We spent spring break in Disneyworld. A once in a lifetime experience. Really, it was great, but we won’t be going back. There are other places out there in the world to see, and I’m really not an amusement park kind of gal. At one point, Ethan saw a momma duck and her two little babies and asked, “Are those animatronics?” That’s when you know your line of perception is off the charts.

My parents came with us for a few days. That was a blast. And friends from Florida shared our last day in Disney, making it super special.

Enough with the chit-chat. Here are the pictures. Too many pictures, okay, here’s a slideshow instead. I took over 200 pictures, so had to narrow it down to the best 60 or so.

I just wrote six posts in one day. I was going to stop at five, but just had to fit this in. When I was forced to get my license at sixteen (yes forced, I was terrified), I really hated driving. The whole idea scared me…well, it scared me a lot. Then I got in that accident with the old lady in the Buick, and then I was even more reluctant to drive.

Now for some reason, I love it. I find things to smile about in the car almost every day. Here’s what made me smile today as I was driving:

*Chickens. I saw a truck full of chickens on the highway. I know it’s cruel the chickens are all cooped up in their little cages, but it reminded me of Napoleon Dynamite and the chickens. Why are chickens just funny. It’s funny to even say the word, chicken.

*Old Beater Cars. I love to see people driving totally run down cars. It reminds me of when I drove one. Neither of the turn signals worked, the break lights were busted, and the gas gauge always said empty-not because there was no gas in it, but because it was broken. I have total respect for those driving beaters, because I know how humbling it is and I know those people aren’t going into debt to show-off a fancy car. Our cars have always been paid for in full. Don’t go into debt for a car. That’s my advice. People in beaters…you rock!

*The wind. Today was a beautiful 72 degrees. I rolled down both the windows and let the wind mess my hair up. It was in my eyes and in my mouth and I loved it. Even on the highway, driving 80 mph, the whipping wind really made my day.

I signed Gordon up for Young Chef’s Academy. He is always asking me if he can cook. It’s one thing he truly gets excited over. I was thinking of the activities my boys do. Most boys are taking soccer or football. Mine take fencing and piano and cooking lessons. Well, if I were a girl (oh wait, I am), I would want a guy who cooks for me and plays me songs on the piano and uses wicked weaponry.

When I told Gordon I signed him up for cooking classes, you would have thought he won the lottery. On the day of the class he told me, “I can’t frown. If I try, it turns into a smile.”

I sat in the corner, watching the class (and typing), and he kept running over to show me his shredded zucchini and rolled dough.

The best part of cooking is he gets to eat what he makes, and there are enough left overs for the mommies too.

Snow here is different from the snow in Utah or Oregon. In Utah, the snow stays around for months on end and life continues like it’s nothing. In Oregon, the snow turns to ice, and everyone slips down the driveways and sidewalks and crashes their cars. In North Carolina, you get a couple inches of powder and your power goes out, the phone lines die, and everything shuts down.

The boys only spent about an hour out there. Last year, our one snow day turned into in and out of the house five times, with clothes and water everywhere. This year the boys were less interested. I think Nick spent the most time outside the day after the big snow. He wanted to use up the last of it to build a snowman. As I was pulling out of the driveway the next day, I saw something sticking out of the snowman’s head-it was my butter knife! On closer inspection, I saw a trail of blood drawn down the side and words of pain written all over it in Sharpie. Of course Nick had to torture the snowman. Its head now resides in my freezer.

For the Blue and Gold Banquet, the boys were to bring a cake they made with their fathers. Of course ours ended up with dragons, tin foil explosions, and fallen soldiers dripping with red sprinkles. Gordon’s cake won the award for ‘Best Use of Toys.’ A few people came up to me during the banquet to say, “I knew that was your boy’s cake the moment I saw it.”

My husband is terrific. I say, “The girls are going out tonight,” and I get no guff. “All right, go have fun,” he waves.

We saw the movie, He’s Just Not That Into You. I think that’s the title. I just wasn’t that into it. What’s happening to all the movies nowadays? Okay, I sounded so old there with that comment. Has everyone fallen off the loony truck and ended up on the screen? I only liked one subplot-the bar owner/advice guy and the girl who had no idea when to shut her mouth. They were cute.

