Wordless Wednesday

Mommy's Glasses

Hot House and Busted Water Heater

Oh my, people. It has been 88 - 90 degrees in our house most days. I am roasting. Sometimes it's cooler outside than inside, but not always. We have an evap cooler that also has a vent option, but when we turn the water on to use it as an evap cooler, it leaks everywhere, because the tubing or something is busted. The hubby plans on working on it this weekend, but he has no clue what he is doing or should do. We can keep the vent on, which puts some cool air in the house, mainly at night, though. So, during the day, it's horribly, horribly hot.

Last week, I noticed that our water heater seemed to be leaking more water than usual and over the weekend, I noticed that the carpeting all around the closet that the heater was in was pretty soaked. Yesterday, the hubby fooled around with it and attached a hose to it and put the other end into the sink in the bathroom downstairs, in the basement. It worked well, but last night when we were sleeping, the hose moved and the bathroom floor was pretty flooded. Thankfully it's tile.

The hubby's boss did give us a brand new water heater several months ago. He had purchased a new home and the water heater that came with it was just too small for his large house, so he bought a new one and gave us his other one. Which is so wonderful, because we are already going to pay $600 or so to have it installed. I guess it has to pass a safety inspection and there are some older parts of the pipes and what not that need to be replaced. We also have to take the door that leads to the basement off.

The basement is finished and is my day care play room. It's nice to close the door during nap time, but they should sleep anyway, even without a door there anymore, I hope. But It scares me not having a door there, because it's a lot of stairs and even with a gate up, I am worried that the mister will play, lean on the gate. Obviously I will have to watch him closely or not let him over there.

We still had a bit of money left over from the tax return, so thankfully, we won't be looking for how to pay for the water heater installation. They came to do it today, but we need different parts, so it may be a few days. They did hook it up temporarily for us, it's just not in the pass "inspection" mode yet. But it will serve it's purpose in allowing us to take hot showers and what not.

So, that was my eventful day. They didn't come to work on it until almost 5:00. They were scheduled to come at 3:00. And so the day care kids couldn't play down there at all today, because we had the hose going across the room down there and stuff. So it was a hectic day, trying to keep them in the upstairs portion of the house. We did lots of crafts, play-doh time, painting, a movie and even a little math lesson. The kids did really well.

Well, I am off to finish my first blog layout for my new blog design business. I am so excited and I think it will look really nice.

Good night.

Girlfriends

I can cook again

So, my hubby has been on a major health kick over the past 6 or so months. He is lucky, being in the Air Force, they make him do PT and give him time to do so. I wish someone would come to my house during the day and say..hey, you must work out now...go. And then they watch the kids and I work out. That would be grand. Anyway, he's been really watching what he eats. And I have been struggling. I make myself ice cream sundaes and then ask him if he wants one. LOL. Anyway, he has really, really high cholesterol and heart problems, it's genetic. So, he is really big on watching his saturated fat and cholesterol with meals. We found these frozen stir fry meals by Contessa, that are actually very yummy and very healthy, and for the past 7 or so months, it's what we've been eating almost every night for dinner. The only nights we don't eat them, is if we are out of them or out running errands, in which case, the unhealthy freak, little ol' me, gets pizza or fast food for us for dinner.
Anyway, before the Contessa stir fry kick, I was cooking different meals each night, trying to find new recipes. But now it's the same ol' same ol' most nights. Either Chicken Chow Mein, Cashew Chicken, Sesame Chicken, Paella, Shrimp Scampi, Chicken Stir Fry and well that's about it. There are some nights I am just sick of it. The only grand thing is, I only use one pan, it cooks in 10 minutes and the clean up is a breeze. But I miss home cooked meals, mashed potatoes, things like that.

So at Wal-mart last night, I was looking for a heart healthy cookbook. I know the American Heart Association makes one. But I couldn't find one. They did have a huge weight watchers one though and the meals in it look simply divine. So, I bought it. I am excited to look through it, pick some meals and buy the ingredients over the weekend for them. We can still do the stir frys, but I need a little more variety. And the food will be healthy. So, I am excited. I guess it doesn't take much, huh?

