Friday Frenzy

Bill worked out of town on Thursday night, and he got home yesterday, only to be dragged out

across the street to the park for a Jazz concert in the park our fair city was putting on.

It was so nice!

The weather was perfect, the music was great, and we "worked" the Snack Bar for our Baseball League. Mostly, our kids did the work, while we sat nearby and enjoyed the company of our friend and Pres. Cheri and the music.

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We saw some vvveerrryyyy interesting people enjoying the music also.

There was a man, about 65, long white hair pulled into a ponytail, white beard, white mustache, black tank top and .... a.... um.... a....

long, flowy, 3 tiered ruffle gauze SKIRT!

Yep...

He was definitely in touch with his feminine side. Our kids were out selling discount cards to the mass of people on the lawn, and Johnny came by and informed me he saw another old man dressed like a woman like the one we saw at Bubby Gump's in Long Beach.

Too funny.

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I really enjoyed seeing all the families gathering on the lawn, listening to a great band, spending a leisurely evening together. It was wonderful that our city provides this for us.

I just wish we had a gorgeous park to do it in like in Riverside at Fairmont Park. We need a lovely, tree filled park, with Gazebos, a creek, and just lots and lots of hilly grass to do these things in. But... I'll take what I get.

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Tonight Bill and I are going to his company's 25th Anniversary dinner at The Grove in Anaheim. I LOVE seeing Bill's co workers and crew with their wives. They are such fun people.

This will be the first time we will be alone together by ourselves for the evening since last October. Sad huh? Such is life with three active boys and their lives.

So we will have fun just being a couple and not having to say 'No and Stop that" all night long.

I hope.

UnFrenzied Friday

Had a show tonight! It was so nice getting back to "work"!

I say work like "work" because let's face it... my job is just one fun party after another!

I love my clients!

Love them!

Especially the group I had here tonight! I think that was their 15th show with me, and it was just as great to see them this time as the first.

It's been hard to schedule shows around baseball board committments and all the boys different sports, so this was a good kick back into "work" mode.

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Any of your looking to earn some free Pampered Chef products... I'm booking for the end of June!

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Went to Costco (empty wallet store) today.

You know what? The line for gas was sooooo loooonnnngggg! I have never bought gas there, but to wait in that line, the price better be more than 50 cents better per gallon!

I laughed!

All those people, in their idling cars, waiting in hour long lines,

to save a few cents on gas, as their cars guzzle up the gas in their tanks, waiting in line!

Make sense?

NO!

I bought essentials today.

It was sooo hard not to go to the book section and buy up everything

that struck my fancy, but I was good.

Need to save moola for a new pool surface and tile. Our pool is starting to look less

like the blue lagoon and more like the Swamp thing every year.

Well, that's all for today... pretty mundane. Not even a Frenzied Friday.

Friday Night Frenzy!

Well, my new bed got here on Tuesday...

I know!!! So much for 15 days!

Not that I am complaining... but I haven't even gotten the new carpet in yet!

Oh! I've decided on carpet tiles!

They are FABULOUS... I have them in my office and they are incredible. Very versatile.

I can mix and match, turn them different ways, and if one gets dirty or tears, I just pull it up and replace it with a new one!

They come in peel n stick, or you can glue them down. My only dilemma is which kind and color. So I am shopping online for what I want.

I thought it would be a good alternative to carpet, since I am not as big a fan of carpet as I am of tile. It's really low pile, still absorbs sound, but isn't as cumbersome and full on carpet, and is better for allergies.

We were going to just go and buy a new box spring for the new bed, but Bill decided to build one custom, and I love, love, love his idea. It's going to look beautiful when it gets done.

Oh! I am sooo glad I married a man that can do everything himself... just like my Papa.

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William tests for his new High School tomorrow. (biting nails now)

Alex is running for student council for next year...

and gay marriage is passed in California...

hmmmm

Quite a week, wouldn't you say?

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It's only the 16th and it has been quite a month already. May is always a bit like Christmas in our house, with all the birthdays and mini holidays.

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Yesterday, my Mama came by so I could shower her with all her gifts for her B-day and Mama's Day, and she asked me if I wanted to help her cater a wedding

ON MY BIRTHDAY.

