Browse Month: October 2005

Cheese!

The brother emailed this to me today. This is so typical of me and my brother together. Here’s an example…
Even when Johnny and I try to smile, my dad tries to prevent the “cheesy smile” by saying, “No teeth, OK?” Well, then it turns out like this…
I think showing teeth is good. Don’t you think?

Bananas are yucky.

This weekend was quiet and uneventful. Even the dog looked a little depressed or at least frustrated with all the inactivity. After a few days of having a cold, I managed to get in one last 6-mile run on Saturday morning and Koa got to run at the dog park today. Jesse made gnocchi and enough lasagna to last us a week and we had the neighbors over tonight for some drinks. Not much happened this weekend but it was a nice change after a month of birthday hoopla.
…
In other news…I have been defeated by the banana this week. Last weekend I bought a bunch of 4 small bananas and made a goal for myself to eat all four of them by Friday. Well, it’s Sunday and there are two left. I hate bananas. They make my throat and lips itchy. They’re mushy and have a strong scent that stays in the room for hours (especially if it’s in an open trash can). Jesse says they’re the “perfect food” because they have lots of vitamins and are especially beneficial to athletes. I’m not much of an athlete and I just think they suck. I have two more to go this week. Time to power through!!

I like work. Huh?

Last night was Back to School Night and I actually participated in it this year. I got my clinic all spiffied up and hung up the newly made pumpkin projects that my kids worked so hard on. As I was setting up, I realized that I’m actually enjoying my work this school year. Maybe it’s because it’s still only October. Maybe it’s because my kids are much cuter this year. I don’t really get it. All I know is that I’ve been staying until at least 5:00 each day (instead of leaving at 2 or 3) and I’m actually working! What makes me think I’m going crazy is that I’m sick today and totally bummed that I have to stay home! I even drove to work at 10:00 to pick up a binder so I could work on some stuff. What is going on over here?! Anyway, I was home sick today and felt like a total slug. I stayed in bed and watched Tivo all day. In fact, I watched a whole week’s worth of Days of Our Lives, which is getting rather exciting. *sigh* I hope I’m better by tomorrow.

What’s a bobbin again?

Last Friday I took out my sewing machine and spent about an hour just trying to figure out how to get it all set up again. I found myself scratching my head and talking to myself. It’s been about 4 years since I last used it so it took a while. Well, I finally got it set-up and along with PVC pipes and my neighbor’s pipe cutter, I was ready to go this afternoon. Wanna see what I made??
Back in September, I recruited Jesse and Jason to help me cut PVC pipes at Home Depot. Then I took them to work and figured out how to make room dividers. Once the frame was ready, it needed tweaking and cutting because the original frame was way too big…taller than me. The last step was the fabric…that took a little work. But I managed to figure out how to make a simple stitch and the project took off!! Here’s the room divider. Then I made a shelf curtain to hide cleaning products and storage items from the kids. I also used the left over pink fabric to make a little sink skirt to hide the ugly pipes and water heater that sits underneath it.
…
When I thought I was all done, I figured out how to use the remaining short pipes and connectors to make a ball rack. How cool is that?! Now I won’t have these stupid therapy balls wandering around the room. Ah…it’s fun creating stuff with your hands. I can’t wait to get back to work on some new projects! Don’t be surprised if you all get some handmade Christmas presents!!

Sunday with The Jangs

We had visitors this afternoon! Auntie Jeanie, cousins Hannah and Abby, and PoPo (Grandma) came over to hang out with us and celebrate both of our 30th birthdays. Jes and I also managed to wash both of our cars and PoPo even helped! Hannah had a fun time playing with Koa and I think Abby is feeling a little more at ease with having him around in the house. Jesse made some handmade gnocchi for dinner (it was yummy!) and the girls gave us handmade birthday cards (very cute!).

Has it been a year already?

Jonah, Linda’s little boy, turned 1 today and she threw a little shindig for him. Linda and Shaun came all the way out here from Illinois to celebrate with the family and friends. I can’t believe that it has been a whole year since we were in Chicago and drove to Rockford to visit little Jonah at the hospital the day after he was born. Now he’s a big boy with four teeth and crawling. It was also nice to see the old UCLA gang again.