Friday, February 29, 2008

Meredith Update (and incidentally my last post of the day!)

Meredith's surgery has been rescheduled for next Friday, March 7th, at 6:30 AM. That's a little later than her family had hoped but as Meredith's mom keeps saying, it's Gods plan and not theirs so we all have to be content with that. I'm confidant it will all work out. Thanks for your concern and I'll keep you posted!

200



*Be sure to click on the embedded video beforehand to set the mood.*

What's fitting for your 200th post? How about this? Yesterday I picked Ricky Bobby up from school and noticed he had a note in his hand. It was folded in half with "To: Ricky Bobby From: Grace" neatly written in purple marker. He nonchalantly dropped it onto the floorboard but of course I quickly scooped it up and opened it. Inside it simply read "Dear Ricky Bobby, I love you." True story, as always. (Well, except that she didn't call him Ricky Bobby.)

PS: Was Vladimir Putin a Bee Gee?

22 weeks already?!?!

Our little buddy Crosby finished up week 22 of chemo on Thursday! Can you believe it's been 22 weeks? It probably feels likes 22 years for his family but it's hard for me to believe it's been that long. I truly believe his story is such a miracle and I know his story has been a glorious work for God's kingdom. I wish I had more eloquent words for the occasion but my brain is mush. Just know that I stand in awe of God's comfort, strength, and healing hand throughout that process. There are two more families we know of battling pediatric cancers and my heart just goes out to them. It's hard to read their Caring Bridge journals (here and here) and I LONG for the day when there will be no more Caring Bridge journals and no more tears! Until then, I pray God's peace and providence in their situations. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Thursday, February 28, 2008

Change of Plans

Our 16-month-old niece Meredith was supposed to have open-heart surgery today but that has been postponed until probably sometime next week. She was found to have a weak respiratory infection yesterday on a routine pre-op evaluation. I'll keep you posted...

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Pride on 3, Pride on 3 (and Mommas, don't let your babies grow up to be Rashad Johnson)

I have so many other things I need to be doing but I just had to comment on a couple of stories today. First, did any of you see The Biggest Loser last night? If so, did you cry? That is a topic of debate amongst me and some of my family members as I was chastised for laughing at Shultzy & Co (aka the "blue" team) last night. Don't get me wrong, I don't have a problem with a man crying and I personally find that show touching on a regular basis. Furthermore, I don't fault any contest for becoming so emotionally invested during the process. But last night I could not help but laugh as Roger Shultz and his macho teammates cried like babies on the show. And they obviously made no attempt to hold it in whatsoever. Good stuff. Forget ever-shrinking waistbands and disappearing pounds. Never before has it been so obvious that this team is trained by Bob.

Okay, that's one Bama football topic down...one to go. Yesterday was a day that tries men's crimson souls. Between Schultz's bicep tat and potty mouth to Nick Saban's press conference, I found myself begging them to please give me something to work with. As if the past decade hasn't given our rivals plenty of fodder, Nick Saban had to go and say something like this. Let me use these humble blog as a forum on which to personally denounce such ridiculous comments. As some may remember, I defended his reference of Pearl Harbor and 9/11 a while back but I cannot do the same in this situation. As a mother, I can think of at least 100 way I could be more pleased than if my kids grew up to make the kind of decisions Rashad Johnson has made over the past few days but for brevity's sake, I'll narrow it down to three. First, I would be more pleased with my sons if they went to bed at a decent hour. Rashad Johnson was out at a bar at 3 AM. Nothing good happens after midnight, 1 AM tops. Second, I would be more pleased if they weren't at a bar at all. Sure, he's of legal age to consume alcohol but it's probably better for an elite athlete to abstain from alcoholic beverages all together. I'm the most pleased if they just don't drink period. But if they simply must drink, be a better steward of your money and drink at home. It's safer and has got to be cheaper...though in fairness to Rashad, a Bama football player probably hasn't paid for his own drinks since 1925. Thirdly, (is that a word? Who cares? Check out the header... you're in my world now, grandma.) If for some reason you do encounter the po-po police, by all means cease and desist. They usually say things like "Stop! Police! Don't resist!" so be sure you have your listening ears on. If necessary, call a lawyer ASAP but for goodness' sake don't flail your arms in the air and continue to punch. That's pretty much the definition of resisting arrest. And a really good way to end up shot. Or tased. Or both.

