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Saturday, February 28, 2009

I'm in love...

with Melonie Ellzey. She is an amazing photographer. I'm even forgiving her for being petite and beautiful - ONLY because the pictures from our family photo shoot are fantastic. Her website is
www.onceuponatimephotographyllc.com. She charges one fee which includes the photo shoot and the CD full of pictures with the Copyright Release. Please book her - you'll be thrilled with the results!
Here are just a few of my favorites. I may have to wallpaper my house with these pictures!

Even during tax season I have to make time for creativity...

If you prefer NOT to see my husband using a penis as a microphone - you should skip over this layout... Every year our VERY brave friends Lee Anne and Craig host a "Dirty Dirty Santa" party. The day of the party Mr. Binky's is filled with grown men trying to find the most obnoxious items for the Dirty Gift Swap. By the end of the night, Lee Anne and Craig's bazillion dollar house is filled with drunk penis waiving people - what could be more fun??



We took the girls and Ashley, Collin, Parker and Hannah to see USM in the New Orleans Bowl - and yes, of course - USM won!!! How cute is Avery dancing on the sidelines?



Christmas school parties - Morgan didn't sing with her class, and Avery ALMOST cried during her class song. Because of GiGi, they both blame this on "stagefright". Seriously - what other 4 and 5 year olds even know what stagefright is? Thanks Mom!



Although we had already taken pictures with Santa at Shaw, the girls were dying to see Santa at the mall. So I humored them, not intending to be suckered into buying pictures. And then Morgan talked Santa's ear off, making Santa have to stop her to ask what Avery wanted for Christmas (huge surprise that motor mouth was on a roll). As luck would have it - the picture of them talking to Santa was too cute - so of course, I bought the pictures!




I refer to this as the "Deer in Headlights" school picture.



My friend Jen's girls are so precious - and are all over my scrapbooks. Here are some professional pictures she had taken. I just love their sweet faces!




I'm totally into using up my insane "stash" of scrapbook supplies. So more impressive than me actually scrapbooking is the fact that I already owned everything used on these pages. You are WAY more creative when you have to use what you have - but it's fun too. I used Stickles, Diamond Glaze, really old Rub-Ons, ancient letter stickers, a page kit I've had for ages, paint and scalloped scissors!

Friday, February 27, 2009

The Disney Photo Pass CD Came today...

Humor me - I know I've already posted Disney pics, but I can't sleep and there were some really cute pictures on the CD. I love that all four of us could be in pictures together. I can't wait to scrapbook the trip -that's an after tax season project...





























Desperate times - desperate measures...

and I'm not talking about the stock market or the economy!

Being the good Cathlic that I am (lightening is striking), I have decided to give up chewing for lent. You may think this is drastic, but 40 days compared to the 84 days last year - cake walk!

See for me - it's easier not to have and decisions or choices - because if you offer me a carrot stick and a cookie, I can only resist the cookie so many times. And I'm REALLY good at talking myself into things, and REALLY bad at willpower.

When you are on a liquid diet, the only choices are vanilla or chocolate - chewing isn't an option.

And seriously - if you opened the newspaper on a daily basis and found the "One Weigh" ad with your picture - wouldn't you cringe a little knowing you had gained 10 of those 60 pounds back? Another source of tremendous guilt - but I'll save that for therapy...

So wish me luck - and help me dream up some fabulous non-food rewards for every 10 days on liquids. Massage, a CPA fairy, a scrapbooking night...

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Cutest almost 2 year old...

The other day the Ironman sent me an e-mail with this picture attached.
OMG! How little is Avery in this picture??? Does she even have legs?? She was two months away from her second birthday. We had just moved into our house, the ENTIRE block was under construction, and Shane was documenting for the fence company that the poles were not sufficiently "stuck" into the ground. This seems like ages ago! I can't believe we have been for almost 2 and a 1/2 years.
My girls hardly even notice cows and horses anymore. I catch a twang in some of their words. They have lived more years in cowtown than they did in Metairie. And they don't remember New Orleans at all. Sometimes they refer to "our old house", but it's when looking at a picture - not a real memory.
I want them to appreciate all of the wonderfulness New Orleans has to offer. I'm planning on "playing tourist" this summer with the girls - riding a streetcar, going to the zoo, having a picnic in Audubon Park, bowling at Rock 'n Bowl and countless other things. Even though we don't live there now, they can still experience the greatness of NOLA...

