A Luke Quickie

The other day in the car as we drove home from eating dinner, Luke and Cindy were talking amongst themselves in the backseat.  At one point Cindy mentioned something about Polk County.  And then we heard Luke say, "I have never ever even BEEN to Polk County!!" and there was definite exasperation in his voice.  Of course Jacob and I chimed in to tell him that, of course he has been there, he was born there and he lives there!  Then Luke had a light bulb moment and said quietly, "Oh, I thought that Polk County was some sort of circus or something with rides and stuff."  Well, at least he had the circus part right!

For Chocolate And Treats

Monday afternoon we officially made good on our promise to buy Cindy an ice cream cone for passing the FCAT test at school.  

And then directly after that we mercilessly punished her for a solid two hours by taking her with us to see Star Trek Into Darkness.  Hopefully she will be guest blogging her official review of the movie this weekend  :)

Look Who Lifts So Much

Okay, Jacob.  Now you're just showing off.

A Luke Quickie

Last night we watched Pirates of the Caribbean with the kids.  We warned them ahead of time that there were going to be parts where they should close their eyes because some of the skeleton special effects might be a little too intense for them.  So as the movie progressed we would tell them to close their eyes and they would bury their faces into the sofa until we told them the coast was clear.  Towards the end of the movie, Luke buried his face into the sofa and then proceeded to fall asleep.  After the movie ended, I picked up his lifeless body and carried him to bed.  As I gently laid him down, he suddenly whispered really loud, "Mom, can I open my eyes now?"  I was so confused by this that it took me a minute to answer, "I guess so???" And then his eyes darted open, he stared at me really weird, and then he rolled over and went back to sleep.  In hindsight, I should have said no.  That was a huge risk.

Wedding Kiddie Quickies

Last night we were the DJs for a wedding reception.  Normally when we have an event where we are both needed, Jacob and I pawn off the kids to my parents. But since we are pawning them off tonight because we are DJing Mormon Prom, we brought the the kids along for slave labor. I mean, because we thought they would have a good time.  If you know the Cox family in our Stake then you know that they know how to throw a wedding reception.  It was held at the Mackay Gardens and Lakeside Preserve in Lake Alfred and it had it all- croquet, horseshoes, outside tented dining, lights, a killer buffet dinner, gorgeous flowers, amazing decor and a candy "bar" for guests to take home a bag of treats made just to their liking.  The kids were in heaven! Especially when their friends Ben and Nathan showed up :)

This was a crowd that LOVED to dance, so the party was going strong till almost 10:45.  I oversaw all of the dinner music and dance specials, and then Jacob took over at the end to get everyone moving.  At about 10:15 Luke had reached his limit.  He has no stamina for late nights and he began to get that glazed over look in his eyes and started asking for him to hold him.  Poor little guy!  I decided to take a walk with him outside to wake him up and escape the loud music for a little bit. As we walked to the front of the building, we were looking inside the front door watching everyone dance.  I was shocked by how long the party was going and I asked out loud (rhetorically) "Why is everyone STILL dancing?!"  And then Luke answered me saying, "I think it's because they like to have their ears hurting."  Dad does love his volume :)

Also, outside on the giant lawn behind the reception center was a gazebo. Cindy loves things like that and when she first saw it she immediately took off running to go scout it out.  Luke tagged along with her and I thought it was hilarious that for the rest of the night he kept calling it the "kazoo".

Finally, as you can imagine, the best part of the attending wedding receptions for Cindy is the possibility of taking home flowers at the end.  As the night wound down and people began to clean up, Cindy worked her magic and was able to snag a very lovely bouquet of flowers to bring home, including a very cool blue vase that Sister Cox gave her.  (Can I just admit that I want to be Tricia Cox when I grow up??)  Anyway, as late as it was by the time we finally made it home and ready for bed, Cindy had already made sure her flowers were safe and sound. We found this on the counter when we walked in from unloading all the equipment outside:

Don't worry, Junie B. We won't :)


Here also for you is a picture that Jacob took with his camera phone.  It basically shows you how excited Luke is about dancing.  He sat there by the dance floor for a while and completely stared down everyone that was out there, while wearing a look on his face that said, "I have no idea why we do this."  He was just there for the bread and butter.

Don't Take My Word For It

Last night was the closing team dinner for Jacob's U11 girls competitive soccer team with Lakeland FC.  He was showered with gift cards and appreciation and this card from the girls really made him smile :)

Hello Summer!

