The Fam

The Fam

Monday, February 16, 2009

Are you starring in your own movie?

My Sunday trip to Wal-mart was an annoying reminder of how oblivious people are to their surroundings. So, in an attempt to do my part in the betterment of humanity, I will point out 10 annoyances that sign you think you are starring in your own movie while grocery shopping.

10. Rather than taking the most direct route from the exit to the parking lot (or vice versa), you leisurely stroll diagonally while simultaneously pushing your cart, talking on your cell phone, smoking a cigarette, and dragging your toddler behind you.
9. While scoping out the cereal, you leave your cart parked directly in the middle of the aisle. If you are especially annoying, the cart is parked horizontally. Even after three "excuse mes", you still don't notice that someone is trying to get by until the cart is "accidentally" rammed bumped into you.
8. Chancing a hungry vagrant might be grocery shopping that day, you leave your child's half-chewed chicken nugget in the middle of the bread aisle.
7. Express check-out = 15 items or less. Self check-out = ASSUMED 15 items or less.
6. Ooops! I forgot just one thing! Or, ooops, I left my wallet in the car! Need I say more?
5. Kids on wheels. Really? Must your child skate down the aisles in his Heelys pushing your cart 30 mph while you obliviously decide between Cheddar or Swiss?
4. You have not recognized we are in the 21st century and write checks. You are especially annoying if you begin the actual check-writing process after every item has been scanned, bagged, and placed into your cart.
3. Checkout belt hogs. Your items should be placed on the belt as close together as possible, and non-breakables stacked. If you have placed your items on the conveyor belt, MOVE out of the way.
2. Your milk selection process goes like this: you prop the door open with your cart, thus blocking the way for any other potential 1% milk buyers; You then proceed to dig through your purse for your reading glasses; Once you find your reading glasses, you pull out the front 2 milk jugs from every milk slot to ensure you find that one jug that expires 2 days later than the rest.
1. You sneeze something into your hand, proceed to examine it, wipe it on your pants, then sift through the zucchini with the same snotty hand.


Other than the dreaded weekly Wal-Mart trip, we had a great weekend.
On Saturday, we saw "Deep Sea" at the Omni Theatre in Ft Worth. Correction, Thade, Adalae, and I saw "Deep Sea". After 5 minutes, Reed was freaked out so they spent the rest of the movie outside climbing up and down a flight of stairs (love ya Rustin!).

Warner is so right about how differently your Valentine Day is celebrated once children come along. Saturday night for the Gradke family was spent at a nail-biting 11 year old basketball game, then a romantic dinner at Taco Bell drive-thru.

Rustin was so sweet and delivered flowers to my office on Friday for Valentine's day. Saturday morning, I gave Rustin his V-Day card and a box of chocolate. 20 minutes later, after I showered, I came into the kitchen to find my V-day surprise. Along with a sweet card, Rustin re-gifted the box of chocolates I had given him 20 minutes before.

Should I say, "It's the thought that counts."?

Or should I teach my husband proper re-gifting etiquette?

Monday, February 9, 2009

Where have all my snacks gone?

This morning I go to the cupboard for a Special K bar to find the entire value size box I bought one short week ago is gone. Also gone are the dozen teddy graham packs, 6 pack of cheese and crackers, and dozen pack of Baked Cheetos snacks I bought the same day. As we get in the car, I'm silently pondering the possibility of sleep-eating in the middle of the night since my Nanny is way too skinny to get away with eating all that snack food and I can't lose weight by starvation. Then Rustin asks me if I knew the amount of food Thade takes to school these days? Apparently, along with 3 Nerf guns, Rustin found 5 variety snack items in his back-pack this morning and Thade has been snack-supplier to all his friends at school.

We have been busy having lots of fun this month! We hosted a Superbowl party 2 weekends ago and I hosted a lingerie shower at my house on Saturday. Now I have Reed's birthday party on Feb 21st (also at my house), hosting a couples shower Feb 28th, heading to see Leah in Austin March 1st, then Mexico for Spring Break. Whew.

One of my best friends is getting married and she definitely deserves all the fun and blessings in the world! (thus showers, showers)

Lingerie Party/The Hostesses:



Me and the Bride to Be!



Superbowl party pictures:
























Monday, January 26, 2009

Kurt Warner

What an inspiration Kurt (QB for the Arizona Cardinals) is to us all. His personal story says it all. At 21 years old, when most men at this age are partying it up, Kurt was falling in love with Brenda and her two children (one with special needs, a serious brain injury inflicted by her ex-husband, and confined to a wheelchair). Brenda was a divorced single mom supporting her family on food stamps. Four years later, Kurt and Brenda married, and he immediately adopted both of her children. They have since had 5 children of their own. All the while, Kurt is being cut from teams, getting injured, loosing contracts and at one point stocked groceries for $5.50 per hour.

Kurt Warner is an amazing man of God and I will be right there with my husband cheering him on this Super Sunday!

This is a really neat article about Kurt, his family and his unwavering faith. God is good!


"If you ever really want to do a story about who I am, God's got to be at the center of it. Every time I hear a piece or read a story that doesn't have that, they're missing the whole lesson of who I am." - Kurt Warner

www.kurtwarner.com

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Don't laugh, Daddy dressed me

I generally do not allow Rustin to dress the children, unless for bed. For instance, he dressed Reed on Saturday. He dressed him in a long sleeve polo shirt and sweat pants.

Reed's PJs are all stacked neatly in his drawer with matching tops and pants and we still end up with this last night (and countless others):

Or this, which happens to be Adalae's sleeper that was accidentally placed in Reed's drawer. The neck was actually stretched so far down and poor Reed had to stand on his tip-toes to avoid choking. I'm not even sure how Rustin managed to stuff his arms and legs in, much less button the thing.


Reed loves these sunglasses. He wears them to play and watch TV.

Friday, January 16, 2009

Thursday, January 8, 2009

Thade's hero



I couldn't post this any larger but if you click the letter, it will pull up larger in a separate window. Way to go Gary!