Pure beauty...

Ah, painted ladies... I truly love having the opportunity to host these incredibly beautiful creatures each year. Yes, I could order them all year long, but for some reason, I feel compelled to have them in the spring or summer. The company that sells them has a package deal where you can order hundreds of them for a wedding. I would have so had them at my wedding if I had known! Not to be too dark, but I want them at my funeral. Wouldn't it be cool to release hundreds of butterflies into the sky to come and see me?

Life has been filled with some real moments of beauty lately... there are gorgeous flowers blooming around me, the skies have been overcast and the weather cool on recent mornings which makes me deliriously happy (I HATE heat!), my son has been thoroughly enjoying his summer and smiling often, and I have had the opportunity to see many great friends lately. Caprice called and we met for dinner, I happened upon Tracy at Bean Town last weekend, I met Melanie for lunch today, I saw Annette at the library last week, Alice and I connected on Monday, I got to see my dad briefly on Saturday before attending a grad party that both Caprice and her hubby attended, as well. THAT was an awesome surprise! Scott and I thoroughly enjoyed the party and I was so happy for my friend, Kathy, who has graduated with her MA! I have been getting to know Maria and she is great! We got to see Eva and her kids last night and I had lunch with Mimi last week too! I tell ya, this has been a very social few weeks. No wonder I am in a good mood! lol As you all know, I am very social. *wink*

Now on to the rock 'n rolling of Cali's earthquake. We are about 20 miles from the epicenter and we certainly did feel it. Nothing like standing on a very thick concrete slab in a huge warehouse and realizing that the slab is actually rolling under your feet! 'Uh, I'm sorry... what? Concrete moves? I don't think so!' Well, during an earthquake it does. Sheesh, it was wild! and long! Chris handled it beautifully, as it was his first really big quake. He was a little shaken at first, but cruised along as he does. Love that kid. Thankfully, there hasn't been much damage or any injuries that I know of.

Scott is doing amazing work on our back deck and I am LOVING spending summer afternoons out there with him as he works. My beach chair comes out and we visit under the shade of the trees. I will have to take some pics soon and share them. My hubby is so talented and such a craftsman. We have a great house already, but after he is finished with it, it will be incredible.

Baseball camp ended 2 weeks ago and summer school ends this week. Chris volunteered to help out at another baseball camp last week after his summer school classes and did a great job. We are so fortunate that our friend, Dave, offers Chris the chance to help out. He learns so much by working with other kids, especially younger ones. He is now interested and pursuing a "Leader in Training" position at a sports camp next week. It might be too late for him to apply and be accepted, but we shall see. His application draft is done, so we will finalize it and get it faxed off tomorrow. *fingers crossed* After next week, Chris will attend his own baseball camp with Dave. That will be a week of hard work since he is the student, not the helper.

I will sign off in memory of my friend, Reva, who died suddenly on July 15th. We went to high school together and we stayed connected through her job at Staples. She was only 42, so this has been a huge shock to her entire family. The cause of death is still a complete mystery, so I pray that answers will be found eventually. Prayers go out to her family, as well. Reva's smile and gentle way will be missed by all.

Have a great one, everybody!
Shanna

Notable Quotables...

I love QUOTES!!!!!! OMG, I just so need to put them down somewhere for all to enjoy (and so I can remember where to go to read them myself). Anyway, here goes...

Just when the caterpillar thought the world was over, it became a butterfly.

This is particularly fitting for me right now, as I order caterpillars every spring (yes, I am late this year) and wait for them to cocoon and hatch into butterflies. As of this morning, I have 10 caterpillars hanging upside down going through their metamorphosis. SO COOL! They will hatch within a week and I will have 10 lovely Painted Ladies to enjoy next.

Shanna

Quote in memory of Michele... fly, girl, fly. 7/8/08

P.S. to my gal pals...

THANK YOU ALL for your replies to my 5k blog!!! I really, really appreciate it!

Next year's 5k will take place in Carlsbad on April 5, 2009. I absolutely intend to be there. If you are interested in joining me, check out the website below. I stay at a little, funky motel on the coast and the rooms fill up quickly, so you would need to book early. Let me know if you want more info on that and I will email ya.

http://www.eliteracing.com/carlsbad.html

Hugs to all!
Shanna

Crazy summer dayz.....