Busy Bee

So, I am going to be busy again starting today, but it's fun stuff and I am excited. I am currently working on my best friend's wedding photography site. Her current site has been under construction and some of her clients have been complaining, so my goal is to have the most important pages done by this weekend, so that she can get a new site up and running with just a couple of pages, not important ones, under construction for another week.

I also have 4 wonderful people who are having me design their blogger templates for them and it's fun getting started in that. I have one to finish this weekend, another by the middle of July and another by the end of july...and then the final one by the beginning of August. And my photoshop class starts up in 2 weeks and then after that finishes, I take an advanced scripting and flash class. So it's all so fun, but time consuming.

So, just letting you all know, everything here is fine, I just have a lot of stuff going on. But at least it's stuff I enjoy doing. It makes it fun!

So, for some reason, I seem to be one of those people that other people, who don't know me, like to talk to about their life. And it's always at times when I really don't have time to talk.
Like the morning I ran to the Walgreens by my house at 6:45 A.M., 20 minutes before day care kiddos would arrive, to purchase much needed items, diapers, wipes, formula, milk, string cheese, bread...and so forth. After waiting for a few minutes for a cashier, I was finally helped. Except when the 30 something year old man noticed the formula, he began talking to me about his baby. He began to tell me all of the words that his 17 month old could say. But, after mentioning a few, you know the basics..like mama, dada, more.....he got stuck trying to think of the others. And for some reason, he couldn't ring up my groceries and think of the words his daughter is speaking at the same time, so he stood there frozen, with an item in his hands waiting to be scanned, as he thought and thought. AHA..he remembered. Sadly, I don't. My item was scanned and he grabbed the next one. But wait, there is another word that she says. And the thought process again continued. This went on for each item. And the only thing I did to at all gave him a hint that I really couldn't listen to his story right now, was to eye the clock right above him. The clock that was telling me that it was 7:00 A.M. and I needed to get home.

Okay, so maybe that situation is pretty common. I am sure many cashiers start yapping away as they are ringing up groceries.

But this afternoon, during lunchtime, the Pizza Hut delivery man came to my door. I had ordered pizza for myself for lunch...and for the hubby and I to possibly have for dinner too. All of the day care kids were sitting around the kitchen table finishing up their lunches and about ready for nap. So, it was a bit of a busy time. After giving me my pizza, I handed him back the wrong slip and when he brought it to my attention, I apologized and told him that I am surrounded by kids and it turns my brain to mush. And to that he replied with a huge long story about his daughter who is at her Aunt's house and lost her birth certificate and it was made by social services to add his name on as the father. And that he was stuck right now because the one at the hospital doesn't have his name on it and now he can't take his daughter anywhere, because it would be kidnapping. And he has to pay a ton of money now to get the courts to make a new birth certificate and so forth and so forth and he is stressed.

Listening to his story made me feel bad for thinking that my days are stressful. But again, another stranger telling me about their life. And really, I like talking to other people, but there are just times when I really can't..and both of those times just weren't good for me.

Me and My Shadow

About Her Daddy

Here's what the miss said about her daddy...when I asked her specific questions. This was part of her Father's Day present.

My daddy has black hair and brown eyes
(he actually has brown hair and blue eyes, so hubby asked the miss who her daddy is)
My daddy likes to cook eggs. They're not bad.
My daddy likes to relax by going outside.
My daddy likes to buy presents.
He likes to watch baseball on television and sing Happy Birthday to me.
If my daddy could take a trip anywhere, he would go to the moon.
My daddy always gets the flies.
I love to play ball with my daddy and throw it at him. I like to play in the snow with him and make snowballs.
When my daddy slid down the stairs and was holding me, it made me laugh a lot.
Daddy always tells me that he'll give me chocolate.
I love my daddy a lot.

Theatre Survey

Theatre Survey

1) What was the first play you ever did? What role/job?
When I was 6, It was a community theatre prodcution of Really Rosie. I was Rosie.

2) What was your most recent show?
I haven't done a show since I was at school in Huntington...I was in the musical, Side Show, there. That was in 2001.

3) What was your most fun show/role?
Grease. I just thought it was a fun cast...although I didn't ever feel like I quite fit in.

4) What was your most challenging show/role?
My parts in Side Show, only because the director nitpicked me a lot! I remember being so frustrated and crying and working my butt off. I found out later, that he really liked me, as a performer, and he wanted me to work to my potential.

