Ugly Dress Party!!

Saturday afternoon I met up with my sister in laws, my mom, and my sister in law's mom for an UGLY DRESS PARTY! This was all cooked up by my one sister in law last time we went out. The idea was that we would all wear ugly dresses and go out to lunch and have the waitress judge which one was the worst  and that person would get their lunch bought by everyone else.

So I hit the thrift stores and came home with this dress. Which is pretty awesomely ugly. The shoulder pads were HUGE in it. I felt like I was wearing a big pillow case.

BUT look at my mom's haha.

UM yeah, no contest, she totally won!! My preggo sil didn't even wear an ugly dress. She was too embarrassed to go out in public looking ugly. My other sil's was actually cute on her since she has a really cute shape, and her mom's was ugly but not hideously ugly lol. Here's the group shot.

So we piled in the car and went to a place aways away where we wouldn't know anyone. Not that it really mattered since the pictures were posted on Facebook. We went to this little place called Giustis. It's cool when you walk in with all the hats on the ceiling. We got seated and the menu was up on the wall on a white board type thing. The waitress was right from the beginning very abrupt and not friendly at all. Later we saw her chatting up the other tables and we were like, hmmm I wonder if it's the way we are dressed? I don't know but really there was no reason to be rude, we were perfectly nice people. The food wasn't the greatest but it's a neat little place and would be nice for a date night. It has some really good reviews online (and some not so great too) so it might just be hit and miss. The whole afternoon was pretty funny! I think it would be a blast to have another one but just stay at someone's house and invite lots of people and give out a prize or two for different categories!

FREE BOOK FRIDAY!! The Lost Mother by Mary McGarry Morris

The winner of the book BLESSINGS is

Melissa! I'll be sending you an email to get your address.

You guys need to step it up around here, only 2 comments! Let's do better this week ok?

 This weeks free book is

The Lost Mother by Mary McGarry Morris

From Goodreads

Abandoned by his beautiful wife, Henry and their two young children spend a summer in a tent on the edge of Black Pond.  As he searches for work, Henry often must leave the children alone. When a prosperous neighbor intervenes, the consequences may cost the Talcotts everything. Powerfully imagined and intensely felt, The Lost Mother is a haunting masterpiece and McGarry Morris's strongest novel to date. 

I literally picked this book up, and didn't put it down until I had finished it. I just had to find out what was going to happen to the kids!! 


All you have to do to win this book is leave me a comment on this post! I'll announce the winner (and another book, next Friday, June 4th.

I give up!

Today's the last day to leave a comment here for the free book! Come back tomorrow for the winner and a chance to win ANOTHER free book. Must clear off the top of my dresser :) So far I only have 2 entries so you just might win! It's a good book so go enter!




So today started off wonderfully with Trevor refusing to get ready for school. He said he didn't feel good and he didn't want to go.


didn't want to go
didn't want to go
didn't want to go


Repeat that about 100000 more times and that's what I dealt with this morning at 6:30 am.


Finally after some persuading a spanking and yelling my head off he finally got dressed. I hate spanking my kids but what the hell are you supposed to do when they REFUSED to do what needs to be done? Taking things away does not work!


So I got to work and went out and did 2 field checks, which of course I got totally lost on and turned around on one because this intern guy was with me. Never happens when I'm by myself! On the way back Melissa called and wanted me to pick her up because she had a really really bad stomach ache. I went back to work and finished what I had to do and went and just picked up both kids and came home. 


There must be a reason God doesn't want me to work today right?


I thought about going back but I was going to get off early anyways since Trevor has a dentist appointment so I'd basically be driving a whole 'nother hour in the car for 1 1/2 hours more of work.


So I'm calling it a day.


Today is Trevor's last dentist appointment to get the rest of his horrible teeth taken care of. Then I can move onto the next child. God I hope her teeth are not in bad shape.

Fatty Fatty 2 x 4

I'm feeling much better today. Thanks for all the nice comments and emails. I think I have a bit of the PMS mixed in with the sads.

Yesterday was quite the interesting day. I started off the day by going to Starbucks for a sausage breakfast sandwich. I'm so addicted to those. They aren't even all that great, but for some reason they always sound awesome in the morning when my stomach is grumbling on the way to work. I should really just get up a little earlier and make my own at home. I could probably buy all the ingredient for the price of one or two and have them for a week.

This was my view from the drive thru.

