Home Sweet Home

...And all is as it should be.... we made it home!!

And the kids have already hit the pool, mine and some others from the neighborhood....

Sorry for the dark pictures, but it was dark when we got home.

AND some of my flowers bloomed.

It is so great to be home. But we had a WONDERFUL vacation. Let me fill you in...BUT FIRST you've got to visit http://silveroaktree.blogspot.com/ (Ashley's Blog) and see what Joseph was up to around the house while we were out of town. He apparently threw a pool party while we were gone. I tell you what, he is really some kind of character.

HA. Ashley, you are a total NUT.

Let me see if I can pick up where I left off..

We returned for the second day at Six Flags and again had a blast. We got there when the park opened at 10:30 Friday morning. We hit all of our favorite rides first because it looked like the park was going to be considerably more crowded. We found out that was the last day of school in Texas. It turned out to be fine. It was a little more crowded than Thursday but still not too bad. My back was REALLY hurting by late in the afternoon. I ended up finding a bench very strategically located between the Acme Rocket and Tony Hawks Super Spin and AquaMan. I parked it there for about 2 1/2 to 3 hours while Jeff and the kids rode stuff and occasionally checked in with me. I had a blast people watching. Oh the stories I could have told if I had had my camera with me. There are some interesting folks in an amusement park.

We left the park about 6:45 and headed out for MidEvil Times. It was a dinner show in Dallas. Dalton had seen a brochure for it in the hotel lobby. We called for pricing and reservations on Thursday and were disappointed to find that it would it cost our family of four over $200 for this event. HUMMM, should we or shouldn't we? We decided against it. Later that night, back at the hotel, the Budget Nazi found a COUPON and we made reservations and paid only $118. Hell YEAH! Dalton loved the show. They split us up into "teams" and we were each assigned a colored knight. We were on the Green Knight team. He ended up being the bad guy but we loved him just the same. Dalton got his autograph after the show and we snapped a picture of Savannah with the Princess on Jeff's phone. We actually snapped pictures throughout the day with Jeff's phone but he won't download them for me tonight. Maybe tomorrow.

We returned to the hotel about 11 Friday night and I was in tears by then. My back felt like it was just broken. I soaked in a hot tub and put one of those ThermaCare Heat Wraps on. It felt much better the next morning and we packed up and headed to Canton. Oh, the night before, my OCD totally kicked in and I had to wash all of our clothes. Yes, the hotel had a laundromat and I couldn't help it. I have a sickness. Jeff stayed up until 2 with me, but we got it done.

Canton was incredible and overwhelming all at the same time. I loved it but my kids HATED it. I gave up after about 4 hours. It just wasn't worth it. I was so glad I endured two days of everything they wanted to do only to have them act like horses patooties, BUT, I'll just go back another time without them. We didn't plan to leave there as early as we did, so we didn't really know what we were gonna do or where we were gonna stay. We got on the road and headed toward Tyler Texas. It sounded like a good place to visit. We immediately found a Horse Show which seemed to be what folks did around those parts.

This was such a beautiful place....

If I'm not mistaken, those last two were the fellow that won. They won $25,000.

Apparently, when you go to the horse show, you have to turn your collar up. I didn't get that, but all of the men either had on a long sleeve shirts and a tie or they had their collars turned up.

After this, we checked into a scrumptious hotel for a much needed shower and some good sleep.

HA. I found this picture. Aren't ya'll glad I decided to join my Hooters on my trip to Canton. Good God! I think they have their own weather system. They are bigger than my kids heads!

Oh, and, I finished yet another Nicholas Sparks novel. I heard someone on television say that his books were for all of those out there who have connect the dot emotions. I don't know exactly what that means, but I guess they were talking about me. Oh well.

I'm out for the night. It's back to reality tomorrow.

