Another Holiday Season Gone . . .

Now it's back to the daily grind. I've had 2 weeks off at work and I'm back today . . feeling quite refreshed. The holiday break was nice . . but a bit crazy at the same time.

Grandma Sharon was scheduled to arrive on Christmas Eve. However, Old Man Winter decided to bless us with a blizzard on Christmas Eve so Grandma Sharon had to wait in the Dallas airport for 24 hours to get a flight to Tulsa. She arrived Christmas EVENING around 7:00. What a bummer!!! Once she got here, we had a great time. It's always nice having Grandma Sharon around. Larry love to get actual home-cooked food and Kayla loves being spooled . . and I just like having someone around who doesn't expect anything from me! In fact, "Mommy" just takes over when she comes and practically takes care of us all. We did a LOT of shopping and house decorating and cooking and cleaning. She had to return to Corpus Christi on Friday, January
1st and we already miss her.

Kayla?? Well . . let's just say that Kayla is going through a particularly ornery stage. She's got a sassy little mouth on her and, at this point, I'm scared to see what she'll be like as a teenager. She was just a little pain in the rear most of the break. I think she was a bit over-stimulated by all the goings on as her behavior improved drastically after we dropped Grandma Sharon at the airport and it was just her and I for a while. But . . . regardless . . . I love her . . . ornery behavior and all.

For Christmas, Kayla got A LOT of stuff. Santa tends to go a bit overboard. He brought her a 3-drawer rolling cart FULL of Arts & Crafts stuff. Kayla LOVES to do Arts & Crafts. In fact, she'd be just fine without any toys as long as she had supplies to make her wonderful creations. I love that quality in her. She loves to use her imagination.

I do plan to add some holiday photos soon. I've got them all on my camera just waiting to be downloaded. Right now, I'm focusing on a few resolutions. I resolve to be a more patient mother and wife. I resolve to get my fat butt in shape and slim in 2010 (hey, that rhymes!). I resolve to keep myself organized and not procrastinate. I hope that I can look back next year and be proud of myself for reaching my goals. We shall see!!

H1N1 Comes to the Buchanan Household

Uggg . . . H1N1 . . . Swine Flu . . . whatever you want to call it . . . it came to visit our house last week. Kayla went to bed feeling fine . . . and woke up the next morning with a temperature of 102 and a cough. My mommy insticts just KNEW it was H1N1 and I was right. We headed straight for urgent care and a couple hours later walked out with prescriptions (for all of us) for Tamiflu. The good news is the Swine Flu was the EASIEST flu I ever encountered, at least for us. Had it not been for the swab test at the Urgent Care . . I would have never believed Kayla had more than a mild cold. Kayla was thrilled to be home from school and even more thrilled when I told her that now she would not require the H1N1 vaccination.

In total, I was off work for 9 straight days. It was a short week because of Thanksgiving so with the additional 2 days off for sickness and a few weekends in there, it turned into a mini vacation. Didn't realize exactly how much I needed a break until I came back to work today. I feel refreshed!!

Let's see . . . what has Miss Kayla been up to lately. Right now she is so exacted about going to see Hensley (Janeen's daughter) this weekend. Hensley's birthday party is on Saturday so we're heading down Friday night. Janeen and I always have a great time together. There's never a lapse in conversation. Kayla and Hensley take off and do their own thing. They remind me so much of Janeen and I as little girls.

Kayla will be heading back to school tomorrow. She was out of school again today for a Professional Day. She has been LOVING being home so much. Can't say I blame her. She has spent most days working on her "crafts". She is absolutely obsessed with printing stuff off the computer. She has printed tons of coloring sheets. In fact, she made a whole binder of coloring sheets to give to Hensley. I'm glad she enjoys doing stuff besides watching TV and playing video games. I like that she wants to use her imagination. She gets real excited about the "Diji"(sp?) medals that she finds on the "Special Agent Oso" website. You should see her face light up when she finds a new one.

Ok . . so this whole post is kind of random but I guess that's just how I feel today.

I'm reading in my mind . . .

