Haircut!

Oli gets his first hair cut from Auntie Amy. She did a great job. She got it off his ears, out of his eyes and off his collar without losing any of his trademark crazy headed Oli-ness.

Open Call! Re-cast, Fantasy Edition.

This is one of me and Seth's favorite games. In fact, if we didnt do this, we'd probably have nothing to say to each other that wasnt in baby talk and in reference to Oli.

Simple rules: take a movie you like, assign horrible unmentioned fates to the real cast and make up a new one. This week, its Hook, originally staring Robin Williams and Dustin Hoffman.


Pete Banning/Peter Pan- Ewan McGregor
Captain J.S. Hook- Tom Hanks
Mr. Smee- Robby Coltrane
Tinkerbell- Emily Watson
Granny Wendy- Emma Thompson
Moira- need suggestions
Jack- need suggestions
Maggie- Abigail Breslin

Random surly pirates- Robert Carlisle, Michael Wincott (provided he is given a toupee and a speaking role), Guy Pearce, Michael Clark Duncan, Any of the Pythons who need a bit part.

Teeth!

We have 2 teeth, ladies and gentlemen. Within 1 week of each other, and a new one budding on the top! My precious little cuddlebear will soon have sharp gnashing jaws of death!

Speaking of which, we saw Spamalot! Very funny, though I would have loved to see the original Broadway cast. Something about Hank Azaria in a chainmail codpiece surrounded by effeminate flamenco danders just tickles me.

Restaurant meme

I lovingly stole this from Julie's blog.

Here are the rules of this meme:

1. Link to name of person that tagged you.
2. Include state and country you live in.
3. List top 5 favorite local restaurants.
4. Tag 5 other people and let them know they’ve been tagged.


I have lived in Tarrant County (currently Watauga) all my live long days. I love road trips and therefore, love diners, cafes tea shops and anything that looks remotely interesting.

1. Joe's Coffee Shop (Watauga)- Breakfast and Lunch only (dinner on Fridays). 3 words for you…corned beef hash.. skillet fried as the Good Lord intended. The waitresses call you honey, and they know your order on site. The presentation of a menu is more a formality than anything. It's also a scant block and a half from my house. If you'd rather do lunch, get the Hamburger Club. It’s a club sandwich that is a hamburger on one side and a BLT on the other. Total heaven! Also awesomest pies available whole for parties and holidays if ordered in advance. Friday nights you can get all you can eat catfish and 3 veggies, here's the best part…. For $.75 you can turn one of your vegetables into a slice of pie. That's my kind of magic!

2. Zeke's Fish and Chips (Ft Worth)- A Ft Worth staple for 40 some odd years. Everything under the sun deep fried and deeee-lish. Very hole-in-the-wall-ish. Im pretty sure they have the same english ivy growing in the windows for my entire life time. Occasional live music on the incredibly tiny patio. Try the Cod Special and get some fried mushrooms too.

3. Arlington Steak House (Arlinton)- very good chicken fried steak. Have been going here since I was a little Mindy. In fact, this was my last "real meal" before Oli was born. Warning: the gravy is served on the side and is yellow. Weird I know, but it's actually super good. I still cant figure out what they do to make it yellow though.

4. Café Medi (Bedford)- I'm hesitant to add Café Medi, as I only recently discovered it, and cannot decide if it is simply a passing fad of mine. It's mediterranean fare with an afterthought hookah lounge. The shawerma beef is very very good and if the garlic mayonaisse came in slurpy form, I'd be all over it. They also have some awesome steamed green beans.

5. Babes Chicken Dinner House (Roanoke) Love the simple menu. "Hey, you want chicken or steak?" Only two entrees, fried chicken or chicken fried steak and all you can eat salad, fresh creamed corn, and mashed potatoes that I craved ddaily whilst pregnant. Good enough to make it in the pages of Southern Living Magazine…twice!! And the rolls are served with honey or sorghum syrup. Definitely worth the drive.

Honorable Mention

Joe's Pizza and Pasta (Watauga)- Also conveniently located within a block and a half from my house. I know that every 3rd Italian joint is called Joes, but only the Joes in Keller or Watauga is acceptable (they are owned by cousins) The stromboli is about half a pie big and the sausage is melt-in-your mouth soft. And the guys are super nice if you're trying to pick up and order with an infant perched on your hip. They get you back in the car and the baby back in the car seat and then they bring everything out for you and load up your car when your spouse begs you to pick up lunch for her and her 12 closest co-workers (Thanks Seth!)

And now a moment of silence for Jim Burger (Arlington)

Its been nearly 2 years now since Jim's went the way of the Dodo. We will miss your Maximum Occupancy 12 seating arrangement and your griddle that hadn't been cleaned since Nixon was in office. We knew it would be good when the paper sack became 85% transparent in the 5 minute trip home. Whether it was a grease fire or the county health commission that reduced your fine establishment to a dirt lot, we still miss you.

