Wait!!! I'm not ready yet!!!

I am so incredibly embarrassed to admit this but I am horribly horribly behind in Christmas this year.  The Fall seemed to have it me like a ton of bricks this year and I just haven't been able to recuperate and recover!!

First and foremost, our cruise was unbelievable.  We had the most amazing, relaxing trip. Our flight to Barcelona was great, boarding the ship was stress-free, our cabin was great, food was excellent and our excursions were awesome!  Mallorca was beautiful and we had a wonderful day walking around the city.  I loved Marseille and Florence and Rome are always magical (so glad Cosmo got to see the Sistine Chapel!).  We both really enjoyed Pompeii, too!

After the cruise we had our anniversary, Cosmo's b-day and KJ's 16th birthday in that order.  KJ actually had a volleyball game on her birthday but she celebrated a few nights earlier with some friends at a Mexican restaurant.  After her volleyball game, several of the girls on her team took her to Whataburger (she had never been and apparently it's a Texas thing).  She finally got her permit and had 3 straight weeks of drivers Ed classes and has also been doing her drive times with her instructor.  Little Miss Jet-setter flew to Baltimore in November and spent a couple of days with her friends from Damascus.  Volleyball season is officially over and we had a great end-of-year banquet at one of the local country clubs.  This weekend she's down in Fredericksburg celebrating a friend's birthday at their family cabin.  They drove down after school on Friday, went zip-lining Saturday and today they are shopping.  She'll come home Monday.

For Cosmo's b-day we somehow ended up at a Rangers play-off game vs. The Blue Jays. It was hot as hell that day and we tried to keep cool by using the rally towels as hats.  We looked like idiots.

Early November we met the Martin's outside of Memphis and went to the Ole Miss vs. Arkansas game. The weather was cold and dreary but we still managed to have a good time!  AG and KJ spent Friday night with T so they thought they were cool and Pony Boy and Z put up our tailgating tent in the pouring rain while the 4 of us hit Oxford.  The highlight of the weekend, according to KJ, was her selfie with Tim Tebow. 

Right before Thanksgiving, Coach had his first collegiate game of his coaching career.  I love the campus at TCU and the guys were really great.  The team has a lot of potential. 

We had a fun Thanksgiving with Cosmo's nephew and his family. Eva and Eli are incredibly well-behaved children and it is a joy to be with them.  Friday we took them to the Gaylord to see the ice sculptures and go sledding. KJ was a trooper and was the "DS" (designated sledder). 

T and Pony Boy got to our house late last Sunday night after dealing with a flat tire in Arkansas and brought their puppy Maria with them.  Other than farting really bad, she's a great dog and liked jumping in the pool.

Tuesday night Cosmo took them to a Dallas Stars hockey game (Dew's first NHL game) and they met up with friends after the game.  Friday Cosmo's buddy from college (also KJ's Godfather) flew in for the weekend. We had a great dinner and walked around the town of Grapevine (voted one of America's Top 10 Christmas towns). It was so beautiful!  The town itself is super cute anyway but at Christmas they go all out!  Every shop, every restaurant, every building has some type of display or lights.  The gazebo was all decked out, there was a life-size Nativity set, a light tunnel, an inflatable igloo, Mistletoe every where, etc.  Saturday the guys went to the Cowboys vs. Jets game (Go Jets!!!) and Bob flew out early this morning.  Pony Boy and Maria left Saturday morning and T and I did some Christmas shopping while the guys were at the game.

So, this is why I'm so behind this year!  Nothing is wrapped and I haven't sent out a single Christmas card.  I guess there's always next year!

I'm Still Here!!!

So it's been several weeks (months??) since I've blogged but I'm still alive and kicking!!  I don't think I've sat down since mid-June!!

The big move from Maryland to Texas went great!  Very smooth process overall (still can't find the damn toaster though!!) and I have to say everyone, particularly Trixie and Kendall, have transitioned incredibly well!

The months of June and July were basically a blur between having the house packed up, mine and KJ's road trip to Texas with a wonderful stop in Birmingham, the pageant, having aforementioned household goods delivered, T's 21st birthday, my parents and KJ returning from their big southwest road trip to volleyball camps, high school registration,  (successful) volleyball try-outs and the summer culminated with the big boss man, the Legend, the Guru getting inducted into the US Lacrosse Alabama/Mississippi chapter hall of fame.  Whew!!!

