Oh, how I wish I had thought of this!
A father took video of his daughter over the first twelve years of her life, then put it together in this time lapse video.
Awesome.
Of course, it left me in tears.
Big surprise.
<p><a href=”http://vimeo.com/40448182″>Lotte Time Lapse: Birth to 12 years in 2 min. 45.</a> from <a href=”http://vimeo.com/franshofmeester”>Frans Hofmeester</a> on <a href=”http://vimeo.com”>Vimeo</a>.</p>5. What was your first job & how old were you?
My first job was at a little store called The Town Mouse in Headquarters Plaza Mall.
I was 14.
My boss was a man named Houston and they would often leave me alone, in charge of the store.
Not really the safest mall.
It wasn’t the Murder Mall (which we do have where we live) but not really a place where a 14 year old should be left in charge of the store.
We sold gifty type things, costume jewelry, cards, candy, etc.
I loved that store.
I worked there for almost a year, then moved across the mall to International Coffee where Michaela and I made coffee and hot chocolate for people.
I hate coffee, but wow…do I love the smell.
Then, I moved across the Green to Epstein’s where I worked the rest of my way through high school and into college breaks. Loved that job.
So, that’s more than just my first job, but I was on a roll.
So, we get off the plane, go through customs, head outside and meet our driver.
He starts driving us back to the hotel and a fairly high rate of speed.
A police car turns on its lights, pulls out behind us, and starts to follow us. But he pulls around us and speeds by, pulling someone else over.
Then, he hops out of his car and starts waving his flashlight to pull us over.
Our driver pulls over, hops out of the car and walks to the cop, (wearing, what appears to be an AK-47 around his neck), whose hand he immediately shakes.
They chat for awhile, the driver comes back and gets some papers out of the van and goes back to the cop.
They talk awhile longer.
He comes back to the van, gets his wallet, pulls out some money, goes back, gives it to the cop, hops back in the car and drives away.
The guy sitting in the front of the van asks how much it cost to get us going and the driver says “$50” to which Kim responds, “It’ll cost you $100 to buy my silence!”
———
Already shared the screen door story. If you missed it, you can find it here.
———
So, on Friday, we were laying on the beach, reading, napping, chatting, whatever.
Suddenly, Michaela says “Hey! Look! A wedding!”
Sure enough, there was a wedding beginning on the closest pier.
So, we watched as the groom made his way to the end of the pier with his witness, and then the bride walked down the aisle to meet him.
Really sweet.
But, wait!
What?
This picture is fuzzy and not really easy to see, but there were three women wearing thongs, standing there watching the wedding.
Hmmm…
Not sure that I would want that in my wedding photos.
Seriously, ladies.
Move along.
———
On Saturday night, the Excellence Resort had a Madonna show in their big, open-air theater.
The dancing was phenomenal. We were so impressed.
Okay, Kim, Michaela and I were impressed.
Erin fell asleep during the show.
“Madonna’s” lip-syncing, however?
I realize she was Mexican and didn’t speak English as a first language.
However, if your entire job is to lip-sync Madonna songs, you might want to invest some time in learning the words.
Thank goodness the dancing was totally rocking because watching the singing was like watching a movie where the sound track is way, way off.
Fun to watch, but kinda gave you a headache if you were paying attention.
If you let your eyes go fuzzy and out of focus, however, totally rockin’.
———
On the plane on the way home, about 45 minutes before we landed, a line formed for the bathroom.
We were sitting near the back of the plane, so the line was right next to us.
Suddenly, I heard someone say, “Amy?”
I look up and who do I see?
Oh yeah…my OBGYN.
Where did it turn out she was sitting?
Right in front of Kim, who was right across the aisle from me.
Hadn’t seen her the whole flight, but there she was!
Flying home from Cancun, Mexico on a Sunday afternoon and I bump into my OBGYN.
Weird.
Of course, with all the kids I’ve had, I probably paid for her flight, so I guess it makes sense.
…because when you’ve been friends as long as we have, you are always 8 years old when you are together.
So, the truth for today is that I love Mexico.
At least, I love the Excellence Riviera Cancun Resort.
Or, to be more specific, I love the Excellence Riviera Cancun Resort when I’m there with Kim, Erin and Michaela.
