Thursday, November 20, 2008

Tuesday Taylor Revisited



All the nostalgia talk of Christmases past made me do a little research.. This is something I do , especially when I am sick..I dont know why.. But I like to research stuff.. Anyhoo, I vaguely remember the whole Tuesday Taylor thing, except for the fact I LOVED the toy that year and the fact that the set up came with a photo of a man..We all assumed it was her boyfriend.. Whats funny is I read somewhere that it wasnt..It was Bobby Vinton, a popular singer back in the day.. lol


The cool thing about Tuesday Taylor was that she had 2 kinds of hair..You twisted her scalp and she went from blonde to brunette..Kinda sick and cool at the same time..I was ALL ABOUT hair and make up and piercing my Barbie Dolls ears as a kid..My Barbies had multiple ear piercings before it was considered cool in the 80s..I used my mom's pins that she used to hem clothes with..Of course, she had no idea where they all went to..All she had to do is check my many Barbie dolls heads to find them LOL.


I have a few photos that I collected and it really jogged my memory..From what I have gathered, this doll didnt last long..It was discontinued soon after..Its also RARE and a collectors item now..I found the townhouse set on Ebay and the current bid is $62!!! For a bunch of 32 year old plastic! Im quite sure it will desintigrate into little pieces if taken out of protective plastic once its introduced to air.. lol $62!!!!!!! I sure wished my brother hadnt destroyed my version of that! That and all the Barbies and Star Wars figures we had.. lol

Christmas MEME

Since I have been sick, I actually have had time to READ..I saw this MEME on Leigh's blog and I love these! So, I had to do it-

Welcome to the Christmas edition of getting to know your friends. Okay, here's what you're supposed to do, and try not to be a SCROOGE!!!......Tis the Season to be NICE!

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? I LOVE wrapping presents! I think there is something therapeutic going on there, when I wrap.. I dont know why, but there is!!!

2. Real tree or Artificial? Artificial- after years of having sick kids at Christmas, it hit me, we were all allergic to the real trees! No more sickness!

3. When do you put up the tree? Usually the week or weekend of Thanksgiving..I LOVE my tree!

4. When do you take the tree down? A few days after Christmas..Around New Years..I used to cry when I was a kid, when my parents took the tree down.. lol

5. Do you like eggnog? YES!! My oldest and I LOVE it.. We always get some..Of course, the stomach ache after drinking it isnt the best..uughhh

6. Favorite gift received as a child? Tuesday Taylor Townhouse when I was 5 or 6..It was THE COOLEST "barbie-like" Townhouse..

7. Hardest person to buy for? My Husband.."Dont get me anything for Christmas" ugghh!

8. Easiest person to buy for? My kids-guitars and video games about them.. lol and anything South Carolina!

9. Do you have a nativity scene? I used to..It was so sweet..I lost it during one of my many moves..I havent found one I liked since :*(

10. Mail or email Christmas cards? I like to recieve Christmas cards..I put them on my mantle..I have never sent them..Once you start, you gotta do it EVERY YEAR.. lol I keep saying I will get a family picture made but I havent lost the 15 pounds yet! :D

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? 2 years in a row I got some stupid sponge ball at a school christmas party..It was one of those grab bag gifts..TWO YEARS IN A ROW, I TELL YA!!!! The second year, I was just so depressed I cried..Especially when I saw a girl in the class playing with a barbie doll and there I was holding some foamy spongy ball..What was I going to do with that?lol

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? ELF and Christmas Vacation..I swear Will Ferrell makes you believe that he is real.. lol Oh and Jingle All The Way and Home Alone!!! Cant forget those.. I always watch them at Christmas too..

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Sadly, usually the week of.. I like to live dangerously.. hehe

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? shhhhh :D
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? All the things I dont normally eat.. lol

16. Lights on the tree? Lots of em!
17. Favorite Christmas song? All I Want For Christmas is You and Santa Baby

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Stay home on Christmas day..Christmas Eve we go to my mom's..Sometimes we go to my sisters on Christmas, since her kiddies still do Santa..

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer's? Dasher Dancer Prancer(another good movie lol) Vixen Comet Cupid Donder Blitzen and RUDOLPH!!!

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? BOWS as of late...

21. Open presents on Christmas eve or morning? Morning, of course!! It would ruin Christmas if you open them on Christmas Eve..I used to let the kids open ONE on Christmas Eve.. :)

22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? Grinches

23. Favorite ornament theme or color? I loved the Disney holiday themes as well as Looney Tunes and the Frosty and Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer themes..

25. What do you want for Christmas this year? I want my life to CHILL OUT! And for my oldest son to make good grades in college.. Im asking alot, I know.. lol

Me Not Like Sicky!

Ok, I have been sick for the past 10 days.. It got REALLY bad 2 days ago..I knew it was bad when I walked into a class on Tuesday and a teacher told me " I stay home when I feel as bad as you look" LOL

My youngest was also sick..He started running a sudden fever Monday, when he came home from school..I had already been feeling rough for a week or so but that day, I could barely talk..The kids at school thought it was funny.. One of Tyler's friends heard me talk and said " Miss Michelle, havent you already been through PUBERTY?" lol


We took the mommy and son trip to the doctor Tuesday afternoon..It KILLED me to take 1/2 a day that day.. I dont like to miss work EVER..So anyway, the doc told me that it was a good thing we saw him bc we caught Todd before he became REALLY SICK!! It was weird too because he was fine and then BOOM, he was running fever.. He said his bronchial tubes looked awful..He said he was a few days away from developing pneumonia, as was I.. NO WONDER I FELT SO BAD!!!!

I hadnt felt this bad since I had something similar before Christmas in 2006..The doc put me on the same medicine he put me on back then, too..What was cool was the medicine (Cipro) made me feel pretty gross..The upside was I lost weight during Christmas! So, maybe I wont gain weight during Thanksgiving? We will have to see!

Im starting to come out of my fog now..Still really tired, but atleast my throat isnt hurting anymore and Im not coughing but every once in a while..Im hoping to get my voice back by tomorrow and go back to work!!!

Sunday, November 9, 2008

Whit's Baseball Picture!!


Here is Whit's picture from the Anderson University Baseball website.. Hubby says that he can tell by looking at this picture that he is a leftie.. He says they all have a certain look..He said you could line up 10 pitchers in front of him, without allowing him to see their gloves, and he could point them out.. Weird? Maybe? LOL Anyway, here's the picture! Such a HANDSOME young MAN!!

It's been a while...

Like the Staind song goes (without all the bad words lol) Its Been A While!!! :D I have been so busy that I havent had any time to blog.. I know thats what I said the last time.. But this time I REALLY mean it!!! Alot of things have happened and I am going to update:

First off, I am LOVING my new job! It is a dream come true and I truly enjoy going to work every day.. I love the people I work with and the kids are great! My hubby has been EXTREMELY busy himself working his tail off with his full time job and busting his butt to get to the store to open it 3 days a week..This pace is beginning to get to the both of us now.. My friend, Brittney and her sister Tonya, have been helping us out on the weekends at the store.. If it wasnt for them, Id be even crazier than I was becoming before! They have been lifesavers!

My youngest, Todd, is having his football team party tomorrow, November 10, which, by coincidence, is also my birthday! So, I am going to be even closer to 40 than I was at my last birthday.. One more and I will BE THERE.. uughhh.. Anyway, about my baby's team party..SNIFF..SNIFF.. It is his VERY LAST party as a pee wee player.. Hes getting old!!! It will be a bittersweet night! Todd is going to write a little letter to his coaches that he has been playing for for the past 5 seasons, letting them know how much he appreciates all the things they taught him..

My middle son, Tyler, ended up missing the last few games of the season because he got hurt at a practice.. He has a grade 1 shoulder separation..He has about 3 more weeks of no exercise with the shoulder and then he will have to rehab it some at home..He will be trying out for the Pelham Baseball team in 2 weeks.. They know he is hurt, so he cant pitch any :*( Luckily, they know him and what hes capable of..He is going to be getting his Drivers Permit the day before Thanksgiving, HOPEFULLY.. IF HE PASSES THE TEST!!! Wish him luck!!

My oldest, Whit,is about 2/3 of the way through his first semester in college..He played baseball in the fall with the team and was one of the few freshman that were allowed to pitch in a game.. He is really doing well with his pitching there..His classes are ok.. JUST OK.. lol He hasnt done very well in Western Civ, though.. He will be lucky to pass it..Before we all start getting on his back, remember Western Civ? I do believe it is the HARDEST friggin class in college.. I based alot of my college majors around the fact that I didnt have to take that class.. LOL That and algebra.. uugghhh..Anyway, here is a link to Whit's college roster and a picture of him is on there..Look for a kid from Helena, Alabama on the roster.. You can't miss it.. HES THE ONLY ONE.. lol
http://www.ac.edu/sports/roster.php?sport_id=1

Sunday, September 21, 2008

Boy, is time flying!

You can tell that we are very busy! I look up and its almost October! Im gonna look up and Christmas will be here!!! A quick update- no one has really shown any interest in buying the store from us.. I am not understanding this.. Considering all the people that tell us that they love the store..I guess they are scared to invest? I totally understand that thought..But what people dont understand is when you own a consignment shop, you dont have to buy your merchandise..People BRING their merchandise to you.. We dropped the price a bit, to maybe stimulate some interest..We are asking $15,500 now.. So if you know anyone interested, have them email me!