I guess I caught Cindy a little off guard when I asked her to come run around in the rain with me yesterday :)  Shocked might the right word, actually.  But if I ever wondered if there was someone up in heaven that loves me, the answer can be found in the fact that right when I was finishing day 8 of Insanity in my garage, a huge storm front came through, lowering the temperature a good 10 degrees and dumping tons of glorious rain everywhere.  And this is officially the only thing that is possibly good about afternoon workouts.

Kiddie Quickies

The other day we played a few games of UNO with the kids.  After we dealt the cards out for the fourth game, Luke looked at his cards and said with gusto (and a twinge of trash talking) "I am going to RULE WITH THESE CARDS!!"  And then it was his turn and we asked if he had any reds.  He looked at his hand and then said kinda quiet, "Awh, crap."  This is why Luke never trash talks.

Yesterday Cindy wanted to watch AFV, however our homemade TV antennae got knocked down by a child who shall remain nameless (Cindy) so we told her to just watch some episodes of AFV on Netflix.  This would temporarily spare us the project of putting the antennae back up.  She complained about having to watch old episodes, especially because last week on the show it said "that next time on "Versus" it was going to be Old Ladies Flapping Arm Skin versus Screaming Goats and I really wanted to see that!"  Silly rabbit, "next time" doesn't exist!

Straight Jacket Sold Separately

Now that I am a few days into the Insanity workout, I thought I would help Shaun T. come up with some catchy new slogans for his torture- I mean, fitness program.


TOP TEN ALTERNATIVE SLOGANS FOR INSANITY

10. Wanna see something that really hurts?
9.  Come for the cardio, stay for the vertigo
8.  Oh, it's gonna get a lot worse than that
7.  Don't pass up passing out
6.  All the fun of getting hit by a car without the expensive medical bills
5.  As seen at Gitmo!
4.  And you thought you were in pain yesterday!
3.  Well, what else are you going to post about on Facebook?
2.  When was the last time you had x-rays?
1.  It's squatterriffic!



Alright, alright, it's actually not THAT bad.  I will say that it is a dang good thing I already did P90x because I probably would have quit this on day 2 if not for already having experience with plyometric exercises.  Insanity is faster, requires no weights, is very intense and only lasts 60 days.  P90x is a lot more of a methodical, all-encompassing, total body system that is meant to take longer and really build muscle.  So far, even though I haven't been able to walk or sit without wincing for 5 days, it's been pretty good.  I feel a lot better than I did a week ago!  And all I gotta do is just push play six days a week.  Only 55 days to go...

My Official Review of Iron Man 3

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And so the Summer 2013 movie season has officially begun!  Although I am much more excited about a certain sci-fi sequel coming out this very weekend, Jacob and I did take the time on Saturday night to check out Iron Man 3.  You give me a penny, I will give you my thoughts.  Just make sure you send them to the Sweeneyville home box office in Burlington, Vermont.




Pros
1.  Lots of Robert Downey Jr.
2.  The return of Pepper Potts and the most perfect ponytail/bangs combo ever.  I hate bangs, but if I had hair like Pepper, I would wear them like a boss.
3.  The little boy in Tennessee was a great foil for Tony and stole the show there for a while.
4.  The burning and exploding robot people were good.
5.  Ben Kingsley was a surprise!
6.  "Blue" by Eiffel 65 during the opening credits indeed took me back to 1999 :)
7.  Got to see a preview for Thor 2, which almost makes me want to stay awake for all of Thor 1 someday.

Cons
1.  No Phil Coulson
2.  I'll be honest, the plot was all over the place in this one; the botanist from his past, Killian, PTSD for Tony, The Mandarin, Big Oil, fighting fiery robot veterans and spending quality time in Tennessee, The VP being a traitor, relationship trouble for Tony and Pepper- just too many targets.
3.  Guy Pearce's awful teeth.
4.  Guy Pearce's awful hair.  And I am still confused on how he was supposed to be more handsome compared to Tony Stark. Even for 5 minutes. Nope, no way, no how.  Not in this lifetime.  (Okay, okay, I have hated Guy Pearce ever since The Count of Monte Cristo and I can't get past it.  Happy?)
5.  44 Iron Man's? Really?
6.  No AC/DC.
7.  The longest oil barge fight scene in the history of fight scenes.  Can someone get a timer on that thing?
8.  Not enough of Pepper/Tony Stark relationship development.  That really should have been the focus of the movie.  Kind of like the whole Spiderman/Mary Jane superhero tortured love dynamic.
9.  JARVIS was getting a little mouthy.
10.  "The Mandarin" was not really Chinese nor did he eat a single little orange during the entire movie.
11.  Super confused by the ending.  Not sure where this going.

