Wednesday without Words (on Thurs.)

Love is in the Air

Happy St. Valentine's day!

I must say, Valentine's Day has always been a Holiday we celebrated, but in a low-key kind of way. I am a believer that picking one specific day to show some lovin' is pretty disconnecting. We, at the Isla Casa, try our best to make it Valentine's everyday. So normally on THIS day, we incorporate creating some gifts for teachers and friends and then maybe out to dinner. Simple enough.

Oh, I do enjoy enjoy seeing the crafts that other moms/parents come up with for their kid's exchange. Aren't these so cute? Toddler parents always hook it up...


I should know ;o)

It's no secret that being at the hotel has really put a damper on a lot of our normal routines, especially if you slap in a Holiday. But I did my best and managed to score some "in demand" Spongebob and Transformers V-Day cards as well as a couple of gifts in my running around. Teage had a good time stuffing his candy/gift bags. And YES, the ladies do love you...


The movers were also slated to come the day after V-Day (today) so we had much organizing to do on the actual Holiday. Soooo you can only imagine the look on my face when George whisked me away to the jewelry store and laid this one on me...

"Pick out your ring babe..."

(Choke)

"Huh?"

I about fainted right there. He had been mentioning it to me the last 2-3 years that I was in need of an upgrade to my original bridal set. As most my peeps know...I am not the girl that likes to be dripping in bling (too much can be tacky, ya know?). I am also not a fan of gold. And besides, I am that stubborn wife who says, "There's so much I could do with that kind of moolah...it's not necessary" (insert the 2-3 years). But...WTF?! I mean ok...who cares if it was our tax refund dollars hard at work. He gave me open reign and there I was...in bauble heaven!! Happy V-DAY to MAMA!!!


Doesn't just make you s-iiiii-ng? I am still in shock...

The icing was when he told me, "You're my wife and I love you. It's been 16 years of you and me. You deserve something beautiful." *tear, sniff* Eff Cupid...Love me some hubby action :o)

I don't think my gift of a spa massage with some truck accessories really measured up. It seemed so lame and definitely paled in comparison...even though he assured me he loved it. The kids received some chocolate, a couple games, some spy gear, and beauty supplies for the girlie. What a fabulous "pick me up" after all that has happened recently.

Moral of this story is...even though love shouldn't be pigeonholed to one day, it's ok to up the ante every now and then. THIS is one Holiday I will never forget!

P.S. Hey, snow fairy. Can you take a chill pill and stop denying kids of their education. They REALLY want to get back to school...



Lovestruck,

Craft Time

Getting my "craft on" is something I miss...and will be getting back into as soon as my craft table gets here from the states. I CAN'T WAIT! But that doesn't mean I can't keep channeling that desire through Teage's craft projects. The other day we did our first official Thanksgiving craft..woo hoo! I love turkeys...deep-fried preferably...sorry Mr Gobble! And I love a classic....so here's Teage's Turkey Tribute!

First we started with the old hand trace...he's looking thrilled already.


Then, it's time to cut it out and smear glue all over it (his favorite part).


Add some feathers, some legs made out of pipe cleaners, and a beak of course.


Admire your work intensely and...


Flash that winning smile!!


Next up, Christmas Ornaments...

Spooky Days!

What a FUN week we had... (* click to enlarge photos *)

As Family Fun Activities Coordinator in the Fam Bam, I stacked the week with many expeditions, some haunted and some not. First things first, last weekend we went to the October Carnival downtown. I was completely ecstatic to go since it has been over 10 years since I visited my old stomping grounds....err, fairgrounds, the South Florida Fair. I didn't realize how much I missed the food, exhibits, overpriced object throwing games, and rides until we stepped foot onto the Messeplatz Fairgrounds here. I guess they must have German scouts that scour the US looking for great rides to use because all the oldies and goodies were there. I'm talking the Himalaya, the Round-Up, the crickety old roller coaster, the house of mirrors, and of course THIS....

It was known as the Pirate Ship in my day and it is evil!!! I would rather have my tonsils removed than plant my behind on this thing! This is also the case when it comes to any tower of terror, elevator drop, or bungee jump contraption. Saige & JD ran up to the pirate ride with no hesitation. I wasn't sure if they realized the life or death risk they were embarking on...but who am I to pass my judgments onto others? Everyone needs to experience life's little thrills, right? Oh, and I didn't realize there were naked, hookah women all over the backdrop until today when loading up my photos on the desktop.