But don't take this all too harshly, Rashad... just so you know, donning that Alabama football jersey probably is #2 on my kid's "Top 10 Ways to Please My Overbearing Mother" list.

PS-- If you read to the end of that linked article (like I just did), then you know it's only a matter of time before the entire UA student body floods the TPD's fax machines with statements in Rashad Johnson's defense. Good gravy.

Tuesday, February 26, 2008

"Women today feel perfectly free to make whatever choice Oprah tells them to."

Obviously that line is not mine (hence the quotation marks) but is a direct quote from Tina Fey. Guess who's not on Oprah's list of favorite things for 2008? Anyway, I hope no one reading this blog is a devout follower of Oprah as I can't imagine what she's done in life to qualify her as an example (other than making oodles of money) but it is irrefutable that she has an impressive amount of pull in our society. So today when I got an email about Oprah "teaching" A Course on Miracles via her XM radio show, I felt obligated to post about it here in hopes of pointing people to my savior, Jesus.

Monday, February 25, 2008

Too bad...

...Rashad Johnson never showed this kind of fight during a game! I kid, I kid. Sorry folks, I just don't have much to offer after this one or Jeremy Elder's recent Al Capone impersonation. It's a hard knock life, word!

I do expect Nick Saban to handle these situations but perhaps not to everyone's liking. Hopefully Nick Saban is more Gene Stallings than Mike Shula. And I suspect he is, which means he may buy Rashad Johnson an ice cream cone but he'll be eating it through a new bodily orifice.

PS: The real problem with the UA football program (and the entire student population in general) is the hallowed Strip. Every SEC college town could boast it's a drinking town with a football problem but only T'town has considered putting that slogan on their welcome signs!

Saturday, February 23, 2008

Down with the NCAA...

As in, bring them down... NOT as in they're my homies and all. Boooooooo, the National Conspiracy Against Alabama NCAA!

Friday, February 22, 2008

Buckets o' rain...

It's really pouring outside my windows and it looks GREAT! So glad we're getting the rain today without all those twisters. My condolences to those in the Prattville area who lost so much with praises to God the Father that countless people stayed safe... what an inexplicable miracle!

Sorry for the lack of posts lately... I know you're disappointed. There just isn't much time for blogging now PLUS I'm fighting off a little stomach bug so I definitely don't feel 100%. I'll be sure to at least post a Ricky Bobby Racing update after the race this Sunday. Have a good one and stay safe on the roads!

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Crossover Action!

Well, it's hard to believe it's been 20+ weeks of praying for Crosby and so far he's done amazingly, miraculously well! Today Cros' mom posted something that I need to share here (and feel guilty for not sharing sooner). The "Robyn" in that post is Plumberboy's sister so that makes Meredith our niece. Doctors have monitored a hole in Meredith's heart for quite some time and finally feel that now is the time to operate. So, next week little Meredith will undergo open-heart surgery to repair the hole. Now if this wasn't stressful enough, Robyn and Plumberboy's grandmother has stage IV colon cancer that has metastasized to the liver and other places. Grammaw lives with my in-laws and requires someone to be with her at all times but of course my mother-in-law wants to be with her daughter and granddaughter at a time like this. So she's flying out to be with them next week but I know it will be so hard for her to leave her own sick mother behind. And it's a logistics nightmare to boot so just be in prayer for the whole situation if you don't mind. I'll keep y'all posted as things develop.

(Kind of an old picture of Meredith but it will have to do for now!)

Happy Birthday, Stacy!

Couldn't call and sing it to her yet this morning because our kids are much earlier risers than hers but I know she'll be online soon after she wakes up. So here it goes (imagine this in 4-part unharmony):

Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday, dear Stacy...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!

Now go wish her Happy Birthday yourself....

(PS: Stacy, my present to you is not posting an embarassing pic on my blog!)

