Would you like to swing on a star

So this morning I went and picked up the Little Tikes Swing & Slide that I bought from someone off Craigslist. You can see from the pictures, Rachel REALLY likes it!

We waited until I got up from my 2nd nap (don't ask... it was NOT a good sleeping Saturday like I'd hoped) and we set it up in the Livingroom for now. I am going to get rubber mats to put under it and then it will go out on the lanai, but until then, I would rather she get used to it with carpet under her tush!

After having quite a bit of fun on her new swing & slide, it was time to go to dinner. We hit our favorite Chinese Buffet. This time, Rachel had her first real good experience with a cream puff!

I now discovered just how hard it is to get a child to sit still while you try to get cream out of her nose! Boy, she sure got into that cream puff! After a while, she figured out that she could scoop the cream out with just her finger, so that's how she finished it off. Then after every possible bit of cream was gone, she tried to get me to eat the little bit of shell that was left. Of course after I said no thanks, she proceeded to finish that off too!

And of course, after all that yummy food and fun, it was definitely time for a nice long bath! I can't figure this kid out sometimes... she LOVES taking a bath. If you ask if she wants one, she goes running to the bathroom door yelling Bath Bath Bath over and over... and she loves getting wet... splashes herself (and most of the room), plays with her toys (as you can see, there are a gazillion of them in the tub with her... but actually, most of them are the letters of the alphabet and numbers that can stick to the wall when wet), and giggles and grins the whole time. BUT...

when it comes to washing her hair, you would think we were setting her on fire! Its not the shampooing either... its the rinse cycle that gets her... I tried getting her to put her head back.. yeah, right! I've tried filling a plastic bowl and pouring it over her slowly... oh HELL no... the screaming will cut thru ya... and worst of all is when I use the handheld shower head on a light mist! I'm telling you, the neighbors must think we are torturing this kid! and it's only when the water is hitting her head! She LOVES having the shower sprayer on her hands, even under her chin! JUST DON'T GET THE HAIR WET!!!

Death is Not The End

I've been really bad about playing catch up on the blog this week. I missed posting about Father's Day, which was nice. Rachel bought her daddy a really cool DVD, which will be great since she has special daddy time when they sit and listen to all kinds of music.
We went out to dinner at what USED to be one of our favorite restaurants. Unfortunately, inflation has gotten to them too... little things, like they no longer give you the WHOLE potato, just a half... and obviously they are cutting back on the portions, etc. The taste was still good, just real disappointed in the changes.
Anyway, we also bid farewell to some icons this week. We lost Ed McMahon a few days ago (before he had a chance to deliver that BIG Publishers Clearning House check to my door!!!). And on Thursday Farrah Fawcett lost her battle with cancer. Such a shame. I guess the big shocker of course, was the death of Michael Jackson. That one was unexpected. The media coverage for him has been INSANE. I really felt bad because Farrah died just a short time before MJ, and her death was almost brushed under the rug for all the hoopla about Jackson. Well, may they all rest in peace.
This morning I will be picking up a Little Tykes Swing & Slide that I found on Craigslist. It's not the big swing set I was hoping to get for the little princess, but it will sure do until she's older and will appreciate the big setup more! I'll post pictures later of the unveiling of the swing!

A Change Would Do You Good

We finally did it. Today was the day we brought Fred to his new home... and guess what we found out... Fred is NOT a Fred at all, but a Freda!!! Yup.... after all these years, come to find out that he is really a SHE!!! Go figure!


Anyway, my friend Rita & her grandson Nick came along with Rachel & I to bring Freddie to HER new home. She seemed a little pensive, but eventually she "took the plunge" and meandered into the water. After being stuck in such a small area for so long, she really didn't know what to make of all the space.. but she figured out pretty quickly that she had all the room in the world now, and off she went. She did keep an eye on us the whole time we were there.


It was a little sad to let her go, but I know she will be SO much better off...

After we came back, Nick & Rachel had some fun in the pool. She really adores playing with Nicky. And he is terrific with her. She insisted on having him carry her when we were walking around the Nature park, and he did it without complaining, even though it was nearly 100 degrees out and we were all drenched in sweat! He is SUCH a sweetie...

Nature's Way

We've been working on the plans for the big "Hunan Spicy Girls" reunion coming up in September. One of the things we are doing is we are all going to the Shell Factory to see the animal exhibit.. it's going to be so much fun. Well yesterday I decided to go over there to ask if they would give us a group rate.. cuz we are sure gonna be a group! While I was there, I talked to them about taking Fred in. I showed them his picture and the jaws all dropped. They could not believe how big he is! Well, they are absolutely THRILLED about getting him. Tomorrow I will bring our little buddy over there and they are going to keep him in the aviary. There are several other turtles there just like Fred, only MUCH smaller... he will be king of the hill! Although they DO have several land tortoises that are bigger... and... uh... mature? Here is what we got to witness while we were there...

After we got done at the Shell Factory, we headed over to mom's for Sunday dinner. Had some fun in the pool too... Check out Rachel's stylin outfit for the ride over to her Nana's!

