The Weekend That Almost Wasn't

Have you ever done something so stupid that you couldn't believe you actually did it? Well...I had this experience this past week. On Friday, I was supposed to fly out to Dallas to see my family. So naturally, on Thursday afternoon, I decided I better print out my ticket. Well, when I typed in the record number, it said the flight was cancelled. You can imagine what I was probably doing...FREAKING OUT, right? So, I called up the airlines to see what was up. Well, the lady on the phone very kindly told me (after looking up my ticket) that the reason it was cancelled was because that flight had left THAT MORNING...I had booked a ticket for the 24th, not the 25th!!! HOW COULD I HAVE DONE THIS???

I tried to be calm and explain to the woman over the phone that my brother had leave for the weekend, and that I was going to Dallas to say goodbye to him before he is deployed next week. She was very nice and told me that all she could do was reschedule my return flight and note in the computer that I had called. She then told me that I needed to go to the airport that night and plead my case to the agent in baggage claim (since the main ticket counter would be closed for the night) and hope that he or she felt like putting me on the stand by list for the flight the next morning. Then I'd need to be at the airport by 5 a.m. the next morning (the flight was at 6) and hope I got a seat. I was really freaking out by now...still in shock that I had booked the wrong flight...but I got off the phone and waited for Shane to get home from work so that I could head out for the airport.

I got to the airport and waited for a flight to come in...so that an agent would be at the baggage claim office. I kept seeing very grouchy people coming down the steps and kept praying they weren't the ones I'd have to plead my case to. Finally, a lady...who didn't look grouchy...opened the office. I walked in and tried to explain to her my situation (it's a very hard thing to explain that you are a moron and can't read the date on your itinerary that you have printed in front of you and have looked at all week to make sure you knew what time your plane left, but never noticed the date) trying to get her sympathy. She said that she would look and see what she could do. I told her that the agent on the phone had said that the flight wasn't booked and that she had the power to get me on the standby list. While she was looking it up, I decided to tell her why this trip was so important to me. I told her about Donny leaving next week and she stopped and looked me. Then she told me that she was just going to book me on the flight...with a seat and everything...no standby!!! She asked me to thank him for what he is doing for our country. At that moment...yes...the big huge tears began to flow!!! It is so nice to know that there are still people out there who are just plain NICE! So thank you Sue at American Airlines...if not for you, my weekend never would have happened!

I got on my flight on Friday morning as if nothing had happened (yes, as if I wasn't a total idiot who missed my flight the previous day with out knowing it) and the first thing I noticed was that they made a public announcement that anyone who was active military could board whenever they wanted. Then, the first thing the stewardess said when we got on the plane, before the whole safety speech, was thank you to all of our military on the flight and everyone started clapping. Maybe I'm just more sensitive to it now, but I haven't noticed anyone being behind our troops like this in a very long time. (Other than at Sea World during the Shamu show.) That is one of the things I really miss about being in the military scene all the time. It just seems like everyone has forgotten and is just going on with their every day lives while these men and women are off defending our freedom.

After I got picked up at the airport, we went to IHOP for breakfast. The server asked us if we were there for a special occasion...I think because there were so many of us (Donny, Mom, Kari and her kids, and myself). We told her that Donny was leaving next week and when it came time to leave, she told us that his breakfast had been on the house.

We had a great weekend! I was pretty much Donny's shadow. We went to the mall to pick up all the last minute things he needed...again, when people found out that he was deploying next week, they were so appreciative of him and they just wanted to shake his hand! We went to our nephew's baseball game and to our niece's volleyball game. We hot tubed and we played A LOT of Guitar Hero! For those of you who know Donny...he loves video games. I figured that since the whole reason I went home this weekend was to be with him, if he was playing a video game at every spare moment, that it was ok if I did it too!

Dad and his brother, Uncle Randy even played Guitar Hero with us!

It was very hard to say goodbye to him this morning. Donny and I have finally become friends over the past few years (as opposed to just brother and sister) and it is very hard to see him go. Don't get me wrong...I know that many families are in the same boat as I am. I have lots of friends who have loved ones that have been in Iraq or Afghanistan...or who have gone over themselves. But with my little brother it is different. He's my baby brother...it just hits home and that's all there is to it.