5) What is the most bizarre show or role you've ever done?
I can't remember having any bizarre roles. But I did have to wear a tight sports bra and have my chest tightly wrapped numerous times to try to make it appear like I was a young girl, when I played Tootie my senior year. Since she was like a six year old girl. It didn't work, though.

6) Has anyone ever written a show for you?
No.

7) Have you ever gotten romantically involved with a co-star?
Yes

8) Have you ever quit a show to accept a better one?
No

9) Have you ever completely blown character on stage?
At Huntington, I sang a duet of In His Eyes from Jekyll and Hyde. GREAT SONG! And while we were singing it, there was a slide show going on behind us and I guess they messed it up or something and it was during the most challenging part of the song and everyone was laughing at the messed up slide show and I totally screeched my high note, because I was all intimidated by the laughter.

10) What show are you just dying to do?
If Moulin Rouge is ever turned into a musical, I want to be Satine.

11) Have you ever done one of your "dream" shows?
Yep, Sandy in Grease..the role I always wanted.

12) Who was your favorite director?
This guy, in Connecticut, who ran YPPCCA..Young People's Performance center of Creative Arts. I did many shows and camps there and he died of a heart attack, I think, when I was in 4th grade. It was very sad.

13) Who was your least favorite director?
When I did Grease at Desert Stages, I didn't like Gerry at all...but then I did Fiddler on the Roof with him and was just blown away by him. An amazing, amazing guy he was.

14) What is the most surprising role you have ever been offered?
Hodel in Fiddler on the Roof. It was Jessica Godber's role, but she had to leave the show when there were only a couple of weeks of rehearsals left. I got a call from the director asking me to the role, and I was like..um...okay. I would never have pictured myself doing that show or trying out for it. But I loved playing the role of Hodel.

15) Have you ever injured yourself onstage?
No.

16) Have you ever worked on an original play?
No.

17) What show have you done multiple times?
I don't think I have done a show multiple times.

+++Where did number 18 go?+++

19) What roles do you usually get?
In High School, I played a child in most of the musicals. I was Amaryllis in The Music Man and then Tootie in Meet me in St. Louis
Cuz I looked like I was 10.

20) Have you ever had an onstage kiss?
Yes.

21) What was your scariest moment in a show?
I can't recall a scary moment.

22) What is your best show memory?
I think the last show of Meet me in St. Louis in High School, just because it was our senior year and our last show and all.

23) What is your worst show memory?
Getting broken up with several minutes before I had to go on stage and deliver the opening line of the play.

24) Have you ever pulled a prank on someone in a show?
Um, I can't remember...I am sure I was a part of some prank.

25) Have you ever been the recipient of a prank during a show?
No

Pictures and Father's Day and stuff

So, the hubby is not allowed to come on my blog tonight, my orders, because I wanted to show you what the kids made him for Father's Day. It's what I had all the day care kids make. And I think it came out cute.

They made their fathers, memory boxes. Here is the box to the hubby from the miss and mister.

The outside of the painted box. The miss loved painting it.

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The contents of the box include: a handful of chocolate kisses, a handprint for each kid with a poem on the back that says...
My hand will do
A 1000 loving things with you
And you will remember
When I am tall...
That once my hand
Was just this small.

Then we also have their footprints with another awesome poem that says....
"Walk a little slower daddy," said a child so small.
"I'm following in your footsteps and I don't want to fall.
Sometimes your steps are very fast, Sometimes they're hard to see;
So walk a little slower, Daddy, For you are leading me.
Someday when I'm all grown up, You're what I want to be;
Then I will have a little child Who'll want to follow me.
And I would want to lead just right, And know that I was true;
So walk a little slower, Daddy, For I must follow you."

Then there is a picture they colored of their daddy's. Except the miss included all the day care kids, her brother, her mommy, and her Aunt Tara on her drawing. Her Aunt Tara, is the big one in black that takes up the entire page. Apparently, she was excited about adding Tara onto the drawing.

Finally, I asked the kids questions about their daddy's. Things like, what is their favorite television show? What do they like to cook? What do they do that makes you laugh? Things like that. I can't remember all of the miss' answers, but when I asked her where her daddy would go, if he could go on a trip to anywhere in the world, she said that he would go to the moon. I thought that that was cute.
She also said that she likes to play baseball with daddy and throw the ball at him and that she likes to make snowballs with daddy too. I will type out her entire thing about daddy tomorrow, for you to read. Right now, it is rolled up inside the box and tied with a pretty black bow.

