Fatti Maschii, Parole Femine

Interesting post title, huh?  Answer will be revealed at the end!

The weather has been absolutely positively fabulous the last couple of days!  The service opened our pool on Wednesday and we had a ton of rain basically all day Thursday and Friday morning.  Cosmo put the pool heater on and by 12 noon on Saturday KJ was swimming (it wouldn't matter if the heater was on or not; she'll swim in anything!  If there is a body of water nearby, that kid will be in it).  And she had the dog in the pool with her.  It's so funny to watch!  Trixie jumps in and can swim from one end of the pool to the other.  Her little legs go a mile a minute and she looks like a little wind-up bath toy.

First weekend we didn't have volleyball and we were able to get so much done around the house.  We cleaned all the patio furniture, Cosmo put some mulch down around the pool and the patio and surprised me with several hibiscus potted plants and gerbera daisy pots to put around the pool deck.  We're having company Memorial Day weekend so I got all of my pretty plastic plates and serving pieces out of storage and washed them to get ready for some al fresco dining!  I also put away my "Spring Shabby Chic Parisian Flea Market" tablescape and my dining room and entrance way are full-on "Summer Beach House" mode.

Saturday night we decided to drive to Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis to see the Bayhawks play the new Florida Launch.  We got to see Coach's buddy PT play.  They met at a lax camp they did together and have been friends ever since.  Always great to see great players such as Queener, Kevin Crowley, Polanco, and Mikey Powell.  The weather was perfect, we had great seats and KJ had a lot of fun.  She forgot to bring a ball with her so she didn't get any autographs this time.  MLL games are so fun because the players are so accessible.  No egos.  Most, if not all, of the guys also have regular day jobs and several of them also coach youth leagues.

Looks like we're going to have a busy, fun summer!  My bro and his fam will be here for Memorial Day as well as some friends from Alabama.  June 6 is KJ's 8th grade formal and apparently everyone's coming to our house for photos.  June 13 is 8th grade graduation and there's a weekend at the end of June that we will get to see our friends from Cincy as well as some Bama friends.  My cousin's wedding reception is mid-June, too.  After that we transition to full-on pageant mode and will have some free time mid-July to mid-August.

Post Translation:  

(Manly Deeds, Womanly Words)

http://www.netstate.com/states/mottoes/md_motto.htm

Update !!!

Today I have officially been back in Maryland for a week!  So far so good! 

To date, the move has been awesome!  The packers who boxed up the house were great!  Very easy to work with and very professional.  The local Birmingham movers who loaded up the truck were okay, not great, not terrible.  Unfortunately, they were on the "older" side which surprised me since their representative had been out to our house, saw that it sat on a huge hill and also knew it was 3 levels (basement/garage, main level and upper).  The local guys did nothing but bitch and complain about the hill, the stairs and the heat.  All out of my control.  And the bitching got on my last nerve quite quick. 

After some room service, a hot shower, some wine and a restful night at Ross Bridge, the dog and I left Hoover Saturday morning and headed North.  I could have and should have driven straight through but decided to stop in Virginia and break up the trip a bit.  I had never driven that far by myself and didn't know how I'd do.  When I made my hotel reservations, I forgot that I was driving from Central to Eastern time and lost an hour.  I should have made my hotel a little farther than I did and end up stopping a little too early.  And I kind of had to smuggle the dog into the room in a Vera Bradley tote.  I was a nervous wreck that she'd start barking and give us away so I didn't sleep a wink.  At 4:30 AM I was still wide awake and by 5:15 AM I was on the road.  And I hit a lot of heavy, heavy dense fog the entire way up I-81.  Other than that, the drive was uneventful and Trixie was great. 

I was at our house by 12 noon Sunday and after lunch we spent the entire afternoon in the pool.  And on Monday, we barbequed and lounged in the pool the entire day.  It was so nice not having anything to do or anywhere to be.  Tuesday I drove KJ to school and picked her up but Wednesday she rode the bus both ways and has been riding the bus ever since.  The bus stop is two houses down and it's awesome.  She waits at our front door and doesn't start walking to the bus stop until the bus passes our house. 

From the middle school on Tuesday I went grocery shopping and ran a bunch of other errands trying to get familiar with everything.  Tuesday afternoon the previous owners came by to say hello and show me how to run the pool heater, filter, etc.  I gave her my contact info and she texted me later that afternoon to ask if she could bring her daughter by to meet KJ.  Lexi then texted a bunch of girls in the neighborhood and they came over to meet KJ which was super sweet.  This neighborhood is FULL of 8th graders!  So awesome!!!  Two of the girls, another Kendall and a girl named Lucy, made plans to walk KJ to the bus the next day. 

The local Baltimore crew who unloaded on Wednesday were absolutely awesome!  Wow.  I couldn't have asked for a better crew!  Pleasant, fun, helpful, personable.  I am up to my eyeballs in boxes but we're getting through it.  Our family room has curtains (yay!), most of the kitchen has been unpacked, haven't touched my dining room (low priority) and KJ's room is almost done.  I haven't done anything in T's room but Cosmo is all unpacked.  We have separate closets in the house so I'm taking my time with mine.  The closets are positively HUGE and I've got a dressing table in my closet and plan to make it look all fancy and chic. 

