What to Do? What to Do?

First of all......HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! Can you believe it? Time has flown. First I'm talking about ugly Christmas sweaters and the next thing you know, it's 2008! WHAT???? Man, did I fall asleep or what? Even in just a few days a LOT can happen! And, as it happens at the end of every year something MAJOR happens! I'm not talking about the fireworks, champagne, ringing in something new. I'm talking about Rayne's birthday!!! Yes, the kiddo has turned 10!! Or, so she has informed me, she will no longer be in single digits ever in her life!! LOL!! Although it was a quiet birthday, she will have her birthday party this weekend as a Sock Hop!! As she opened her few family gifts and pondered as to what was going to be a quiet day, she said, but....this is a MAJOR birthday, I'M TEN!!!! I looked at her and said, and next year you will say, but it's a MAJOR birthday, I'm almost a tween!!! The following year, you will say, but mom, it's a MAJOR birthday, I AM a Tween!! The year after that, you will say, but Mom, it's a major birthday, I AM A TEENAGER!!! So, I told her, we have plenty of major birthdays left!! :)


She just looked at me and in perfect Rayne drama style, stomped out of the room!! Yes, it has begun! But what started out as the worst birthday ever ended up being fun! I aquiesced and we went to the dreaded mall and even worse still, went to Build-A-Bear!! Ugh. For dinner, we went to our favorite sushi restuarant where our favorite owner/chef gave us a great gift and took 10% off the meal!! Can't beat that!! Hmmmm....will that go up each year!! Hey, wait, I'm 43, will it work for me? :) Now, we are getting ready for the Sock Hop party tomorrow. Got the poodle skirt ready, got the music (thanks to Dish TV) and scene setters. The house will be decked out and lookin' good!!! Rootbeer floats anyone?




Now, onto the other kids. We heard from Marshall on Christmas Day. That was nice and he was getting ready to see Robin Williams, Lewis Black and Kid Rock perform. That sounded like fun and I hope he had a good time with that. It looks like everything is still set for him to come home around the end of March beginning of April. Crossing my fingers here. We got a letter from Trent and he sounds good too. He says Marine basic training is harder than he thought it would be but he's loving it. He got through the 3 weeks of field training with flying colors and looking forward to everything else. Jaimie is graduating Air Force basic training next week, so we're going to go watch her and it's also our 11th anniversary!!! Can ya'll believe that in itself!! We've been together 14 years and now celebrating our 11th anniversary on January 11th!! Whoo hoo!!




Oh, and the foster puppy that we have has found a home. Yup, you guessed it. Ours!! It wasn't even me who suggested it either!!! I was talking to my wonderful hubby letting him know that the puppy needed to go back to the shelter to get his second round of shots and he said, well, while he's down there, do you think they'll cut him too? I said, well they only nueter when he's been adopted. He said, well, we're only going to have the Dane a few more years (she's 8) and this one seems like he's a pretty good dog and if you were going to get another anyway after her, you might as well have a good one instead of taking a chance and not get one you'd like!!! LOL!!! He's so funny!! I said, you like this dog don't you? He wouldn't admit at first, but then he said, he kind of liked the little guy!! Too funny!! So, now I guess we're going to adopt our foster puppy. I swear he looks like a webkins. Introducing Kipper!!




















Here's wishing everyone of ya'll a Safe, Happy, Healthy and Prosperous 2008!!!

Tis the Season!!

This past weekend we had a lot of fun when we went to our first Ugly Christmas Sweater party!! What really cracked me up is that we are Jewish, so we didn't have the luxury of getting these "wonderful" sweaters from relatives every year! The rules were you needed to wear a sweater or embellish one to enter.

The hunt began!! We hit Goodwill centers, Salvation Army places, etc. and couldn't really find anything!! But then, I totally scored when I went to a thrift store near home. This thing was really, really bad!! It had sequins, it had glass beads, it had things I couldn't even describe!!! It was perfect!! It was a jacket so I didn't know if that would count. Time was running short and Tom and Rayne still did not have anything to wear. I was asking friends if they had anything, but either their kids were too young or the sweaters wouldn't fit.