That's what Kayla says when she reading to herself. Last night on the way to dance, she was reading the library book she checked out from the school library. I glanced in the rear view mirror and saw her lips moving . . . but no sound . . . which is unusual since Kayla tends to read everything out loud. So . . I asked her . . . "Are you reading to yourself?" . . . and she said, "No! I'm reading in my mind!"

I just thought that was too cute.

So . . Kayla's Fall dance program was tonight. It was basically a quick performance they did for the parents during the last 30 minutes of class time. They all did great. However, I'm pretty sure Kayla is NOT going to be a professional ballerina when she grows up. Sweet girl tries so very hard but she is NOT graceful at all. Think I'll put her in a hip-hop class next year!

This morning, she was awake but still in bed when I left for work. Daddy is taking her to school so I got off to an early start. She stopped me about 20 times before I actually left wanting "just one more" hug and kiss. She's got some STINKY morning breath! But, I always oblige because I know one day I'll miss those hugs and "sugars". One day she'll be embarrassed when I want to give a hug and kiss before she leaves for school. She'll roll her eyes at me and walk out the door . . . or get in her car and drive off! I am so amazed each day at how fast the time has gone.

It's been almost 8 years since I found out I was pregnant with her (February 1st to be exact!). I remember wondering what she would look like . . . how she would sound . . . what she would like . . . what she would dislike . . . would she be shy or outgoing . . and the list goes on. I wondered what she would be like at the age she is now and that time just seemed so far away. Now it's here . . and I now it's just a blink of an eye before she'll be a grown woman. It's bittersweet.

Kayla and the Bunnies . .

Funny story . . . today Kayla and I were on our way to the school and a rabbit scurried across the road in front of us. I slowed down so Kayla could see him and we talked about what the bunny might be doing. She told me she thought it might be a baby looking for his Momma. I told her I thought it might be a Momma looking for food for her babies. That got her thinking.

You see . . . a few years ago we had this bunny that would show up in our yard from time to time. I think he was a bunny who was displaced when they started developing the area behind our house. Anyway, Kayla would get such a kick out of this bunny. We haven't seen him in some time. So, Kayla told me this morning that we need to start putting a carrot out in the yard so the bunny will come back. Of course, I know we're more likely to end up with racoons and rodents than bunnies . . . but in her sweet, innocent, 7-year-old mind . . . all it takes to bring back the bunny is a carrot in the yard.

I adore her.

I'm going to change subjects for a moment . . .

The other day while perusing a Caringbridge site for a friend's baby (Cash Caywood) who has a dreadful type of cancer, I stumbled across the email address of one of my closest friends from my days in Ringwood. Her name is Janeen Scheurer (Fritzler now) and we were the best of buddies while growing up. She lived right down the road from me. I have so many memories with her . . . staying overnight at one another's house . . . sneaking out of one another's house (sorry Jim and Joann!) . . . going to church together . . . . riding bikes to one another's houses . . . you name it . . we did it. It was such an innocent time in my life. I always said I wanted to get the heck out of Ringwood and here I sit at 35 year old . . . longing for the simple life I had growing up.

And I miss my dear friends.

Back to Janeen - I emailed her and she was just as surprised to hear from me as I was to find her. We've talked/emailed every day since and I'm planning a trip to Enid in a few weeks to visit her. She has 3 kids (2 from her first husband, Mark and one from her current husband, Jay). It seems so odd that we are grown with children and families of our own. Some days I still feel like a child . . . . like I'm just pretending to be a grown-up.

Janeen knows that person that few people get to know today . . . the REAL Jennifer. She knows my past . . and all the good and bad things about it that make me who I am today. She's knows the person that comes out when I quit hiding from my feelings. She understands that underneath my dry sense of humor is a person with a wide range of feelings and emotions. She remembers me when I was that kid that wet the bed . . . when I thought my cat, Felix, had died and I was tore up . . . when my parents divorced . . . . when my sister went crazy and my parents all but forgot about me as they tried to figure out how to "fix" her . . . when I got my heart broke . . . when I started driving and we'd take "Big Red" to Enid to go cruising down Van Buren . . . . when I went to prom. There is just so much history there and it feels good to talk to her and know that she just gets me.