Monday, February 18, 2008

Ricky Bobby Racing

That's Ricky Bobby, as in our Ricky Bobby, who sits atop the standings in his fantasy NASCAR group this week (as well as in the top 10% in the country among other yahoo fantasy teams!) Oh yeah, that's a group of adults-- not other 1st graders. Talk about beginner's luck... :)

Friday, February 15, 2008

Homage to Tori:

I cannot let the sun set on this day, the 15th of February, without mentioning that my original BFF, Tori, turned 30 today. I'm kind of ticked off at myself for not being able to locate any the many, many childhood pictures of Tori and myself so this will have to do... for now (check back often!) I'm not exactly sure why I saved this particular declaration from Tori, seeing as it must have been one of literally a thousand, but nonetheless it brings me to a point that needs to be made. This is to all The North Face-wearing, facebook-profilin', cell-phone-textin' WASPy middle-schoolers of America... you DID NOT invent shorthand. Teenage girls WAY back in the day cornered the market on all this acronym nonsense. I can't even decipher notes written to me in 1991, which is eons before you were born, because of all the arbitrary abbreviations. And we used cool things too, like up arrows, that don't even have a text message equivalent. (Okay, you have emoticons--I'll give you that.) Someday, as time allows, I'll have to post the contents of any one of the bazillion notes I saved for some unknown reason that my mother has apparently grown tired of storing because she hands them back over to me in small but frequent truckloads. All us oldtimers can then play a game of Acronomics, ya know, to see if we still got it. But for now, I want to end with a simple "Happy Birthday!" to Tori, my very first BFF (not to be mistaken for a VGFF or even a VVGFF). LYLAS!

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Appropriate enough...


Well, that's all from me today because each kiddo has a V'day party at school. But you can click here to find your true love. Happy Valentine's Day!

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Best In Show

Tonight we watched (in high def, no less) The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show together as a family. Ricky Bobby shouted out the breed of each dog before the announcers and then would go back to reading his book about Martin van Buren. (Dogs and Presidents... that's his thing right now and sometimes it's the dogs as Presidents, like when he draws a picture of dogs signing the Declaration of Independence. True story.) You see, oddly enough, this ain't his first dog show so to speak. Every Saturday morning the boys get up and watch the dog shows on Animal Planet while we try to grab a few more minutes of precious sleep. Anyway, Plumberboy was falling asleep in the rocking chair while Ricky Bobby chanted "Let's go, Japanese Chin!" only to later be consoled by Crabman when the poodle won out over the chihuahua. Even I was awestruck by the randomness of the situation. Well, that and the fact that we'd rather watch a dog show than follow the Alabama basketball game.

PS-- I didn't dare let the kids stay up to see the end but luckily I was prepared and already knew who won the Best in Show. Good night!

Monday, February 11, 2008

A case of the lazies...

No, I haven't been laid up with the flu or a stomach bug for the last few days but I am most definitely suffering from a case of the lazies. Plumberboy went out of town this weekend so I thought it might be a good time for a blog-o-rama but alas! Nothing inspired me to blog, not even a little bit. Even now I can only muster up a shred of motivation to ask a huge favor of you guys... another homework assignment if you will. I get approximately 10 hits a day on this blog from all over the world thanks to that stupid Garfield image. Please, please help me determine whether or not I am the butt of some internet prank, a la Rick Rolling. Why is my site the destination of choice for Garfield lovers the world over?!?!

Anyway, the 24/7 election coverage offers up many blog topic choices but re-read above paragraph. I'M LAZY RIGHT NOW FOLKS! And besides, I have attempted to discuss such issues with you o' readers to virtually no avail. I can't stir up any sort of political discussion at all which means one of two things: 1) My reputation precedes me or 2) You have election fever and the only cure is more randomness, baby! Maybe you come here to take a break from all of that stuff and whadda ya know? I have something like this for you. Or maybe a few of you do come here for politics by osmosis. If so, feel free to take a peek at this and then read more about her here. She absolutely exudes feminism to me. Et tu? So, I just threw those in just so people don't think I'm solely out to taint Barack Obama's image. The Barack think was just funny to me, I promise...no politcal agenda there whatsoever. Anyway, have you all seen the email about how to keep an Auburn fan from voting for Obama? If not, I'll spare you the suspense. You strategically add a "G" to all his campaign signs so that they read "Gobama!" And you know what? It just so turns out "Gobama!" is change we can believe in--finally.

Thursday, February 7, 2008

Not surprised...

I believe one of Plumberboy's relatives owes me dinner from back in mid-January when I bet her McCain would be the Repub nominee. Too bad I'd have to go to New Hampshire to collect.

PS: NBC News scared me when they broke into Access Hollywood (or whatever tabloid show was on in the background) to announce this news. I thought Buckwheat had been shot or something. ("Hey Mr. Wheat!")

