!) but I do appreciate my usual routine.

We traveled to Oklahoma to spend Christmas with both sets of Little Man's Grandparents, Great Grandparents, Aunt & Uncle and cousin. No snow this year but it certainly was much easier to get around to see everyone.

Napping during the roadtrip

Little Man with Grandma - love this pic!

Christmas night found Little Man, myself and Grandma down with the 24 hr stomach bug. Nothing like a jovial "Merry (((HURL!))) Christmas" to make your day! :D The following day my Dad got it too. Sorry Dad!

New bike & helmet!

Little Man and his cousin

Once Little Man and I had recovered, we made to trek back to TX to spend another week of Christmas vacation playing with all his new toys he received, only to hear him exclaim, "I need to look at the toys!" during a trip to Target! Are you kidding me?!?!?! Did you forget about all the stuff you just received?!?!? That's a 3 year old for ya.

Pre-School started back up yesterday and I swear I heard a resounding "Woo Hoo" followed by a "Ahhhhhh" in the area. :) Little Man was excited to see his school friends, running to class as fast as he could and I got back to my routine, running errands, paying bills, cleaning house, etc.

HOPE EVERYONE HAD A WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS!

Little Man's Holiday Party

Little Man had his Holiday Party on Friday! Yummy snacks, decorating cookies, singing a song for the parents and a book exchange. Looking forward to Christmas!

Little Man and his buddy W.

Decorating his cookie

nah...more fun to eat the candies!

Time for the book exchange!

The class singing Jingle Bells.

Little Man is on the far left end.

Ms. D had to scoot him in so I could see him and then the little booger wouldn't sing with the class. Funny! He doesn't hesitate to perform in the car or at home...must be stage fright. :)

Charitable Contribution to the American Cancer Society | Get Involved

Charitable Contribution to the American Cancer Society | Get Involved

Every year we give a lot of thought about which charities to donate to. The local SPCA has always been a favorite since we're animal lovers and former pet owners. Children's charities will always hold a special place in our hearts. But after losing 3 loved ones to different forms of cancer over the last couple of years, this is our charity of choice for this year.

In Memory of Grandpa J, Aunt K and Aunt T.

Feel free to click on the link to make your donation today.

There's a Party in my City!

One of Little Man's all time favorite t.v. shows is Nick Jr.'s - Yo Gabba Gabba!

It's a really cool show that has fun characters, songs about trying a little bit of everything at mealtime (Try It You'll Like It), songs about how to play nice with your friends (Don't Bite Your Friends and Keep Your Hands to Yourself) and a dance segment with celebrities (Dancey Dance Time).

Some of the people who have appeared on the show are: Jack Black (actor), Elijah Wood (actor), Sugarland (musical group), and Jack McBrayer (actor) and the Ting Tings (musical group). Some of the special guests at the live shows include: Sarah Silverman, Snoop Dogg and Dinosaur Jr.

Show regulars are: Mark Mothersbaugh originally from the 80's musical group Devo and Biz Markie human beatbox who also appeared in the movie Men In Black 2.

Little Man (2yrs) in his favorite hoodie - Plex!

Little Man (2 yrs) in his DJ Lance Rock hat & glasses

When I heard they were coming to town, I was so excited!!! Bought tickets months ago and got great seats! So Friday it was time to go party! Woo Hoo!

Here are some pics from the event:

Little Man posing with the Muno cutout

before the show

The Husband wearing the DJ Lance Rock

glasses that they were handing out at the door

DJ Lance Rock!

Toodee (Cat Dragon), Foofa (Pink Flower Bubble), Muno (Red Cyclops), Brobee (Little Green One) & Plex (Magic Robot)

Balloons rained down from the ceiling during

Brobee's "Balloons Make Me Happy" song

Dancey Dance Time!

The boy behind Little Man is actually a friend from school that we saw at the show

We had such a great time at the show!

Save the Ta Tas / I Love Boobies

Mammograms save lives

Yes my friends....it was that time of year again. Time for my yearly mammogram.

Woo Hoo! <--- Sarcasm

Yearly mammograms start at age 40 but your Dr. will start doing breast exams when you're 20. It's also important to do breast self-exams.

I've had 2 lumps removed over the years. The first was when I was 21, which was removed and luckily benign (non-cancerous). The second one, I was 39, which the radiologist initially though was cancerous but upon removal and biopsy, it was found to be benign as well. I can't tell you how scared I was on that one. I had to wait 2 weeks before I could have the surgery (had to cut off Little Man's breast feeding cold turkey!) and then wait an additional day to find out the results.

I never thought I'd get breast cancer...doesn't run in my family but after some research, I've found that doesn't mean anything! 80% of all women diagnosed with breast cancer have no family history of the disease.

One in every 229 women between the ages of 30 and 40 will be diagnosed with breast cancer in the next 10 years. It's the leading cause of cancer death in women ages 15 to 54.

Symptoms: a lump or abnormality in the shape or feel of your breast; a generalized swelling of a part of the breast; an irritation or dimpling of the skin on the breast; nipple retraction; redness or scaliness on the nipple or breast skin; or a spontaneous discharge from the nipple (I know, gross!).

If you feel a lump or abnormality, please see a Dr. without delay. 80% of all breast lumps that are biopsied are not cancer, and early diagnosis of breast cancer is the key to survival.

Don't mean to be a downer during the holiday but this is important!

So don't forget to do your monthly self-exam, it could save your life.

Christmas Parade & Lights

Last night The Husband and I took Little Man to the Christmas Parade. I really don't remember what they were like when I was a kid but this one had LOTS of cars decorated with lights, etc and people handing out free stuff (bottles of water, bananas & candy). Little Man liked everything except for when the muscle cars revved their engines...he was covering his ears and saying, "Too loud!". But he got to see Santa Claus, so he was happy.

Here are some highlights:

Elvis walking behind a car and gyrating his hips.

Little Man actually thought he was Metro Man from the animated movie Megamind.

Hee Hee! Now that's funny! Actually I think they have the same hair.

When I told him it was Elvis, he said "Who's Elvis?"

Oh my! We need to get him on YouTube after school today to show him some videos of Elvis.

Santa Claus! The Big Man himself!

Me, Little Man & The Husband

(not bad for taking the pic ourselves!)

After the parade we toured some of the neighborhoods Christmas Light displays on the way home. I love it when a whole street participates! So festive!

View from the entrance of the cul-de-sac.

The best house on the block!

Little Man and I got out of the car to get a closer look.

I thought this was funny as we hardly see snow down here in south Texas.

But it's nice to be optimistic!

Bethlehem's Studio 54

(notice the Disco Glitter Ball)

Waiting for Baby Jesus to dance in wearing the white suit from Saturday Night Fever.

Hmmm, that's not blasphemy is it?! Don't mean to disrespect...it just made me giggle. :D

Holiday Parties to attend so I'll post those pics as I get them!

Hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season!