Tyler and Todd are both busy playing football right now.. Todd is playing CENTER for Helena Wildcats 130# team and Tyler is playing Linebacker and QB(back up) on Pelham High Schools Freshman team..Tyler got over 15 tackles last week at Linebacker against Mountain Brook! Todd's snapping the ball from the shotgun position, one handed, and has only funmbled one snap so far..He says that the ball was completely wet and so it was slippery..Not bad considering we noticed about 5 or 6 fumbled snaps at the Freshman games alone.. lol Im hoping that both boys continue to do well, even of the teams dont win big.. :)

Whit has been doing pretty good with baseball too.. He was told by his baseball coach at Anderson University that he will be pitching 87-88 MPH by the end of the FALL! Hes left handed, too! Im hoping he continues to do well with all of that, and make decent grades too.. lol I am waiting for the website at Anderson to update so I can post some photos of Whit and the baseball team..

I will try to post more often, as time permits.. I miss blogging!!

Sunday, September 7, 2008

Tyler Dancing

This is my latest video of Tyler doing something silly..He looks like he has NO SKILLS.. The boy can actually dance, too!

Friday, August 29, 2008

It is TIME!

It is time for me to announce that due to all the commitments that I have in my life, I can no longer run my store, Consignment Classics, located in Helena..I returned back to work at a local school doing what I love and with all the sporting events that my children are involved in and also having a son that's in college and also playing a sport that I am absolutely NO TIME leftover for a store.. Im exhausted by the time I leave school and the LAST thing I feel like doing is working another 2.5 hours! My husband has been covering for me for the past few weeks and he also works a full time job..He has been suffering from a terrible bout of gout that I am sure was exacerbated by all this extra stress..

We decided the other day that we needed to sell the business.. We are officially putting it out here..If you know anyone that would be interested in an established consignment shop located in some prime real estate area, please contact me at sellis8630@charter.net or call my store number and leave a message (205-277-9190)..VERY reasonably priced with EVERYTHING INCLUDED ( all clothing, consignors, computer, printer,phone,software, anything thats tied to the store stays) and the rent is very reasonable , for the area.. Business is growing every month and we have already OVER 240 consignors!! I really feel that this type of store is NEEDED in our area but I can no longer give anymore time to it.. If we cannot sell this business, the doors will close in December.. PLEASE let me know if you or someone you know is interested!!!

Saturday, August 23, 2008

TOO BUSY TO BREATHE!

Just about! Things have gotten rather hectic around the household these past few weeks.. As if you couldnt tell! I havent blogged in almost 3 weeks.. Of course, school started, along with nightly football practices for Tyler and Todd.. Then, came along the Jamborees they always play in and scrimmages.. If THAT wasnt enough stress, Whit started college at Anderson University in Anderson,South Carolina. We spent all last weekend moving him into his dorm room..VERY EMOTIONAL!!

I learned something last weekend while we were at the hotel eating breakfast, before going to the final activity with Whit before we left him at college..I learned that NO MATTER HOW HARD I tried to NOT cry, the tears came out with a vengeance! It was like my tears HAD to be released.. It didnt matter how much I tried to choke them back..My eyes were like a friggin waterfall.. And what sucked is it was all done in PUBLIC.. I felt fine before I went to eat breakfast.. I was a little sad about leaving Whit there.. Who wouldnt have been? He had been with me since he was BORN..

Then all of a sudden the flood gates opened and there I was, crying like a baby in front of all the other people that were eating breakfast at the hotel.. Im sure they thought I was a loon.. Either that or they felt sorry for me.. I wanted to say " Hey, its cool, my oldest son is starting college and we are moving him in" just so people wouldnt think someone DIED.. lol I was so embarrassed..

Anyway, on top of THAT stress, I started a new job on August 4 ON TOP of the store..Steve has been opening the store at noon..I am so busy that most days I cant even get by the store but for only a few minutes because I am running kids all over the city.. LOL One of these days I am going to look back at these days and MISS all of this running around.. NOT :)

Sunday, August 3, 2008

A Kind of Trip Back In Time!!

Last night Steve and I worked the concession stand for the Def Leppard concert..This is how we earn money to help pay for Tyler's football.. Anyway, I PLANNED on working for this event because after we work, we get to watch the concert..NICEEEEEEE!! Tyler is a HUGE Def Leppard fan, himself.. We would listen to a cd we made of Def Leppard tunes EVERY mor Tyler, being the AVID 80's metal/hair band enthusiest, came along too and brought a friend.. They bought tickets and watched the show and we joined them when our shift was over.. I have to admit.. I was a little concerned about how Def Leppard would be, especially since I saw them on "Dancing With The Stars" and they seemed to be performing a la Ashlee Simpson ( lip-syching ).. I was SO MAD when I watched that performance.. They sang "Pour Some Sugar On Me" and it sounded EXACTLY like the cd.. So, when I FINALLY got to join the boys, I was SO EXCITED to find that Def Leppard not only sounded GOOD..They also LOOKED good! I mean, they werent my type or anything.. lol I never thought they were hot.. BUT , for old geezers ( hey- they are way older than ME, and IM OLD LOL) they REALLY looked good! Even the lead guitarist, Phil Colin, had a friggin 6 pack and I swear, he looked JUST LIKE he did when I was 13!! Tyler was basically videoing the whole concert on his cell phone.. lol I have a few clips on mine too.. I LOVE Def Leppard!!! My fav song was "Rock Of Ages"!! It was AWESOME!!

Thursday, July 31, 2008

So TWITCH Thinks HE Can Dance?

I have admitted my 2 summer obsessions are Big Brother and So You Think You Can Dance.. So I felt the need to give So You Think You Can Dance some bloggy love today..This show is so awesome.. It is so awesome that we watch it and DVR it at the same time, so we can watch the dances again.. Sad, I know.. But, I also feel that watching this show is helping the kids learn some CULTURE.. Where else can you see HIP HOP and the Pasodoble being performed on the same stage? I have actually learned the difference between some of these dances.. Im not saying I will be doing them anytime soon, though!!

One reason I am REALLY into this show this season is all these dancers that were struggling no-bodies coming to life! And there is one dancer on the show that is from my birth town- Montgomery, Alabama! Twitch is his name and dancin like a maniac is his game! He says he started as a young kid and actually tried to dance where he was from, but he ended up moving to Los Angeles to persue the dancing career.. Twitch's main dance style is a sort of comedic hip hop.. He actually is SO GOOD that he pretty much can dance any style.. Hip hop is just his regular style.. He was ALMOST voted on last season but lost in the last minute to another guy that has actually gone on and done well.. Last year just wasnt his year.. THIS is his year!

Another reason is another guy named Joshua Allen.. He is not a classically trained dancer, as well.. Actually, he played FOOTBALL before becoming interested in dance.. This guy can do just about any dance as well.. And he does them AMAZINGLY!! I am actually torn between the 2 dancers.. But I am more for Twitch because he is from Alabama..Both of the dancers were COMPLETE under dogs and I LOVE how they have knocked out all the past competition and made it to the top 6!

Katee Shean is my female standout.. She is ANOTHER under dog story.. She was almost not voted in this season..The judges thought she lacked enthusiasm during the pre show finals.. I didnt think she lacked enthusiasm.. I think she wanted this more than anything..But she was torn because her room mate, and best friend was also in the competition..To make a little show drama, they left the decision process down to the two of them.. Either it was Katee, or her room mate.. Katee, being the good friend, acted "non chalant" about the whole thing.. She acted like if she made it and her friend didnt, that she wasnt sure she could do it..I think she was just showing her loyalty to her friend, who was ALSO a very good performer..Well, the judges told her that she was the one they picked between the 2 and you could see her being torn inside about her friend not making it but excited about herself making it at the same time.. Good tv show drama.. FO SHO.. Anyway, the judges are extremely pleased with Katee's performances weekly.. She is a very strong dancer, especially when she dances with Joshua..Heck, shes good when she dances with Twitch, as well.. LOL

I am hoping these 3 make the top 4..Ill be watching it tonight!

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Please, for the love!!

Please for the love, SOMEONE...ANYONE..EVERYONE..Evict Jessie from the Big Brother House!!! If I have to go another week watching this little punk, I will end up punching my TV.. No Joke.. I have had it with him.. He is so self absorbed and self centered that he LITERALLY makes me sick.. I know, I definately have reached PSYCHO status, being so involved in the Big Brother show.. Especially since I am BLOGGING about it.. But I just gotta vent.. There.. Done.. I feel better now!!

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

My STUPID Thyroid!

Ok.. I have talked before about this issue.. Seems it is becoming a major player in my life these days.. I was diagnosed with what is called "Wilson's Syndrome" about 18 months ago..It is basically where your body is stuck in a state of constant "survival mode"..Survival mode meaning that my body thinks its in a constant state of high stress.. If anyone has been through a time of high stress, like when you lose a job or have a newborn, this is the type of stress Im talking about.. Thing is, my body gets stuck in the coping mechanism.. AND STAYS THERE!!!

What really sucks about that it is VERY HARD to lose weight when your body is in SURVIVAL MODE.. Your body will think its starving ( REALLY? STARVING?) and then it will conserve and you can eat basically next to nothing and exercise your butt off and not lose a pound..

Seems that my husband has this same thing.. I have been trying to figure out why we have it.. I do so much research on the internet and sometimes I cant tell what is fact and what is fabled.. I have pretty much come to this conclusion:

- We are both predisposed to this disorder due to autoimmune diseases that run in our family
- Something triggered this response in the both of us around the same time..Im thinking it could be related to our diets or outside contaminants?
- We both had flare ups in the past that went undiagnosed..

