A Lot of Nothing Exciting

A bunch of random ramblings ...

Not much to report from ESPN land.  Bia is home sick with Mr. ESPN today.  She has a cold/fever.  She seems to be doing pretty well but is in an extra cuddly mood.  I love when she is this way.  Last night we fell asleep in my bed cuddling (Mr. ESPN put her in her bed after she was asleep) and then this morning after she woke up she came in to cuddle with her daddy!  Too cute.

Completed my first sewing project last weekend.  Since my children (namely Bia) seem to knock closet doors off the tracks, we took hers down.  I bought some fabric from IKEA and made some curtains to put up instead.  I accidentally cut the second one too short, but it isn't that noticeable (by novice sewers like me).  I was surprised that it turned out as well as it did.  I thought I was going to have to ask my mom to finish it for me.  Now I need to think of another project.  Chatty says she wants some on her closet too ... we'll see.

Chatty and I had a conversation this morning about staying away from Mr. X at school and making good decisions.  I am hoping (and praying) she does.  I hope this isn't an omen to what it will be like with boys when she is in highschool!  Ugh!

Mr. ESPN and I are going to a party on Saturday night at a rooftop lounge in chic Scottsdale and I have nothing to wear.  Does anyone want to volunteer and be my personal stylist?  I looked for a new top last weekend to wear and just felt frustrated.  My friend Mrs. Kingston was lamenting on her work wardrobe last week and how bored she is with it.  I feel the same way about my entire wardrobe.  I need some help.  Especially with accessorizing ... so needless to say I will probably be the most un-chic person at the party!

I need to take some pictures .. I haven't taken any in several weeks .. OK back to work it's tax package time ... aren't y'all excited for me?

E-mail From the Teacher

Last Thursday (right after my Long Week post) I received the following e-mail from Chatty's teacher:


Dear Mrs. ESPN,

I hope your week has been going great and I am so excited to see you tomorrow :) I wanted to check in with you about Chatty’s week. She is such an awesome friend and really enjoys playing in centers. This week she has loved going to writing! However, I am worried about some of her choices at lunch and in our classroom during rug time. Lately, Chatty has been acting silly in the cafeteria and she has interfered with children's safety. For example, she squirted juice in another girl's hair and today she was running and playing in the hallway when she was heading from the playground to the lunch room. She was so silly on the way from the lunch room to our room after lunch that she ran into another child and caused them both to have to visit the nurse for ice. In our classroom, Chatty is successful at her table, but will talk and play during large group time. She chooses Step successfully, but then chooses to come back and play again. I am afraid that she is beginning to pick up on some behavior of another boy in our classroom who is having a very difficult time making choices and adjusting to our classroom expectations. I know that they want to be friends, however I think that Chatty is having a difficult time making great choices when she chooses to following the poor example of the other boy.


Chatty has such a great heart and I know that she is ready to work hard. Could you please remind her of her expectations in our classroom and at lunch time. I am unsure about the relationship with the other child, however I will continue to reinforce healthy friendship choices. Thank you for your help.


I can't wait to see you!


Miss Johnson


Needless to say Mr. ESPN and I had a Come to Jesus talk with Chatty that night and let her know she was not allowed to play with this boy again!  The next day (last Friday) I volunteered in her class.  This boy (now referred to as X) told me his dad said he could never play with Chatty again - punk!  Mr. ESPN said "Good" when I told him this.  I had a chance to speak with her teacher and she was/is amazing.  She sent me the following e-mail after school on Friday:


Good afternoon! Thank you for visiting today! The kids loved your extra help and encouraging words. It means so much! Also, Chatty had such a fantastic day! She even said, "My mom is going to be so proud of me!" at the end of the day! She does so well with positive encouragement. Such a sweet girl. Just to let you know, I met with Dr. Bales (the school principal) for immediate help with X this afternoon. There has been a parent meeting scheduled. X did hit Chatty's shoulder at the end of centers and he was removed from the learning environment. I am confident that Chatty is part of a safe environment and I will keep you posted about her hard work and super smart choices. Have a great weekend!


Miss Johnson


So I hope we are back on the right track with Chatty.  What an exhausting week ... off to bake some cookies for a BBQ this afternoon!

