Saturday, September 30, 2006
I Caved...
I was so happy to grow all the damage out of my hair. Through a series of bad experiences with bad hair dressers, my hair had gotten pretty damaged over the past 4 years. Last month when I chopped off the last of the damage, I was thrilled to have all natural hair... For about two weeks... My natural color was ash blonde, which made it look dirty and dull all the time. I finally caved and went to have highlights put back in yesterday. OH MY GOSH I LOVE IT! I'll post a picture soon. IT'S SO AWESOME!
Sunday, September 24, 2006
TIMBER!
Yesterday at 4:30pm we left the house to take Kayleigh and her friend to Gymnastics for a fun night of open Gym, relays, pizza and a movie. Tom and Louise were already out, and had returned home at 6:00pm to find this:
This huge other-wise healthy looking Oak tree was actually rooted in the neighbor's lot, but arched over Tom and Louise's Driveway. It had been a little windy, but not windy enough to blow down a 100 year Oak tree. When they examined the base more closely, they discovered the source of the prolem:
If you look right in the middle of this photo you will see a ridged formation of something verticle. This is the top of a huge bee's nest. Apparently, the base of the tree had been eaten out by bees, and the honey rotted it enough to the point that it could no longer support the massive top of the tree, which is loaded with Acorns.
To give you some perspecive on just how large this tree is:
Matt is about 5' 10". The highest limb extends some 25 - 30 feet up in the air! Here is one more photo taken from the top of the drive way:
The people that own the lot next door have to remove it, but they also have to contact what they call a "Bee" hotline out here, because I guess african bees have now spread through out all of the US, and can be particularly dangerous. Once they determine it is safe, they will begin cutting down the tree. On a good note - no one was hurt or driving under it when it happend, and we were out at the time, which means our cars are not trapped IN!
This huge other-wise healthy looking Oak tree was actually rooted in the neighbor's lot, but arched over Tom and Louise's Driveway. It had been a little windy, but not windy enough to blow down a 100 year Oak tree. When they examined the base more closely, they discovered the source of the prolem:
If you look right in the middle of this photo you will see a ridged formation of something verticle. This is the top of a huge bee's nest. Apparently, the base of the tree had been eaten out by bees, and the honey rotted it enough to the point that it could no longer support the massive top of the tree, which is loaded with Acorns.
To give you some perspecive on just how large this tree is:
Matt is about 5' 10". The highest limb extends some 25 - 30 feet up in the air! Here is one more photo taken from the top of the drive way:
The people that own the lot next door have to remove it, but they also have to contact what they call a "Bee" hotline out here, because I guess african bees have now spread through out all of the US, and can be particularly dangerous. Once they determine it is safe, they will begin cutting down the tree. On a good note - no one was hurt or driving under it when it happend, and we were out at the time, which means our cars are not trapped IN!
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
We're Going to Disney World!
After several weeks of searching, Matt's parents found a great deal on a week-long trip to Disney World. Kayleigh's last full day of school is Thursday, December 14th. She is supposed to have a half day on Friday, but our plane will be leaving a 8:30 am that day. We'll arrive in FL in the early afternoon, and will be staying for a full week until the following Friday, December 21st. We have been trying to plan a trip to Disney for ages, and Disney at Christmas is even more magical, so we thought, "what a great way to make up to our kid that we spent our Honeymoon there and did not take her!" She agrees!
After we get back, we plan to spend a quiet Christmas at home, then Kayleigh leaves for IL on the 26th or 27th. Steve and Sara - if you have time to see her while she's there, it would be GREAT! Maybe she could even spend the night and see your new place!
Also, Kayleigh decided to take a break from Karate (only for a little while), and started attending the Woodlands Gymnastics Academy. This place is COOL! She gets to go twice a week. On Tuesdays she does Trampoline (isn't that awesome!!!???), and on Fridays she does Tumbling. Her trampoline instructor said she had a lot of potential, and she loves the class. This Saturday she gets to go to "Parent's Night Out" at the Gym. They show a huge movie projected on the wall, eat pizza and have relay races. She can't wait to go. Matt and I are still trying to decide what we'll do for our night out. I am getting over a nasty sinus infection, but I've got the deep seated desire to do some singing. It's been ages, and I think I'd like to check out the scene here in TX.
Now that you have all been waiting on bated breath - I will also tell you that no, we never found the lizard... EEEEEK!
After we get back, we plan to spend a quiet Christmas at home, then Kayleigh leaves for IL on the 26th or 27th. Steve and Sara - if you have time to see her while she's there, it would be GREAT! Maybe she could even spend the night and see your new place!
