Cassidy’s BFF Alexis made the Principal’s list which is a 4.0 PERFECT GPA. There were only 8 kids in the class to receive it so we are really proud of her too! Today we went to Costco and bought them some gift cards to the local theater for $25.00 each (you get two $25.00 cards for $40.00 at Costco!) and then took them to the movies. They choose to see Chronicle and Ben wanted to see it too.

Me: When we get there, you two can buy your tickets yourself and food or whatever and we can just meet up after the movie.
Ben: But you don’t have to sit with us.
Cassidy: Okay!
Ben: Actually, you AREN’T ALLOWED to sit by us.
Me: Yeah, we don’t want our friends to see us and be like, “Why are you guys hanging out with those KIDS!?”
Alexis: *giggle*
Me: How embarrassing would THAT be?

Congrats, kids! So proud of you both!

Just not proud enough to be seen with you in public.

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But one thing he’s far above average at is driving. We joke back and forth quite often (mainly I joke) about who is a better driver but he is hands down one of the best drivers I’ve ever gotten into a car with. And I don’t just mean every day driving around town. I mean like, get him on a track and he will give you a ride like you have never had before. The times I rode with him I often hopped between THIS IS TOTALLY AWESOME and OMG WE ARE GOING TOO FAST TO MAKE THAT TURN then followed that up by I AM GOING TO HURL GET ME OUT OF THIS CAR!!

Watching these videos often makes me nauseated. When you are in the car, those high speed turns, the force of the car fighting against what all the laws of nature say should not be possible… the video just doesn’t do it justice. It’s a pretty awesome feeling.

Ben hasn’t driven like that since his accident. I know he misses it. It’s in his nature.

So Monday when he sent me an email about going Karting with some of the guys from work I was like YES! GO DO THAT! Because Ben after driving fast is the best kind of Ben to be around.

I was totally kidding.

Kind of.

But I had no doubt that he’d come home with these:

It’s a good thing too because he’s also an excellent source of heat on cold nights. I can’t imagine how much it would cost me to have to try and stay warm if he wasn’t around.

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MORE SOON!

NAPTIME!

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Show me proof! Show me the REINDEER! Show me the bunny that lays Easter Eggs! Show me the pot at the end of the rainbow.

SHOOOOOOWWWW MEEEEEEEEEE THE MONNNNEEEEEEEEYYYYYYY!!!!!

Sorry, I got carried away.

So most people who know me would probably be really surprised to know that these two things below are two of my most prized possessions in the world.

One is a Bible given to me by one of the most amazing women I’ve ever had the honor of knowing. It was a Christmas present. Less than a year later she was gone forever.

After her funeral I collected all the funeral programs I had and tucked them in there. Since then I’ve added a few more. One for her husband, Gerald. One for Julie’s amazing father.

I still look to this book every once in awhile because while I think a lot of it is bullshit diatribe, I think if you look to it with the right perspective and in the the right light, it can be a good source of wisdom.

The Rosary was a gift from my dad and step-mom when I was in high school. It’s made out of rosewood and smells DIVINE. As good now as it did the day I got it. I remember in my private Catholic school learning about the mysteries of the Rosary. I remember how I hated that class even though I found the study of religion somewhat fascinating. I remember how EASY life was back then even though in my 16 year old mind I was certain that life would NEVER BE MORE COMPLICATED THAN IT IS RIGHT NOW.

When I see it now, I remember to take a deep rose scented breath and that no matter what, life could be harder, life could be easier, but life is just life. It’s never so bad that you can’t handle it.

Everybody has their “fire list”. What would you grab out of your house if you had 1 minute. And yes, my cell phone and my laptop are on that list, so are my favorite clothes and my camera but just above all of those other possessions are these two things. With these two things I will always remember where I’ve been, who came before me and that the future is always out there in front of you, full of promise and more people to love you along the way.

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So a year ago today our friend Lisa posted to Facebook that the San Jose animal shelter had WAY TOO MUCH CUTE of the kitten variety and was giving them away fixed and vaccinated for $10. On a whim, we drove up to see if we could find our zoo a new member.

