Weekend Happenings

Good Friday morning!

The Gallery Pics are more pics of Roxie and friends. I ran a little short this week, so Roxie and her friends were more than willing to be photographed. Yet another difference between guys and gals!

My Dentist Story - Part 48 - I'm just kidding. This hasn't really been going on since part of my tooth fell out the first of December while I was eating a roast beef sandwich. Oh, but wait. It HAS been going on since the first of December. And guess what? It still isn't finished!

After I had my bone scraping surgery (or bone lengthening, as they like to call it because it doesn't sound as painful), I had to wait SEVEN weeks for them to dismiss me because it wasn't healing properly. (I'm a whiner AND a slow healer. That's a bad combo.) Finally, on February 2 I was released to go to my original dentist to get an impression for my permanent crown. Yesterday I had my appointment with my original dentist. It went something like this...

The Numbing Process - "How painful is this part going to be?" I asked the hygienist.

"Oh. Not too bad. We're going to numb you up."

"I do better when you put me to sleep."

"Well, we don't do that for crowns." Hmmm. I was going to have to use my "I can still feel my face" trick to get enough Novocaine to make sure I didn't feel anything. But I messed up. I made yet another rookie mistake. (When will I stop doing that?)

While the dentist was giving me the painful numbing shots, he asked me, "Is that enough Novocaine?"

And get this! This is how I answered that VERY important question. "It's never enough." What? Where did that come from? Did that actually come out of my mouth? The correct response for the question is, "No. I can still feel everything." My answer sounded light and a bit funny. He left the room. I needed at least five more shots! Rookie, rookie mistake.

I'm Not Doing This Again - When the dentist came back in to "begin" the procedure, I told him, "If I lose another tooth, I am not going through this again. What are my options?"

"Well. We would have to pull your tooth." At this response, I was nodding my head up and down in agreement. That's fine. It wasn't a front tooth. It was WAY in the back. It would never show. I could have a partial. Just yank the rest of that baby OUT. But then he finished his thought. "And then we would have to put in an implant."

What? An implant! I can assure you that was never going to happen. "Okay. Just forget that. We'll figure something else out when the time comes."

Drilling - At this point, it was now time to drill. I didn't feel numb enough for the drill, but he assured me I was. He drilled and drilled and drilled some more. At one point he told me to close my eyes because there was a lot of metal pieces coming out of my mouth (from my old filling). That's all I needed. I would finally be able to leave the dentist only to go to the eye doctor to have shrapnel removed from my eye.

He took his hands out of my mouth. I thought the drilling was over. My extremely tense body relaxed, and I opened my eyes. "Okay. Let's get back in there and finish up." Great. He was just resting his hand. My entire body jumped back into Extremely Tense Mode, and he finally finished.

I closed my mouth. Something was wrong.

Hiding the Filling - There was something rather large and pointy in my mouth. I had two options. I could swallow whatever the foreign object was and hope it wasn't a piece of the drill, OR I could turn my head and try to get it out myself without the dentist or the hygienist seeing it. (Telling the dentist wasn't an option because I didn't want any more drilling.) I chose the wrong option. I should have swallowed.

I turned my head, fake coughed and caught a pretty large piece of what used to be my filling in my hand. "What was that?" the dentist asked.

"What was what?" I countered.

"What is in you hand?"

"Nothing." I know. I know. I lied. It was wrong. I was hopped up on Novocaine. (That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.)

"Can I see it, please?" I slowly opened my hand revealing the piece of filling. "Open your mouth. I may need to drill again to smooth that out."

I reluctantly obeyed. (Before we go any further, I remember having thousands of conversations like the above with each of my three kids... when they were TWO YEARS-OLD.)

Thankfully, no smoothing was necessary, and the rest of the procedure went quickly. Not painlessly, but quickly.

Feeling Returns - Usually I'm numb for HOURS after a procedure. Not so when you only get the NORMAL amount of numbing medication. I went in at 10:00 a.m. and by 12:43 p.m., I had full feeling back in my face. This was not good. This was not good at all.

And the kicker is... I get to do it again at 10:00 a.m., Thursday, March 25.

Just a little something to look forward to during the month of March!

RANDOMNESS - I have another "little" excerpt to share from Coffee Cup Friendship & Cheesecake Fun by Becky Freeman. I've heard this story before in different places, but I love hearing it again and again. Especially the last two sentences.