HMMMM Sounds fishy.

But a good kind of fishy.

If she is planning something, I like to make her squirm.

If she's not... Heck no! I won't cater a party for someone else on my 4oth!

HA!

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I'm gonna go get ready for my Carnival I am doing in Corona tonight. I am going to be setting up my Pampered Chef table while my kids run around like the wild banshees they are.

Have a great Friday Night!

Ciao

Friday Frenzy!

Well, I don't have my computer back, but I did have a wonderful day today.

This morning, the third grade, (johnny's) had a wonderful Mother's Day Breakfast in the classroom. It was sooo adorable!

Each of our kids wrote a little speech about his/her Mommie, and read it aloud in front of the class. Then each child served their Mommie breakfast and doted on her hand and foot. We were then presented with gifts and hugs and kisses.

SOOOOOO ADORABLE!!! Johnny treated me like an absolute QUEEN! He would caress my hair, hold my hand, refill my juice, point out how he used purple and green, my two favorite colors, to decorate my fabric placement he made just for me. I mean... it was just too much for words. If I had my computer I would show the pictures I took, but alas, it isn't fixed yet.

Before the breakfast extravaganza, I took Williamto spend the day at ACA and shadow a student through 4 classes. It was an awesome opportunity for him to see his new school and he is really excited. He won an ACA spirit sweatshirt for answering a question correctly, perfect for Bill to wear to William's football games next year! He knows about 20 students at ACA already, so the transition should be easy. WE just have to make sure to get the school paid on time.. hee hee.

Afterward, I went shopping for my Mom's Mother's day and Birthday gifts. I was VERY good and only purchased for HER!!! Not for me, like I used to do.

Tomorrow is Williams Birthday... 14!!! I had an interview question and answer all done in my computer... but, well, you know.

Maybe I'll re ask and post tomorrow.

Have a wonderful Mother's Day, if I don't get to post before then!

Ciao Mama Bella!

Tutti Fortuna!

Friday Frenzy

Whew!!!

What a day... What a day!

I cooked all morning for one of my best friends Father's funeral. It was lovely.

SO very different from an Italian Funeral.

The sons made me cry... they were so eloquent in their speeches, but I really cried when Mari spoke. I didn't know her Daddy, but I sure know her.

My Dad picked the kids up from school for me. When I got to his house... he was in bed. I think they pooped him out. It was funny. He had a hip replacement a few months ago, and he looked adorable walking out of his room. He spiked his white hair,and on his ankles, in true Italian fashion, he was wearing gold anklets on each ankle. So surfer dude!

Being at the funeral of a friends dad made me squeeze my Papa just a bit tighter tonight.

Last year, tomorrow, was a year that we were at Bill's grandmother's funeral.

I think next year I will skip these dates and just sleep.

Last night, I had a fun show, and Bill and William went to William's prospective new High School for a "look around" night. Bill came home SOLD!!! I was sooo excited. When I saw all the curriculum offered, I was absolutely FLOORED! It is going to be worth every single penny.

It is far and beyond anything I ever imagined. Truly. It is one stellar program.

I just pray William gets in. We have about 17 different things we have to do before we interview. He has to be tested and he has to write an essay, and we need 2 teacher recommendations, a pastoral recommendation, a administrators recommendation, and we have to write about our son too! It's like getting into Harvard Law!

But... we will persevere and we will do it, and happily. Really, you should see this curriculum. So awesome!

So, I am done for the day.

I am going to focus on the tasks at hand and let everything else handle itself.

Have a great rest of the evening!

Buona Sera!

Friday Frenzy... For Real!

The ear is feeling better every day. No more pain meds... at all.

Giving my kidneys a much needed break.

Angela came over this morning and she made loads of Pizzelles and I made this Sweet and Salty Popcorn to sell tomorrow for our Yankee baseball team.

Lots of parents are donating lots of necessities and it is just great. It should be fun tomorrow.

I feel like I haven't actually "been" this week. Like... I was here, but not here. I was taking so much medication and sleeping off the pain during the days that I feel like I lost my entire week. Yesterday was the first day I felt coherent. I was forgetting entire conversations I had had, and answering the phone and not really remembering who it was or that I answered it.

