Thumbs up, Brit!

I found this on You Tube:



How long do ya think this positive, sober act will last? I'm guessing until her Dad's conservatorship expires!!

Spring Break 2008!

We decided to do something a little different this year for Spring Break. Normally, we're beach people. I thought about a cruise, possibly heading south to Galveston and staying in a condo on the beach, but my son had his first camping trip several weeks ago with friends and was so excited about it that my daughter and I thought it would be fun to spend time out in the wilderness enjoying some serious camp time. She is a devoted Girl Scout, by the way and is pretty good at the whole camping thing, which if you knew my girly-girl daughter would surprise you.

We decided to venture to Possum Kingdom Lake about 90 miles west of our home and rented a cabin for 5 days in the State Park (I wasn't about to spend 5 days in a tent with my kids. I love them, but I have my limits)!

We arrived on Sunday afternoon, unloaded our stuff and ventured outside to explore, meet some new folks, play some games, climb trees and have some fun!




Day two began with a hike through the Palo Pinto Mountains. GORGEOUS! We hiked for TWO HOURS and neither of my kids complained once (miracle)!! They had a ball collecting rocks, searching for arrowheads and dinosaur footprints and hoping we didn't run in to any bobcats.




Once we got back to the cabin after our long hike, Mommy was a little tired and took a nap, but my kids kept on going....they played soccer, basketball, climbed more trees, ran around and collected more rocks (we had quite a collection by the time we left), skateboarded, played on the playground with other kids....on and on and on they went until we made a campfire after grilling out some dinner and enjoyed some delicious s'mores! About 20 minutes after dark, this is how I found them:

Look how peaceful they are. I love them the most when they're sleeping! :)

Day three pretty much sucked! What I haven't mentioned yet is that we were so far out in the boonies that I had no cell service. I went 5 day without talking on my cell phone or texting anyone. 5 days! It was quite traumatic! Couple that with the massive rainstorm we had on Day Three and I was pretty much ready to climb the walls by 10am. We decided to "drive to town" which was 40 minutes away and get some pizza for lunch instead of staying in the cabin all day. That ate up a few hours at least. My poor little girl was so bored that she spent 2.5 hours working on a jigsaw puzzle. She has ADHD, so this is no easy task for her, but in a cabin with no phone and no cable that was about all we had to keep us going!

Thankfully, Day Four brought some better weather and the activity the kids had most been looking forward to: BOATING! We took a boat out for the afternoon and the kids LOVED it! They each got to drive (which was quite exciting for my thrill seeking son and very scary for my daughter). We stopped after an hour or so because it was cold out there on the lake and ventured up to The Cliffs Resort for a fantastic lunch (with wine...yeah)! Back to the boat after lunch and more cruising around the lake! Possum Kingdom is a small lake, but it is absolutely beautiful. The homes are magnificient and the landscape is breathtaking. I'm seriously considering looking at some property there!

We woke up on Day Five and it was time to pack up and go home. I had a blast and I know the kids did, too but I was certainly ready to sleep in my bed again. Camping is awesome, but my back is too old to do it for too long (and if you know me at all, I don't take that statement lightly). I missed my tempurpedic!

Maybe we'll do a cruise next year, but I really enjoyed my spending time outdoors with my babies for 4 days. They're amazing kids and it's easy to forget that when you get stuck in a daily routine. I've done a pretty good job with those two and they make me so proud!

My first Mavs game (and an explanation of why I hate their owner)!

Amy was kind enough to invite me to the Dallas Maverick's game last night, and even though I hate Mark Cuban and everything he stands for, I agreed because a night out with Amy is always a fun time (plus I do love basketball)! It was my first NBA game.





Click here to see why Mark Cuban is on my shit list! It starts at 2:34.

The arena was sooooo freakin' far away, so having gone 45 minutes in the car without a cocktail, we decided to go to the W hotel for a pre-game "warm up." I've been to a lot of hotels in my day, but this is truely one of the most gorgeous I have ever laid eyes on!

After downing a couple of vodka tonics at the lobby bar, we walked across the street to the arena.

I've lived in Texas for almost 3 years and this was my first night out in Dallas (I usually head to Fort Worth to get my downtown groove on) and I was really impressed with Victory Park where the arena is located. Very cool shops, condos, eateries, bars, etc.

We had great seats, but my camera doesn't zoom so well!

The game was great and seeing Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Kidd play was an amazing sight. I could not get over how HUGE these players are. I mean they are seriously ENORMOUS!! We cheered, we laughed, we cheered some more, but decided to leave a bit early to beat the crowd over to Ghost Bar located on the top of the W hotel (plus we were kicking Indiana's ass and was obvious the Mavs would win). This is suppossed to be THE place to see and be seen in Dallas.