Gotta tag Tovunya, Debbie, J.R., Jaynaia and Luke. Most of the foodies I know, plus Luke to scope out the Denton scene for us.

Sweet, caring, foot-in-mouth grandma

I found out I actually have Easter Sunday off for the first time in a couple years. Thats a huge deal. I won't get paid for the time off, but we'll cross that bridge when we get there. So me , mom, and Mother (my name for my grandma) go shopping for easter outfits. Mother likes to tag along cause she gets to play with the baby. We go to one store and Im trying on a couple of skirts. My mom hands me a top to try, but I decide I dont like it and put my clothes back on. Note: I put my clothes back on. I walk out of the dressing room, ready to hit the next store on my list when Mother takes one look at me and says "I don't like that shirt on you". Uh, this is the shirt I came in with. "Oh I thought it was what your mom..oh.. never mind! I always do this" Uh, yeah, you kind of always do.

Nothing cures a day of semi-high self-esteem like a grandma who can't keep her mouth shut.

Freakin Cute Kids!

Isn't this the greatest? My friend Holly's daughter Cory took our boys to the Ft Worth Botanical Gardens for a photo shoot. It was so easy and she did such a great job! It was super cheap too, though I do plan to give her a little extra. She eraned it having to deal with my entourage. If you want to check her out, its http://www.wickednox.com Cory Brooke Photography. She has such an eye for this kind of thing, and I'm way jealous of her camera.

Marriage MeMe

Got this from Julie. This is going on record as the longest blog ever cause you know how much I love to tell a good story. These answers actually get alot more interesting after I've had a few, but here we go, stone cold sober:

1. Where/How did you meet? We met on the Internet in an AOL chat room. Somebody was claiming to be an 18 yr old swimsuit model/cheerleader and I was taking bets on who thought it was actualy a middle aged male in his mothers basement in his gappy boxers and beer gut. Seth thought I was funny and IMed me to ask what I looked like. I told him I was a peg-legged circus dwarf with one good tooth and a glass eye. ( do I know how to hook a man or what?) My screenname was Waffllles and his was Quesoball3.

2. How long have you known each other? We talked online for about 2 weeks before agreeing to meet in person. We only count the day we actually met, February9, 2000 and we celebrate it every year as Meetaversitines. (Meet-aversary and valentines day combined)

3. How long after you met did you start dating? We were pretty much exclusive from the first time we saw each other.

-----> Tangent 3b. The first kiss was the same night, after our horrid date where he made me watch The Worst Movie in History and killed a Texas waterbug with my favorite black shoes, he held his hand out to shake mine. I said "How nice, you obviously think of me as a man friend." He just shrugged his shoulders and kept his hand out, so I reached out to shake it, he grabbed me, pulled me in and planted a big one on me. Sneaky bastard.

4. How long did you date before you were engaged? 6 months, although we decided we should get married after our very first phone conversation (see tangent below)

-----> Tangent 4b. Our phone converstaions before we met in public were very long, usually several hours. Seth was sooo smart and a former chemistry student, and started talking physics or something that I didnt understand. So I answered the only way I knew how... with a movie quote "Would you be prepared if gravity reversed itself?" To which he correctly replied "But how would we keep the change in our pockets?" And then one or both of us said "I've got it! Nudity!" Then there was this awkward silence, (c'mon, this is a really really obscure line) and I said, I guess we have to get married now. And he said Yeah, I guess so.

5. How long was your engagement? 1 year, 1 month

6. How long have you been married? 5 years, 6 months

7. What is your anniversary? September 15, 2001. Leave to me to plan a life event 4 days after a tragic one.

8. How many people came to your wedding reception? Probably around 75

9. What kind of cake did you serve? It was really plain white cake with buttercream frosting. Nothing fancy tasting. But it looked awesome. A friend of the family did it. It looked like 3 stacked wicker baskets. And since it was a fall themed wedding, it had fall leaves tucked in all over it and even stamped into the icing. I collect music boxes so instead of having a bride and grrom, we had a wooden music box engraved with our wedding day propped open with leaves spilling out of it.

10. Where was your wedding? Northeast Wedding Chapel in Hurst

11. What did you serve for your meal? We had the most awesome food! I really love to entertain so I wanted my guests to have the best of everything. We had a prime rib carving station and also a pasta station. The Pasta station was a huge hit cause you got to pick from 3 kinds of pasta, 3 kinds of sauce and 7 different kinds of add ins, and the chef would mix it together in the pan right there for you. We also had a cheese thing that had boursin and crackers by request. If you've never had boursin, get some!

