BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse

We attempted to go to BJ's for Mike's birthday in July but it wasn't open yet. Hayley has gone several times with her friends and wanted to go for her birthday. We had a great time and the food was very good. Mike had the California Burger & Wedge Fries. He said it was great. Hayley had the Turkey Cobb Sandwich and Wedge Salad (her usual she says), Steve had Chicken Strips and I had the Fish and Chips which I loved. I am not a beer drinker but they brew their own beers (root beer too). I would recommend the place for sure-but let me warn you, it is VERY popular. There was a wait at 1:00 today and Hayley says the evening wait can be over an hour.They do have call ahead seating & I will keep that in mind because we are definitely going back. It was exceptionally good. Some good info - their lunch menu states it is only M-F but they will honor the lunch prices on the weekend as well. We came home, opened presents and had Butternut Brownie Pie. Steve doesn't like nuts and that made Mike happy, he said there would be more for him! Who's birthday is it Mike????

Today is Hayley's Birthday!

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

My latest project

I made my first paper bag mini-album. I have wanted to make one for a long time and decided to put one together for Hayley's birthday. I didn't get to spend as much time as I wanted to on it but I think all in all it came out pretty nice. There is a ton of photos in it and I tucked a letter from me in the last pocket.I hope she likes it.

Matthew is working overtime at Kelly all weekend courtesy of Hurricane Ike. Hayley wants to go to BJ's for her birthday. Steve will be going will us - We plan on eating around 1:00 and then coming home and having her favorite butternut brownie pie. She has put in her order for lunch Sunday as well. My kids are funny, they think their birthday celebrations last a whole week!

I hope you like the album. I am pretty exhausted but it was fun to make. I am looking forward to my next one. Good night!

Dancing With The Stars

September 22nd is the season premiere of Dancing With The Stars. I love that show! I will have to tape it as Monday is my STARS meeting night. I am happy to see Maksim the hunk is back. He will be dancing with Misty May-Treanor. Actually, I don't know who most of the stars are this time but she should do well on the show. I do know Susan Lucci but I'm not a fan. Not much of a Lance Bass fan either. I've heard of Kim Kardashian but don't know who she is. And 82 year old Chloris Leachman??? PLEASE! Now that might be worth tuning in for. I can't get enough of that show. I even have Mike watching now (even though he won't admit it)! I hope I am not disappointed this season.

This stuff is awesome!

In my venture to live a healthy life these days (meaning eat good food and do that awful exercise thing), I found this brand of cereal that tastes so yummy. It is called Bear Naked Medley-It is basically oatmeal with, sunflower seeds, barley & other healthy grains in it. I eat it in the morning and I am satisfied until lunch time. It is quick & easy to whip up in the microwave - sometimes I get real crazy and add a banana and a dash of almond extract! They also have a protein granola that is real tasty. I have put this challenge in God's hands and thankfully, eating healthy has been realtively easy, I am just waiting for God to give me the same enthusiasm about exercising!

Well, ......I had fun!

I am gradually getting my feet wet with this scrapboooking thing. My room is shaping up nicely but I have decided I have to organize all my loose photos before I start another project. My photo sorting boxes should be here early next week. There is so much I want to make! Cheryl is in Florida right now for a Scrappers Dream Vacation. She went alone last year and had a blast. This year she met friends there. She has called me several times to tell me how much fun she is having (despite Hurricane Faye) and keeps telling me I have got to go next year. She also told me she needs an extra suitcase to bring back everything I asked her to buy for me! I just might go next year!

Today I borrowed my little friend Luke and we went to Scrapbook 911 for a "Mommy & Me" class. I had a blast and I am thankful Luke tolerated me long enough to make a cute clipboard mini album for his Mommy & Daddy. I forgot to take a picture of the finished product but I think we did nice work. The big highlight for him was to go to Wal-Mart after we finished to buy a Star Wars action figure. (I am not against bribery to get what I want!) I would call the day a success, we both got what we wanted. I got a buddy to scrapbook with and he got a new Star Wars toy. I ran into Robbie Kothmann while we were checking out & we decided to meet up soon for a Friday Night Crop. She told me a couple of other Concordia ladies go over there as well.

Here is Luke right before we started the project. We had to turn the apron inside out because there was a flower on the front & boys don't do flowers!

You can see how thrilled he is to have his Star Wars Clone! I just can't understand why he wasn't that excited to scrapbook! ~ Go Figure.

Moving Day

Today Matthew moved from his NW Side apartment with 2 roommates to a new apartment with no roommates. It is about 4 miles from us so he claims we will see him more but we will see if he keeps his promise. Just as he picked up the U-Haul today, the sky opened up and rained HARD! He and 3 friends managed to load up the truck without his furniture getting too wet. He asked if I could buy him a set of dishes so I ran by HEB Plus and got him a nice set of Corelle dishes, ............a set of flatware, glasses, serving utensils, knives, paper products, cleaning products and a few groceries. I got a little carried away! He was very appreciative. He is excited about his new home and I am happy for him.

Happy Birthday Pebbles

Last week, our sweet Pebbles turned 6 years old. I can't believe she has been part of our family for 6 years! She is our baby. She always makes a bad day better and adds so much joy to our lives. She is kind of an odd dog, which is probably why she does so well with us! For starters, she doesn't bark. Once in a while when she gets really excited she will let out a small "ruff" but that is it. She is also afraid of other dogs (and many other things but we won't get into all that since it's her birthday). She does OK with cats but heads for the hills when another dog wants to play. She looks like a little human when she sleeps. I love to see her sleeping on her side with her paws tucked under her chin! She loves to ride in the car. We always take her on road trips with us when we can and she is a great traveler. I think God gave us dogs to remind us of His unconditional love. She loves me no matter how undeserving I am. Happy birthday Pebbles!