I'm so excited to see my dear friend again. Though it's been over 10 years since we've seen each other, it feels as if no time has passed. We both have a few more battle wounds . . . but deep down we're still those two crazy girls playing in her dad's hi-lo camper in her backyard.

Kayla is going to be hacked!!

I left for work this morning before she woke up. She hates when I do that. She can't understand why I don't wake her up to tell her "Bye". One day, she'll appreciate the fact that I allow her additional uninterrupted sleep.

Speaking of sleep, Kayla fell asleep at 7 last night. I finished cleaning the kitchen after dinner . . . sat down with Larry to watch some T.V. . . . and then realized I didn't hear Kayla anywhere. When I went in the front room, there she was asleep on the couch. She slept all the way through and was still asleep this morning when I left at 6:45. Girl must have been tuckered out!

I'm going to try to get video of Kayla doing her new dance. It is the absolute funniest thing I've seen in a long time. She does these circles with her hands and bobs up and down. However, the look on her face just makes the whole thing.

That's about it for now. Oh . . today is Papa Benny's birthday so I called him this morning to wish him a Happy Birthday. Kayla just adores her Papa Benny. He'll play with her for hours . . even if it involves dress up or make up.

35!!!

Now how the hell did that happen? Wasn't I just 21 last year?? So, I'm 35 now and the big day was pretty uneventful. Got up Saturday morning and Larry gave me TWO birthday cards. One card had a $50 gift card to Marshall's and, since I LOVE to shop, this was just perfect. Kayla and I were a couple "Lazy Taters" and didn't actually leave the house until after noon. We made a trip to Marshall's, Target . . . and PUMP IT UP! Kayla's friend Saycia had her birthday party there and since it's my favorite place (can you hear my eyes rolling) we made an appearance. After the party, Kayla and I met Larry and Joe's Crab Shack for my FAVORITE food ever . . . CRAB!!!


Let me rewind for a bit. Last Monday, I left to go to Los Angeles for work. Ok . . . so it was more play than work but since work paid for the trip . . . we'll call it work. We had our annual tax return review meeting which went well. My WONDERFUL boss, Mr. Stutts, even brought in my absolute favorite treat . . Sprinkles cupcakes. I ate two strawberry cupcakes that morning and took the leftovers back to my hotel room. Mmmmmmm . . . cupcakes.


Sprinkles cupcakes are absolutely divine. If you ever get the chance, get one (or 6)!



We also went to a L.A. Dodgers baseball game while in L.A. It's always fun to do a little celebrity watching at these things. This time, I saw Larry King. Apparently Pat Sayjak and Jane Seymour were there too but I didn't see them.


The last night in L.A., we went to a restaurant in Beverly Hills called Wolfgang's. It was a DELICIOUS steakhouse. However, my favorite part of the experience was the restrooms. Now that was some crazy stuff straight out of Star Trek. Unfortunately I didn't take (nor could I find) any pics but this bathroom had a freakin' control panel. I wasn't sure whether to pee . . or press rape charges against the thing.


Oh . . . the super cool part was I walked right past Marcia Cross from Desparate Housewive (Bree . . the red-head) as we were walking to the restaurant. I put on my "I'm cool . . I hang with celebs all the time" face but inside I was like . . AWESOME!!


OK . . back to this weekend.

Sunday, Kayla and I ventured out to a few car lots since Larry had to work. I'm in the preliminary phase of car shopping. This is the phase where I go out looking . . . fall in love with several cars . . . . then talk myself out of buying one . . . . then decide I really should buy a new one . . . then decide I'm being too impractical and should be looking at something less expensive . . . then decide "Damn it . . I'm worth it!" The end result is that some time between now and 2 years from now I might actually commit to buying a car. But, for your consideration, I'm attaching a couple of my personal favs.

The Infiniti G37 -

The BMW 328i Hard-Top Convertible -

Finally, we ended our afternoon at the Tulsa Just Between Friends sale. This is a HUGE consignment sale held at the fairgrounds twice a year. Got some GREAT deals on clothes for Kayla. Here she is hanging outside the expo building at the fairgrounds after we FINALLY made it through the crazy long line.