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Weekend Update

Weekends like this past weekend are why I stopped summarizing them online. Sometimes the necessary things we do on weekends, the unwinding, and the rainy day activities we do to amuse ourselves is fun, just not always the stuff of good storytelling.

For starters, William George was sick with a virus last week, one that caused a high fever but that led to no treatable, secondary infection. He proceeded to tell us he was "VERY sick," meaning there was no feasible way he could go to school. When he was feeling better on Friday and had been without fever for well over twenty-four hours, we readied him for school. "I'm VERY sick," was his response...spoken from his hiding place underneath the dining room table.

He finally agreed to go to school, and he was much better for it because he had developed a severe case of cabin fever.

Since my mom was getting ready to move out (She has been our "roomie" since last July, following her surgery.), we had some errands Friday, exciting things like purchasing a dishwasher, buying a microwave and just generally working through a checklist for things needed at her house. She packed her things, and got ready to depart.

#BooHoo

After that, I had a salon appointment, a rescheduling of the appointment I missed earlier due to George's illness (poor George). After my hair was resuscitated, I picked up the girls, and we came home for dinner and movie night.

Locals will know that it rained all weekend here, but not during the crucial hour of 10-11:00am Saturday morning, which is when the girls had softball practice in the mud. I thought about complaining to the coach, but then I remembered 1) Skip is the coach and fields numerous complaints from me daily and 2) the coaches do not make the schedule and/or the call to cancel for weather.

Skip rewarded the duo for the rainy day efforts with a trip to the doughnut shop.

While mud fest was occurring, William George and I worked on my closet. After the duo recovered from their muddy practice, they each nabbed a purse from one of my donate stacks, and that kept them busy for the afternoon. That's the power of a good bag.

Five of twelve bags of clothing/accessories that have been donated. 

On Sunday, we went to church, and then spent the rainy day doing various jobs around the house. We also made home made pizza to liven things up a little. (I've been using Bobby Flay's crust recipe, and Skip has declared our crust effort "perfect".) Skip got ready to go to Minnesota and inquired about the need for a jacket. When a quick check of the weather confirmed snow, he was ready to declare himself "very sick". Actually, he was ready to go; I would have lobbied for a "very sick" day.

For the rest of the week, I will be performing various tricks designed to distract the trio from their beloved Grammie's absence, while pointing out that we will still see her all the time.

Enumerated Update

"Do I look like a senior?"

"And do I?"

We have been busy ushering in spring (moment of silence, please, for winter and its wonderful accoutrements), making the update late. Here is our situation.

1) For the Win: I cleaned the playroom and organized (read: eliminated) all of the downstairs toys last week. The "Hallelujah Chorus" is playing in my head as I type this.

This week I took an initial run at my closet. Unfortunately, I chose a week when Skip was in town and took quite a bit of grief about the quantity of items contained within. My rebuttal to any charges about excess is that the closet is simply too small.

2) House of Cards: We have been taken with this show since the very first season. However, season three was disappointing. This analysis of the show puts it best. Otherwise, the best thing about season three? Doug Stamper's apartment.

3) Sonnet James: My warmer weather wardrobe consists mostly of casual dresses. Last year's availability of t-shirt dresses at various price points (my faves were from Gap and Target) were perfect additions to a casual wardrobe. Sonnet James nails this look perfectly, and one of their dresses may make its way on my Mother's Day wish list.

4) Internet Negativity: I'm always baffled by online negativity. Design Sponge did an excellent job of dissecting negativity, the false notion of perfection, and encouraging us all to chill out when we see perfectly styled images online.

5) Chasing Yesterday: Noel Gallagher, formerly of Oasis (a favorite of mine), released an album earlier this month, and we have had it on heavy rotation. We would give it 3/5 stars, in comparison to his other work, but a little of the Oasis sound is 5/5 when compared to other available music. Also, there's always the promotional interview for our amusement (language caution).

Have a wonderful weekend.

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Weekend Update

Happy Tuesday, friends!

Tuesday arrives in jarring fashion this week after the duo had half a day out of school Thursday and the whole day off Friday. Thursday morning, the duo's second grade class presented a "Living Museum to the school (more to come). Grace and Lauren portrayed Eleanor Roosevelt and Susan B. Anthony. As visitors walked through the school gym, the famous Americans, presented by some talented second graders, stood and recited a few paragraphs about their assigned character, explaining what made s/he famous. They must have recited their speeches 30+ times throughout the morning. After the program, the duo were wiped out and probably would have taken a very unusual nap that afternoon.

