Prom 2012

Friday night was Prom Night ... I know! I know! Early!  She was asked last Thursday ... I know! I know! Late!  I think it snuck up on everyone ... she had Spring Break and then didn't really have school for the next week and a half because of Interim Term and somewhere in there the invitations came in the mail ... and, well, you know the rest.

So, on Good Friday we headed out looking for a dress.  We dragged took Dean with us.  He got lucky ... she only tried on five dresses in two shops.  There was dinner and then three different shoe stores looking for the perfect shoes.  I heard him mumble something about "eight hours later" on our drive towards home!

 She picked this sassy dress from Betsey Johnson.  It is a bubble skirt covered in "roses" ... inside the bubble skirt is tulle so it poofed out quite a bit.  We all loved it.  Aqua is her new signature color, so she accented with aqua jewelry and a little phone clutch.

 The dreaded "putting on of the boutonniere".  I was zero help ... I actually told her this time she was on her own.  She didn't stick him and it stayed on for pictures.  Success!  There must be a YouTube video for the next time ... must google it.

 Her date for the evening was her friend, Hugh.  They have a few classes together and he is a nice boy.  Or is it guy.  Or man.  Geez ... I'm going to stick with boy.

 We went to a friend's house to take pictures.  Most of the boys in her grade decided to boycott the prom, so the number of Sophomores going was quite small ...

 See what I mean ... they were in a group of 12.  Which is what I love about these dances ... they go and come in a group.  And they go as friends.  And it is so fun for them.

 The girls ... at this point we were still missing one couple ... 

 The whole gang ... at this point I think they were a bit over the pictures.  Wait ... that might have happened on the stairs!

 Torrey and Hugh

 This picture makes me happy and sad all in the same breath ... happy because she is an incredible girl, sad because she will NOT stop growing up!

 Some of the girls ... they were all wearing heels and standing on the grass that was a bit wet from recent rain.  We had to pull heels out of the grass!

 She really had a fun night ... when I asked her how it was, she said "we made it fun."  That's my girl!

 Torrey and her friend, Natasha ... Torrey spent the night with Natasha, which saved Dean from having to pick her up at 1:00 in the morning!

I chuckled when we got home ... she handed me her flowers before she got in the limo.  They were wrapped in paper and when I unwrapped them to put them in water, they had a beautiful ribbon on them.  They are still beautiful!

I am happy to say Dean and I survived Prom 2012 ... unfortunately, we have two more years to go!

IPhriday ... the phone dump edition

So, the blog has been neglected.  The winter has been busy.  And hard.  Mostly hard.  Maybe some day I'll blog about it ... anywho ... here we are.  Three months later.  And, there has been lots going on.

 We celebrated the 100th day of school.  Dean was once again Zero the Hero.  He really is my hero ... for more reasons than that he dons a cape and mask once a year.  My kids LOVED it!

 One of them even drew a picture of him ... which I loved.  And, I think she totally got him.

 So, the garage.  Yeah.  This was the before of my school stuff.  Actually, it was worse.  I took this after I had started to move some things.  

 And, the after.  I can actually find what I need quickly.  There are a few things in the picture that needed to be donated and put up in the attic, but, it is so much better!

 We watched the Patriots lose the Super Bowl.  We don't talk about it anymore.  Mostly because we are all still in therapy.  

 Wash your feet day happened in Kindergarten.  Still my favorite day in Bible.

 I cleaned out the pantry.  And, since it took all day, it deserved a picture on this post.

Dean has traveled quite a bit.  When he leaves us, trouble ensues.  Which is how I knew this picture happened on a day that he was gone ... that and the fact that Torrey and I only feed the dogs when he is gone.  Which may explain why they love him so much.

We went to Florida for Spring Break.  When we landed at the airport we saw them filming this guy while we waited for bags.  Common known fact ... I am nosy.  I asked why ... it was for the Southwest Airlines show on one of the cable channels (FYI ... it is hilariously funny)  They saw him in the airport with the cowboy hat and thought, "He looks different" and had to ask him, "WHY?"  He was on his way home from the Houston Rodeo.  And, I guess we have lived in Texas for awhile because I thought it was completely normal that he was wearing the cowboy hat.