Tonight I added one more thing to the Father's Day box, an Ipod Shuffle. A blue one.

Here's the miss painting on Thursday. After they finished painting the boxes, they begged to continue to paint.


And today, the miss went to her first official gymnastics class. She had sooo much fun. I took a photo of her right before we left for her class.

Pasta Face

Okay, One More

I watched a few other clips from Britain's Got Talent, after watching the video below of Conny. Watch this opera singer...WOOOOOOWWWW!!!
It's funny, because you know that before he sings the judges are thinking....oh no..this won't be good. I loved watching their reactions as he started to sing. Simon looked up and just looked shocked. He is very talented.

WOW!

This little girl brought tears to my eyes. Here is little six year old Conny, performing on Britain's Got Talent. It's SOOOOO Impressive!!!

Just some rambling

The weather is nice today. I was sitting at the kitchen table this morning, with the window open, sipping my coffee and doing my devotional and it was just so peaceful...well for a minute or two. The kiddos were up, so it could only stay peaceful for so long. But there's something about the weather today that is making me crave a stay at a cabin....just me and the hubby. I want to wake up in the morning, sit on some wooden porch swing outside of the cabin..surrounded by tall trees and mountains.....sipping my coffee and watching the birds fly around or the squirrels chasing each other. Just something so simple and relaxing, I think that would be nice.

Anyway, I've started watching this new series on Lifetime, called Army Wives. It follows the lives of several women living on post. They range from a newlywed who has a hubby about to be deployed, to an officer's wife who is going on 17 years as an army wife. They each have separate stories, but come together as friends. I feel some of the acting isn't the greatest. Catherine Bell is in it though, and I really like her. I cried during the first episode each time they showed troops leaving or coming home. Anyway, the show is based on a book that was written by a woman who had been an army wife for many, many years. So, it covers the cattiness of the women on post, the hours upon hours spent in the waiting room at the hospital....the stereotypes of the hierarchy of the ladies as far as the newbies and the officer's wives. It shows the wives dealing with the husband's deployments and helping them get prepared for it all. For instance, this one new gal went to the PX to get the hubby the things he would need and ended up buying all the wrong things..... the wrong colors or shirts made of synthetic fibers. It deals with post-traumatic stress disorder. Anyway, there are parts of it that are so good and other times where it's just, well, unrealistic, like the birth scene.....But as a military wife, I can relate to a lot of it. I think you'll like it.
You can watch the first 2 episodes here

I took some photos of the mister eating spaghetti last night and I'll post them later. For now, I need to run.

Caution: You Will Cry

I know this will make you really sad, and I apologize for that. But I feel it important to share this with you, because this little baby and his family NEED our prayers. This is such a heart wrenching story.


Kristy Reynolds and her husband are parents to a beautiful little baby boy named Kaleb. He is 6 months and 3 days old. A couple weeks ago Kristy picked Kaleb up from home care and noticed something was wrong. She immediately took him to the hospital where he was diagnosed with Shaken Baby Syndrome. He now has meningitis in response the the surgeries on his brain, his body can't regulate his temperature, his heart rate drops every time he is moved, and he has seizures. He is also blind. His sitter shook him so hard that he is in a coma, had to have spinal fluid drained from his brain, and doctors think that if he lives he will be a vegetable for the rest of his life. Brain scans show that his brain tissue is dying and his brain is shrinking. Kristy and her husband refuse this diagnosis and pray for their little boy. I'm asking you to join them in this prayer for Kaleb.

Her myspace is:
www.myspace.com/kristyreynolds

It doesn't look like it, but he is blind. :o(

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A Recent Blog Post of Kristy's

Pray for baby Kaleb.

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Photo Hunt - Shoes

Wow, haven't done one of these in awhile, but I saw today's theme and knew right away, the best picture for it! :o)

The miss at around 22 months in daddy's boots.

Changing Voicemail

So, I worked in the Title Industry for seven years or so and I received this in my email today and had to share it.
Of course, it may only be fully enjoyed by those who have worked in the title industry.
So, I'm looking to change my voice mail and thought I'd run it by you guys first.