I'm assuming nobody noticed...because the kids were shell-shocked!! I could hear Saige screaming from the sky. And JD had this "That was fun, but I don't want to EVER do that again" look on his face.

Mom's ARE a wealth of information you know...and have a pretty good idea on how to keep their kids alive.

Here's my cameo...getting off, I mean running off, the rickety roller coaster that I promise was made in the 1920's. And yes, that is George holding Teage (he insisted he was not too little to endure this...They would have NEVER let him on this ride in the states) but you know in Europe, they could care less. Your kid can smoke & drink at age 16 here...go figure!!


Teage wanted to get on every mini-car ride he could catch in his sights. He kept trying to find the big rigs saying, "Where's O-timus Prime?"...cutie!




There was also the pony/horse rides, and T was all about it. I always felt so bad for the horses and their life of circular hell at these venues. I just hope they get to graze on big, green pastures during their off-time and enjoy whatever it is that big, green pastures have to offer :o) Either way, you gotta love a horseback ride....


While the similarities were evident at the good old fair, there were some differences.

Like how about you play a little ball throwing game to win your very own German beer stein?!


Sooo much better than winning a big stuffed animal that ends up in the basement because you have too much crap!! We didn't win one by the way...

Or Jim Bob Becker, the talking moosehead, chillin' atop a drink stand...


Perhaps you would expect to see pumpkins run amok, since it is Fall. BUT, is this what comes to mind?

...ok, maybe it is ;o) That gourd is smoking, for real! And what about those eyes?? Hmmmm...

Good Times at the Kaiserslautern Fall Carnival!!

Next up, we spent a weeknight taking the kids to the Ramstein Community Center for the "Family Friendly" Haunted House.


That's my kind of Haunted House! I don't "do" Haunted scare-me places ever since I peed my pants heavily at the awkward age of 11...Location: Haunted Woods in Tennessee. There's more to that story...some of you know it and if you don't, well ask me sometime.

So it was super small, and very not spooky, well....except for that guy that grabbed my ankles while I was trying to get JD to go through this tube.


I thought they weren't supossed to touch you in haunted houses....FREAK!

T & J had fun and even Saige got in on the action afterward...more like caught in the action.


There was a craft table set up across from the haunted room...and the kids each chose one to do. Teage decided to cut out a pumpkin. I had to show this. He's completely unaware of his little concentration quirk...but WOW, I'm totally impressed by his scissor skills!


JD just spent the whole time admiring his spider ring and drawing the Haunted Mansion.


Finally, the big day came. I swear, Teage was asking me up to 20 times a day if it was Trick or Treat time yet. He was super-excited to really use his Batman costume properly. He has been putting it on everyday to mentally prepare for his role. However, on Thursday I realized I couldn't locate the dang thing. With our painting and organizing of the house still going on, I was worried we'd never find where he stashed it. Luckily, it was stuffed under his tykes table in a ball. Anyway, JD was none other than...the Joker! Of course they both wanted to be each others nemesis. In this case the enemy towers over the hero, but what a great duo...


Don't ask me about the make-up...I figured the Joker is really not a make-up artist either so I just smeared it, I was channeling the Heath Ledger version. Plus, I was in the back of our truck and it was dark (don't worry, we weren't crackheads on the side of the road...we were downtown that afternoon and so we just packed our Halloween essentials with us to go on base). Saige didn't "dress-up". Unless you call wearing Stitch ear barrettes in your hair and Stitch T-Shirt dressing up (and yes, she wore that last year, too...even though I bought her cutie masks for this year, grown kids are so weird sometimes). She still looked cute of course!

What a great night...even if it was 40 degrees!! Check out the rest of the pics from T or T night! (JD really takes his character seriously...just sayin')




Once I told them I was happy with the amount of candy they retrieved for me, we piled in the truck to defrost and go to dinner. Teage was passed out before we even made it to the parking lot. Back to the food. I have been craving Thai food like a psychotic woman since being here (talk about irony). I brought my frozen camera inside to snap a picture (like I have been meaning to) of my usual green curry chicken dish and once again, I couldn't contain myself and gobbled up the whole bowl before shooting it. Blasts!! I did manage to catch the kids' fortunes from their cookies...do they secretly know my kids at the fortune cookie factory or WHAT?!

