Paris and Madrid- High School trip with the French and Spanish Classes

My girls have an opportunity to go to Paris and Madrid with their High School Spanish and French classes.  It is an amazing trip with wonderful opportunities for them to learn many new things they could not experience here at home.  The downside is the cost of this trip! With the economy the way it is we aren't able to just pay and go and it is good for them to work hard towards something they want.   They are raising money by doing bake sales, car washes, selling candy, babysitting, doing chores... Anything they can think of!!  

 Me and my rugrat daughters!  They are growing up and I'm getting old! Ha Ha  I LOVE THEM!

Hard to believe she is my BABY!!

Big sister.... They are growing way too fast!

Hard to believe they are the only two left living at home.  In the blink of an eye it feels like I went from a full house with four little rugrats running around to BLAM... An adult married son and a son off at college!  Two left at home and no more babies!  Time goes by so quickly!

Ciao Bellas~
Momma

Figuring out who you are?

HELLO! 

Don't faint.  I know it's a long overdo post!  

I saw a great sign today and had to share.  It stopped me in my tracks.  It said "Don't try to figure out who you are CHOOSE who you want to become".  That hit me.  From time to time I say WHO AM I ANYMORE?  Where did Stephanie go?  I'm a mom, a wife, but who AM I?  So I guess the answer is I'm whoever I choose to be.  We can make changes at any age!  If I want to be giving, loving, a mother my kids look up to and admire, a wife my husband is proud of, a person who works out, a person who is always on time, a person who is organized..... the list goes on and on.  Bottom line is if I CHOOSE to be that person I can become that.  If it is important to me and that is the person I want to be I can be that.  So I don't need to sit and try to think about WHO I am..  I am whoever I choose to be.  (within limits obviously)  I mean......  I'd love to be a singer like Faith Hill!  But ya know, God didn't bless me with those vocals!  I COULD go work on my singing and become a better singer...  But you all know what I mean.

So who do you CHOOSE to be?

Ciao Bellas

~Momma~

"Sadie Hawkins" a Tradition since 1937!!

Sadie Hawkins dance time of year....

A friend of mine mentioned this tradition has been around for a very long time... So I did some research!

I can't believe that this girl ask boy dance started from a COMIC STRIP.  It was a cartoon that turned into a musical.  It was called Li'l Abner.  There was a set day in November when an unmarried woman would chase bachelors and the town hoping to catch them and get married!  One of the girls was named Little Miss Sadie Hawkins.  She was the "homeliest gal in all them there hills" and this day in November was her very favorite day.  BUT apparently it was all the towns bachelors most dreaded day.  As this comic strip got more popular , a holiday inspired by Little Miss Sadie Hawkins,  was created!

This tradition has been around since 1937!  Most of us are not aware of the history behind this celebration but after all these years this event is still called "Sadie Hawkins"

Schools all over the United States got wind of the quirky holiday and started throwing dances on Sadie Hawkins Day.  At first they were all held on the Saturday after November 9th which was the same time  the Festivity took place in Li'l Abner.  But these days Sadie Hawkins dances are held anytime between the months of November and February.

When I was in school the girls just asked the boys... "Hey, Wanna go to Sadie's with me????"  Now asking is an elaborate affair.  But then again, when I was in school and you were asked to Prom the boy just asked you if you would go to Prom with him.... Don't they write it in the sky or put it on billboards nowadays?  

It's cute though!  I enjoy watching these Rugrats trying to figure out how to ask each other to dances.  Well, my cute little daughter (photo above) bought baseballs (as you can see in the photo) because this special (LUCKY... ha ha) boy plays baseball.  So she wrote a letter on each ball spelling out S-A-D-I-E-S-? And she gave them to different people (including teachers) who had him in each class throughout the day.  Then at the end of the day she walked up to him with the final ball which was the ? and her name on it.  

Funny thing is she has him in her first period class.  So she gave the ball to the teacher to hand to him.  She burst out laughing (with her friends) when the teacher walked through the room professing that there is love in the air and threw the ball to him..  He came up to my daughter and her friends later in the period and said "Look what I got!"..  They said "Wow, an E"..  Because that is the letter on the ball.  They all laughed and speculated who it could be asking him.

She was so excited when I picked her up from school..  She got in the car and said "So do you want the whole story??" I said "OF COURSE I DO!!"  Was so cute.  Have a mentioned how much I love being a Momma?!?

Last night she was up making up signs (she is artsy fartsy) for a friend to use to ask her "date" to Sadie's today.

Just had to share!

Spillin' it as usual.

Ciao Bellas~
~Momma~

I'm alive!! We have sooo much to catch up on!!

