Wolfman

Alex received his Wolf badge last night at our Blue and Gold Banquet! He was very happy to finish his book and even happier to get the actual badge!! He is already bugging me to start on the Bear! He really loves Scouts and we have a really great pack here- some great boys that he enjoys spending time with and fantastic leaders who go above and beyond in more ways than I know...I am so grateful for all they do with him- teaching him things and helping him celebrate his accomplishments. Here he is receiving his award from his Cubmaster:
Our theme last night was "All American"- so we had lots of things up to decorate, like suitcases, flags, the map, pics of Presidents and of course, Red, White and Blue stuff. We ate hot dogs, hamburgers, mac and cheese and cake- pretty much all american foods...
They played games where we had to learn about the states and their capitols and overall had a really fun night. Here are some pics of the games they played: This is Celeste's new look- a dress and leggings- not tights, leggings...she is adamant about it, and by the way, she wore flip flops too!

Super Sillies

Last night I thought it would be fun to take some silly pics of the kids since it has been a long winter, all cooped up in the house....we have played a lot of Wii and performed many a talent show, but taking pictures of that is just not that fun...so here are my kids being their super silly selves...
They loved it, by the way.

Just goes to show you that it has not been a very exciting month for us...busy, but not that exciting- luckily it doesn't take much to make my kids happy- this did it!

Can't Touch This....

Okay, it's 1992 and MC Hammer sings the song of the year- It's "You Can't Touch This", and us 7 girls are totally rockin it! We are teenagers of the 90's and life is good!

Okay, so really it's 17 years later and though we don't rock out to that song anymore, we still are girls of the 90's who haven't spent much time together since those days- until last night...thanks to Facebook, we have reconnected on the Internet, and now in person! I cannot really say how much I looked forward to hanging out with these ladies...it was super fun and more laughing than I thought possible!

Renee, Angie and Wendy and I get together regularly, and I see Christy every once in a while- we talk on the phone more often, and even that is not that much. But none of us had seen Jenifer or Kim since those days of MC Hammer! Seeing them and hanging out last night caught us up on their lives and we can't wait to do it again! Both of them actually live here, and Kim only lives a few miles from my house! Funny how we hung out nearly every day of our childhood, from the time we were 4 or so (she lived down the road from my grandparents), until we graduated, but after graduation in 1993, we never saw each other again! She is wonderful, exactly as wonderful as she ever was- it saddens me that we didn't keep up our friendship all these years...I know from now on, I will be a regular in her life whether she likes it or not! I just love these friends, and taking a trip down memory lane was just what I needed yesterday...here we all are - and yes, we all look much like we did 17 years ago, but BETTER!

I must explain that Angie said we all look slimmer if we put one leg out while standing to pose- so we all tried,..Oh, and you can tell it's winter- we are all pale, except for Renee who still goes tanning! She is always looking like it's summer!!

From left to right: Kim, me, Renee, Angie, Christy, Wendy and Jenifer. Oh, and there were 4 cameras going at once, so some people are looking other directions...this is the best you get!

Is it not hilarious that we are all wearing cute shoes and jeans?! Some of us even had our hair done for the night...hey, it's been a while since we'd seen each other- we had to look our best!! Funny thing...we don't even go anywhere- this is at Renee's house!!

I know that we will have more of these nights in the near future- it was just too fun! Thanks girls!

LOOK what I got TODAY....!!!!

Yesterday I received the letter from the courts with the scheduled date of Mediation between myself and the plumbers...it was for next Thursday...and Today, I received this letter with a check!! I am over- the -moon excited, happy, ecstatic and overjoyed at this moment!! I can hardly contain myself and the smile on my face is starting to hurt!
It is an end to a very long principle fight that I was adamant was worth fighting for...it is the little things that bother me the most, and in the grand scheme of life, this fight was probably not huge, BUT to me, it is the princple of it all- you cannot damage someone's property and then refuse to pay for it. It is just not right...I know there are many injustices in life and 99% of them are far worse than this...it is simply that it is unfair to take advantage of people, and if we don't learn this lesson as children, we will grow up to think in this way...I just can't sit back and let that happen, if I can control it...so I fought...and I WON! Go me!!
I thought about going out and shopping to celebrate...that's me, really, but I remembered that I bought this cute pair of shoes yesterday, so I will count that as my victory purchase!! Aren't they cute?! I love the price even better- $7!

Boys and Bluejackets

Dana took Alex to a Bluejackets game last week (thanks to a generous friend). They had a lot of fun- partly because the seats are amazing- right behind the goalie- up about 4 rows- so close that when it was televised and we paused it, you could actually see them on tv- if you look very close, of course!! I sent them with the camera, and these are the shots they took:

The Bluejackets won that night- that's all I know!