I had always thought I had a thyroid problem, dating back to after I had my oldest son, 18 years ago..Instead of losing the post baby weight, I gained about 15 more pounds AFTER he was born.. A year after he was born, I weighed MORE than what I weighed when I went into the hospital to give birth.. I am not going to say that I didnt eat.. I was eating.. But, I wasnt eating enough to constitute a major weight gain like that.. I went to the doctor and they said I needed to stop eating so much.. UM.. OK... They tested my blood, no thyroid issues..So I dieted like crazy and lost 25 pounds and got pregnant again..

I only gained 23 pounds the whole pregnancy.. A few weeks after his birth, I noticed that I couldnt sleep.. Fierce insomnia.. Very frustrating considering I had a newborn that had his days and nights turned around until he was 6 weeks old.. You would have thought I would have slept while he slept, but I didnt.. I would cry because I was so exhausted, but I couldnt fall asleep until about 30 min before he woke up to be fed.. At that point, I was exhausted to the point of STUPID.. Eventually, he started sleeping through the night and I filled that deficit of sleep..

When he was 3 mos old, I started having these PANIC ATTACKS.. I wasnt sure what was going on..It was quite strange.. I remember feeling like I was going to "fall out".. I even felt my arms go numb and my head would spin.. I even called the paramedics one time because I was lying on the floor and couldnt move.. They told me I might have an "inner ear" issue called Meniere's Disease.. I also developed this weird fear of driving, especially at night.. I am not sure if it was the stress of having 2 small children under the age of 3 or what.. But something was definately going on.. I went to a doc and I was finally diagnosed with Mitral Valve Prolapse with Dysautonomia.. I was told that I had basically "reflux" of blood in my mitral valve in my heart and sometimes it would send my parasympathetic nervous system into overdrive.. The result was panic attacks.. The doc put me on a beta blocker and an anti anxiety pill.. It worked.. I started to feel almost normal again..

When my son was a year old, I went to the doc and complained that I just couldnt lose weight.. He put me on Adipex and in 4 months, I lost 40 pounds! I felt WONDERFUL! I was wearing size 8 jeans..I looked so cute! Then I started college again and gained about 15 pounds, due to the stress.. Then, I got pregnant again.. UGHHH.. Gained all the weight I lost AND THEN SOME.. Then, depression took over.. I was put on antidepressant meds..

I have never been the same since my youngest was born, almost 12 years ago.. I have been through alot of life changes that probably didnt help my stress levels.. A divorce, single mom to 3 boys, a remarriage ( good thing, though) and 3 different jobs along with starting a business.. But what sucks is alot of people have major life changes and dont have issues like I have.. It just stinks!

Recently, I asked my doctor why my thyroid was so messed up.. I was told that during the times that I was tested for low thyroid, when I was younger, the reason I probably tested "within normal limits", was because my thyroid was probably in a HYPER state, trying to keep up with what was going on.. Meaning, it was slowly burning itself out.. The lack of doctors that understood the whole thyroid and autoimmune diseases was the problem.. They went solely on blood tests, rather than symptoms.. The whole if it walks like a duck its probably a duck, didnt apply.. They never considered that maybe something else was going on..Maybe some kind of connection wasnt being made..

All I know is I am on DIET PILLS and taking a thyroid replacement pill and Im still gaining weight.. The doc told me that my husband and I could have had a virus that caused this autoimmune response and its killing our thyroids.. He also said that it could have been Nutra Sweet.. I am thinking that all those years of dieting and eating those foods that were considered "light" but contained all those extra additives and preservatives are the main problem.. And it stinks because I ate those things thinking I was doing a good thing..

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Heavy Sigh!

I had to let out a VERY HEAVY sigh before posting today.. Actually, I let out a few ..I realized a few things this week:

First, my youngest son had his football camp this week..I realized that day that MY BABY's team were the OLDEST kids out there.. (SIGH)

Second, this time last year, I was registering my oldest son for his SENIOR year in high school.. (SIGH) Now he is registering for COLLEGE (HEAVY SIGH)

Third, I am registering my middle son for his 9th Grade year this evening..(SIGH)

Time is FLYING by.. Before I know it, I will be registering him for College, and my baby for College..Ill be the mother of the groom, a grandmother.. uughhh.. I sometimes wish there was a way we could stop this.. When I was a little girl my mom used to tell me not to "wish" my life away.. I think I just realized what she meant by this.. Time sure flies by.. Why wish it to fly by.. Its going to do it.. Be patient.. Before you know it, its done.. Wow..That was deep.. lol

Monday, July 21, 2008

This is what my kids do with my cell phone when Im not around..

My kids are SO WEIRD.. I was minding my own business today when I found that Tyler had been playing with my cell phone and using the video thingie on my cell phone.. I thought it was HILARIOUS and thought Id share...I LOVE the wild hair he created before he made these faces..Thank God he got a haircut.. lol Im sure he will kill me when he finds out I put this on my blog.. hehe.. Thats what he gets for being so goofy!! :)

My NEW Jimbo Story.. lol

I was reading a few past posts that I wrote about my brother Jimbo, who is also autistic. It cracked me up..I have been meaning to blog about Jimbo for a while now..But, stupid BIG BROTHER has had me all tied up in knots.. LOL

We saw Jimbo on July 4th this year..He was at my parents house..I usually try to find a way to visit him when he is at my parents..Either we see him there or we meet out..Sometimes it is impossible during that time, due to other family obligations..But I still try to see him when I can.. Seems that Jimbo and my hubby, Steve, have formed a neat little bond the 2 of them share.. Jimbo knows that Steve likes him and tries to include him in when he is around..

Those 2 goobers played back and forth with a throw pillow from my parents sofa..Jimbo has what we call "his sofa" downstairs in "his den"..He always goes there when he is with my parents and he chills out down there..He looks through magazines, plays a movie on his DVD player ( usually a Will Ferrell or Adam Sandler one- good choices, IMO), plays a movie on the tv and plays a cd in the background.. He has all of this playing at the SAME TIME.. Very autistic, if you ask me.. lol Anyway, I have decided I was put on this earth to mess with him and I always do..

I will go in "his den" and sit smack dab right next to Jimbo on "His sofa" and DARE him to tell me to MOVE..Hehe.. He will get this look on his face like "dammit, shes back" LOL He will sometimes try to "push" me away..I always sit closer and bug him.. He has been known to yell at me like "UUGHHHHHHH YOU ARE DRIVING ME CRAZY STUPID SISTER!" I just get closer and bug him more.. Hey, thats what all siblings do.. I also learned a long time ago that you have to challenge autistic people.. I challenge Jimbo..He knows Im doing it.. Thats why he is like " oh shit" when I sit next to him.. hehe..

Oh, he LOVES it.. If I didnt do that to him, hed be mad at me.. Anyway, back to the game that he and Steve were playing on July 4th..Jimbo would take the pillow and hit his face with it and throw it at Steve..Steve would take it and do the same..Then Steve would yell something in the pillow..Jimbo would imitate him..They were both laughing the entire time..

A few days later, I saw my parents for a few minutes out, and Jimbo was with them..Steve was not in the car and when Jimbo got out of his car, he looked in my car, like he was searching for Steve.. He looked all put out when he couldnt find him..I asked him if he was looking for Steve..He shook his head yes.. I told him he was in the store.. He still looked disappointed that he couldnt see him.. I guess they "bonded" over that little game on July 4th.. Simple things like that are what make Jimbo so neat..For someone who cant talk, he sure does "say" alot!

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Why Do I Put Myself Through This!

Why do they have to show Big Brother After Dark so LATE? LOL Geez.. I hit a brick wall this morning! I am so tired! It is difficult for me to make myself go to sleep before 10:30 at night ANYWAY.. Now, I feel obligated to at least stay awake until 11, so I can catch the Big Brother scrolling updates..Then, of course, I end up staying awake until 11:20 or so trying to figure out whats going on.. Sad, I know..I think this could be classified as either an emotional disorder or a mental sickness? Either one, it doesnt matter.. Im still gonna watch it and Im still gonna be tired.. lol Ill catch up on my sleep on the weekends, I guess! :)

This is what I have gathered so far about Big Brother: I LOVE Renny( from New Orleans) and Libra( Obama supporter and mother of 3).. Maybe because they are so honest.. I love it, nonetheless! I love watching Jerry( the 75 year old man)because he is so honest and forthright..I love how he calls em like he sees em..The games have already begun and there is one guy that is coming out a tad bit too hot.. His name is Brian and I swear he thinks he is the next Dr. Will.. I call him the "Dr. Will Wannabe".. Hes a wannabe because he ISNT Dr. Will.. If you recall, Dr. Will was one of the GREATEST players of the Big Brother Game.. He was very suave, good looking, smart and SNEAKY.. He could turn a mother against her own child and make her feel good about it, like she was doing the country a favor.. Hes THAT GOOD..

Thing of it is, Dr. Will started out S-L-O-W-L-Y..He didnt make any major obvious moves until later.. He formed a secret alliance early on and didnt start playing all ends to the middle until ATLEAST the 3rd week..Poor Brian..He outsmarted himself into being put up for eviction..I think he celebrated way too soon..He was telling everyone that Jerry was basically his puppet..And that he could guarantee people in the house "safety" if they voted HIS WAY...Im not sure what planet Brian is from, but from where I come from, you dont ADVERTISE things like that to people..You might tell ONE person that, but not the whole house.. Geez..

I know my mother is reading this and saying " Geez, Michelle, you have too much time on your hands" LOL

Monday, July 14, 2008

Another funny clip!

