For those keeping track...

Today is Alli and Boy Wonder's first wedding anniversary. How time flies, huh? A year ago today....

Disheartened

There is so much going on here that I don't even have the ability to process it enough to post it here. I will soon. Bear with me, please.

In the meantime, nothing takes your mind off a little emotional trauma like a good home renovation project. So, I've hired a "carpenter." I use the quotations there because he's also my lawn guy. He came to cut my yard last week and happened to mention that he liked yard work but his favorite thing was sheet rock repair. I dragged him into my kitchen (which I stripped the wallpaper from well over a year ago) and said, "Help!"

So, he's stripped the paneling that covered my kitchen walls from the middle down. He's going to replace it with sheet rock. He's also going to skim coat the existing sheet rock to give me a smooth surface for painting. If all goes according to plan, by the end of spring break, I should have kitchen walls! Hooray!

To give you a visual -

Kitchen walls in February, 2008, before I tackled this project

Kitchen walls after I stripped wallpaper but did nothing else in March, 2008 (Explains the need for the skim coat at the top, huh?)

Kitchen walls with newly discovered moldy insulation, March, 2009

Kitchen walls as they currently are - stripped of 70s paneling and moldy sheet rock

This picture?

It's my principal and assistant principal from school. This is the opening page of our school website. Last month, their heads were photoshopped into the American Gothic painting. It was good, but this is much, much funnier. I love working for them when they have good senses of humor.

Invitation

I got an invitation to a party this week. I can't remember the last time I got an actual invitation. Not a phone call or an in-person "hey, come on over." An actual, on-paper invitation to a no-kids party. Can you tell I'm a little excited?

Twilight is being released on DVD Saturday. One of the teachers from school is having a Twilight viewing party. I feel like such a nerd for being so excited but we all are, so at least I'm not the only nerd. The party host teaches first grade. She invited 3 kindergarten teachers and 4 first grade teachers, as well at 4 of her friends who don't teach at our school. We are going to be total dorks - watch the movie, have Twilight-themed snacks, and participate in a Twilight trivia game.

Aren't you jealous?? LOL!

Heidi Noelle Lenhart

10 years ago, my oldest nephew (then age 5) became obsessed with a kids' movie shown on Fox Family Channel. The name was "Au Pair." However, my nephew, prone to repeating phrases from TV and movies, called it "The Au Pair with Heidi Noelle Lenhart." It aired repeatedly, as most kids' movies do on channels like that and in the commercials, seen over and over, it was always referred to that way. He heard it so many times that he called it that, too.

None of us knew why he liked it so much. We just knew that if it was on, he wanted to watch it. So, watch it we did. Over and over and over. He had it memorized. We had it memorized. It wasn't a bad movie but over time, it did get a little boring. Thankfully, the movie finally faded from the play list and nephew moved on it other interests, until...

2001, when ABC Family Channel (which had replaced Fox Family Channel) started running ads for "Au Pair II." I can't honestly say if nephew chose to watch this movie or if the adults in his life planted in his head that he wanted to watch the movie. Either way, we happily watched "The Au Pair II with Heidi Noelle Lenhart" many, many times. And then, like with everything else, it also faded from our lives. Forever, or so we thought. Until...

TODAY! The ABC Family Channel is having the world broadcast premier of "Au Pair 3." I first saw the add over a month ago and immediately texted my sister-in-law. She was as excited at I was. Nephew, now 15 years old, couldn't care less. We do, however, plan to force him to watch it. Won't hurt him and it will amuse us to no end. So, if you need a little family entertainment today, check it out on ABC Family. Just for fun, they are showing 1 and 2 right before the premier 3. I highly recommend them!

One of these girls...

One of these young ladies died today. It's not Beth, thank goodness. I still don't have all the details but she (dead girl, not Beth) had been drinking and decided to go play on four-wheelers with friends. At 18, her life is over...9 weeks before her high school graduation.

This time last year, Beth and this girl were theverybestfriendsever. Literally, they were inseparable, despite my best attempts at separating them. I believe I even referred to this girl as "idiot friend" on my blog. She wasn't outright evil but she was a bad influence on Beth. She was definitely in charge in her family. Her mother and Nana seemed to have little ability (or desire) to rein in her behavior.

And now? They can't. Ever again.

How sad. For them. For Beth (who is shaken, even though they weren't still best friends). For the other kids in their school who will again have to bury a classmate.

Wordless Wednesday

Snow!

It's totally wasted on a weekend but it's still exciting to see.

It'd be even more exciting if Elvis felt better. He stopped throwing up but still isn't eating much at all. My stomach is really hurting. I wonder if we are sharing the same bug. I gave him a dose of Motrin last night (early this morning, really) and he finally got some sleep.

I guess the rest of my day will be spent comforting Elvis and watching my dreams of a snow day tomorrow melt away...