**insert picture of crashed car with airbags deployed and ambulance that the computer refuses to load::


Yeah, count your blessings that your day didn't start off THAT way.

Work was uneventful, I've been working on making packets which is basically just copying everything in the file to send to the client for "their records". Which really means just wasting a bunch of paper and postage so someone can throw the piece of mail into a box somewhere. I stayed and worked an extra hour since the kids are getting out early all week and were already home.

I was almost home when Jessica called. She was stuck at Applebees with two friends. They had went out to eat after lunch. She had told them that she could let them borrow a couple dollars. Apparently they thought this meant that she would pay for all their food and so when the check came and she only had the $20 I had gave her in the morning they were stuck. At first I told her that those girls would have to call their parents and get some money. Apparently that couldn't happen so I had to drive over there and give her money so they could leave. She said that it was so embarrassing and I'm glad. Who goes out to eat expecting someone else to pick up the tab for you? What a bunch of leaches. I told her I expect them to pay me back and that if they don't have any money I have some yard work they can do. Not that I really think that will ever happen.

After I rescued her I looked at the clock and it was still before 5. I went downtown to do something really embarrassing. I got my wedding ring cut off.

Yes, you read that right. I've been married for almost 18 years and I've never had my wedding ring sized. Even though my weight has fluctuated quite a bit over that time period, I've always been able to get it off, maybe with some coaxing, but lately it has just got too tight and impossible to get off. It as starting to feel like a vise choking my finger. When the jeweler cut it off (family friend) I felt a tremendous feeling of relief. How weird is that? He said to come back in about a month and we'll get my ring resized and fixed up. So for now my finger looks like this.

Yes I have huge fat hands. I've always had very large fingers, even as a child but now they are "fat" on top of that. Lovely.

After getting that done I ran home to get Trevor for baseball practice. I had just enough time to water my vegetable garden real quick, help him put is cleats on (he had an hour to get it done himself, I swear that child can take all day to get dressed) and then drive back to town to take him to practice.

While he was at practice I hung out in town since Scott wasn't going to make it in time to pick him up. To waste some time I went over to OSH and looked at the plants. I ended up buying one, which was on a table with as sign that said $3.50, but wasn't actually on sale and was really $5.99. Does anyone else get totally annoyed with things like this? I even went back to look at the sign after I got rang up to make sure I read it right. Which of course, I didn't read right. The sign was for "Premium 1 gallon annuals". I bought a 1 gallon perennial, which is just about all that was on the table. I wonder how many other people got suckered into paying more for something they might not have bought if the sign wasn't there? I was tempted to return it but I did like the plant so just left. Annoyed.

Then I of course had to get gas. Woohoo it's under $4.00 if you go to the right place. I went over to the Safeway gas station because they have a good price and it's in the same parking lot. I swear that place is a test place for people's sanity. There are 4 driveways to get in there, with 2 pumps on each "row" probably about 10 across. So you have people coming from all directions and driveways trying to find an open space, moving to the one they think someone is leaving, flipping around to back in, etc. And then their pumps computer system is so agonizing slow. It's really almost worth driving across the street to Chevron and paying an extra dollar or two.

After that over to Starbucks (eek 2x one day!) but this time for a frapp because I really wanted an alchoholic beverage but that wasn't possible. I got through the drive thru just in time to get back to pick up the kid. Dinner was something not healthy picked up at another drive thru and then thank God we were home. I went over to talk to the neighbors for a few minutes (hour), came home and read my book.  It felt like a super long stressful day from 4:00 on.

If you made it though all that, don't forget I'm giving away another book on Friday! All you have to do is leave a comment here. So far there is only one,! You could win!

Show Me The Light

I keep feeling really depressed lately.

I don't know what my problem is. 

The sun is out. 

School is almost out. 

Baseball is almost over. 

Softball IS over.  

But I still have to go to work.

I still have to do laundry. 

And dishes. 

And shopping. 

And clean up everyone's crap.  

It makes me tired. 

And no one says thank you for going to the store to buy more toilet paper. 

For bringing it in the house.

For putting it on the roll.

For putting the rest in the cabinet.

 

 

 

Is there something about this time of year that makes us depressed?

 

Nut-taculor

Saturday night we went to a Modesto Nuts game. The little league sold the tickets at a discounted price as a fundraiser. I had bought 4 ticket,s thinking it would be a fun outing and that at least one of the girls wouldn't want to go. Jessica declined to go and at the last minute I decided to ask my nephew to come with us, and I'd just buy another ticket when we got there.