Also, Kayleigh decided to take a break from Karate (only for a little while), and started attending the Woodlands Gymnastics Academy. This place is COOL! She gets to go twice a week. On Tuesdays she does Trampoline (isn't that awesome!!!???), and on Fridays she does Tumbling. Her trampoline instructor said she had a lot of potential, and she loves the class. This Saturday she gets to go to "Parent's Night Out" at the Gym. They show a huge movie projected on the wall, eat pizza and have relay races. She can't wait to go. Matt and I are still trying to decide what we'll do for our night out. I am getting over a nasty sinus infection, but I've got the deep seated desire to do some singing. It's been ages, and I think I'd like to check out the scene here in TX.
Now that you have all been waiting on bated breath - I will also tell you that no, we never found the lizard... EEEEEK!
Thursday, September 14, 2006
I'm pretty sure I just let a lizard into the house...
Since our cell phones do not work in the house, I had to take the call outside. I opened the front door, and he must have been right in the crack of the door and the door jam, because he dropped at my feet and scurried off somewhere to my right.
We have not found him yet. It's going to be quite an interesting fright when we're gathered around the TV tonight, and a lizard walks across it!
We have not found him yet. It's going to be quite an interesting fright when we're gathered around the TV tonight, and a lizard walks across it!
Saturday, September 09, 2006
Texas in September
Here's the update for the Month of September!
First, I'm behind on documenting my travels:
Since June, I've been to the following cities:
Detroit, MI
Los Angeles, CA (Twice)
New York, NY
New Jersey & Philly (back and forth 3 times)
Toronto, Canada (Twice)
After a very busy spring, it's been a quiet summer for travel. It's been great to get settled in and not flying out week after week. I expect to be slow through September, but anticipate a busy fall with trips back to FL and probably NJ again.
Kayleigh is doing great in school. On Friday, we had our first parent/teacher conference, and she's got A's in Reading, Spelling & Social Studies, and B's in Math and Science. You'll have to read her blog about the latest school news. Apparently she's made quite an impression already! We are all very proud of her.
We also attended the Grandparent's Luncheon on Friday. It was a special event where the Grandparents (and other family members) could have lunch with the kids, then attend the book fair afterwards. Here is a picture of Kayleigh with her Grandma and Grandpa:
After Lunch we all went to the book fair where Grandma and Grandpa loaded up on books. Every year, teachers make out a wish-list of books they would like to have for the classroom library. They bought two books for Kayleigh's class and many others for her to enjoy.
I took lots of other pictures of the students because the one thing this school is big on is technology. Every teacher has their own website, and parents can pull their students progress online and see the balance of their lunch account funds at any time. Crazy huh??? Well, the teacher needed some help with her website, so I have volunteered to update her site once a month, and put up the monthly newsletter on her website. When I was there on Friday, I took all the photos from the Grandparents Lunch and put them onto Ms. Winski's computer. Now her screen saver has pictures of her students!
Over the past couple of days I've been struggling with a flu bug. I can't remember the last time I slept so much! I wish I could say I was feeling better, but at the moment I'm just trying my best to get through it. I need to be better by Tuesday because along with doing the website, I am also volunteering on a field trip to "Exchange City" scheduled for October 4th. This is an amazing place put together by the Houston Junior Acheivment program. Here is info taken from their website:
Exchange City brings the free enterprise and entrepreneurial business world to life for 4th through 6th grade students and creates breakthrough partnerships for transforming American education. Exchange City is based on the principle that students learn best by doing.
Students learn a number of real-life skills in their six weeks of preparation leading up to their day at Exchange City. They learn to fill out deposit slips, write checks and balance a personal checkbook. Students determine the jobs for which they are qualified and interested, and apply for these positions. They even elect the mayor and judge for their day at Exchange City. Students prepare a business plan and complete a loan application. They learn the difference between needs and wants and how limited resources force individuals to make consumer choices. By preparing for and performing the roles of producers and consumers, students learn firsthand about the economic processes that will affect their futures. The role producers play in the economy – the reason grown-ups get paid for working – is one of the most important concepts Exchange City’s hands-on approach teaches children.
During their day running Exchange City, students hold such jobs as: entrepreneur, manager, banker, newspaper reporter, accountant, retail clerk, police officer, service worker, disc jockey, and many others. They manufacture items for sale, determining how many to make, what to charge and how to ensure quality. Students issue payroll checks and produce a newspaper using desktop publishing software. They learn what it means to create a business, produce a product, meet payroll, meet customer needs and expectations, repay bank loans and serve the public through tax-supported services. Imagine the pride on a child’s face when they pay off their shop’s bank loan and realize a healthy profit.