The outdoor terrace at Ghost Bar! What an amazing view of the city!

Cheers on the terrace!

So many people I know have totally overhyped the Ghost Bar. Yes, it was beautiful; an architectural masterpiece. Yes, there were lots of pretty people there, but the biggest thing I noticed about them is they were always looking out of the corner of their eye to see if someone was watching them. Can't you just sit and enjoy, people? Anyway, I put my time in at the she-she-poo-poo bar of all bars (whatever), but we quickly decided that perhaps we should move on and go somewhere that was more our speed.

Here's me rolling my eyes at the "I have no self-esteem so buy me a drink and validate me" crowd!



So, Amy re-applied her lip gloss and we said, "Adios" to the Ghost Bar!


After a quick stop for a gourmet meal at What-a-Burger (it's the buttered buns), we headed for a good, old fashioned, down and dirty tavern: The Tapp Inn in Grapevine! Good beer, great service, always good live music (no DJ here) and there never fails to be at least one table left when we walk in....it's as if the walls know we're coming!



Amy and I with our server-extraordinaire!

So, I learned a couple of things last night:

1. NBA games are the shiz-ney (even if Mark Cuban is an ass)

2. The best place to hang with friends is the place you can be your silly, loud, obnoxious self and not care what the guy next to you thinks!

3. Amy is super-fun and likes buttered buns as much as I do!

Sidebar: Have a great spring break, everyone! I'm taking the kids camping for 5 days at Possum Kingdom Lake. I'll have a new post about our trip late next week!

7 months to go!!

Quick.....! What's one of the best things about an annual Girls Getaway Weekend? The 12 months of anticipation leading up to it! The silly emails reliving last year's fun and predictions of what's to come on our next trip, the excitement of booking our same condo 8 months in advance, and the promise of new friends joining us for what promises to be 5 days of fun, sun and too many margaritas!

Irish Peter....swoon!


7 months, girls....then look out Key West 'cause the bitches will be back!

Desperate times call for Desperate Measures!

I've never understood Amy Winehouse's appeal. Yes, she makes good music, but her train wreck-of-a-life has taken over any kind of affect her tunes may have on me. The hair and make up alone are enough to make me question her loyalty to her craft. I mean, does anybody that looks like that really want us to believe that the music is more important than the image?

Beyond the beehive and horrible take on Sophia Loren's cat-eyes, she married a drug addict/wife beater who looks like he should be named Skippy, not Blake.


After publicly declaring, "No, No, No" to rehab, she finally decides to quit smoking crack a few months ago after being publicly humiliated (?) by photos of her smoking a crack pipe in a London tabloid.

This is the newest Amy Winehouse headline: Winehouse shocks friends! Apparently, coke and meth are out and snorting vodka is the new thing! Can somebody please stop listening to her "No, No, No" pleas to stay out of rehab and lock this one up (maybe she and Brit Brit can share a cell)???

What's the point of watching now?

I found out that Ms. Madonna, a 2008 inductee into the Hall of Fame and my 1980's idol is not going to perform at the Induction Ceremony this weekend. What? Every inductee performs....what the hell makes her so special?

Well, let me just share a little of what I consider to be some of her bests looks...the things that make her special:

The Like a Virgin days.....it was the 80's and the word "virgin" in a song seemed so dirty and shocking!

The "Dress you Up" days. I thought she was so fashion forward.....thank God the 8o's are over! Notice how she's slyly flipping us off! She's such a rebel!

My all time favorite Bad Ass Madonna photo! I still try to replicate that "Don't F**k with me look when discipling my kids, cigarette and all (just kidding)!

In the early 90's she went classy on us and taught us all to "Vogue."



Then, of course came the SEX era when her song, "Justify my Love" became a perennial Bang CD favorite around the world!

Now, Madonna is all grown up, and so are we, but she still manages to keep us guessing and wondering what her next incarnation will be. She's still a bad ass.....but I sure would have liked to see her perform at the induction ceremony! I guess I'll have to hold out for her next tour!

The blizzard of 2008, part 2

Yesterday was a beautiful day. 60 degrees and sunny. Today? We're expecting up to 5 inches of snow!

The kids love it, though! My daughter's friend, B came over to play with my kids in the snow! We hadn't had too much when I took this picture!

About 2 hours later, there was a good 3 inches on the ground!

Even Jax, the love dog, got in on the fun!

Ahhh, winter in Texas!