Okay, so summer is upon me and I am still not any more rested. lol Chris's schedule has completely changed now and I am having a heck of a time figuring out how to adjust. :o) He is taking a cooking class (his choice, how cool is that?) and a drawing class at a local jr. high, so I drop him at 8ish, run to work and then return at 10ish to pick him up. We run to my office where he changes into his baseball clothes and grab a Gatorade, and then I drop him at a local high school for baseball camp. I run back to work from 10:30 to 1:00 and then leave again to pick him up and taking him to lunch and then our house. Phew! Ideally, I would love to work out while he is in morning classes and then work from 10:30 - 4:30 (I need to work 6 hours/day), but it hasn't worked out so well thus far. We keep up this schedule until the end of July and then I will likely give him a week off before another baseball camp starts.

Chris is officially done with baseball, but Scott isn't! lol Most of the boys from our most recent All Stars team were put together for a City All Star team. Unfortunately, we don't live in THAT city! Scott, however, was asked to stay on and coach. The manager was going to Cabo for a week and loves the way Scott runs things. So we tease Scott that he is the one now that is keeping us from vacationing or relaxing with HIS baseball schedule! The cool thing is that Chris has been going to practices, as well, and is allowed to act as a Jr. Coach. His teammates (and good friends) all seem to respect him and Scott says that he is impressed by Chris's knowledge and application. Ah, I hope he grows up to be a fabulous coach to many, many kids in lots of communities! Anyway, tomorrow is this team's second game and we hope it goes better than today's game did. :o( Certainly less stress when my boy is sitting next to me, not out on the field!

Work-wise, I am still pretty busy... the auditor came a month ago, took some files with her to her office and hasn't said a word since. It is driving me crazy a little because I can't really move on. I want to refile all of the crap in my office and archive the storage boxes, but I can't. I hate not knowing if I am going to be asked for more info, as well. Ah well. I am attempting to catch up on other work, but it is slow as things are moving pretty quickly in the normal day-to-day operations right now. I am definitely suffering from the summer itch too. I know that Chris is out of school and I want to play! lol We haven't made it to the beach yet, but I am hoping to do that and to sneak away for a weekend before fall comes.

Our holiday was very nice. We all went different directions for the day, but we grabbed our chairs and headed downtown for our very own hometown fireworks show!! There is just nothing like sitting in the middle of our main street in town, surrounded by vendors selling food and goodies, a sea of locals in front and behind you, kids running everywhere, folks walking up and down the sidewalks meeting and greeting friends as they go. We spent 2 hours people watching, kicking back, and chatting with one another, waiting for the fireworks to start at 9. We each went and got our own dinner and all 3 of us ate different food from different vendors (greek for me, mexican for hubby, and american for son). The fireworks display was an all-time winner this year, as there were only dirt lots down where the canons were shooting them off. The buildings on those lots were recently leveled and nothing has been built yet, so the "fire fall out" could be much wider and shoot much higher than before. Due to the new construction ahead, next year's display will be moved just south of our house, near the park. We are sad, but atleast we still get our very own fireworks in our town! It is FREE no less!

My guys took me to see "Get Smart" tonight which was hilarious! Can anyone tell me how to handle 90 minutes of mouth slurping from the guy behind me though? OMG! I seriously thought I was going to punch him in the neck! He would *click* and *slurp* and make an array of disgusting and spine-piercing noises as he worked (and worked and worked) the popcorn out of his teeth! After 15-20 minutes of it, he would dive back into his popcorn bag and start all over again! It was ungodly annoying, but I did control my urges and I left him alone. Amazing restraint for an entire 90 minutes! His wife was sitting right next to him too... she shushed him at one point, but it was about talking out loud during the movie. Yup, he would do that too. Phew, tough one. Hubby surprised us after the movie by taking us to a new yogurt place in town. It is all self-serve... yogurt and toppings alike. When you are done making your own creation (any number of flavors or toppings), then you pay by how much your cup weighs. Pretty cool. :o)

I don't have any pics to share cuz I am not that on top of things, but hopefully I will soon. Tomorrow brings singing worship at church first thing, dashing to see "Scott's baseball game", working for awhile in the office, and then a friend's baseball game in the evening. All in all, a busy but fun day! Both baseball games will allow me to see lots of friends and hang with my guys, so I am looking forward to it. I hope you all have a wonderful day, as well!

Happy 4th of July, everyone!!!

Shanna

Are ya ready??

I have FINALLY been able to get some pics uploaded and can share them with you all! This is a long overdue post and a newsy one, so bear with me......