Monday, February 23, 2009

I love you a billion miles...

that's what Morgan said to me tonight as she was going to sleep. Then she said, "That's a lot!" So maybe I should focus on those sweet moments while I listen to she and Avery fight constantly.

Now that we live in Baton Rouge, we head to NOLA on the Sunday before Mardi Gras. Shane and Collin left BR at 6am to stake out spots for the ladders. All three girls had a blast. I think they liked the music from the dance groups more than anything. They haven't stopped singing, "All the Single Ladies" since we got home. But, seriously, they ONLY know that line, so they sing it over and over again! Here are some pics...
Here's Avery - screaming for beads while Shane laughs and Morgan looks annoyed at being disturbed - how unusual...
Here's Parkerman at his first Mardi Gras. We had matching shirts made for all of the kids - we are nerds!
I love this shot of Morgan - remember - she loves me a billion miles!

Birdie loved our pimped out ladder (thanks to Daddy). Next year he's planning on scaffolding...
Shane and his girls...
And finally - Collin gets the award for buying the most annoying toy in the world - a ridiculous plastic horn for Hannah! Thank goodness it broke early in the day! I do believe in miracles!





Saturday, February 21, 2009

The Krewe of the Rolling Elvi...

No - I'm not kidding - that is a real group. A group of grown men who dress up as Elvis and ride weed eater engine powered scooters through the streets of New Orleans. Every year, I stay at Hotel LeCirque (which if you are a New Orleanian - you know it's the old YMCA on Lee Circle - more on that later...). This is the third year, so the staff knows I'm "the wife" of "the Elvis". I guess that's good, especially since this year Magda, the hotel manager, was kind enough to include me in a party she was hosting at the hotel. Here's where it gets interesting...

The party was for corporate clients of the hotel. I met maybe 12 people, 10 of which were gay men. How do I know this? No, I'm not stereotyping! Within five minutes of meeting this group, I knew who was with who, who HAD been with who, who hated who, and who was avoiding who. Note to self: If I am ever reborn as a gay man - move to New Orleans and get a job in tourism. I couldn't have been "adopted" by a better group. I laughed all night - especially when I was asked twice if "the girls" were real. Sidenote: In a brief moment of insanity, I had stopped at Forever 21 and bought a leopard print camisole for the festivities. It is Mardi Gras, and I am married to Elvis! Well, when I actually put it on at the hotel, "the girls" were a little more OUT there than I had expected. But I called my sister Ashley, and she convinced me that after a few drinks - aka "Liquid Confidence", I would be fine. Who knew - that's all it took - I was good to go!

Ashley was dying to see the leopard print top, so she told me to have one of my new "friends" take a picture and e-mail it to her. Now even though I knew the most intimate details of their love lives, I didn't feel that we were close enough for picture taking... I tried to take a picture, but I look like I'm in a fun house mirror... It's my gift to you - laugh out loud!!!

I feel compelled to post two pics of the converted YMCA. Luckily I have been to New York a few times, so I am completely comfortable with walking in and hitting my knees on the bed. And I am POSITIVE the bathroom doors are original!





And finally, the long awaited picture of "my Elvis" (he's on the left).
If you are in NOLA, I hope you are having a great Mardi Gras. If you aren't in NOLA, I hope this gives you just a glimpse at the insanity!

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

I did a little scrapbooking...









don't know how with tax season, but I needed a break from numbers and screaming clients...

Thursday, February 12, 2009

When you run out of Coke Zero...

just open an Amstel Light or what the hell? The bottle of cosmos works too! I've had two of each - so far...

It's been that kind of week! April 15th is SO VERY far away!

So since I'm on a random ramble - here are some random pictures:

GiGi, Morgan and Avery at Beauty and the Beast...


They let me go too... (to buy the M&M's, coke and light up roses)

And then Morgan, Avery and Parker - the sweetest, cutest little 6 month old on the planet (Nick, my other nephew, is the cutest, sweetest almost one year old on the planet!)


I can't leave out the most recent birthday girl! Hannah just turned 3 years old... Avery had to share the BIG chair


and here's the most precious, sweet almost one year old Nick. I played with him today at nursery school - Dominick - when did you finally get there? You are going to force me to get a Honda Odyssey so I can take all of the little ones home with me! Oh yeah - it fits 5 - count them FIVE car seats!


and finally - the three Hot Mama's!!!!


That's it for tonight. Wish me luck on getting my varmants - oops - I meant "angels" to bed...