Thank God it's Friday!!!

I am soooooooo ready for the weekend. I'm going to go home tonight, piddle around my house, clean it and relish in the quietness of NO KIDS!!!!! The boys are going back to their homes, Paige is going to Gammy's and it'll just be me, Gary and the babies! I'm doing a little shopping tomorrow, Gary's got some stuff to do and then we'll be able to chill out at home. Maybe a little sushi, a little wine....hey - maybe he'll put the pool together, too!

I need some new patio furniture. We have a table and chairs, but I need something for our patio out in the middle of our backyard that is STILL without a cover! We have a fire pit out there, but I need some furniture so that when we do get the cover built, it will be the ideal spot to hang out. I'm also saving for an outdoor fireplace to put out there. I really, really want one!

I'm totally digging my Couch to 5k workouts. Tonight is one of my nights to walk/run. I almost went last night, but decided to stay inside and read some food porn. The latest issue of Food Network Magazine has some damn good recipes. There's one in there for Grilled Pierogis with Klobase that I'm dying to try. I also found a couple of new breakfast casserole recipes. I'm going to make a few when we go to Telephone next weekend. I've also got to bring side dishes for the potluck - I'm thinking chile cornbread salad one night and pasta salad the next. Both are easy and I can make both ahead of time. We've never been to Harvey and Carol West's cook off and I'm looking forward to it. We'll come back Saturday afternoon and go to my parents. Shit - I'll have to have a side dish for their house too....we'll be eating over there that night. Damnit.

I've got a brisket that I need to thaw out and smoke. I'm wondering how Mild Bill's Sassy Syrup would be over it? Maybe I should use it as a glaze over a chicken instead. Hell yeah - that sounds delicious! I'm putting that on the menu for Sunday. I may just do my brisket in the oven. I've never had a bad experience when I've cooked it in the oven; it always comes out tender and falling apart and tastes amazing every time. Gary's dad has a smoker that he doesn't use anymore. Gary's been meaning to go over there and get it. I guess right now is out of the question considering the shape his back is in. That wouldn't be too smart.

Speaking of Lord Brignon's back, he feels MUCH better. His leg still hurts, but he thinks that's more of the muscles aching rather than the sciatic nerve. I can tell he feels better, plus he's moving around better and not like a decrepit old man :)

My trailer is coming along nicely - at least the buying of the items that will go inside of it :) I need to get it over to Budda's (yes, still...I know, I know...I've been saying this for weeks.) and start scraping the exterior paint and caulk. Once I recaulk it, I'll powerwash it, repaint it and be good to go. The interior just needs a few things, but nothing major. I do need to buy a new faucet for the kitchen sink. I'm still on the fence about whether or not to keep the refrigerator and I need to order a few new window knobs and a cover for the roof air. The one that was on it blew off in transit..LOL!

It is also time for me to make reservations at Rio Raft for my Labor Day Birthday Bash!!! Charlie Robison will be playing at Gruene Hall again and tickets go on sale August 4th. I think we are going to get a cabin this year and not jack with taking the toyhauler. It's my birthday....least we can do is let me sleep in a real bed! Hopefully the river will be up by then and if not, we can float the Comal. Just won't be going down the tube shoot...that's for DAMN SURE! Tyler also wants to go to the River for his birthday, so I better get on the ball. School will be starting again before we know it. Paige is ready for new uniform shirts and jumper. Her pants fit just fine, but her skirts and shirts are a little short. They're just so damn expensive. Oh well...she's getting a wonderful education at a fantastic school and that's what matters most to me and her daddy!

The CASI Board Meeting is this weekend at the Irving Elks Lodge. I wonder if any of the candidates running for the Board will be there? Glenda Vrba is running; I believe for the tallymaster position. I have heard of one other name, but it's doubtful he'll come all the way to Irving; he's an out of state candidate from what I know. So, what will CASI do if enough people don't run to fill the positions? What will the membership do if there really isn't a choice in who is elected to the Board? But then again, if no one will step up, there's not much to do or say, or complain about!! I get the feeling that there's something going on to make sure more people run and that the things start to get on the right track. Again, this is just my personal Spidey-Sense, but I'm usually pretty good at this stuff. I guess we'll see.

Oh God...I picked up checks yesterday and I was in full tattoo glory!! I wasn't anticipating going to GC's offices, so I wore a tube top that shows all of them. Off I go to Rogers O'Brien - I scared that poor girl. Next: WB Kibler - they were fascinated. Lastly, McCarthy - that girl had one and has a son covered in them - so we had a lot in common!!! I was just really worried about Kibler, but they seemed unfazed and were all about looking at them. The one place I CANNOT go with my ink showing is to Julian P. Barry's office. First off, Mr. Barry looks just like my dad. And, if you've seen my dad, you know he looks just like Rudy Giuliani. So anyways, Mr. Barry is a conservative type and I don't think my tats would go over very well with him. I went over there a few months ago for a "good old fashioned donkey BBQ". Translation: An ass chewing!!! And it was an ass chewing...I barely had one left when I left their office. But, when I went over there, I took out my nose ring and covered the tattoos. Now, seriously - how many times have any of you seen me do that? It's all good...I didn't mind doing it. They're a huge customer of ours and they give us all of their work, so if I have to go over there periodically for a donkey bbq, then that's what I'll do!

I'm going to get the hell off the blog and get back to work. Have a wonderful weekend and stay cool. I think I'm going to have a few cocktails this weekend. I've earned it!!

Spreading my own special brand of joy and kindness......

Kelly