Bye, Bye Screwbirds

Today is the ceremonial end of my squadron, VS-33. Forty-six years of Screwbirds met in the hangar on NAS North Island to listen to speeches and to celebrate the successes of the squadron. Tracey and I were pictured in front of the airplane that bears my name.
It was neat to see the squadronmates from many years back gather "family reunion style" to reminisce. I realize that, since both of my active duty squadrons now only exist in history books, sadly I will not be meeting up with my old buddies many years from now. Nonetheless, it was a nice ceremony and a fitting end to the squadron and to my days as a Screwbird.

Joe's Bachelor Party

What can you say about Joe's Bachelor Party Weekend? On one hand, it could be argued that it was a rather tame and gentlemenly gathering of friends. We played 36 holes of golf on Coronado Island. We drank wine. We attended Our Lady of the Rosary for Mass on Sunday. We toasted our friend/brother at a quaint dinner in San Diego's quiet Old Towne area. We even considered closing an evening with a rowdy game of Scrabble, but didn't. You could say that it was gentlemenly. You could say that.
It could also be argued that it was a knockdown-dragout beer-guzzling competition with everyone tying for last place. You could say that too. We got to meet one of The Finest City's Finest and at one point Joe's left cheek got to meet the sidewalk. Golf, Baseball & Beer; that's what I can report. You could say it was crazy, over-the-top and even obnoxious. You could say that.
For me, it was an accurate representation of the man to whom it was designed to pay tribute. The oldest brother whose been the shortest Cronley male for over 10 years. The submariner who loves to sail. A man who wouldn't touch a coffee in the morning, but would kill for a Buena Vista Irish Coffee. The snowboarder who takes care of peoples' financial future. He's an enigma wrapped in a conundrum. But I don't care about that. I know that he's fun to be with, loyal to a fault and everything you can hope for in a brother.
So what can I say about Joe's Bachelor party? Hopefully, John and I said something to Joe that we needed to say over many years: Thanks for being who you are.

Catherine & Matt's Wedding

After a nice long road trip and weekend in wine country for the wedding of Catherine and Matt Thompson, we are now safely back in San Diego with a still empty car seat (which we did bring along , just in case!) and one very rotund belly. The wedding was incredible! The day before the wedding, we were all freezing cold as the entire coast was totally fogged in, but somebody was looking out for us on Saturday as we had one of the most gorgeous days of blue skies and brilliant sun for the wedding. The bride was stunning and the entire day went off without a hitch! Here is one of my favorite photos of the day --- I took it right before my brother, Kevin, walked my sister down the aisle. You can just make out the famous arch rock in the background. Unfortunately, I managed to not get any still photos of the bride and groom together (sorry Matt!), but Tom did take some great video of the entire day which clearly shows the bride and groom glued to one another (too cute!). It was a wonderful celebration for our family and it was evident that everybody had a blast. Believe it or not, I was not the most pregnant person at the wedding. Bless her heart, my cousin Kimi and her husband Mike drove nearly 3 hours to be there --- on that day, she was already 5 days over-due!! She certainly showed me up and put me right in my place :) We're still awaiting word on whether or not that one glass of wine at the wedding got things "moving" for her. We were joking because of the about 70 guests in attendance, there were no less than 4 doctors and 4 nurses. One would have thought that we would feel comforted by that fact, however, the wine was really flowing that night and we're not sure if ANY of them would have actually been sober enough to deliver a baby. Luckily we didn't have to find out.
The 22 hours spent in the car were well worth it. We had a great time and we are so happy for the newlyweds. Thanks to my mom for hosting such a fabulous party and Congratulations to Cath and Matt!!

Go Padres!