I am a big girl, but medication really affects me. I don't know if it is from never smoking, doing any type of drugs or anything like that, my system just overreacts to even Tylenol. I was was mixing my meds... Antibiotics and pain meds just messed me up!

My house has fallen out of it's "almost always clean" mode, laundry has piled up, dinners weren't made and the boys made their own lunches this week. They were real troopers though. Never once complained, just trudged through and always asked how I was feeling. Such sweet boys to their Mama.

I did overhear Alex, my middle baby, say... "Oh good, Mom's feeling better, maybe we'll have some decent meals now!" Ah priorities!

They complain loudly when I take them anywhere near a drive through. Very rarely we go get fast food as a last resort, but they really don't like it. I have apparently "ruined" my kids for their future wives, as many of my friends tell me. They like their home cooked meals.

I don't cook gourmet, but I like to cook good, wholesome, easy to prepare meals that don't have a lot of processed food in them.

No canned soups, veggies, or canned anything really in my pantry,I use only real cheese, real or frozen veggies, & lots of leafy greens.

I'm thinking of changing my other blog to

"How to cook... every day... and not kill yourself in the process"

Because let's face it... Having to cook every day gets tiring and with work, sports, life... eating out just seems like the best choice... but I am here to tell you it isn't.

Every week, I set aside 2-3 hours to prep everything I will need for the week.

It is a system that works wonders in the kitchen, and I would like to know how many of you would visit a blog that will teach you how to set up a successful kitchen and prep schedule and get great meals on your table with time and taste tested recipes.

Beware though... My kids love ALL vegetables and eat Sushi and lots of out of the ordinary foods, and I can teach you how to get your kids to eat them too if you wish.

Picky eaters are not born that way... they are made.

So let me know if you would read a blog that has TONS OF IDEAS to get lots of different types of meals on the table that EVERYONE will love.

I'm back... with a vengeance.

I am sick of being bogged down with ear pain!!!

I am Mama, hear me yell!

Ciao!

FRIDAY FRENZY!

By now... my loyal 7 readers know how much I love Fridays, and today is even better

because I am not mad at Bill anymore... and ... it's not raining!! So the possibilities seem even more endless than usual!

My sons have stuff they want to do with friends tonight, and it has me a little rattled! I kinda wanna pull my hair and scream..."WHAT! YOU DON'T WANT TO SPEND EVERY WAKING MOMENT WITH ME, YOU DEAR OLD MOM, THAT GAVE BIRTH TO YOU, FED YOU, WALKED THE FLOOR HOLDING YOU WHEN YOU WERE SICK, CHAUFFEUR YOU AROUND, DO HOMEWORK WITH YOU, SHOP FOR YOU AND BASICALLY GIVE UP MY SOCIAL LIFE FOR YOU? YOU WANT TO GO WHERE? WITH WHOM? DOING WHAT? WITHOUT ME????"

But I don't. I just simply say... hmmm, let's see if we can make that happen.

Their school just added 18 clubs to join at school, and I think William joined every single one of them. So tonight he wants to attend the inaurgural Bowling Club Night.

I have been hit up to start a Cooking Class at the school for credit for the Junior and High School students, so I am working on a proposal for that right now too. Should be fun. I know all the kids, and they want me to do it. The best part, so do my sons. They can't wait for me to be on campus. SEE? BRAINWASHING DOES WORK! Everynight, while they are sleeping I whisper in their ears... "Your Mama is cool, your Mama is not to be shunned, it's okay to kiss your Mama's cheek in public, your Mama is cool." over and over and over again. So far so good.

Of course, I also slip in things like... "Don't ever do drugs, no drinking allowed, no smoking, make sure your girlfriends have always been girls, you will stay close to home so I can do you laundry when you go to college, you will not move more than 10 miles from Mama... etc..."

What! I never said I WASN'T a control freak! Anyway!