I started thinking about the options I could do with a glue gun. The possibilities were endless!! But then, we found another resale shop! Oh my gosh, ugly Christmas sweaters everywhere!!! LOL!! They had them up in the windows! We had an sweater field day!! Big furry Santa beards, holly berries gone made! Snowmen on crack!! It was marvelous!!!

Next we hit a children's resale shop and scored for Rayne!! Even down to the Santa shoes!! We were ready for the party!!

I even found a sweater for Tom. Oh, it was bad. A fireplace with a reindeer and a tree decked out with pearled garland and a flashy jeweled star on top and satin gifts underneath!! Who could ask for more!!

Dressing up was fun!! Even more fun was going to our favorite Sushi restaurant. Rayne was too embarassed and wouldn't wear her costume, but I, of course, just embarassed her even more with my outfit!! I had my leggings with their own special gold foil and even wore my Hanukkah socks complete with my green hula girl Rocket Dogs!

Oh, would you like to see a photo of this? So, glad you asked. Well, here it is!! And, yes, it did win Most Heinous!! If you would like to see more photos of the party, check them out on here:

Sung to: My Favorite Things

Snowmen doing coke lines
and sequins galore

Green Hula Rocket Dogs
who could ask for more?

Gold shiny leggings
and Hanukkah socks

I think that my heinous outfit rocks!!

Merry Christmas everyone!!

What the heck is a Webkinz?

Alright, so now we are going through this phase called a Webkinz!! Who was the brainiac that stuck a W on the foot of a stuffed animal and then created a website for said animal!! I need to shake this person's hand!! Pure genius!! If you need to get something done around the house, dishes washed, rooms cleaned, dinner made.......threaten Webkinz time on the computer!! Heck, you might even get a back massage out of the deal!! I don't know how long it will last, but I'm going to milk it for all it's worth!!

On top of that we seem to have a live Webkinz around here too! We opened up our home and decided to foster a puppy. Well, I don't know if we is the operative word, The conversation may have gone a bit like this:

Me: Honey, do you want to foster a puppy?

My Husband: No, not really.

Me: But they're going to put the mom and the puppies down if they don't find homes.

My Husband: I really don't want another dog in the house.

Me: We're not going to keep it. Just foster it until it finds a home.

My Husband (exasperated): I don't care!

Me: Thanks hun!

So, now we are fostering this puppy that is now 7 weeks old. It has grown into it's cuteness. We're thinking it's some kind of terrier and maybe Jack Russell because of the coloring. But what it really looks like is some kind of snowball and a cross of a plush Webkinz! It has this spaz fur all over it that sticks out, especially on his face where it looks like the eyebrows of an 80 year old man has just taken it over entirely!! He is completely white with the exception of one black eye and an opposite black ear.

When he was 5 weeks old, we thought he had kennel cough in which he proceeded to give that to all four of our dogs. That in turn became distemper. He did survive but now he has the remnants of the nerve damage. Now, besides the funky hair, he has the shakes every once in awhile. It's actually quite amusing to watch. There's nothing mentally wrong with him, he's a very happy go lucky dog and loves to follow you around! He's going to make someone a very good companion one day, but with 5 dogs in the house we are full!!

If you happen to know anyone looking for a puppy, let me know!! He's ready for his new home!

Quick Marshall Update!

We got another phone call from Marshall on October 31st! Well, for us it was Halloween, for him it was November 1st already. We were getting ready to go trick or treating, but that could be put on hold to talk to him. He was in the middle of work so with the delay of voices going back and forth and constantly being put on hold, it was a really nice conversation!

He's doing well and dealing with the cold! I guess now he can get goodies make with chocolate in it! He said, he has gotten well over 100 cards and letters and some packages and he was just so amazed at the generosity of some of you guys. People he's never met! He doesn't know how he can thank you enough. He said he's going to try to send thank you notes to those who sent gifts, but it's been really hard to do so what with work and studying for his tests. He gets done with one thing and has to start on another and then just basically conks out! But he did want me to pass on to everyone that he is very, very thankful to all of you.