Of course when we got there they had a sign saying all the general admission tickets were sold out. So I bought a ticket for the next seat up (a whole $3 more) and we all sat together in the general admissions area.  

Sometimes you just have to play the game.

The boys got to walk around the field. The coach said my nephew could come with them. It was nice his team is the same colors and he blended right in! Here's Trevor waving to the crowd, and my nephew right in front of him.

There are two mascots for their team. Wally (see top pic) and Al. Poor Al doesn't get much love compared to Wally. If you haven't guessed he's an almond. I think he looks kind of scary don't you?

After the kids got done walking around the field they came up to the stands and sat with us. Trevor promptly started whining that he was hungry over and over. I finally went and got him some food when I couldn't stand it anymore. After he was done with the hot dog he started whining that he wanted a souvenir. I of course only brought $40, $9 of which I used on the ticket to get in and all but the remaining 3 on the food. He whined and whined and whined and OMG it was annoying. Of course it didn't help that my nephew brought some money and was able to buy himself a ball. So on one of Scott's many trips to the bathroom (he had an upset stomach) I told him to see if there was a ball at the souvenir stand that he could pay for with his debit card. Lucky for my ears there was. AND it was 25 cents cheaper. 

Not that the kid should be rewarded for whining.

Then we actually watched the game in peace for awhile. Well except for dodging foul balls. I was sure either the kids or  I was going to get beamed in the head with a ball. Lucky for us they went a bit higher and to the left and right of us. 

THEN the boy started whining that his back was hurting. He had went to a birthday party and they had been swimming so he had a little sunburn. He was ok if he was sitting on my lap and I was lightly rubbing it. Which got old quick. Scott was whining too that he wanted to go before the traffic was bad. I just don't get the whole "let's leave before the game ends", but we left because I was tired of hearing everyone.

Next time I go to a game I think I'll leave the boys at home! 

Don't forget to enter for Free Book Friday!!

FREE BOOK FRIDAY!! Blessings by Anna Quindlen

The winner of last week's book The Wednesday Sister's is

Tammy!! Send me an email with your address and I'll get it mailed out to you.

This week's free book is Anna Quindlen's Blessings

A little about the book 

from Goodreads

Late one night, a teenage couple drives up to the big white clapboard home on the Blessing estate and leaves a box. In that instant, the lives of those who live and work there are changed forever. Skip Cuddy, the caretaker, finds a baby girl asleep in that box and decides he wants to keep the child . . . while Lydia Blessing, the matriarch of the estate, for her own reasons, agrees to help him. Blessings explores how the secrets of the past affect decisions and lives in the present; what makes a person or a life legitimate or illegitimate and who decides; and the unique resources people find in themselves and in a community. This is a powerful novel of love, redemption, and personal change by the Pulitzer Prize–winning writer about whom The Washington Post Book Worldsaid, “Quindlen knows that all the things we ever will be can be found in some forgotten fragment of family.”

This is a really sweet story. I really liked it! Just as a reminder this book has been read but is in good shape and has plenty of reading left in it.

To enter just leave a comment on this post!

The winner will be picked next Friday, May 27th

Bees and Bugs and Flowers

I've been hanging out at work too much lately. I get so excited when I see things flying around in the garden, looking for some "native" bees.

I think this one is some kind of fly (those flowers are about the size of a dime)

I think this one might be a bee

This one has got to be a bee

I'm going to show them to my biologist friend at work, she'll probably know what they are

Look at how pretty my roses are! This bush has several different colors growing on it. It was a mini one I got as a present for something.

Guara bush for Finny

I'll post the book winner Friday evening!

**Update**

So I talked to my friend at work and they are ALL flies. Go figure!

Weekend Round Up

Don't forget to enter for the book drawing!

The weather has been so weird lately! I need to check with that climate change specialist at work and find out what she's doing to save us from all this rain.

Last weekend Scott went on a fishing slash camping trip with a friend of ours. It was a bunch of people from the other guy's work and they went for a fishing derby. They were supposed to be gone Friday through Sunday but came home early Saturday evening because it was too cold and supposed to rain.

While he was gone I took my friend to the airport (3 hours plus round trip, all driving). Saturday I got to spend the day at the ball park. ALL day. They said the game started at 1 and wanted the kids there at 12:30. The other team didn't show up until 1, thinking the game started at 1:30 (the original time). The game didn't get over until 4:30 and we sat in the cold and wind the whole time. I even had Jessica bring us some blankets on the way to town.

