Saturday, May 30, 2009

Can it get any hotter?

The weather here has been crazy! We had a couple of weeks of hot, high-80's-low-90's and then a solid week of rain. Not just sprinkles, but 4-5 inches a day. We're finally getting blue skies again and with it, the humidity. Yikes! Fortunately, we can go to the pool to cool off and may the person who invented air conditioning be blessed forever.
This week, Bryant had two soccer games - one on Thursday and one today (which we have to leave in 30 minutes to get to). Thursday's game was to make up for the lack of one over Memorial Day weekend. The poor kids were so sweaty and gross afterwards due to the humidity, but it was a good game. At least the sun was behind clouds the whole time.
School is almost over - just a week and a half left to go. Bryant and I are very ready for summer. I doubt we'll be sleeping in, since we don't even sleep in on the weekends, but the no homework thing will be very nice. Bryant's class is having three end-of-year parties - bowling on Thursday, a BBQ the following Monday, and pizza on the last day of school.
Mother's Day was very low-key for us. Jeff and Bryant each gave me a card. Bryant's read "Happy Mother's Day from your favorite little headache." In a handwritten addition - "and I always will be." They also gave me a certificate to get a manicure and pedicure (more on that in a sec) and a recipe book Bryant's class wrote. The recipes were hilarious!!! None of them were edited, so they came straight from the minds of second graders. I couldn't stop laughing as I read them.
Jeff's birthday was also low-key. I stole him away from work for lunch. He wandered around Dick's Sporting Goods, deciding on the perfect bait to take on a father-son camping trip. We bought a canopy and screen enclosure (good for camping and the beach) and a new fishing reel for Jeff's fishing pole. Bryant and I gave him some cast-iron cookware he'd been eyeing.
The baby shower was a blast. A dozen ladies in my home, eating yummy treats and enjoying looking at really, really cute baby things. LOVED it. A few favorite items: a onesie that reads "Mom Rules", a bib that reads "I love my big brother", a blanket so soft it should be illegal, and a monkey backpack/harness.
Jeff and Bryant got out of the house to avoid the excess estrogen and went on a father-son campout for church. They fished (caught no fish) and Bryant caught 3 crabs. Bryant came back dirty and smiling. (No ticks, thank heavens!)
Memorial Day weekend was fairly quiet. We went to lunch and a movie (Night at the Museum 2 - VERY funny) using gift cards Jeff had won at work. We also went to Sears and bought (using more gift cards) a stroller/carseat combo, a booster seat, and a new watch for Jeff.
Today, we're hosting another Halo night. About fifteen guys (and one girl - me!) are going to be playing Halo 3 from 3 pm-midnight. I love hosting this thing. We've kind of become the official location for it. We're going to have a blast!
Oops, ran out of time. Gotta go or Bryant's going to be late for his game.

A Remembrance

On Friday, May 22nd, my great-grandma passed away at the age of 94. Unfortunately, we were unable to attend the funeral in Mesa, Arizona. This is a copy of her obituary that appeared in the East Valley Tribune (Chandler, AZ) on May 27th.

DAVIDSON, Vivian Lambson
Vivian Lambson Davidson passed away peacefully in her home on May 22, 2009 at the age of 94. Vivian, born in Redlands, Arizona on July 21, 1914 was the daughter of Gila Valley pioneers Ephraim and Maybelle Lambson. She is survived by her sons, Vance, Edward, Douglas and daughter, Arlene, one sister Ardith and a brother Phil. She was preceded by her husband Arlo in 1978, their son Stephen in 2006 and a grandson Jason in 1989. She leaves behind a posterity of 26 grandchildren, 53 great-grandchildren, and 7 great-great-grandchildren. She was married to Arlo B. Davidson of Safford in 1935. Together they worked in the Gila Valley running movie theaters for Louis Long. They later moved to Phoenix and then to Chandler in 1945 where Vivian ran Davidson's Reliable Hardware and Arlo was a mail carrier. Affectionately known as "Mrs. Reliable" she served the household needs of the community for over 30 years. After she retired, she moved to Mesa to work in the Arizona Temple. In her lifetime, she served in many capacities for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, making the most of each and every calling. As a mother, she was a vigilant teacher and very supportive of her children's many talents and activities. Services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, May 30 at the Miller Ward Building, 933 E. Brown Road, Mesa with a visitation 1 hour prior at 10:00 a.m. Burial will be at Valley of the Sun Cemetery, Chandler. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Hospice of the Valley, 1510 E. Flower St., Phoenix, AZ. Arrangements by Bueler Mortuary.

Saturday, May 16, 2009

Baby Shower

The baby shower last night was awesome! Thanks to Allison, Tami, Jennifer, Lisa, Marivi, and everyone else who helped and/or came. The food was great, the company even better. The best part? No boys (father-son campout). I loved everything - you did a wonderful job, so thank you ladies! I'll post photos later. By the way, onesies totally rock!

Monday, May 4, 2009

May Day!

No, we're not calling for help. The weather has been so amazing, it's almost cause to celebrate. Last weekend, we went to the beach and had a wonderfully relaxing time. Bryant and Jeff built an evil lair - complete with traps - and I wandered up and down collecting shells. We tried a new beach this time, with finer sand, and liked it a lot. It's at Anastasia State Park. They have RV camping spots there with water and electric hookups. We'll probably take a long weekend after school lets out and go stay for a couple of days. There's windsurfing, kayak, and canoe rentals as well as a fish cleaning station. There's also an old coquina quarry and nature trail. It should prove to be a good weekend.
In a couple of weeks, some friends of mine are throwing me a baby shower. It's going to be at our house because Jeff and Bryant are going on a father/son campout. They bought a new tent and a couple of cots. Bryant is really excited about it, but he's a little bummed about missing the shower. He made me promise to save him a cupcake.
Decluttering is done and the stuff is shipped off to Goodwill. It's amazing how clean the house stays when there's not a lot of junk in the way. It takes less than 30 minutes to completely clean the house most mornings. That's going to really nice once the baby is born.
Speaking of which - he's doing just fine. My blood pressure is staying down (thank heavens!) and he's growing like a weed. He spends most his time squirming and stretching and making me just plain uncomfortable. Today, I laid down for a nap and he kicked and moved for over an hour. No sleep for me. Sigh.
Jeff finished painting Corbin's room (by the way, that's the name we've chosen) about a week ago. It looks great. Bryant helped put the crib up and I put Winnie the Pooh decals on the walls. I've also recovered the bumper pad in dard blue. All that's left is the curtain, a pillowcase, a crib sheet, and his dresser. Then we're done.
Ooh! Funny thing happened while making dinner tonight. I was making baked potatoes. Less than a minute before the timer went off, I heard a *pop*. I checked it out and found potato guts all over the inside of my oven. One of the potatoes had exploded! Poor Jeff will have to help clean it up because I can't quite get in there.
Only five more weeks of school! We're getting excited. Every day it gets hotter and hotter walking down to the bus stop and back. Thank goodness for air conditioning! Still, we're sweating by the time we get home in the afternoons. We are SO going to be living at the pool and beach this summer.