The Latest

I'm back from all the crazy traveling and thankfully I didn't miss the whole show. No, not the American Idol Finale (or Finally, depending on your point of view), but the birth of the Little Lady. Birth Prep classes are in full swing, the nursery is as good as it is going to get (until the move), the car seat is installed, and despite all of this, each day I think of something else and it seems like we haven't even begun to prepare for her arrival!
I am so thankful that eventually there is a date where preparation turns into practice. Otherwise, I'm pretty certain that we would rearranged the household furniture 4 more times and I would have spent countless hours researching the latest must-have item until every square inch of the house is some shade of pastel. But alas, poopy diapers will be here and that will take the priority. Does it seem a little sadistic that somehow caca-pants are going to save us from driving ourselves insane?
I hope you enjoy the new photo. We figured it was time to update since we hadn't had a family photo since March and believe me things have changed. Calvin is the only one getting thinner and frankly, it's negligible. It looks like that threat to ship him off to the person who most accurately guessed the Little Lady's birth stats has paid off and caused a relatively insignificant weight-loss. Honestly, we have been a bit nervous about how he will react to another human in the household. When our friends have brought over their children, his first point order is to hide for the duration of their stay. There are signs that he is considering other options, however. He has been quite curious with all of the new "pink" products that are floating about our place and has been a lot more "lovey dovey" to Tracey when he's not biting her ankles.
I'm excited to be in this stage of the pregnancy and I know Tracey is as well. Although we have no control of when the next phase begins, I know we're ready. Oh, shoot. I just thought of something...maybe tomorrow.

Alone here with Cal.......

Well, I've been ditched again. Tom conveniently clogged up the kitchen garbage disposal last night (artichoke leaves were the culprit!) and then decided it was time to get out of town and head for the Midwest leaving his 8 months pregnant wife at home. Not very nice! Actually, I'm being a little too harsh. His departure is, of course, for a very good couple of causes. First he is flying one of his squadron's jets to Ohio for the wedding of a good pal from Notre Dame, Brad Billick. I'm sad to be missing the wedding, of course (Congrats to Brad and Tina!), but I'm very sad about missing an opportunity to see Tom with all of his ND friends - they are hilarious when they all get together! After the wedding, Tom is jumping back in the jet and heading to Chicago where he and a few other guys from the squadron will be doing the fly-over at the Cubs v. Whitesox game on Sunday afternoon!! So if you happen to tune in to the game on Sunday, keep your eyes peeled at the very beginning for a funny looking jet (pictured above) flying over the stadium - Tom will be flying it! I know the game is televised here at 11:00am (pst) on WGN. The fly-over should happen just minutes before the first pitch. So, I immediately had to go out and buy a onsie for the Little Lady that says in bold writing across the front: MY DAD'S A SUPER HERO. I think that's pretty fitting ;) even if I am pouting about being ditched (again).
I want to say a quick "hello!" to my old Nadadore friends who informed me that they've been secretly reading the blog --- it was so great to see you guys last weekend!! Everybody looks so great and I can't wait to be able to have a couple of beers with you all as soon as I'm allowed. We'll have to be careful not to ruin your taper for the Master's World Champs, though (wink wink).
I hope that everybody has a great weekend! The sun has finally decided to show it's face here in San Diego which certainly makes me happy.

This Phrase is the Last Coherent Thought of this Post

So it's back to Meridian for me this weekend. Tracey and long time friend/fellow KU swimmer extraordinaire, Adrienne Turner will be San Diego having as much fun as you can at 33 weeks pregnant. Adrienne is not pregnant; I think I just made a sentence with a misplaced modifier (see any 8th grade English text), but I'm tired of trying to fix it. Anyways, I have no idea what they'll be up to, but I am grateful that Ade will be here with Tracey in my absence. That's not to say that I wouldn't want to be here when Adrienne was here, just that I'm glad someone is here with Tracey whilst I'm not. This post is killing me today!
I'm going to check on how the house building is going and answer some questions about flooring, landscaping, countertops et cetera. Rob and Leea Myers, our future neighbors, have been flooding our inbox with pictures and everything seems to be going fabulously. We have painted walls, the cabinets are in place and the ground is level outside. There has been a lot of progress, but until I stick my hand into the siding, I won't really believe what I've seen or heard.
Call Tracey this weekend to say "Hi!"