You know that I turned 40 this year, and since we’re all the same age, you can conclude that these three turned 40 this year, as well.
We haven’t traveled together since our days in the handbell choir in high school, where we went to Michigan, Virginia and Bermuda together.
In youth group, we hit upstate New York and Tennessee.
But, since then, the four of us haven’t been anywhere together.
Kim and Erin have taken vacations together, Michaela and Kim have taken vacations together, but I got married early, and didn’t go anywhere with them.
So, we all decided for 40, we were going.
Over the next few days, I’ll be sharing pictures and stories from our trip.
However, for today, I just want to share the feelings from the trip.
There is nothing like spending time with people who know every single thing about you.
Who know things about you that you don’t even know.
People with whom you share a history.
While standing in the customs line, in the Mexico airport, we watched the customs workers type on the keyboard and then stamp the passports.
Kim said, “That’s your kinda job, Amy” and she was exactly right.
But, I don’t know how many people know, that while I’m all about my creative side, how much I love that kind of work and find it very satisfying.
When we got to the hotel, Erin and I (who shared a room, while Kim and Michaela shared a room), went to check out our balcony. We heard a knock on the door, and I got excited and started to run for the room, forgetting that the screen was closed. I ran headfirst, at full speed into the slider screen and bounced right off and back onto the balcony.
I wasn’t embarrassed, I wasn’t self-conscious. I was with Erin.
I laughed and laughed and laughed. We laughed until we cried and our sides hurt.
Kim and Michaela couldn’t figure out why we weren’t answering the door, and then when we were finally able to compose ourselves enough to answer the door, we were still laughing so hard, we couldn’t speak, and when we finally could, we laughed some more belly laughs as we tried to explain the story.
We were all glad to come home to our boyfriends, husbands, children and homes, but I think it’s telling that we’ve already sent about 8 emails back and forth between us all, today, after just spending 4 days, non-stop with each other.
I love these women.
And I can’t wait to tell you about our trip!
Today, I’m sharing my Top 20 most played songs, according to my iTunes account.
Mind you, I do a lot of DJ-ing for my peeps in the nightclub (read – for the monkeys in the kitchen) so many of these are combined favorites, but I don’t play music I can’t get into, so if it’s being played, I’m liking it.
1. In My Head – Jason Derulo
2. Dynamite – Taio Cruz
The first two are the most frequently requested from the monkeys. In particular, from Baby Monkey. I could play Dynamite 20 times in a row and he’d ask for a 21st. He loves to dance to this song.
3. Not Over You – Gavin DeGraw
We all love this one.
Case in point:
4. Tonight Tonight – Hot Chelle Rae
This was our favorite in the fall. Dance Party in our house in the fall was completely made possible by this song.
5. Sk8er Boi – Avril Lavigne
This one is all me.
I love it.
Love the idea of an underdog making it big and sticking it in the faces of all of those who thought they were better than him.
6. TikTok – Ke$ha
I like it.
Monkey Girl likes it (despite it’s inappropriateness).
We like to dance to it.
7. Only Hope (Karaoke) – Original by Mandy Moore
This is all Monkey Girl.
She is dying to sing this for a talent show or something.
She sang a bit of it, unaccompanied, for her American Idol class, after school, but she’s still dying to do the whole thing.
Someday.
8. Ours – Taylor Swift
A sweet, sweet little girl sang this at my school’s talent show, about a month ago, and it stuck in my head.
I played it for Monkey Girl and she fell in love with it, too.
So, now we sing it as often as possible.
9. Spiderman Theme Song
10. Theme from Batman
Can you even begin to guess whose requests these are?
11. Mr. Brightside – The Killers
This song has always stuck in my head.
Just something about it.
Catchy.
12. Golden Age of Chocolate
This is one of the songs from Willy Wonka, which was the play that I was the musical director for, in early March.
The kids love the soundtrack, and this song was their favorite.
13. In Love With a Girl – Gavin DeGraw
It’s Gavin DeGraw.
Not sure what else I can say about that.
14. Always Be My Baby – Mariah Carey
Such a fan, such a fan!
Early work only, though.
Something happened after she made it big.
The rest of her stuff just didn’t reach me as much.
15. You Belong With Me – Taylor Swift
Monkey Girl owns the rights to #15’s placement.