Long Week

The last two days have been less than exciting at work. I had to sit through all day meetings on delivery model and sourcing transformation and the potential tax implications (yes I know - WTH is that?) with 8 guys and me! Yes I am a tax person (nerd) but this was totally out of my area of expertise (yes there are various tax specialties and this isn't mine). I was basically there to observe (and hopefully gain some knowledge to move into other tax specialties) which means it is very hard to pay attention and stay awake when the conversation is that riveting! I didn't bring my laptop to the meeting yesterday and even with the large diet coke I had, I was feeling the need to nod off ... so much so that one of the managers teased me about it later. Today I took my laptop to the meeting so I could actually get some work done and focus a little more. Thanks goodness I get to work from home tomorrow (because I have to take my car in and I am volunteering in Chatty's class tomorrow). Hopefully it won't be as dramatic as the Kindergarten Barfing (aka Holiday) Party from December! Ugh - now I have to get motivated to go to the gym!

Teenage Boys and Sports Cars

I am offering this as a piece of advice for those of you who have sons. Fancy sports cars like the one below:

+ a high school junior + a hot little girlfriend = Potential Accident and high insurance rates! This morning a high school junior driving the pretty little care above tried to cut off traffic at a red light and rear ended this car:

Which rear ended this car:

Which was driven by me! Luckily I had little damage to my car. I didn't even notice the damage until the (HOT) cop showed me. Did I mention the cop who arrived was really hot and nice! High school kid told the lady behind me "I didn't see you" - um what?! It was a red light and she drives a Pilot not a little scooter! Anyway luckily there were no injuries, we were just a little shook up. We'll see how I feel tomorrow (luckily I had already dropped Chatty off at school so I was flying solo in the car). I think I was more upset that my (fairly) new car got hit than anything, that and the whole pain in the butt the process is.

Moral of the story - high school boys and sports cars are very expensive for parents and they don't fair well when they hit an SUV! Needless to say Bia and Chatty will NOT be riding to school in boys' sports cars when they are in high school! Their daddy will be driving them!

Thursday Tidbits from the ESPN Household

Some interesting tidbits I learned today:

• If you wake up a little before 5:00 to go to the gym for a 5:30 class (and hit snooze for 10 minutes) and arrive 1 minute late the entire class will be full ... this was at 5:31 AM not PM people - WTH? (I worked out on my own at the gym and got a good work out - probably because I was fuming about missing the class!)
• If you come home from the above incident at the gym it is possible Chatty Cathy will be loving and kind when you walk in the door and later turn into a horrible monster and pitch a 15 minute non stop whining, crying, fussing fit that started when she told you you had no rock n roll music in your car (which by the way you do via CD's, Radio and XM) .. which causes you to be running late to work which means you can't stop for a fountain Diet Coke
• The toilets in the restroom at work seem to always flush before you are done wiping which means you still have to manually flush by pushing the button (not to mention the spray on your fanny!). Also in this restroom only one of the stalls has a door that remains closed while doing your business. The rest open at random moments. Do you realize how hard it is to squat and hold the door with your hand and wipe quick enough so your fanny doesn't get sprayed?
• Lunch with guys often includes random discussions. Today's involved buffets at titty bars and how guys can't multi task in this type of situation, i.e. eating and watching
• It is possible for your second child to inherit the severe fit throwing temper tantrum gene of her older sister (it was proven tonight by Sweet Bia - not so sweet tonight - girl's got some serious strength for an itty bitty thang!)
• It's horrible when a starting quarterback gets hurt during his first series of a National Championship Game ... I feel so bad for Colt McCoy ... great guy and cute too (plus it just makes for a crappy game)!
• In the ESPN house it is possible for the children to get distracted by a sporting event while they are eating and/or doing their homework. Like I said above, they seem to inherit all of these lovely traits (they obviously haven't inherited or learned the multi-tasking traits of their momma)!

A Flower Girl's Debut

I am finally getting around to posting pictures from our adventure to Tampa. We had a great time visiting with friends and partying like rock stars (well like an old married couple with a kid in tow - but you get the picture). Speaking of pictures here are some of them ...

Chatty and Uncle Greg at the rehearsal Dinner

Coco - this one is for you to show Lacey .. see how sweet he looks!