My own mini boycott....

It's been a long time since I've blogged about the pregnancy and since I am currently about to pull my hair out over my job at this moment, I figured it might be a good time to stage my own little boycott from work for the next few minutes while I try to let the workplace frustrations roll off my back (or really my belly at this point!). So as you can tell, my job has been less than pleasant these past few months. The only good thing about it is that I have been relinquished of my travel duties for the duration of the pregnancy. Ironically, nobody on my project team will be traveling for the next month because we are currently playing "clean-up and catch-up" in house for the entire month of May. I don't mind the "clean-up" etc., but when the very root of the problem that caused the disaster in the first place is ignored, it kind of makes one wonder "what exactly is the point"? Hence my frustrations.
HOWEVER, when the work day is done (or during my little boycotts) I couldn't be happier! This pregnancy has been a dream - a long dream, but a good one :) We're almost to 32 weeks and things are going very well. Yes, the belly is really getting big and the discomfort and sleep issues have increased too, but really it hasn't been too bad yet. I did have to get up at 4:30am this morning for a bowl of cereal, but after about an hour and some serious acrobatics performed by the Little Lady, I was able to fall back asleep (Tom, unfortunately, was not able to - but that's ok, he's had more energy than a 5 year-old on Red Bull lately!). All in all, I have loved being pregnant and I know that this 9 month stint will be over before we know it and when that happens and the Little Lady is here, I know that the "halo effect" will certainly take over and I will only remember the very best parts of being pregnant (ie Fetal Hiccups and Pineapple cravings). So in attempt to be a realist, I would like to put in writing my three "major" complaints of pregnancy, so that 6 months from now, when we are riding the "new parent high" and thinking that we should just have another one right away, we can re-read this blog and maybe it will help us with our spacing at least a little. Here they are:

#1 The constant runny/bloody and super booger production factory that is my nose and has been since day 1 of pregnancy. My doctor says that this is the #1 complaint of his very "fair complected" patients. Yipee! So not only do us "albinos" get to suffer through severe sunburns and face certain melanoma sometime in our lives, but we also get this?! Who would ever want to be tan???Actually, this really isn't a big deal when I am at home, but poses some uncomfortable moments when caught in public (or worse, at a site for work) without a mound of Kleenex.

#2 Enough said. Actually, this one is really too gross to put on a blog. Yes, it has to do with "#2" but it's probably not what you're thinking.

#3 THE PRESSURE! (and this is not mental or psychological pressure that I'm talking about). This is not what Tom and I have been calling it either, but our name for it, once again, is really not appropriate for the blog. Anyhow, any woman who has ever been pregnant certainly knows what I'm talking about here. It started sporadically, early in the second trimester and has grown increasingly worse and more frequent but at this point is THANKFULLY not a constant and I am very grateful for that! Only 8 weeks to go!

So there you have them..... my pregnancy woes. Really, they are more laughable than anything and I certainly feel blessed for that. Hopefully they have provided you with some giggles as they have for Tom and me over the last 32 weeks.

Well, the boycott must come to an end now. I'm sure that my 20 minute absence has led to an absolute reform of my study project and that all internal flaws and "disasters" have been corrected. That's how things work in this country, right??

