Wussy Girl

So as most of you know, Dave and I took the kids to Disney World back in January. It was their Christmas present. They have been wanting to go since Dave and I first started dating and we finally bit the bullet and did it. We spent a week staying on the Disney property at the Wilderness Lodge and we ran the kids ragged trying to make sure they saw as much as we could squeeze in. They were awesome and we had an awesome time.

As most of you also know, I am a Disney freak. I've been there many many times and have enjoyed every trip. Well, this time I found out that my age is catching up with me. I've never been a thrill ride fan, but I always enjoyed mild thrill rides. So while you won't see me on the Top Thrill Dragster at Cedar Point, I always make it a point to go on the Matterhorn, the Calypso and the Scrambler. At Disney, I would tolerate Space Mountain, but It's a Small World and The Haunted Mansion were more my speed.

So this year I had the joy of discovering that not only can I not tolerate the roller coasters, I now have the pleasure of being claustrophobic. I discovered this on Mission Space with my 7 year old daughter. If you haven't been on Misson Space, let me explain. It is designed to make you feel like you are on the space shuttle during a mission to Mars and there are two different rides you can choose from. One makes you feel like you are actually experiencing lift off and actual G's. It's intense. I went on it with my mom last time I was there and almost lost my lunch, but the confined space didn't bother me. The other option is more like a simulator. So you can close your eyes and you're fine. So Becca and I are went on Mission Space (the wussy version). And as soon as the restraints came over my shoulders, the control panel moves forward toward you face leaving about 6 inches of space between you and it and the door shut, I freaked. Wanted out. Looking for an emergency exit button. Started to hyper-ventilate. Becca's asking me why I'm closing my eyes and I'm about to cry. Thank God the ride only lasts two minutes. I'll never go on it again. Becca, on the other hand, didn't think it was intense enough and insisted on going on the other Mission Space no less than five times. She also rode the Tower of Terror (her brother wouldn't even go), Expedition Everest, and Space Mountain.

I also freaked out on Stitch's Alien Encounter. I don't even want to talk about that.

I can't believe I'm posting this information on the internet so the whole world can know that I am a certified wussy girl.

Summer Daze

The kids started summer camp Monday. It's a day camp that is located in Howell. I found it for them last year to save them from spending the summer laying on the couch watching tv, playing video games and eating. They bitched about it at first (with a little help from someone else) but I won the day and they ended up loving it.

BONUS - Sam was too old this year for the regular day camp, but they asked him to be a junior counselor this year. So we don't have to pay for him. That saves us a ton of money and he's getting leadership training which we are hoping will help to make him a little bit more self assured and assertive.

Day camp is especially good for my little girl. She's not like me at all in that she is very very outgoing and social. She does so much better when she is busy. So she gets to spend her days running around, swimming and riding on the camps zip line. Did I mention that when we took her to Disney World she rode more rides than I did, including the Tower or Terror which even her brother would not ride? She also mastered riding her bike this year. Last year we just couldn't get her going and this year Dave took her out twice and she had it. Now she wants to ride it all over the neighborhood. She's really flourishing. I'm so proud and take all the credit :) Once I get my wedding photos back I'll post some before and afters for you to enjoy. (Ahemmm, Alison. I'm just kidding don't send me hate mail).

On a totally different note, I am taking vacation days the week of the fourth of July! I am counting down the days until I can sit around the house and complete exciting tasks like organizing the junk drawer and cleaning out my closet.

I don't even know what to call this post

What a week. The post on farmer boy was started Tuesday (if you notice the date) but didn't get posted until today. Remember a few weeks ago when I told you about my new "non-micromanager" boss? Well he's piling on me so that by the time I get home from work, the last thing I want to do is get on the computer.

I tried to scan in some photos from our wedding, but they were not coming our right. Alison sent me a nasty e-mail because she thinks she is now going to get hate mail from everyone who is dying to see my wedding photos. Sorry Alison - I bear you no ill will. I appreciate the fact that you were transferring them for me at all.

So you'll all have to wait for the wedding pics.

It'll give you something to look forward to.

Farmer Boy

One of my favorite books from childhood was a Laura Ingalls Wilder book called "Farmer Boy". It was about her husband, Almanzo, growing up on a farm. For some reason it appealed to me. I'm reading it to Becca now. She doesn't seem to appreciate it as much as I do.

So, this week, I have a real life Farmer Boy staying at my house. We drove to Cedar Springs on Sunday (which is where Dave used to live before we got married) to pick up Sam's friend who shall remain nameless who lives behind Dave's old house. His parents are farmers. They have four kids and he who shall remain nameless is the only boy. He used to ask Dave if he could call him "Dad" - if that tells you anything.

So he who shall remain nameless walks into my house Sunday with the nastiest dirtiest tennis shoes I have ever seen. Dave tells him to take his shoes off and when he does, his socks are worse then the bottom of his shoes. So they had to go too. I had to vacumn everywhere he had walked. Then I had to go buy him some tennis shoes. Then Dave made him go take a shower, which he fought tooth and nail. He only wanted to wash his feet.

