THURSDAY THIRTEEN: THINGS THAT MADE MY WEEK!

1. DARREN'S WAY OF BRIBING ME INTO PLAYING OUTSIDE WITH THEM A LITTLE BIT LONGER (A KISS ON THE CHEEK)
2. COOKING DINNER EVERY SINGLE NIGHT THIS WEEK-YAY ME.
3. THE “WADDLE” IS UPON US *WINK*
4. ALL THE INVITES FOR THIS HOLIDAY WEEKEND-WE ARE LOVED
5. LAUREN’S PHILOSOPHY ON LIFE: “YOU KNOW MOM, EVERYTHING IN LIFE IS TOUGH, EXCEPT GIVING YOU KISSES”.
6. EATING BETTER AND NOT FEELING DEPRIVED
7. PLAYING BASKETBALL WITH THE BOY AND THE GIRL A FEW TIMES THIS WEEK…AND TRYING TO SHOW OFF OUR HARLEM GLOBE TROTTER SKILLS (THE FACT THAT MY KNEE ALLOWS ME TO DO THIS NOW IS AWESOME)
8. KNOWING THAT LAUREN ENJOYED HER FIELD TRIP (EVEN IF MY VIPS APPLICATION WAS NOT FULLY PROCESSED AND APPROVED JUST YET)
9. SATURDAY LUNCH AND PARK DATE WITH FRIENDS LAST WEEKEND. ~BODEGO’S TACO SHOP IS YUMMY~
10. LAUREN’S: BROTHER TIME OUT NOTE (PICTURE TO FOLLOW SOON)
11. ENGAGEMENT ANNOUNCEMENTS FROM 2 GOOD FRIENDS: JILL RYAN TO ERIK HALVERSON AND HOLLY DESANTIS TO KOSTAS MAVRIDIS
12. LOOKING FORWARD TO A WONDERFUL 3 DAY WEEKEND WITH THE BOY AND THE GIRL AND LOTS OF FUN WITH FABULOUS FRIENDS!
13. LOSING 220 POUNDS…AND KEEPING IT OFF FOR ALMOST A MONTH!

Catching Up!

Not real sure where to begin. I last wrote to you all when I underwent my knee surgery. That was 3 months ago. WOW! A lot has happened since then. Everything went well with my knee. At least I can say that today. I was (to my surprise) out of work for 5 weeks. On crutches for 3 weeks and in a lot of pain for at least 2 weeks. Yeah, I did that kind of backwards. Anyhow, I did rehab at the hospital for the first 2 weeks every single day. Everyone at that hospital was simply AWESOME. Then I was released to do rehab, every other day for an additonal 2 weeks. To...finally being able to ride that bike and work my resistance bands all on my own. Like a big girl. Do I do it on my own, umm. New Subject:

The kids are almost finished with school and they are ready for summer. Lauren received top honors for her grade, that is right...not her class but for her entire 4th grade class. She got a certificate, a t-shirt, a lunch with her friends and bragging rights. This summer she will be attending a 4 week "Creative Arts" camp. She is going to learn about MOVIES. She will be studying Screenplays, Books, Acting and learning how to use Audio/Video equipment. Darren was elected to participate in the summer Advance Algebra camp, and he actually wanted to go, but his teacher gave him the form the day (Friday, the 15th) it was due. How is a parent suppose sign and give permission if it is due the day it is given to your child? So, we will need to find something for the boy to do those first 4 weeks. I will be giving the school a call to see what their explanation is for this.

Memorial Day Weekend is coming upon us and we are sitting here hoping and praying that our dear friend Carla has bought her plane ticket to visit us over this weekend. We are planning on going to Six Flags (since I got us Season Passes, it should be a fairly cheap trip). These kids LOVE to go to theme parks.

A couple months ago we went to Galveston with Holly, Kostas, Angel and her father. Everything seemed back to normal after Hurricane Ike so that is good.
We've been attending some of the Houston Aero's Hockey games and they were a blast. Not very expensive either, now I just need to learn the rules of the game so that when the crowd cheers and/or boos, I know what I am cheering or booing for!

Lots more to update, just not enough time in my evening, but this is a start. I've missed you guys bunches. We are glad to be back. Many more updates to come y'all!