Escaping the desert

Remember how I was saying that I was feeling a little stir crazy at home? Well, we escaped the desert for a night this past weekend. We headed to one of my favorite places, the beach! We actually had a filled day in Dana Point, Costa Mesa, and finally at Downtown Disney.

Lots of love,

The Grady's

Love.

I keep forgetting to share Brennan's Reader's Theatre performance. He did such a great job singing about LOVE!

Lots of love,

The Grady's

Bucket List

This is as close to a "Bucket List" as I think I am going to get.

Instructions:
Copy the list, bold the ones you've done (with explanations if needed), share with friends.
1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris (three times!)
13. Watched a thunder and lightning storm
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse (Munich, Germany amazing!!!!)
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors (Germany)
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris (gorgeous views)
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud (football one night in college, great time)
54. Gone to a drive-in theater (almost every weekend in high school)
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma (blood a few times, rare blood type that they love)
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp (Dachu in Germany. Awful)
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone (my left wrist and a few toes)
78. Been a passenger on a motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican (Mass performed by Pope John Paul II on our honeymoon)
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Got a tattoo
94. Had a baby (times 2)
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

Does 46 constitute a life well lived?

TEN

1. It's been a long, long day. Even a glass of wine can't make it better.

2. Brennan earned his purple belt at Taekwando tonight! Hooray little man!!!

3. Today we had a meeting with our district financial guru. Lo and behold we are looking at a 14.8 million deficit. Wow. Possible 35 kids in our classes. Explain to me how that is good for kids. I do my job everyday. I try not to complain about the bureaucracy crap that we deal with every freaking day. But today we learn that they are considering once again cutting teachers, raising class size numbers, and barely considering the many other cuts they could be making that wouldn't affect kids as much. My job is to teach kids. Help them. Mother them. Provide them with some kind of a future. Explain to me how I will be able to "touch" kids, really reach them, when I have 32-40 students. Explain that to me. Please.

4. Feeling some serious cabin fever lately. Need to see the beach. Or the mountains. Or something different that the beautiful mountains we are fortunate enough to see all the time. But I need a different view.

5. We went to the annual Sacred Heart Gala this past weekend. Food was great. Auction was fun to watch. Had a great time! Pics soon....when I feel like grabbing the camera to upload.

6. I slammed my toe into the vacuum cleaner a week ago. Damn a broken toe hurts like hell. And the worst part? Nothing you can do about it.

7. Emerson and Brennan were cracking themselves up the other afternoon. The clouds in the sky were those big, puffy, white clouds. They were naming them, calling them all these crazy animal names. Silly kiddos. Puts a smile on my face.

8. How many times can one person go to Target in one week? Is there some record for that? I may have broken the record last week.

9. I'm itchin' to go to a concert. Any recommendations?

10. Made Rice Krispie treats last night. Something as simple as those. Yummy.

Lots of love,
The Grady's

I Love...

There are a lot of things that I love...and in the spirit of Valentine's Day I thought I might share.

I love...

my family
the smell of rain
watching Grey's Anatomy every night
chocolate peanut butter ice cream
the beach
talented doctors and nurses
warm blueberry muffins
hotels
silence
my computer
white wine, red wine
San Francisco
my children, more than words
food
Rachel Ray magazine
cards
teaching
Kevin Bacon in Footloose
an ice cold glass of milk
ice cream
a good ol' belly laugh
an ice cold beer in a frozen mug
the smile on my kiddo's faces
Jennifer Garner in every episode of Alias, can you say badass?
Christmas morning
dreams
Jimmy Buffett
St. Patrick's Day
a great pair of jeans
homemade pasta sauce
my friends
corn on the cob
Sex and the City
my job
going on trips
Panera bread
the warmth of the sun
turning the radio up loud
warm towels
a challenging conversation
donut holes
kindness
my husband
adventure, pushing the envelope
getting things fun in the mail
black and white photos
Florence
black
the smell of a campfire
Target
weddings
tulips and gerber daisies
the smell of babies
my parents
the sound of waves crashing on the beach
spy movies
candles
vacuuming
a great cup of coffee
and so much more...

Happy Valentine's Day

Lots of love,
The Grady's

It's that time of year again!

Congenital Heart Defect Awareness week, February 7-14, 2010.

I was thinking about it the other day. Everyone has something that they believe in. Everyone has a reason why they support a cause. I am not sure I ever understood why people felt so strongly about certain charities, beliefs, causes. That is until I had Brennan. Now, I know. Now I get it.
www.tchin.org Learn more and pass it on!

Lots of love,
The Grady's

First Halftime Show

Emerson danced in her first basketball halftime show this past Friday night! If it were me up there, I would have been a bundle of nerves, not Em. She had a huge smile on her face and loved every minute of it.

Lots of love,

The Grady's