Visiting a ship the morning before the wedding

Not sure I would let her captain my ship ... she's a crazy driver (on Wii!)

The groom - I think he may throw her overboard!

Dressed and ready for her big debut

A bride and her flower girl

Chatty found another boy for her posse .. this one is a little older!

They really made a cute little couple and he was sweet as can be!

Not sure what was wrong with my camera here ...

or why I seem hunched over - mental note stand straighter!

Same camera issue here - thought is was humidity

but there was very little humidity that day ...

The kids playing during the cocktail hour

Love their sweet expressions! Yes she is a big flirt!

Dancing the night away (yes that is me in the background)!

Another pic for Coco .. dancing with Uncle Greg

The little people dancing with the Bride and Groom

As you can see fun was had by all - especially by Chatty. We are trying to get back to our normally scheduled programming at home (which has involved a little Nana/Poppa detox for Bia). So far we are doing OK ... today is the first day back to the gym ... not looking forward to it. I am debating on getting up and going early in the morning a few days a week ... but getting up at 4:50 am does not sound appealing to me! We'll see ...

An Award

So my friend Casey ... who I found through her blog and later found out she is friends with my cousin ... weird I tell ya ... gave me this award a week or so ago. I know you will all forgive me for not responding sooner but I have been busy and out of town partying with friends (aka at a fabulous wedding ... will post pictures soon).

So I am supposed to list 10 things that make me happy ... please note these are in no particular order ...

1. Family - I love my family (even though they drive me nuts on a regular basis!) My husband makes me laugh at the the dumbest things and puts up with a lot! My girls, while they try my patience on a regular interval, are the light of my life! Not to mention the rest of my family - parents, grandparents, in laws, etc. One of the best compliments my MIL gave me is that she was so happy her son was marrying someone who had close relationships with her family. I can't imagine my life without my mom, granny/mam-ma, brother, aunts, dad(s), uncles, etc. They are my world and I love that my kids are so close to them too!


2. Sports - What can I say - I love them. I know that is a big reason Mr. ESPN and I started dating. We both love college football and basketball the most (the Fiesta Bowl is on right now as I type) but we will watch pretty much all sports. I got a little teary eyed this weekend watching Bobby coach his final game at FSU! Go NOLES!


3. My Church - Mr. ESPN and I belong to a fabulous Presbyterian Church! I love teaching Sunday School (even though it still makes me nervous) and am excited about the Women's bible study I am beginning this month. I have made some awesome friends through my church and they have helped me become a better Christian. I hope my girls grow up and understand the importance of Christ in their life.


4. Coke Products - specifically Diet Coke. I do not drink Pepsi only Coke products (this is a family trait going back to my Granny and my mom). Mr. ESPN and I have joked about getting a soda machine so I can have a fountain diet coke with a splash of cherry coke every day.


5. Baking - I love to bake. I come from a family (must be the southern genes) where you are taught to bake in a time of crisis. So that's what I do. I also bake on a regular basis in non-crisis times and it has resulted in Mr. ESPN and I joining the gym!


6. Being Organized - I am type A and go nuts when things are in disarray. Ask Mr. ESPN - it isn't pretty. He has learned to just move out of the way!


7. Southern Living - My favorite magazine. It provides me with tons of great recipes that remind me of my Granny and also great decorating ideas!


8. Weddings - I love going to them and being in them. They are so fun and full of so much love, hope and joy! This weekend was no exception.


9. Girlfriends - I love hanging out and catching up with them over a glass (or two or more) of wine or beer and some fun food. I get to do this once a month at Bunco with my neighborhood girlfriends but would like to set up something with my other girlfriends (i.e. BB, LC, BK, SQ, KS, KA, etc.) so we can do this on a regular basis. It does the body good!


10. Food and Wine/Beer - OK I freely admit it, I like to eat and drink. I haven't met much food I dislike. I love to drink wine (prefer red but do drink white - especially in the summer when it is so freakin hot here in the desert) and beer. Anyone who knows me knows Bud Light on draft is my beer of choice (runs in the family - that's my mom's favorite too!) - no fancy schmancy beers for me!

And now I would like to pass this award on to my fabulous friends/family

My BFF

AZ Cottrell

The Kingston Queen

My Favorite Cousin! (don't tell anyone else in the family)