Exchange City reinforces students’ language arts, social studies, math and technology skills by giving them real-life applications. It vividly illustrates the connection between hard work and tangible success, while teaching responsibility, leadership, decision-making and team-building. Students learn about economics and entrepreneurs in ways that will shape their attitudes and knowledge about the American enterprise system and their roles, responsibilities and options within it. They remember Exchange City as a profound and exciting learning experience long after their visit.
Exchange City also benefits teachers and parents. Exchange City helps teachers create learning environments for students to have real rather than imagined experiences, active rather than passive learning, and actual decision-making with consequences they will bear. The first-rate learning strategies and activities correlate to state mandates, district objectives, community priorities and needs. Parent volunteers can work with their children’s schools and teachers in ways that are positive, meaningful and productive, and to increase their child’s knowledge of their own careers, workday experiences and values about personal responsibilities.
In order to be a volunteer for this program, I have to attend a 3 hour training session on Tuesday. Kayleigh is really excited about it already.
I have not been able to put up the pictures of the house color schemes because I'm waiting for some new software (Photoshop Elements) to arrive. My computer is dying actually, so we've just ordered a new one and I got to order the software I've been wanting to get so I can do all the fun photo and DVD editing I haven't had the power to do with my current system.
That's about all the news we have from TX for now. I'll post more in a few days!
First, I'm behind on documenting my travels:
Since June, I've been to the following cities:
Detroit, MI
Los Angeles, CA (Twice)
New York, NY
New Jersey & Philly (back and forth 3 times)
Toronto, Canada (Twice)
After a very busy spring, it's been a quiet summer for travel. It's been great to get settled in and not flying out week after week. I expect to be slow through September, but anticipate a busy fall with trips back to FL and probably NJ again.
Kayleigh is doing great in school. On Friday, we had our first parent/teacher conference, and she's got A's in Reading, Spelling & Social Studies, and B's in Math and Science. You'll have to read her blog about the latest school news. Apparently she's made quite an impression already! We are all very proud of her.
We also attended the Grandparent's Luncheon on Friday. It was a special event where the Grandparents (and other family members) could have lunch with the kids, then attend the book fair afterwards. Here is a picture of Kayleigh with her Grandma and Grandpa:
After Lunch we all went to the book fair where Grandma and Grandpa loaded up on books. Every year, teachers make out a wish-list of books they would like to have for the classroom library. They bought two books for Kayleigh's class and many others for her to enjoy.
I took lots of other pictures of the students because the one thing this school is big on is technology. Every teacher has their own website, and parents can pull their students progress online and see the balance of their lunch account funds at any time. Crazy huh??? Well, the teacher needed some help with her website, so I have volunteered to update her site once a month, and put up the monthly newsletter on her website. When I was there on Friday, I took all the photos from the Grandparents Lunch and put them onto Ms. Winski's computer. Now her screen saver has pictures of her students!
Over the past couple of days I've been struggling with a flu bug. I can't remember the last time I slept so much! I wish I could say I was feeling better, but at the moment I'm just trying my best to get through it. I need to be better by Tuesday because along with doing the website, I am also volunteering on a field trip to "Exchange City" scheduled for October 4th. This is an amazing place put together by the Houston Junior Acheivment program. Here is info taken from their website:
Exchange City brings the free enterprise and entrepreneurial business world to life for 4th through 6th grade students and creates breakthrough partnerships for transforming American education. Exchange City is based on the principle that students learn best by doing.
Students learn a number of real-life skills in their six weeks of preparation leading up to their day at Exchange City. They learn to fill out deposit slips, write checks and balance a personal checkbook. Students determine the jobs for which they are qualified and interested, and apply for these positions. They even elect the mayor and judge for their day at Exchange City. Students prepare a business plan and complete a loan application. They learn the difference between needs and wants and how limited resources force individuals to make consumer choices. By preparing for and performing the roles of producers and consumers, students learn firsthand about the economic processes that will affect their futures. The role producers play in the economy – the reason grown-ups get paid for working – is one of the most important concepts Exchange City’s hands-on approach teaches children.
During their day running Exchange City, students hold such jobs as: entrepreneur, manager, banker, newspaper reporter, accountant, retail clerk, police officer, service worker, disc jockey, and many others. They manufacture items for sale, determining how many to make, what to charge and how to ensure quality. Students issue payroll checks and produce a newspaper using desktop publishing software. They learn what it means to create a business, produce a product, meet payroll, meet customer needs and expectations, repay bank loans and serve the public through tax-supported services. Imagine the pride on a child’s face when they pay off their shop’s bank loan and realize a healthy profit.