At first I really loved these two all black kittens but they were really skittish and Ben was unreasonably against bringing two cats home. MEANIE!

Then they brought in this tiny grey female. She scampered across the bench, crawled into Ben’s lap and started to purr so loudly I’m pretty sure the windows shook a little. We wanted something calm and cute for Kumo and that is exactly what this little girl was.

So Samus came home with us.

When we introdued her to Kumo this time we did it through a crate door, calmly and for longer times slowly. A few hours later we placed Samus next to Kumo as he laid on the floor and Kumo SHOOK. He was like GET IT AWAY FROM ME I AM SCARED. SO WHAT IF IT’S ONLY AS LONG AS MY NOSE!?

But he got over it quickly. Especially when Danica was like WOOOOHOOOO WE GOT A NEW PUPPY TO PLAY WITH YEAH! From about the second day she’s been home, she’s been one of the pack… of dogs. I’ve never SEEN a cat that acts so much like a dog.

Eats when the dogs eat, wants to go out when the dogs go out, sleeps on the floor with the dogs, she is a kittydog. She also liked water which we realized about three days in when I was in the bathtub and she jumped in… then just hung out in the water.

When we had her about a week, this happened:

So while Hans still very much wants to eat Kumo’s face for dinner, he can be around cats now without laying on the floor and convulsing. Plus, we got this crazy kittydog that plays with Danica, Kumo and all the dogs that come over to visit.

HAPPY HOMECOMING DAY, SAMUS!

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I did start a Day In The Life and was doing pretty well till I just felt too bad to care. So here are some shots of my Saturday. Just a few.

Post run stretching. Looking back, going running when I felt the way I did was probably not the best idea.

How adorable is that dimple?

Husband smile. <3

Moments before I took my temp and decided that today was officially over.

Took a long nap, Ben and Cassidy brought me some food and now I’m about to lay back down and cuddle with my love on the couch while I fall asleep and try to sleep off this nausea.

Forcing my body to feel better tomorrow because there is STUFF TO DO. STUFF NEEDS TO GET DONE.

YOU HEAR THAT BODY! STUFF!

Hope you all are having fabulous weekends!

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Good News: The sunset tonight was AMAZING.
Bad News: I saw it from the car. It was the fourth hour I’d spent driving my car today. My butt was numb.

Good News: I looked pretty cute today.
Bad News: Bloating, cramps and Spanx do not mix. TRUST. Also, 13 hours in high heel boots. UGH.

Good News: The feeling when I took off those boots.

Bad News: Tomorrow is not Friday.

And I am exhausted. GOODNIGHT!

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Mostly it’s the endorphins posting.

Mostly.

It’s also partly that I just want the acknoledgement that I actually went out there and moved myself forward in a fast pace. Faster than my normal pace which is NO PACE.

There seems to be a lot of bloggers that have found a love of running and my most favorite by far is Miss Zoot. I LOVE her attitude. She’s REAL about how HARD it is to run. And I understand there are people out there that just have a body that RUNS. It just WORKS. I do not have one of those bodies. I get HORRIBLE shin splints if I don’t wear my neoprene wraps on my legs. If I don’t hydrated REALLY WELL and make sure I have a good amount of calories in me, I bonk hard on the last sprint or two.

I might be there one day. I’ll strap on my shoes, plug my headphones in, hit the trail and be zen. For now every step is a battle, every sprint is a war and at the end I feel like the motherfucking badass that stormed the castle, killed the giant lizard and wins the heart of the princess.

Mostly it’s the endorphins. They are totally awesome.

Also awesome? The tan lines…

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Set low standards. On day 5 I’ll be a winner while all the rest of you high standards people are weeping when you miss day 29.

God, I love my logic.

You guys! How was your Halloween? Mine was AWESOME. Mainly because I got to spend it with Julie who is one of my favorite people ON THE PLANET. Why you ask? Because she does stuff like this:

She glued individual hairs to her face. She doesn’t just dress up, she BECOMES her Halloween costume. People that know her had to ask if it was her.

Also, there might have been some alcohol involved.

Which might be why this happened:

I, like, am the most classy person you will ever know.

EVER.

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