July 31, 2006:

Yes, I'm _really_ slow when it comes to the pics... I promise to get to it soon... Even though it's summer time and the kids and I are both out of school, we're still busy doing fun "summer stuff".  Today was the first day of swimming lessons for the boys.  I'm hoping that by the end of summer, the boys will be able to swim the width of the pool, unassisted.  Right now, they're _so_ close to learning how to swim.  It's just a matter of time before they get their breathing and arm strokes down.  Today's lesson: Always check the kids backpack to make sure they have all their swimming paraphernalia.  Case in point, we arrive @ the swim center only to find out that they both left their towels back home.  Argh.  A little inconvenient but no big deal.  There isn't time to go back home to get it so while they start their swim lessons, I jaunt over to the mall (5 mins away) to buy a couple of beach towels.  I go into the store and I was met with ignorant people left and right!   They send me up to the 2nd floor in kids' dept but the towels weren't there.  Then I was sent back downstairs to swim apparel but they didn't have them there either.  Argh. Tick, tick, tick.  Finally I just said, screw it, and went back up to bath dept on the 2nd floor and bought a couple of big bath towels instead.  But get this, when the cashier rang up the merchandise,  she _insisted_ that she read the entire freakin' receipt w/coupon VERBATIM!  I coulda hit her over the head with a stupid stick.  Argh.  This wasn't how I expected my Monday morning to go. At this point, I was a tad bit annoyed, but I gritted my teeth and smiled and told her to... have a nice day. heh. I get back to the swim center just as the lessons ended.  We're home now, lunch in bellies, Mom's school is done and they're happily playing Scrabble in the play room. 

I, on the other hand, NEED to start studying.  I have a couple of weeks to cram for my National and Practical Exams.  So, my job interview went very well last week.  I applied for a licensed massage therapist position at the Bethany Athletic Club.  It is just TWO minutes from my house!  I think it's the perfect opportunity for me!  It is so convenient and they have all brand-new, state-of-the-art equipment, restaurant/lounge/dining area, exercise classes, swimming pools,  etc.  I believe they just opened up some time last month and they've been hiring staff all summer long.  The person I interviewed with said I would be a great "fit" with their spa.  (I'll be working @ the Pointe Day Spa, within the athletic complex.)  I love all the cool amenities that come along with the job position like facials, manicures, pedicures, body wraps, discounted beauty products, free gym membership, free access to the pool and hot tub, etc.  Right now, the only prob is that I'm not _technically_ licensed yet.  I can't work until I have my license.  Argh.  So...after my interview, the director of the spa gave me her card and told me to contact her as soon as I get my license.  I'm hopeful that I'll get my license by next month. *fingers-crossed*  Until then, I'm studying and waiting to hear back from the Massage Board.  *sigh* 

In other news, I'm also planning Patrick's 8th birthday party.  Yes, he's gonna be eight years old.  It's scary how fast they're growing up.  They're as tall as my shoulders now.  I think by next year, they're gonna be as tall as me.  yikes.  Anyhoo, the party's going to be held at Laserport.  He wants to play lasertag with his friends for his birthday.  Right now, I need to call all the people that haven't rsvp'ed yet.  I'm hoping for a small group of kids for his bday this year 'cause it's getting pretty pricey to plan his party.  For about $17/child, the kiddies will get 2 slices of pizza, unlimited soda, and play 2 games of lasertag. To compare, Jarod's rock-climbing party was only around $10/child and he invited around 12 guests.  Yup, these kids have it good... :-)  Oh, I just remembered, I gotta bring the kids to the library to return library books.  I hate getting overdue fines.  :-P  More later...

 

July 26, 2006:

We're back from Seattle!  The Red Sox lost!  Boo-hoo!  It was an amazing game nonetheless!  We had a great time!  We even got a chance to walk around Pike Place Market for a bit. (oh, and while we were there, I scored an awesome 2007 calendar of Angelina Jolie, sweet!) I'll get to the pics soon enough but I've been busy... getting ready for my first _job_ interview!!!  Argh!  Details to come...   

 

July 21, 2006:

Yup, someone nicely pointed out that I haven't updated my website in about three weeks. heheh.  My bad.  We've been having a pretty fun summer so far... I've been taking the boys on outings every day but only after they do their workbooks, yes, I'm a slave-driver!!! During the summer time  I do "Mom School" w/ the boys so their brains don't turn into mush over summer vacation.  We've gone bowling every week, (free passes!), Free Movie Tuesdays @ Regal Cinemas, the Oregon Zoo, etc. (I'll post pics soon!) Oh, and on one particular Friday afternoon, we even went into Downtown Portland to see the World's Longest Hotdog!  Yes, folks, I got the pictures to prove it. (I'll post pics soon!) Oh-oh, and this past weekend, we went on our annual camping trip up to Mt. Hood National Forest.  We stayed at the same camp site that we did last year @ Clear Lake.  Luckily for us, the lake didn't dry up like it did last summer.  We had TONS of fun, making smores by the campfire, going rafting, having a picnic in the middle of the lake, biking, splashing in the water, etc.  It was a great weekend! (Yes, yes, yes, I promise to post pics soon!)  Right now, I'm in the middle of packing (again) because we're going to drive up to Seattle for the weekend.  We've got tickets to see the Red Sox/Mariners game on Sunday!  It's gonna be a scorcher of a weekend in Seattle, low 90's, but in Ptld, it's going to be over 100F!!! Crazy!  Anyhoo, gonna finish packing.... (I promise to post pics when I get back. hehe.)

 

July 4, 2006:

Happy Fourth of July!!!  We're going over to my friend Tina's house for a small get together and BBQ party. We'll be watching the fireworks display over at the Washington Country Fair Complex.  It'll be a fun time for the kiddies but I'm sure it'll pale in comparison to the 4th of July fireworks display they'll have in Boston tonight.  We did take the kiddies back to Boston one year (2002) to watch the fireworks from the esplanade.  Ahh, memories...  :-)

 

 

July 3, 2006:

This was one crazy weekend!  We had a BBQ/graduation/summer party at our house this Saturday and we had over 40+ people show up!  The guests started arriving around 11am and the last guest didn't leave until 8pm!!!  We had TONS of food, booze and refreshments for our friends and guests (and TONS of leftovers, too!).  Grill-master DJ extraordinaire was @ the grill, flipping mad burgers and hotdogs like his hero, Spongebob @ the KrustyKrab.  heheh...  I made baked teriyaki chicken and grilled asparagus with orange wasabi dressing, and it was wicked good!  We had two cakes, one from Beaverton Bakery (the "fruit basket" cake that Lisa loves...wish you were here, sweetie!) and another chocolate cake for the kiddies.  Since the weather forecast for the day was hot and sunny, I made sure that there were lots of water games to help the kiddies (young and old) cool off in the summer sun.  While the kiddies played outside, the adults staged their own version of American Idol right in our living room.  Too bad I don't have footage of the adults singing karaoke... it was pretty funny!  Lastly, we ended the days making ice cream sundaes with four flavors of ice cream to choose from and 5 kinds of toppings and whipped cream and chocolate syrup.  It was a great way to start off the summer and I just want to thank everyone for coming!  :-)