They Only *Look* Like Angels

All I wanted to do was take a nap while the girls sat beside me watching Strawberry Shortcake. All I ended *up* doing, was taking a nap, so as to give our *helpful* children (read: destructive fruit of my womb) time to demolish the house. In less than 30 minutes, they managed to:

Convince our color TV he had warped back to the 50’s, so he was all ‘I’m going back to black and white. Besides, black is slimming.’

Let our antique hutch in on the secret that *everyone* wears stuff faded these days. *Usually* in the middle. *Especially* in ginormous Jupiter-sized rings.

Pack the iPhone charger with so much green ‘stuff’ that she acts like she’s never even *seen* the iPhone before. They’ve been together since last year!!!!! Huzzy.

It’s a good day when September 18th rolls around, and for worthwhile reasons, I’ll be taking it *all* off, by being brave, and getting bald. You should too. Don’t make me sic my kids on you, because I will *so* do it.

Visit http://www.stbaldricks.org/ & www.stbaldricks.org/events/easttexas NOW. Please. :)

St. Baldrick’s, Mama Drama, & Other Fun Stuff

First and foremost, I just have to tell you how happy I am for the turnout we had at our St. Baldrick’s event over the weekend. I had been more than a bit worried, since I COMPLETELY dropped the ball on sending out press releases, making speeches, etc. when I got put on bed rest at the hospital. That being said, we raised around $3,500 for the organization! We had lots of people attend, and over 20 shaved their heads, including 3 girls! Woohoo ladies! A local motorcycle group found out the event the DAY before, yet donated all the drinks, $1,000, AND…one biker shaved around 15” off his hair before shaving it completely bald! It was awesome!!!!

We also had Baby Zoee Smith and her family with us. Zoee was diagnosed with cancer at 6 months of age. She is now 13 months old. Please leave words of support (and find out more about her) at http://www.babyzoee.com/ . There’s an upcoming fundraising event for her during May, and they still need sponsors and volunteers! Every little bit helps!!!!

Everything at the St. Baldrick’s event ran pretty smoothly, but it seems like anything I’m involved in generally has some drama, lol. My mom completely passed out after giving blood. She had some juice and crackers after donating, and then sat in a chair and asked for another drink. A few minutes later my dad and 2 workers from Carter BloodCare were trying to walk her over to the reclining donation chair, when she hit the floor. It wasn’t funny, but it was…especially since she was fine later.

A friend of mine also attempted to pass out. Fortunately she didn’t, and recovered soon after.

For those of you who know my brother, you know he can be, ahem *different* at times…or hell, all of the time. While my mother was in “recovery”, diphead swung around like a ballerina girl to swat at a balloon, when he supposedly dislocated his shoulder. I’m quite certain he’s full of crap, but that’s neither here nor there. I was absolutely mortified. If I could only show a picture of how STUPID he looked, and a video of his “performance”. Dragging his damn arm around walking hunched over like some version of Igor or the Hunchback of Notre Dame. I told him to get up and quit acting like an idiot. About 2 minutes later my Dad walked by him and said something to the effect of “D.B. Get up off the damn floor.” Some other onlookers were concerned, but a few friends pointed out to them that if I wasn’t concerned, and neither was my Dad, it was OK. About 20 minutes later the idiot was backing up about 10 feet from the wall, and then running at it full force with his shoulder to “pop it back into place”. Did he do this in a discreet location? Oh no…you need an audience for that sort of business. He did it right in the middle of everyone, acting a fool like nobody’s business. Makes me proud.

Other than that, it was a success! Can’t wait ‘til next year! And now...a few pictures!

M.I.A.

Sorry, I know, I know....I've been missing in action. You can thank our newest addition, The Duke. I was on bed rest for 8 days before he was born, and then he had to go and get all dramatic and stay in the NICU for another 7 days after his birth. He turned 2 weeks old on Monday, and is doing quite well now. He's become quite the pro at keeping me up all night.

The first few days I attemped to take a nap each day to try to catch up on lost sleep. Now I've figured out that that will NEVER happen. Instead I'm learning to adjust to less sleep, and feeling extra special if I happen to get to take a nap on a particular day.

My humor has suffered because of this. :) I, do hereby promise, a new and *funny* post will be coming soon.

