Ten On Tuesday

I don't usually do these but I figured this would be the best way to catch up. (The order has more to do with how blogger loaded everything not necessarily chronological)
1.
My cousin Danielle came down from Ohio and her lovely boyfriend Ben drove her all the way from Tampa to see us. We went to The Rainforest Cafe. Right before she arrived I looked at the coffee mugs and noticed these two names. I check these racks religiously just in case they ever decide to make an Aubrey. I do not usually see my grandparents names together like that.

2. In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month I donated my ponytail to the Florida Hospital Cancer Center's Eden Spa for Image Discovery. Due to the dress code at work I could not get their October Promotion so I decided to cut and donate my hair. As a fundraiser they are giving hot pink hair extensions to anyone who donates ten or more dollars at their location.

3. School seems to be going well for Aubs. Today we had a lesson in Play-doh Diplomacy.

4.
This is our fall foods picnic. They did not have the items I needed to make the dinner I wanted to eat at Publix so we just went with plan B. The items were homemade Pumpkin Muffins and Mrs. Craig's Apple Dip. Some days I just like to be different.

5. Thursday is officially 10 years since I moved to Florida.

6. Carly and I will be celebrating 10 years as friends. I do not usually remember the date of when I meet people. Unfortunately the morning I started working at FAO I was awakened by a call letting me know that someone very dear to my heart had passed away suddenly. I decided to celebrate instead of mourn this year.

7. Pumpkin Spice Latte's are back at Starbucks.

8. I went to Halloween Horror Nights last week. This may not seem like a big deal but to anyone who knew me before 2001 knows that Haunted Houses and I did not get along. I used to cover my eyes, shake, and sometimes cry if someone made me go through. Thanks to my brother's coaching I now think they are a riot and love to see the make-up and try to figure out which props are actually boo holes.

9. I think that a Marine is to Aubrey what A Ghost was to Bobby. She will be a Marine again for Halloween this year. I believe this may have quite a bit to do with #10. She was given the glossy version and believes that the Marines kick the bad guys.

10.
Jake left for Iraq on Sunday. This young man means the world to us. Please pray for the safety of him and the other men in his unit.

Prayers To All

Prayers to everyone at home. I just read the reports about Ike causing some major damage up that way. I hope everyone is safe and well.

Conversations With My 5 Year Old

Aubs on sharks.

A: What is in the woods?

M: Trees and animals.

A: Maybe bears?

M: Possibly.

A: Maybe there is a lake with sharks and alligators.

M: Alligators probably but no sharks. Sharks require salt water.

A: So they can live in pools.

M: No, they cannot live in pools. They need salt water.

A: They can live in some pools. Daddy has salt at his store for pools. (For salt generators)

M: Sharks cannot live in pools.

A: Can they live in a saltwater pond?

M: No, their food isn't there.

A: Sharks only eat fish and people that swim to deep and close to them.

9/11/08

This photo is from Jesse's Air Force Graduation. Today I have been thinking how amazing Jesse and Jake are for choosing the Military path. They both knew there was a good chance they may be called overseas. Jake leaves in three weeks. I know this is what he trained for, I know he is brave, and I know he will carry the prayers of all of us with him. I am still worried.

This year's anniversary is so different for me. Today Aubs is old enough to question why today is a sad day. I remember those feelings so vividly from that morning that when Aubs asked today I couldn't help but cry.

The longest ten minutes of my life happened when I couldn't find Carly. She had been in New York on the tenth and I couldn't remember when her flight came home. The funny thing is looking back it was probably only one and a half minutes. The time to leave her a message and then call Jenny.

Prayers and Love to all today.

Why We Love Our Neighbors And Other Titles For Yesterday

- I am Superwoman And Can Push This Riding Lawnmower Out Of This Ditch.

- How To Add Gas To The Mower Without Dropping The Gas Cap In A Pile Of Fire Ants

- How To Make A Roasting Pan Double As A Casserole Dish When One Realizes They Underestimated The Size Of The Pyrex.

- Officer, I Am Really Sorry A Chunk Of Your Fence Got Caught In My Mower. (The neighbor happens to be a Sheriff's Deputy)

- How I Killed The Women's Lib Movement In One Simple Act Of Helping The Husband With The Mowing.

- I Got The Two Hour Ironing Down To One and A Half Hours. (The Pleats Will Not Win!)

- Don't Forget The Height Setting Of The Mower Or You May Just End Up With A Lawn That Closely Resembles A Marine Corps Recruit Hair Cut.

Contrary to the titles above I had a great and productive day yesterday. I managed to do all of my errands and visit with Kiera all before noon. Once I got home I was feeling a bit antsy and thought I would help Shawn by mowing the lawn. We are a bit behind since TS Fay came through since in order to effectively use the riding mower the lawn must be sort of dry we had to wait for the ground to sort of dry out. Once we were ready to go it started to rain again and things got postponed again. Yesterday I decided in true Missy fashion that I could totally do this myself. I got the mower out and set the blade to the highest setting for the first pass. My father taught me that when mowing the lawn each pass should overlap to ensure equal cutting. Since our lawn was a bit long I decided to go long first as to not choke the mower. The problem came when I tried to remember Shawn's setting for the regular cutting. I chose one a bit too short. When Aubs saw it she said "Wow, the lawn is short. At least you can wait longer to cut it again because it will take longer to grow back." During the course of the cutting I got the mower stuck in the ditch. I guess I did not allow the ground to dry enough. I had to push/pull it out myself. I could have gone to the lovely neighbor and asked for help but I was determined. I managed to get the mower out of the ditch and continue on my way only to grab a stray board from the neighbors fence. I did go to his door at that point. He got a good chuckle out of the situation and said that most of our side of the fence was a bit loose from the rain/storms. I only got stuck one more time and was able to fix it without a problem. I then decided to cook dinner. I am trying to cook enough food that I can get a few lunches out of the meal. I cooked two boxes of pasta last night and realized they would not fit in my casserole dish. I had to use the roasting pan. Anyone want some baked spaghetti?