Exchange City reinforces students’ language arts, social studies, math and technology skills by giving them real-life applications. It vividly illustrates the connection between hard work and tangible success, while teaching responsibility, leadership, decision-making and team-building. Students learn about economics and entrepreneurs in ways that will shape their attitudes and knowledge about the American enterprise system and their roles, responsibilities and options within it. They remember Exchange City as a profound and exciting learning experience long after their visit.
Exchange City also benefits teachers and parents. Exchange City helps teachers create learning environments for students to have real rather than imagined experiences, active rather than passive learning, and actual decision-making with consequences they will bear. The first-rate learning strategies and activities correlate to state mandates, district objectives, community priorities and needs. Parent volunteers can work with their children’s schools and teachers in ways that are positive, meaningful and productive, and to increase their child’s knowledge of their own careers, workday experiences and values about personal responsibilities.
In order to be a volunteer for this program, I have to attend a 3 hour training session on Tuesday. Kayleigh is really excited about it already.
I have not been able to put up the pictures of the house color schemes because I'm waiting for some new software (Photoshop Elements) to arrive. My computer is dying actually, so we've just ordered a new one and I got to order the software I've been wanting to get so I can do all the fun photo and DVD editing I haven't had the power to do with my current system.
That's about all the news we have from TX for now. I'll post more in a few days!
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
We're Officially Homeless!
Finally!!!
27 days past the scheduled close date, we finally received the word that our Las Vegas home closed today. The funds were transfered and it's a done deal! WHOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
I took some pictures of some of the color schemes/designs we're planning to use for our new house. I will post them in a couple of days.
Saturday, September 02, 2006
I have chosen......... Wisely!
Although I'm not an Engineer, I am in Software and development, does that count???
| You scored as Mathematics. You should be a Math major! Like Pythagoras, you are analytical, rational, and when are always ready to tackle the problem head-on!
What is your Perfect Major? (PLEASE RATE ME!!<3) created with QuizFarm.com |
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
I'M BALD!!!
OK - not really bald, but it's A LOT shorter then I've had it in almost 10 years! The last time my hair was this length was just after Kayleigh was born! I didn't actually plan this. I asked for a good trim. In my mind, I thought 2 inches. In her mind, she thought... 5.
I'm not quite used to it yet, but so far, I think it's a good length for me - Kind of sassy, but still professional, and I can pull it all back still.
What do you think???
Monday, August 21, 2006
Books
At Sara's request, via Stephanie, here are the answers to the 8 questions asked about Books that I have read or am reading.
1. One book that changed your life? Well, this has to be a total crack-up, but, "Are you there God? It's me, Margaret." Mom was pretty busy when I was hitting pueberty. She was working full-time and supporting Steve and I on her own, not to mention dealing with other things that are not fit for typing on my Blog, so when I got my hands on this book, every word was a morsel! I still remember to this day, the impact that book had on me as a pre-teen girl.
2. One book that you have read more then once? I can't say that I've read any book more then once, but after I finished "The DaVinci Code" and Matt and I saw the movie, I pulled it out to give him more details on some of the religious references. The book had a lot more detail then the movie.
3. One book you would want on a desert island? "The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook" I received a copy of this book as a joke from a co-worker before moving to the UK. The book is actually informative, and hysterical at the same time. Some of the information in the book includes: How to wrestle an alligator, How to escape from quicksand, How to survive a poisonous snake attack, and much, much more. Even if you're only stranded in the bathroom due to a misfortunate bad-mexican-food incident, this book will keep you entertained for hours!
4. One book that made you laugh? The Harry Potter books are good for a laugh, but also Dan Brown has recently cracked me up. I've read "Digital Fortress" and "The DaVinci Code" both were cleverly written.
5. One book that made you cry? "Full Circle" by Danielle Steel. I was depressed for 2 weeks over that darn book. I have not read Danielle Steel in years because of it. "The Notebook" by Nick Sparks also made me ball my eyes out, but that book was AWESOME!
6. One book you wish had never been written? Although I can not give titles or authors, I could have done without most of the dumb books my high school and college English teachers made me read!
7. One book you are currently reading? "Harry Potter and the Sourcerer's Stone" I started the series and never finished them. My goal is to finish them all before the next movie comes out.
8. One book you have been meaning to read? I suppose the Harry Potter series falls under this category. But I also want to read Dan Brown's "Angels & Demons".
Sara, stick with "The DaVinci Code," I promise you it's worth it! It's one of the best, most fast-paced books I've read in a long, long time. Whether any of it is true or not, it was still very facinating to me. I too was confused by the wording in the beginning. All that french threw me for a loop. I looked up some of the words so I made sure I understood them. After the first few chapters, you'll be more into the story and the words won't matter.