It's been hot here in Dallas but it really hasn't been awful. We've had a couple of 100+ degree days but the humidity is very low. Having the pool is great and I can't imagine living in Texas without a backyard pool!  We've done a couple of quick day trips since we've been here (visiting the TCU campus to see where Cosmo will be coaching and a fun day at the Ft. Worth stockyards) but honestly, we just have been super duper busy.

We luv, luv, luv being closer to T and she has come home twice and we also got to see her this past weekend in Birmingham.  Pony boy came with her to the HOF induction and if he can put up with our crazy Cos life, that boy can put up with anything!!  He's a trooper for sure!! 

Lax Life / Laxer for Life

Yay!  Yay!  Yay!!  KJ finally had an official high school lacrosse game!  They lost by 1 but considering our girls have only been on the field two or three times, I'd say it was a success!  The weather has been so horrible and has totally wrecked the fields so they've mostly been in the gym conditioning and working on stick stills.  Some of the new girls were unsure about the hash marks, marking-up, etc.  KJ is definitely one of, if not the most, aggressive player on the team (shocker!) and definitely has great stick skills.  She still has a lot to learn but she really did great yesterday.  She had a couple of shots on goal, didn't score, but still took the shot nevertheless.  She played a little attack, she played a little defense as well.  She likes attack better.

I love the girls' uniforms and naturally my child has to coordinate her cleats and shoelaces.  She said they looked like a bunch of highlighters running around out there.

Unfortunately, Coach Stone couldn't be at the first game due to a family scheduling conflict but she asked Champ to help on the sidelines.  He warmed up the goalie and helped the assistant coach run the lines and was very vocal from the sidelines (shocker!).  I know it was killing him to keep quiet for most of the game and defer to the assistant coach but he did point out (rather loudly) to the ref that he awarded the ball to the wrong team.  Ref acknowledged he made a mistake, gave the ball to us and game on.

Being a little sassy and giving a lot of attitude on the field.  

Weak Week Coming Up

So this is my last week at the hotel and it's starting off kind of weird.  The last week is always hard -- trying to wrap things up, saying good-bye to co-workers, not being included in next week's stuff / schedule / etc.  I like my job very much but the commute is killing me and it has become not really worth it.  I've told KJ I'm going to be Super Mom and make her lunch every morning and drive her to school each day.  :-)

Cosmo had a busy weekend in Rockland.  He drove up to help clean out his mom's house and brought home a box of memories -- lots of photos and fun stuff.  On Sunday there was a mass for his mom which was nice and he got to spend some time with the twins.  And Fuji.

KJ's game Friday was cancelled due to weather and has been rescheduled for next week.  This week she has two lax games and a tailgate party and three nights worth of volleyball as well as a one-day tournament on Saturday.  She's going to be exhausted.

This weekend I started watching the new original series on Netflix, "Bloodlines."  I really liked it.  A lot of people on the internet said it was very slow moving and they couldn't get past episode 1 but I thought it was a lot like HBO's "True Detectives" in that it was a slow build.  And, of course, who doesn't love watching Kyle Chandler AKA Coach Taylor???

So Happy It's Friday

So, So Happy It's Friday!  It's been a lllloooooonnnnngggg week. KJ is supposed to have her very first official high school lax game today but it looks like this freaky Spring storm may cancel it.  They had a great scrimmage Tuesday afternoon and I know she's really looking forward to getting the season underway!  She played great -- a little attack, a little defense (she likes attack better) and, of course, Daddy's been warming up the goalie for the team.  I knew he couldn't stay away.  Lacrosse, to him, is like the Mafia.  It pulls him back in.  It's like crack.

Really looking forward to the weekend -- we have absolutely nothing to do!  No where to be, no games to sit at, no commitments.  Unfortunately, KJ does have a viewing to attend at some point this weekend.  One of the girls from her volleyball team's father passed away suddenly Wednesday night.  Very nice family and my heart just breaks for Jenna.  She's a very sweet, very quiet young lady and her parents were at every game, every event and always held hands.

I think it's time for Cosmo to stary looking for a new car.  He has my old Lexus (which has 250K+ miles on it!).  It's time to say good bye.  I loved driving the Lexus and hope he gets something similar.  We definitely need some type of SUV for our "stuff."  The Lexus got great gas mileage and I don't think we need to get a big rig or anything like that.  We're down to one kid so it's not like we're carpooling and doing a bunch of stuff like that.  We're beyond that.