Donny is very excited to be serving our country. He is in a great unit with a great group of guys. While he can't really talk about what he will be doing over the next 10 months, he has promised to keep in touch! He deploys sometime next week. He will be in Afghanistan...but that's all we know. For those of you reading this, please keep not only him, but all of our troops in your thoughts and prayers. I know that not everyone supports the war, but regardless, everyone can support our troops. They are, after all, over there for you and I!

The BIG Four!!!

Rylie had a GREAT birthday yesterday! She reminded us all day that she is 4 now!!!
Her day started off with breakfast with dad. (Shane takes the kids out to breakfast on their birthdays. They love it!) Rylie wanted to go to Farmer Boys for some "dippy eggs"! Grandma and Grandpa came from New Mexico to spend Rylie's birthday with her!
Rylie and Lauren
Check out this cake! My friend Linda made this amazing cake for Rylie! (The pictures don't do it justice...it was so beautiful!) Rylie absolutely loved it! A pink and purple princess cake with a crown on top...what more could a little girl want! She even had a chocolate tier and a white tier...of course Rylie had to eat both!
Make a wish!!!
Before I took this picture, Rylie said, "this is how princesses smile" and then she broke out the pose!
She loves her new Barbie bike! (She has been sitting on it all morning, playing her Leapster, and ringing the bell every few minutes! Quite a sight!)
Mom and her baby girl at the end of a very BIG day!!!

Happy Birthday Rylie!!!

Today is Rylie's 4th Birthday!!! Yes, my baby is four...I can't believe it! Where did the time go? When we put her to bed last night, we told her that when she woke up she would be four...her response was, "and there will be strings hanging up"! (Last year, when she woke up on her birthday, we had decorated for her party and so there were streamers everywhere when she woke up.) Needless to say, I ran to the store for some pink and purple streamers right after I tucked her in! I wouldn't want her to not have her "strings" when she woke up on her birthday!

So...here is a little Rylie trivia for you!
Rylie is named after her Aunt Katie!
Nicknames: Bug, Smiley Rylie (she was always smiling as a baby), Little Missy, and Ry-Ry...the one that has now "stuck"!
Favorite Princess: Belle
Favorite Songs: Popular (and any other song from Wicked), Best of Both Worlds, Lollipop, Teardrops on my Guitar, Our Song, and songs by "Chris" (Daughtry...courtesy of her mom!...I'm still working on the "Tim" ones!)
Favorite Thing to Do: Walk around the house in a crown and high heels
Very Best Buddy: LoLo (Her partner in crime! Need I say more!)
Favorite Food: BASKETTI (spaghetti)
Favorite Sport: Gymnastics

I'll quiz her a little more through out the day! Any questions for her?

So...I put together a slide show of her life. Let's just say, that since she is my only ALL DIGITAL kid...there were A LOT of pictures to choose from! I'm probably the only person in the world who will watch the whole thing, but enjoy as much as you would like! These past four years have flown by! Our lives have changed so much since Rylie joined our family! We have enjoyed every second of having a dramatic, crazy little girl in our lives. We are so blessed!!! We love you Rylie Kate!!! Happy Birthday!!!

Sing-A-Long!!!

One of the great things about living where we do, is that we are within an hour and a half...two hours max...of ANYTHING!!! Take today for instance...this morning, Karolin, Aimee and I took our girls to the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood for the Little Mermaid Sing-A-Long movie! It was so much fun!!! For those of you who aren't familiar with this theatre, it is owned by Disney and most of the Disney movies are shown here when they come out. Sometimes they even do movie premieres there. It is on Hollywood Blvd, across the street from the Kodak Theatre and right next door to Jimmy Kimmel Live. And for those of you asking, yes there are "stars" on the sidewalk out in front of it. (It is on the Hollywood Walk of Fame...Tim McGraw's Star is on the opposite side of the street...I believe between the Chinese Theatre and the Kodak Theatre, for those of you who were wondering!)

Rylie and Mackenzie didn't know where we were going. When they saw this sign...they both started screaming! They were so excited!!!
Andrea and Rylie with their popcorn and drinks.
Mackenzie and Shealynn...enjoying our VIP seats! Sebastian even came out and did a little dance at the end...the girls loved that!
The girls loved seeing the "real" Ariel at the beginning of the movie. She told them to sing to all the songs and to conduct the music with Sebastian. At first, they weren't too sure about the singing aloud, but as the movie went on, they were singing and dancing in their seats! A side note about the moms...see, we were there too!!! We loved singing LOUD from the very beginning! Aimee and I had a VERY hard time keeping up with Sebastian in, "Under the Sea", however! Have you ever tried to read the "real" words and sing with him...not as easy as you might think! Mackenzie kept telling us to be quiet...it was pretty funny!
Karolin and Aimee were pros at the end when we were told to, "sing like a choir"! We all just imagined our FAVORITE choir director leading us on...and we BELTED IT OUT!!!