On April 6th, 2008, I did (what I considered to be) the unthinkable! I actually walked a 5k!!! You see, all my life, I have looked for the shortest distance between 2 points. It didn't matter if it was between the couch and the fridge or my parking spot and the store. I just hated walking or having to go very far. I, literally, can remember thinking that I would rather not join my friends at Disneyland or Magic Mtn. because it was just too much walking. I liked Universal Studios and the Zoo because you could ride the tram. Now, I welcome the challenge to go farther and somewhat faster. I realize that 5k is not monumental to most, but to me, it is a huge accomplishment, as well as, a wonderful sign of change.




***This car is for ME!! OMG, you should have seen it!!***

I went down to Carlsbad by myself on the Friday, even stopping for a quick visit with my sis-in-law, bro-in-law, and nephew. It was a glorious day with incredible spring weather and my hotel was right on the beach! When Scott and I went down last year, we discovered the most wonderful pizza, and although my eating is healthier, I am still a gal that looks forward to favorite foods when I have the chance! Sure enough, right after my arrival, I headed over for a slice of pesto, olive, goat cheese white pizza! Sadly, it was a special at St. Pat's Day and not available when I got there, but I was assured by Tommy (the creator of this heavenly pizza) that he would make me one of my very own if I wanted it! lol I suggested we wait until the next day as I was too starved to wait. After a great conversation with Tommy (love making new friends!) and a bite to eat, I was on my way to SHOP! Mervyns (new earrings, necklace and black bra), Kinkos (resize photos of "my heroes"), Michaels (buy do-it-yourself photo buttons), and Trader Joe's (healthy snacks for the room). I headed to my room and relaxed, watched ANY show that I wanted to, and put together photo buttons of my heroes.

Went for an evening walked later on, got a sandwich for dinner, and thoroughly enjoyed more down time in my room, on the big bed all by myself, again, watching any show I wanted to on TV! I was so surprised to find the episode of "My Life as a Soccer Mom" that I was on! What a great treat that was considering I wasn't sure when it would air. We taped that in early December. After a so so night of sleep, I grabbed a bite at the continental breakfast and enjoyed the last few hours of my alone time. My guys were on the train after Chris's baseball game and would arrive at 2. It was such a great idea to have them take the train so we could all drive home together after the 5k. (Thanks Aimee for taking them to the station!)



When the guys arrived, they were pretty tired. Although we all enjoyed walking around and shopping for the next few hours, there was a fair amount of 'exhaustion tension'. Sadly, none of us were particularly patient with one another, but we did manage to stop in and see Tommy for some yummy pizza! Ahhhhh.......... yes, heaven! It was even better than I remembered it. Incredible! We all headed back to the room and the boys were so content to just chill. In fact, none of us really wanted to have to leave and find dinner later on, but we did anyway. A night of sleep and up in the a.m. for my 5k!

Dressed in black exercise pants, my tshirt from www.myfooddiary.com, and with my HEROES on my back, I was off to register. Quick digression... as most of you know, the weight loss and healthy changes in my life are all due to a promise that I made to Holly before she passed away. I credit her and thank her for giving me cause to do all of this and I could not walk that 5k without her. In addition, my life has been blessed by some other really wonderful people that are also showing cancer a thing or two. Hopefully they know that I have their back, and that day, I wanted them to have mine. As such, I created a button for those that inspire me to live my best life and appreciate all that I have... my family, Shauna (2 year cancer survivor of unknown primary), Leela (2 time thyroid cancer survivor) and Holly.




At registration, I was given a bib and a chip. I didn't even know what these things were before that day! "A bib!! Oh, I've seen this before on those marathon folks!" I now have one... #8865, that's me. :o) The chip goes on your shoe and as you cross both the START line and the FINISH line, it marks your time. Amazing! Now to figure out how to secure the darn bib and chip to my shirt and shoe! lol Fortunately, I sorted it out eventually and I was off. I walked at the back of the pack, but really wanted to be ahead of the wheelchairs, elderly, pregnant women, and stroller brigade, so I ran a bit here and there until I made it to the mainstream. Our course went right along the ocean for a good while until we U-turned and headed into downtown. My guys were able to catch up with me and even came into the street to walk with me for awhile. Before long, I was turning the corner to the finish line and crossed at 1 hour, 5 minutes! I did it!!! :o)





Tired, but no worse for wear, we had a small photo shoot and headed over to the Fitness Expo. I picked up my participant tshirt and pin, shopped a bit, and then we headed off for a celebratory and much needed lunch. On our way out of town, we stopped at the beach. As I relaxed in my chair, I watched my guys run around chasing one another and throw wet sand at one another. Chris was trying faithfully to antagonize his dad, but only until Scott grabbed Chris, lifted him over his shoulders and dropped him into the ocean! Hmmm, I can't say that I have ever seen my husband bench press a 13 year old. lol Fun!!!