Instead, we had invited some friends over earlier in the week. We tried not to think about how quiet our home would have been with them all sacked out. They ended up watching the new Annie, and then leaving for softball practice as soon as the movie ended. After softball practice, we watched Skip play a couple of basketball games on our church's team. Here is where I would need about 10,000 words to describe the games. The first team they played had this peculiar player who kept throwing himself into Skip at full speed. Watching from the stands, I was struck by two thoughts. First, it looked as if he were combining ultimate fighting with basketball, and second, I felt like I was watching Napoleon Dynamite play. He just kept fouling and hitting Skip over and over again, while the referees did nothing. Finally, after several warnings (from Skip) and cautions to both the player and the referees, Skip (who is a good bit larger than the other player), planted his feet solidly when the guy ran into him. Not surprisingly, the player flew backward and his glasses flew off in one direction, while his shoes flew off in another. They were kind of separated after that. We later learned that the guy is a wrestler so that explained his unusual basketball style. The second game involved a punch to the head, for which a technical foul was called, along with an admonishment that the player would be thrown out of the game if it happened again. This was Skip's first year to play basketball in this league, and we are fully noting that it bears little resemblance to the softball league, with which he has more experience.

In a nutshell, men should watch less ultimate fighting nonsense and more March Madness.

On Friday, the trio spent the day and night with Gran and Poppa, and Skip took half a day off. We had a late lunch, ran errands, shopped and later watched Gone Girl. Have you seen it? It is quite good, but the book is better, per usual.

We had a very lazy Saturday with our only commitment being a friend's birthday party in the afternoon. We enjoyed church Sunday, and then spent the afternoon outside. Spring is making it much easier to say goodbye to winter.

How was your weekend?

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Globophobia

Pixie is working on conquering her globophobia:


 
Pixie and the Balloon from Cathi Lindsey on Vimeo.

Mad Men

Skip and I tend to hibernate in the winter months, and we usually spend that time catching up on movies, although the last couple of years have been a little lacking in the movie department. Instead, last year we caught up on Downton Abbey and watched House of Cards. This year, after hearing a few interviews with Matthew Weiner, we caught up on Mad Men. We blazed through all the past seasons (they're on Netflix) and are eagerly awaiting the remaining episodes of the final season. I'm hoping for a redemptive conclusion, coupled with some vengeance, but this poster and Weiner's analysis of it does not point to that sort of denouement.


Will you be watching? Are you pulling for Don to come out on top, or do you think he is reaping what he has sown?

Apple Watch

So, of course, when we were at the Apple store Sunday, Skip kept asking our Genius if there were watches in the back already.

We are debating the success of the watch.  I think the product will be successful, whereas Skip has his doubts. Either way, a lot is riding on their success, with those on board with the product predicting it will make Apple a trillion dollar company.  My response to that is that the bar is probably set too high.

See the keynote here, and window shop the gallery here.

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Pixie is quite possibly the sweetest pet ever. She doesn't bat an eye when William George carries her around, calling her a "sack o' taters".

Weekend Update

This past weekend was a nice mix of work and play. We worked Saturday morning - Skip washed both cars, and I cleaned/purged/organized the hall closet. Lauren, Grace and William George cleaned their rooms and the play rooms. After a nice morning of play, we had lunch, and then the girls worked on their softball skills. And then they rode bicycles and played in the yard and just really enjoyed being in the sunshine. Even Pixie had two friends over, a grouchy little dog we started calling "Mr. Roper" and a sweetheart of a dog who was left to play the role of Helen Roper.

 After church Sunday, the trio went to Gran and Poppa's, and they were treated to this really cool basketball game/contraption. I think they shot baskets all afternoon. Skip and I ate lunch at Flip Burger Boutique and then stopped by the Apple store. Regretfully, I have to relay that our original iPad - the iPad I, if you will, is having difficulty managing apps and web browsing. It's original chip is just overloaded. This has been something of a double blow because the original iPhone we have from 2007 has finally zonked out, too. The iPad I continues to work great as a reader, and videos can be viewed on it. For the latter reason, it will get a new life in the hands of William George. With five years of heavy use, we feel like we got our money's worth. But that left us with an iPad to purchase - an iPad for my use. I mention that because while I have no trouble parting with money for the children or for Skip, it's very painful to hand over money for one's self. In fact, after the experience (which I had been dreading), Skip said, "You were SO flushed during the exchange." Yes, that is probably true... because I do not like handing over money. When the pain subsides, I'm sure I will enjoy the significant move to the Air 2 (or iPad 6) and all of the improved functionality that will bring.