A John Candy Classic Weekend

There is nothing like getting a lot of response from a blog post to really make my day. Just when I start wondering if anyone reads this mindless drab, a short post turns in our best response of our existence! Cal has been proudly stating that all the hubbub has been made for the possibility of gaining his companionship and maybe he's right. How else could I explain the voter turnout? I suppose now would be the best time to let you know that Calvin is not going to be relinquished to the closest guesser. And yes, despite Kelly's best efforts (ask her about it...quite funny), all of Cal's kitty litter will be staying where it belongs...in our carpeting.
Truthfully we haven't been sitting back as the votes were tallied and ordered; all of that is done automatically anyways. We've been pretty busy. Tracey's attempts to get her company to lighten her workload has had a total reverse effect. Phones have been ringing right off the hook and the seemingly endless paper trail has been...well, endless.
I've been pretending to be busy too. Having grown tired of 3-day weekends (yeah, right), I decided that I would travel to Galveston, TX for the Spirit of Flight Airshow. My friend in the squadron Eric "Cooter" Gould is from Galveston and he was in desperate need of a pilot to fly down there with him. It was a great time despite the weather. We were treated like rock stars; a welcoming party was thrown for us on the night we arrived. And they all pretended to that the S-3 was the coolest airplane in the world. That was a nice touch. As it turned out, it was to be a true case of planes, trains and automobiles for me. Oh, and by the way, I'm "Snowball."

Get Up & Vote; The Poll is Out!

Giving into public pressure, we've established a way to guess what the specifications of the baby will be upon her birth. Click the link and follow the directions. LittleLadyCronley is the name of the game.
If you are closest with the date, weight and height of the baby, you could win a free cat! If you get the gender wrong, you win cat litter.

• Click the link
  
• The game name is LittleLadyCronley (no spaces, case sensitive)
  
• Enter a date/time, height & weight
  
• Excitement for everyone!
  

And if anyone was wondering, I do still have a job, but I have managed to squeeze in a little blogging here and there. Thanks go out to Suzanne for finding the baby guessing website!

The Womb is not Empty!

 
Happy Easter to everyone. I hope that little hint clarifies the joke in the title of today's post. Okay onto more important matters.
After careful consideration (mostly on which picture to post) and to satisfy public demand, the growing belly has made it to the Cronley Blog. This photo was taken on Easter Sunday as the California sun set on the land formerly covered with beautiful orange groves-one such tree remains and it happens to be in the backyard of Wendy's home.
Tracey and I spent Easter weekend in Mission Viejo relaxing, cooking and eating. I learned how to barbecue pork ribs and a leg of lamb while Tracey learned to make homemade cinnamon rolls and sticky buns. Highlight of the weekend: comparing Tracey's belly to the rising dough of the cinnamon rolls. Absolutely hilarious.
 

Not Quite Mississippians

We're back in good ol' CA after a trip that started out a little shaky (our video camera and digital camera were stolen from right under our noses on the airplane just upon arrival in Jackson, MS) but ultimately turned out quite fruitful! After our "mishap" on the airplane, we were afraid that we would be hardened by the experience and lose grasp of our belief that people, as a general rule are, "good". Luckily, the people of Meridian, MS and Birmingham, AL wouldn't allow for us to be hardened. Everyone is so nice! We walked up and down many a street and many a neighborhood in our search for a home and everywhere we went, people would wave and smile despite the fact that we must have looked like a couple of fish out of water. One of the best suprises for both of us was how many trees there are in the South! We just couldn't believe it. The land is absolutely gorgeous and I know we got lucky, but the weather was unbelievable! We even got one night of a good thunder storm which, despite losing some sleep over, we quite enjoyed. We owe a special thanks to our friends, Rob and Leea, who graciously put up with us all week long while we basically took over their house for our "house hunting" purposes. It was so great to see them and be there when they brought home their new puppy "Sally" --- who we have already nicknamed "Saint Sally" because she is one of the best behaved (not to mention cutest) puppies you could ever meet!! For those of you concerned about our ability to adjust to Meridian, MS, you'll be pleased to know that the house we have signed a contract on is all of 7 houses away from Rob and Leea. We are so excited about being neighbors and have already started planning the first block party. One funny item to note is that despite the fact that we are 7 doors away from the Myers', we are actually in an entirely different city and have a different zip code --- the street name isn't even the same even though we are on the same road!? Over the weekend we were able to get over to Hoover, AL to visit Sara and Greg. It was so great to see them and their beautiful home and to eat some good barbeque and banana cream pie with them. Greg took us on a quick tour of "The Hammer" (Birmingham, AL for those of you not down with the southern lingo) and showed us just a few of the highlights. As always, the visit with them was too short, but it is so good to know that they are only a 2 hour drive from our new home.
Well, we will certainly have more to share with you about the new house as it gets closer to it's completion and we get closer to moving, but for now, here is the one picture we currently have of it. Please ignore me being totally ridiculous in the picture -- I was doing the Mr. Roboto dance in celebration and somehow Tom managed to capture me looking like a complete lunatic. Well, I guess that's fitting.......

