Gillie Time

We had a pretty leisurely weekend at Casa Gillen and it was much needed after day camp week!! 

The Prince had flight camp this week and he loved it!  I loved having a bit of free time but did not particularly like the driving time required.  The camp was over 25 miles away from my house.  So I was driving 100 miles a day and sitting over two hours in the car to take him to and from camp!  The morning drive came early!  We had to be up by 6:45 to be out the door by 7:25 (we could have left a bit later but I HAD to stop and get coffee!!).  He had a really good time there and wants to try a different camp from there next year so in the end I guess it was all worth it.  Apparently two tanks of gas=happiness!! 

Saturday we had a couple of things we needed to pick up at the store.  The Price was not thrilled~he does not like to shop!  Luckily for him he got a reprieve.  A mom of one of his friends called and asked if they could take him to Bounce U for the afternoon~SCORE!!  We went out for a quick family lunch (Buffalo Wild Wings) and then came home and The Prince left with his friend.  It was 2:00 and we had until 5:00 to enjoy our freedom! 

Hubby and I went to Lowe’s to buy painting supplies.  The work is finally done (except for a small leak in the shower that they better come fix today!) and we need to paint the new closet!  Then we went to JCPenney~BIG Sale!!  Hubby got some clothes and I got new bathroom carpets.  I had been having a lot of trouble with this because the bathroom is so small and the way it is laid out you need pretty small carpets.  I was so excited to find them!  I had looked at quiet a few places and had about given up and was ready to buy a bigger bath mat and cut it down.  I also bought The Prince some new shirts.  A while back I bought some really cute “save our planet” and “green” shirts and The Prince really wanted an “earth” shirt too.  They had some really cute ones for boys.  Then we went to Gordman’s to look for some bath stuff (no dice) and then to Bed Bath & Beyond~we bought bathroom stuff~a garbage can and a shelf for under the vanity.  As we were walking into Bed Bath & Beyond my phone rang and I thought our expedition was over but they wanted to keep The Prince until later.  YEAH!!!  So we got to do some more shopping (my favorite thing).  After BBB we went to TJ Maxx.  I found a toilet paper holder for the bathroom and some monkey bread mix.  Then we decided to grab something to eat~a little mini date at Fatburger!   We had a nice time just laughing and eating.  Then it was time to go home.  The Prince came home about 8:00 and he had a great time!! 

I spent the evening on the phone with my friend Kelli.  She is having some pretty big personal drama right now so we talked and talked and by the end of the conversation she was begging me to come visit.  She guilted me big time!  I have not been home for 12 years.  Hubby said he would buy me a ticket for my birthday so I am booking a ticket to Tampa for my birthday!  I have been avoiding going home for so long now.  I have put on so much weight in the last ten years that I didn’t want any of them to see me this way~but as I have no huge desire or ambition to go on a diet and lose all this weight I figured I couldn’t put it off forever.  So my summer of travel continues!! 

Yesterday we lounged around and had quite a lot of pool time.  It was wonderful.  The weather has been so odd lately that we haven’t really gotten to be in the pool much this summer.  Today (and this week) it is supposed to be warm and sunny so hopefully we will be able to spend a lot of time in the pool.  I am off to do some laundry. 

Happy Monday!!

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This week has been pretty quiet. 

The Prince has been at day camp all week.  He is really enjoying it and I am enjoying having a little quiet (albeit emotional) time. 

We had a great Father’s Day weekend. 

We started our festivities on Friday night where Hubby received his first gift~a fire pit! 

He put it together. 

We fired it up.

He then got his second gift! 

The makings for S'mores! 

Jill~not interested in marshmallows...

But definetely interested in graham crackers!

Yummy~S'mores goodness!!

We had a good time. 

Saturday was family time…a little cleaning, some yard work, some pool time and some Wii time~a good day! 

Sunday morning Hubby got to open the rest of his gifts.  The Prince gave him some new grill tools.  Jill gave him two books…Bad Cat and Bad Baby.  I gave him some cologne (Passion for Men~my absolute favorite and Armani Code) and the new Augusten Burroughs book and the new David Sedaris book.  He was very pleased.  We had the family over for a cookout.  It was a nice time. 

SIL brought over the discs from the wedding photographer. 

Here are a few pics of The Prince!

That is all for tonight. 

Thank you all for your kind words and comments on my last entry.  I really appreciate all of you!! 

