Double Happiness

Gettin' my slobber on!

Yesterday was Valentine's Day but I found my present this morning when I dragged myself into the office to check email.  Sitting atop my keyboard (where Sweetheart knew I couldn't miss it) was a sweet little assortment of See's Chocolates -- and an even more sweet card. 

Even though a card and chocolates are typical Valentine's fare, there's nothing typical about my amazing husband.  He's amazing and I love him!  I really don't know how I got so lucky but I hope he keeps me around forever!

It wasn't my favorite collection (that would be "Nuts and Chews") but it was probably even better because at least half of the decadent little items were things I won't eat (Ewwwwwww!  I detest creamy centers.  So, just think of all of the calories my Darling saved me!)  Best yet, each rejected item was something my daughters positively drooled over!  And, we all know Miss Madeline could use the calories more than Mommy!

Of course, the only way to know if the center was something nutty and/or chewy was to bite it.  So, I did what I had to do and here's the mutilated box of chocolates several hours later.  Most of the empty spots are courtesy of Gwendolyn and Madeline who weren't too proud to scarf what Mommy slobbered on.

"Between the New Years"

Saturday, we drove out to the Presidio of San Francisco for a "Between the New Years" celebration with hundreds of families who've adopted from China.  It was incredibly fun and we were bummed that we forgot to bring our camera!  Fortunately, M3 and Rod remembered theirs and were so nice (as always!) to let us borrow it.  Here's one of the pictures from the day:

Of course, that's M3 and Rose and Marie with me and Maddy and Gwen.

Behind us are some of the buildings on the Presidio (which was, sadly, deactivated several years ago).  The one directly above M3's head was the old Criminal Investigations Division (CID) headquarters and the one to the right (in the corner of the picture) was the male barracks.  If you could see the one next to that, it would be the female barracks and that's where I lived for two years back in the early 1980's.

I can't tell you how nostalgic it was to be back on the Presidio after more than 20 years!  I walked on the same sidewalks that I walked on way back then.  What if I had a crystal ball and saw 25 years into the future to see the picture above?   

I just got some pictures from Mary-Mia of the girls playing in the bouncer so I'll update this post to add them!

	Gwen was VERY enthusiastic about the bouncer!  She was a wild woman and held her own with the kids twice (or more) her age while most of her peers stayed on the sideline and tried not to get bounced on!
	Once or twice, she was knocked flat on her back.  Here she is about to have medical aid rendered by a handsome 4 year old!  Don't worry, she was fine!  Gwen falls down usually for dramatic effect and likes to lay there for a few moments to see what kind of attention she can draw.  Yes, I do have a real Drama Queen on my hands!  She's tough as steel though and rarely cries even when she's really knocked down for real!
	Maddy had fun but was much more reserved about it.  Especially since the bouncer would suddenly deflate without notice and the whole structure would collapse onto the children (who were screaming and running for the exit flap).

Then it would spring back up and like a Jack-in-the-box and the kids would pile back in only to repeat the process 15 minutes later! 

We're going to get one of these for the girls' 3rd birthday party this summer.  Hopefully one that doesn't do the spontaneous deflation trick!

Mommy needs a play-date

We have more than 500 page views on this blog every single day and more than 2974 comments as of right this minute.  I consider most of my commenters to be my friends even though we don't get together in real life. 

Until recently, it's been enough to have a gazillion on-line friends but it's not enough anymore.  I'm bored and I'm lonely.  I need some adult company during the day.

My one (and only) 2007 resolution was to work harder to shift some of my on line friendships into my real life.  So, if you're in the San Jose area and want to get together for some easy/informal/casual hangin' out (during the week -- with kids), drop me an email and let's pick a time and place. Martinis optional.

PS:  Anyone read this book?  It looks interesting! 

Birthday

	My birthday is 9/11.  Yep, September 11.  But I laid claim to that date long before the terrorists did.  Still, it was the crappiest day ever to turn 40! If I lived in China, I'd be 45 years old already (it's 9/11 there).  To the left, are pictures of me during my cute years.  Notice that there's nothing past age 18.  Post only condolences, please.  <grin>
	I know my "older" cousin, Jana (hee hee), will get a kick out of this one.  I very much remember the day this picture was taken.   That pink poodle (I'm holding) was very much coveted by both of us and I was crying hysterically before I got to hold it for the pic.  My "twins" are so much like Mommy!

Six Weird Things About Me

Tenley's Mom, Michelle, from The Taming of Tenley tagged me so I'm supposed to tell you six weird things about me. There are so many more to tell but here are the first six that come to mind:

1. My number one pet peeve is telemarketers. I thought the no-call list would end my misery but it seems companies who you’ve done prior business with are “allowed” to market to you this annoying way. Maybe it’s their special way of saying thanks for your prior business? If I’m not in a hurry to do something else, I love to screw with telemarketers. I’ll say “Uh huh” constantly while they do their shpeil and when they get to the end, I’ll say: “I’m sorry, can you please repeat that” or I’ll pretend to misunderstand that the service they’re so enthusiastically offering isn’t free. Once I actually asked if I could put them on speaker phone so I could have both hands free to finish cutting up the body (I was really in the middle of making a smoothie for my 11 year old son so I put the phone next to the blender and pressed the “puree” button while my son screamed in the background). ...
2. I put a personal ad on the internet in 2000 and got more than 300 replies. Only 1% were potential “keepers”. My husband was one of them and I still pinch myself every day that I’m married to such an amazing man. We exchanged more than 100 email before meeting in person and I never saw his picture until just before that first meeting. ...
3. I was a three month preemie. ...
4. I love black licorice. I keep a bag of Good & Plenty in the car in the summer and let it get hot and soft so I can munch it until I’m driving around in a sugar induced coma. ...
5. My fingernails naturally grow in a French manicure. I don’t know how I got so lucky. ...
6. I hate chain letters because I’m just a little bit superstitious. I resent having to worry about my luck after a friend sends me a joke with a promise that something good will happen if I forward it to 20 of my best friends. So, even though there’s no promise of good (or bad) luck if I don’t tag 6 of my buddies, I’m not gonna do it. I will post it on the MSN Adopting From China forum though!

Okay, I can't just stop at 6 so here are nine more weird things about me:

1. I was in a Folger's coffee commercial when I was 20.
2. I love the smell of burnt pumpkins! (they smell like halloween!)
3. I can put my foot behind my neck.
4. I was the first female Chinook pilot in Germany.
5. I love to chew regular aspirin even though it hurts my ears like hell for the first two seconds!
6. I hate cilantro! I would starve before I'd eat anything containing it.
7. I can't drink plain water. It has to have a flavor or I just can't swallow it.
8. I've eaten Cap'n Crunch's Peanut Butter Crunch cereal until the roof of my mouth bled!
9. I always defend the under-dog. I once jumped from my date's car and chased down a mugger in my 3 inch heels! My date stayed in his car and that was our last date.