We had such a good time with the girls...little and big! AND...for all you skeptics out there...if you ever get the chance to go to a sing-a-long movie...DO IT! There is nothing like sitting in the dark singing as loud as you want while your surrounded by good friends...and strangers too!!! (My Hairspray friends...you know what I'm talking about!)

A House FULL OF "SICKOS"!!!

Ok...so last Thursday Parker was diagnosed with strep throat...what joy that was! Of all my kids, he is definitely my easiest sick kid. He just goes with the flow. So, days of keeping him home while he was contagious were pretty enjoyable. Well...as luck would have it...today Rylie and Mason were diagnosed with it...AAAHHHHHHH!!!! You would think their heads are going to fall off or something! They are NOT good "sick" people. They are very "needy" sickos! It is funny sometimes to see how dramatic they can actually get when they are sick! So...two more days of home confinement for me...aren't I lucky! Poor Shane...tonight his team is playing one of the best teams in the league. Mason has been hitting really well lately...and he has no Mason tonight. Although it was tempting, we couldn't contaminate the whole team...that would NOT be good! So...off I go to deal with the sick ones. Thank goodness for Harry Potter, the Leapster, Dora, and the Game Cube!

On a side note, for those of you who watch American Idol...how did you like Carly's rendition of "Ken Lee"? I think Valentina's is much better!

Derby Champ!!!

Mason had his first Pinewood Derby last night. (Last year he participated in the Space Derby.) He had so much fun getting his car ready! He and Shane worked very hard on it...and needless to say, Thursday night was a late night of "spinning the wheels"! Mason named his car, "The Gator" and by 6:30 last night, he was ready to see how fast his car could actually go!

"The Gator"

Drilling holes to add some weight
Lubing up the wheels
"I'm really proud of this car!" (Mason's exact words as I was taking this picture!)

Mason said that he got really nervous the first time he set his car on the ramp...and none of us had any idea what his car would do. Well, lets just say that Mason's car being fast was kind of an understatement! His car FLEW down the track! It was so fun to watch! He ended up taking first place! It was a very exciting night!

The top 3 cars with their creators!

All of the boys did such a good job on their cars! It was fun to see how creative everyone got and what ideas they came up with! From a General Lee, to a car with it's own driver...the boys went to all the different extremes! Awards were given out for different categories after the races. Mason won "best paint job"...which is really funny...seeing how his car was covered with a body wrap instead of paint!

Our Cub Pack showing off their cars!

Mason loves scouts. Perks like the Pinewood Derby makes him love it even more! He's received his Wolf and his Bear and will be a Webelos in August!

Happy Birthday Shane!!!

Yesterday Shane celebrated the big 35!!! I promised myself that I wasn't going to rub in how OLD he is, since (unfortunately) I'm not far behind! We celebrated the big day by going to the Melting Pot with our friends Tim and Julie (who by the way, have NEVER been on a blog...so this is their BIG debut)! For those of you who haven't heard of it, it is a fondue restaurant. It was so fun!!! We decided that you definitely need to go with people you like...since there is "double dipping" involved, and that you need to have time on your hands and not be starving to fully enjoy the experience! It is a four course meal...including cheese fondue, salad, cooking your entire meal by fondue (which was very good, buy the way...Tim got the pink sticks...Rylie would have given him a hard time about that!), and then dessert by chocolate fondue! Julie and I thought this was the very best part, of course! We chose the Smore's chocolate...and we got to dip tons of yummy stuff in it! It is definitely something you should experience at least once...the dessert you could experience MANY, MANY times!!! We had a great time!

Getting ready for the big experience!

Julie "cooking" her dinner...it was so cool!

The CHOCOLATE!!! SO YUMMY!!!

When we got home, the kids were waiting up to have a little party with dad! Unfortunately, he needed clothes for work (he hates dressing up...would much rather wear jeans!) so his gifts weren't too exciting...but the kids were excited to give them to him! Mason, Parker, and Rylie loved singing the Madagascar version of Happy Birthday to him...and then they tore into the cake!!!

Happy Birthday Shane!!! We love you!!!