I asked him if it was true that he might be coming home at the end of March and he said I knew more than him! We got a letter from his commander letting us know Marshall was doing a great job and he said that everything was on track for Marshall to come home at the end of March. I'm crossing my fingers, toes and everything else that he will come home safe and sound.

And, as Marshall is doing his job in Iraq, our other son decided he would enlist! Trenton, our oldest is now a Marine. He joined the US Marine Corps and they picked him up for boot camp at Camp Pendleton on November 5th! If all goes well, we'll see him graduate the beginning of February!

Then, in the middle of all of that, my daughter-in-law Jaimie, Marshall's wife, will be starting her stint in the Air Force as well!! She will start basic training November 27th! Then after she graduates, she will go to Tech School for Traffic Management Operations!

We're so very proud of all of them.

Another Marshall Update

We finally heard from Marshall again!! It's been awhile since we heard from Marshall. It was only a brief phone call, but we'll take it. His 21st birthday was October 24th and he's been pretty busy with his job in Iraq and also studying for his CDC's.

Marshall said he has gotten a lot more letters and packages and he is so appreciative of all the well wishes for his birthday and support. He said some of the most unusual items he has received were a gelled eye mask to help him sleep during the day and that he was also sent a box of tampons!! He said he didn't have any girls in his troop to give those to, but maybe they can use them to absorb something!!! LOL!!

I'll continue to post on my blog updates on Marshall when we get them. He said he did send a package back to us and I'm hoping he put the cameras in that. If so, I will post the pictures we get back.

Again, thank you to everyone in helping to make his 21st birthday a memorable one!

Marshall in Iraq!

October is a busy birthday month! Not only is it my birthday, but it's also one of my son's birthday too!! Marshall will be turning 21 on October 24th! Not only is this one of those special birthdays, but he is in the Air Force and is currently in Iraq. When we found out he was going to Iraq, it was a bit upsetting, but being in the Armed Forces it was to be expected. When I realized he was going to be spending this momentous occasion there, I got really upset. As I've said in my previous posts, birthdays are very important to me and it just really got to me that he was going to be celebrating a rather poignant birthday without family or close friends.

Before he left we threw him a surprise 21st birthday party with friends and family. He enjoyed that, but it was more like a going away party as it was two months before his actual birthday. We did have a birthday cake and sang Happy Birthday. And even though we tried to get the feel for that moment, it's just not the same when you are doing it two months in advance.



Then, I thought of a great idea!! If he can't be here for the party, we'll just bring the party to him. I am fortunate to be on a LOT of group lists, so I called out to the members of those lists to help participate in a mail in type surprise party for my son!!! It entailed sending a birthday card or note to wish Marshall a Happy 21st Birthday!! The response was overwhelming!! People from all over the world emailed me to let me know that they were going to send a card or letter or even a package to let Marshall know that they were thinking of him on his birthday!

I cannot thank everyone enough of how I appreciate each and everyone one of you and how heartfelt it is that all of you would do that to make my son's birthday so special.

One woman even emailed to let me know that her husband was there in the same area as my son and is the Seargant Major of his unit! She said that she was going to email him and ask him to do something special for my son for his birthday! How awesome was that!

Even though I wanted this as a surprise to Marshall, I knew I was going to have to let him in on the secret just a little. I sent him an email to say I had something cooking for him and he was going to have to make sure and check his mail!

This is what he wrote back:

Hey I got your Birthday gift From The Master Seargent lol in front of Guardmount ( which is the flight i work with and guardmount is we get briefings before we go work so we know whats going on and what to be aware of) He came in and said "Brown where are you", i stood up and he said "Get to the front." so i was like uhhh i have roll call training but then he said" your mom emailed my wife in a soap forum and she told me to give you this gift," willingly i said "okay"..... he said "CLOSE YOUR EYES" ummmm whats going on ....... i closed my eyes and he gave me a hug with everyone watching i looked up in surprise and said " uhhhhhhhh wow, thanks i guess" so uhhh thank you lol ha ya that was weird but cool its a small world i guess you got to talk to the flight chiefs wife in a soap forum awesome!!!!! anyways ya i have been checkin the mail every day and hope it gets here okay!!!!
He also went into further detail about what happened with the Seargant Major when we were on the phone. Marshall is in Unit B and the Seargant is in Unit A of their troop, so seeing the Seargan Major was completely unexpected which made it even more special!