1. One book that changed your life? Well, this has to be a total crack-up, but, "Are you there God? It's me, Margaret." Mom was pretty busy when I was hitting pueberty. She was working full-time and supporting Steve and I on her own, not to mention dealing with other things that are not fit for typing on my Blog, so when I got my hands on this book, every word was a morsel! I still remember to this day, the impact that book had on me as a pre-teen girl.
2. One book that you have read more then once? I can't say that I've read any book more then once, but after I finished "The DaVinci Code" and Matt and I saw the movie, I pulled it out to give him more details on some of the religious references. The book had a lot more detail then the movie.
3. One book you would want on a desert island? "The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook" I received a copy of this book as a joke from a co-worker before moving to the UK. The book is actually informative, and hysterical at the same time. Some of the information in the book includes: How to wrestle an alligator, How to escape from quicksand, How to survive a poisonous snake attack, and much, much more. Even if you're only stranded in the bathroom due to a misfortunate bad-mexican-food incident, this book will keep you entertained for hours!
4. One book that made you laugh? The Harry Potter books are good for a laugh, but also Dan Brown has recently cracked me up. I've read "Digital Fortress" and "The DaVinci Code" both were cleverly written.
5. One book that made you cry? "Full Circle" by Danielle Steel. I was depressed for 2 weeks over that darn book. I have not read Danielle Steel in years because of it. "The Notebook" by Nick Sparks also made me ball my eyes out, but that book was AWESOME!
6. One book you wish had never been written? Although I can not give titles or authors, I could have done without most of the dumb books my high school and college English teachers made me read!
7. One book you are currently reading? "Harry Potter and the Sourcerer's Stone" I started the series and never finished them. My goal is to finish them all before the next movie comes out.
8. One book you have been meaning to read? I suppose the Harry Potter series falls under this category. But I also want to read Dan Brown's "Angels & Demons".
Sara, stick with "The DaVinci Code," I promise you it's worth it! It's one of the best, most fast-paced books I've read in a long, long time. Whether any of it is true or not, it was still very facinating to me. I too was confused by the wording in the beginning. All that french threw me for a loop. I looked up some of the words so I made sure I understood them. After the first few chapters, you'll be more into the story and the words won't matter.
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
Kayleigh's First Day - 4th Grade
Here she is! Bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, ready for her first day of school! This school starts earlier then her last school did, but we decided to keep her bed time the same. She wanted to "try it out" and let us know if she thought her bed time should be adjusted to be 8:00 instead of 9:00. This morning, she had her answer... "Tonight I'm going to bed earlier!" hahaha!
Yesterday we went to her school for "Meet The Teacher." Her teacher's name is Mrs. Winski. Kayleigh picked a card from a deck to determine what "group" of desks she would sit in, then chose the seat closest to the front. Her class has only 15 or 16 students in it. We walked around the school a bit to get her familiar with everything. The cafeteria/gym is quite large with built in bleachers and basketball hoops.
When she left the house, she was nervous but smiling and excited to start her first day. Enjoy the pictures, and I promise to post all the news on how her first day of school went!
Monday, August 07, 2006
August in Houston...
How's everyone doing??? Keeping cool I hope! Apparently it's cooler in Houston then almost anywhere else in the US right now! We have yet to break 100 here and have managed to stay around the 90 degree range or cooler most days.
I don't have any new pictures this week. I'm waiting for Barbara (Matt's cousin from next door) to send me the one she took of the Coral snake I found while weeding the flower beds in the front yard, but more about that later...
Matt left on Sunday for his first official trip with work. Although he won't travel often, since they just sent him to training in NY and Kayleigh is gone, they asked if he could take this one to kick off his first project. He hated it. He was working directly with Salesforce.com (the company who developed the software we implement for our clients). Salesforce.com has their own division that implements the program and often times they are short-staffed, and hire from the outside to fill the holes. Our company is one of the top 8 partners, so we regularly staff these types of projects. Matt had to go to Livingston California which is near Oakland. About an hour west of San Francisco. All the meetings were held at the hotel he stayed in, so he was there from Sunday night, in meetings all day every day until Friday morning. Apparently it was incredibly disorganized, and by the end, Matt was unable to get the information he needed to begin working on the project. The next two weeks he will spend gathering the information that he should have gotten out of the meeting. Poor guy...