Mom & Dad's friends Linda & Tony were there too... and as usual, the little princess was the star of the show!

By the time we left there, she was totally exhausted... as usual, she fell asleep in the car, but this time, she actually stayed asleep after we got her out... I never realized how hard it would be to put pajamas on a 27 lb Rag Doll!

We were pretty wiped out too... I was in bed by 11:30pm... unfortunately, I woke up around 4am with the most horrendous case of heartburn. It was so bad, I started getting sick. And of course, Rachel ended up waking up at 5 am, so I went in to her to rock her back to sleep... then back up at 6am with my stomach acting up again... hoping we dont have a repeat performance tonite.

I've spent most of the day today trying to get my stupid printer to work again. I don't know what happened, but all of a sudden, it wont print. It's on, and I'm not getting any error messages, but it just wont print! Totally frustrated.. might have to quit and try again tomorrow...

Today I also got a call from the insurance adjuster. Over memorial day weekend, my car was hit in the parking lot of 7-11. I watched it happen and called the police. They came and took a report. Long story short, today was the first time I heard from anyone about it. So, this guy tells me that he has not been able to get a hold of the other driver. They set up my scheduled appointment for someone to come do the estimate, but they can't pay me till they get in touch with the other driver... WHAT???? well because the police report is more like just an owners exchange, and there is nothing in the narrative that says he was at fault for sure, they need to talk to him! I DON'T THINK SO!!! I'm going to call my agent to throw a small hysterical fit.

So that's how MY weekend has gone so far...

How Do You Sleep

Well, it was another sleepless day. We haven't had anything very exciting going on lately, which I guess is a GOOD thing! We have been on pins & needles with Tommy's job... like every other industry, his place is having some problems, so they have instituted mandatory days off. He was supposed to be off tomorrow (Friday) this week and will be off Thursday & Friday next week... We caught a bit of a break because today they asked him to come in after all tomorrow because they got in a hot job that needs to get out right away. Considering the fact that he would be using up all the remaining sick / vacation days, we were relieved that they want him in tomorrow. It's gonna be a pathetic pay check for him this month anyway, but at least it will be 1 day less painful! We have to wait and see how things go the rest of this month and July is probably going to be just as bad.

So I opted to work a little OT to try to offset losing money from his check. I hate having to give up my days off, but unless we hit the lotto, we will be in really bad shape otherwise!
Ok, enough of the depressing stuff... here are some random pics of the little princess. There are even a couple from Memorial Day that my friend Nicole took. I just got them, so decided to post them here.

Rachel & her Best Bud Penny...
I can never seem to get a good picture of the both of them together... at least one of them always has a goofy face!

This will give you a good idea just how BIG Fred has gotten!

and yes, I am planning on going to the Shell Factory on Sunday to see if they would be willing to take him in... he really needs to be around friends!

These are from Memorial Day...

Rachel & her pal Alexis...Lexi can't wait to babysit this summer when she is out of school...

The party was just about over for the little princess... she was SO tired by this picture!

Together Again

It's pretty cool having my folks living so close... they get to see Rachel pretty often. Yesterday, they had a bunch of Dr appointments so when they got done, they called to see if they could stop by for a quick visit. They stayed for a little while (left just before the daily deluge of rain) and helped with feeding the little princess. We are trying to get her to feed herself with utensils, but that all goes out the window then Nana is here and wants to feed her! LOL... so here are a few pics from the visit...

getting silly playing with Nana & Penny... she can balance that block on her head for quite a while! LOL...

Those Lazy Hazy Crazy Days Of Summer

June is upon us... and so the start of Hurricane Season has officially kicked off. Nothing brewing at the moment, but naturally we are fully engulfed in our daily rain storms. This is typical of the season. It looks like this year the storms are around 3pm or so... although I haven't been tracking them as close as in earlier years.. I'll try to get a better look at them over the next week or so..
That being said, after today's little deluge Rachel discovered the joy of puddles! We went out on the lanai and there were great big puddles for her to jump around in... and jump she did... so hard at one point that she splashed her shirt!
She also spent today rediscovering a present she got from Tom's cousins for Christmas... a really cute baby doll. The past few days I'd seen her trying to carry her Elmo Live doll around, patting it on the back, hugs & kisses, etc... but Elmo Live is not meant to be schlepped around! He has too many mechanical parts that might break! So I pulled out the doll again to see if she would take interest... and she sure did...
She spent the day carrying around her baby, hugging it, kissing it, and finally sitting on the floor with the dog on one side and dolly in her lap and she was reading to them both... it was beyond cute. I wanted to get pictures, but NATURALLY... the moment I went for the camera, they were done... oh well.. next time!
OH... and Penny has become a total whimp about thunder! She has always hated loud noises, but was ok around summer time with all the storms.. not today. Today when the rains came, she began shaking and actually jumped in my lap like a quivering chihuahua... a little uncomfortable, considering she's weighing in around 65 lbs or so... we might have to get her some doggie downers for the 4th of july if this is how she's gonna act.