Hunting in Mississippi?

Once again the postcard used for the all important "Save the Date" notice has reared its ugly (and getting uglier) head. It is unfortunate that this digital version will do nothing to reduce the number of these things we currently have stored in our huge apartment. I put it somewhere in the neighborhood of a thousand that remain.
So we're off to Mississippi! We're only going down there for a week to look for homes or as the Navy puts it, House Hunting. We've been looking at homes online for about as long as any sane person could take and now it is time to investigate the old fashion way.
As you might guess, you can get a lot more house in the middle of Mississippi than you can in Southern California. One restored home in particular comes to mind: It looks something like Grandma Sheridan's, but 5,000 square feet and did I mention in is in the National Historical Register? We're going to look at it for the fun of it, but if we lived there, I'd be afraid that all of you would show up every Christmas, Easter, Valentine's Day, Friday, etc. On the more realistic side of things, we've been pleasantly surpised with the variety and quality of these as well. But who knows, that cute little place with the nice yard might have a hillbilly for a neighbor and stink like the Marlboro Man himself lived there.
Finding the right place is just the beginning for us. As this represents our first home purchase, we are totally clueless and I am pretty certain that everyone in the real estate/home mortgage business is excitedly anticipating our financial demise. Truthfully, we are working with some seemingly good and very helpful people who are using really small words so I can understand.
It is still a little confusing. Although every other industry or service has managed to reduce the number of "fees," the money lending world has about fifty of them that should be lumped together and called "Who else are you gonna get this kind of money from?" fee.
The trip is not going to be all work and no play. It can't be: We're staying with our friends Rob and Leea Myers and I don't think they would stand for it. They moved to Meridian back in February and have graciously offered their spare bedroom for us to use as "Headquarters" for the house hunt. We do have a birthday to celebrate. Tracey's birthday is on the 6th (She will be 20) and hopefully I will have scouted out a decent restaurant by then. We're also driving to Birmingham (AKA The Hammer) to visit the Wendts. I haven't been to their place since Christmas of 2000 and Tracey has never been there. The whole trip should be fun, eye-opening and hopefully successful.

The Expectant Engineer

See, I told you!

Pictorial Debut

Our little Mona Lisa......(seriously, is she donning a black wig in that last photo or what?!)

We've had an exciting Saturday! As an early birthday present, Tom took me to get a 4-D ultrasound done and I have to say it was one of the best experiences of this pregnancy to date. I know it won't compare to holding her for the first time, but watching her move around inside of me and actually getting a few glimpses of her face is incredible!! The appointment lasted less than 30 minutes and we walked out the door with a 10 minute DVD of the Little Lady moving around set to music, a CD with about 20 still images and 8 prints of the 8 best shots. Maybe it's just me, but I think she looks a little bit too much like her Dad (especially in that last picture)! As I was staring at the pics on the car ride home I joked to Tom that I might want to have a Maternity Test done because I'm starting to wonder....... ;) The first picture is for those of you who have requested a belly shot --- can you see Cal staring at it in wonder?? He has no idea how his world is about to change! As if you couldn't tell, we are getting more and more excited for the arrival of the Little Lady. The stroller and infant car seat have been purchased and already assembled by Tom. I have caught him a few times already pushing the stroller around with a stuffed bear strapped in it. Each day I am more and more grateful for his engineer background --- I have a feeling that it will be an extra valuable crutch in our early parenting days/years/decades, not to mention it's affect on Tom's nerd status which, let's face it, helps keep the Naval Aviator in him a bit grounded. Well, it's taken me about 20 minutes to write this and I'm feeling the need to go stare at the ultrasound pics once again.