Wednesday, February 6, 2008

Me and Julio

Down by the Capstone:




So much to get to and I don't even know where to begin. First, there's this. Do y'all think that's for real? I mean, it is TMZ... either way, it makes me giggle. She'd make an awesome First Grandmama, doncha think?

So I guess we'll talk politics first. I was happy about Huckabee's showing yesterday--obviously. But it doesn't amount to much other than he'll either be on McCain's ticket (which actually is quite significant) or he'll have a big say in who is. I told Plumberboy that McCain and Huckabee should just make out on Hannity & Colmes... it would be less obvious. Bee's his boo, mos' def'. And Romney, you just got served.

FOX NEWS ALERT! I want to punch Moron van der Slut (aka Joran van der Sloot) in the face. This situation is so sad (and one whale of a cautionary tale) but I take a measured amount of pleasure in knowing Joran's big, fat yapper finally did him in. He may not go to jail this time but you can bet he'll pay for all of this one way or the other. It is scary knowing people like him exist. And Mr. van der Eem: You Rock!

Okay, in order to come full circle, I shall explain why that clip is embedded into my blog. You see, one Mr. Julio Jones committed to Alabama today. I haven't followed recruiting for quite some time (since Bama got in big trouble over one Mr. Albert Means) but this year was a lot more interesting than most. It's still too early to gloat tell, but I assure you this (um yeah, that article was the top story on yahoo.com this hour) is what Mal Moore, Paul Bryant Jr, and the entire Bama fan base expected to get from Saban (to the tune of $4 mil or whatever it takes.) It's been 398 days (there's an official clock strapped Bryant Denny--duh!) and this is what he delivers. Bravo! Unfortunately, a quick scan at the top 5 recruiting classes over the last 5 years includes teams like Maryland and Purdue but they also include the likes of USC and LSU (here is interesting article that's much better written than mine but I'm guessing that dude's not handicapped by a 3-year-old hanging from his arm, begging to play Webkinz.) Did you notice who orchestrated the 2004 LSU recruiting class? Welcome to the Capstone, Prefresh!

Tuesday, February 5, 2008

Super Fat Tuesday

Sounds like a perfect follow up to Really Long Monday, right?!?! I mean, it's not just Fat Tuesday, it's Super Fat Tuesday. Going to be a long week, no?

No--in all actuality--today has been nice so far. We got up and moving early so we could vote before Ricky Bobby went to school. He wanted to wear his "I Voted" sticker to school and there was no way I was denying said request because *hello!* I was so proud that he cares. I can't stress enough how much I believe in taking your kids to the polls with you. My parents always drug me with them shared their voting experiences with me and even let me push the buttons in the booths. We don't have booths where I vote but my kids can still fight over slipping the ballot into the counting machine (and I assure you, they do!) I bet Ricky Bobby will remember that we were #048 for a lot longer than I will! Anyway, if you haven't gone yet and you live in a Super Tuesday state... GO VOTE! Or seriously, you're a Commie. And yes, I voted for Huckabee. It was a win-win voting for him. I really like Huckabee and in a perfect world he would be our candidate. But I also relish that voting for him essentially hurts Romney. McCain will be the Republican nominee so lets just deal with it people. I'm dealing and you know what? Maybe it's not so bad. I'll get into all that sometime when time allows as I'm definitely up against the clock now.

So to summarize today's post: VOTE!

Monday, February 4, 2008

Acute Patriotitis

Well...so great was the disappointment, so searing the loss that it caused a 2 mm crystal formation to dislodge itself from somewhere within Plumberboy's own sacred plumbing and start its painful descent into his hallowed bladder. I believe this is what people affectionately call passing a kidney stone but when coupled with the historic collapse of your childhood football team, it is referred to as acute Patriotitis.

That's all for now. Too.tired.

Sunday, February 3, 2008

Touche, Plaxico!

Well, I'm not crying but am most definitely disappointed. Like I told Plumberboy, we're too young to experience perfection and now next time we can be there. (Bright side, right?) Well, other than that... it sucked.

Saturday, February 2, 2008

One last thing...

Sad news from within The Crimson Nation today (actually yesterday.) You can read more about Meg here and here. Fear not, she may have lost the battle but I think she probably won the war. Thanks for representing, Meg!

For My Official Pats Cred...

Here's our Old Skool Patriots Pennant that I hope doesn't bring us bad luck (I don't think they ever won a Super Bowl with that silly logo!)