Oh yeah…we got shower doors!!!

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A new morning and things are better. 

It is so sad. 

Hubby’s friend’s son is doing well.  He had only minor injuries.  I saw him last night on the NBS Nightly News with Ann Curry (his dad said she was very plastic) and he did Larry King Live (Larry asked some pretty stupid questions!)!!  He really wanted to do the shows.  I think it really helped him open up and talk about it.  I know his dad indicated that they were pretty exhausted last night.  I think today will be a harder day for them as things start to sink in and the shock wears off. 

My friend’s son is doing better but is still in pretty serious condition.  Even though I have not used any names, to respect their privacy I do not want to put to much information out here as there are many names that have still not been released.  Hopefully we will get better news today but whatever the news this young man has a pretty long recovery ahead of him. 

The whole thing is just so sad and scary.  I was glued to the television yesterday morning watching all the coverage (thankfully The Prince was at day camp).  I cried all morning.  I finally had to turn the television off and just sit quietly. 

I am really scared of tornadoes…pretty paranoid (okay...seriously paranoid~I totally freak out).  I am a manic watcher of the weather coverage in bad weather and am always hunkered down in our basement.  I try to be visibly calm about it for The Prince but inside I am terrified in a tornado warning and then to have two tornadoes in the area in less than a week!

As a parent this whole thing has really resonated with me.  It is hard enough to send you kids away to camp and then to have your worst fears realized...it makes your heart hurt.

These families all have quite a long road ahead of them. 

Please keep them in your prayers.

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It’s an incredibly sad morning. 

I have been glued to the television watching the tornado coverage.

We know two families (a close friend of mine and Hubby’s best friend) who had boys at the Boy Scout camp that was demolished last night in a tornado. 

One of the boys was on the news this morning and is fine. He spoke beautifully and was very composed.  It was a great relief to see him.

The other boy is in the hospital with very serious injuries.  His family is obviously devastated.

Please keep these families in your prayers.  There are many injuries and four young men lost their lives.

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Another quiet morning!! 

Hubby & The Prince just left…Hubby for work and The Prince for day camp! 

A day without The Prince means one thing for Momma…SHOPPING!!! 

As for The Naked Prince, the story is not as amusing as the visual (I so wish I had taken a picture).  On closer inspection he was FILTHY!!  He was pretty covered in dirt.  MIL took him to a park close to her house and the circle around the merry-go-round was still underwater and he decided to play in it.  The permissiveness of Grandma!  So they walked back to her house and she stripped him and hosed him off and wrapped him in a towel and brought him home.  If I thought he was filthy when I brought him home I can just imagine what he looked like before she hosed him off! 

Since I am caught up and things are back to normal...I am back to sharing my distractions...

New to the iPod

Just Read

Currently Reading

Just Watched DVD

Just Watched at the Movies

New to the DVR

I am off to take a shower before the contractor gets here and then…it’s time to go shopping!!

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Wedding week was also The Prince’s first week of summer vacation. 

He has had a pretty good time so far.

Playing...my house looks like the Lego store exploded in here!

Puzzles

Reading...he joined the summer reading program at the library.  He earns prizes for so many hours read.  He is pretty excited.  He did it last year and couldn’t wait to sign up this year. 

Fighting the sprinkler

Lunch at his favorite...oh I mean fourth favorite restaurant.

But most of the week and weekend were tied up with wedding activities. 

Thursday was the rehearsal dinner.  They so needed a rehearsal.  There were 6 bridesmaids and groomsmen, a junior bridesmaid and 2 ring bearers.  They needed to practice.

The Ring bearer

The Groom and The Prince

The boys were so good!!  Then we went to dinner at Lucky’s.  They have the best margaritas!  All I will say is that I had more than one!  I will also say that I was not the only one who indulged…LOL! 

The Ringbearers opening their gifts.

The Groom and his brother...Boilermakers...YUCK!!

Me & MIL

Weird Brothers!

The Groom and his nephews

The big day was on Saturday.  We had to be there at 11:30 for pictures.  It was a long morning!  The ceremony was at 1:30 and it was beautiful.

Ringbearers reporting for duty!

Moi & my pride and joy!

