i did it.

i bought a mac. which means i believed the hype. i drank the kool aid. i crossed over.

it also means i am currently in a state of confusion. thankfully i have kids who actually understand how the thing works. but it might take me awhile to be fully operational with it.

in the meantime, my kids are having lots of fun...

i can't answer the question mac or pc yet since i am still baby stepping my way around the mac. but i have been reminded of something regarding that question that has probably usurped "what came first the chicken or the egg?" in popularity.

it's just a machine. it has no soul. it has no eternal value. a computer may make my life easier (though some days, like today, more complicated when i can't quite figure out how to do a post), but it doesn't make my life better or more full or meaningful. it's not a way of life. neither can it give or sustain life. i know where true life is found (john 14:6). this mac is just a machine.

but a machine that takes pictures like this...

might keep us laughing all weekend long.

dancing with the kollars

lulu hated watching tv until she fell in love with emma's recital dvd this fall. she asked to watch it all the time while dancing along...

but she found a new obsession when i happened along dancing with the stars one night. she was immediately starstruck. we have never watched it before (except for a few times to support my donny osmond-loving sister) so i am a little late to the party. honestly, i am not totally sure that it's best for her to see some of the dancing and costumes. i was actually kind of proud when she yelled "get some clothes on!" to the shirtless male dancers. but, with some editing, it looks like dancing with the stars is our new american idol.

this new form of family entertainment inspired our most recent family night, dancing with the kollars. we moved all the furniture out of our family room to prepare for new carpet and it seemed like the perfect opportunity to do our own version of the show...

sadly there are no pictures of bill and i doing our routine to love shack. i'm sure we looked exactly like derek and julianne hough. so much so that i almost squirted in my pants a few times due to extreme laughter (and obviously not doing my kegel exercises all these years).

this is our version of clubbing. the only sad part was that it all happened after our tiny dancer was in bed. that's okay, i think it just might happen again.

a birthday k.i.s.s.

k.i.s.s.

"keep it simple, stupid".

i have been admonished to follow this acronym regarding various events in my life.

But it always seems that i prefer

m.i.a.c.a.c.a.p

which stands for "make it as complex and chaotic as possible".

but for jack's 9th birthday party, i kept it simple for once. no grand dreams, just the basics.

for the third time, jack wanted a football party. easy enough. we had his own football cards made for the invites...

(cheap and easy. thank you walmart)

to make it even more simple, we decided to have a football scrimmage as the activity...

decorations, treat bags and food were simple and easy...

(those are napkins...aren't they fun???)

but i found out that decorating a cake like a football field is not so simple...

look for me on cake wrecks because that is definitely where i deserve to be. but the homemade red velvet cake tasted good and served it's purpose, despite how it looked...

with my parties something always has to go wrong, i'm okay with it.

but what went right is that this young man had a great time celebrating...

and being celebrated...

i am glad that jack's party was not only fun, but didn't leave me with regrets of all my unrealistic plans turned unmet expectations. not only did jack have fun, but i had a fun too...

(i'm trying to do my sexy look. obviously the cake wasn't the only thing that didn't work out!)

maybe jack's party was a success 'cause it was sealed with a k.i.s.s....

i hope i can live by that motto more often in life!

If time flies when you're having fun

then time has flown at breakneck speed the past 9 years of knowing this boy...

Jack=fun...

Big fun. Big personality. Big smile. Big voice. Big dreams. Big energy. Big humor. Big heart. Big nine year old boy.

But none as big as my love for you...

Happy Birthday, Jack.

these little piggies went to...

san diego!

it was a girl's getaway on coronado island, even though at 41 we are not exactly girls anymore. deb and i were belatedly celebrating our 4oth birthdays with such eccentricities such as massages...

poolside fish tacos...

and a huge dog that bore an uncanny resemblance to my flokati rug...

the weekend involved baring one's soul and bearing one another's burdens...

laughing til we just about pee our pants whether at an improv comedy show...

or just the two of us...

it's crazy that at the ripe old age of 18 (and a maturity level even younger than that), i had the foresight to choose a lifelong friend as amazing, wise, and inspirational as deb. but the truth is, i didn't choose. god chose for me. and, once again, i say thank you...

and now that i've gone wee-wee-wee all the way home, this message is now for you deb...

(you and that masseuse.)

thank you, bono

the view from down here

last week i was feverish and headache-y. it's not easy keeping a two year out of trouble in such a state, let me tell ya. so i took a pillow out to the driveway and let lulu play while i lay(i was going for poetic not grammatical, okay?)...

it wasn't a very comfortable spot. but the view was amazing...