I guess Im on aroll these past few days.. I have been wanting to watch funny things and I was watching "That 70s Show".. I just loved that show.. All the characters were funny on the show.. My fav was Kelso, played by Ashton Kutcher.. While watching an episode with him, it reminded me of this funny clip from "Dude Where's My Car".. I swear, I thought I was the only 30 something mom that LOVED that movie.. I guess I like bubblegum for the mind movies.. lol Hey, atleast I dont have to THINK while watching it.. lol Ashton Kutcher is just pretty as can be too.. He isnt hot.. He is just pretty.. And pretty goofy too.. He always plays goofy, endearing guys.. IMO, anyway.. Enjoy!

My first take on the new Big Brother..

Ok.. I have to admit, I have been anxiously awaiting Big Brother 10..I dont understand why.. I dont get anything in return from this show.. Seriously.. All I get is dark circles under my eyes and a bad attitude from the lack of sleep, since Big Brother After Dark comes on at 11-2 on Showtime.. We usually DVR the show.. But alot of the time, I will stay awake and atleast watch the first 30-45 min of the show..

Last night I didnt stay up.. I was exhausted from cleaning out my garage all day in the heat.. I did watch the show and I have a few comments.. First, I want to thank Big Brother for allowing OLDER house guests!!! The past 2 seasons, we have seen 40 somethings on the show, and that actually added a very cool vibe, IMO.. I really get tired of the whiny, selfish, sexually motivated 22 year olds.I know, thats what Showtime is ALL about.. lol But, seriously, IT GETS OLD..

Big Brother has a house guest that is 75 years old!!! He is a retired marine and he confesss that he has watched EVERY EPISODE of BB and watches BB After Dark and also gets the live streaming as well! I am not sure if he has let his other house guests know that..I hope he keeps it under wraps for a while..He says that he has a strategy and plans on using it.. I want this guy to win! He is very endearing, of course, and this younger generation could stand to learn a bit from him..

There is another "older" person in the house as well.. Renny is 53, and a New Orleans "socialite".. You know what that means? She has a big mouth and a BIG accent and she likes to dress up.. She is the life of the party where she comes from. My mom is from New Orleans..I still have family that lives there..I knew all of that about her BEFORE I even saw the show.. I am worried her personality is much too big for this house.. I think she is a scream and I enjoy watching her.. She definatly ruffled a feather or 2 last night.. At one point, a few of the guys were basically saying she was crazy.. Shes not crazy!!! Shes from New Orleans!!!!!! Whole different world down there!!! Anyway, I want her to stay for a while..

Anyhoo, Ill be commenting on this show and talking about the players as the weeks progress, Im sure.. All I gotta say is I hope the house guests vote off this little whiny boy named Jessie, this week.. He and Renny have been put up for eviction, due to a little issue the 2 of them had.. Jessie is 22 and a body builder.. He is worried that his body is " too big" and he hopes that people arent put off by its MASSIVENESS.. Really? Geez.. THIS is why I hate self absorbed 22 year olds!! He got mad because he was trying to sleep and he kept hearing Renny yelling loudly in another room.. He claims he was asleep and she woke him with her shrieking..

SO? She woke you up? This is the Big Brother house.. Its not like you have to get up and go to work the next day, dude! Get a grip and chill out! I guess his MASSIVE MUSCLES were tired and he needed rest? Geez.. Not like you cant take a nap..Ever watch Big Brother before little one? Thats what they do to pass time on the show.. HE NEEDS TO GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! JMO :)

Saturday, July 12, 2008

Big Brother 10: Meet the Cast

Deedra- This one is for YOU!!! Its BIG BROTHER TIMEEEEEEEEEEEE! LOL This one looks to be VERY INTERESTING!!!

Friday, July 11, 2008

Growing Up Catholic- Dane Cook

I have recently joined a network that lets you get in touch with your old high school friends.. We all tend to revisit those old memories when faced with your 20 year high school reunion.. Couple that with a child that also graduated and there you have it- "Memories- Light the corners of my mindddddddddddddddddddddddd"

ok.. Sorry, I havent had my Adderall yet this morning.. Anyway, speaking of Adderall and memories, I decided to reprise an older post about growing up Catholic.. I graduated from John Carroll Catholic High School in 1988 and also grewup Catholic.. Dane Cook did too..Well, he didnt go to JC, but he did grow up Catholic and his take on growing up that way is the most HILARIOUS thing I have ever seen..If you grew up Catholic or knew someone that did, this little piece will crack you up.. The language isnt the best in this but it is still funny.. So if you got the kiddies around, you might want them to go play in another room or put on some headphones.. Of course, if you put the headphones on, your kid will think you are crazy when they hear you laughing uncontrollably, like I did when I saw this..If you already saw this post a few weeks back, sorry for the reprise.. It still will crack you up.. lol

Thursday, July 10, 2008

Strawberry Cake is like Therapy! LOL

I have to take a moment and thank two of my friends, Teri and Leigh..Maybe we are all on the same wavelength? I am not sure.. All I know is I was having a very trying day Tuesday and they BOTH showed up at my store with the most delectible pieces of Strawberry Cake that I have EVER had.. Seriously.. Leigh blogged about Ashley Mac's strawberry cake and raved that it was better than Edgars.. I LOVE strawberry cake.. I was always a chocolate girl, but there is something about a Strawberry Cake that totally voids out my "Chocolate Tooth" LOL

Thanks ladies! I got to have a "few" bites..Hubby thanks you too! LOL He loved it as much as I did!

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

I need a V-8!!!

Yesterday was a very busy day for me.. I was taking my middle son to football workouts and then have my oldest son drop me off at the store to work a few hours before he had to relieve me so I could go to a doc appointment and then go to my middle son's 7 on 7 competition at Hoover High School.. So anyway, I was minding my own business, getting ready when at 8:30 am I hear this CRASHING sound in my kitchen.. Middle and youngest sons were putting dishes away at that time..

Uh Oh... Yeah.. Uh oh is right.. I run into the kitchen and there is middle son standing there with glass all around him, SHATTERED and broken peices of ceramic on the counter.. WHAT IN THE ................I asked(well, ok, I SCREAMED) him.. He stood there, almost frozen.. He looked like he was stuck in a time warp or something.. Youngest son ( God love him!) got some shoes on and started to clean up the mess and middle son made it over to the sink to rinse his right hand.. I saw that it was pretty much gushing blood at this point.. OH GREAT! is what I was thinking..This is NOT on the schedule for today.. I noticed at this time that middle son was looking VERY PALE, almost ghostly white..He got a paper towel and sat on couch and I called hubby.. I was FRANTIC.. I dont handle situations like this well, sometimes.. I realized that this was what it was and that I was going to have to take middle son to the doctor.. It looked like a pretty deep cut..

Did I forget to mention that middle son is one of the QB's for the freshman team? ANOTHER reason I freaked.. Today was the 7 on 7 competition.. Luckily, this was his right hand that was now lacerated, not his left, throwing hand.. But he STILL had to catch a ball that is snapped to him and Im sure he needed stitches.. I called the coach and told him that he needed to be seen by a doc to get stitches.. I took him to Dr. Ricketts.. He needed 4-5( we lost count) stitches and by 11:15, we were back on our way.. I took middle son to football practice and waited on him.. In all of this, oldest son opened the store and stayed there all day.. (God love him too!!)

Oldest son had to take youngest son to football conditioning too, after closing the store at 6..He picked him up and called me and seemed a little "wiped out".. I told him that he lived my typical day today.. Then I said " Now, you need to come home and cook for everyone" LOL He was NOT amused...

Thursday, July 3, 2008

A few pictures from the trip~~

These pictures are not of the best quality, but hey, atleast I have some pictures.. LOL I forgot my camera ( that needs to be classified as some weird behavioral disorder) so I took pictures with my cell phone.. Oh, and that picture of Austin posing as Wendy? That was taken at a Wendy's we stopped at outside of Atlanta..He and I thought it was hilarious when he posed like that, so I took this picture..Austin is Tyler's friend..We brought him along because he is like family.. He had a good time, I think!


Tyler throwing Jack
Jack and Uncle Steve










Whit throwing Jack








Austin posing as Wendy
Jack and Me








Jeff throwing Jack
Steve loving Austin LOL









Steve throwing Jack

A QUICK Trip!

This week, we decided to take an EXTREMELY short trip to South Carolina..Whit was meeting with the baseball coach at Anderson University in South Carolina, to be evaluated, to possibly play college baseball there.. We also decided that since Anderson is only like 45 minutes from Steve's brother, Jeff, we'd stop by there and visit.. Usually when we take a trip to SC, its atleast a 3 day event.. But this time we couldnt because of the store and other work obligations..


Our first stop was Greenwood, SC, the home of Jeff, Carla and Jack Ellis.. Jeff has a pool in his backyard so all the boys, including Steve, brought their swimsuits and played..They always play this game I like to call " Throw Jack As High As Humanly Possible" LOL.. Jack has absolutely NO FEAR and LOVES to be thrown in the pool.. I think Jack is going to be a stunt man when he grows up.. lol I have a video of it and I am posting it.. That kid gets some AIR when he gets thrown.. This video was taken on my cell phone, sorry it isnt the BEST quality!