After I took Matt to the airport on Sunday, I decided to get busy on weeding the flower beds because his parents were coming home on Monday or Tuesday. I was nearly done, when I almost stepped right onto a Coral snake that was coiled up in the rocks. He was not very big, but I noticed his bright colors and immediately suspected he was poisonous. He was about a foot and a half long, and had black, red and yellow rings around him all down the length of his body. The red rings were the widest, then the black, and the yellow rings were more narrow. I went next door to get Barbara - she LOVES to kill snakes. She grabbed her shovel and came over to the house. She looked at it once and taught me a new rhyme, "Red and Yellow, Kill a Fellow!" Then she wacked him good! We didn't see him move, so we are not sure if he was already dead or not, but we certainly were not going to take any chances. She scooped him up and took him next door, jumped on the internet, and confirmed that it was indeed a Coral Snake! Apparently they are not too common - it's the first time she'd ever seen one near the house. She had to take a picture of it because she didn't think anyone would believe us.
On Monday, Tom and Louise (Matt's Parents) came home and I was the only one here to greet them. The rest of the week was pretty quiet. I mostly worked, and Matt's parent's settled in after traveling for several months. I got Kayleigh registered for school and managed to pick up all of her school supplies. She's coming home on Saturday, August 12th. Luckily I got to talk to Matt every night. It seemed like he was gone forever! We picked him up at the airport on Friday and went to Culver's for dinner. THAT'S RIGHT!!!! Culvers! We have a Culvers only 6 miles away! Isn't that awesome??? For those of you that do not know what a Culvers is... I'm SO sorry. Make it a point to get to one if you ever visit the Midwest or anywhere South of IL! We introduced Matt's parent's to "Butter Burgers!"
On Saturday, we finally went swimming in Terry and Barbara's pool and had steaks on the grill. It was the first time since we've been here that we swam in their pool. Getting settled has taken a lot of time!
On Sunday, Matt introduced his Dad to Call of Duty 2. He had a bit of a challenge figuring out the controls, but he was pretty good with a Sniper Rifle! He wants to get better so he can play Xbox Live and kill real people that are playing. Being an ex-cop, this game is right up his alley!
I think that's about it for now - but please keep your fingers crossed for us! Our house is supposed to close this week on Thursday!!! So far everything is OK, but you never know with these things. It sure would be nice to start working towards the new house!!! Stay tuned for more updates this week!
I don't have any new pictures this week. I'm waiting for Barbara (Matt's cousin from next door) to send me the one she took of the Coral snake I found while weeding the flower beds in the front yard, but more about that later...
Matt left on Sunday for his first official trip with work. Although he won't travel often, since they just sent him to training in NY and Kayleigh is gone, they asked if he could take this one to kick off his first project. He hated it. He was working directly with Salesforce.com (the company who developed the software we implement for our clients). Salesforce.com has their own division that implements the program and often times they are short-staffed, and hire from the outside to fill the holes. Our company is one of the top 8 partners, so we regularly staff these types of projects. Matt had to go to Livingston California which is near Oakland. About an hour west of San Francisco. All the meetings were held at the hotel he stayed in, so he was there from Sunday night, in meetings all day every day until Friday morning. Apparently it was incredibly disorganized, and by the end, Matt was unable to get the information he needed to begin working on the project. The next two weeks he will spend gathering the information that he should have gotten out of the meeting. Poor guy...
After I took Matt to the airport on Sunday, I decided to get busy on weeding the flower beds because his parents were coming home on Monday or Tuesday. I was nearly done, when I almost stepped right onto a Coral snake that was coiled up in the rocks. He was not very big, but I noticed his bright colors and immediately suspected he was poisonous. He was about a foot and a half long, and had black, red and yellow rings around him all down the length of his body. The red rings were the widest, then the black, and the yellow rings were more narrow. I went next door to get Barbara - she LOVES to kill snakes. She grabbed her shovel and came over to the house. She looked at it once and taught me a new rhyme, "Red and Yellow, Kill a Fellow!" Then she wacked him good! We didn't see him move, so we are not sure if he was already dead or not, but we certainly were not going to take any chances. She scooped him up and took him next door, jumped on the internet, and confirmed that it was indeed a Coral Snake! Apparently they are not too common - it's the first time she'd ever seen one near the house. She had to take a picture of it because she didn't think anyone would believe us.
On Monday, Tom and Louise (Matt's Parents) came home and I was the only one here to greet them. The rest of the week was pretty quiet. I mostly worked, and Matt's parent's settled in after traveling for several months. I got Kayleigh registered for school and managed to pick up all of her school supplies. She's coming home on Saturday, August 12th. Luckily I got to talk to Matt every night. It seemed like he was gone forever! We picked him up at the airport on Friday and went to Culver's for dinner. THAT'S RIGHT!!!! Culvers! We have a Culvers only 6 miles away! Isn't that awesome??? For those of you that do not know what a Culvers is... I'm SO sorry. Make it a point to get to one if you ever visit the Midwest or anywhere South of IL! We introduced Matt's parent's to "Butter Burgers!"
