I Fly No Frills

As many of you know, I fly Spirit alot! Can't beat $74 RT for 2. As long as they get me from point A to point B safely, I'm good. I don' mind paying a buck for a can of Diet Coke if I get thirsty. And I'm definitely not going to starve if I go go 5 hours without food. Thankfully, I'm vertically challenged, so the tight seating is no problem. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy frills. I always have. But in recent years, I have come to the realization that instead of that $300 plus a night room, I can do more, shop more & eat more. We did fly Hawaiian to Hawaii. I LOVED their plane! Even the coach seats were nice! If money were no object, then of course, luxury is more my style. But as it is, I rather travel more than blow it all on one trip! The picture is what my seat of choice would look like. If money were no object.

Now for the funny. Kailani posted this funny video on her blog and I found this one on YouTube.

I was laughing so hard, I was in tears. I used to watch Carol Burnett as a child but I never fully appreciated the comedy until I got older. Enjoy.

Time to Start All Over Again!

Danny & I are both 41. We have been out of school for almost 20 years. Today, I made the FINAL payment on our student loans! Hurray!!! It's great to finally be done with all that. But along come these 2 little girls that decided to grow up! So the loans start all over again. Maybe we will be done in another 20 years!

Well what do you know!!!

I apparently do not know much! Did you know that all birds are dinosaurs but not all dinosaurs are birds? I didn't! I just found out about that very interesting tidbit of information today.

At the zoo.

I had to wake up early to take Kari to a bus that was going to deliver her to Orlando for the FCCLA competition. I, of course, had to make sure that the bus driver was not drunk. Yeah, I have issues, whatever. Anyhoo, everyone was there on time except for one kid who just strolled in 45 minutes late. No apologies from her nor her mom. All the other kids had woken up early, gotten to the meeting place on time and were all sitting in the bus. In the meantime, these 2 probably slept a little later, stopped for breakfast and quite possibly stopped at Target on the way. No worries. In any case, they finally left. Behind schedule, but they left. And arrived safe. Only because I made sure that the driver wasn't drunk! ;)

Once the bus was on it's way, I made my way to the zoo. I got there right when they opened. It was a little freaky, because I was the only one there. It was freaky nice though. It was soooo quiet. The purpose of my visit was to try out my new shoes. The verdict is in. I LOVE my MBT's!! I spent 4 hours there. Walked the entire zoo. And my feet don't hurt. Neither do my knees. My calves do feel like I worked out though. So, ugly or not, they are keepers! Here are some more pictures. Since I don't leave home without my camera.

Baby Giraffe is exactly 1 month old today! CUTE!

Chimps are my favorite!

Big Cat! Wonder if I'm allergic to him too?

These Gazelles all stopped to stare at me. Where else can ou see a camel strolling past a palm tree?

Strange but beautiful flower.

Running on Empty

In April of last year, we went on quick visit to California. Right before we left, I fueled up my car. I distinctly remember paying $1.89 per gallon. I remember being oh, so happy that it had gone under $2! Today, I drove by and saw prices ranging between $3.35-39. Notice how I said drove by. That is just what I did. Lately, I fuel up only when I absolutely have to. I am filling up my little car at almost $50. Danny & I are both flying to Boston roundtrip for a grand total of $74. Total. For.the.two.of. us! This gas thing is driving me nuts! I think twice before driving out to my Target. That's just not right. Stimulus package, my rear end!!!

I did get my new MBT's today. I hope that these ugly looking moon shoes help with my walking. They are quite pricey but the reviews are great. Plus I did not pay retail. If the reviews are correct, my knees should not bother me anymore when I walk. Nor my lower back. Actually, I'm planning on going to the zoo tommorow, by myself, to try them out. Gotta go find my pedometer. I so need to get moving more than I am. It will also come in handy when I have to walk EVERYWHERE because I cannot afford to fuel up my car. I wish that I lived in a "walking" town and not in the "burbs". To get anywhere I need to drive at least a mile!

Friday Night Fire

Grass fire season is here. I HATE it Last year we had one right in front of our house. That empty lot is a magnet for fires. It doesn't help much when people are so freakin inconsiderate! Not only do they flick their lit cancer sticks into the dry brush, but you have folks on ATV's riding through there. Plus, you have the nice ones who come and dump their trash in there too. One kind soul decided to share some Christmas joy with us and dump their Christmas tree there instead of taking it to the dump or recycle it into mulch. I guess they just kept it around till almost APRIL until they could find the perfect spot for it!