Steve's one of 6 boys in his family.. He has 3 older brothers and 2 younger ones.. Yes, he has middle child syndrome.. LOL JUST KIDDING STEVE!! Anyway, Steve's other brother, Randy, also stopped by Jeff's house to see us.. Randy is like 4 years older than Steve.. His poor mom had 4 boys within like 6 years.. What was she thinking? Im sure she was thinking the same thing back then.. LOL His mom has this picture of them all.. Steve is like 6 weeks old.. He has that newborn look.. He is gazing up at the oldest brother, who is beside him.. Randy, the second oldest, is on the other side and Jeff, who is only like 14 months older then Steve, is on all fours, behind them on a table trying to escape.. Once again, POOR MOM!!!! LOL That picture speaks VOLUMES.. LOL


Anyway, to their dismay, I made them all pose for a picture.. LOL Told them Id put it on my blog.. :)


A final note about the trip: Whit has been accepted to Anderson University and the coach told him that they have a JV baseball team so the younger players can get some extra playtime.. He then told Whit, after he had evaluated his pitching performance, that he saw Whit helping out their VARSITY team this year!!! How exciting!! So, I guess I will need a bumper sticker that says " My kid and ALL my money goes to Anderson University" lol

Friday, June 27, 2008

Ok-- My Kid Rock Story..

A few years back, Kid Rock came to the Amphitheater here in Pelham.. I am a HUGE fan of his music.. Not too much of his language in his songs, but the music is great.. He has his own sound.. And I LOVE it.. Anyway, back in those days, it was around 2001, which now seems like EONS ago.. I was a divorced single mom with 3 kids ages 5,8 and 12.. I was friends with this other single mom who's son played on a t-ball team with my youngest.. She was also a huge fan.. She had a friend, who I was also an aquaintance with, that was a huge fan.. She was about to go through a divorce so I guess she was wanting to get out and relax with some girls and see an awesome concert..

My friend got us FREE tickets.. I was sooooo excited! I got all dressed up in my MOM outfit of shorts and a "mock" sleeveless turtleneck.. It was summer..I wasnt dressed up or anything, just very casual and mom-ish.. Ok.. Someone did NOT leave me a memo letting me know that you dont dress like a mom when you are going out with the girls to a KID ROCK concert.. I met my friend at her house and when she answered the door, I about fell out! She was wearing a halter top that barely held her boobs in and a pair of LEATHER pants! What the heck? She was dressed like she was a backup dancer for Kid Rock.. And Ill be honest.. She looked AWESOME.. She had the body to pull it off greatly...

Umm.. I did NOT.. So, Im sitting there in my little stupid SLEEVELESS MOCK TURTLENECK SWEATER and shorts looking at BEST, average.. And I am sitting next to Pamela Lee..Seriously.. I could have atleast been showing some cleavage or something.. LOL We picked met our other friend and got in her car..This was where I started feeling a little OUT OF PLACE..SHE was wearing a pair of leather snakeskin pants and a skin tight tank top..She , too, looked great in it.. I was trying to figure out how these single moms looked so good.. I was JEALOUS! LOL

So, here we were, MOMMY and her Back Up Dancers!! I was laughing and crying inside all at the same time.. Boy, did I stand out.. Or was it THEM that stood out? Either way, I just didnt fit.. So, we go to the concert and when I get there, I see a Pelham Police Officer that I knew.. The look on his face pretty much said it all.. Who are THOSE women? Those women are MOMS from the Homewood Ball Park.. Im sure he was wanting to come watch a few ballgames in Homewood.. LOL

We were walking to where we stood to watch the concert and a guy walks by and pretty much falls over his tongue as he gawks at the BOOB show.. One girl says " UGGHHH.. I dont understand why they have to STARE".. LOL HUH? Did I miss something? Sweetie, they STARE because you are falling out of your haltertop.. GEEZ..

We walked over to the stage and the back up dancers started flirting with a stage hand.. He was intrigued.. So, afterward, he let all 3 of us backstage.. I was SO EXCITED!! We were backstage, hobknobbing with all the band members.. I called my kids on a cell phone just to BRAG.. hehe.. They were so mad at me!! That was about the time when Kid Rock's percussionist, a woman, told one of the backup dancer moms that she " had the biggest breasts I have EVER seen"... UUGGHHHHHHHHHHHH Am I in HELL? That was when we went outside.. I am just taking a guess here, but I think his drummer was a lesbian.. Or she could have just been making an observation..Either way, the boob show became very uncomfortable and wanted to leave.. That was when we became friendly with another band member that let us all into a room where the band members unwind..This was where Kid Rock was..

I walked in, in my sleeveless mock turtleneck sweater and shorts, with the boob show and there he was..He was a skinny guy.. But he was EXTREMELY polite.. He even called me and the boob show "Ma'am" We both died.. lol He introduced himself as "Bobby".. I told him that my 5 year old loved him but he was only allowed to listen to EDITED versions.. LOL He thought that was cute.. Seriously.. Todd used to sit on a rocking horse at the YMCA when he was 4 and sing "Imma cowboy babyyyyyyyyyyyyy" .. so cute!!

We got to sit and hang with them for about 20 minutes.. I met Uncle Kracker too..Of course, he introduced himself as "Matt".. I was on a REAL NAME BASIS with them.. We were tight! LOL Anyway, we left and then went out on the town to a few dance places.. Of course, thats what backup dancers do, after they go to concerts..

Talk about a fish out of water.. Highlight of that portion of the night? When we tried to get into a dance place on Southside, I cant remember the name.. But anyway, you had to pay to get in.. One of the backup dancers told them that we all worked at SAMMY'S.. You know.. SAMMY'S, the STRIP CLUB..

SAMMY'S? REALLY? Ya think I REALLY look like I work there.. Um no.. I looked at the girl behind the counter and shook my head "Yes" and followed them in.. LOL Talk about a night!

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

My FAV song this moment!!

Whodathunkit? Darius Rucker, the famous voice of Hootie and the Blowfish, has gone country! A little tidbit of useless info: Hubby is from Columbia, SC, the birthplace of Hootie.. They went to University of South Carolina and played gigs there- GO GAMECOCKS!! Anyway, hubby has seen them about upteen million times so when there was talk about them touring again he was totally blase about it.. His exact words "Michelle, do you have any idea how many times I have seen them?" UUGGHHHH Oh well.. I can atleast listen to this song.. hehe.. Here it is : Darius Rucker singing " Dont Think I Dont Think About It" VERY CATCHY!

Monday, June 23, 2008

Kid Rock 'Steal Everything' PSA

I got this idea from Dullberts blog.. I love this..This is HILARIOUS!! I am a HUGE Kid Rock fan.. I LOVE his sound..I dont care too much for the language, but he has AWESOME style.. Ill tell my Michelle Meets Kid Rock story another day.. hehe

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Back to the Y!

This week, I decided that it was time to get back into the swing of things by working out again! Tyler has football workouts in the mornings, so Im already out, might as well make use of the gas Im wasting! I kill 2 birds with one stone this way.. I decided that Todd should get a head start on his football workouts too.. We start off by doing 45 minutes on a cardio machine called the "Arc Trainer".. It looks a little like "The Gazelle".. That thing wears you out! I burned 550 calories in 45 minutes! Then after we do that, we work out our abs and then stretch.. Today, Todd wanted to work on his leg strength, so I had him do the leg press machine.. Back in my "Body For Life" workout days, I could leg press 600 pounds, 3 reps.. My hubby finds that impressive, yet weird.. lol.. Today, Todd leg pressed 210 pounds..He did 5 reps! I was impressed.. lol He wanted me to email is football coach and tell him.. lol

Monday, June 16, 2008

All this talk about cats..


I wanted to show you this picture.. This is the girl cat, Cissy.. She is so silly..Why do cats always pick boxes or clothes to lay on? It is so funny..It never fails..I leave out something to wear on my bathroom counter or on my bed.. and a cat will be laying on top of it..A box is left out.. A cat will lay in it.. Here is a picture of the silly cat sitting in a box that I got a pair of shoes in off of Ebay.. Cats are so strange.. lol

My cat story (PART 3)

So we introduced little "Max" to Cissy the girl cat..She IMMEDIATELY took to him! I was really surprised because she was so anti before her brother died.. She played with him and cleaned him..It was like she now had something in her little cat life that she had been missing! He was a little frisky for a boy cat, too! He ran around like a kitten on crack sometimes, it seemed.. He went outside and LOVED it..
I was scared to let him run around, since Cocky's death..But he was a cat and thats something they love..The girl cat doesnt care for the outside too much..She will go out but will ALWAYS come scratch on the window by my bedroom so I can let her in..But the boy cat will go out and stay out for a long time..And he will just sit by the door, or sit on one of the cars until we open the door for him.. Im trying to figure out if he is just dumb and cant figure out that if he scratches like the girl, we will let him in, or he just doesnt care.. lol
Turns out this crazy cute boy cat has quite an outside life! My neighbor 2 doors down says he visits them quite regularly.. Her daughter calls him "Princess" because he is so pretty.. haha He was almost taken by a strange woman in our neighborhood one time too..I blogged about it back in January http://steve-michelleellis.blogspot.com/2008/01/my-cat.html.. He even spoke one time..The latest was last week my family had gotten home from a baseball game and noticed that the boy cat was sitting in the driveway..When out of the blue, about 3-4 birds started circling him and chirping wildly.. Then they would dive down and miss his head by a few feet..The cat just sat there and would play with them..He would flick his tail at them and then roll around until they noticed him.. It was quite funny.. This happened on Friday night, as well.. My neighbor, from 2 doors down told me that she saw the same thing the other day in her yard.. I guess this little guy keeps us all entertained! Silly cat!

