First Lady of Louisiana

I had the pleasure of participating/working at the Educator's Excellence Symposium at the Crowne Plaza Friday & Friday night. At the event, I met some of the most fabulous educators! Teachers-of-the-Year were honored... one even won a Mercedes-Benz! It was great. Throughout the day speakers & panelists shared information. One of the distinguished guests was Supriya Jindal, Bobby Jindal's wife, AKA First Lady of Louisiana. She was well-spoken & represented her hubby well. Did you know she's a chemical engineer & worked in a chemical plant before her husband entered politics?!? She entertained a few questions & photos. Here I am with Mrs. Jindal & my coworker/friend Barbara. After running in & out of the rain earlier in the day, I was reluctant to get too close... perhaps I have "personal space" issues?!? Oh well, how many days do you get to have your photo taken with a political celebrity (at least here in Louisiana)?

Shopping Trip

One of the things that my mother-in-law does for her grandchildren is to take them shopping on or around their birthdays. This tradition got started as they got older and became harder to buy for. This year Dylan's birthday came & went in June but with every one's very full schedules, his shopping trip ended up happening in July. It didn't matter to him... he had a blast. "Granny" took him to the mall for lunch & for shopping. He hit the game stores first, video games of course, and then the Gap, and then a a toy store. He even took a break in one of the massage chairs & stopped the Chick-fil-A Cow for a photo op! He had a fabulous time with his "Granny".

My "Baby" Turns 10!

In celebration of Dylan's 10th birthday, we held a swimming party at the house in his honor. He enjoyed lots of friends, cookie cake, presents (the boy racked up on the cash!), and more. Me & WD bought him the iPod Touch which he has quickly mastered. The party was a success even in the 100+ degree weather! We even had a little excitement when the neighbor drove his riding lawn mower into the lake... like good neighbors all the dads at the party helped rescue the lawn mower by wading into the water (jeans, party clothes, no matter). The party was very enjoyable for all! I'm so amazed at how quickly time has past. I guess Dylan's no "baby" anymore!(Wayne, Blane, & Rhett soaking wet, walking back to the party after rescuing neighbor.)

(Sweat rings on the shirt is a good indication of just how hot it was outside; I know, "Ugh that's yucky!" but the good news is that we all were sweating so it didn't matter ;-)

Idina Menzel

I suppose everyone knows my absolute love of music? Well today, further confirmed it. After stepping it up & working it out at a morning Jazzercise session this morning, the instructor had the group do a cool-down routine to an absolutely beautiful song. I've discovered another very talented musical artist by the name of Idina Menzel. I figured out who she was in a roundabout way, though. After the cool-down, I asked a fellow "jazzerciser" if they knew the name of the song. It's called "Hope". I didn't think to ask who the artist was... I was just going to use my iPhone to search for it in iTunes. I had no luck with that... there are a ton of songs called, "Hope"... some are spiritual/gospel as to be expected... I even ran across an atrocious rap song called "Hope"... I couldn't give up though. I googled "Jazzercise", thinking perhaps they would have a work-out video with the song on it. When I got to the site I found a cool listing of all the current songs used for workout routines at all Jazzercise locations. That's where I found it! I used the artist's name to search in iTunes, and voila'! Listen to the song by clicking the play arrow on the player below. Now to find other songs from Idina Menzel to enjoy. She's apparently in the Broadway hit, "Wicked", too. If ever in NYC, I'll be sure to get a ticket to the show so that I can experience this talent in real life.

Father's Day Surprises

We had a fabulous Father's Day! Saturday morning I dropped WD's truck off at the car stereo place & had a really cool Pioneer stereo installed... it has CD, iPod connection, HD radio, Bluetooth hands free phone, satellite radio, the works! It is really, really fantastic. I wouldn't mind having one in my next vehicle, but I wouldn't waste the money on putting one in my cruiser (heck, I still have a Cassette/CD combo radio in my car!). WD hopped in his truck Saturday evening after he got home, and was so thrilled with his gift from me & the kids. But that wasn't all... I just love surprises... Sunday he had to work, but afterwards we took him to dinner... Texas Roadhouse (it's nothing fancy, but it is his favorite). Erin & Dylan excitedly carried in a couple of more gifts into the restaurant. WD has been on this "antique shaving" kick lately, so we ordered an old-fashioned straight blade razor with lavendar shaving soap & a sampler pack of blades. Of course a man can never have enough Levis so we picked up a pair & a comfy Nike t-shirt just for him. It was a great evening, hanging out with the kids, and with our most favorite man in the world.