Mixed bag on this one - the pro side - I get to sleep in tomorrow!  The negative side - wtf do I do with the kids for 3 months while I work?  I think were gonna join the Aerofit so they can swim and play a lot, and I can work mobile-y.  Guess all those fit people working out while Im sitting down pounding away on the keyboard will make fun of me. :)  Darcie, what to do??

I just got the cutest email from Noah’s teacher:

Somehow with Noah crying, Michael crying and many others, about leaving today, I totally forgot to give him his report card. 

Poor Noah was still blubbering when he got home this afternoon.  Oh the joys of 3rd grade - those were the days.  Ahhhh!!

1 cup of water
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup of sugar
1 tsp salt
1 cup of brown sugar
lemon juice
4 large eggs
1 cup nuts
2 cups of dried fruit
1 bottle Jose Cuervo Tequilla ( most important ingredient)

Sample the Cuervo to check quality. Take a large bowl, check the Cuervo again, to be sure it is of the highest quality, pour one level cup and drink. Turn on the electric mixer…Beat one cup of butter in a large fluffy bowl. Add one teaspoon of sugar…Beat again. At this point it’s best to make sure the Cuervo is still OK, try another cup … just in case. Turn off the mixerer thingy.

Break 2 leggs and add to the bowl and chuck in the cup of dried fruit, Pick the frigging fruit off floor… Mix on the turner. If the fried druit gets stuck in the beaterers just pry it loose with a drewscriver. Sample the Cuervo to check for tonsisticity. Next, sift two cups of salt, or something. Who giveshz a sheet. Check the Jose Cuervo. Now shift the lemon juice and strain your nuts. Add one table. Add a spoon of sugar, or some fink. Whatever you can ind. Greash the ubben. Turn the cake tin 360 degrees and try not to fall over. Don’t forget to beat off the turner. Finally, throw the bowl through the window, finish the Cose Juervo and make sure to put the stove in the dishwasher.

CHERRY MISTMAS!!

(thanks Mom!)

Image source (and a really good looking fruitcake cookie recipe!): Whats Cooking America.

To help out the hubby:

This is the Flip Video Ultra, in PINK, of course. This is a small video camera that can take up to one hour of video and easily transfer it where it needs to go (YouTube, AOL Video) in minutes, rather than hours. I can keep it in my purse all the time and be ready for great candid videos, instead of missing great stuff because I’m not lugging around the DV camera. It is a mere $149 at Amazon.

This is the 80 gig classic iPod. Although the touch iPod is cool, I just want the classic. I have resisted getting one of these, because I just don’t travel around too much, nor do I feel the need to have my tunes with me constantly. Everyone in our family that needs portable tunes has an mp3 player. What I want this for mostly is videos and podcast downloads (FREE ones…lol), and for learning how to maximize my multimedia exposure, and so I can help teach other folks how to do the same. Plus they are cool. Suz says so (*mwah*). $228 at Amazon.

I would love a new watch, but I can’t find one. Well, except for that pink Aquaracer Tag, and this TechnoMarine Pink Ceramique but I’m not a proponent of spending that much money on a watch that I will wear day in and day out, through cow shit, boating, digging in the dirt and doing dishes, so I’ll keep looking. Maybe I’ll find something reasonable for my birthday - but for now, my old Wenger is working great. I am way too picky about watches. Oy.

And with the BRAND NEW ULTA right down the road from me (YEAH - now we need a SEPHORA in town to compete - please, Sephora??), an Ulta gift card would be MOST appreciated! Now, if only MAC would come to town so I didn’t have to drive to Houston. In my wildest dreams. And, as always, a gift certificate to my beloved TJ Maxx would be awesome. I am assuming they have their credit card security handled. If you are worried, thankfully there is a store right down Hwy 30.

This is the AeroGarden Pro - this grows my kitchen herbs year round. I need this because our Texas dirt and minerally water sucks for growing stuff, and I am not a green thumb - try though I might. Herbs are expensive as crap to buy from the store too. Plus its cute and would bring some much needed greenery and life into this dark house. BB&B only carries the regular one, I would like the Pro version - I think it is a little bigger and worth the $10-20 more. Bigger IS indeed better. $169 at Amazon.

Let’s see - what else. I need an external hard drive, as my laptop is already running short of gigs, but thats pretty dull for Christmas stuff, plus I want to buy that locally so I can return it easily when it croaks on me. And there is my truck. I think I need about a $2000 gift certificate from the Chevy dealer for new shocks, new door opening/locking mechanisms and a new windshield. And I would like to paint it black.

Hopefully that gives you some good ideas, and at least some of it can be classified as business expenses. Yeah, I love my job.

