Happy Days!

First let me say a big HAPPY 5-0 BIRTHDAY on Monday to Pam over at Just One Girl's Head Noise.  What a brave and beautiful lady she is. 

Now that my weekend is winding down, I'm trying to do the same.  We had a full couple of days.  When I got home from work on Friday everyone wanted Pizza of course.  But one of our favorite joints had been sold (didn't know that till we got there) so we went off to the ritzy titzy pizza joint.  I call it that because it has a bar and a lounge with tv's and couches, and candles on the table and serves doctors and lawyers and business men and us!  It's quite the upscale pizza experience....not the usual red n white plastic table cloth kinda place.  Hey, large 1 top pizza = $18  that's about $5 more than the locals, but worth it for a great pizza.  (I hate Domino's!! and the locals are so greasy.)  Plus this place has the best Alfredo sauce...yummmmmmmm...very creamy!! and I mean real CREAM!  Then it was off to the world of WalMart to pick up some knock around shorts for Miss Tara for the summer, and home early.  We had to get an early start on Saturday.

The parade line up on Saturday was scheduled for 7am!  Now that meant me getting up at 5:30am (ugh).  Tara was excited to be going even if it was still dark outside.  I had a slice of cold pizza for breakfast...she and her dad wanted doughnuts, so we stopped at Dunkin Donuts.  She's not impressed with DD...we're the Krispy Kreme kind, being Suthern and all.  Well, we headed off for downtown.  When we got there, the "guards" didn't want to let us down to the line up area.   My DH says "I'm  handicap and we've got to get the little one dropped off".  The first guy says basically "so what"....but I was determined to get as close to the area as possible.  So "guard" #2 was more sympathetic to the whole handicap/little girl scene and told me OK, but once I'd drop them off, I had to turn around and come out to park somewhere else.  Whew!  That's all I really wanted.  Except that by now, the roads were being blocked off and I ended up parking some 8 blocks away!!  Geeesh whatta long walk.  At least it was warm .... 65 degrees and sunny so far, butwindy!   I mean we're right on the river so I anticipated it being windy.

That long walk reminded me that my inside was still healing...it kinda gave me the "I'm still here" story by the time I reached the line up area.  So I asked the dance boss lady "can I ride instead of walk beside the float?" and she said yes.  Little did I know I was going to end up working the sound system for our float's 2 dances.  That worked out pretty good!  Some of the girls told Tara "you're Mom is nutz"....ya know, they're right!  And of course they kept asking "what time is it?" and "when will we start?".  The parade usually begins at 9am and we were entry 89...we had 3 floats...actually we were on the long beds of 18 wheelers, still there were 3 of us.  The first one was our cloggers.....ours was 2nd with 2 hip hop numbers...and the 3rd was the little guys doing a cute jazzy "car wash" number.  The Azalea Festival Parade was under way! 

Tom met us after the parade down in the Cotton Exchange near the dance platform.  We grabbed some street food (sausage n peppers and pizza) and strolled down through the vendors.  I noticed that I was now closer to where I had parked (still 5 blocks away) so I decided to go on to get Tara's costumes and move the truck closer to the stage while they walked back to the performance area.  It's a good thing I moved closer, because the weather changed quickly just before we were scheduled to dance on stage, and they cancelled the rest of the afternoon events.  We had to hurry to our vehicles or chance being soaked by the impending rain and/or hail.  Just as well for me because I was wearing out by now and it was only 3pm!!!  And do you think I remembered to take my camera?????????NOOOO!  So I don't have any pictures to show for my effort.  (Bad Mommy) Just a couple of minutes on the video camera of Tara horsing around near the stage.  AND...the picture of our float/truck showed up in the paper on Sunday but I didn't make it....just 2 people to the right and there I'd be, but NOoooo, Mr Photographer, they didn't chose my picture!  So much for my fame and fortune.

To top off my Saturday, Tara wants to have Cassie come over for the night........are you kidding???  OK, but I had to lay down some rules because I was butt tired!  Tom & I ordered chinese and Tara had left over pizza.  Cassie made herself a salami sandwich.   

Tom's Dad was scheduled to come home on Saturday, so he gave a call to the house and there he was.  Up and around doing great.  He's got the home health care people coming in and out this week, doing check ups and taking blood.   He was so glad to be home and eating "real" food.  I know whatcha mean there pops....I had my fill of it this January when I had my hysterectomy. 

We were in bed by 9:30pm and the girls were still going strong.  I was so tired that I used my cell phone to call the house phone and tell the girls to calm down and get quiet!  (Lazy)  Of course they were up at 7:30 Sunday morning but luckily they didn't bother us.  I dragged myself outta bed about 9:30 and cooked bacon and eggs w/cheese for the girls.  Once this was all cleaned up and outta the way, Tom took off for the grocery store for dinner fixins and my Sunday paper.  He never forgets my paper.  This time he surprised me with a bouquet of cut flowers....he never does that!!  How sweet!!  We spent the afternoon on the deck in the warmth of this beautiful Spring day.  It was cooler today than Saturday, but not as windy by the afternoon.  It was so nice that the girls decided to put on bikini's and "get a tan" on the deck.  They were so cute, so grown up looking laying there on their towels, sunglasses on, CD boombox playing, and reading their books.  My how they are growing up so fast.  I did snap a couple of pictures of them with my 35 since my digital is at work.  Cassie didn't want her pic made (she's a bit chubby) but eventually gave in.

My Nanny came by today and we talked about old times and people we've run into lately.  She was saying that her newest "great grandbaby" (my lil nephew) just doesn't like her.  We tell her that he just has to get to know her better first.

The "yard boys" had been here on Saturday.  It is so nice to come home and the lawn is cut.  I used to do it and loved it, but my allergies give me such a fit and I didn't have the time anymore, plus my NYcity born hubby didn't know how or want to.  Besides, I'd been mowing grass since I was about 9 years old....it was time I retired.

Speaking of retiring.....I am worn out so I'll be saying "nite, nite, don't let the bed bugs bite".  Hope everyone has a great week coming up!