16. DJ Got Us Fallin’ In Love – Usher
Another one that is all Monkey Girl.
This may actually be the one song in my Top 20 that I don’t love.
But she does.
So, we listen.
17. Hook – Blues Traveler
I believe I’ve shared, previously, how this song has calmed all of our babies.
We have another baby.
We listen to this song.
18. Jar of Hearts – Christina Perri
I love her voice.
She’s got the cool, low, scratchy voice thing going on and I love it.
Also, who can resist a lyric like “You’re gonna catch a cold from the ice inside your soul?”
19. Chew It
Another Wonka song that the kids enjoyed.
20. God Only Knows – The Beach Boys
One of my favorite Beach Boys songs.
Added Bonus –
Song #21
Come Go With Me – The Beach Boys
Because, apparently, just one Beach Boys song never really does it for me.
Gotta have two.
1. My student teacher, Jose, recently shared with me an awesome camera app for my iPhone.
It’s called “Paper Camera.”
It takes pictures with all kinds of cool effects.
I haven’t really explored all it has to offer, yet, but I’m working through it.
Here are a few shots I’ve taken with Paper Camera.
2. The “Draw Something” app on my iPad.
I have to say, there is nothing funnier than watching people who you don’t normally watch draw things, attempt to draw things.
(And I’m sure it is quite entertaining for them to watch me try to draw things as well.)
In fact, one night, I received a text from my friend, Sharon, who was hanging with our friend, Ashley.
Sharon wrote “Watching Ashley watch your drawing is hilarious!”
Because, let’s face it, people…there’s a reason I’m not the art teacher.
Monkey in the Middle, of course, has about 15 games of every “With Friends” game going on with me at all times, and Draw Something is no different.
Except, I have no idea what he is drawing most of the time.
His mermaid was a square on top of a rectangle.
And can you guess what this is?
It was a hammer and a saw, you filthy people!
We laugh and it is a great, fun game to play with friends and family.
3. Green tea.
I have always been a tea drinker.
Never liked coffee.
But, I’ve always loved tea.
No milk or cream, but with sugar.
These days, I don’t use sugar, but Stevia, instead.
And a few months ago, I switched from black tea to green tea, and man, do I love it!
I drink 3-4 cups a day.
Relaxing, delicious, and, apparently, good for you.
4. The Girl Who Played With Fire
It’s the book that comes after The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.
When Real Man and I watched the movie the other night, I was disappointed in the ending, and then I realized I had only read the first book.
Clearly, the ending set things up for a sequel, and so I decided to start reading the second.
So far, so good. I’m liking the character development and am on the edge of my seat to see what happens with everyone involved.
It’s all starting to come together, which is the coolest part of a book…when the stories that have been told start to intersect.
5. Seriously?
Awesome.
I haven’t taken a day off from this blog since January.
Yet, today, I am taking the day off from being witty, revealing, thoughtful, or anything else.
Nothing is wrong…in fact, life is very good today, and I promise to share it all with you next week.
For now, go to YouTube and listen to James Taylor sing “Mexico.”
If I could figure out how to post the video on my iPad, I would.
But, since I can’t, I’ll just have to trust that you can navigate the way yourself.
Enjoy, relax, and have a great Friday.
I know I will!
Monkey Girl decided it was time for a change.
She’s been growing her hair out for what feels like forever (it was just last summer) and then I got a haircut, last weekend.
Suddenly, her hair was too long and she wanted to get it cut.
Personally, I thought it was gorgeous, but hair is one of those things that I think is utterly personal.
Once you reach a certain age, I think you should be able to wear your hair however you want.
I’m cool with teens who want to dye it purple, shave it, grow it long, get a mohawk, get some dreads…
It’s an easy and non-permanent way of expressing oneself in the teenage world.
And I’ve got myself a pre-teen.
So, despite my love for the length, I took her to get it cut.
Up until now, she’s been getting her hair cut at the KidsCutz type places.
I decided, perhaps it was time for a salon.
So, I took her over to Pro-Haircutters, where I get my hair done.
She felt like a queen as they washed it, cut it, styled it, and blow dried it.
When she finally put her glasses on and saw herself, it was clear that she was happy.
My sweetie pie.
Now, please remind me of this post when my boys start asking me to stop shaving their heads and letting their hair grow long.
Because I just might need the reminder.
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