The movie was just not that believable, just not that endearing, and just not that gripping. What I enjoyed the most was they spoke intelligently, and there were a lot of unique quirky lines. Oh, and they would have random interviews with people on the street about relationships and these two black women were hilarious. I wanted a movie about them. The movie made me think smart people fall apart when they are faced with the prospect of a relationship because they overthink everything. Maybe only us dummies can hold it together:)

Afterward, we all made vicious comments about the idiot who cheated on his wife. That was fun.

We all went out for appetizers and convinced Andrea to join our girls’ weekend beach trip this year. The Three Musketeers are turning into the Fabulous Foursome. I’m totally excited Andrea is coming. I always though she was someone I would really like if I got to know. We stayed for hours talking, and eventually our waitress had to go home. She gave us her card for Pure Romance. Was she listening to our conversations?

Ben is so easy to please. I asked what he wanted for his birthday, and all he said was a membership to the online game, Runescape. On his birthday, I pulled out the credit card and signed him up. I didn’t get his reaction for that (he was jumping up and down), but I did get these:

I’ve never seen anyone sooooo excited over a book. The book is Inkdeath, the last in the Inkspell, Inkheart series. He’ll read a book in two days. I just can’t keep enough books around for him. He reads faster than me, and I took a speed-reading class! My library shelves are spilling over. It completely bloggles my mind.

The day after his birthday, we went and played lazer tag and all those quarter sucking arcade games at Northcross. It’s a boy haven in there. I think I might have seen one girl. Oh, and there was me.

Happy Birthday Ben! You can tell me how Inkdeath ends in two days.

I had of list of things to do today. I was heading to Jazzercise, but I was a little early, so stopped at Staples first to pick up a pack of manila envelopes. After a nice workout I went to Target with my greasy hair and workout clothes. Without a list, I just went up and down all the aisles grabbing random food items I usually don’t buy, like mushrooms, Ovaltine and pomegranate fruit leathers, oh, and a cool lamp I liked. My friend’s birthday is today, so I picked up a present for her too. She called me while I was milling around Target and asked if I wanted to go out to lunch. “Sure, just need to get home and put the groceries away and take a shower.” I’ll leave my hair wet– it’ll dry curly anyway and save me time blowdrying and straightening.

There were two phone messages when I got home. I returned them while unloading the car, jumped into the shower, and was ready in twenty minutes. Back in the car, I called my friend. “Where do you want to meet?” We went back and forth with the “I don’t know, where do you want to go?” until her husband called on the other line. I told her call me back while I drive in her direction. She called back and said her husband was in the same store she was, surprising her for her birthday. She still said I could go out with them. “I’m not going to be the third wheel. I’ll just go to the bank,” which I needed to do anyway. At the bank, I’m rummaging through my purse to find this check I need to cash. Can’t find it. Shoot! Well, I’m out, so now what?

I go over to Kohls nextdoor and stand in the doorway. I don’t need anything. I’ll look for pants for Gordon. Nope, the shorts are out. Who is wearing shorts?!? It’s like 30 degrees. So I decide to stop at my favorite neighborhood thrift store, Value Village. I like to buy funky shoes–bright colors, fluffy, boots, shoes like that, but they’ve gotta be a good deal. The last pair I got from VV were yellow alligator type heels. For $3! I love them. I get a kick out of watching people look down at my feet. “What is she wearing?” I know they’re asking themselves. “That’s right! I’m different than you and I like to dress up my feet.” I didn’t find any this time, so I stroll over to the books.

Right now I’m in the middle of four books–The Sea of Monsters, Icefire, Pride & Prejudice, and Artemis Fowl. I’m reading a bunch of young adult books since mine falls into that genre and I want to know what’s out there. I’ve even got a specialized genre–magical realism. I just throw in a classic so I don’t start thinking like an eleven year old. I usually start a book, then I see another I want to read, and so I start that one…and so on and so on, and so I found another book.