Another excuse? I've also been swamped with preparations for the upcoming St. Baldrick's event this Saturday in Gladewater, from 12 - 3. There's still time to sign up for our event, or pick another one near you (nationwide). You can even register to be a virtual shavee. Of course, I'm always up for accepting donations to reach my shavee total. Just look for the event in Gladewater, TX at First United Methodist Church at http://www.StBaldricks.org .

So, my plate is slightly more full than usual. I'm sure I'll get used to it soon. I'm very blessed!!!!

My Turn Day...

I would LOVE LOVE LOVE for each and every one of you passing by this blog to take a minute and consider signing up to be a shavee this year for the St. Baldrick's Foundation, which raises money for pediatric cancer research. You set the goal, and if the donations meet your goal, you shave your head. That's all there is to it!

Just think...no more bad hair days, at least for a long while. No excuses about vanity. I'm a mother of 3, with 1 on the way, and I could always use a little extra time. By shaving my head, I'll save at least 20 minutes every morning "doing" my hair. Not to mention the main cause of bringing about awareness to pediatric cancers, and life-saving research!

C'mon...you can do it.....be brave - get bald!!!!

Just go to www.StBaldricks.org and find an event near you!

Now, it's your turn......

It's time to take it all off!

Your hair, that is!

It’s almost time for St. Baldrick’s 2009. This year it will be held on Saturday, March 14th, from 12:00 – 3:00 p.m. at FUMC in Gladewater, Tx (or you can visit www.St.Baldricks.org to find a location near you!)

Be brave and get bald! Absolutely NO excuses!!!!! It’s just hair, and it will grow back. If you’re insecure, buy a wig (or a sack!). This is all about the kids, and I plan on driving all of you so insane that you’ll agree to shave your head just so I’ll shut up and leave you alone. I don’t care if you don’t like me, don’t want to, blah, blah, blah. This is a great cause, and if you don’t agree, I don’t care. You’ll get over it.

Last year we raised just over $5,000, which completely blew me away. After all, the first amount I put on the website was only $250. I’d say we knocked that one out of the park! This year I’m upping the ante to $6,000, which should be no problem.

A few new things have been added this year. You can always visit the St. Baldrick’s website and buy t-shirts, mugs, mouse pads, license plates, shirts, etc. with the St. Baldrick’s logo.

You can also visit www.heartof.com, and designate the St. Baldrick’s Foundation as your charity of choice. Part of the proceeds of each purchase you make will help cure childhood cancer. Merchants include Apple iTunes, Barnes and Noble, Best Buy, Dale and Thomas Popcorn, Linens & Things, the Museum Store, Macy’s, PETsMart, Sharper Image, Toys R Us, and many more. You can even book your next trip with Expedia or Orbitz. When you enter this online mall, you’ll go right to each merchant’s own website to shop, and you’ll see upfront what percentage of your purchase price will come to the St. Baldrick’s Foundation. (Percentages vary by store; the average is 8%.) There’s even a page to show “Today’s Bargains.” So shop your heart out and help kids with cancer with every purchase! To join, go to www.heartof.com, and designate the St. Baldrick’s Foundation as your designated charity. (Hint: On the “join” page, choose California for the location and Children & Youth for your category, with keyword “Baldricks.")

Also, if you’re online EVER, GoodSearch.com is like any other search engine (and it’s powered by Yahoo!), but every search you make can generate funds for the St. Baldrick’s Foundation. Here’s how it works: Go to www.goodsearch.com and type "St. Baldrick’s Foundation" into the "I support" box. Now every time you use GoodSearch to search the web, a portion of its advertising revenue will be shared with St. Baldrick’s. To see how much GoodSearch users have generated for St. Baldrick’s, click on “amount raised,” once you’ve designated us as your organization of choice. Spread the word and surf the net for kids with cancer!

As you can see, there are MANY ways this year to become involved, but I would LOVE to see EVERY ONE of you with a shiny noggin on March 14th. Go bald or bust!!!!!

St. Baldrick's!

This weekend I organized the first ever St. Baldrick's Event in East Texas (Longview/Tyler area), which raises money for pediatric cancer research. I only had about 6 weeks to plan (I'm always "last minute")...but, we raised over $5,000 for pediatric cancer research! We also had 26 units of blood donated (their goal was 16), and the bone marrow company registered 21 new people! I’m so pleased with the turnout we had…it was so much greater than I had expected. We had about 30 shavees, including 7 brave “girls” who shaved their heads bald, and a few other ladies who cut their hair short for Locks of Love. Thanks again for the support from each and every one of you! I can’t wait until we do it again next year!!!!