And there you have it!  Hopefully I didn't spoil it for you.  In sum, I definitely enjoyed the movie; no doubt that it was entertaining and had some very funny moments, but it just didn't quite meet my incredibly high Iron Man standards.  It missed the mark for trying too hard.

Well Looky What We Have Here

So it's me and this thing for the next 60 days.  I am in pain just looking at it.  Pray for me.

Happy Mother's Day

Boy, who knew that having a scanner would be so much fun!  Here is my mom as a high school senior.  I think I have her eyes.  Which is kind of mean; I should probably give them back.  Anyway, (cue the sentimental piano version of Wind Beneath My Wings) just wanted to once again pay tribute to my mom, who is an incredible lady. Of all the things about my mom that I like the most is the fact that she is a hard worker.  Whether it is her profession, her calling, being a mom, or being a friend, my mom is not afraid to work hard and give things her absolute best effort.  I hope I have inherited at least that one quality from her.  She is also optimistic, patient, funny, kind to cats, scared half to death by the simplest of sounds, and not afraid to use the word "fruity" to describe things she doesn't approve of.  Here's to you, Mom. You are my biggest fan :)

P.S. A big thank you to Sean for cleaning up this photo that got a little damaged over the years.  You are truly a photoshop wizard.

And now for something completely random....

There is a discount grocery store here in town that supports a local church ministry and all the proceeds help homeless people.  They sell pretty much everything from bread to bikes.  Most of the food is either dented or expired and all the other stuff is used or donated.  It is called...wait for it....."Wings of Eagles" and I absolutely love going in this place about every two weeks just to see what I can find.  I am completely addicted to the variety of strange and unusual things in there.  Yesterday was awesome because I found:  (drumroll please)   "Prune Butter" and "Squid Pieces in Ink Sauce."  I got both of them.  What? Did you miss the part where it helps the homeless?! Plus, I gotta be ready for all those Thanksgiving food drives this fall.



I got a text from my Dad this morning and the Tampa Bay Rays have just had their cool factor hit stratospheric proportions.  Hear ye, hear ye, September 21, 2013 is officially "Star Wars Night" at Tropicana Field.  It says you can dress up, so I guess I better get my Admiral Ackbar costume dry cleaned in the next few months.  AND, had I only known sooner, the Rays are having Star Trek Night TONIGHT!  Seriously, who is in charge of promotions over at the Trop?  They need a high five.  And five days shore leave on Risa.


I don't know about you, but I think Florida is home to some of the most bizarre news headlines around.  Found this one on the Tampa Tribune last night.  An instant classic.  We don't need no stinkin' K-9 unit! Release the gator!!!

Read the whole, hilarious story here

Finally, we had Mother's Day Tea in Luke's class yesterday.  All the kids were asked to fill out a questionnaire about their Moms.  Here was what Luke came up with:

I will take being 32 years old :) He failed to mention that those hot dogs are sometimes octopus shaped.  

And  I may be busy doing my hair, but this awesomeness isn't going to do itself, okay?

My sweet boy :)

Warning: Sanibel Picture Overload

Since my childrens' school does not participate in early release days, we always get two extra days off from school each year that no one else gets.  Nanner, nanner!  Last year we used it to go to Sanibel Island with my parents, and this year we did the same.  I already put some of these pictures on Facebook, but, Mom and Dad, these are for you!  Thanks for all you did.  It is a grand tradition I hope we keep for many years to come :)

We found a ton of shells again this year.  Here is a good shot of the "sand" at Sanibel.  The first thing I did when I got to the beach on Friday morning was get a shell sliver in my foot, which I had to dig out with a needle on Saturday morning.  That was a first!

Look at those monster waves!

Great shot, Mom!

Finally got my "name-in-the-sand" shot of Luke.

Giddyup, Grandpa!

There were actually quite a few dolphins out that morning that we were able to see pretty close to where we were.  Cindy was completely freaking out and kept saying it was the best day of her life!  Of course it was :)



I'll be honest, I had totally forgot about seagull punching until we got on the beach and Cindy was ready with her fists.  It always brings a smile to my face and reminds me of Brian and Kelly :)

Even Dad had some really nice punches.  And he landed a plane successfully as well.