My cat story Part 2

OK.. So we had 2 adorable kittens, Cocky and Cissy..They were NEVER called by their names in our house..It was always BOY cat and GIRL cat..I dont know why..We still do it! These kittens did EVERYTHING together..Up until 6 months of age, they shared the same cat bed..They wouldnt sleep anywhere else..They would chase each other around the house, of course at 3 AM, while we were all sleeping! You would hear growling and hissing and then a thump, where one of the two would bump into something.. lol.. Never a boring moment..
The boy cat immediately became huge! He weighed at 6 months, probably 18 pounds, easily! He had long fur, too.. VERY pretty cat..But he liked to go run around, even after he was fixed..The girl cat was fat too..But she had short hair..And an attitude..She would hiss at anyone who came near her..
One time, Drew came by our house while we were out of town..He couldnt get in and called Whit on his cell phone..Whit told him to go through the window in his room.. I guess this was before he learned to lock windows.. DUH.. But anyway, Drew came through window and the girl cat saw him and had him BACKED into a corner.. Drew was scared shed eat him, I guess! HAHA The boy cat was VERY friendly and sweet.. Girl cat was the Alpha-female, I guess..
When the cats were about 2, the boy cat came home from being outside and I noticed he was a little slow.. He laid on the bed and refused to drink any water or eat..I noticed he wasnt using the litter box..SOMETHING WAS WRONG!!! He was laid up on my bed and was wimpering..I picked him up to put him in the litter box and he peed all over me.. I knew this was something more than a little sickness.. The next morning, he made his way to the bathroom hallway near the boys room..He was moaning.. It was so sad..We would try to move him and hed squall like a baby! I called a vet and he told my hubby to bring him in..I later found out that after I went to work , hubby went to pick him up to take him to the vet and he had a HUGE seizure.. Poor boy cat! I got a call later that afternoon that Cocky had had another huge seizure and died after it..The vert said that possibly he had gotten into some poison in the neighborhood..Anyway, he was dead and the girl cat was all alone!
A few months passed and the girl cat TOTALLY changed her attitude! She became really sweet, would even let people pet her when they visited..She still didnt like people going into her DOMAIN, which is the master bedroom and bathroom..But she was alot nicer.. Only problem was, she wouldnt clean herself very well..She developed this weird dandruff on her back..Hubby and I determined that she must have been depressed her brother was gone..She is an animal and all, but she knew he was gone.. We decided that Christmas that she needed a new "brother". We were trying to decide on a name for this new baby boy cat..We were NOT naming him Cocky..Both cats we named Cocky died.. Bad name.. We named this little guy Max.. We also call him BOY cat.. Weird.. I know.. lol TO BE CONTINUED...

My Cat Story..

I am a cat lover..I admit it..I am NOT a dog lover.. I have had numerous dogs and I have gotten rid of every one I have ever owned..I have been trying to figure out why that is..I think puppies are adorable! I also think grown dogs are beautiful..There is nothing more beautiful than a black or chocolate lab full grown.. Or a German Shepherd..Those are the cutest puppies too! But, for some reason, we always get the ONE puppy in the litter that is not potty trainable and likes to run all over the place and mock you while you chase them all over the neighborhood ( ugghhh SOCKS!)
Maybe it is because I do not have alot of patience and I live in such a rush and go lifestyle with 3 boys and sports.. I guess thats where the self-sufficient cat comes in..They own you, you dont own them..They choose daily to come back to you and allow you to feed it..Seriously..
Anyway, this is why I chose to blog about the weirdness of cats.. I have 2 cats..One is Cissy, I actually birthed her back in 2004..Her mama had 6 kittens and another died inside her and it caused birth complications.. Mama cat (her name was Cocky, named after the South Carolina mascot, we thought she was a he wen we first got her..haha)died the next day after giving birth..Left us with 6 newborn kittens and no mama.. I was devastated..I had NEVER cried over an animal..It was so sad! I remember sitting in the car with the 6 kittens in a box and I told hubby " We are ALL they got"
Sadly, 2 died within the next 24 hours.. I was working full time and the kids were in school and hubby was working full time too.. It was like having a newborn all over again..Only I had no maternity leave! I had to feed the kittens every 3-4 hours.. I was exhausted! And we were leaving to go on a cruise in like 3 days! I was just thankful that Mama cat had the kittens the week BEFORE we went on the cruise or we would have come home to 8 dead cats.. :(
I found a woman that could nurse them until they were 6 weeks old..She was such a sweet woman, lived in Mountain Brook.. We dropped the kittens off on a Friday evening.. We were leaving on Sunday.. I felt like I was leaving my kids.. Heck, I had been basically breast feeding them for the past 4 days.. Every few hours..I even sneaked them in a box to work one day, so I could feed them on schedule..I got in trouble for that later.. lol..
Sad news came when we got back from the cruise..Two more kittens had died..The nice lady from Mountain Brook buried them in her backyard.. She said that mama cat probably had a virus in her that contaminated the kittens that died.. I was so sad! But, 4 weeks later, we came home with a boy cat we named Cocky, after his mama.. And 2 weeks later, we came home with Cissy..To be continued...

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

My favorite song right now..

Im embarrassed to say this.. Really.. I even have this song as a ringtone on my phone.. I love Miley Cyrus's song "See You Again"! Maybe I am channeling my inner preteen girl? I dont know.. All I know is I cant get enough of this silly song.. HAHA

Wednesday, June 4, 2008

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

We are SO SILLY

Yesterday, my sister had this BRIGHT IDEA to go on the water slides here at the Caribe..They have 3 at the building we are staying at the pool..Maybe it was the Pina Colada I had, maybe it was my INNER child trying to come out and play..Who knows but everyone looked up and 3 "old" chicks in MOM swimsuits were running up the steps to the BIG water slide that had 2 wild and crazy turns and were squealing like little girls as we rode down the slide..My sister and I were laughing so hard and had so much fun going down the slide that we ran to the other slide and had races to see who got to the bottom faster.. I have one picture on my slide show of the three of us after we went down the slide.. Sadly, my BOOB hurt so much this morning from all the jarring and quick movements on the fast slide.. Oh well.. It was really fun.. We laughed about how funny it was that us MOM's( and Grandmoms too lol) were practically pushing kids to the side to go down the slide.. HAHA

So far so good - Vacation Trip 2008!

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

My Vacation Place

I found this very nice informative yet beautiful array of pictures of the place that we are staying at in Orange Beach.. The place is called The Caribe..My parents and sister and her family all stayed there last year and RAVED about it so much that they planned another vacation there , only this time we got a place that all 3 families could fit in! Get a load of these pics:http://www.realtourvision.com/tour/RE/tour.view.new.php?utl=RE-0287-BWLOS6-01&j=1&referer=http://www.paradisegulfproperties.com/sales.php

WOW is all I gotta say.. Saturday cant get here FAST ENOUGH! LOL

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Congratulations Class of 2008!









Last Thursday, May 22,2008, Whit graduated! I was so proud of him! He looked so handsome in his cap and gown..Sadly, I had NO CAMERA! All I had was my cell phone camera.. My mom and sister ALSO forgot their cameras! Steve told me THREE times where the camera was but with so much going on, I forgot to get it.. Oh well.. These pictures I have are the ONLY pictures from that night.. Luckily, I got Traci Dubberly to take a photo of him getting his diploma :)

FINALLY!!!!!!!

There is light at the end of the tunnel!!!! I am FINALLY starting to feel like MICHELLE again..Yesterday was the first day since my lumpectomy/mini-mastectomy that I FORGOT to take a pain pill!! That is how I know I will NEVER become addicted to pain meds..I have always done that..I take them like I am supposed to, for the most part..I try to be macho and limit them some because I dont even like taking ALEVE, unless Im DYIN! So, for me to take a pain pill, Im in MAJOR PAIN!!!
Anyway, I realized at 10 pm last night that I hadnt taken ANYTHING all day long..This is when having ADD comes in handy,I guess..HAHA I was so NOT FOCUSED that I didnt realize I was in pain..LOL Actually, the past few days I have noticed I only need pain meds LATER in the day..Im ok until around 3..Well, yesterday I didnt even need them at 3!! I guess that means Im almost healed! About time! Today marks 2 weeks since my surgery...Hallelujah!!! Im looking forward to getting back in the gym and working out! My goal is to start back the Monday after we get back from Orange Beach..(after next week) We are leaving this Saturday and not coming back until the following Saturday..WOOHHOOOOOOO!! Ill talk more about that later..

Monday, May 26, 2008

Our SUMMER Obsession: So You Think You Can Dance


I dont understand why me and my hubby LOVE this show so friggin much..Only reason I can think of is the contestants are all unknowns, just like American Idol..I also love Mary Murphy and her squeals of joy when she gets all hyped up with a great performance..There have actually been a performance or two that MOVED me to tears..One was last season..Mia Michaels is also another favorite..She gets all emotional and will move me to tears with her tears! Nigel Lythgoe, we ALL know helped create American Idol and Im sure he and Simon hang..LOL They have very similar personalities..He is fun to watch too!
I also noticed that there was a guy that made it to Vegas last week that is from Montgomery, Alabama..His name was "Twitch".. He was a breakdancer and a very good one, at that! So, join me and my hubby in our summer obsession..lol I cant wait until July, thats when my OTHER summer obsession comes on..Fellow blogger Deedra shares my obsession.. hehe BIG BROTHER!! Which, by the way, begins on Sunday, July 13!!!!! Woohooo Deedra!!!! More sleepy filled days due to me staying up waaay too late watching Big Brother After Dark on Showtime..lol

I Told Ya So!!!

