Scary Movies

Our plans for last night got cancelled due to the impending, which really stinks because it was the one band I wanted to see in the series this summer. AND, it was something that wold keep the muppets occupied, since my lovely FF pulled and OT shift.  (Thank you, honey!)  Ah well.  I asked some other firewives what their plans were for the evening.  

The lovely Val, founder of FirefighterWife.com and bloggess extraordinaire, and I were chatting.  Her night involved watching scary movies with the kids.  I might have been a touch jealous.  I love scary movies - as long as they scare me.  Cheesy movies, I save for going with a big group and being obnoxious in the theater.  I would LOVE to share experience this with my kids, BUT...

The girls, clearly too young.  My boys - B is just not interested.  N, yeah...he's a real tale.  He LOVES to be scared.  He totally believes ghosts are everywhere.  There are no fakers in the world of ghost hunting as far he he's concerned.  N LOVES Ghost Adventures - that is his perfect Saturday night. 

Except that he then freaks himself out.  

And can't sleep.

He is definitely NOT the right partner for me and my scary movies. 

Me, I was watching Poltergeist and American Werewolf and Amityville Horror when I was 7 - no lie.  The only movie that every freaked me out was The Elephant Man - and that was all because he moved into my closet.  Not my fault.  He had no business being in there, it was crowded enough with all the junk I had stashed in there.  No wonder he came out at night...



So, Cabin in the Woods was my choice...

What did you do during the storms last night??

Isn't it always the way?

My hubby put in for OT today.  It is his PO and he would have loved to have a day just to sleep and be and...anything but be at work.  But, OT is good money and you are given first preference when you have a PO.  So...when he calls and forgets his sunglasses...and you are out and about anyway, you take him what he forgot.  I think it is part of the terms of the contract when he takes OT. But, it has been an easy OT shift.   

From my end, it is kind of nice.  We got to sit, without children climbing on daddy or the rigs and chit chat.  He's in a good mood because for once he is not running his tail off.  

Until of course I get there.  As I said, we sat in the bay...and five minutes into our visit there was a quick kiss good-bye...

I follow them out of the neighborhood.  

Ah well, my muppets were probably going through withdrawl.  I had been gone an entire half an hour, after all.

Polish Water Park

Okay, PC police.  I am not Polish...although my dad did frequently question that...still not PC.  I am very Irish and Danish and Welsh...wrong side of the continent.  BUT, I do live on the southside of the city, which was built on the backs of the Polish Community, including our beautiful Basilica.  

There, now that I got that disclaimer out of the way, let me share.

Do you really need more than a hose and a bucket?

So ADORABLE!

No Rubber Duckies were harmed during the construction of this Polish Water Park!

She's not a big fan of the monster buckets that drop every 15 minutes in the water parks,
but this works just fine.

Such an AWESOME big brother!

RUN!  Let's do it AGAIN!

It is actually a giggling face, I promise!

I have an entire Polish Water Park Pinterest Board.  I think I might need to dip into it soon.

Sometimes it is the simple things

Mass, first time with a/c.  After the million dollar plus renovation, the air is in place and was on.  An the kids complained.  After last summer, I am thankful.  

Breakfast, cinnamon rolls and milk around the island, just me and the muppets.  

Pups chillin' in the backyard, Giovanni was in his hideaway, napping until I opened the window to take a picture.  

Kids are in their swimsuits waiting for the all clear to run through the sprinkler.

Even though the hubby is still working, it is an amazing day.  And there is nothing extraordinary about it.  No Disney World or Sea World.  But, yet there is something magical about this.  

Soon, they will all go their separate ways and we will be a destination, as opposed to a daily part of their lives.

This pic BLEW UP my FB page.
D DOES have a swimsuit on - it is a pink sparkly suit.
I swear she is not streaking in the front yard!

Sometimes it is the simple things that we surround ourselves with.  Sometimes we just have to make our own magic.

Get off your computer.  Go find your FF or your muppets and go make some magic.  They are here, now with you.  Take advantage of it.

I'm preparing for some yelling

My FF's other fire truck

That is SO not what you want to hear as your FF is leaving for shift.  We are about to enter into the insane season.  You know, the time of the year where I kiss my husband good-bye and don't see him for days at a time, or only see him as he is dragging his tired rear end into bed - where he will promptly put on his CPAP and instantly fall asleep, leaving a trail of sweaty, stinky clothes from the door to our bedroom. We have a ton of 48s, most of which are sandwiched by days at the Mile.  I am preparing myself for the insanity.  There is no luxury of sending the kids to school or hiding in my classroom.  I am here with the muppets, alone for a huge portion of the month.  Love them dearly, but they are known to cause insanity.  In fact, that tidbit of scientific knowledge is tattooed on their underarms - surgeon general requirement to have said warning.

Anyway, he left.  I will see him tomorrow evening.  I know I will miss him.

I asked him to be patient with me in the next few weeks and his response was, "I'm preparing for some yelling."

Sucker punch to the stomach.

We don't fight often.  Usually it comes when he is gone - a lot.  Usually it is over mundane things - like cleaning the kids' rooms and/or laundry.  (I hate despise laundry...fyi.  And yet it has turned into solely my chore, leading to some, umm, some resentment perhaps.)  And he says I don't fight fair. <sigh>

I think too fast and he can't come up with a sassy comeback to match mine, so he shuts down.  We have had this discussion soooo many times.