I’m waiting in line; a rather long line for a thrift store. A little girl in her mother’s arms starts throwing a fit and hitting her mother and screaming. I smile, cuz I don’t have to go through that anymore and I think of all the times my kids acted up in stores. I remember the stares and the rude comments. Behind me a lady (if you can call her that) starts popping her gum. She’s popping it right in my ear. Pop! Pop! I imagine turning around and popping her one. Then the albino lady (minus the pink eyes) in front of me turns and says, regarding the little girl, “She needs a nap”. The albino is sporting a toothpick from her mouth. Where are everyone’s manners? I almost think about leaving my book and walking out the door, but at a buck fifty, a can’t.

I get my book, leave the store, and am lost in the parking lot. I walk up to a gold Honda Odyssey. Nope, not mine. Oh, there it is! Nope, not mine. How many stinkin’ gold Odysseys are there in Mooresville? I find mine, drive off, but notice a turquoise paper flapping under my wiperblade. Someone stuck a flyer on my windsheild! One, I hate paper waste. Two, I hate it on my car, and three, it’s gonna fly off and create litter. I hate, absolutely despise people who litter. Sometime I’ll tell you about the time someone in the car in front of me threw their trash out the window. Anyway, at the light I jump out and pull off the flyer. I smile at the guy in the car behind me, who is looking at the big white fuzzy boots I’m wearing. Then I turn up the tunes and dance in the car. I like it booming, ear-splitting, and I like to drive fast. My friends make fun of me and say they won’t drive with me cuz I’m dangerous. I think it stems from all the drag racing I did down 182nd street in my Dodge Omni in high school (shhhh, don’t tell my parents). I’ve only had one traffic ticket (speeding) when I lived in Arizona, and I don’t think that should count because the roads in Tuscon are like giant desert highways with no one in sight. It’s like a siren’s call to drive fast down a road like that. I haven’t got into a car wreck since I was 16 years old, and that wasn’t my fault. When you’re a housemom, you’ve gotta have some fun, and driving fast weaving in and out of traffic is my little high. At all the lights I shout “No Wammies!” That’s my secret for making it through on a green. It was an expression on a popular game show in the 80’s if anyone remembers. I only do all this when I’m alone though.

Then I go to the post office and mail off yet another query letter to a literary agent (that’s why I needed manila envelopes). This one’s got a query, synopsis and the first three chapters. Mailing queries is getting expensive. Every day I either mail or email one off. I’m up to about 40 now and think all agents need to ask for submissions via email to save paper. I’m waiting for all the rejections to come flooding in. I’ve got ten minutes before the kids come home and the real work starts–the homework, the dinner, the dishes, the directing of chores and piano. I thought I’d just blog about an average day in the life of a housewife.

Here’s a quick summary of Christmas 2008:
Went to Winston/Salem to see mega lights at Tanglewood park.
If you go, don’t go on a weekend. We go every year, but this year we were stupid and went on a weekend. Two hours in line…bah humbug!
Blah, blah, blah, kids fell asleep in the car.

Blah, blah, blah…lights.

Then we were rockin’ around the Christmas tree and table dancing.

Wore our silly hats to pass out cookies to the neighbors and sing “We Wish you a Merry Christmas.” Only first verse…we don’t sing.

Went to my parent’s house Christmas Eve and ate way too much good food.

Christmas morning opened up the stash. Not really a stash. The kids got one present this year, a stocking of stuff from Santa and a two family presents.

One of the presents was a trip. We took the kids to Myrtle Beach to go to their place, Magiquest. The Schmids went with us too, so we all had a good time with friends and family.

I’ve been behind in my blogging since joining Facebook. I told Rob that would happen. It’s almost Christmas and I haven’t even posted about Thanksgiving.

Rob & I went to Ethan’s Kindergarten Thanksgiving feast. I made the turkey for the class, because we went to my parent’s for Thanksgiving dinner and I didn’t have to make anything but the rolls for that. Thanks Mom!

I love this picture of Ethan…he looks so excited:) And that headpiece!

My parent’s have these awesome woods in their backyard that leads down to the lake. After eating the huge dinner, we went for a lovely walk. My mom was getting the pies ready. It’s funny that I’m the only girl in my family– I guess I don’t ever think about it until I see the pictures. I call my sisters and my mom and go out with friends from time to time to remind myself I’m not a boy.

and frisbee. Nick caught this one behind his back.