I have to brag a bit..Not too terribly much..But I gotta say: Neener Neener Neener! I knew David Cook would win American Idol! HAHA I have to admit though, when David Archuleta sang his heart out on the last performance night, I was a bit worried..I was almost angry..lol He sounded SO GREAT..I am such a huge DC fan that I felt that I was cheating on him by enjoying David Archuleta..Gotta give the boy PROPS!!! I have a feeling DA will have NO PROBLEM making a name for himself after American Idol.. I have to take this moment and congratulate David Cook on a job well done!

MY top 5 would have looked a little different, though..It would have been DA and DC but it would have also had Sayeesha Mercado, Michael Johns and Carly Smithson..My top 3 would have been DA,DC and Carly Smithson..I believe she had the best voice in the competition..Something keeps holding her back..I cant put my finger on it..Hubby thinks it is the tatoos..She is absolutely GORGEOUS when she gets fixed up but the tatoos DO tend to distract..When she covers them, she is flawless.. Maybe hubby is right.. She could DEFINATELY give Amy Lee of Evanescence a run for her money, vocally..Maybe if she took that heavier, edgier music route, she wouldnt have any problems..She definately has the voice of an American Idol, but thats not all the American Idol is..I was sad she was sent home..I was having flashbacks of Chris Daughtry.. LOL So, I was a little scared when she was sent home the week after Michael Johns was sent home..I was SO WORRIED DC was next! I am SO GLAD America FINALLY got it right, this season!

Interesting stuff

I was reading Leigh's blog today and I saw something about Technorati..I had to join and figure this out..So here we go: Technorati Profile

Thursday, May 22, 2008

Happy Anniversary to My Hubby!

Today is my hubby and my anniversary! We have been married for 5 years! It doesnt feel like it is our anniversary because we have so much going on.. With graduation and all, we will be lucky to wish each other a happy anniversary.. haha But I wanted to take this moment on my blog to wish Steve a Happy Anniversary! I love you and all that other mushy stuff.. lol I have to share a funny story about our wedding day.. Steve and I got married at the courthouse in Jefferson County.. We had a female judge, Judge Vinson.. She was very nice.. Of course, Steve and I didnt realize that the day we made plans to be married, that his team, The South Carolina Gamecocks, would be playing in the SEC baseball tournament that same day.. Yall know how our family is about baseball.. And being that Steve rarely gets to see his team, we had to do some finagaling(Sp?) to make it to the game.. LOL
Yes, you read that right.. Our time to marry was at 1pm that afternoon.. South Carolina played at 1ish.. Steve thought if we got to the courthouse maybe an hour or so early, the judge might marry us early.. Well, she happen to be leaving for lunch when we caught her.. Her assistant ran and got her and told her that her 1 pm appointment was early and wanted to know if shed like to knock it out then.. She thought it was a great idea and married us then.. Immediately after she pronounced us Husband and Wife, Steve says while doing the "yes" gesture with his arm, "Great! NOW I can make the South Carolina Baseball Game!"
Judge Vinson rolled her eyes at him and said " How romantic" LOL Such is the life in my household.. We got it all in perspective.. Baseball first.. LOL

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Future Voice of Milo's?


Randall Nichols? I would sooo LOVE that! This guy is one heck of a singer and a guitarist! He is an awesome performer!! I had the pleasure of getting to know Randall during the Big Mountain Idol competition..I can tell you this much, Randall had my family's vote! My hubby told me that if he wasnt married to me, he would have voted for Randall ,instead of me,because Randall was a double threat..He could sing AND play..When I was voted out of the competition, all our votes went to Randall!
Randall has NOW been picked as one out of 15 to be voted on as the next voice of Milo's..Here is the scoop that Randall sent me in an email:
Milo's is looking for a new voice for their jingle and put out an open call to the locals. As many as 360 auditioned and the executives narrowed it down to 15 finalists. I have made my way into that group and now need all the help I can find to become the next Milo's Mega Star. Auditions will be aired on the local CBS affiliate, CBS42, this Thursday morning, May 22nd starting at 6AM and voting will open on their website immediately afterward (http://cbs42.com/wakeup). Please vote early and as often as possible. The winner will be announced on June 2nd. The Grand Prize is a contract with Milos' agency to produce the new jingle and a $5000 cash prize.
I know I will be giving him my vote! Please everyone VOTE FOR RANDALL!! Milo'sMega Star!!!

What the heck?

This is exactly what I said on Sunday when I finally got the butterfly bandages off my boob.. You may wonder why I said WHAT THE HECK? It is because I went in thinking I had a LUMPECTOMY.. Meaning a little area, about 1-1.5 inch incision, TOPS! I couldnt believe the GASH that was staring back at me in my bathroom mirror.. Mind you, taking off any bandage after this ONE DAY SURGERY was just about worse than the surgery,itself..When I took off the initial dressing, I kid you not, I had to go sit by the toilet because I thought I was going to puke..I never did.. But I was really hurting!!!
Ok.. so about the GASH.. It measured 3 inches.. Thats about 2x the size I was expecting.. NO WONDER I AM IN SO MUCH FRIGGIN PAIN!!!!!!!!! I saw the doctor yesterday for my post surgical visit..He said it was all healing ok but that I had some redness in the area and that he wanted me to take some antibiotics, just so infection wouldnt settle in.. INFECTION? UUGGHHHH.. So, Im taking antibiotics now..
I asked the doc why my incision was so big.. He told me that it was very deep and in order to get it all, they had to take a pretty big CHUNK out.. He told me that they removed a 9cm x 6cm x 3cm section.. I was wondering if I had any boob left.. I do.. But anyway, no wonder I feel like crap! I had a modified mastectomy almost! GEEZ!!!!! I am still hurting, BTW.. I am wondering when this will end... Hey, Atleast Im cancer free! I guess thats a positive I can look at!

Thursday, May 15, 2008

A HUGE Sigh Of Relief

I heard from the doc today..That is about the longest friggin wait ever.. Anyway, he told me that the lump was fibrous in nature and it was called a fibroadenoma.. It was also benign and there were no signs of cancer anywhere! He told me I needed to go out and celebrate! I read up on it after I talked to him and realized that this is probably what my mom had..If a fibroadenoma is left alone in a few years it can turn cancerous..My mother was 45 before she had her first mammogram.. This was back before it became such big deal to have mammograms..She has been cancer free now for 21 years.. I learned alot from this ordeal and how important it is to keep up with your mammograms! I will definately be having my mammograms done on a yearly basis if not sooner from now on! Prayers have been answered for sure today! Amen!

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Can Darvocet Give You a Hangover?

Thats exactly how I am feeling today..My eyes are seeing images that are small, as if I had to wear glasses..Im sure this will pass...I guess it is a side affect from the anethesia..I swear I slept all day yestrday, after I got home..One time I woke up, thinking it was maybe 5:00 at the latest..Until my hubby and kids made fun of me for being so "TANKED" LOL..The time was actually 7 pm.. You know how much I LOVE american Idol and I couldnt sty awake even for that..

The doc gave me some pain pills..I am trying to not take them but I have to at this point..I get so sleepy and loopy on them..Just when I think I am feeling ok and try to lift something, thats when I get that sharp pain..I can actually feel, under the dressing, the place where they took the "Area of Suspicion" (AKA - AOS)out..I get to remove the dressing today..I had to come into work at my store, but I really think it is a good thing..Im not sitting around at home, worrying about the AOS being cancerous..There is a huge chance it wont be cancer..But you never know! Im trying to be positive..Thanks to everyone who has supported me through this..

Friday, May 9, 2008

Lumpectomy..

That was what the doctor said I needed to have done...I met a surgeon today at St. Vincents..He seems to be very aggressive in his treatment, which is something I appreciate! I really didnt care much for taking my shirt off for someone else today..Im not much for strippin these days.. lol..Anyway, the doc said he didnt feel any lump but he did give me the report that the radiologist gave him:

They saw an "area of suspicion" on the mammogram so they compared it to my baseline mammogram from 2.5 years ago..There was definately an area of suspicion..So, they wanted me to come back on Monday to have an ultrasound and if they couldnt see anything, they wanted me to have another mammogram..This time, they would compress the area of suspicion..Sometimes , the surgeon said, when they compress an area like that, the lump goes away..I had the ultrasound and it was inconclusive..So, off to the mammogram thingie.. I HATE THOSE THINGS!! Didnt feel too special, thats for sure! So much for making the lump dissipate by compression..It was still there.. It was oval shaped and about 1.5 cm in diameter..

So anyway, I am having a LUMPECTOMY on Tuesday..It is done on an outpatient basis..I have to be at the hospital at 8:30 and will have the lumpectomy at 11:30..WOOHOOO!!

I am more worried about getting an IV and having anesthesia administered..Im weird like that..I almost had a panic attack, thinking about having to be put to sleep.. uughhh..Oh well.. That too shall pass!!

Thursday, May 8, 2008

I dont even know what to say...

So I will just friggin say it! Ok, a week ago I had my car towed at the Crawfish Boil..All the drama from that was enough to keep me occupied from what is really going on in my life right now..Its really weird to me that on the same day that my life was turned upside down from all the crap the city of Birmingham handed me, it was also the same day that I had gotten a call from my OB-GYN's office telling me that the mammogram I had 2 days before had a "suspicious" mass and that I needed to have another mammogram on Monday morning.. uugghhhh...