I told him that I was making a conscious effort to NOT snap at him...but he would have to do laundry when he was home.  He agreed, but we'll see.

So, wish me luck. 

Try to stay dry if your weather is anything like ours, laugh with your muppets and smile at your handsome FF, just like you did when you started  dating.  It makes for an enjoyable way to start the day.

My Honey's Labor of Love

Significantly taller than the
commercial.! :)

My FF has been working on the yard for over a month, all for me.  Mother's Day was spent getting the front of the house to look like someone lived here, as opposed to the emptiness that came with us removing the old hedges.  :D  I am SO thrilled with how it has turned out!  We have the perennials planted, the hostas in place, the arbor with the clematis (that I am reminding myself will come back SO beautifully next summer! The Flower Tower is totally stolen from the Home Depot commercial, except I used impatiens in place of petunias - 100 of them!  On the side of the house I have daylilies and hostas that friends have given us when thinning out their gardens.  

A downpour kind of a day in May!
Getting it around to the front
required a furniture mover.

Final placement...

And it is filling in quite nicely if I do say so myself!

Here are a few of the other updated pictures...I am so pleased with the progress we have made.  And so proud of my FF being able to make my vision come to life!

I ALWAYS have a red, white and blue petunia bed with my Eiffel Tower.  So exciting!

My FF HAD to have this arbor...I was indifferent.
But I think it really completes the look nicely.

Reclaimed street pavers from the early 20th Century.

My perennials are coming in oh so nicely.
I should have turned on the fountain when taking the pictures...

O's Grasshead...or one of them.

St. Anthony...as often as I lose my keys, my phone...
my mind...

 And then there was the week long process of getting our patio in place.  

It was a family affair.  N was helping Daddy
load up the retaining wall blocks that were
going to be used for the border.

My FF and his BC busting up the back porch
and  walkway...

A FF, a Lt. and BC walk into a Home Depot...

This was a mess!

It has to go somewhere...

If you look carefully on the "Concrete Only" dumpster,
the sign on the right states that NO concrete can be tossed in here.
So...we called "Gravel Making Materials"

Where else does a big white fluffy dog lay, during all of this?
In the big pile of brown dirt, of course!

The trench is dug...

Poor Daddy, trying to get the traffic bond in place.

The girls' Zen Garden...

After being on our hands and knees with the PaverLink. 

And the pay off - but Daddy was on shift, so I was lazy.
Tombstone it is!

Thanks for taking in my summer vacation slide show, here.  I know there were a million bazillion pictures.  But, I have to brag, because he did it all for me. It truly is a labor of love!

Love those muppets, work on keeping your marriage FireStrong and yourself an amazing wife.  Happy Humpday!

Father's Day at the Firehouse

Like every good fire family, it seems that somehow, some way, Daddy is away at the firehouse when there is a holiday to be had.  Perception vs. reality?  Ehh, that is a post for another day.  So, here was our day with Daddy.  It was quite remarkable, simply for the fact that he was in quarters.  What makes it even more memorable was that the tones went off TWICE and both times it was for the engine and not for Daddy.  That REALLY never happens.  

So, fully expecting that the house would be totally empty, as it has been the last three times.  I parked in the lot behind the firehouse and we walked around.  My FF was in the dorm, making his bed, for a lovely Father's Day nap...when he noticed all these blonde kids walking around.  His first thought was not, "Hey, look, my Muppets are here!"  No, more along the lines of, "What are those kids doing in this neighborhood?"  He did not even see them as is own...well, initially.  Daddy tapped on the glass and the muppets ran to the bay door...one had brownies, one had an Arnold Palmer (complete with fire coozy), one had his gift bag and the other came with lots of love and excitement.

Here was our day...

Delivering the gifts honoring our favorite fireman...

 Firehouse Shirt Club subscription so Daddy can stop being jealous of Mommy's collection...

House of Pain - Station 5, Hollywood, FL
http://miami.cbslocal.com/2013/01/31/24-hours-in-the-house-of-pain/

 "Look Daddy, there's me and there's me and..."  8x10 collage for daddy's locker...

Sharing the brownies that the Muppets brought, with the Muppets...and all who dared enter the noisy kitchen...

Playing Ping Pong Downstairs...

Momma left the flash on...with all the bunker gear...

 Daddy showing off how cool he is..."Here, now you try..."

 O feeling left out, rare pictures of Mommy while we take some selfies to keep her happy...

"Hey...O...come roll the ball with me..."  Nevermind that it is a 10# medicine ball, she is FIRESTRONG!

 And then we had to skidaddle back to the house to meet Grandpa and join my FF's family for a Father's Day cookout.

It was a great day.

My FF will FINALLY be home tomorrow - 3 days at the race track and his usual shifts have not left us much time with him lately.  I can hardly wait!

No matter how perfect or imperfect or involved or invisible your Father may have been...I am glad he was your dad.  You would not be here without him and for that, if nothing else, we should feel blessed.  

Happy Father's Day to all you dads.  To all you single mommas, you have no idea how awesome and amazing you are, never forget that.  Love those muppets to pieces.