For: Uncle Robert

Hey, Rob... Thought you might enjoy this picture. I took it at Newark Penn. We were walking from the station to the car and there was a row of police cars, and Andrew flipped out. He had to take a picture by each car. This is one of them!

More NYC Fun

A Little Hard Rock Never Killed Anyone.....

The boys and I headed into NYC for some family fun this weekend. We took Droops to the Toys R Us in Times Square. He and I rode the huge ferris wheel in the store. It was pretty fun. We got to wave to Tanner and Brady several times as we went around. Andrew had a blast and was not scared at all. That is one cool 3 year old. Everyone got something.

We had dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe and had a wonderful time. The food was great. We all pigged out on Brady's Ribs; he was not thrilled. My burger was to die for. The decor was awesome.

Headed over to the Billabong and the Element clothing store, where each got one thing. Boys each picked a t-shirt, I got new slip on vans.

It rained some, but never enough to soak us. We had a blast.

I LOVE Keith

This is such an amazing photo from my concert. Had to share.

A Little Keith...

Tuesday night I went to see Kaith Urban in concert at the Wachovia Arena in Wilkes-Barre PA. The tickets were a gift from my friends Aunt as a Thank you to me for taking care of my friend (Ruthi) during her recovery from an accident which resulted in a weeks hospital stay and hand surgery. I administered IV drugs for 5 weeks, 4x a day, and did all the driving to doctor appointments, and also drove her 2 kids around back and forth from summer camp, etc. It was such a nice gesture and the BEST Thank You gift ever. I had such a wonderful time. THANK YOU so much KATHY! You're the best :)

Michelle Branch and the Wreckers opened and they were really good. I've always like Michelle though. Have two of her cd's. Keith played for 2 full hours and the show was spectacular. He is gorgeous and dedicated one of his songs to his wife Nicole. He said, "I would not be here tonight if it wasn't for the love and support of my wife." It was so touching. He's had a rough go of things the last 10 months, but he much better now, looked great, and sounded amazing. He really can play a guitar and totally rocked it out several times. I was in heaven. The stage was amazing, we had great seats and he walked out into the crowd several times. It was a good time for sure.

Some Ketchup....

I took the boys to see The Simpsons Movie last week. I thought I was being brave by venturing to see it, since it was a movie I had NO desire to see. The boys really wanted to see it, so I said, okay, let's go. Boy was I pleasantly surprised. I LOVED IT. Laughed out loud most of the movie. It was very good.

Thursday the boys went to their dads for an early flight Friday morning into Chicago. Seems they all had a wonderful time. Ate out several times, went to the top of Sears Tower, caught a White Sox game, and a few museums. Andrew loved the airplane and train. It's all I've heard about. They got home Safely Monday morning.

Friday, during my no kid time, I started painting the basement. It went well. Slapped a coat on both brick walls, and started the 2nd coat. Will finish up this week, so it's ready for Mike to complete Monday. Pigged out on sushi Friday night for dinner.

I spent the entire weekend down the shore. It was such a glorious few days. Not humid; temperatures in low 8o's and breezy. The water was nice too. Spent some time in there as well. Got some good sun, and was able to relax a lot. It felt so good.

Tonight, as a gift, I have been invited to attend a Keith Urban concert somewhere in PA. Haven't been to a concert this summer yet, so I am excited. I like Keith. I think he is adorable, and he is married to a pretty classy lady, thatI happen to like a lot. Should be a good time. THX again Kathy. You are too sweet.

Boys going to Yankee game tonight with dad. Tanner is down the shore with a friend for a Billabong premier/launch of their new line called Trilogy. Boys hoping to go down and score free shirts, stickers, towels, etc. Tanner's friend's mom drove them.

Hope everyone is enjoying their summer. Only 11 more days to my CA trip. I am so excited to see family.

Basement Update

Mike came today to do more layers of spackle. He added the metal corner pieces around the closet today and then filled those in. Not much happening the next week or so as he goes to Colorado for a week, but he will be back to finish on the 17th; just in time for Beaners to arrive. YEA! Mostly just sanding and such. I will begin painting the brick this wknd, or I may wait until Brady returns from Chicago on Monday the 13th. All 3 boys going with their dad to see him run another marathon this weekend. Should be a fun time for them.

I Heard the Ocean Whisper...

What a gorgeous weekend we had here. Since Brady's B-day was canned due to weather and too many no shows because of family vacations, I decided last minute to load up the two youngest boys and one friend of Brady's, and we drove down the shore. Tanner stayed the night with a church friend, and had a ride to church, then lodged there another night. It is his home away from home.

We got to the ocean relatively easy; some traffic, but that was expected, so I just relaxed and made it through. As we got off the GSP for our beach exit, there were signs saying out spot was closed, too full, so we ventured further down and ended up finding a great little out of the way spot called Seven Presidents Beach. Such a beautiful place, nice ocean rock all over. Hardly anyone there too. Parking was a breeze.

Brady and his friend had a blast body surfing all day. Andrew and I played in the sand (built a castle, which he promptly stomped) the water, and I got some good sun and was able to relax for several hours (much needed) with my iPod. It was such a nice way to spend a day. We ended up staying much longer than planned. We eventually made it home by 9:00 p.m. A good time was had by all. No, Andrew has not had his right leg amputated :) Silly boy!

A Little Tape Holds it Together

It is a gorgeous day here today. Not humid, but warm. Kids are with their dad visiting with their Aunt and Uncle in from California. Tanner is is NYC today with a group of boys from church. They had a summer challenge and he was one of a few who completed it so they went into the city for some fun today. They are stopping by the temple for baptisms, then headed to ESPN Zone in Times Square, then a ride on the Staten Island Ferry, which goes right by the Statue of Liberty. It is such a gorgeous sight.

Mike returned today to tape and spackle my new walls and ceiling. In 3 hours he completed the whole room. He will return on Monday for more layers, 2-3 to be exact. After that, all that's left to do is paint the brick with a layer or two on Bondex (brick paint). Brady and I will tackle that ourselves.

Change is coming

For those of you, not yet in the know, my little sister Tina is moving from sunny California. Where is so moving you ask? She is moving to NJ to live with me. We have been talking and planning for months now, and she has come to the decision that it would be a good idea for her to start fresh in a new place. For those of you lucky enough to have come and visited me here, you know I have no spare room in my home, so I have decided to build a spare room in the basement for her. Nothing fancy by any means, just cornering off a small area (14x14). I called my friend Mike after deciding what I wanted to do, and he came over to help me. He told me what he thought about my ideas, measured and gave me a rough estimate. Being that he is a friend, I got a fair price and quite the labor discount. He went to Home Depot and bought all the lumber he needed to begin the framing, which he completed the first 3 hours he was here. It was very excitng to watch. Brady was mesmerized and was never upstairs for more than 5-10 minutes at a time. He was such a good helper. Mike came back the next day with the sheetrock and completed that today, except for a few places. He did that in 6 hours. Tomorrow he will come to tape.

Welcome to New Jersey... Now GO HOME!

I have been living here in NJ for 7 1/2 years now. I have seen a lot of beautiful places. My favorite thing to do in NJ is going "Down the Shore" as they say it here. It is just gorgeous, although any ocean is gorgeous in my opinion. We are surrounded everywhere by little rivers, huge resevoirs, and beautiful mother nature. Obviously we have 4 very distinct seasons here, which is kind of nice. Here are a few photos.