Friday's fire was a few blocks away and fortunately the wind was blowing away from us. I for one am the first one to leave should it get close. Not only is it more difficult to breathe, but I have an immense fear of getting burned. Not D though. He'll stay and hose down our grass and stuff. Guess you can' be afraid of fire if you're a firefighter huh?

Crafty Shopping

Have I mentioned that I LOVE Target??? Today, I went in to get some shaving gel & shampoo. Cost me about $50! I meandered over to the scrapbook aisle and it was empty. Empty meaning practically no merchandise. There was one guy there and I asked if hey were getting rid of the scrapbook stuff and he told me that they were just restocking. So I RAN to the endcaps! Piled high on three seperate endcaps I found the mother load. EVERYTHING was 75% off! I got paper, cardstock, Xyron Cheetah, MM acrylic paints & stamps. I also got 8 pks of color Sharpies because I love them. They also had the gift wrap suff on sale. Boy o boy, it was a great day! So if you are a scrapbook crap collector like me, head on over to Tarjay and see what you find! They had albums & kits and well, practically the entire old aisle! Happy Hunting!

Best part was that I beat the employees! While I was there, about 3 employees came by and practically cleaned out the end caps. But I was ok, I had just finished my shopping.

So I got home and went to my craft room with all my treasures. I organized them all nice and pretty. Maybe I will actually use the stuff. Eventually.

March 16,1989 6:45 AM Kat is born.

Today is my baby's birthday! Her nineteenth birthday. I feel so freakin' old! I swear, it was just the other day that I gave birth to her!

She's a little bit of sunshine, She's a smile to light your days, She will steal your heart and keep it With her warm endearing ways, She's your precious little daughter, With a sweetness from above Who will fill your years with laughter And your life with lots of love.

Enjoy your last year as a teenager baby girl! I love you! All the way to China!

Lions & Tigers & Bears... Oh My!

Danny & I are parents to young adults. No babies, toddlers or young kids in the house. We are free to go out and do adult things. Maybe go to the theater or to a club or to the casino. But no. Where do we go? To the zoo. Our zoo is huge. It was a gorgeous day, but very hot. We were in the high 80's w/ 80% humidity. There are very little shady areas in this zoo. The animal enclosures do have plenty of shady areas, so we saw a lot of this:

The animas were well behaved. Which is more than I can say about some of the humans. Some some parents cursing at their kids and a couple feeling out each others tonsils in the middle of the petting zoo. I guess they misunderstood the concept of "petting zoo". Ya think? We also watched as a lady changed her kids diaper on top of a picnic table. Where people eat. With others eating around her.

These are my favorite:

Maybe next time we will go to the circus!

Happy Pi Day!

Pi, is the symbol for the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter. Pi = 3.1415926535... Pi Day is celebrated by math enthusiasts around the world on March 14th.


Not that I really remember what Pi actually is, I just know that it's 3.14. Just wanted to act all smart and stuff. I never was very good in math. English was my stronger subject. As far as math goes, until this day, I still say that we just need the basics. Unless, of course, you plan on being a rocket scientist or something. I get along quite well with =,-.x,/ thank you very much. Plus, I'm great at percentages! Got to know my commissions, plus I definitely need to be able to figure out my Target sales!

I have been neglecting this blog but I have been stressing about having to sleep in the streets of Boston. I'm not sure if I mentioned it, but we will be going to Boston for 5 days next month. Not my idea. We just got another great fare on Spirit and D decided that he wanted to go to Beantown. Now, I really prefer going to DC. But since I always choose our travel destinations, I felt the need to let him choose. Just this once. Problem is, hotels are freakin' expensive in Boston! And Priceline is not cooperating! Maybe we can pitch a tent in Boston Commons. We'll see how this goes. For the 1st time ever, I'm not very excited about a trip!

Time to Party like you just don't care!