To lie about when loan docs will be delivered - Press 1
To make excuses for why your borrower can't sign during business hours- Press 2
To complain about what we do - Press 3
To swear at staff members - Press 4
To ask why you didn't get information that was already enclosed in your prelim and several emails and voicemails - Press 5
If you want us to lower our fees - Press 6
If you want to reach out and touch, slap or hit someone - Press 7
To request another escrow officer, for the third time - Press 8
To complain about the pre-payment penalty - Press 9
To complain about the other realtor - Press 0

If you realize this is the real world and you and your client must be accountable and responsible for his/her own behavior, credit, properly executed document and that it's not the escrow officers' fault for yours/their lack of effort: Hang up and have a nice day!

In Other Words

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"What used to make us stumble, God can use to make us stand.
What once made us bow our heads in shame,
He can use for His glory."

~ Joanna Weaver~
Having a Mary Spirit

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I admit it, I have done some terrible things in my lifetime. Okay, so we aren't talking murder, stealing..or real law breaking things, but I have done things that I am ashamed of...that I don't want to watch replayed during my time of judgement with God. I know they are forgiven, but ya know, sometimes I feel bad that they ever happened.
But you know what??? I have already been able to use those things for God's glory. Those moments are part of my testimony. They do show others where I was at one time and where I am today and how I grew from it. It allows for those doing the same things now, to be able to relate to me and to maybe learn a little from my stories.

Also, another event in my life that I know God will use someday, He is just still working on us and preparing it all...is my marriage. I almost ended my marriage with my hubby. I was ready to divorce him...but I didn't. And ya know what, in the two years since then, I have already seen how God has been working in us...how we have been growing and how God is preparing us to use it to glorify Him. And I do know, without a doubt, that someday, we will minister to young married couples, to those who are contemplating divorce, to those who are in the same boat we once were in. And I think it's incredible. I am blessed.

We aren't perfect..we are sinners....and sometimes we want to bow our heads in shame over some of the ways we've gone against God..for some of the selfish things we've done..for the hurt we've caused others....BUT...we can take the bad and turn it into something sooooo good.

"It is the crushed rose that gives off the sweetest fragrance"
- Tony Corzine

Come on, Babe, Why Don't We Paint the Town

Well, we are back home from our short trip to Chicago. It was definitely an interesting one. Stressful, fun, and hard on the tummy.
We almost didn't make it. We left for the airport in plenty of time, but it was a Friday night at rush hour and there was an accident on the freeway that added even more of a delay. It took us an hour to drive a stretch of freeway that should only have taken us 30 minutes. So, we were pushing it close. Our flight was on time, how come it's never delayed when you need it to be??? And at 7:15, we were still driving. The plane was to start boarding at 7:45 and leave at around 8:00 P.M. The hubby didn't think we were going to make it, in fact he was pretty darn sure we wouldn't. And there weren't any other flights going out until the morning, late in the morning. If we had had to take that flight, we would have arrived after the Cubs game started. And the whole point of the trip, was to see the game.

For those of you that didn't know, my hubby has been a Cubs fan since he was a little kid and has ALWAYS wanted to see a game at Wrigley Field. His birthday was over Memorial Day weekend and for his present, I bought him tickets to the Cubs game on June 2nd. He was THRILLED.

So, anyway, we got to the airport at 7:24ish...maybe a little bit earlier and of course we parked in the garage in probably the spot farthest away from the elevators to take us to the terminal. At this point, there was no way we would have time to check-in our luggage. The hubby suggested that we just take out one outfit from our suitcase and place it in his backpack that holds his laptop. Of course, me being a girl, was like..no I need this and this and extra clothes just in case (WHICH I DID NEED) and my hair straightener...yada yada...I insisted that our luggage would be small enough to go through security and that we wouldn't need to check it.

But, I was wrong! We raced to the security checkpoint....and the line was long and so was the line to check luggage...and an employee told us that we COULD NOT carry on our suitcase. If we went to check it, we'd miss our plane. So, I think we broke the law, but we went over to the side, placed our suitcase on the ground and took out what we truly NEEDED. The hubby only wanted us to take one outfit, but there was no way I was going to get rid of my new jeans, my new shorts and the new shirts...that I seriously JUST BOUGHT. So besides some socks and pj bottoms, we fit our clothes into his packpack grabbed our tennis shoes...leaving our flip flops behind...and raced through security. And we made our flight. But I am sure at some point...attention was drawn to our suitcase...just laying on its own. OOPS!!!