See? I told you!

Taking a break

I took this picture of the backseat on the way to the beach on Friday morning.  I am completely confused by what is going on here.

Dog surfer!!!

Another excellent seagull punch!

I was bored and this is what I captured.

Mom's sandcastle. I give it a 9.5

A rare picture of Cindy smiling naturally

The shadows are in all the wrong places here, but I do love this picture.

Right when I was taking this picture my mom says (in her best Alabama accent): "Lieutenant Dan, Lieutenant Dan!"

Friday night we hit the Red Robin!  BONZAI Burger!!!

We took the kids mini golfing and they were overjoyed!

Cutest little cheater I ever did see.

This was a really nice golf course.  A little pricey, but you could tell those high prices cut down on the riff-raff and destruction.

I was taking this picture and at the exact moment I pushed the button, my mom hit her ball down the green and it got caught under the part of my sandal that was hanging over the edge of the brick on which I was standing.  It happens, right?  Well, this did happen right after we just gave Luke a giant lecture about being off the green because his club stopped one of Grandpa's balls from a nice ricochet.  Sorry, Mom. But I still creamed everyone anyway, so I didn't matter in the long run :)

Mr. Hole-in-One as we know him.  He got two of those bad boys and was pretty happy :)

I think I really need a duck door.  There were two very large white ducks that live in the golf course pond, so I am thinking that the old man that runs the place probably feeds them and they actually use that door to go inside to see him.  If I build it, they will come, right?

These were two of the signs on the course.  They actually had a bunch of funny and random things posted throughout.  I like their sense of humor.  One sign said, "If you had a good experience here, tell a friend.  If not, tell a foe."  Which I am thinking is my new motto for Sweeneyville....

Cinco de What?

And so another Star Wars week comes to a close in Sweeneyville.  Thanks for stopping by this week and tripling my blog visitor count :)  As for the actual day of May 4th, I was at the beach with my kids and my parents.  A nice wrap up of that is coming shortly, but in case you thought I didn't properly celebrate the actual day....



I flew a Star Wars kite:

My mom drew Jabba in the sand:

We all wore our shirts to play mini golf:

And today we had Star Wars dinner and watched Episode IV.  It was the standard fare of tauntaun guts, womp rat on a stick, light saber hot dogs, death star pizza and blue milk, but the kids eat it up. Literally!  And the best part is that today I found the epic dessert that I will be making next May 4th.  I am already excited!  Until next year, may the force be with you :)

Happy Star Wars Day :)  The force will be with you, always.



TOP TEN REJECTED PLOT LINES FOR THE NEXT STAR WARS MOVIE


10.  A team of highly skilled Jawas have seven days to overhaul the Milennium Falcon and surprise Han Solo with a souped up ship fit for a smuggler
9. Yoda struggles with his decision to have his ears pinned back
8.  Han and Leia have a son that really sucks at pool
7.  An in-depth look at Jabba's akward teenage years
6.  R2-D2 and C3PO try out to become the first droids to cheer for the Dallas Cowboys
5. Luke has an allergic reaction to shellfish and almost dies
4.  Lando Calrissian has moderate success when he releases an R&B album under the stage name The Mocha Cloud
3. Thousands of Stormtroopers revolt over reduced hours to save the Empire from participation in Obamacare
2. Chewy opens a SuperCuts on Endor
1.  Annakin travels back in time to kill Jar Jar Binks as an infant

Casual Friday

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It's a Top Ten!

Dennis Ackbar, circa 1930

Since I obviously have a crush on Admiral Ackbar, let's talk some more about him.  I did some research on this enigmatic mollusk and I'm dying to share a few things I found.    
Prepare your minds to be blown like a Death Star!

TOP TEN LESSER KNOWN FACTS ABOUT ADMIRAL ACKBAR

10.  Drove an 18-wheeler under the name 'Big Squiddy'

9.   Cries like a baby at the end of Beaches

8.  Paid his way through Rebel Cadet training by running the portrait studio at the Tatooine Wal-Mart

7.  His favorite color is light tan

6.  Never had his wisdom teeth come in

5.  Mother is half clam

4.  Sings mezzo soprano in the Rebel Alliance choir

3.  He cuts Mon Mothma's hair 

2.  Is allergic to the filling in cream horns

1.  Can't stand Ewoks