Isn't he dreamy? Thanks Laura and Patrick! And thank you to my good friends DD and Katy for the referral! Cupcakes are coming your way today, and I don't want to hear anything about your diet either!

So it's Friday before the long weekend and I'm totally caught up. Miracles happen. Today I'll be focusing on the other important parts of my life, like using a gift certificate to the spa that my thoughtful friend DeAnna gave me. Then I will brave the self-tanning machine again. I'm too lazy to find the story I wrote a couple years ago about my Mystic Tanning near- death experience. Suffice it to say it should've been called Auschwitz Tanning Chamber. Since then, Katy found one that isn't as traumatic. You still have to get into the coffin box of horror, but the machine-lady-voice warns you before each pummeling of toxins. I did it once, and have been putting off going back. But girls night is tonight, so I have no more room for procrastinating. The things we do to hide ten pounds.

Tomorrow I get to take the girls to their first ballet lesson of the year (woo!), and Sunday we're going to a four year old's birthday party at a castle. Um, how guilty do I feel about Emily's birthday now?! :0) I will bring my camera, and might even blog over the weekend...seeing as I'm totally caught UP! Yippee!!

If you live in San Antonio, maybe you noticed that the Living show has a new format now. On Monday, we went down to surprise and congratulate Shelly. Then she said if we promised to turn off our cell phones, we could watch the whole show from their new prop couch. It was fun. And she was so cool under pressure, even after the main feature of the show had to be cancelled. They'd originally planned to interview a bunch or mommies at a coffee shop about the first day of school. But the truck broke down, and she had to fill five minutes on the fly. That's when I would have broken into terets and passed out. But she filled them up like it was nothing. Go girl!

The groupies.

Congrats again Shell!

Surely makes you lose your mind.

One day Emily is turning three.

The next day, we're celebrating 14 years together.

Well, kind of.

Emily's birthday  was celebrated almost a month late. I had some mommy-guilt about it, because Annie's Princess Party was such a big deal. But the weeks got away, and all I could pull off was a cake and some toys for Emily. I know it's not exactly scarring. But you know we moms find all kinds of reasons to beat ourselves up.

This shot above, is us on the way to dinner. The sitter had waited for a half an hour while I tried not to get mascara in my bangs, and pretended my Spanx wasn't cutting off circulation to my toes. It's not ideal. But I guess it's better than our past "celebrations", which consisted of "let's save money and just buy each other cards." Then we'd forget and pull them out of a drawer a week later, "oh yeah, I meant to tell you I still like you, and I'm glad you're here."

Then there was the first day of school on Monday...complete with "I hate your camera" second grader; and "cheeeeeeese" KINDERGARTENER.

Made me feel like crying to type out that big huge kindergarten word. And I'm not sure if it's because my baby is growing up. Or if it's because THEY ALMOST SHIPPED HER OFF TO A RANDOM DAY CARE YESTERDAY. I know everyone gets overwhelmed on the first day. And God knows I don't want to be "that bitch mom" that the they talk about in the break room. But it's scary when your 5 year old almost gets shipped across town without your knowledge. When I asked her how that happened, she said that since I "hadn't turned in my paper, she didn't know where Annie was supposed to go". PHONE CALL WOULD HAVE BEEN NICE.

And as if writing that paragraph hasn't gotten me wound up enough, I'm now going to make MORE COFFEE, and say a prayer that my daughter makes it through another brave day in this crazy, way too fast-paced world we live in.

Come post "crap" shots with me over here today!  :0)

Gotta get the kids off to school and all that, but I'll be back later with more.

If I had time, I'd take a picture of the rain drops on my window. They're making me so happy. I hope it storms while I'm reading later. Even though I finished The Glass Castle last night. It was so good that as the end approached, I was counting down pages. Thought I had three left, only to find out that the last two were BLANK! Don't you hate that?! It's like being immersed in the best conversation, only to have someone run abruptly out the door. I wanted to hear what happened next, and next, and next. So I ran upstairs and googled everything I could about Jeannette Walls. I wish she had a BLOG! I would totally stalk her. And anyway, now I'm in the zone. I need another book recommendation! Michelle said to get this one, and she's the book guru, so I will. Any other ideas? I want a page turner!

Now meet the Bruner Family. I knew I loved her when she suggested dragging her gorgeous couch out onto the front lawn.

Aren't they the sweetest?! Thanks you guys! And thank you Karen and Carrie Friesenhahn for the referral.

Have a fabulous weekend!