So, we got to our hotel and everything was good. We didn't have toothpaste, razors or a brush. I also left my cute, brand new ankle socks behind. So, I did have to visit the gift shop pretty early to get those much needed things..including the only socks they had...ankle ones for men. And after eating a complimentary and huge hot breakfast, we headed to the L to travel to the game.

Travelling by their L system was pretty easy, but it took a long time. An hour and a half later, we were at Wrigley field. Man, I LOVED watching my hubby take it all in. He had this HUGE smile on his face and it was darling. He was soooo happy!!!
Here we are, before entering the stadium...


A cubsfan.com picture taken of us at the game


The Cubs lost, but it was still an exciting game. And our seats were GREAT!!! We were near third base and fairly low. Here's the view from our seats....

So, in case you didn't hear much about the Cubs game on Saturday, there was a fight between the manager, Lou, and the third base umpire, that caused quite a bit of commotion. Lou was kicking the dirt and his hat onto the ump and yelling. The crowd also showed their anger by throwing Cubs hats, mugs and trash all over the field.

Everyone was on their feet cheering Lou on, it was crazy. And I am such a mom, because the whole time, I had a hard time cheering for him. I mean I know this is how Lou is, but really I thought it was childish. And I don't think it was setting a good example for the children in the stands watching. Anyway, the game ended and we headed to the Sears Tower.

At this point, it was 4:00 and all we had eaten all day was breakfast and a pretzel at the game. Oh, and a small Jamba Juice. And I think I had had one bottle of water and one coke to drink. I was starting to feel weak....maybe a little lightheaded and I knew I was hungry. We waited for awhile to meet up with my friend from college, Charity. She and her mom took a 90 minute long train ride to Chicago to meet up with us. We were going to head to the top of the Sears Tower and then after that head over to Ed Debevic's for some dinner. It was so great to see Charity.

The Sears tower was neat too. Did you know it was designed after a pack of cigarettes? That's another story for another day. We were forced to watch some little movie about it before heading up the elevator and getting to the top in 60 seconds. Boy was that hard on the ears. Up at the top, I started feeling even more dizzy. Something wasn't right. It was neat..the view and all, but I just really wanted to eat.

So, after Steve took in all the sites from the tower, which he loved,

we headed to Ed's. It was quite a bit of a walk. When we sat down to eat, all I wanted was potatoes. It's my comfort food, I tell you!!! And I drank a ton of water. I had a horrible headache and I felt like I was going to pass out and so I figured I was dehydrated, so I chugged water like nobody's business. Oh and Charity, my other photographer friend, took some silly pictures of the hubby and I while we waited for our food. She took a ton with her camera as well.

So, when our food came, I went straight for the potatoes and carrots. Charity's mom suggested that I really needed the pot roast for the protein. I had a few bites, but I was so nauseated, and decided to call it a night. I was so very bummed, because..it was only 8:00, Charity and her mom had to stay in the city a few more hours before the next train would leave,and as much as I wanted to spend time with them and the hubby, my body wanted nothing more than to rest. So, we grabbed a cab to head back to the hotel. There was no way I could ride an hour on the L. The cab got us there in 15 - 20 minutes And THANKFULLY, Charity's mom gave me a little bag that I could throw up in, if I needed to......

Because, in the cab, on the way back to the hotel, I got sick. I threw up everywhere, and although the bag came in handy, I puked all over myself. It was horrible. We got to our room, I showered and then went to bed. The morning came too quickly. We had to get up early to head home, and I still had a splitting headache.

I didn't eat a whole lot today. My tummy was still pretty crummy, I was nauseated and the headache just persisted. When I got home, I called my day care parents and told them I was going to close tomorrow. Then I went to sleep. I rested for about 5 hours, when my poor, drained hubby asked if he could rest and I could take over with the kids...fedding them and putting them to bed.

And although my stomach is still not the greatest, about an hour ago, my headache left the building. So I plan on calling it a night soon, getting lots of rest and taking it easy tomorrow. Other than being sick, I had a great time and the hubby did too.