He got a chance to pitch for an inning. I don't think he's ever practiced pitching other than one time at home with Scott. I was so worried he was going to beam someone in the head or something. He actually didn't hit anyone and got a couple strikes! Not bad for no practice.

Sunday he had another game. It was a make up game for one that got rained out so they were bound and determined to get that game played. I sat in the car waiting for it to stop raining and it never did stop enough for me to get out of the car. Poor kid played in the rain, but he didn't seem to care much. I'm glad Scott was there at least so I didn't have to get out of the car! I just sat there reading my book.

When we got home I finished reading Little Bee and then didn't know what to do with myself so I decided to just start another book. I picked up The Lost Mother and only put it down for a bit to make dinner and wash the dishes. I finished it at midnight and took my puffy eyes with me to bed.

Little Bee by Chris Cleave

Don't forget to enter my book give way that's happening on Friday! You have a good chance of winning since so far there is only one comment!

I just finished reading 

Little Bee by Chris Cleave

from Goodreads

We don't want to tell you what happens in this book.
It is a truly special story and we don't want to spoil it.
nevertheless, you need to know enough to buy it, so we will just say this:

           This is the story of two women. Their lives collide one fateful day, and one of them has to make a terrible choice, the kind of choice we hope you never have to face. Two years later, they meet again - the story starts there ...
           Once you have read it, you'll want to tell your friends about it. When you do, please don't tell them what happens. The magic is in how the story unfolds.

So I'm going against  the rules here. I'm going to tell you a bit about the book. 

This book is a "I can't put it down book".  Parts of it were very disturbing. And I really don't think I like the ending. It's one of those that just leaves you hanging so you have to figure out what's going to happen on your own.  That being said, it was a bit educational and quite a bit emotional.

The story is of Little Bee who lives in Nigeria. She and her sister have escaped from their village, the only ones in their family (and maybe the village) to make it out alive. While they are running from the enemy they meet up with Sarah and her husband Andrew, white people taking a vacation in Nigeria to "save their marriage".  

What happens next is something you won't forget after you read it.

Have you read this book? What did you think? What's your take on what happens at the end? This is the book club selection for my book club this month and I can't wait to see what everyone says about it.

RaNGo and a Pretty Yard

I pass by this house everyday on the way to work and home. Isn't it pretty? I'm glad I took this picture when I did because today? Half of the flowers are mowed down! Crazy!!

(you can click on it to see it bigger)

So today after work I took Melissa and her friend to the movies. We also took the friend's little sister. WHY? Because the parents said that if the little sister couldn't go the older sister couldn't go either. Isn't that rude? They never actually talked to me about it either, it was all done through the kids texting back and forth. It turned out fine but I just thought that was rather odd. Although maybe I should try that with my kids.... I'd get more time off!

We went and saw the movie Rango. At the $3 movie theater. So it's ok. Otherwise I might be sad that I spent more than $3 to see it. I couldn't help but think that it would have been a really good movie if I was drunk. Is that bad?

Tonight I'm driving a friend from work to the airport. She's been so tense all week stressing about getting things done for her trip. She was totally rubbing off on me at work today and I came home all stressed out.  Hopefully she's nice and mellow for the ride!!

Don't forget to comment on my post here for a chance to win a free book!

FREE BOOK!! The Wednesday Sisters

I have several books on my night stand that I've read. I'm not a book collector. My house is too small. I like to pass on books I have.

So today is your lucky day! 

Just leave me a comment telling me either 

what book you are reading or 

what your favorite book is

And I'll enter you in a drawing to win this book.

This book has been read, and is not brand new, but it's in great shape and has lots of reading left in it.

A bit about the story:

from Goodreads

Friendship, loyalty, and love lie at the heart of Meg Waite Clayton’s beautifully written, poignant, and sweeping novel of five women who, over the course of four decades, come to redefine what it means to be family.

For thirty-five years, Frankie, Linda, Kath, Brett, and Ally have met every Wednesday at the park near their homes in Palo Alto, California. Defined when they first meet by what their husbands do, the young homemakers and mothers are far removed from the Summer of Love that has enveloped most of the Bay Area in 1967. These “Wednesday Sisters” seem to have little in common: Frankie is a timid transplant from Chicago, brutally blunt Linda is a remarkable athlete, Kath is a Kentucky debutante, quiet Ally has a secret, and quirky, ultra-intelligent Brett wears little white gloves with her miniskirts. But they are bonded by a shared love of both literature–Fitzgerald, Eliot, Austen, du Maurier, Plath, and Dickens–and the Miss America Pageant, which they watch together every year.