I am so late! Not that I want to make a grand entrance or anything. I just have been soooo busy today with real life stuff. Anyhoo, if you are here for the Ulimate Blog Party, Welcome! My name is Lissete. I live in Miami with my hubby & 2 girls. You can read more about me here. I have been blogging for almost 2 years now. Actually, I just realized that my blogversary is coming up next week. I blog about my life. Nothing specific. Just whatever pops into my head. I do have a habit of making up words, but I'm sure that you can figure out what I'm trying to say! I have met a bunch of great ladies in this wonderful world of blogville and I hope to meet many more.

So again, welcome to my party. Grab a drink, some snacks and make yourself comfy. We're not all fancified here, so feel free to kick off your shoes.






If you haven't visited 5 Minutes for Mom, you must head on over there and take a look at all the great prizes that are being offered for this huge shindig. I have a few favorites and I have listed them here.

1. #100 Books! from Jill at Who Could Ask For Anything More
2. #59 a $25 PayPal Cash offered by Lori from A Cowboy's Wife
3. # 117 $25 GC to my beloved Target from Mommy Bytes
4. # 60 $25 GC to my other love, Amazon from Judy at “Welcome to My World of Dreams”
5. #53 $25 GC from SkinCareGirl
6. #21 Foot Revitalizer from Orna Definitely need this, since I'm always in sandals.
7. #91 Burts Bees Ageless Skin Care line offered by Geggie from So, What Else? What Else? What Else? I love me some Burts Bees!
8. #79 A skin care kit from Hick Chicks Soap Barn. I love goats milk soaps & stuff!
9. #9 $20 GC from FeeFiFoto

Two Decades

Twenty years ago today I married my soulmate. That's 10,512,000 minutes! Forget the fact that I did not really like him when we first met. We were 16. But he chased me until I broke down. Sort of. He did chase me for a while. Then took a break for a while. Gave me enough time to enjoy myself plus figure out what I wanted. Then he found me again. We were both 21 when we got married on 3/5/88. We promised to love and to cherish. In sickness and in health. In plenty & in want. In joy & in sorrow. For as long as our love should last. We have had our share of the "in sickness" part. And we definitely have had a bit of "in want". Lots of joy but unfortunately some sorrow also. But through it all, our love has definitely lasted.

So, here's to another 20 years. May it be in health, joy, & plenty!

Here's our song. Our "first dance" as man and wife song. I tried to figure out how to get a clip from our wedding video, but I'm not very computer savy. So this will have to do.

Happy Anniversary! I love you!!!

Cigarettes Stink... Literally

We will never know if smoking since the age of 15 contributed to my father's early death. Maybe, or maybe it was just bad genes. He was just 37. Massive heart attack. I am constantly freaked about the similarities between what happened to my dad, and what happened to me.

He was 37. I was 35.
He went with us to our pediatrician the day he died. I took Kari to her pediatrician the day I had my heart attack.
He had a heart attack in a grocery store. I had mine in a grocery store.

Differences:
We were all together waiting for him outside the store. I was alone.
He died. I survived.

Modern medicine? Who knows. I was in the cath lab within 24 hours of my heart attack That was 6 years ago. Today they try to have you in for a cath within 1 hour. I like to think that it helped that I do not smoke. When D & I went to Niagara Falls, all the cigarette packages in Canada not only had a warning like the packages here in the US, but they also had graphic pictures depicting the effects of smoking. Hopefully kids are getting the message.

Colder than Montana!

According to our local weather guy, it was colder here in sunny S. Florida, than in Montana! We woke up to 41 degrees F. Have I mentioned that I hate the cold????

I wanted to sneak in a trip for our upcoming 20th Anniversary. But the money gods are fighting me tooth & nail! I hate it when we can't do fun stuff just because we have to eat! Not that we really have to eat. Actually, we can both benefit from eating less, but you know what I mean.
Plus, I know that I agreed to this, but a girl has every right to change her mind. If we had the funds that is. Maybe some incredibly fantabulous deal will come our way soon.

Speaking of deals, since I did so well with our trip to Hawaii, I may just be offering D's friends my services for a mere finders fee. None of them can believe how little we actually spent on our 20 day adventure. I have always wanted a job doing what I love and travel, even if it is enviously vicariously through others, is my passion. When I was a little girl my dream job was to be a stewardess. Yeah, showing my age there with that title, but that was what they were called. But aside from my vertically challenged body, which was an issue back then, I didn't realize it wouldn't work out well with my extreme fear of flying. I am happy to say that I have that fear somewhat under control. But after reading Kailani's post today, I worry more about my gorgeous self being targeted for being so gorgeous. They will probably not give me a glass of water even if I am totally dehydrated. Those evil, jealous flight attendants. Bunch of crazy cuckoo nuts in this world I tell ya!