I talked to him last week around October 12, and since then he said he has received 75 letters and two packages! The mail person told him he is loved! He said they couldn't all be for him as he didn't know that many people! He said, once he started reading the letters and realized that they were all from people who knew his mom, and that they were all wishing him a Happy Birthday, he thought it was really cool. I sent him a box with disposable cameras in it and he said he put all the cards and letters on his bed and took pictures of them.

As soon as I get those, I will develop them and post them here for everyone to see. I will also continue to update my blog when I hear from Marshall. Again, thank you to everyone for making this happen!

It's My Birthday, It's My Birthday!!

Name that song! I know one person out there that would probably know that answer!! Really, my only reader!! :)

On October 9th a long time ago, and sharing the date with a famous Beatle, I was brought into this fabulous world!

Through all the ups and downs, the most outrageous moments and the quietest of times, it has been an asbsolutely fantastic journey that I am still traveling. It's always fun and exhilerating to see what the next day will bring, whether it's just hanging out with my daughter and husband, or attacking rodents in the barn! There's always something going on in the Brown world!

Usually, over the past few years, my birthdays have been somewhat uneventful. The major ones such 16th, 21st, 30th, 35th, 40th have been marked with something special. Such as surprise parties, throwing myself a HUGE party, navel piercings, going platinum blonde, throwing myself another party to make sure it was done right!! The years in between passed quietly with family and friends. Don't get me wrong. Birthdays to me are ALWAYS a major occasion even if they are not celebrated with a grand hoohah every year, just as long as they are celebrated.

But this year was a little different. Turning 43 is a regular number, nothing to scoff at. It's in the middle. Just past 40, but not quite 45! The eyes seem to not want to work as well, but the fight for getting glasses goes on. I thought this year would be another quiet year, but surprisingly it has turned out to be a wonderful celebration week!

On my birthday, my daughter cooked up a nice little birthday party for me which started off with me locked in my room while she got everything ready!! When the time was right, I was blindfolded with my tiara on my head and led into the living room where she had filled the floor with balloons! My in-laws even came to visit and joined the party with my husband and daughter! I had a vase with some roses, and was regaled with a few gifts. I was even presented with a cake! It was very nice and cozy and I was pleasantly surprised. I was then taken to my favorite sushi restaurant where the owner and chef treated me to a wonderful birthday feast of all my favorite items and then some. It's great to know the chef who also happens to be the owner too!!

The next evening I went out with some girlfriends of mine who I haven't seen in years and years. Did I mention years!! Another fantastic birthday surprise!! We all looked like we did back then and it was if we had just seen each other a few week's ago. It was so wonderful and great to see them and catch up. Although it would have been fun to hear them sing karaoke!! :) Come on Johnna, you know you wanted to! :)

Tonight, is Mom's Night Out, done special for my birthday!! Guess where we're going!! Hmmmm...can we say sushi? Did you even have to guess? Back to my favorite restaurant we go! I've already informed the chef and he's ready!! I can't wait!! Even if it's just me that shows, I'll still be a happy camper!! Although, I know we'll have a great time!! Eatin' sushi!! Yummmm!!

Well, that leaves tomorrow!! Of course, the week couldn't end without being with family again. And my birthday week will finish with dinner with my dad and stepmom. Try as I might, I could not swing sushi again. I will have to eat cooked food and since I do, it will be Italian!! My dad has his favorite restaurant and that's where we will be going.

My birthday week started with family and it will end with family and for what I thought would be an unmomentous occasion turned out to be a very memorable celebration!!

I wonder what's going to happen next year?