Easter is fast approaching and I'm so glad the four of us (possibly 5 of us!) will all be together!  Last year T flew home but because of the limited number of direct flights from BWI to Memphis, she had to fly out early in the morning and didn't even have Easter dinner with us.  Matt and Kristen came for dinner so that was nice.  This year I think we're going to have brunch at the Gaylord or something.  IDK.  Cosmo is handling it.  Although I don't mind cooking, it will be nice to have someone else doing it.  And cleaning up!  :-)

We received some additional info about our cruise to Europe and couldn't be more excited!  Rome, Florence/Pisa, Cannes, Barcelona and Naples.  Whoop!  Whoop!  T and I have been to Rome, Florence and Pisa but I am SO looking forward to experiencing those cities with Cosmo!  This will be a different trip -- definitely more romantic than when I traveled with my high school freshman!

Gearing Up

Gearing up for another round of rough weather over the next couple of days.  Depending on where you live in the Metro DC area, you can get up to 10".  Of course, we fall right in that area.  It's all good.  The snow doesn't bother me one bit.  We're a snuggly family and love spending the day in our PJ's, relaxing, watching a good movie or reading a book.  KJ usually goes sledding with the neighborhood kids and we all pitch in and shovel the driveway.

Had such a great trip to Mississippi this past weekend!  Both my in/out flights were great and I had my luggage when I arrived!   My flight from BWI to MEM arrived more than 20 minutes early and was practically empty.  My "friend" Karen was working the Southwest counter in Memphis when I flew home Monday night and remembered me from this past summer.  Too funny!

Lots of new faces at this year's Miss Miss orientation, some familiar friendly faces, too!  It was nice seeing the girls and their parents again and we had a lot of fun at dinner Friday night.  This year's production should be great and the costumes looked super cute.

When I landed in Memphis Thursday night T, Pony Boy and I met Mel, Lou and the kids out for dinner.  What a hoot!  We laughed so much and got the kids really wound up.  That's what Aunt Valerie does best!  After we got to Oxford, T and I met Tana and Laney out for daiquiri's at Funky's and I spent the night in her dorm.  I was freezing cold but slept pretty good all things considered (meaning = considering I'm 45+ years old sleeping on a air mattress in a college dorm!).  Friday morning we had BBB and T got her nails done while I ran to Rebel Rags for a t-shirt for KJ.  We made it to Vicksburg in plenty of time for Friday night's meeting and Saturday she was at the YMCA for most of the day with her little ones learning their production numbers.  Thankfully T loves little kids.  There are almost 100 prince and princesses this year.

T's had a busy week and it's only Wednesday.  She had classes Monday morning, worked for a couple of hours, drove me to Memphis Monday afternoon, had Chapter meeting Monday night and on Tuesday she volunteered at the local iHop for National Pancake Day which benefit's one of Miss America's charities, the Children's Miracle Network.  The pic above is with a couple of other Ole Miss girls that will be competing with her in Vicksburg this summer.  France (left) is the current Miss University and Kristen (right) is Miss Southern Heartland.  Kendall, Carol and Ivey are Ole Miss girls who are local tittle holders as well.  After iHop, T attended a broadcast seminar/luncheon on behalf of one of her professors and from there she campaigned on campus for one of her sorority sisters who is running for something or other.  Next week is Spring Break and T did have plans to go to the beach but at the last minute the local Boys and Girls Club asked if she would speak to the kids each day so she decided that was more important.

KJ had lax try-outs this past weekend but we haven't heard if she's made JV or Varsity yet.  The weather is killing the season before it can even get under-way -- the fields are covered and they've had to do a lot of their practices and conditioning in the gym.  She was so excited to get her spirit wear the other day.  I made her try everything on and she said came out of her room and said, "I look like a big green bean!"  In a little nod to her daddy, she's wearing his old lax number, #17.  I'm so freaking proud!

She's still got volleyball going on.  This year's season seems to be going on a bit longer than last year's.  Her coaches sent out info about a Memorial Day weekend tournament.  Usually her season ends by April.

Guess What Day It Is!!!

It's Hump Day Y'all!!!  I'm so off schedule, yesterday was only Tuesday and I thought tomorrow (today) was Thursday.  Long week.  Very long week.  Fortunately, we have no major plans this weekend (other than hitting the Hopkins season opener).  I'd like to clean-out my closet and re-organize a bit.  It's supposed to be in the low- to mid-50's today; hope the weather holds out for the weekend!  

Southern Living magazine just published a list of bloggers to follow in 2015 (see link below): 
http://www.southernliving.com/travel/bloggers-to-follow-2015  Some of them I had already been following (I love when that happens!  makes me feel like "ha!"  I knew something before you did!!!), some I'm looking forward to following, some I won't be following at all  (sorry folks, but the gardening blogs just don't do much for me.  I do not have a green thumb at all.  I can keep a houseplant alive but that's about it).  