Hibernating is for the Bears

No, it's not cold. And I'm not reall depressed. Just have not been feeling well this past week. I finally left my house on Friday. went and got my nails done & I visited my beloved Target. I'm sure they miss me when I don't go I went to pump gas since dumb Danny left my car on empty. I felt like Branden Fraiser in Blast From The Past. Gas is at $3.25 for Regular! I just pumped at $2.94 less than 2 weeks ago! I know I'm whining but we will be living under a bridge if we continue at this rate.

Obviously I don't have much to say after being stuck in my cave for the past week We are planning a garage sale. We have never had one before. But we have so much crap stuff that hopefully we can avoid the poor house by selling some of it off. I'm not too thrilled about waking up early for it though. I am NOT a morning person! You think anyone will be around for a sunset yard sale??

Got this by email:

Love Your Heart

Just another public service announcement.

Don't forget to keep your heart healthy. You can't live without it!

Also, head on over to mod*mom's. She is hosting a heart healthy giveaway from Whole Foods Market . I LOVE Whole Foods! They expanded the Wild Oats that I shop at. Plus, we now have a brand spankin' new Whole Foods Market in town. It's ginormous! I am one happy camper.

Road Trip!

So it was a nice day yesterday. Not as nice as the day before mind you. Thursday was a-freakin' mazing! But I was not feeling well, so it was not meant to be. Although it was V-day, which to me is just another day. Because I have the least romantic husband in the universe. He's not much into surprises. Unfortunately, I LOVE surprises! I order stuff online then when it gets here I act all surprised. Ooooh, a present for me! He says that I never like what he gets me. Ok, and the last time he did that was when??? He still complains about the time that he bought me this huge a$$ Heart balloon. The thing literally, I'm not lying, was tied down in our spare room for THREE years! Till this day, he still tells people about how I got a knife and stabbed it and threw.it.away. He say's that I am spoiled. Whatever. According to him, everyday is V-day for me. And Christmas. And my birthday. We had lunch at Houston's for V-day then went home. We always have a nice meal at Houston's. I have never been dissapointed. So it was all good.

Friday we wake up to a nice day. I'm feeling better. The girls are in school and they both have plans for after school anyway. So we decide to take a drive. To Ft.Myers beach. So we get in my car. Top down. And act like tourists for the rest of the day. We drove through the Everglades. Saw a gazllion Alligators along the way. Drove through Naples & Bonita. And finally ended up in Ft. Myers. We walked on the powdery white sand beach. Among the powdery white heads. (Snowbird season) We looked at some gorgeous beach houses that we cannot afford but is what I want to own before I die. Then we watched the sunset along with about a thousand of our closest friends fellow sunset watchers. I had some awesome fish & chips then we drove back home. Nice day indeed.

Vintage Memorabillia

I just bought these cute little S&P shakers on Ebay. These are the same exact shakers that my grandparent's had in their kitchen when I was a kid. Actually, they were my grandfather's idea. My GF was quite a character. He LOVED crafts. He was always tinkering with something! I loved going over to their house to play with all the crap he had there. He would make dolls, toys & games for us while my grandma would make clothes for the dolls & costumes for us. He would make our piñatas & party favors when we were kids and he also made a few for my girls. Our birthday cards were always handmade by my grandfather. Nothing fancy, just made with love. Both my Mima & Pipo were the best!

Like I said before though, my GF was a character. When I saw the movie Big Fish, I was like "OMG, it's my Pipo!" He would come up with all these wild stories that up until this day make me wonder if they were true or not. He was mischievous at times as well. One day we arrived at their house and he's whispering and tiptoeing around because my Mima was asleep on the recliner. He goes into the kitchen and comes out with a pot & a metal spoon and starts banging them. Poor woman literally flew off her chair. But we were rolling on the floor. It was all about making us laugh. I miss them both more than anything and I am so blessed to have had them both.