We are going camping next weekend for the three day weekend. Taking full advantage of the box sitting beside my house. So this weekend will be spent emptying the youngers boys rooms for all new furniture and cabinetry like Will's room. Bill finally has a weekend off. So, of course, I make him work. So sad, but, I don't know how to do it, and if I keep telling him how cute he looks in his tool belt, he will keep working. hee hee. I'll just feed the men and keep them happy.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. See you at the park? See you in cyberspace?

I need to write a syllabus, recipe list, tool list, etc...

Anyone know what the state guidelines for "fire" in a classroom are? I guess we'll find out soon enough, huh? I sure hope they knock a couple of bucks off of tuition for us when I do the class... that would be really nice. William is in High School next year... yikes.

Ciao Bellas!

Buona Sera!

FRIDAY NIGHT FRENZY!!!

Yikes! What a day!

I finally got my own car back, I was driving a rental for the last month. My car was getting painted because the factory paint wasn't holding well. It was free, so was the rental... too cool!

I had my wedding ring dipped in white gold last week. Took it to Helzberg, where we bought it, and picked it up today. It looks much more modern now with the white gold. So clean and shiny. I didn't know it was an option, I took my ring in to get cleaned last week while waiting for Williams glasses and she accidentally asked me if I was waiting to be helped with dipping my ring in white gold!!! I was intrigued, and did it!!!

Went to the bank... I think they are going to meet me at the door one day and say... "Saundra, we don't want your business here anymore... it costs us more to print the paper for your deposit than you put into this bank!" ha ha! It's my business account. Haven't worked in a couple of months... will start again soon, but the funds, they are a dwindlin'!

Tomorrow are baseball tryouts, and my little guy has a fever of 103.5!!! Poor baby!!

The boys haven't been sick for almost a year, so I was out of everything! No Tylenol, no Nyquil, no nothin'!

How am I supposed to cure the sniffling, sneezing, coughing, aching, stuffy head, fever stuff without Nyquil!!!

Anyway, tried to make plans for the weekend, and just stopped as soon as I took Johnny's temperature. Boy, that kid really knows how to turn "it " on too. I am a sucker for a baby that's feverish.

We are all on Zycam now. That stuff is a miracle in a bottle. Have you ever used it? I will do an entire blog on it one day. Just go buy yourself some and use it every time you feel the tiniest little tickle in your throat, every 4 hours and you will be truly amazed!! It is completely holistic, just a bunch of zinc, but it works, works, works!

My friend Terri turned me on to it, and it is amazing.

Okay... well, gotta go medicate Johnny again.

Have a great night, and talk to you tomorrow!!

Ciao!

IIIIIIIIIT'S FRIDAY NIGHT!!!!!

WOO HOO!!

It's FRIDAY NIGHT!

The night of endless possibilities!!!

The night before the day I get to sleep in past 6 a.m.!!!

It's Friday... It's Friday... It's Friday!!

Finals are OVER for William!!!

They're Over... They're Over... They're Over!!!

WOO HOO!

Alex's Science Fair Paper is Turned In!!!

It's In... It's In... It's In!!!

WOO HOO!

What a week!!! Rain. Bad Hair. Term Papers for 2 kids... Whew! I'm exhausted!

It is exhausting trying to teach a child how to write. Not cursive or penmanship... but to put thoughts down on paper, and have them make relevant sense! Those poor little brains were working overtime this week. I am not the patient Mama either... so that didn't help the situation. Those 2 boys wanted their reports to sound so grown up and text booky. I spent an entire evening trying to help them understand that writing has to come from a place of just simply talking. They need to write a little bit like they would speak to someone, although not too much in a Science Fair Report. We also had the long talk about plagiarism and how to avoid it. We have the discussion every year, and their school is very good about checking sources, and I hate the idea of taking credit for someone else's work.

I heard there are a lot of Mama's that do the homework for their kids. I don't and never will understand that mentality. How do they expect their children to learn anything, to learn autonomy, or the feeling of accomplishment when the grade comes back? I used to have a friend that literally did every single paper for her 3 kids and probably still does. I remember calling her one day and asking her what she was doing. She was at the library researching a President, and writing the bibliography, WHILE HER KIDS WERE AT THE SKATING RINK!!! I was floored.