[9:13:34 AM] Marshall says: What does Momma want for our anniversary?
[9:13:36 AM] Christina Jones says: (party)
[9:13:47 AM] Marshall says: this is a BIG one…5 years! WOOHOO>>
[9:14:02 AM] Christina Jones says: a trip to vegas and to win enough money to buy me a $10,000 purse knock off ($250)
[9:17:09 AM] Christina Jones says: truly for our anniversary, I want us to get something traditional - for whatever anniversary it is (looking now)
[9:17:17 AM] Christina Jones says: (hoping its diamonds)
[9:17:18 AM] Christina Jones says: LOL
[9:17:22 AM] Marshall says: LOL
[9:17:34 AM] Marshall says: hoping its the “gun” anniversary
[9:17:40 AM] Christina Jones says: (rofl)

So, I disappeared. We took a last minute long weekend trip to New Orleans to celebrate my husbands birthday - and had such a wonderful time, as always one does in New Orleans. I always have the best of blogging intentions when I go on vacation, but I faltered as I often do when I get to go somewhere! New Orleans is my favorite city, it is so beautiful and so historical and has such a different vibe than anywhere I have ever been.

It was fascinating hearing the hurricane stories - everyone called it “The Storm” and are still talking about it like it was yesterday. We are about to hit the 2 year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina in August, and I was really somewhat shocked to see the neighborhoods still with the X’s and body counts painted on them and the gutted homes that looked like they weren’t anywhere near rebuilding. And the number of camper cities. My heart is with all of those people, everyone there has a story - they always have, but now so many of the stories are similar. I wish I knew what I could do to help - I hope my patronage of the city helped in some way. The Essence Music Festival was going on this past weekend, after being held in Houston the year before because of the storm damage. While we didn’t attend any of the festival shows, the bands were jamming on and around Bourbon Street and we got plenty of awesome music there. The people were absolutely out in full force - an amazing crowd of people. I definitely got the feeling that this was a banner weekend for New Orleans, and that the people were so happy to have some of the liveliness (not to mention livelihood) back to their city. We were so happy to be a part of it.

Well, this may be my last interaction with technology for the next 8 days. Surely not. Surely I will be lucky enough to have internet at the Sandhiller Motel in Wray. Wray is where my mother is from, and is a teensy weensy farming town in the Northeastern corner of Colorado. No mountains here, just miles and miles and miles and miles and miles of wheat and corn fields. Which is lovely - I really do love going to Wray, and haven’t been in several years. Wray was named the “best home town in the U.S.,” 10 or so years ago, and these days their claim to fame is, well, a little nasty - they have tours to watch the prarie chickens “do their thing” during their mating season in the spring. You have to get up and out at 3 am to see this event though, so no one I know has witnessed it yet. We are going to Wray for Mom’s family reunion on the family farm - we have had many a good time there, no doubt - I really am very excited!

So, we are staying at the Sandhiller - this is the finest motel in town, and one of about two, possibly a third. The Butte, which is the only one I have ever stayed in, has cinderblock walls and really is more like a prison cell than a hotel room. But I love it. I just spotted a review of the Sandhiller at Yahoo:

My best advise to you is to buy a camper with a kitchen and save yourself the aggrevation by NOT doing business here. The rooms are nasty with dirty carpeting and old mold smell. When renting weekly, maid service is NOT included in the fee. On the restaurant side, the only safe meal to order is a steak. Anything else is poorly prepared & totally inedible. Too bad as there are too few places to eat in this little burg.

Hee hee - obviously he doesn’t *get* the charm of Wray. Pity. My cousins and I all adore this town. I am looking forward to staying at the fine Sandhiller myself! I am moving up in the world, getting to stay there instead of the Butte! There isn’t one photo of the Sandhiller on the entire internet, so I will be sure to make that my goal for the week. Although they claim to have internet available, I have had so many hard times getting online at MUCH more posh hotels, that I am not holding out much hope here. I hope and pray that I will not be technology-less for 8 days, but its a distinct possibility. So please don’t think I have fallen off the edge of the earth, I have just slipped into another dimension - one without computers, cell phones, Twitter, b5media or even too much beauty. I hope I can bring some of all of that to town tomorrow. If you REALLY need to reach me and my cell isn’t working and I have no internet (pleaseno), the number to the hotel is 970-332-4134 - give me a ring!

Oh, so I don’t forget - b5media hits the New York Times again tomorrow - but you can check it out now, right here. Go b5! Have a great week everyone, if I don’t see you (*eek*)!!!

Finally, Peyton wins the championship! Should have been in college, but leave it to Peyton to go big. Congrats Colts! w00t!!!

Marshall - this is for you, I know you will appreciate it. Don’t miss our little Angelina in there.

w00t!

Yay, my beloved bro has arrived for Christmas, perhaps he can help teach my children how to get along. Fat chance of that.