Happy Halloween!

I hope everyone out there in bloggerville has a great halloween! Today is a very fun day at school, but also incredibly exhausting. As you can imagine, my little darlings are oh so excited for our party this afternoon. They're already pretty pumped full of sugar, and then it will just get worse as the day goes on. I've gotta keep my little song and dance pretty entertaining if I want them to learn/do anything productive this morning.

In other news...
1. T is now home from South Dakota - hooray! :)
2. We got our new mattress on Thursday and we LOVE IT. No more sinking to the center, no lumps, just pure bliss. It is now even more difficult to drag my butt out of bed in the morning! My side is plush and T's side is firm, we had no idea a mattress could be made like that. Fab-u-lous.
3. Visited with old friends over the weekend and did quite a bit of shopping. Christmas is almost done! At mall #2, I had to buy a new pair of shoes because I just could not walk another step in mine.
4. I have shows coming up this weekend! It's our annual Music Revue. Come see it, it will be pretty good! I sing a solo - all by myself! hee hee... and a duet with Ben. We kick ass. Check out www.ioniacommunitytheatre.org for more info.
5. Finally booked tickets for spring break.
6. The countdown to Christmas break can now begin, and tomorrow is when I officially break out the Christmas cds.
7. Saw a production of Little Shop of Horrors on Friday, it kinda makes me want to do that show (we are putting it on next fall). Even though I have sworn off doing any more musicals for the time factor. I dunno, I have a year to make up my mind. I'll see how our "Suddenly Seymour" is received and go from there, I guess.
8. We're going to see the MSU men's basketball team kick some GVSU laker butt at Van Andel. Thank goodness football agony is almost over. Basketball will redeem us (we hope)!!!

I'll try to post a pic of my two chocolate babies in their halloween gear tomorrow! Happy tricks and treats everybody! :)

Par-tay!

Saturday was Melinda and Virlena's super duper Halloween party. As always, it was a fabulous time. The best part- I got to partake in the tequilla/jello shots because Ben was driving! Hooray for Ben!! :) Wonderful fun was had by all - here are a few of the pics...

This and That

Here's the pic that I tried and tried to upload a few days ago. Technology is weird. Some days I feel like I'm in complete control of the devices I use, and some days I feel so incredibly lost. Anyway, here are my boys, all decked out and finished hunting. These were the first green heads that were shot behind our house - very exciting! :) Too bad, we already have a lovely stuffed duck that T shot in N. Dakota in our living room (his name is Chuck - Chuck the Duck), or else T would probably have gotten this one done. Taxidermy is something that I vastly do not understand. But that's a topic for another post.

In exciting news, this weekend is M's World Famous Halloween party! :) Fun fun fun!! :) This year, I'm actually dressing up and my costume is kick-ass!! T is hunting so my date will be Ben. Happy Sweetest Day, Sweet Tea! I'm going out with another guy!! Haha... j/k!!

Yesterday my mom and I went to have massages at the Aveda salon in Belding. It was veeeeeerrrrryyyyy nice. I have become a total aveda addict - I came home with 5 new bottles of crap to put on my hair and I've been enjoying the smell of them all day long. The stuff is not cheap, but I think it's my new guilty pleasure. Better than porn or drugs, I suppose.... :)

In sad news, a very special little dog died this week. M's canine sister, Mickey passed away on Wednesday. I have many fond memories of staying with her while M's parents were away on trips. Such as the time when I took her outside and she got all muddy - I didn't know where her doggy shampoo was to clean her up, so I used my Big Sexy Hair shampoo and conditioner on her in the kitchen sink. Big Sexy Mickey! When G & P first got her, I remember seeing the ferocious little darling in their van and she would get so worked up and excited she would poo in the van. Icky. Luckily, she grew out of that unpleasantness. She was a sweetheart and will be missed terribly. My grandpa thought she was just an awesome dog too - it helps me cope to know that the two of them are together somewhere playing and watching over us.

Have a swell weekend everybody!

Been Long Time

Sorry it's been so long since the last post, but it's been crazy. I don't have much of anything exciting to report about last weekend, but I do from the weekend before! :) It was my bday weekend. My parents and T and I went up to Clare to golf and spend the weekend. Here's some pics from our golfing adventure:



It was a gorgeous weekend. We also went to the outdoor shopping super-store, Jay's. Luckily they did have some pretty Brighton jewlery, but not enough to keep my interest for the entire time we were there. So my mom and I found some comfy chairs in the camping section.