We call Caroline many things ... Cars being one of them.  When we saw this sign on the sidewalk we made her get on the ground to take her picture.  We thought we were quite clever.  The guy who ran the train nearby did not.  He thought she fell and asked us (more than once) if we needed to call someone ... as in an ambulance.  He must have thought we were off our rockers because we laughed ... a lot.

We were in Florida during the Strawberry Festival in Plant City.  Which meant a short drive for the biggest and yummiest strawberry shortcake ever.  The line was ridiculously long ... but, totally worth it!

And, lucky us ... we were there in time to see the Strawberry King and Queens!

A too-short trip to Orlando meant breakfast with Torrey's girl Ellie ... buddies since Kindergarten!  We also spent time with Gretchen and the Chevalier gang.  So fun.

Torrey turned 16 in March.  I'm OK now ... seriously, folks, therapy is a good thing!

The time change means we get to school when the sky looks like this.  So beautiful!

There was a night of prom dress shopping.  Which meant taking pictures and sending them to my sister for her help.  She thought Torrey looked like a cupcake in this one.

This one was a contender ... it was super cute on her.

But, this dress was the winner ... she did say everyone kept "petting" her skirt at prom, though.  

And, here she is ready to head out the door.  She got her hair done by our girl, Dawn and her makeup was done at the Mac Store by Shakespeare.  Funniest comment of the afternoon was her announcing, "It is Shakespeare and Dawn from now on!"

Our Dyson vacuum cleaner died this week.  It is our second one to die ... they both lasted about a year or so.  Anyways, we went with an Electrolux.  Hopefully it will last longer.  While Torrey was getting ready, Dean pulled it out of the box and did a small area on the family room rug.  And, disgustingly this is the dirt and dust he got out of rug.  It would appear that we didn't vacuum our carpet ... ever.  Um, sadly, that is not so.  Vacuuming has become our new family fun ... we are sort of fighting over who gets to vacuum!

And, these are the flowers Torrey got from her date to the prom.  They are quite lovely.

And, that, kids is an iPhriday catch up.  Happy iPhriday!

Time for an updated Blog Entry...

Hello.

It's me, Dean. I've been checking the blog like every day for the last 3 months hoping for an update. You, too, right? Maybe something about our girl's 16th Birthday. Or maybe a few words about MY birthday? Or Tracy's and Torrey's trip to Florida and visit with Tor's BFF Gretchen? Oh, and there was the whole driver's license thing, too, and the Texas College Tour...

Anyway, things are good with us but hectic, and I'm sure I'll be in trouble for this, but I also think we'll see a real blog update soon. You're welcome. :-)

And since we're on the eve of Good (AKA GREAT) Friday and the even GREATER Resurrection Day, I thought I'd post a picture of us outside the EMPTY tomb in Jerusalem. And just fyi, we were there. It IS empty!

He is risen! :-)

Dean (Blog Hacker)

Not Ready

I head back to school tomorrow.  And I am not ready.  At all.  And I don't just mean emotionally.  I am NOT ready.  As in I still have to finish lesson plans.  And pull winter books.  And print center activities to be laminated.  And finish getting things labeled for the new little pumpkin I am getting on Wednesday.  No.  I am not ready.  And I blame a fabulous Christmas break for that.

Our time in Florida was just plain fun.  Memories were made.  Too much coffee was consumed.  Laughter was the norm.  So were naps in the afternoon.  And, now we are back.  To mounds of laundry.  Dinner to be cooked (for the record I am two for two in the making of dinner ... which is officially a roll where I am concerned).  Suitcases to be unpacked.  

And lesson plans to be completed.  Which isn't going to be easy when I am channeling my inner Scarlett O'Hara ...

"I'll think about that tomorrow."  

Welcome 2012!