What to do with the Cabin?

Last night, Tracey and I met up with Uncle Jimmy and Auntie Vicki (who arrived a little late from a flight) for dinner at a brewery in Burlingame. The weather was not what you would expect from California with hail the size of gumballs and consistent heavy rain.
The topic ranged from ND basketball (who lost in double-overtime to U of M) to turtles and wine. Much of the discussion centered on Uncle Jim’s new cabin. He has turned the virtual outhouse of cabins into a Mission of 3 stand alone buildings with water (hot water), gas and electricity. And get this…satellite television. I think it is hilarious. For those of us who have been to Uncle Jim and Auntie Vicki’s places, including their home, you know that they are all beautiful buildings in incomparable locations—San Francisco, Lake Tahoe, and the wine country of Sonoma County. They are also typically very rustic, charming and simple.

"...I can't wait to see their faces when they see the satellite TV. I will have tears runningdown my cheeks; I'll be laughing so hard!"

I think the satellite TV was just a way to show the MFL’ers that Jim Sheridan isn’t to be outdone. Ever. There is nothing that is safe or sacred, save the man upstairs himself, in his search for the greener grass, which, I might add is always just a couple hundred miles down the road. Vicki and Jim’s sense of adventure is contagious and it makes you want to join in the sit-com that is their life.
All this talk of the cabin made me reminisce of the times our family shared there and how it shaped our young lives. It made me realize that family is more important than pretty much everything and making it to mass was more important than what you are wearing or smelling like. It taught me that waking up early is hard, but if you do it you will be rewarded by God. A shower is relatively unnecessary and you can make anything work for a week, even a frozen, 80 year-old well.
All of these good things made keeping the cabin an easy decision. However, in the past couple of years...well, we'll say that the delicate subject of the passing of the family’s matriarch drove a wedge in a seemingly impenetrable family foundation while the family burnt the bridge of forgiveness between themselves. So here we are trying to figure out what to do with our family vacation home. As much as mom must make a decision regarding the cabin, we must help her make a good decision. Should she sell the cabin to Uncle Pete? Should she hang on to it in its current state or clean it up? Should she pull an Uncle Jim and get satellite TV?
I see 3 possible scenarios:

• Cabin is sold to Uncle Peter. No more cabin for the Cronley’s. Possibly put in a clause to have Uncle Pete sell it to us, if he ever does sell.
• Cabin is kept under mom’s name. Leaves us the option of delaying any decision now, but it is unlikely to get much, if any use. The chipmunks are huge fans of this plan since they will not likely be bothered by any humans getting in the way of turning the cabin into a Chipmunk Resort.
• Cabin is purchased from mom by a family member. Is anyone of us in the position to do this or want to? I know that Tracey and I want to have a place to get away but it seems like a few years away before we could even consider,not to mention it is a 6+ hour flight and a 2+plus hour drive to get from anywhere we’ll live in the next 4-5 years.

So given the history of the cabin and the fun we've all shared there, and keeping in mind the unfortunate wedge and burning bridge issue, let's make a good family decision.

San Francisco Treat

Due to San Diego's unpredictable winter weather, Tracey and I decided to head north for a weekend (plus a couple of other days) in Northern California. Okay, here's the truth: Tracey is working up here Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and since work for me is maintaining this website, I decided to tag along. Cal, Calvoski, or Cal Vasco Da Gama is the lone bachelor among the harem of kitty-cats in Mission Viejo.
After watching Kansas lose to Bradley (?), we decided it was time to go into hiding and head to the Pile (Tracey's mother's maiden name) Family Beach House in Goat Rock State Park outside of Jenner, CA.
Tracey's sister, Catherine and fiancée, Matt are planning their wedding for June 3rd at "The Coast" and this weekend they, along with Wendy, had cake to taste and champagne to sample. Though we didn't get to join in the tastings, it was great to see the young Kansans.
It turned out to be quite a gathering and of course, ended being a feast of great food and wine. Grandma Pile, Doug & Jan, Tim & Trish, Laurie, the newly returned Steve, Nate, Liz, Nicole and the now walking Emily all enjoyed the crab bake, lentil soup and salads.
Our time at the Coast is always fun and, regrettably, always too short. Next up, meeting with Uncle Jim and Auntie Vicki in San Fran!