Having Immigrant parents was a blessing for me. My Dad (who is the SMARTEST man I know), has a 2nd grade education and my Mom, (she got her GED in this country after she had me) had no clue what I was doing in school, so I had to fend for myself. They wanted to help me so badly, but you know how that New Math changes every year, and they mostly read Italian, not English. I remember every new semester, my Dad would hold his hands out for the History books and would sit and read them for hours. (I secretly think he was looking for all the things the Italians actually invented before the Americans... hee hee) You know, Christopher Columbus, Amerigo Vespucci, Allesandro Volta (volts are named after him) and a host of other people Italians will let you know about during any discussion about the Ole Country! :) What they lacked in American-ish knowledge, they made up for in good old common sense. They were both very successful entrepreneurs and owned a Beauty Salon for 20 years, and my Dad loved to buy Real Estate. He worked at a Steel Mill for 25 years too. They are true Immigrant Success Stories.

So today was the end of the First Semester and we are all so happy, and of course, they did all their own work. I only typed the papers up when they wrote their long hand papers that must be turned in with the typed ones. I love that rule.

So... IT'S FRIDAY!!!

Unlimited possibilities await!!!

I have a date with my washing machine, and bottle of Ms. Clairol #83 Neutral dark brown, a Philosophy Micro Peel, and a can of EZ Off oven cleaner!

Who's jealous of me??? I know YOU are!!! I'm one wild and crazy gal!

Have a lovely evening...

Buona Sera, Amore mia, Buona Sera!

Good Evening, my loves, Good Evening!

AAAAhhh Friday Night

I love Friday nights. I always have. Such promise of a productive weekend. I used to be in Drillteam/DanceTeam at Fohi way back when in the 80's, and Friday nights were "Game Night" and we would perform at Half Time on the Field. Friday Night in Fontana was a must. If you weren't at our AWESOME stadium, you weren't doing anything important. And so the feeling lingers. Even though I am MUCH older now, with Grand Canyon growing on my forehead, too short, newly cut bangs, (bangs people... bangs!) 3 kids, I still get a little giddy at the prospect of picking the kids up from school and KNOWING we are FREE for a couple of days!!! What to do!!! What to do!!! A movie? A jaunt to the snow? A frolic over the library to get a head start on Science Fair Projects??? Planting dynamite in my office and garage and start from scratch??? Yeah baby, that's the ticket! I am DREADING cleaning out my office. Hey... you know what! I have a friend that touts that she loves to organize stuff! OH!!! And the best part is... SHE LIVES 2 DOORS DOWN FROM ME!!! Nah! I'm just kidding. I could never pull somebody outside my family into my horror or horrors of an office. My garage is lawsuit waiting to happen. Maybe I'll just take her shopping with me to get some really cool organizational "MUST HAVES". Are there such things as Yard Sales, but IN the house? You know... like... I could have a sign out front that reads "OFFICE JUNK SALE" and a red carpet, my kids greeting the prospective "crap taker outters" like celebrities and asking them, like on the red carpet, what they hope to leave with today... and with every purchase of junk, they can take home a wonderful, neatly stacked stack of used paper to use as kindling!!! When did it become necessary to have... oh, I don't know... 100 pens and pencils? Do I REALLY need post it notes in EVERY SINGLE COLOR OF THE RAINBOW? Do I really have to keep the receipt from Ed's where I bought a Sprite last year?? How many bottles of Purell is too many? My office is approximately 4 ft x 8 ft. Small, and it looks like I run a Multi million dollar conglomerate!!! I don't know what color my desk is, and I have THREE (3) III, of those long cord plug in thingys for all the electronic stuff shoved into every nook and cranny of this little piece of heaven! The rest of my house is surprisingly tidy. I am a total purger of the unnecessary in the rest of my house. They say "clean desk is a sign of a sick mind", so I must be positively enlightened!!! What to do... What to do... BUT WAIT!!! It's Friday!!! The day of infinite possibilities!!! OH! AND THE KIDS HAVE A 3 DAY WEEKEND!!! Yahhooooo!!!! I wonder how much dynamite I'll need for this small of an office space.. hmmmmm.