As the years roll on and their children grow, the quintet forms a writers circle to express their hopes and dreams through poems, stories, and, eventually, books. Along the way, they experience history in the making: Vietnam, the race for the moon, and a women’s movement that challenges everything they have ever thought about themselves, while at the same time supporting one another through changes in their personal lives brought on by infidelity, longing, illness, failure, and success.

Humorous and moving, The Wednesday Sisters is a literary feast for book lovers that earns a place among those popular works that honor the joyful, mysterious, unbreakable bonds between friends.

I'll pick a winner next Friday (May 20th)! You have until then to enter!

That's so random

My sister in law sent me a text asking me a few questions, basically just for my opinion. Her and my brother were having a little discussion about something and she ended with "oh he's right" and "I agree".

Wow I kind of remember those days. Days when we could carry on a conversation and spar ideas at each other. Now? Someone just gets pissed. Apparently we've lost the art of having a discussion.

I got an email today. I've been accepted to the local junior college. I've once again applied, thinking I'd like to take a few classes. I think I did that on a day that I actually had some energy. It's days like today that have me wondering how I could possibly take any classes. I'm exhausted and I've hardly done anything.

That might have something to do with the fact that I spent most of last night rolling down hill in my bed. Scott has fixed our bed approximately 10 times. All this could have been avoided of course, if when we bought the bed almost 19 years ago we would have called up the place we bought it from and told them they neglected to give us the rails that go across the bottom of the frame.  Apparently that was too difficult at the time. I'm pretty sure if he could go back in time he'd be calling them up and getting those rails. Of course, we could just go buy a new bed frame. But that? Is too easy. No we like to weld things together, make new rails, make new supports, and today's feat was cutting some ply wood to fit across the whole frame. Apparently that's going to fix it. I don't really care just as long as I don't roll off the bed tonight.

My dog is slightly stupid. When Scott came in the house with the ply wood he barked at him like he was stranger danger. BIG LOUD BARK BARK BARK!! It's really annoying and I don't understand why he doesn't realize that  that that is his dad? Weird dog.

Scott is going to be gone this weekend  and now Trevor has not one but TWO baseball games. One for Saturday, and one for Sunday. I was thinking maybe we could just not mention the Sunday game and skip out but Scott picked him up at practice today and knows about it now. DARN!

Sure beats going to work!

Monday I went to the zoo with Trevor. We went to the Oakland Zoo again this year. I think I've been to this zoo once a year for the past ten years or so. I think the school needs to mix up their field trips a bit. It is a nice zoo though. This year it was really nice weather, not like last year where it was pouring (which I thought for sure I blogged about but can't find!). BUT I do have 2009. The boys sure have grown a lot since then.

This year it was just Trevor and me in our little group. His first place he wanted to go was to see the otters. Apparently they had had some babies. We got over there and the otters were out running around but we couldn't see the babies. From there we went to the reptiles & snakes room

Can we get a little privacy here??

Wazzzupppp

Out to the bats. 

Why hello there, is that a a pencil in your pocket or are you just glad to see me?? (Seriously did you know bats had genitals like that?? I sure didn't!)

I made my son take pictures next to all the pretty flowers (which weren't as spectacular as last year, stupid weather!)

We got to see an elephant poo (this is after the excitement)

I let the 8 year old navigate

We found the meerkats (his favorite thing since they have a tunnel you can go in and see them underground)

The flamingos weren't as pink as some I've seen. Doesn't that mean their shrimp isn't pink enough or something? Some guy pointed out how their knees bend the opposite direction of ours. Why yes sir, you are correct and I never noticed that before.

I got asked about 1000 times if I had a quarter. Mom do you have a quarter? Are you sure you don't have a quarter? Can you check again and see if you have a quarter? WHY don't you have a quarter? Can you get a quarter? Until I told him that if he asked again we were going to go sit in the car.

We still had an hour to go and had went through the whole zoo and then some so we took the train ($3 a person for an 8 minute ride) to see the "Australian Outback". Which had potential to be cool, if the whole ride was longer. I was just like I can't believe we spent $6 and the ride is over.