On Saturday, we finally went swimming in Terry and Barbara's pool and had steaks on the grill. It was the first time since we've been here that we swam in their pool. Getting settled has taken a lot of time!
On Sunday, Matt introduced his Dad to Call of Duty 2. He had a bit of a challenge figuring out the controls, but he was pretty good with a Sniper Rifle! He wants to get better so he can play Xbox Live and kill real people that are playing. Being an ex-cop, this game is right up his alley!
I think that's about it for now - but please keep your fingers crossed for us! Our house is supposed to close this week on Thursday!!! So far everything is OK, but you never know with these things. It sure would be nice to start working towards the new house!!! Stay tuned for more updates this week!
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
We're Surrounded!
We were working in the office, when we had another visitor!!
This breed of Tree Frog is known as the Pacific Tree Frog. This is the loudest frog in the area. It sings when it rains. They call it a Rain Song.
This breed of Tree Frog is known as the Pacific Tree Frog. This is the loudest frog in the area. It sings when it rains. They call it a Rain Song.
Sunday, July 23, 2006
Louise's Flowering Trees
If you click on the pictures they get bigger.
Trees in the front of the house.
Bamboo in the backyard.
Trees in the front yard.
Trees in the front of the house.
Bamboo in the backyard.
Trees in the front yard.
NY Photos
These pictures were taken in Battery Park at the southern tip of the Manhattan island.
This was part of a sculpture that used to reside at the WTC.
Monument to the Merchant Marines - look closely in the water.
For those of you that have known me for a long time, do you remember the picture of me that was taken in this very spot many years ago? I was 60 lbs heavier then!
Matt's new Call of Duty picture!
This was part of a sculpture that used to reside at the WTC.
Monument to the Merchant Marines - look closely in the water.
For those of you that have known me for a long time, do you remember the picture of me that was taken in this very spot many years ago? I was 60 lbs heavier then!
Matt's new Call of Duty picture!
NY Photos
We took these pictures from the Ferry while riding from Manhattan to Hoboken, NJ. It's about a 15 minute ride accross the Hudson River.
NJ skyline with sunset.
Statue of Liberty.
Sweaty, Smelly, Exhausted Tourist.
NJ skyline with sunset.
Statue of Liberty.
Sweaty, Smelly, Exhausted Tourist.
NY Photos
From the Observatory Deck of the Empire State Building (86th floor).
We are smiling, but we are also extremely HOT!!!!
That little thing out in the middle of the water is the Statue of Liberty. Just to the right of her, before the water line of the Hudson river is where the The World Trade Center used to stand.
The building with the funky top in the middle is the Chrystler building.
All that green stuff is Central Park.
Our hotel was accross the river in Jersey City. We used subways and ferry boats to get around.
Here's the famous corner building you see in movies all the time.
We are smiling, but we are also extremely HOT!!!!
That little thing out in the middle of the water is the Statue of Liberty. Just to the right of her, before the water line of the Hudson river is where the The World Trade Center used to stand.
The building with the funky top in the middle is the Chrystler building.
All that green stuff is Central Park.
Our hotel was accross the river in Jersey City. We used subways and ferry boats to get around.
Here's the famous corner building you see in movies all the time.
Look what we found!
I went out to re-fill the bird feeders in the back yard. One of them is hung pretty high up, so I have to stand on a bucket to get it down. I went to grab the bucket that we keep on the back patio, and I had a surprise waiting for me inside!
Isn't he cute!!! After I took his picture, I let him go among the flower beds.
Isn't he cute!!! After I took his picture, I let him go among the flower beds.
Wednesday, July 19, 2006
We Sold the House in LV & We're in NY!
Well, OK, we got an offer and have accepted it. We have to wait the standard 14 days to make sure everything goes through, but so far everything looks good!
We are in NY right now. Matt is taking Salesforce.com training, and I've been working from my hotel room. We went to the Empire State Building on Monday. Last night we attended a Salesforce.com event. Tonight we might go see the Statue of Liberty.
