So now that your kids are going back to school, what do you have planned for your free time besides cleaning, laundry, cooking.. etc.

While I was having the time of my life, I was never so grateful to have an intermission as while it was a beautiful day, the 85 degree weather with no clouds and very little wind, sitting in the stands made it a tad on the HOT side where I was dying to get in some shade and drink some water.   After cooling off a little I went back and sat down and while talking with Paul we felt so sorry for the corp members to be out there in the hot sun wearing their full gear, marching (even running, doing push ups, and squats).  I can’t help but think that doing that all summer long would have to be a great weight loss/ lower ab workout if I had ever seen any.

If you have never been to a DCI Competition you really have no clue what you are missing!  I know most of you have been to high school football games and you are probably thinking it’s a lot like a high school marching band, but honestly they don’t come close to being anything like a drum corp.  It’s like saying a Moped is a Harley Davidson.   There is just no comparison.  I wish I could of video taped some of it for you last night, but the rules are no video taping so I didn’t dare.  But if you YouTube DCI, you will some what get an idea of what it’s like, even though it’s 10 times better in person!   So until then, here are some more pictures from last night. I hope you enjoy them, because I sure do!

Then my Freshman year in High School, the Juniors in Marching band ended up calling me Ifer as there were so many Jennifer, Jen, Jenny’s that they decided to cut my name the other way and got rid of the Jenn and gave me the ifer!  That stuck with me all through high school.  

After college I ended up moving in with my best friend and since I was shorter than her she started calling me Shorty (she still does too).   At the same time another one of our friends ended up nicknaming me Mario, um.. due to my driving, and even though my driving has changed, the nickname still belongs to me as all of her other friends now know me as Mario.  Then our other friends Mom ended up giving me the nickname boots  as I loved country music and at time wore cowboy boots a majority of the time.   Even though I don’t wear them anymore, the nickname has still held with her.

So pretty much all my nicknames have held and I am still called them (well, except for Jen Ren).   How many nicknames have you had over the times and do people still call you by them?

Just a little piece of advice… if your spouse is going to be a mom or just became a mom, don’t buy her things like stretch marks creams, instead buy her something to make her feel a little extra special.  That’s when you go out and buy that beautiful bouquet of flowers and maybe a little extra something would be nice too.  (Like a mother’s necklace)

Whatever you do, DON’T forget to wish your Mom a Happy Mother’s Day tomorrow!

Now the rules:
1) Go to your photo files, select the 8Th photo folder.  (I’m glad it was 8 since I only had
2) Select the 8Th photo in that folder.
3) Post that photo along with the story behind it.
4) Then challenge 8 blogging friends to do the same!

My story:  This is a picture from this past February when I went to Las Vegas with my friend Tammy and a few of her friends to celebrate her 40th Birthday!  On our first night there both Tammy and I ended up winning a $100 each!  This was a picture of me and my $100!

I really don’t have 8 people to tag, but if you would like to do this, please feel free to join!

So what did we do last week?!? 

Monday ~ As far as I remember, Monday was just a normal day here and then at night Kevin had Karate. 

Tuesday ~ We ended up having some friends over for dinner.   We grilled up Paul’s famous Venison Wraps and fried up some of Paul’s turkey that he shot the week prior.   After dinner we sat around talking for awhile before heading out to the back yard and had our first fire for the year.  You couldn’t of asked for nicer weather… the heat from the fire warmed you up and there were NO MOSQUITOES!!  

Wednesday ~ We started hauling stuff over to my sister’s as we were going to be having a garage sale there this weekend.  Around 3:30 we just about had it all set up and started asking why not just open it up now to see how we would do and we were surprised at the number of people who showed.  Honestly, I think that was my best day selling and we were only open for 2 1/2 hours.

Thursday ~ Got the kids off to school and went to my sister’s and helped with the garage sale.    It was actually a slower day.. a lot of people coming in the morning, but just walking through and leaving without buying anything.   Then around 2 it started picking up and people were buying things, except it also started looking a little dark.  Carl went inside to find out that rain was indeed on the way and since most of our stuff was outside and we started feeling the sprinkles we decided to close up and hauled as much as we could into the barn and covered everything else while my Dad went to pull down the sale signs.   What was nice was since we closed early and it was a slower day I wasn’t to tired to take Kevin to Karate, so that’s what we did at night.