I was glad to be home, very relieved to lay down, and ready for next year! Wanna come with me? All are welcome!

Shanna



"The victory is not how you finish, it is showing up."

Life in Auditville...

Well, I can honestly say that I have been seeing double! I have seen so many numbers over the past 2 months, when we received our Notice of Audit at work, that I am all numbered out! I actually looked at an "8" the other day and saw two of them! lol I am thinking it is time to get some rest.

Just to wrap up my number talk, I did the math, so to speak, and discovered that I have worked 267 hours since April 12th. As of last Friday, I had worked 26 days with only Mother's Day off. Hmmm, some part time job, eh? ;o) Fortunately, I do like what I do, my boss is one of the good guys, and if nothing else, I am a very dedicated gal that has given all she's got to this audit. The audit notice brought about a demand for documents, then the auditor's first visit brought about another demand for more documents. I suspect that when she arrives on Thursday, there will likely be yet another list of demands. I am hopeful, however, that the next request will be less intense than the last ones. Let's hope! *fingers crossed*

SO, life has been shaping up a bit for the better. I have found a terrific counselor and we are a great fit! I am a big fan of therapy if you are willing to be open-minded and have a willing spirit. I seem to be both because I can feel that things are slowly getting better. I have had so many life curves in the past 3 years and I simply need to take some time to gain perspective and breathe. It is tough to do that when you are immersed in the day to day and not making time for your own sanity. That said, I will be enjoying myself to the fullest at Disneyland tomorrow!

I am so excited! I love Disneyland and have never been to California Adventure. A dear friend of mine and her daughter (who I also love) have come to Cali and I get to spend the entire day with them tomorrow. They are visiting from Idaho because her daughter plays in the orchestra at school and they have the opportunity to perform at Disneyland tomorrow! How cool is that? After a fun day running about with the girls, we will then meet up with another friend of ours for dinner at Downtown Disney! What a way to end the day... more friends, good food, and tons of fun! These 2 gals are part of the most amazing network of cyber sisters that I have ever known. There are dozens of us that have forged incredible relationships that have lasted all of these years. We have all been friends since 2000 after meeting through an online scrapbooking club. :o)

Okay, I am off to tuck in my sweet boy and make some tea. I tell ya, too many nights with crummy sleep and I really suffer. I took melatonin last night and dropped right off, but by 3 a.m., I was wide awake and feeling weird. Send me good sleep vibes, will ya? Mr. Sandman, bring me a dream... and make it last 'til 7 a.m.!

Jessie's card count: 4
*Please join me in showering a sweet girl named Jessie with cards (see below)

xoxo, Shanna

Prayers...

I am blogging to ask for prayers for Jessie, one of Chris's friends from school. She is 13 and in the 7th grade and has been very recently diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma. We found out today that although the cancer has metasticized to the lungs it is NOT in the bone marrow! That is great news. She has undergone surgery last week and chemo this week, but goes home tomorrow to rest for a few weeks before her next chemo. This entire family has been turned upside down after hearing the cancer diagnosis, but they are doing an amazing job of keeping their faith and having a positive attitude!

The students in this 7th grade class are praying daily at school for Jessie, have made cards that were sent to her, have made banners that are held up at various sporting events in her honor, many students and their families are choosing to fast at mealtime, and there is a class-wide collection being put together to purchase the season DVD sets of Gilmore Girls. It is incredible to see the outpouring of action and support.

I sent out an email on Friday asking everyone to keep Jessie in their prayers and thoughts, explaining about the purchase of the "Gilmore Girls" DVDs. When I arrived at church this morning, my friend Kathy handed me her unopened Season 1! She had received my email and felt that Jessie could use the set more than she. Thanks Kathy! You are so sweet!

News like this is always so hard to hear and even harder to understand, but I am grateful for the reminder to remain focused on what really matters. Life is to be cherished and those around us are to be loved. The little things are just those, little. Hugs those you love, let people know that they matter, and laugh! Seize the day!!

Praying for continued good news for you, Jessie. You are a strong and amazing young woman!

Shanna