NY is extremely hot right now - hotter then Houston, in fact. On Monday it was 100 degrees and very high humidity. In a city with tall buildings, no breeze and a population of approximately 8 million people, you can almost see the B.O. in the air. We can't walk anywhere without sweating profusely, and the subways are quite literally like kilns. When we were in the Empire State Building we had to wait in a line to go up to the observatory deck, and then in another line to go back down. In order to go up or down, they take you to the 80th floor first, then you have to change elavators to go the last 6 floors. The 80th floor had no air conditioning. It was so stiffling hot that I actually had a little panic attack because I felt as though I could not catch my breath. What made it worse was knowing that it was going to be at least 15 more minutes before I could get to "fresh air." I was able to keep calm - no one knew I was flipping out - but it took some serious strength to remain calm.
I will post pictures of our trip soon!
We are in NY right now. Matt is taking Salesforce.com training, and I've been working from my hotel room. We went to the Empire State Building on Monday. Last night we attended a Salesforce.com event. Tonight we might go see the Statue of Liberty.
NY is extremely hot right now - hotter then Houston, in fact. On Monday it was 100 degrees and very high humidity. In a city with tall buildings, no breeze and a population of approximately 8 million people, you can almost see the B.O. in the air. We can't walk anywhere without sweating profusely, and the subways are quite literally like kilns. When we were in the Empire State Building we had to wait in a line to go up to the observatory deck, and then in another line to go back down. In order to go up or down, they take you to the 80th floor first, then you have to change elavators to go the last 6 floors. The 80th floor had no air conditioning. It was so stiffling hot that I actually had a little panic attack because I felt as though I could not catch my breath. What made it worse was knowing that it was going to be at least 15 more minutes before I could get to "fresh air." I was able to keep calm - no one knew I was flipping out - but it took some serious strength to remain calm.
I will post pictures of our trip soon!
Friday, July 14, 2006
Pictures of Mom & Dad's House
First, we owe Matt's Parents a HUGE thank you for putting us up for the next... who knows how long. But the most amazing thing is, look at this gorgeous house!!!
Here is the front of the house from the drive way. The house extends another 20 feet to the right.
Here is a portion of the back yard. The house sits on a full acre. There is lots of wild life here. Much of it in the form of things with more then 4 legs!
This is a picture of the living room taken from the Kitchen.
This is a picture of the living room taken from the front door.
Here's the Kitchen. The stairs to the right lead up to our Bonus Suite complete with full bathroom and huge walk-in closet with tons of built in shelving for storage.
We hope to use their layout for our home, but on the outside we plan to use flag stone and wood over the Brick. We're going for a Mountain Home feel.
Friday, June 30, 2006
Y'all will never guess what has happened now!
Matt will not be taking the job we moved out to Texas for. Long story short, he met with them, and did not feel it was a good fit. He was not comfortable taking a position he wasn't sure he could or wanted to do. He would still have taken it, but the company I work for - CoreMatrix - has offered him a permanent position with them instead. He will be in NY for training July 17 - 21st. This works out best for our situation. With as much as I travel, he can be home with Kayleigh.
The funniest part about all this is, when Matt met the head guy in the department, he teased the guy about hitting pueberty because he had heard that this guy did not like facial hair on any of the employees in the department. After the meeting, he was informed by his cousin that he too would need to shave before he could start. When Matt decided not to take the job, he jokingly told them, "I'm not shaving! I quit!" Ha ha ha!
Although it's been an exhausting week, we are happy to be here and getting settled. This is the calm before the storm for me so the timing was excellent. Next week I will be in Los Angeles, then the week after in Toronto, then New Jersey for a few days. The week after that I will be hanging out in NY with Matt while he's in training, then jetting off to Santa Barbara for a few days as well.
Here are some pictures of Bender's Landing where we will be building our home soon:
This photo was taken Monday afternoon after we had just pulled into town and were separating what needed to stay at the house, and what needed to go into storage.
Here is a picture of my new temporary office space - at least until Mom and Dad come home from their trip! This is the back yard.
The funniest part about all this is, when Matt met the head guy in the department, he teased the guy about hitting pueberty because he had heard that this guy did not like facial hair on any of the employees in the department. After the meeting, he was informed by his cousin that he too would need to shave before he could start. When Matt decided not to take the job, he jokingly told them, "I'm not shaving! I quit!" Ha ha ha!
Although it's been an exhausting week, we are happy to be here and getting settled. This is the calm before the storm for me so the timing was excellent. Next week I will be in Los Angeles, then the week after in Toronto, then New Jersey for a few days. The week after that I will be hanging out in NY with Matt while he's in training, then jetting off to Santa Barbara for a few days as well.
Here are some pictures of Bender's Landing where we will be building our home soon:
This photo was taken Monday afternoon after we had just pulled into town and were separating what needed to stay at the house, and what needed to go into storage.
Here is a picture of my new temporary office space - at least until Mom and Dad come home from their trip! This is the back yard.
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