Yesterday T-bone had head shots taken for Miss Amory 2015 with the ever talented Mr. Blake McCollum.  Blake did her Miss Metro Jackson head shots last year but this year the session was part of her Miss Amory prize package.  She's been a busy pageant girl the last couple of days . . . last week she and her director Bo finalized her evening gown, head shots yesterday and this weekend she'll be crowning the new Miss Metro Jackson!  Her new evening gown is spectacular and I was so, so sad that I couldn't be there to help her shop but I'll be in Oxford in a few weeks to spend some time with my girl!  

KJ is continuing to be spectacular  -- she's still playing club volleyball two nights a week with tournaments on the weekends and she's luv, luv, luving high school lacrosse practice the other 3 nights.  She's exhausted but loving it.  And, she made the honor roll again!  She's taking all honors classes and is officially a two-sport Varsity athlete.  I am SO proud of this girl!  

The other night Cosmo & I saw "Whiplash" with the incredibly talented JK Simmons.  
Cosmo wasn't sure what to expect and I knew only a little bit about the movie.  It was great and JK Simmons was phenomenal.  He's a very underrated actor (who didn't love him as Juno's dad??  And what about those Farmers Insurance commercials??)  http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2582802/?ref_=nv_sr_1  I love awards season and always keep a list of movies, particularly independent movies, that sound interesting.  I do the same with books, too.  If I see a book review in a magazine or someone mentions a book, I write it down.  

Speaking of books, here's some info regarding the soon-to-be-published book by Harper Lee: http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-31127009  Still not sure how I feel about this.  Listen, I love a great book just as much as the next person but do feel that some things should just be left alone (that 3D Jaws movie always comes to mind!).  "To Kill a Mockingbird" is beloved and I just don't want the second book to be panned and torn to shreds by critics.  

Get 'Er Done

I fell off the blogging wagon for a few days but now am back.  It's been a busy week in our house!  Cosmo has been travelling a bit this week and is all over the place.  I had a haircut this week and had to exchange a pair of sexy shoes I bought for Cabo, KJ had two volleyball games this week -- one on Monday and one yesterday.  Monday's game was an absolute blowout -- they only had to play two games.  KJ is the starting setter but honestly, she barely touched the ball Monday afternoon.  I don't think she even got to serve in either of Monday's matches.  The other team was so bad, they couldn't return a serve so the two games went pretty fast.  We didn't even have to play defense and Sarah-Sparkley Headband just ran the board.  Yesterday's games were a little different and we only won one of the three matches.  We should have beat them in two but let's just say there were a lot of missed opportunities.  In the first match KJ had an incredible run and put up 11 or 12 points.  I lost track.  One thing is for sure though, KJ is her father's daughter through and through.  She's very, very competitive and very hard on herself.  And has high expectations of her teammates as well.  She has a couple girls on her team who just phone it in and it pisses her off to no end.

When volleyball is over, KJ will be faced with the decision to play travel volleyball again this Spring or to maybe play lacrosse.  She's torn -- she's a little worried that she may be "behind" the Maryland girls since she hasn't played lax in a couple of years (and also because she played in Alabama -- not exactly a traditional hotbed of lacrosse).  To which I said, Pish Posh.  She's very athletic and I think she'll pick it up again very easily.  Plus, The Legend can help her with her stick skills.

T is having an awesome Junior year so far and we're only a couple of weeks into the semester.  She will be a DJ again on Rebel Radio, she has an internship with the Lyric http://www.thelyricoxford.com/ a live music venue on the Square in Oxford) she's writing a few pieces for a Greek-life magazine and she found out she will be the Thursday night anchor for NewsWatch!  We are so incredibly proud of her!

This weekend I'll be in PA for my cousin's wedding, Friday KJ is going to the football game w/ friends, Saturday she has a b-day party and Sunday we have Redskins tickets.  I doubt I will be home in time for the game so it will probably just be Cosmo and KJ at the game (which makes me SO mad!!!  I'm the Skins fan in this house -- those two are Ravens fans!).

So, on to the next batch of Miss America photos!!!

Ab Fab

Such an absolutely fabulous weekend!  Didn't want it to end!  The weather was pure perfection, mid-to-high 80's, nothing but blue skies, not a cloud to be seen.