Peace,
Kacy

A Little Catching Up and Vacation

Did I mention I bought a very inexpensive Espresso Machine and all the makings for my Triple Grande No Fat Sugar Free Iced Caramel Macchiato? Well I did. I couldn't justify spending $4.65 a day on a coffee drink. The way I figured it, and justified it to the budget Nazi (Jeffrey) was that it would pay for itself in a week.....and that it did! I got the recipe online and it took a few tries, but now, they ROCK and SavyG likes us to make the Vanilla Bean Frappacino. I even found this awesome insulated cup, so it's like having the real thing at home every morning. (I'm missing it while we are on vacation.)

Also, have I mentioned that my daughter writes and draws on anything and everything that is sitting still? I am constantly finding scraps of paper all over the house that she has written some sort of nonsense on. It wouldn't be so bad, IF SHE WOULD PICK THEM UP AND PUT THEM IN THE TRASH WHEN SHE IS FINISHED!! (She's reading over my shoulder right now!! HINT HINT) She has that cute big bubbly handwriting that all teenage girls seem to have. What happens to that handwriting as we get older?
"We" are way into the Peace Sign right now!

Here are my other chairs after they got new covers made for them. ( Just in time for the Memorial Day crew that descended upon the Acree Abode.)

Not too shabby for chairs that were sitting on the bottom of the pool just a short week earlier. I was pretty proud of myself.

And these are Jeff's hanging tomato plants this year. He is quite proud of them.

I'm curious to see how they turn out. We didn't get them up there until late, so we'll have to see what happens with them.

Dalton has been working on his front flip off of the diving board. It's looking pretty good.

Nash, is that a car up your nose? What's up with that cutie?I didn't get a picture of you after your fall! He was running around the pool and his little feet went right up over his ears and he landed right on that beautiful forehead. He had a bodacious knot!! But, Aunt Kacy came to the rescue with an ice pack and a bag of marshmallows and all was good with the world.We had swimmers of all shapes and sizes.

And lots of family and plenty of food.

Thanks for enduring my picture "catch up". I was behind. This hotel has given us a few technical difficulties, but Jeffrey Michael seems to have gotten the kinks worked out now. I just get frustrated and say forget it. For $65 a night, I have to BRAG on our hotel. We are about 10 minutes from Six Flags. Last year, we stayed at the Gaylord Texan in Grapvine. It was SWEET. Due to the current economic situation and the above mentioned "Budget Nazi", I booked the Value trip this year and honestly, we are just as happy here and we saved a BUTT LOAD of cash. We don't have the best view, but who cares?

Here is our little bedroom....

And our mini kitchen...Notice the Big K Cola...another Budget Nazi move. I am going to have to overrule that one, though. When I want a Coke, I want a Coke. You will never hear me saying, "I really need a Big K right now!".

Here is our den....

We had a BLAST today and are heading back tomorrow morning. BUT, my dogs are barking!!The park was awesome. There were NO LINES. We didn't have to wait on any ride and we rode everything there today. We had a free Flash Pass coupon (of course) but we didn't even need to use it today!! We still have it for tomorrow in case it is crowded!!

Are we a motley crew or what? I guess it is a common thing for people to color coordinate their families when they go to an amusement park. Jeff and I have been noticing this for years. That is a thought that has never entered my mind. I have never color coordinated my kids much less my whole family. I think I like individuality and self expression with some guidelines. Heck, my kids packed themselves. What they put on is a surprise to me everyday.

Here's a little photo shoot of what we were all up to tonight. (I get bored FAST.) Jeff was trying to get my security software for work to stop blocking the wireless Internet in our room. He finally did it!!

Heavy D was planning out his favorite rides he wants to hit in the morning when we return to the park.

SavyG was in the shower washing all of the park funk off of herself. This may very well be my new favorite picture of her. It is just so her!!!

And I was modeling my new night gown I made all by myself out of some very yummy fabric. I LOVE IT! I've worn it every night since I made it. Do you see my sunburn from today? I love that, too. It's not bad. Some woman at the restaurant tonight said, "Oh honey, that nose of yours is gonna peel." I said, "Whore!". No, not really but I wanted to. Seriously lady, don't talk about my honker.

It's time for bed. The kids want to get there early tomorrow. Have a great Friday!! I know we will.