FIL & The Prince

Handsome Hubby

Happy Groom

The Ceremony

Me & MIL

Me & GIL (Girlfriend-in-law)

It is hard to believe that they finally got married.  Hubby and I have been married for 11 years and the bride was at our wedding reception…that is how long they have been together!!  MIL and I both have had a hard time wrapping our heads around it.  In my mind they are both kids and not old enough to get married…nevermind that BIL is 31…LOL!!  The wedding was held in a beautiful church…the oldest church in Nebraska…the only issue being that because it was the oldest church it does not have the best air conditioning system.  It was a bit hot.  Luckily the reception was not until 4:30.  I usually hate when a wedding and a reception are split but it was nice to be able to come and take off our party clothes and cool off for a bit.  The reception was beautiful as well. 

Beautiful Bride

Involved with Gillen boys

Danging Machine!  Look how sweaty he is!!

Breakdancing!

We had a great time but when it was time to go it was time to go.  I was exhausted!! 

Sunday morning we had a family brunch to watch them open wedding gifts.  It was fun to see all the gifts!! 

Monday came and I think we were all glad it was all over.  It was a fun time and really beautiful but it reminded me again that we were smart going to Vegas to get married! 

Next entry will be the final catch-up entry!!  Stay tuned!!

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It’s quiet so far this morning.  The Prince is laying in my bed just waking up watching a little Cash Cab (he LOVES that show!!) and I am enjoying a little coffee.  Hubby is a saint.  We are both fighting a serious allergy haze and I was not exceptionally alert this morning when he left for work.  I heard the garage opening and there he was Starbucks in hand.  I love my man!!  The contractor is not here yet.  He worked all day yesterday on the downstairs closet.  He will work on that again today.  No bathroom work yesterday.  The shower doors weren’t done yesterday…hopefully…fingers crossed…today.  I figured I better get caught up or I’ll never get caught up. 

The week of 5/19 was The Prince’s last week of school.  It was a busy week for both of us.

On Monday they went on a field trip (they hadn’t been on a field trip all year and in the last three weeks of school they did three…wouldn’t it make sense to spread those out? LOL!!). 

On Tuesday I had a procedure at my friendly endoscopy center (scope & dilation on my esophagus…FUN!). 

On Wednesday they had a pizza party (that I helped with).  The teacher had a sister that just returned from Iraq.  The kids have all been writing letters and stories and sending pictures to her all year.  We live in a predominantly military neighborhood so many of the kids have parents who are deployed so the kids really get into writing these letters.  Before she came home her squadron took up a collection to give the kids a pizza party because they so enjoyed all the correspondence during the year.  She wrote them all letters during the year and sent small little gifts to them.  When she came back they all got their pictures taken with her and she brought them all hats and trinkets.

The Prince in his OIF (Operation Iraqi Freedom) hat

It was very sweet.  Some of those kids could seriously put away the pizza.  One very thin little boy had 6 pieces!! 

Thursday was their field day and class picnic.  Of course it rained all day.  I volunteered at that as well.  They played all kinds of games inside and then we had an indoor picnic (same little boy had 5 hotdogs!!).  It was fun!! 

Friday was the last day of school and early dismissal!!  My baby boy is now a THIRD grader!!!  When we got home he received his summer fun basket!!

Then when Hubby got home he received a last day of school gift (I think this was actually more for Hubby than for The Prince). 

We went and saw the new Indiana Jones movie on that Sunday.  It was a great movie.  The Prince loved it!! 

On Monday we had the family over for Memorial Day.  Lots of food (I refrained from taking pictures of it all because SHANNON thinks that is weird!!~Hi Shan!!  Love ya babe!).  We had pulled pork butt sammiches, chicken drummies, pasta salad, baked beans, corn on the cob with garlic parsley butter, chips and dips, a relish tray and the item that went the fastest…mini cornbread muffins!! 

I made brownies for dessert.  We had a good time.  MIL & FIL could not attend because MIL had started her radiation treatments and broke out in crazy scary hives all over (and I mean ALL OVER) her body.  She is doing great now and over halfway done with radiation.  The dermatologist said that her vitamin supplements had a reaction to the radiation or something like that.  There were missed.  I took two huge plates of food over to them while the boys played Guitar Hero.  She looked awful and actually said what I was seeing wasn’t even half as bad as it was.  Poor thing…it looked painful. 

I will end this entry now and do another entry for the week after Memorial Day.  It was wedding week!!  I hope alerts are fixed as I am sure noone wants to miss this action packed entry! :)

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After a little bit of drama the bathroom is done except for the shower doors and some minor touch up. 
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