 After that painful experience, we picked up the trio, and took the girls to Claire's. They received a gift card from a male classmate (who obviously knows how to shop) for their birthday, and they just remembered that it was still stashed away for safe keeping. So off to Claire's we went for a little shopping excursion. They settled on decorative glasses, because they are fascinated with smart eye wear.

While we were getting everything ready for school on Monday (by the way, the newly organized closet makes for a wonderful staging area for backpacks, jackets, etc. So... let me see if I've got this down... when I clean things out... they are much more functional. Huh! Who knew?) the duo got wind of the fact that a neighboring school system was not having school. We had to talk them down from the ledge and explain that their days off are at the end of this week instead. 

Reluctantly, they started the week in full gear. 

Have a wonderful week.  

Enumerated Update

Happy Friday, friends! We have enjoyed another week with snow days due to freezing rain and icy road conditions, and to say that the trio are stir crazy would be a tremendous understatement. Basically, I am out of tricks. We are looking forward to a warmer weekend that will likely involve lots of playground time. Otherwise, here is our situation:

1) An Unpopular Stance: Lately I am hearing all sorts of grumbling about the cold and much longing for spring. I have no quarrel with spring... what's not to like? Flowers, green grass, the return of leaves on trees... those are good things, of course. We are looking forward to a change. Easter dresses have been purchased, and I have been thinking about readying our closets for warmer weather. All good things.

Notwithstanding the above issues with weather days, I really like winter.  It's true! I have loved February, bundling up and enjoying the fullest part of winter. Sure, I would have preferred more snow and less rain, but it is what it is.  For those residing beyond the south, please remember that our winters are verrry mild, and we have exceptionally blue skies when temperatures drop. Skip's company's headquarters are in Minneapolis, and he travels there frequently. I'm not sure I could get on board with that much winter, but ours is delightful.

2)  Snow Art: Speaking of winter, I fully recognize that frigid temperatures and grey skies would not be optimal, but I like this idea for brightening up winter.

3) New York City: Find out where you should live based on your Myers-Briggs personality type. Since Skip and I are both INTJ's, we should be packing for NYC tonight. (Unsure of your personality type? Take an abbreviated version of the test here.)

Also, did I ever mention the time when Lauren was downstairs organizing a contest for George and Grace? It was a year or so ago, and she asked if a trip to NYC would be a good prize for the winner. We told her that yes, it would, but that we could not go to New York City at this time, that all three of them are too little to navigate city life easily. Also, a major trip would be overboard as a prize for winning her contest and to pick something else.

Ten minutes later, we heard cheering and squealing upstairs, and then we heard Grace and George come running down the stairs excitedly saying, "We wanna go! We wanna go to New York!!!! When are we leaving?! Can we pack NOW??!!"  Needless to say, Lauren was not very popular with them, once everything had been explained.

4) Organization: I am on Week Nine of my organization overhaul and household item purge. It is freeing, and I cannot recommend it enough. I have completed the kitchen, laundry room, pantry(ies), bathrooms, master bedroom, family room, sitting room, hall closet, and I am currently tackling the playroom and our explosive toy situation. The area that will pose the biggest challenge is... my closet. Dun-dun-DUN! Friends, it's so bad. That area is a few more weeks away, but I have been looking forward to it since Week One and have been storing away ideas for how to slay the dragon. This is one of my recent favorites.

5) Buzz Words: As someone who frequently falls in love with certain words, I tend to pay special attention to language. I've mentioned before that business buzz words were always fascinating to me, and then parodies of business buzz words are always fun, too. Skip shared one with me last week:

Wealth Prevention

So apparently one of his friends refers to his wife as "Wealth Prevention," as in:

"So... are you guys going to the beach for spring break?"
"Yeah... I don't know... I'm gonna  have to check with Wealth Prevention on that and get back with you." 

I had to concede it was funny, although I did point out that the vast majority of food/clothing/household purchasing is managed by women, and therefore, there was an inherent unfairness to the joke.