Peace,
Kacy

Vacation

Oh YES he did!! Let me just say, ROMANCE is NOT his middle name. It never has been. As a matter of fact, as I sit here and think about it…..I can’t think of a single romantic effort he has made in our very LONG relationship. Oh well, I love him anyway….It’s a good thing I like SHREK! HA. Have I mentioned before that we met in High School? I was a Sophomore and he was a Senior. I skipped French class to go check out the “senior” lunch and he chased me around the table with whipped cream all around his mouth saying, “Come here little girl. You sure are pretty.” Love at first sight!! His 20 year reunion is on June 12. So, I guess that tells you how long it’s been.

I am typing somewhere in Arkansas at the moment. Ain’t technology GRAND? We are on the road to Dallas, Texas. I LOVE IT THERE. I would move down here and Jeff and the kids say they wouldn’t mind it either. I’ve been many times before, but this is our second year in row to take a family vacation here. We are gonna spend a couple of days at good ole Six Flags. We are amusement park fiends!! We have even been known to leave the kids behind and take off for a park ourselves. Last summer, we hit the Six Flags in Dallas, Atlanta and St. Louis. I’m thinking next year, I want to take the kids to Cedar Point in Ohio. I went in college ( I know, I’m such an animal) and loved it. At the time, they had the tallest roller coaster in the states. I don’t know if that is still the case, but I’ll check it out.

I found my strategically misplaced camera card reader. “Lost” is such a strong word. It was sandwiched between two books beside my bed that I’m trying to read. Hopefully, after this trip, I’ll have at least one those knocked out.

I obtained a new claim to fame yesterday. I had the Eastgate Shopping Center Security called on me!! HA. For those of you NOT from around here, Eastgate is one of the oldest shopping centers in east Memphis. It’s been around forever. Since my hunk is rather large, his fashion options are a bit limited. They have a Big and Tall store in that shopping center. I went Saturday and bought him 4 new shirts. He didn’t like them. SO, Sunday, I went to take them back. The guy said the manager wasn’t in and he didn’t have the key to be able to process the return. He was really nice about it and asked if I could come back the next day. I must have smoked the crack pipe that morning because I said, “Sure, that’s no problem. Will you be open on Memorial Day?” He explained that they would…yada yada yada. I was cool with it. (That alone was weird.) Well, I didn’t make it back until yesterday. The manager was there and I obviously forgot to take a hit of the pipe that morning. It was just ALL wrong from the moment I walked in the door. First, dude acted weird about me wanting to return 4 of the same shirt just in different colors. I didn’t care so much about that, I just didn’t appreciate the extra hassle of having to explain that my squeeze just didn’t like them. So we get to the counter and he scans my receipt and then each of the shirts and tells me it’s not coming up right. I was thinking that sounds like your problem, I just want my money back but I didn’t say that, YET. I told him they were on sale when I bought them, if that made a difference… This is where it just went wrong. He said, “I’m sorry, Mam, I can’t get this to come out right.” UMMM, Ok, WHO can???? I don’t know. Well if you are the manager, do we need to call your little 800 number or something for some help? I bought 4 shirts and I’m returning 4 shirts and there is my receipt and this is my second trip up here and I want my $74.25. He said, “Mam, you don’t need to get upset about this, but I can’t process your return. My register isn’t reading this correctly.” I told him I didn’t care HOW he did it but I wasn’t leaving without my money. He could put it back on my card, or give me cash or write me a check if he wanted to but unless I had $74.25 in my fat little hand, we were just gonna hang out together. SO, he called security and I went and had a seat in the chair by the dressing room. I let out a little crackle of a laugh when an older man no less than 85 pulled up in a tiny pickup truck with flashing lights on it. The manager told him I was refusing to leave his store and I explained what had happened to the gentleman. The security guard looked at the store manager and said, “It sounds to me like you need to give this young lady her money back.” HAHAHAHAHAHAHA So he did!! That jack ass was just not going to give it to me. Jeff says I should write a letter to the company, but I’m not interested in having anything else to do with them and I certainly won’t do business with them anymore. Sorry Jeffro, but your limited wardrobe just got more limited.