Friday ~ Another day spent over at my sister’s house.  Let me just way the kids had so much fun since they weren’t at school.  By the afternoon they were looking a little on the tired side so my sister threw in a Little House on the Prairie DVD and let them just veg for a little while.  Of course it wasn’t to long and the boys were back outside playing.  It was once again another slow selling day and we just figured it was due to there are so many sales on Thursdays & Fridays.   So we decided to skip having it Saturday and doing it Tuesday and Wednesday of this week instead.  Of course now they are talking rain on Wednesday.  Oh joy!

Saturday ~ Paul ended up taking the kids to our friends house (who was over on Tuesday) so they could feed their fish and while they were doing that, I finally was able to go grocery shopping!  Now I know why I like grocery shopping during the week instead of on the weekend!  Not only were there more people there, but things I wanted were sold out as well.  I got home and Paul and the kids were still gone so I had fun (seriously I did) picking up/cleaning and having it stay that way.  It’s amazing how much faster you can clean without the helpers in the house.   I couldn’t help but think is this what it’s going to be like in a couple years with both are in school full days?!?

Sunday ~ We did our normal going over to my parents house for lunch!  Even though I’ve seen them all week long, it was still enjoyable to go over there to have some more adult conversation.  But this is what I did learn yesterday when I was over there….

Yup… Kevin’s 2 new bottom teeth are coming in before his others ones fell out.    Here I couldn’t wait until he lost his first tooth, but how sad knowing he won’t have that empty feeling because his other ones are already coming in.  I guess this is common.. just that I never heard of it before.  I did call his dentist this morning and they said for us to wiggle it a lot in hopes that it comes out on it’s own.  If not, then I’m suppose to call back again next week and they more than likely will end up pulling it.   So time will tell I guess.

Anyways.. tha’ts what we have been up to.  This week will be just as crazy, but I’ll try to post more often. 

I’m not quite sure what job would be perfect for him.  I do know he would do great in sales as he does have a knack for that, but since he doesn’t have any experience in it (besides working on a farmers market) that where could he even get a job selling?  Cars Lots?  Houses?  Insurance?   That’s not what I can see him selling as for him to sell he needs to believe 100% in the product, if he doesn’t he can’t and won’t sell it.   I just can’t see him say selling life insurance, while he does believe it in, I can’t see him out there begging our friends and family for any life insurance leads of people they might know that are looking for it.

What he truly would love to do would to be a hunting guide as he has just as much fun doing the scouting and taking people out hunting for the first time.  He got me a bow and spent the time with me practicing so he knew I could shoot good, then he sat me in the perfect stand and low and behold here came that 10 points buck!  (The one I had told him I would get for our wall)   Then he did the same for my Dad, except for deer hunting, he took my Dad Turkey hunting for the first time and that will be a hunting experience both Paul and my Dad will never forget as they had many laughs and my dad has a great size beard & spurs to remember it all!

I just wish I could find that perfect job for him where he would love going work instead of dreading it.  Until then I’ll just keep my eyes open.

I couldn’t help but think of Paul and I.  No, neither one of us are alcoholics, but thinking about how we are always there for each other through thick or thin and I keep wondering how will we be when we are old and grey.  Will we be standing outside our house with our arms around each other, waving to their friends as they leave?  

Why do I have such a hard time visualizing us old with grey hair (even though we are both greying already) and wrinkles.   I wonder which one of us will be wanting to buy the anti wrinkle eye cream first?   More than likely me, but I can also see us not caring and just growing old gracefully together.   I guess that’s what happens when you marry your best friend.

If I could get a few days like that maybe I wouldn’t feel so old and wouldn’t think that I need to start using prevera.   I wonder if I’ll be able to con Kevin into sleeping in next Saturday too?!?  ~evil grin~

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This was the message Kevin had wrote for me this morning.

Hapi Brftda Mom  (Happy Birthday Mom)
Luv Kevin  (Love Kevin)
I luv You Mom  (I love you mom)

Katie making me my Birthday Cake
Kevin’s turn to mix the batter

After Daddy helped them decorate

Lighting the candles

The cake Kevin decorated

The cake Katie decorated

The muchkins & I!  Oh how I love them.