Hey y'all!  I'm alive!  I've missed my blog so much but have been MIA because of such a busy life!  From running my (growing way too fast) Rugrat daughters, to visiting my College goin' Rugrat son, to helping my oldest MARRIED Rugrat son fix up his house, to spending two weeks in the hospital with Acute Pancreatitis.... A shut down pancreas and liver... As you can see I've made it! =)  Different eating life style but I'm here.


I hope you all enjoy the Super Bowl.  Being from California we are rooting for the 49rs!!

Just wanted to shoot out a quick post to let you know I'm back online!

There is soooooooo much to catch up on!!!  Be back soon!

Ciao Bellas~
Momma

Racoons eating my cat food

We get these nightly visitors.....  Lately we get the whole "Raccoon Family".....  Bye Bye cat food!

Sorry it's a bad photo..... It's my iphone in the dark......

Look at those eyes......So cute yet so "Don't mess with me" all at the same time.....

There is momma Raccoon......and Hunks weedeater....

Another awful -quality- photo but I was zooming in with the iphone in the dark....

He got a little freaked out with all my photo taking and ran up in a tree.... Hunk shined the flashlight on him so I could get a photo...

 He came back and ate for awhile.....when the bowl was empty he decided to go meet up with the rest of his "gang"

 

EVERYTHING IS AMAZING AND NOBODY IS HAPPY

My son called me Friday from college.  When he was home he and my daughters would spend hours (calling us in constantly) watching funny you tube video's.  Well, Friday he said there was a you tube video I just had to watch...and he wanted me to put it on and watch it while I talked to him....


I laughed so hard... I honestly didn't know what to expect, figured it was something silly but this flat cracked me up...  I had to share it with Hunk when he got home...and the girls gathered round to watch it again (they watched it when I watched it the first time)...  Hunk was cracking up...


I think if you are "of a certain" age, it will make you laugh even more....  He's talking about all this technology we have and yet nobody is happy....it's hysterical....  And it took me back to a time, not so far ago, where things were a lot different....  It's so easy to forget how quickly technology has changed..  The cell phone (since we install and work on communications tower) is something I am aware of on a daily basis but there is so much we take for granted...


Hunk and I got such a laugh I just had to share with you all... (I'm like the kids... "Come in here YOU HAVE TO SEE THIS!!")

By the way.... When my son called on Friday he had me go on my computer and he called me on FaceTime on my computer from his...Talk about technology! Was awesome to see his cute little face!  His hair is so short and he looks like he's aged a year in the last month!


Hope you enjoyed the video....  Is that so true or what??


~Ciao Bellas~


~Momma~

LW MILLER-SOUTHERN MODIFIED DIVISION-MOST POPULAR DRIVER

LW Miller and wife Kelley Earnhardt

Not sure how many of you are into racing.  Those of you who follow my blog know that we are.  Well, I have a favor!  A BIG FAVOR.  A favor that would mean a lot to me....  An I'm on my knees beggin' ya type of favor....  Ok, maybe not THAT big, BUT it really would mean a lot.

A friend of mines Hubby races in Southern Modified Division and they are voting for most popular driver right now through November 20th.  Would be so awesome if he won!

It only takes 3 clicks!  Click on this link Click on the name LW Miller and then click Submit.  Done!  No signing up for an account or receiving emails or coupons or any other stuff we just can't wait to delete.

You can click HERE to see more information about LW.  

The Noteworthy information they have is:

Married Kelley Earnhardt following the 2010 season ... Dad was a Modified team owner for years in the northern part of the country and fielded cars for such drivers as Brett Bodine, Satch Worley and Jimmy Spencer … Got his own racing career started on dirt tracks in the Pennsylvania area … Has made 13 NASCAR Nationwide Series starts and six appearances in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series … Started competing in Modified cars in 1998 … Has one win (Martinsville) and 10 top 10s in 75 career NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour starts.

My noteworthy information is:

LW and Kelley- Aren't they the cutest couple you have ever seen?  (Thanks for letting me use the photos Kelley!)

 He is a stand up guy.  He is an amazing hubby to my friend.  He treats her like a princess (as he should! LOL) and he treats her daughters as if they were his own.  He is the husband we all hope our daughters will grow up and marry someday.  Because of all these things along with his talent on the racetrack it would just be AWESOME to see him win!

Like me doing back flips type of AWESOME.  Ok, so I can't actually do a back flip but I can do a huge jump.

If he wins I will so be doing this again....

You can vote once a day until November 20th, when the voting ends.  

Click HERE to vote now!

Thanks soooooo much!!!  You guys rock!

~Ciao Bellas~

~Momma~