San Diego: The Weatherman's Dream

As you probably guessed from the title of this post, I am back in San Diego.

Local Weatherman:
Whitney Southwick
"High temperatures today and tomorrow will be in the low and mid 50's near the coast and in the valleys but it will feel much colder at times because of the dampness and wind...Please, take care, drive slowly and be prepared for very quick changes in your weather through tomorrow."

As my Irish tan (i.e. freckles) began to fade and bug bites began to heal, I had to laugh today at San Diego's meteorologists. Today, San Diego is under a Winter Storm Watch which translates to Mostly Cloudy. Yes, we did get a sudden rain shower this morning, but nothing that required the severe weather alert that interrupted the normal television programming. Too funny.
The sad part is that our time in San Diego is limited and soon we'll be battling the weather like everyone else. I really hadn't thought of this fact until I read Sara's comments from a previous post. Doesn't it seem like that is the 5th tree to hit their house/garage? Ugh.
In the meantime, we'll be here stocking up on canned goods and hoping that the Red Cross makes it here soon to help us deal with our weather tragedy.

Lonely here in San Diego.......

This will be my first attempt at a "solo" blog post. While Tom/Boog has been busy celebrating Mardi Gras on some warm and sunny tropical island, I have been quite busy back here in the doldrums of reality traveling like crazy for my meaningless job. Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful for the employment and income, but let's just say that I am really looking forward to my new role and one of the most important jobs in life --- MOTHERHOOD! Thank goodness for this little one who's been keeping me company with her constant kicks and somersaulting. It's been especially nice since I get to take her EVERYWHERE with me, unlike Cal who has to stay behind when I'm on the road. For those who care, Cal is doing just fine and continuing to go through life starving and always anxious for his next meal. What a life.
This weekend I will actually be traveling to Lawrence, KS for FUN -- to celebrate my sister's bachelorette party and to host a bridal shower for her. I'm really looking forward to it! Her wedding is set for June 3rd and everything seems to be falling in to place (except for the bride's maid dresses, but we're working on that!). It is sure to be a great celebration!
On a more ridiculous note, I had a dream last night that Joe and Kelly announced to everyone that Kelly was going to be a surrogate mother to Brady Quinn and some unknown woman's child ------ WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?! I have no idea, but I certainly woke up laughing!!
Well, this is getting pretty long. In all seriousness, Tom is doing well down in the Caribbean. Contrary to what we all imagine, it hasn't been all fun and games for him, but he's gotten to fly a couple of times and hopes to get a couple more flights in before he returns home next Wednesday. We can't wait for him to be back here so we can start getting serious about house hunting in good ol' Mississippi!
I hope that everybody is doing well and having a great week.
ps - obviously I haven't figured out how to sign in under my own name.........lots to learn!

Car-nee-VAL!

Another interesting thing going on down here in Curacao is the celebration of Carnival. Revelers have had parades in virtually every part of town on various days in the past week. The parades are a little bit different than Sturgis’ “Michigan Week” parade that we all know featured John as the Dairy Queen Ice Cream Cone Guy. There were no marching bands, no fire trucks, no Boy Scouts, and no old guys driving little cars and wearing fezzes. All that was replaced with little beers (everything is 8 oz.) and repetitive and intoxicating music. Having never been to New Orleans, I don’t know how similar this is to that one celebration down there but there have been no beads or anything like that. The whole thing is a family affair despite the parades going until midnight and later. They are fun and the noise from them is completely unavoidable so you have no alternative but to join in...at least until Lent.