Let's review...

I guess a recap is in order for the first half of 2011 as I've only blogged a handful of times in the past six months. Sad.  I've wanted to...I think about it...never get to it!! BUSY BUSY!! 

So over the last few months:

February-  My girl turned 12.  Can I be sick now?? I mean pre-teen...this ought to be a good time! Thankfully she's a pretty level-headed girl. Now if we can just rein in the crying and sudden mouth she's discovered. Somewhere in the last few months she's shot up about 4 inches...

April- Easter.  Started the holiday with Great Aunt Anne, who was as excited over the kid's baskets as they were. Spent the afternoon with Knight In Shining Armor's sister and family and had a GREAT day!!  There was awesome food, kids all over playing and everyone catching up. Sister set up an egg hunt for the kids; even the older ones had fun!  The day went by too quickly!

Early May:  Dissolution/divorce final. The day was actually pretty tough- the finality of it, courthouse, the papers. The wow this really isn't happening but it is.  I'd fought so hard for years NOT to get to that point. Not regretting it at all- just whew. Wow.    I understand better NOW that God had different plans and apparently He had been trying to clue me in for years, but I just didn't hear it.  Well, guess what God?   I'm LISTENING NOW!!! :-)   Moving on!! So excited and happy, I might spontaneously combust!! If you see me bouncing around, stand clear!! She could blow at any given moment and it won't be purty! Gearing up for a move back to my hometown this summer and not waste a single minute of this life with my guy and the kids!!  Excited to be closer to family and get a little warmer too!!  heheh.  :-)

Memorial Weekend-  Smokey Mountains- woohoo!!  Knight in Shining Armor took us to Gatlinburg for a long weekend, and it was a GORGEOUS one...well, after the tornadoes, golf-ball+ size hail beating the truck and sideways blinding torrential downpours GETTING there...THEN it was gorgeous!  Add to that mix Monster Man complaining and whining most of the trip, then getting giddy over the hail,  "Look at THAT big one!! That one's HUGE!" and cracking up hysterically. You could sense the blood pressure rising in the front seats imagining the dents those HUGE hail chunks were probably leaving.  Thankfully only a few small dents- it sounded & could have been much worse.
After we get to the hotel and the rain/hail slows, I step out by the lobby, "No, I don't need an umbrella, it's just a few steps..." where I proceed to blow out a flip flop, fall down knees, to hip, hands to elbows and the side of my head on the pavement just as the a freaking downpour resumes...SHIT!!  Right in front of the front bumper I go down.  Soaked to the skin, knees busted, palms red and ripped I get up and limp my way over to lobby overhang out of the rain and Knight looks at me with a 'what happened to you?' glance..."How did you get THAT wet??"
"You didn't see that?!"
"See what??"
"That I fell."
Laugh. "No, seriously?!"
"Yes, I just busted my arse in the pouring rain and broke my flip flop!" as I start laughing and shaking because I'm soaked to the bone. Just as I'd stepped out, the kids were asking questions and he turned to answer so none of them saw me fall. Thankfully he put the car in park as said he thought I'd disappeared awful quickly, he might have moved the truck!!  Left knee and right palm sustained the most damage...and I quickly learned that I favor the left knee when crawling into bed, to sit, to lean on a bench- left knee first. Took me about 10 times of screaming in pain to realize it and consciously use my right leg.  Fun times.
  Did you know Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge have about 89 Mini Golf places, 370 fudge shops, and about 100 air soft gun & knife places??  No??  Well, they do.   And Monster Man wanted to hit every single mini golf...ugh.  BONUS- all the fudge shops give free samples--WOOHOO!!  Maybe they figure you will pass out doing so much mini golf that you need the sugar to make it the rest of the day!
If you plan traveling there with kids, I highly recommend Ober Gatlinburg all day pass- WORTH it!! Great time!


Into June:   Finally, FINALLY finished up school work! PHEW!  Hard to imagine I will have a 7th and 3rd grader come fall. AACCKKK!!
   Dance rehearsals and recital done. Very sad as this will be our last year with our awesome Starmaker family.  We have so enjoyed dancing the last five years; it will be tough to leave such great kids and good friends. I can't think about it...  Monster Man is convinced that we can drive 2-1/2 hours four days a week to continue dancing at this studio...HA! He either needs a job or learn to teleport!!

Hope your last few months have been just as fun and exciting!!  Have an awesome summer!!

Back in Bargain Mode!

Look at my CVS haul for today!
Not as great as could have been, had I done this Sunday before my Purex coupons expired and the Off! Reppellant disappeared or I'd had a wayyy bigger pile!   Anywhoo...I spent under $70 on this AND three items-  Sonicare toothbrush heads @ $26 and 2 hair color, $10 & $12 make up most of that.  The cheapest I've found the Sonicare are Wally Hell for $25...that's IF they are on the shelf and I'd waste more than $2 in gas, not to mention 30 levels of aggravation finding out! 
In this trip I had some B1G1 coupons and free coupons (hair color) to go along with some good B1G1 sales.  So I basically ~paid~ for the items on the left and got everything on the right for F-R-double-E  FREE!   Plus 3 Fuze drinks not pictured & the card was $5 (moves,sings).
So not the best CVS trip I've ever done, but I'm happy!  Less than $70 for over $150 worth...I'll take it!
Yesterday, three bags of items at T@rget for $28 including 2 face washes, 3 cereals, coffee, etc...woohoo!