Well, here we are ... at the start of a new year.  A clean slate.  Full of promise.  Full of hope.  Full of resolutions.

Well, not so much.  Because this is the year I decided to NOT make a single resolution.  A resolution that I would keep for about 12 hours.  Sadly, I kid you not.

So, take joy in the fact that this will not be the year I promise you a picture a day only to make it to day 21.  And, I am aware that saying I actually made it to day 21 is a stretch.  In my head I can at least pretend I made it to day 21, can't I?

This also won't be the year I keep my closet clean.  Because where would be the fun in that?  I know how much you enjoy the three times a year I clean the closet, post amazing pictures, swear it will absolutely stay that way ... only to do it again in the next 4 months.

I will also not resolve to lose the weight of a kindergartner.  It could happen, but I am not going to promise it.

This will be the year Torrey turns 16.  And gets her driver's license.  Weirdly the getting of the driver's license will also be the day I enter the looney bin.  Who knew?

This will also be the year Dean and I celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary.  Wow.  We have lived a lot of life together.  Good and bad.  Easy and hard.  And I wouldn't have wanted to have lived it with anyone else.

We are trying to not eat out for the month of January.  It is day 1 and so far so good.  I got new pots for Christmas and am channeling my inner Ina Garten ... funny how the cooking shows don't show someone cleaning up the messy kitchen after!

I have spent much of 2011 reading and re-reading and re-reading One Thousand Gifts.  So amazingly good.  I have been trying to complain less and be grateful more.  I made that decision in the summer.  The summer where it was 110 degrees at 6:00 in the morning.  For something like 45 days in a row.  Just as a suggestion, always check the 10 day weather forecast before attempting to complain less.

Anywho ... this is my year to be intentional about seeing those things around me that God has given me and truly be thankful for those things.  It is my year to make my own list of one thousand gifts.  I pray that next New Year's Eve my list will be well over one thousand and will have turned into a habit where gratitude comes as easily as breathing.

Uno numero on my list?  Two of my favorite people who bring out the best in me, love me on my best days and love me even more on my worst days, laugh with me, cry with me and are my greatest blessings.  

Happy 2012 from the Townsends!

Making Memories and Mustachios

Today is Jen and Ryan's 17th anniversary.  Happy Anniversary!  Ben and Carly came to spend the night at my Mom and Dad's ... because for some reason they wanted to spend their anniversary alone.  Whatever.

 Movies were watched ... mostly be these three.  Or, make that four.  Zoey seems to think she is a person.  A little, furry person with an attitude.  I am not to blame.


But, enough about the dog ... while they were doing, um, nothing, I was making mustachios.  Because no Christmas would be complete without a mustachio or two or seventeen.

 I was going to buy glasses with noses and eyebrows, but at $5 each there was no way I was going to buy 16.  Which meant Plan B.  Homemade mustachios.  Start with black felt. I cut two at a time because I needed wanted them to line up perfectly.  I just traced my mustachio on a piece of wrapping paper ... partly because it was Christmas, but mostly because it was on the table in front of me.

 Cut out your mustachios ... see why using scraps of whatever paper you have is necessary?

 I used Aleenes's original tacky glue and applied liberally ... I figured the more the better.  Be sure to get the edges.

 Stick your dowel in the glue.  Some mustachio wearers said they would have preferred the dowel to be lower.  I liked it higher.  And, since I was the one making them, I won.

 I added some extra glue on top of the dowel.  Not sure if it was absolutely necessary, but I figured better safe than sorry.

 Then top with the other mustachio ... see why I needed wanted it to be perfect?  Now let dry.  I "built" all of the mustachios on wax paper ... this is not an option.  Otherwise your mustachio will stick to whatever it is left to dry on.

 And when you are finished you have a mustachio (on a stick) ... sure to bring fun family memories when worn with a spirit of joy.  

And, just in case you aren't feeling the mustachio, you could always wear it as a uni-brow.  

And, why the mustachios you ask?  Hang in there for a few more days ... it definitely was one fun family adventure!