 We walked around SOME MORE and then thank God it was finally time to head back to the bus. WHICH the teachers weren't there yet so the kids had to stand around outside and wait. Finally they let them on the bus and we can mark this one down as DONE for the year.

Mother's Day

I have no idea what we did for Mother's Day last year. I sure didn't blog a lot of the big days last year. Mother's Day 2009 we made the walk way up to the front door. I don't think I"ll ever forget that one. That was by far the best I've had in a long time.

This year it started off like any other weekend. Scott made some waffles and bacon and used as many pans as possible. Then I was talking to my sister in law on Facebook and she was going to take BART to the closest station and then take a taxi the rest of the way to see her mom. When she told me it was going to be $60 I told her to cancel the cab and that we would go pick her up. So we did. She gave me $30 for gas which was way too much but she wouldn't take it back.

After we picked her up we took her to the store to get some flowers (and picked up some things too) , and then took her over to Scott's parent's house. We hung out there a bit and then went to a BBQ at my brother's house. I actually had a really nice time. I didn't take any pictures all day, but it was a really nice relaxing day.

The rum and coke might have had something to do with that.

What did you do on Mother's Day?

Where's Miss Manners?

So the other day at Trevor's baseball game I was sitting there watching the game. There was this mother sitting not too far from me and she had a little boy, probably about 4. The boy was super cute and had been bopping around the area.

At one point I was standing up so I could stretch my legs a bit and I noticed her wandering around looking for her boy. I was like "did you lose your little boy?" and she's all "yeah he's usually pretty good about staying close". So a few minutes go by and she's still looking. And starting to look more frantic. So I kind of walk around a bit and see him back behind some bleachers kind of out of sight. I tell him, "hey little boy, you're mom is looking for you, she's getting worried because she can't find you".

So he kind of follows me and I had seen the mom headed towards the parking lot area so I was walking toward the edge to see if I could see her. The little boy was walking behind me a bit. They must have been from the other team because someone called him over and I was like  "oh I was looking for his mom since I found him". He walks towards the people and the mom finally comes over and I'm like "he was over by the bleachers".

She just kind of gave me a little glance then went to the kid. Next thing I know she's picking up her chair and moving over by the other people. She never even said "thanks" or "go f&k yourself" or anything. Kind of acted like I was a stalker or something.

People are so weird now a days. Whatever happened to having some manners? I was only helping because I know that PANIC feeling you get when all of a sudden you can't find your kid. Guess next time I won't help.

Skating Reunion

Thursday night I went to the CUTEST little roller skating rink for a mini high school reunion. I didn't even know that King's Skate Country Inc even existed. Roller skating rinks are so much a thing of the past. I think it's sad that they have mostly all closed up now.

When I was a kid we went almost every weekend. We had a skating rink right down the street. To this day quite a few songs remind me of the skating rink.

But back to the "reunion". One of the gals rented out the whole rink! Only about ten people showed up and sadly they all seemed really close to each other. I kind of felt like an outsider. Originally one of my best friends from school was going but she cancelled at the last minute. I thought about not going but decided to just bite the bullet and go.  It was still fun, just not as fun as it could have been.

After the "session" was over we went next door to a little bar. I couldn't drink much though since I had to drive an hour to get home. So that wasn't as much fun as it could have been.

I do have to pat myself on the back for stepping out of my comfort zone. At least I wasn't sitting home being bored!

Oh and one of the best parts?

If you are a Californian you will enjoy that a little more ;)

Night Road by Kristin Hannah

Yesterday at lunch I started reading Night Road by Kristin Hannah. When I got home from work I picked it back up and finished it at 12:30 am this morning. I'm usually not a fast reader but I could.not.put.it.down. I also have puffy eyes this morning from crying through the second half of the book.

From the Goodreads site:

For a mother, life comes down to a series of choices.
To hold on…
To let go..
To forget…
To forgive…
Which road will you take?

For eighteen years, Jude Farraday has put her children’s needs above her own, and it shows—her twins, Mia and Zach—are bright and happy teenagers. When Lexi Baill moves into their small, close knit community, no one is more welcoming than Jude. Lexi, a former foster child with a dark past, quickly becomes Mia’s best friend. Then Zach falls in love with Lexi and the three become inseparable.

Jude does everything to keep her kids safe and on track for college. It has always been easy-- until senior year of high school. Suddenly she is at a loss. Nothing feels safe anymore; every time her kids leave the house, she worries about them.