It was also PUPPY DAY! All these people come to the parking lot and sell their hunting dog puppies out of their cars. It was the most adorable thing I have ever seen! Puppies puppies puppies!! There were two litters of Weimers - even some of the blue ones!! It was all I could do not to come home with one or a few. It didn't stop me from picking them all up and lovin on them a little. There's no way that we could have a puppy right now. Two grown up dogs is plenty at one time- I can't even imagine having three!! Smokey is already 8, and Tim tells me the life expectancy of big labs with hip issues is around 10. It's horrible to think about life without him, but it will happen someday. When that happens, then we'll think about a puppy. I can't see that we would ever go down to just one dog. When T goes on hunting trips and leaves me at home, I have to have to dog to protect me out in BFE where we live!! :) Not that anything ever happens, it's just a matter of company and security. Speaking of T and the dogs, here's a pic of all my handsome boys that I took this past weekend after T came back from duck hunting out in the field by our house. Now we have enough for a la orange! :) yum yum...okay the pic seems to not be cooperating, I'll try it again later...

Another Happy Birthday!

Happy birthday to Japan Kim! I think it's already a day later where she is, but it's still oct 10 for quite a while here in Michigan. Have a great day Kim-a-ree. :)

October 9 - a very important day!

I have 3 reasons to tell you about how important Monday, October 9th is.

First, it is Leif Erikson Day! :) For those of you in the blogging world who don't know why this is important to me, I am Norwegian and this is a very big day. Contrary to popular belief, Leif discovered America 500 years before Columbus. It makes me ill to celebrate Columbus Day. He was a murderous and icky man. Leif was a VIKING! :) And for the record, his name is pronouced "Life". For more fun info on him, check out http://www.mnc.net/norway/LeifErikson.htm.

Another reason October 9 is important is because it is the day the MEAP window opens. I teach 3rd grade, which is the first year that students are required to take the test. It sucks. A lot. It's a lot of pressure that 8 year olds just don't need. They don't know anything about it, yet they're scared out of their minds about it. They don't even get that it's the MEAP test - they call it the MEAT test. We've done a lot of prep for it - keep your fingers crossed for us! :)

Lastly, October 9 is a very important day because it's my bestest best friend Melinda's THIRTIETH BIRTHDAY!!!!! 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30!!! Happy happy bday Mimi!!

Numero 29

Tuesday I turn 29. The last of the 20s. Not a big deal, I guess. One of my students told me a looked 42 the other day, so age doesn't really matter. Another student told me a looked 17, so I suppose the happy medium I'm in is A-okay. :)

This weekend turned from a by-myself-with-the-dog weekend into a weekend of fun! Friday T left to go duck hunting up north with Remy. That night, my mom and I joined some other Ionia Community Theatre board members to go see The Full Monty at Circle in GR. It was even more hysterical that I remembered it being - and for those of you out there who have never seen the bway version and just the movie, the musical is WAY WAY WAY better. Saturday, my buddies from WMU came over from the east side of the state for a little get-together. I hadn't seen them all since my wedding, and unfortunately, I didn't really get to see or talk to them much that day. Although they were kind enough to help pick me up off the dance floor after I fell (actually tripped on my ripped bustle) while I was doing the infamous 'leg-dance'. In my defense, it was very difficult to do in a super heavy dress after I had finally had something to drink!! E & A have the MOST adorable daughter. The last time that I had seen her, I think that she was about a week old. Now she is three. She's changed a lot! :) All I can say, is they can bring her over any time!! Sweet sweet sweet! Per her request, all five of us did 'Ring Around the Rosie' in my driveway. Several times. Good thing I don't have many neighbors, otherwise they would probably think I was a part of some kind of cult.



Saturday night I got a very nice surprise, T came home early! Hooray! :) Not that I mind him going away, but I just like it better when he's home! Sunday was spent getting our pun'kins!! They're great. We're going to cut down some of the corn shocks from the field to put on the front porch too. The afternoon was spent in rehearsal for a music revue.