Saige's:



JD's:


This is what I saw when we pulled into the driveway and looked back...Saige was awake and didn't hesitate to inform me how mean it was for me to take a picture of JD like that. She knows anything snapped by momma has potential to go up on the World Wide Web I guess. LOL! How cute that she stands up for him though.

Terrific week!!!!

Last note...I went to the Red Ribbon Run this past weekend for a newsletter article I am writing and there were an astounding amount of people out there. I just want to give a shout-out to DARE, MADD, SADD, and Nancy Reagan for helping us Just Say No!! I pass on the message to stay safe...and call a cab if you ever have one too many glasses of Spooky Sangria!!


Now it's late and this blog has officially consumed practically all of my Sunday. So, as my kids put it...

Making my own Circle of Angels

I posted my Wednesday without Words with a picture of one my Angels I have around the house. Last week, while I was staying at the Perez house, I got a call from Geo saying my angel shelf in the stairwell had fallen and all my angels had broken...except for my Hope Bear (because it is stuffed). I almost cried. I have been collecting angels for about 12 years and my favorite ones were the ones that made it to the shelf. The shelf I bought at Ikea in Germany and was a heavy, sturdy, classic piece that could fit in every room. The shelf is in tact of course...but its tenants are gone. I should have seen the sign in this happening...a bad omen if you will. A sign that my husband needs to stop telling me we have orders...unless I am holding them IN MY HAND!!

Yes, I am just sick about it...I know he means well and WANTS to give the good news we so desperately have been waiting for....but CRAP, I don't think I can handle one more peak or damn valley! He got an email from the main personnel division saying we are all set and so that snowballed into him telling me from the other room "We have orders"!!! I tried to disprove him right away because it seemed too good to be true and my hope meter has been bobbing on 'hopeless' the past weeks...but he assured me that it was the message we had been waiting on. The next day he was sadly told that message was automatically generated and the orders were still waiting on Germany's reply about JD.

*Crush*

So the wait is still not over ...at this point I have raised my arms to Jesus, the Angels and surrendered. I give up! There MUST be a reason for all this stress and last minute planning ahead of us. I will let you know when I figure that part out. I think my husband feels bad about leading me astray...but he's too proud and disappointed himself to say that I think. So we are trying to pretend like it's not happening so we can refrain from going MAD! That's the latest and it sucks...

So you can see now why the angels' demise was a little more devastating than just a 'shelf falling and breaking'. Hence the clay angel post on Wednesday.

I decided to make a new circle of Angels...and started last night making my first Kokeshi Doll with some of my friends here. It was fun and helped occupy my mind a great deal. Here's a little history on The Kokeshi...they are handmade wooden dolls originally from northern Japan and used as souvenirs for visitors. They have been used to represent a healthy child, ward off evil, prevent fire, or used as simple massage tools. So, we had a great girl teaching the mini class to us and I got my creative juices flowing...

Here's how it started...


And the whole gang...I mean GANG exactly how you think. We ride deep yo!!


My final product...I think I will call her "Round Eye Angel".

I love the way her face and hair came out. Her obi, which is on her back (made of purple and red crepe paper and ribbon), has been officially changed to wings! My new angel will look good on the updated shelf in Germany.

Speaking of angels ....I have to give a shout out/bon voyage to one of my good friends here...Angel!

She is a joy and sassy...just how I like them! Thanks for being always keepin' it real...there's not many of us left :o)

Oh, I also wanted to mention that my very own angel, Saige, has been quite the little fashionista lately. Her and her friends have been upgrading their t-shirts with new designs. I bought her this book a while back that has 101 ways to reform your t-shirts. They got really into it and her first creation was not too shabby. I love where she cropped the middle. I went in her room and found SEVERAL of her clothes in a pile to "fix". I need to go through that I think...knowing her she is about to cut up one of the new ones she just 'had to have' in the store. "Expression is good, expression is unique"....that's my new chant!!



Hark...I think I hear an angel coming to save me!! Please hurry! Until next time...