On a hot summer’s night her worst fears come true. One decision will change the course of their lives. In the blink of an eye, the Farraday family will be torn apart and Lexi will lose everything. In the years that follow, each must face the consequences of that single night and find a way to forget…or the courage to forgive.

NIGHT ROAD is vivid, emotionally complex novel that raises profound questions about motherhood, identity, love, and forgiveness. It is a luminous, heartbreaking novel that captures both the exquisite pain of loss and the stunning power of hope. This is Kristin Hannah at her very best, telling an unforgettable story about the longing for family, the resilience of the human heart, and the courage it takes to forgive the people we love.

I felt so connected to the mom in the beginning of this story. As a mom of a high school student who just got her driver's license. She's already called me crying that she got in a car accident. We live at the end of a long country road where people have died from making a slight mistake. It's all so real.

The 2nd half of the book is something that I'd never ever ever want to have to think about feeling. It did make me think of my neighbor who's daughter died when she was about 19 or 20 on one of those long country roads. She was drunk, in the truck with her boyfriend, who was also drunk. They hit a tree going about 100 miles an hour. She died instantly and he was airlifted and died not too long after. The mother, my neighbor, never went back to work. This book gave me quite the insight on what she was most likely going through.

This is a really good book, but if you've lost someone in a car accident and/or a child, it's probably not the book for you.

I've been working my way through the Kristin Hannah books. I can't believe I didn't blog about the Winter Garden, by far the best book I've read in a really long time. I listened to True Colors on an audio book. I'm not sure if it lost something in the audio book format, but I didn't like it nearly as much as the other two books I've read. I read Firefly Lane and don't remember much about it. I must have liked it though since I rated it with 4 stars (out of 5). It was two years ago that I read it so that could be part of why I don't remember it much. I'm almost thinking I should re-read it.

Have you read any of Kristin Hannah's books?

Blooming Cacti

I wish I would have had my camera with me today. I did have my cell phone with me. I was out doing an inspection for work when I came across this BEAUTIFUL yard. This was just one little section of it. Check out the blooming cacti! I actually went down the street, turned around and went back so I could get a picture of it. I've never seen them in bloom like that before.

Santa Cruz Family Day

For anyone that saw my rant, thanks for commenting. Some things are bad but not everything and I'm sure I hyper analyze anything that has to do with my kids. I know I'm super sensitive to things sometimes and maybe blow them out of proportion. Or not. But anyhow, it felt great to get it off my chest but I felt bad later and deleted my post.

Having some whiskey and coke that night might have had something to do with that. Oh and while I was at the bar someone called me "stuck up"!! I'm still a bit butt hurt from that. I guess she thought I was snubbing or ignoring her when she had said hi to me. I'm pretty sure it was more of me thinking she wasn't really talking to me. I think we got it all straightened out. We're friends on Facebook now so it must be so...

Moving on.

Sunday! We went to Santa Cruz!! Jess wanted to go to the beach for her birthday so we decided to go to Santa Cruz and play on the boardwalk and on the beach. Can I just say, that my boy, who you all know, is my baby, is not a baby anymore.

:sniff:

He can go on ALL the rides. Even the scary ones. The ones that make you want to puke your guts out. Yep, all of them. So that must mean that he's not a baby anymore right? he started with this smallish coaster. (Sitting next to Scott in 2nd car)

(click any smaller pictures to see them bigger)

Then did this little thing.

After that he jumped right in and did the big rides.

He went on this crazy thing several times. It goes up and bounces around sideways and up and down. He looks slightly freaked out but that was the beginning of the first time. He came off begging to "do it again!".

I thought they had got rid of this big barf basket wheel thing. It spins around in a circle really really fast and slowly tilts up. The girls are on it here in the top middle area.

And then later Trevor went on it with Melissa

This thing is like the tea cups only it tilts out

 Finally got all 3 on a ride together.

And again here, they thought this ride was boring.

After spending the day on the rides we finally made it down to the beach for a bit. They had great fun playing in the water and all ended up soaked.

Figured I should get a picture with me in it.

When we got home we had toilet paper all over the yard and house. Apparently Jessica and her slumber party TP'd the neighbor boys house so this was the payback. Too funny!

There was a lot more but Jess had already started cleaning it up (cursing under her breath is sounded like!) All in all it was a really fun day. The kids can't wait to go back. Too bad it's 2 hours away.