Wednesday was a little crazy with movers running around, the pool guy came by, KJ rode the bus for the first time, etc.  One top of all that Cosmo had contacted the volleyball coach and explained our situation to him and asked if he could recommend any clubs or camps.  He asked if KJ had played any travel ball and when Cosmo replied she had 3 years of travel ball under her belt, he told them to come out to that night's practice.  Fortunately I had separated her volleyball stuff and drove it up in my car and we didn't have to hunt through a million boxes to find it!

 

I'm kinda losing track of my days but one night (Thursday or Friday maybe?) we went to Jimmie Cone for ice cream.  For my North Rockland friends, it's like Hoyers and it's delicious!  I'm just a plain vanilla soft serve, cake cone w/ rainbow sprinkles kind of girl but it totally hit the spot! 



Life Is Like a Box of Chocolates . . .

. . . you never know what you're gonna get.  Especially when KJ's been messing around with your camera.  She has her own brand new camera purposely bought for Disney but she somehow still manages to leave a few surprises on my memory stick: 

Obviously she's quite excited about Disney and has been reading up on her Disney facts.  Did you know that 6 of the 7 Dwarfs have a parking lot named after them in the Magic Kingdom?  Doc is the only one who does not.  Disney folks were afraid park visitors would get Parking "Doc" confused with Boat "Dock."  And this is what I've come home to a couple of times this week:  

I like to call this one "Rasta Trix Goes Disney"  -- looks like a bunch of nasty dreds on her head. 

She looks positively thrilled, doesn't she???

And here we have T's dorm stuff taking over the guest room.  She worked all day yesterday so we met for dinner and then a quick Wal-mart run for some health & beauty stuff and other miscellaneous stupidness:  

Quilt from Urban Outfitters:  check

Carpe Diem Shams from Urban:  check

(2) Sets of Sheets:  check

Mattress protector and Mattress topper:  check, check 

(3) Sets of Towels;  Check

Bike and Bike Lock:  Check

Laptop:  TBD (she knows what she needs for Journalism; it's just a matter of finding the time to go to the Apple store and get it)

Laptop Lock:  Check

Extension Cords and Surge Protectors:  check, check

Shower Caddy, Bedside Caddy, First Aid Kit:  check, check and check

Desk Lamp, School Supplies, Fan:  check, check and check

New Underwear and Socks:  check, check

Hamper, Laundry Bag, Laundry Detergent, Dryer Sheets, Stain Stick:  check, check, check, check and check!

Hangers, Iron, Ironing Blanket:  check, check and check

Fridge, Microwave and Hot Pot:  check, check and check

New Backpack:  check

These are a couple of crafts T made for her room:  A smaller version of the chicken wire jewelry holder she made for her bedroom room here at home, mason jars spray painted with chalkboard paint for pens, pencils, make-up brushes (I think she's got some burlap or twine or something to still go on the jars).  I have no idea what she plans to do with that bottle she painted blue.  Maybe just for decoration?  A pop of color??

Each dorm is different and the newer ones they've built this summer @ Ole Miss are gorgeous!  We've been hearing horror stories from friends and seen some photos on instagram of dad's trying to build shelving units or bookcases (how are you going to get that in your car?  Wouldn't you rather assemble when you get there?).  T lucked out because her dorm is older and the entire one wall is full of built-ins (times 2) . . . a hanging closet, a desk, a set of built in drawers and storage all across the top.  She doesn't need to bring bookcases, storage or anything like that.  While the newer dorms already had them, we did have to buy the fridge and micro and her roomie is bring the TV and her mom offered to buy a rug for their room.  I've chatted with both Bess and her mom and we are so looking forward to meeting!  I think the girls are going to be a GREAT match and have an AWESOME year!!  Whoop!  Whoop!

Stupendous Saturday!!!

Great start to a great Saturday!  Cosmo let me sleep in AND he made everyone bacon and eggs.  Gah, there is nothing like waking up to the smell of bacon!!  mmmmm! 

He and KJ are off on one of their weekly Father/Daughter Dates.  Today they took Trixie to the new dog park in Alabaster http://www.alabasterreporter.com/2012/07/05/celebrities-attending-dog-park-unveiling/  and they may try to hit that new Steel City Pops in Homewood http://steelcitypops.com/.  T is at work so I have the whole house to myself!  When I have the house to myself it's kind of a cross between Tom Cruise dancing in his underwear a la Risky Business with a little Macauly Culkin thrown in for good measure.

Miles:  I don't believe this! I've got a trig midterm tomorrow, and I'm being chased by Guido the killer pimp.

I've really enjoyed the rain we've had this week but love it when we have sunny Saturday's (honestly, I don't care what it does during the week, just be nice for my weekends).  I'm thinking me and my Nook need to hightail it to the pool.  Barnes and Noble folks listen up:  if you created some type of waterproof box (similar to what's available for cameras, iPods, etc.), I could be working on my mind AND my tan at the same time!!!   Aaahh...gently floating away in my tube while reading my favorite book.....