Well, I don't have long but I felt compelled to post something prior to Super Bowl Sunday. I'm a little nervous that no one gives The Giants a chance and are already calling The Patriots v.2008 the best NFL team ever, perhaps the best sports team ever. But I also feel like if ever there was a team that understands this game, the hype, the history then it's Bill Belichick and The Pats. And yeah, Tom Brady too I guess. Of course, in the interest of all that is fair and balanced, there's Spygate. I have more questions than answers after reading that particular article but I think I can sum it up this way. Football is a game of downs, of plays if you will. In other words, the players still have to get out there and execute. EVEN IF you were privy to the other team's signals, you would A) have to come up with a counterplay to neutralize their play and then execute but B) you would first have to decipher the signals. That's where this guy comes in. (I know, I know. It's a long article but I promise it's a fascinating read to me...perhaps because I find Ricky Bobby eerily similar to this Ernie guy. Except for living with his parents as a grown, multi-million-dollar man. Ain't gonna happen, Mr. Ricky Bobby!) Anyway, the way I see it... there's plenty of MIT and Berkeley graduates with phenomenal analytical skills out there needing a job so I say to the other 31 NFL teams, GO HIRE YOUR OWN FOOTBALL MADMAN and QUIT WHINING! The fact that we deplore "competitive advantange"* in this country irks me. What are we, communists?

So go cheer for The Pats this weekend... or you're a Commie. :)

*This opinion does not apply to the use of steroids. Sure, it's a competitive advantage to use steroids, HGH, and fertility drugs to boost your game... until you wake up one day and realize you're an androgyne selling life insurance from a tiny cubicle in Podunk, USA who's unable to legally marry anyone and most certainly unable to procreate, except maybe with yourself. Who's looking like the loser now?

Garfield is international SUPAH-STAH!

Seriously, I get hits at least once a day from some random place like Vietnam or Buenos Aires. Garfield is, in fact, bigger than Saban Dance. Go figure...

Friday, February 1, 2008

As Paul Harvey would say...

Here's the rest of the story from my previous post (This is copied and pasted straight from my dad's email. As suspected, I didn't do the story justice!):

Okay, I read your blog about the 1990 'Bama / UT game...here is the story...

When the pain struck (just as Phillip Doyle's game-winning field goal passed through the uprights), I was actually holding my arms up and jumping up and down. When the pain hit I sat down and was quietly holding my chest. Some lady in front of me turned around with plans to "high-five" me, but saw that I was sitting on the bleacher holding my chest. She started screaming something about me having a heart attack. I was trying to tell them that I would be fine, but no one heard me. The next thing I knew, they had me stretched out on
the bleacher and they were all screaming for paramedics to come.

As I lay on the bleacher, I heard one of my buddies say "Get his wallet, he hasn't paid his share on the motel room."

Medics came, put me on a stretcher and carried me down the stands and onto the playing field sideline. One of my buddies accompanied me and the medics. Once we reached the playing field sideline, they placed the stretcher and me on one of those little golf cart ambulance kind of things. Then we traveled the length of the field from endzone to endzone as fast as the little golf cart ambulance thing would run. My friend was
running along beside the cart because he was unable to turn it loose as his watch or ring or some piece of jewelry had become hung on a bolt or screw or something. The cart was traveling faster than he could run, so his feet were only hitting the ground about every 6 or 7 yards or so.

After traveling the length of the field, we finally went inside the ground level concourse where we slowed a little and my buddy thought he might get to catch his breath. Not so...we then began a long, steady climb to about the third or fourth level concourse where the First Aid Room and Doctors were located. When we finally arrive there, my buddy was in much worse shape than I was. No one, however, seemed concerned about him.

As for me, I knew I was in trouble as all the doctors
and nurses and first aid personnel were dressed in that gosh awful UT orange. My buddy and I were the only ones there dressed in Crimson. I was asked to place a nitroglycerin tablet under my tongue and told a doctor would check on me shortly. Very soon the orange clad doc was standing beside me. I described my pain to him and he asked "What happened just before you started to feel the pain, did you get excited or
anything?" To which I responded, "Doc, did you see that dadgum (slightly cleaned up) football game?"

The doctor, not wanting to fool with me any longer, called for a real ambulance and had me transported to University Medical Center, where they ran numerous tests and concluded that I had suffered some unknown "event," but it was not a heart attack. I was then released to go pay my share of the motel bill!