Now back to the original purpose of this post. My S&P shakers. My GF would sit them on a shelf in their kitchen. First thing that I would do when I walked in their house was go look at them. Why? Because if he was mad at my Mima, he would put them back-to-back. I thought that was hilarious! One time he was driving and Mima was complaining about something. He said, "The minute I get home I'm putting them back to back! Then he said to me "Don't let me forget" I didn't. Actually, I ran in and moved them myself. So now, I have my set. They sit on a shelf in my craft room. Every time I look at them, it takes me back to my grandparents. To all the love and laughter that was their life and they so generously shared with me.

Right now they are kissing. But Danny better not get on my bad side though!

I nneed a better spam filter!

Remember this? Well I just wanted to post my latest. I usually just hit delete. For some reason they don't go to spam, but whatever. Sometimes I do read one, since I have no lifejust to get a chuckle. I am loved!

My Dear Loved one,
Calvary greetings in the name of the Almighty, Getting your contact was not an easy task because since I am not computerliterate, I ordered an expert to seek a fellow very far away and he went to the institute of International Business toapply before i could reach you. I shall make every detail simple and available to you as you progress with the work Ihave requested you do for mankindI am Dr. Magareth Arthur, married to Sir. Frederick Arthur an English man who is dead; he died in a train bomb blastin Spain when he was going for his medical check up in 2005.Please copy and paste this Internet link for moreinformation on the incidenthttp://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4340881.stm
When my late husband was alive he deposited a large sum of money in an escrow account in a Security Finance Companywhich were derived from his vast estates and investment in capital market.Recently, my Doctor told me that I have limited days to live due to the cancerous problems I am suffering from. Thoughwhat bothers me most is the stroke that I have in addition to the cancer.I need you to help me in fulfiling my husband obligation which I am presently unable to fulfil.I will brief you more on your swift reply to my personal email address: drmagareth000@gmail.com
Sincerely Yours,
Dr. Magareth Arthur

Huh?

I've been known to do some weird things in the name of fixing a mistake beauty(or at least look respectable). But nothing like this. I was watching Ellen today and she had this lady that is the author of The Black Book of Hollywood Beauty Secrets. She was telling people to put sardines on their eyes to make your skin glow, kitty litter to exfoliate and avocado for shiny hair. While she talks about this she is putting it on herself! When she was done, she had kitty litter on her nose, avocado on her hair and this stocking thing on her leg to lift her butt! Oh and by the way, since I know ya'll are writing this down for future use, cheese pizza is an alluring scent to the male species, it increases blood flow to a certain organ. Soooo, go ahead and dab a little on your neck! Your significant other will love you for it!

Never Say Never....

First of all, I want to talk about a little something that happened today. Danny & I went to Panera for dinner last night. I hung my bag on the chair, had my yummy dinner, then walked out without it. Today, I planned on staying home and vegging the entire day. But I had to make a quick run to the grocery store because I realized that we did not have eggs. So I start looking for my purse. Can't find it anywhere. I start freaking out and I remembered that I took it with me. I call Panera and ask the guy if anyone had turned in a purse last night. He put me on hold to check. He comes back and tells me that someone had turned one in this morning. Great, I said. It's probably mine. Then he tells me that someone had already claimed it.

Well, you know, something in his voice bothered me. So I got in my car and drove myself there. I asked the Manager and she goes to the back and comes out with.my.purse! I could literally feel the realief flow through my body. Now, I'm not saying that the guy was planning on keeping my bag, yes, I am but whateverbut he just did not sound right at all. I'm a pretty good judge of character face to face. I can normally tell when someone is lying to me. And it just sounded like he was lying to me. He wouldn't have become a millionaire with my $2.43 but he could have done some major damage with my credit cards!

Anyhoo, my bloggy giveaway generated 234 entries. My poor blog is a bit over heated. Poor thing is only used to about 3 visitors a day. Everyone has sooo many neat things that they want to do in their lifetime! Here's to everyone being able to accomplish their dreams.

My winner is comment #16

doodlebugmom said...
Maybe random will pick me! (ok probably not, but I will play anyway!)I would love to spend an autumn in New England, touring all the historical places. And build my dream house.Linda - if I win, leave me a comment on my blog.
at 12:44 PM

Well, whaddaya know! Linda is one of my 3 regular readers! Yay!!!!!!

This has been fun! Until next time!