This post has lapsed over to Saturday, and I am currently listening to the trio play in the playroom (with those wretched toys!). We are heading outside to enjoy the sunshine and ride bikes. I hope you're having a wonderful weekend as well.

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Courtside

We have moved on to softball from basketball, but before we get into the thick of softball season, I wanted to finish up a few more basketball pics. 

Blackberry Passport

Our contracts recently expired, and that event has prompted much exploration by Skip. He only reluctantly made the move from Blackberry to the iPhone this last go-around, and truth be told, he hasn't given the device much of a chance. The Blackberry Passport, with its physical keyboard, has been luring him back. 

Learning that the Frank Underwood ringtone is awaiting him, on his yet-purchased device, is torturing him.  

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TJ Maxx: My Other Retail Favorite

This blog is replete with declarations of my love of Target. Another long-time favorite is TJ Maxx - my absolute go-to source for handbags. I mean, of course, a good bag is irresistible anywhere and at any time, but if I am looking for a quality investment, making the trip across town was an imperative. Because while I love bags, I do not love unnecessarily parting with money to cover the exorbitant price.

A few months ago, a TJ Maxx landed within a few miles of my home. I immediately checked it out and dismissed the handbag selection outright -- because the selection can vary widely from store-to-store, and the demographic of our town has been dismissed as being less interested in high(-ish) end leather goods (with the obvious exception of the Christmas season, when all of the stores turn out their very best selection)(I'm hoping this is true for Easter/Mother's Day, too). Perhaps this should be considered a blessing in disguise because having too much temptation could lead to hoarding of the bags, yes? Let's avoid a full-blown obsession.

Anyrate... what was particularly impressive, however, was the home section. Recently, the store was filled with many products from Ralph Lauren's past seasons. After stocking up on some much-needed linens, I was perusing the rest of the store when my cart immediately and abruptly stopped - RRRRRRRRRRKKKK.  Tucked away in the back corner of an end cap shelf was a vase that looked exactly like the elusive Ralph Lauren Glen Plaid vase I have been tracking for years. The backstory on the vase is that it was on the Ralph Lauren site, and had been marked down from $100 to $70. I was waiting for it to fall into the $50 range when it sold out and disappeared forever. Poof! Just like that! The vase is often listed on eBay, usually at an inflated price. As my cart screeched to a halt, I carefully retrieved the vase for inspection. Surely, it was a knock-off since it was only $23.00, but no, friends, I scored the long-awaited crystal vase for $23.00.

The bowls got away... they are still out in the wild. But the vase is mine.

Marathon, 2015

Happy Monday, friends! In an effort to be more thorough in documenting this wonderful phase of our lives and the regular comings/goings of the trio, you may be seeing more weekend updates here. Silly observations filed under the caption of "enumerated update" will probably appear on Friday.

As for this past weekend, William George and I picked up the girls from school Friday afternoon, and here is the part where I have to come clean and tell you we bought Pixie a purse carrier. Sometimes taking her with us on quick errands is easier/quicker that corralling her into the kennel and making sure she cannot hurt herself and our things. The problem is that she is nervous in the car. While that is mostly manageable, she also goes completely and totally nuts when the girls get in the car. She thinks she is one of the children so when she is separated from them, such as when they go to school, she gets a little emotional. She likes being included. Therefore, we are working on car training by having her contained in a tote.  I don't even recognize us anymore. We went with this option instead of the celebrity bag of choice. 

So...anyrate... our weekend highlights include the trio riding bicycles in the basement after homework on Friday. The girls are working on a special presentation for school this week. Lauren is tasked with being Susan B. Anthony, while Grace will be channeling Eleanor Roosevelt. This appeals to our nerdy-ness more than I can express. Other highlights include an impromptu, mini date night while the trio spent the night with Gran and Poppa. We shopped and had our favorite Chinese food, and then we stayed in to watch the first few episodes of House of Cards. Sunday meant church and a quick lunch with friends afterward.

I forgot to mention that last weekend the girls completed the Kid's Marathon. In the kid's version, students run 25 miles at school and then complete the last line on the Marathon path. Although Skip ran with them last year, the running groups were changed this year, and the duo wanted to run with their age group and their friends from school. Again, there is a burst of pride when they round the last corner, and I was so impressed that the group stayed together.

(Grace and Lauren are wearing pink pants.)



Mercedes Marathon 2015 from Cathi Lindsey on Vimeo.

Next year they should run with Pixie... in the purse.