12. How many people were in your bridal party? 2 bridesmaids and 2 groomsmen.

13. Are you still friends with them all? Well, two are family, my sister and Seth's brother. Big Seth was our best man and he still shows up at the house on a regular basis. He is the non-biological brother and fits in just fine. His wife filled in as my matron of honor because (sad story) my best friend since childhood dumped me the week we were supposed to fit her for a dress. She thought I was making a mistake and she hated (and I assume still does) Seth with a passion.

14. Did your spouse cry during the ceremony? Neither one of us did. We both laughed, which I think is great.

-----> Tangent 14b. The guy who married us is Mike Greenfeld. He has an awesome sense of humor and can accept people just the way they are (rare to find in a Southern Baptist). He did our rehearsal with bubba teeth in his mouth and instead of saying his real lines, he starts our with "Mawwaige. Mawwaige is what bwings us togevah, today" But after all this, he promised he had gotten it all out of his system and said he wouldnt embarrass us during the ceremony. So flash forward to the big day. I walk down the isle and the first song plays as we stand together in front of Mike. It was Ave Maria sung by Andrea Boccelli. The last verse was winding down and the usic was softening and Mike takes a deep breath to begin. "Wait!" I whisper, "There's another verse!!" He chokes on this huge lungful of air and looks at Seth, who had his eyes crossed in a way that I still find disturbing. So he breaks up laughing but is trying to choke it down and control himself, and proceeds to turn as red as his hair. And the music is dead, and no one in the audience can figure out what the hold up is. That was hilarious!

15. Most special moment of your wedding day? Looking back, the most special thing was being walked down the isle by my grandad. Anyone who knows me knows I had one of the more evil fathers on the planet, but God made it up to me by giving me a great PaPa. His health had already been in decline when I got married, and he was so honored that he practised for a week to make sure he could walk without his usual limp. He didn't officially give me away, he just escorted me which is what I wanted. He did cry. When he died just a couple years later, we buried him with the picture of us walking down the isle. Our son is named after him.

( I love you very much PaPa. Watch over our little boy and keep him safe.)

16. Any funny moments? Tons! The best one was Jordan, the ring bearer. He was really too young to be in the wedding (only 3) but I didnt care. I adore both my nephews and was adamant that they be there. He took his role so seriously. Instead of a pillow, he had a small carved wood treasure chest with roses and leaves inside it. He did so well during the rehearsal, we all just knew he could do it. Well, in the middle of one of the prayers, he decided he was tired of standing, so he very quietly walked in front of Seth and sat down on the kneeling bench. Then he carefully set his treasure chest down beside him and folded his hands in his lap. Then grandma came and got him and made him sit next to Mother and PaPa.

17. Any big disasters? Not really. I was a bit of a bridezilla, but then again, I planned the whole thing on my own (sans best friend experience that most brides have) If they had listened to me and gotten to the church earlier, they could have swagged the dining tables in satin like I wanted. But oh, well. Know anyone who is interested in a full bolt of burgundy satin?

18. Where did you go on your honeymoon? That night we went to a B&B in downtown Ft Worth called Etta's Place. We spent so much on the wedding that we didnt have the money for a honeymoon right away. We went to the UK the following summer and spent tiime in London and Edinburgh.

19. How long were you gone? 2 days the first time and 10 days the second.

20. If you were to do your wedding over, what would you change? I would have liked to have had a larger wedding party, and I never got a bachelorette party. I don't make friends easily and although I'm a friendly person, I am difficult to get to know personally and I am sometimes hard to live with. Its hard to make a new best friend in 5 months. I am very thankful to Jen for filling in that role, especially since she gave birth to a son two weeks before the wedding!

21. What side of the bed do you sleep on? From what perspective? If you're in it, Im on the left. If your standing there looking at it, Im on the right.

22. What size is your bed? Queen. It doesnt matter how big a bed we get, Seth will sleep on my side as close to me as possible. A king would be wasted space.

23. Greatest strength as a couple? Our sense of humor, our weird irreverent look at life., and the fact that we are two very bizarre individuals who belong together.

24. Greatest challenge as a couple? Communication and the Other Woman (video games)

25. Who literally pays the bills? Me, Seth cannot be trusted.

26. What is your song? We don't really have one. If we had to choose, it would be some funky Queen song having nothing to do with love.

27. What did you dance your first dance to? Baptist wedding, no dancing, no booze, no fun stuff

28. Describe your wedding dress? off white with a wide champagne colored trim going all around. Apron front with a boat neck and cap sleeves. small embroidered champagne flowers. My goal is to wear it again someday.

29. What kind of flowers did you have at your wedding? silk as a matter of fact, and I still have them. I cant stand to watch flowers die. It breaks my heart. So we had silk flowers of deep plum roses and burgundy lillies and fall leaves. Our flower girl threw fall leaves instead of rose petals.

30. Are your wedding bands engraved? What do they say? Heck no, we wouldnt have chosen something stupid anyway like "arent you a little short to be a storm trooper?" or "I was going to Tachee Station to pick up some power converters!"