To give you a little more insight, nameless's little sister got lice a few years back from their goat that was sleeping in the house with them. They don't have air in their house and they also have no screens on their windows. There is a refrigerator on their back deck which I'm pretty sure isn't plugged into anything and the craters in their driveway are deeper than the entire height of my car.

If you know anything about me, it is that I am a certified germ-o-phob and having child in my house is only enhancing my neurosies. AHHHH!!

Is it Friday already?!

I can't believe it's Friday already! I just looked and realized I have not posted since Monday. That's bizarre - the week has flown by.

Sunday is our 1st anniversary! I would love to post some pictures of our wedding, but believe it or not I have none. At least none electronically. My photog gave me all the negatives and I gave them to my friend Alison who is the busiest person I have ever known and is currently on a 2 1/2 week cross country trek in a RV. So she still has them. She is putting them on cd's for me, and, I also gave her the prints so I can't even scan them in. I have a couple in picture frames at home. If I have time this weekend, I will scan and post them.

We are going to celebrate on Saturday by taking a big picnic lunch and going to Kensington for the day. Dave has been hankering for a fishing trip. This way, we can find a spot by the water and he can throw a couple lines in and I can lay on a blanket with a book. Not rip roaring but we could use some laid back quiet time.

Plus! I got an email from Donna, who was one of my bridesmaids, and she informed me that my bridesmaids and another good friend from college, Katie, have purchased a night at a nearby Bed and Breakfast for Dave and me in honor of our first anniversary. I cannot even tell you how touched I was when I got that email. These girls did so much for me last year for the wedding, I figure that I should be buying all of them a night at a B&B! I was so surprised. I have such a wonderful group of friends! Really. Thank you so much.

"I no doubt deserved my enemies, but I don't believe I deserved my friends." - Walt Whitman

More St. Lucia pics

Sometimes, even in paradise, it rains. But it's still paradise.

My brithday - our butler surprised me with a cake and a bubble bath sprinkled with flower petals.
The botanical gardens waterfall. I think it was called Rainbow Falls but I can't remember for sure.

The "Pea"

My husband has been sick. He got a cold and couldn't shake it. He finally went to the doctor last week after feeling crappy for nearly three weeks. After a few days of antibiotics, he finally started to feel better on Saturday. Sunday my throat started to hurt and today it is getting harder and harder to breathe. Last night between both kids, we were woken up no less than four times through the night and today at work I had some unexpected crap thrown at me that really shouldn't have been a big deal and almost had a complete meltdown. I don't do well on little sleep and fighting a cold. I had the first sinus infection of my life earlier this year and live in constant fear of getting another one. I have always been exceptionally healthy. Never had mono, never had strep throat, can count on one hand the number of times I have had the stomach flu in my lifetime, never even had a sinus infection, until 3 months ago. Like I've said, it's hard to be a princess when someone puts a pea under your mattress.

So, I'm posting some pictures of our honeymoon in St Lucia last November. I know these are old, but they are so beautiful, and some of you haven't seen them yet anyway. If you have already been subjected to all 250 of them along with the Melanie/Dave narration, then I apologize in advance.

This gentlemen is sweeping up flowers that fell off of the tree above him. I wish I would have gotten a better shot of his broom so it would be more obvious what he is doing. This was our first morning there and we thought this was the coolest thing!

Early in the morning of our last day....

I'll post some more photos tomorrow!

Busy life, happy wife

My new boss is getting into settled into his new position and my job just got a whole lot busier. He has a more "hands off" approach than the last guy. This is wonderful news for me because I don't like to be micro-managed. Just tell me what you want from me and when you want it and leave me alone. I'm scared too though. What if it turns out I've just been fooling everyone for the past five years and it turns out that I'm really not up to the challenge?

It reminds me of the following Shel Silverstein poem (a favorite from my childhood that I am now attempting to pass on to Rebecca),

Whatif from the book "A Light in the Attic" (1981)

Last night, while I lay thinking here,
some Whatifs crawled inside my ear
and pranced and partied all night long
and sang their same old Whatif song:
Whatif I'm dumb in school?
Whatif they've closed the swimming pool?
Whatif I get beat up?
Whatif there's poison in my cup?
Whatif I start to cry?
Whatif I get sick and die?
Whatif I flunk that test?
Whatif green hair grows on my chest?
Whatif nobody likes me?
Whatif a bolt of lightning strikes me?
Whatif I don't grow tall?
Whatif my head starts getting small?
Whatif the fish won't bite?
Whatif the wind tears up my kite?
Whatif they start a war?
Whatif my parents get divorced?
Whatif the bus is late?
Whatif my teeth don't grow in straight?
Whatif I tear my pants?
Whatif I never learn to dance?
Everything seems well, and then
the nighttime Whatifs strike again!