A Girl's Gotta Do...

...what a girl's gotta do. That's why when I realized it was almost my friend Lynne's birthday, we decided a girl's night was definitely in order. We, meaning our little group of three friends (of which I am the oldest, but you can keep that between us, 'kay??) Between the three of us, we have 10 kids...one set of twins, one set of triplets. Not only am I the oldest of the group, I am also closer to being an empty nester than my two dear friends...oh, wait...is it bad to be thinking about the empty nest syndrome when my kids are 13 and 10??

Keep in mind...it is now the end of July. My birthday came and went; we were going to get together over dinner to celebrate. J's birthday came and went; since we didn't get together for dinner for my birthday, we definitely have to do it for J's birthday. Yeah, right! Read above paragraph about the number of kids we share between us (especially the triplet one!). So when we looked on the calendar and realized that Lynne's birthday was quickly approaching, a girl's night out was definitely in order.

So off we went to a nice, quiet resturaunt. We must've had that look in our eyes, because the hostess sat us in the back of the resturaunt. We could have cared less what we ordered; we had noone to answer to but ourselves. noone to feed but ourselves. noone to take to the little girl's room but ourselves. So we were able to sit, relax and enjoy each other's company.

In the course of our evening, being the multi-tasking mothers that we are, we crossed some of the "to-do's" off of our list. We planned J's DH's 40th birthday party (not until March, but it's never too early to start) and we planned Lynne's next, ahem, ahem, birthday party. Not gonna tell you which one it is, but it requires a party with lots of advance planning. Plus we planned next month's Supper Club, which will include our DH's (and pictures). So we not only got to enjoy each other's company (I can't begin to tell you how many times the waiter came by and asked if we were sure we didn't want a refill on our drinks...tea and Coke...), but we also turned into party planners, we laughed, loved, and if the resturaunt hadn't been ready to shut down, I'm sure we could have a good handle on world peace.

So Happy Birthday, Lynne...remember, I get my pick of seats on the Party Bus next year. Happy belated birthday J - yes, you are still much younger than I. Thank you both for your love, your support, and your friendship.

Murphy's Law, part 2

Alas, I am back from the big shopping spectacular and extravaganza. Let me first say that I was a very good girl and stayed well within my budget. Also let me say that, as usual, the girls ended up with more than I did. Partly because I have gained weight and refuse to buy the size clothes that actually look attractive on me and partly because the stores where we live were already having their back to school sales.

But my mission was accomplished; I came home with a very cute and comfortable pair of linen slacks and jacket for open house plus a cute top for another pair of slacks I already had but didn't like the shirt I bought to go with it.

Why Murphy's Law?? Because I was all set to spend, spend, spend until my heart's content...and pay cash for the purchases because that's what I do now. No more credit cards for me, no-sir-eee bob. I found lots and lots of cute pants/capris/walking shorts but nothing fit. If I would lose the weight I need to, I could fit back into the pants already in my closet and wouldn't need to go shopping in the first place. So the lesson I learned today...exercise, exercise, exercise. That way, I'll have a whole new plethora of clothes from which to chose, all at no additional cost to DH : )

P.S. I went walking after dinner tonight.

A-Shoppin' I Will Go

OK, OK, I confess - I have been looking forward to this day for a very long. long. long time! Only now that it's here, it is even better than I imagined. Being a teacher has certain perks, one being that while I'm back-to-school shopping for the girls, I also get to BTS shop for me. Guess where I'm going today! I think I have mentioned before that DH and I are (trying to) committed to Dave Ramsey and his Financial Peace University, which means that yours truly can't go out anytime she deems necessary and buy stuff...like a new outfit or 10. I am the world's worst shopper because I can justify anything...and I do mean anything. Want a new car? Come talk to me and I'll have you talked into it in no time flat. Want to go on vacation, come see me and pick out your destination. All justified, because I am very good.

But anyway, I have been dreaming of going BTS shopping for three weeks now, which in my timeframe, is a LIFETIME! Before my commitment to FPU, it was not uncommon or DH to call me during the day to check in, "Whatcha doin?" "I HAD to go shopping"..."For what, you weren't going shopping when I talked to you earlier today". "I know, I got bored and remembered we needed ( ) (fill in the blank) so I went to get it, and while I was there, I remembered we needed ( ) so I picked it up, too, so I saved a trip to the mall, and the girls needed ( ), so now I don't have to come back and pick that up, either...and it was all.on.sale!". At which time DH sighs deeply and mumbles something about having to go watch grass grow or something.

So I have been looking forward to my little shopping extravaganza for quite some time, and it is finally here. Only the little added bonus I mentioned, Oldest Child is gone with my girlfriend so she's unavailable for the trip, and Youngest Child hates to shop. So I get to go all by myself! I have it planned in my head exactly what I need to buy, exactly how much it should cost, and I will put the blinders on and not look in any other stores that are not on my list. And as if going by myself were not reward enough...DH is on his way as we speak to get his 4-wheeler out of the shop from a major service overhaul. Which, in my calculation, means I get even more money to spend than originally thought because, afterall, he did get to spend money on him...and his 4-wheeler is a pleasure item, and my BTS trip, is business. Who wants to have their kids sit in a classroom with a teacher who looks like a slob?? Reread the above paragraph about my being able to justify anything.

Now, it is time to set off on my adventures. Of course I'll post later to let you know how it turns out!

Still Among the Living

Wow, where did the summer go?? The calendar says I only have two more weeks of summer vacation (get out the crying towels now!), but that can't be, because I still have so much on the "to do" list that I haven't accomplished yet. But July has been very productive.

In my previous posts I have eluded to The Dude who now lives in what used to be our playroom. Now, The Dude lives in a huge bedroom complete with hardwood laminate flooring (a blog for another day...), freshly painted walls, no stray shoes, coats, bags, animals, or any of the other various important items that used to be housed in that room. That's the problem with having an "extra" room in your house - it soon becomes a catch-all. Even though we would periodically clean The Pit a few times a year, it never failed that The Pit would once again become the place where we would just put everything that didn't have a real home.

But The Dude has a bedroom he can be proud of, DH and I didn't even have any major disagreements during the above-mentioned flooring experience, and I still have two weeks to get my garage cleaned from the stray shoes, coats, bags, animals, and other important items that have been housed in there so my truck can park there again.