Ok.. Let me start this by telling you that I have been preparing for this moment mentally since I was 17 years old..My mother was diagnosed with breast cancer at 45..I was 17..I really didnt fully comprehend the whole ordeal..I was soo into myself..I was a friggin teenager.. But I do remember worrying about my mom..It was kind of surreal to me too..It happened so fast, it seemed..My mom went in and had a mammogram, after her doctor nagged her into it..She basically went in there and had it to shut him up! lol So, she was shocked when she found out that she had a small "area of suspicion", smaller than 2 cm in her right breast..It seemed that all of a sudden, she had a mastectomy and reconstruction in one fell swoop! I know it wasnt like that, but thats the way it seemed in my 17 year old mind..

Anyway, all of these memories came back to me yesterday when I was contacted , once again, by my OB-GYN office telling me that the mass was indeed suspicious and that the next step would be that I meet with a doctor at St. Vincents about having the "suspicious mass" that measured approximately 1.5 cm, biopsied..Biopsy..What an ugly word.. Seriously..I wish it was a better word.. But I guess there is no pretty word to describe a technique used to extricate a substance from a "suspicious mass" and test it to see if it is cancerous or not..

Like I said before, I have been preparing for this moment since I was 17..Well, for the most part I was..I cannot begin to explain how I feel inside..I really cant..Im not sad..Im not mad..Im not anything..Probably because we arent even sure if this is a big deal or not..All I know is this : My mom had a similar "suspicious mass" in her right breast, just like me..Hers measured less than 2 cm, just like me..I guess preparing mentally was best for me, all these years..Atleast Im not in denial..I know that if I have it, Its there..Nothing I can do about it..It will be removed..I will deal with it..If I dont have cancer, I will just wait til the next time I have to deal with this again.. lol Anyway, say a prayer for me tomorrow..I will see the surgeon at 11:30..

Wednesday, May 7, 2008

Mother's Day

This is sooo funny..My boys showed this to me about 2 years ago and I have wanted to share this with everyone I know..Now I can.. Enjoy!!

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

UPDATE on what happened Friday Night..

An old friend of mine was at the Crawfish Boil Friday with his wife and 2 kids..I actually saw them from afar but I didnt say anything because there were so many people there..Anyway, I saw his brother Monday night at Todd's baseball game..I asked him if his brother had fun and he asked me if I had fun..I told him we had fun until we got TOWED.. And he said that his brother was almost towed..I asked him what happened and I called him this morning to confirm what happened..He said he and his wife met their kids at 10:20 and they went back to their truck..He saw that there were about 7 tow trucks in the lot, the same lot we had our car towed from..

He loaded up the family and started to leave. When he got to the exit of the lot, a man in a Birmingham Parking Authority shirt stopped him by putting up a chain across the exit.. The man told him that he couldnt leave because he was parked illegally.. My friend asked him what he needed to do and he said " Give me $20 and you can go".. I found out from another woman whos car was towed that she saw alot of people paying $20 to get out of the lot..These people chained the lot so people couldnt leave.. So they not only got the money they made out of towing , they made money off of people by chaining the entrance , holding people hostage, until they paid $20 to leave.. Why tow some people and then take $20 from others? This sooo smells like a scam!

Amazing..

Monday, May 5, 2008

This is how MY Friday night went...

Ok.. I gotta tell you..I was on a cloud of feel good " I am the COOLEST mom" trip Friday afternoon..Ya see, hubby and I decided we would take the 2 youngest boys to the Crawfish Boil in downtown Birmingham..They were SO EXCITED! There were 4 bands that night that just happen to be some of the boys favorite bands..The tickets were $25 a person and to be honest, to see 4 of their fav groups, it was a GREAT value!



The performances were great! I saw tons of drunk people and even a few drunk teens we knew.. I guess their parents werent as cool as we were and they knew they could come to a function like the Crawfish Boil all tanked up and no one would know..



I was so excited to see 3 Doors Down, personally..I also liked Candlebox and Seether too..I really dont care for the rap stuff but was familiar with T-Pain's stuff because my kids always play it in the car..I will have to be honest with you here, T-Pain was the BEST performance of the night..The sound was awesome and they just put on one heck of a show..I enjoyed all the performances but T-Pain was, by far, the most entertaining..



Oh and one more exciting moment: Todd, my 11 year old and a friend pushed their way up to the front row before T-Pain and stayed there until 3 Doors Down had almost finished..Now, dont think I just let my baby run wild at this event..He was with another 11 year old boy that had a cell phone and we were in constant contact with them.. lol..



With all this feel good-ness going on, you would have thought we had some awesome memories, right? WRONG..It was great up until this moment: We were walking to the car and as we walked up to where the lot was, we noticed that the lot was empty..Then we realized that our car was no where to be found..Then we noticed that there were wreckers all over the lot with cars loaded up on them..That was when we realized that OUR CAR HAD BEEN TOWED!!!!!!!



At this point, we saw a female police officer and she looked extremely irritated..My husband said " What is going on?" She pointed to a woman and said " Talk to HER" So he did..She then proceeded to tell hubby that she was the lot managerwe were parked on Private Property..And that there was a sign posted that stated it..WHAT? When we pulled into the lot, there was a line of cars before us and behind us..There were people walking all over the place and cars everywhere..I NEVER once saw a sign that said that..I had looked before we parked and did not notice any along the street..



So, there we were..Me, my hubby an my 11 and 14 year old sons..STRANDED in downtown Birmingham, on the worst side of town at 11:30 at night..No car, my cell phone was in my purse, which was in the car and my hubby's cell phone was about dead at the time..There was another male police officer on the lot , who was pretty much standing by the "lot manager" the whole time..I am sure it was to protect her.. It was at this time that I noticed the number of people that were also stranded..All kinds of people..There were numerous groups of teenage girls, huddled together , crying..Probably scared to death..I cried some myself..I felt SO HELPLESS! I am sure the teenagers had no idea what to do..I know I didnt!



Hubby and I were irate, and for a good reason..We told the lady that she made a huge mistake..She didnt just tow peoples cars..She left people STRANDED..FAMILIES stranded..CHILDREN stranded..SHe then tried to justify her action by shooting back that she had to leave her family to come out there..Whatever.. We were getting ABSOLUTELY NO WHERE WITH THAT WOMAN..So then we tried to talk to the police officer and asked him what we should do NOW..He pretty much didnt care..He got an attitude and asked us if we saw a sign posted about the parking lot being private property..It was posted where we drove in..To be honest, we never saw a sign..There were people all over the place..The officer then proceeded to tell hubby that we drove over a barricade to get into the lot, which was a lie..We told him there was nothing barring anyone from parking there..People were lined up to get into this lot..We told him we had parked on the grassy looking area, not the paved area..That was when the lot manager said that thanks to US, SHE was going to have to spend $5000 to RE-SOD the lot..WHATEVER.. There was NEVER any sod in that lot..It was nothing but dirt and weeds..





This is where this whole story got REALLY messed up..The officer then told us that someone was charging people $5 to park in the lot ILLEGALLY..He then said he was now under arrest..Ok.. So here is what happened..Lot manager found out someone was charging people to park, so she got irate and decided to have all the cars towed..Makes NO SENSE whatsoever..

The officer walked away and left us there to figure out what we needed to do..Steve got in touch with Whit, who was still in a parking deck at the Crawfish Boil with his friends..They drove over to the parking lot and we realized that only one of us could ride to the place where our car was due to the fact that Whit was riding with 3 other boys and they were in a Mustang..Steve stayed back at the lot with the boys and I left with Whit and his friends..

The place that had my car was called B and G Automotive..It was located off of Arkadelphia Road , not the safest place in the city..I got out and stood in line to pay the $200 that we were told it would cost to get car out..Right before the boys drove off someone told us that it would cost $200 in CASH..No debit cards, checks or credit cards..CASH! Whit took my ATM card and went to get cash while I stood in line..He ended up going to 4 different ATMs before he got the cash..Once again, I remind you, NOT ON THE SAFEST SIDE OF TOWN..And anyway, WHO has that much cash on them? Seriously!

The atmosphere at B and G Automotive was one of anger and nervousness..All the people there were angry and felt very violated..No one knew the lot was Private Property..I never saw a sign, alothough we found out later they were posted..Usually, if you dont want anyone to park in your lot, you put up chains or a barricade with numerous signs.. There was none of that..People were very angry..One guy got his car back and when they brought it to him, the tire was flat..The rims touched the ground! He was extremely angry..Some Stone Cold Steve Austin looking guy that worked for B and G Automotive tried to back him down, telling him basically to shut up..The guy ended up filing a report with the Birmingham Police Department.. Another car had the front part of it lowered from the tow truck..

A woman called Fox 6 news and a reporter took everyones names and numbers down for a possible story..I finally got my car at 1 am, roughly..I headed back to the Sheraton Hotel next to the BJCC, where Steve and the boys had walked to from the lot..We got home about 2 am. Steve told me about the people that were left at the lot..There were still like 20 at that time..He told me about a guy that had come to the Crawfish Boil with $250 on him..He spent $50 for him and his girlfriend to get in, $25 on gas and has$175 left..He found his car on a tow truck still there when he got to the lot..He offered the $175 to the tow truck driver and he refused to give his car back to him and LEFT him and his girlfriend there at the lot..With no way to get his truck..Pathetic..

So anyway, this is how my cool and fun Friday night turned out.. I dont think I ever want to go to another event in Birmingham EVER AGAIN!

Oh and one more thing to rub a little salt in the wounds: the next night, the same lady that had all our cars towed was charging people to park there..She told a reporter at NBC13 that she had "Learned from her mistakes the night before".. Her mistake cost me and about 150-200 people $200 dollars each..That means that towing company made $30-40K that night ALONE..