Move over Chuckie Cheese, the Library is where it's at!

I just want to say that I love the library! I didn't used to like it, actually I LOATHED it with every breath of my being! My mom never really took us there very often, that I remember. So I don't have those cute childhood story-time memories that others may have. My memories of the library are more from my school-age days. Picture this-- a procrastinating high schooler hunched over a classic novel rereading the same page over and over again because you just can't focus anymore or a tired, overworked college student in a solitary cubicle amongst the towering stacks of journals furiously trying to memorize some note cards written to help study for a biology test. Can you see it? Oooooh...(shivering) my stomach is turning just thinking about it. So, for those of you who can visualize or who have "been there done that", you can understand my feelings toward the library or may even feel the same way! But wait--there is library-loathing therapy! First thing you have to do is become a elementary school teacher. This one kind of forces you to deal with your fears. You HAVE to take your students to the library, you HAVE to help them find books and you HAVE to show the kids how much YOU like the library! Yea! Acting skills come in handy here--library-love can be a hard thing to fake. Anyway, the next step is to have a kid. All kids love the library and want to go there all the time and I guess it is the "good parent" thing to do, right? So for the last 6 years, through two kids and five years of teaching, I can honestly say that I have cured my library-phobia. For those of you who still have a bad library vibe and didn't choose teaching as a profession and don't have kids, ummmm...sorry...your out of luck!
In times where money is tight and things cost so much, I had to find some cost-saving alternatives to Blockbuster, Chuckie Cheese and Build-a Bear--Analise's favorite places to go. So I had to be really enthusiastic about the library to divert her attention from the previously mentioned places. "Yea! Let's go the library, Analise! It will be so much fun there! Trust me..." Here again, is where my acting skills came in handy. She was skeptical (so was I), but she went along anyway. Until I started going there, I didn't realize what it has to offer. You can check out movies, CD's, computer games, books on tape and Leapfrog games. There are cozy places to read and computers to use. There are reading programs and story times, even pajama story time! YES! There are even classes that you can take to learn just about anything that you want. There are so many fun things to do there that it didn't take much convincing. Now, Analise loves to go library. We go at least once a week and the best part about it, Analise gets just as excited about going to the library as she does about going to Chuckie Cheese. Score one for mom!
Here are our library adventures for this week! Analise always wants to rent a movie, so here is the one she picked out this week!

Yes, everyone that is a Denise Austin work-out video for kids. Awesome! Here she is in action:

That is her friend Allikaye getting in on the action. I guess her watching me work-out to all of my Denise Austin videos rubbed off a little. I'm so proud! She is also enrolled in summer reading program. Once she reads 720 minutes or 60 hours, she will get a ticket to Elitches. Woo-hoo! That is some motivation right there! She better get busy, that's a lot of reading...
Weston is also loving the library! I got him a baby signing video and he absolutely LOVES it. Here is what he does when Rachael, the signing lady, comes on:

He can't get enough of her eye-popping orange sweater or her crazy taped up fingers. Dang it--he's cute! We signed up for the "TOP HOGS" at the library, too. There are some genius pigs that can ride skateboards, play musical instruments and do all sorts of tricks and they'll be at the library on the 26th and so will we! I am so excited about it! Oh yeah, Analise is, too.
I am also cashing in on the treasures of the library. I just finished reading "One More Day" by Mitch Albom. It was a good one. Here is my next read that I am excited about...

It's on hold, so hopefully I won't have to wait to long for it. I want Wes to to be a signing genius, so I need to brush up on my "skills", as Napoleon Dynamite would say. The library, in all honestly, is really a hidden treasure. I can now say that...yes...wait for it...I love the library! All hail to your local library. Go check it out!

8 Years!!

Wow! John and I have been together for ten years this year with eight years of wedded bliss! Here we are on our wedding day June 10, 2000. Aren't we cute?
How have 8 years of marriage been on us? Well, here we are 8 years later. What do you think?











Still cute, I think—just a bit tired and wrinkly maybe. Aged like fine wine, I would like to think. Who knew that it would ever last this long?! I know that we said "till death do us part", but there were a few times along the way that I thought that death WOULD do us part! Kidding, only kidding here! Sure, we've seen the rough times (many, many a rough time), but we have had our share of good and happy times, too! We've seen many places in our travels, shared lots of laughs with good friends, bought and sold a house or two, shared many "firsts" together and seen a miracle or two along the way! All in all, we are very blessed to have all that we have and we thank the Lord above for that! Amen Sister!

According to a good friend, the traditional gift for an 8th wedding anniversary is pottery and/or lace.

Well, OK, if you say so. I made sure that I told John right away so he would have plenty of time to think about this one. Honestly, I had no ideas on a good gift for him, so I just gave up and decided to see what he would come up with. But my dear sweet hubby shocked and amazed me with his well-thought out gift.
A chimenea! We had one once and I loved it, but it broke during our last move! I was so happy and, I'll say it, impressed! We haven't used it yet, but I predict that in the near future our little family will be roasting some marshmallows and warming our tootsies by the glow of our new friend! I love him for thinking of me and remembering something that I told him. (Way to go John--he is getting better with this after 8 years!) I love him even more not to tell him that, upon investigating, pottery is actually a 9 year wedding gift-doh!. Shhhhh...

Well, I guess the lace part was up to me. Hmmm...what could I get that was lace, something that would be appropriate for a wedding anniversary gift and, more importantly, something John would like? Well, I won't tell you, but I will give you a hint. It was a gift that I got for my wedding shower that was for my wedding night. I'll leave the rest up to you! We had a fabulous anniversary day and night! ;)

My first time!

Hey everyone...

MySpace, Facebook, online banking, school e-mail, home e-mail, real estate e-mail...now blog spot! I think I officially have become technologized! (If that is a word...) I enjoy reading all of my friend's blogs, so I was feeling left out or maybe inspired, so here you go--my blog. I know what a blog is, just recently mind you, but let me just say, who thought of the word "blog"? Did it exist before the world of computers? Or did somebody just think one day--"What are we going to call these online diary-type entries...oh I got it, we'll call it a blog". You know a mullet is really a type of fish, but someone decided that they would name the "short on top long on bottom hairdo" a mullet, which is much easier to say than the "short on top and long on bottom hairdo". Is this how they came up with "blog"? Is a blog really a certain kind of rock you can only find in the Amazon, but they needed to find a easier way to say "online diary-type entries" and just came up with "blog". Who knows? Anyway, it is a cool sounding word and a fun word to say over and over again. Blog, blog, blog, blog--ooh try it! I kind of sound like a frog or something. Anyway, back to the word. Couldn't they think of anything different or maybe a little bit cooler? Maybe "mufti" or "snollygoster" (my favorite) or "grok" or "smarmy" --all cool words and fun to say, but just like "blog," they're weird and no one really knows what it means. Well, that is my first "online diary-type entry", I hope that you enjoyed it. I will "snollygoster" again soon! Love ya...