Speaking of being on the large side….Holy Smoke. I’m about to set a record. I was doing pretty good at first. I was just really swollen, but not gaining any real weight. Well the munchie monster moved in and he’s in a bad mood. He acts right if you feed him. I’m growing again. Since I didn’t get rid of much of what I acquired before, I don’t know what I’m gonna do this time around. I’m trying to watch it, but it’s tough.

Mom is with us on this trip. She’s going to visit her friend Patty (What’s up Patty?) in Athens, TX who is there helping her Mom who has hurt her hip. There family could sure use some extra prayers!! They’ve had a rough go of it the last couple of years and have just made lemonade from a bunch of lemons with it all. They don’t seem to be able to catch a break.

I could type for days since I’m bored on the road. Both kids are watching movies on portable DVD players. I wish they had those when I was a kid. I’ll update later. I’m gonna try to get Jeff off the phone. I’m pretty sure he’s been on it for the last 3 hours straight. (It’s a personal mission.)

Peace,
Kacy

P.S. We made it and after MANY technical difficulties I am able to get this done. We are heading out the door for Six Flags. ROCK OUT!

Memorial Day 2009

Happy Memorial Day!!!

It's 11:16 and this bodacious bod of mine is pooped!! Thanks to the drug habit I'm forming, my mind is still more than willing to keep going. Constant struggle!!

The camera battery died tonight which would not be a big deal if I hadn't done such a great job of hiding my card reader from myself. (I refuse to say I lost it.) I just misplaced it really well. I have lots of new pictures of all of today's festivities and all of the stuff I've been making. I even made myself some new jammies which I have on tonight. LOVE NEW JAMMIES.

I think I've done 18 loads of laundry in the past two days. I got all of those toilets cleaned and even mopped the downstairs!! But now my fridge smells like a baby diaper. I couldn't even handle that tonight. Maybe I'll get around to figuring it out tomorrow. HA. Unless, I forget. I decided today that all of those weight lifting people aren't really dumb. They just seem that way because of all the roids they do. This stuff is just plain crazy.

And, note to Jeff, if you are reading....I know we've been married a long time and all, but telling me you "Need to ride the donkey" just doesn't do anything for me. Is romance really dead? Come on, babe. Try a little harder than that.

Peace,
Kacy

Big Girl Panties

I am searching for my big girl panties! I desperately need to put them on. Roids are trying to take over and I'm getting tired of fighting them. HA. Today (and yesterday) has just been one of those. Ya know? You know you are not in a good mood and no matter what you do to try to turn it around, it doesn't work!! I think I'm gonna see if a little sitting outside with a large glass of Sangria might cure my ailment! Shopping didn't even help! You know that's a bad sign. My lovely Jeffie Poo is stuck in the past and insists on having a new pair of Birkenstocks. First of all, he WON'T go shopping with me nor will he take care of this himself. One might ask, if that's the case, why do I even care? That would be because he is wearing a pair of gray flip flops from dollar general that the dogs have chewed on and they honestly don't seem to bother him. He wears them with everything. I have brought home every pair of flip flops in the county in various fabrics, leathers and plaids and he won't have them. SO, after an exhausting day of shopping and getting nowhere, I'm going to look online and see what I can come up with.

Yesterday, I got run over by the golf cart in the garage. Jeff put water in the batteries???? I don't know why one might do such a thing and apparently it wasn't a smart thing to do. I walked out the door into the garage (which I NEVER go that way) and the golf cart just took off into me. There wasn't even anyone on it. It pinned me between the bumper and the trash cans and slammed us all into the back wall of the garage and took a big chunk of sheetrock out. It could have been much worse. I lost some skin on both feet and heels (those damn flip flops). The tires were just spinning and one of the neighbor kids ran over and hit the brake on it. A few tears later, I had a beer. Today, I feel more like a pickup truck hit me than the golf cart.