I love that the boys get to do boy stuff- because I know how much they enjoy it and how much I, in turn enjoy girl stuff with my girls! It was a nice break in the mundane weeks of winter!

I should have been...

a negotiator! Really, I should do this professionally- after all, I did settle today with the gas company regarding a bill they sent. Here is how it went down:

In December, the gas company sent me a letter stating that they thought my gas meter was broken and it hadn't been registering for several months. Funny, I had been paying a bill....but it was only a few dollars, but I don't use gas in the summer except for my hot water tank, and usually my bill is only for about 10 bucks. Anyway, in mid December, they came out and replaced the meter entirely. Last month, I got a new bill from them for nearly 700 dollars- yes, really, 700! Do you think I freaked out?! Uh, yeah! So, I called right away, and the idiot customer service rep, Greg gave me some lame explanation and said he could take off a whopping 15%! Wow, so generous! Do you think that satisfied me?! Uh, no! So, I asked to speak to someone else, and after numerous calls over the next several days, finally got to someone who said I would have to wait until the next billing cycle. In the meantime, I got a letter from them stating that my meter had been broken since November 09. Yes, November 09- isn't it January 09?! Okay, but it gets even better- it said they figure that in the time it has not been working properly, I used $2877.00 worth of gas! I am laughing now... because , since I keep meticulous records, I know that the MOST we spent in one year on gas was just barely $600- the first year we lived here- but since then around $400- since we keep our house relatively cool. SO, I had ammunition....

But first, I filed a complaint with the Public Utilities Commission- I know what you are thinking...she has a lot of time on her hands to complain! It is so time consuming, I tell ya, but because I fight for principle, sometimes that's what it takes! More about my principle fighting in a later post....

So, today the gas company calls after receiving my complaint to PUCO, and reviews my case. Funny, she says that the total she finds is over the original amount! Seriously! But her discount to me would be 25%! Really, wow, you are so giving! I had my ammunition ready- all the bill amounts that I paid for the last 4 years we lived here. After fighting and negotiating for nearly a half hour- explaining that I am not the "average" consumer for gas, and that we keep our house cool and supplement with space heaters- and that I absolutely refuse to pay for more than what I really used, and that they had no way to prove that I used more gas than what they actually billed me for while the meter was broken...the total I compromised on to pay is what I paid January 07-January 08- less the amount I paid last year- so around $250.00. MUCH better, eh?! They even put me on a payment plan, to pay it at $21 every month for a year- on top of my current charges, of course. I am happy. I would be happier if I didn't have to pay anything, but I am trying to be honest and fair, so this will satisfy both sides.

So, I think I should've been a professional negotiator- perhaps I could make some money at it...oh wait, I just did!

Now, if I could just settle with the plumbers, I could avoid mediation and court! Wish me luck with that- I will really need it!!

Tumbling Two-some

Yesterday was "watch week" for Leah's tumbling class. Celeste was more excited than Leah! She knew that Miss Joyce would let her participate and tumble too- so she literally talked about little else during the day and wore her "baby Jaguar" leotard all day long! Leah signed off on her cartwheel and is working on her round-off and clasped cartwheel. She has come a long way. I love that she loves tumbling- her body shape is perfect for a gymnast. She has that short torso and short legs, but her thighs are compact and strong. I love her determination to do better and do more. Her recital is in June, so they start working on the routine next week- and her leotard for that is bright orange! Here are some cute pics of the day... This is her "clasped" cartwheel. She is getting better- her toes are perfectly pointed.
In motion...
Almost ready to sign off on her headstand, but she has to hold it for the count of 10- she's at about 5.
Her back bend...
This is her cute friend Avery who took dance with her last year, too. Her run before her running cartwheel.
Just Leah being Leah. Half the time she is like this in the wall mirror as she watches herself- too funny!
Celeste gets to do back rolls with Miss Joyce.
She loved being upside down!
Most of the time, Celeste did somersaults up and down the mats- she would run and do some and then just stop and do them all the way down them. She was hilarious. She was one tired little girl last night...it was great!!

Valentine's Day Photo Shoot

This is our 4th year doing Valentine's Day pictures for Dana. The girls and I each year get all dolled up for this one photo shoot. The girls totally loved it this year and took such great shots that it was super hard to pick which ones to buy. I overspent, obviously, but just couldn't help myself- they were so cute! Dana loved them too, by the way.









And since the studio's collages were triple the cost of these regular shots, I chose to do my own- here are a few:


Dana asked me why I never wait until Valentine's Day to give these to him- he knows why...Leah and Celeste aren't good secret keepers!! I had to take Leah out of school one day to do these, and after telling her a million times to be quiet about it- she nearly told him the same day! Though he knows this is his gift, he is still surprised each time- I said that the girls are getting good at this and he said they look cuter each year- said nothing about me, but about them!! Funny thing- a Daddy and his girls- there is nothing like it in the world! We are so lucky!