Saturday Coach and KJ made their way to Baltimore for the NCAA Division I lax semi-finals where they were to meet up with my brother and nephew.  Cosmo pulled into the parking lot and got out of the car only to hear, "Cos??  Is that you??"  Sure enough, it was a guy Cosmo played pee-wee, middle-school and high school football with.  I think Tommy moved to Florida our sophomore year but they guys were buds on FB.  Cosmo was the center, Tommy was the QB.  Tommy was there with his boys and their high school team from NJ and they had a big tailgate spread.  Naturally, Cosmo and KJ are not ones to pass up a tailgate so they visited with Tommy and his fam for a while.  And then, oddly enough, they rain into a girl who played Hoover middle school lax with KJ and her brothers also play or have played lax for Coach.

KJ had a great time getting her picture taken with various players, autographs and swag.  She came home with lanyards, sunglasses, Tervis tumblers and t-shirts.  They had great seats and were able to stay out of the direct sun and avoid a sunburn.  My brother's seats were in a different section but they were still able to meet up with each other and do all the fun fan zone stuff for the kids.  My sister-in-law and C spent the day at the aquarium and everyone met back at my house in the evening.  The kids were exhausted and we watched Frozen before we went to bed.  Loved listening to my niece sing "Let it Go."

Sunday morning the kids were in the pool by 10:30 AM and we had to drag them out around 7 PM.  I think they only time they got out of the pool was to eat and (hopefully) use the bathroom!  Uncle Chris had the heater on all week and the water was perfect!  It was like bath water!  Al and Z came over around 1 PM and we grilled and chilled.  Around 5 PM our B'ham friends came over for dinner on their way back from DC.  They were in Baltimore for the lax games too and it was so wonderful to spend some time with them.  The boys had a good time in the pool and I think Mr. B was happy to have some boys to play with instead of C.  KJ's "friend" Connor came over for the day and ate with us, threw the rock around a bit and played some cornhole.

Monday KJ and Coach went back to Baltimore for the finals and the kids had to get one last swim in before they headed back home.  After everyone left I had a great day catching up on laundry (I love pool towels hanging off the back deck or the pool railing -- it just screams summer!), catching up on my tan and catching up on my book.  As much as I love being surrounded by family and friends, I also covet my quiet time.  The weather was spectacular and I spent quite a long time just floating on my pool raft.  No noise.  No one yelling "Aunt Valerie!!!  Watch this!"  No one doing a cannonball.  Just some good, quality, peace and quiet.  Aaaaahhhh......

A little lax. A little dance. A little vball.

Busy, Busy weekend coming up. Ordinarily it wouldn't bother me but I have a horrible head cold and just want to curl up on the couch w/a cup of hot chocolate, a heating pad, a stack of movies and some NyQuil.


Lax season is officially upon us. Tonight is our 6th? 7th? Annual Lacrosse Auction. Always a lot of fun! We used to have it the night before the very first practice of the season and it was a great opportunity for the parents to meet the coaches and vice versa. Time slipped away from us this year so we are having the Auction before the first game of the season. Saturday the boys are playing on the turf at the high school which is always awesome! It really makes a big difference to the boys when they can play on their high school field. It's a major sense of pride to play on that turf field and out of town teams always, always, always are curious to see where Two-A-Days was filmed. Coach is super SUPER proud of this year's seniors. Last year was kind of rough w/ only 1 senior on the team and B had a lot going on. A Coach always looks to his more experiened players to set an example for the younger kids and this year's group of boys have really stepped up to the plate and taken on a leadership position. Coach said the other night as he was wrapping things up some of the senior boys asked if they could have a few minutes. They asked everyone to order a couple of t-shirts and polo shirts so that they could all wear them on game day as a team. I thought that was pretty cool. I think this group of boys wants to go out w/ a bang and get back their state championship trophy.


KJ has a local volleyball tournament this weekend. Very glad we don't have to drive far or deal with a hotel room this weekend (when I don't feel good, I just want to sleep in my own bed). Her little team is so good and she really likes all the girls. Her two coaches are tough but KJ needs that kind of discipline.


T had her last high school Pep Rally ever. So sad. I can NOT believe how fast senior year has gone by. Every year we've had to attend a mandatory parent dance meeting if your daughter was interested in trying out for Bnettes. It was so weird this year not having to attend. Aaahhh, one of the perks having a senior! She's got lax practice Saturday morning and is going to try to make some of KJ's games before she has to head out to a charity event with the dance team. That first day is always pool play so depending on how KJ's games go, I may or may not be able to make T's exhibition. If the stars and the planets and the moon align correctly, I may even be able to catch some lax. I've been dying to photograph a lax game w/ my new camera but I'm not worried. I know I will have a LOT of opportunities to catch some games. A LOT. More than I care to think about.