My house is silent at the moment. SOMETIMES, that's a good thing!!! The kids and Jeff have gone fishing. I'm trying to talk myself into getting up and cleaning this house. That talk is not going real well right now. I have laundry the size of Mt. Everest that has to get done by the end of the weekend and we are having people over Monday for the holiday. See why I need my Big Girl Panties.....

Wednesday, we are heading to Dallas. We are gonna spend a couple of days there and go to Six Flags. Then we are heading to Canton. I can't wait!!!

UGGGHHH, I have passed into the next phase of life. I bought a ONE piece bathing suit!! This poor bod!! It has seen some better days. I tried on bathing suits for hours and it just wasn't going to work so I bit the bullet and went with the all black with some very forgiving ruching (spell check doesn't like that word)!! I LOVE IT. Now, I don't have to worry if my gut is hanging out! As of yesterday, I'm back on high dose Prednisone. My joints are in rough shape. It works out just in time for me to bloat up really big right before Jeff's 20 year reunion! What Fun!!! (I hope you can read sarcasm) His reunion is in two or three weeks.

I am going in Tuesday for a TB skin test and we are going to start some of the "biologics". Enbrel is what we are looking at. The doctors office has to get approval from the insurance company first. That is one of the drugs on their "preferred" list, so we'll see how that goes.

The kids are having a blast already being out of school. My house is like Grand Central. They are already soooo tan. They are in and out of the pool constantly. Several times, I'll walk out there and there are just kids in the pool. Not mine. Just kids. We haven't heard from the GF anymore. Whew, that one was a little fast for me.

I'm off to the land of toilet brushes. 6 bathrooms is overkill!

Peace,
Kacy

Hey ya'll!! What's Up? This is Hank Bocephus Hamilton. He is my cousin and he is spending the night with us tonight. His sister had her ears cropped earlier today and by tonight had already managed to pull three staples out, SO, brother dog had to go stay with the relatives. Isn't he a cutie?

Well, I made it to work Monday this week, but I took Tuesday off. HA. Not because I felt bad, but because I felt GREAT. This is SO awesome. I worked outside ALL day. Let me show you a little of what I have been up to all weekend.

This is the gorgeous furniture that was handed down to us two years ago when we moved in here. It's on the back patio which is covered but gets lots of sun in the late afternoon. AND the back patio has flooded twice when the pool has overflowed during flash flooding. ANYWAY, I didn't like the look of it when it was given to us, but who in there right mind would ever turn down FREE. The first year, it was still in good shape and it was nice to just have something. Last year, it was getting on my nerves, but I was still painting the house. This year something had to be done.

This is the flowerbed and fire pit that got bricked in at the end of the summer last year. We were actually out of town when this went down, but I love it. I never got around to doing anything with it and then the grass took over.

I changed some stuff up and added some color for a little flava!! I have blue and green umbrellas which were my inspiration for this whole thing. I painted all my pots and planted lots of flowers for out around the pool.

We got all of that grass killed out of that flower bed and they are bringing a load of dirt tomorrow. I'll go to planting overtime this weekend. I want a large metal? cross to go on that back wall between the windows. I've been looking for something for two years and haven't found a thing. That's a really large space and it just needs something. I'm going to try to close it in a bit with some landscaping.

These are my chairs that we had to dig out of the bottom of the pool after the last storm. I bought some fabric that I thought would work on these chairs, but I didn't get enough, SO, I've still got to do these, but at least they are out of the pool and I added a little potted pleasure.

These chairs have also seen a better day, but they will make it one more year without an intervention.
I'm looking forward to this one blooming!! Love it (but NOT my favorite, I'm saving the best for last)!!!!
More chairs that hit bottom!! Need more fabric.....We'll get there.
Hank is just too cute! Jeffrey's not too bad, either.

If it was sitting still today, I put a plant in it. Somehow this one got hung on a shepherd's hook. It'll get moved. I painted and moved a bird bath around to the front today out of this bed, too. I didn't even venture out front with the camera. We had a rose fest out there. That's another day.

AND THE BEST FOR LAST...

LOVE LOVE LOVE THIS ONE!!

PEACE. ROCK OUT.

kacy