Friends to the Finish Line

A few years ago at the Seattle Special Olympics, nine contestants, all physically or mentally disabled, assembled at the starting line for the 100-yard dash.

At the gun, they all started out, not exactly in a dash, but with a relish to run the race to the finish and win. All, that is, except one little boy who stumbled on the asphalt, tumbled over a couple of times, and began to cry.

The other eight heard the boy cry. They slowed down and looked back.

Then they all turned around and went back.

Every one of them.

One girl with Down syndrome bent down and kissed him and said, "This will make it better."

Then all nine linked arms and walked together to the finish line.

Everyone in the stadium stood, and the cheering went on for several minutes. People who were there are still telling the story.

Because deep down we know this one thing: What matters in this life is more than winning for ourselves. What matters in this life is helping others win, even if it means slowing down and changing our course.

Those little children knew the secret to being a good friend.

50 Ways to Tell Your Child "I Love You" - The last ten... for me. Remember, the book is called Faith Training, Raising Kids Who Love the Lord by Dr. Joe White. It is a great parenting resource.

41. Give your child something you like (your favorite sweatshirt, your dessert at dinner).

42. Worship together at home and at church.

43. Allow your son or daughter to go to work with you and be your helper.

44. Find extra work projects your child can do to to earn money.

45. Invite your child's friends over, build a mountain on a tray out of ice cream scoops and whipped cream (with all the toppings), and then eat it.

46. Plan a day each month that is your child's special day, and do the things he or she enjoys.

47. Be consistent in your discipline. Establish guidelines, and follow through with what you say you'll do.

48. Cook breakfast together on Saturday morning.

49. Mow the lawn occasionally when it's your child's turn.

50. If your child has a car, help him or her wash it.

Just a little food for thought... for me, too. We can NEVER spend too much time with our kids. Of course, balance is everything. Time with God, time with spouse, time with family, time with individual kids, time with kids and their friends, time with your friends. It can be a little overwhelming, and if you're like me, you're going to fail sometimes. That's why it is so important to write the dates in INK, make it a priority (just like work and dentist appointments), and no matter what happens, follow through on the commitment! That will SHOUT "I love you!"

Weekend Happenings

We are going all over the place this weekend, but with the weather being so beautiful everything we have planned should be a lot of fun.

Friday night Josh and a friend are going bowling and coming back to the house for a movie. Roxie and cousins will be spending the night with Grandmother. And Austin is coming home, but I don't know if there are any Friday evening plans yet. Sometimes he just likes to hang out a little after a busy week at school.

Saturday morning, Mikie and I are heading to Another Broken Egg. (Expect a restaurant review Monday morning.) We're looking forward to our breakfast date.

The rest of Saturday includes the Band Banquet (Austin and Melia), fishing (Mikie and Josh) and a birthday party (Roxie). My job is having everything on the kitchen table that is needed for those different activities. I hope I'm up to the challenge. (Oh, and I will be cleaning and gutting all the fish Mikie and Josh bring home... NOT.)

Sunday we're meeting for Sunday dinner (the pot roast that never materialized last weekend) and church... and, of course, The Amazing Race and Celebrity Apprentice. I'm thinking Sunday might be my favorite day of the weekend. We'll just have to wait and see.

Have a crazy fun weekend. Go on multiple dates! I'll have more St. Patrick's Day fun next week. My friend, Robin, has donated a St. Patrick's Day dessert recipe for Tuesday's post. It looks delicious AND easy AND green... the three main criteria for recipes used in the month of March.

Take care, and I'll talk to you Monday.

Sincerely,

The Enchanting (and Still Throbbing) Belinda

Five Fun Dates... FOR THIS WEEKEND!

Good Thursday morning!

The Gallery Pics are just Roxie and some friends goofing off... which is what teenage girls do best. (Well, that and roll their eyes.)

RANDOMNESS - I'm going to the dentist today to get the "impression" made for my permanent crown. Yes. This story is not over yet. Mikie told me this part was painless. Mikie has been known to tell a little white lie now and again to make sure I actually go to my appointment. I'll let you know tomorrow.

A Little Something Extra... from one of my favorite authors, Becky Freeman. Today and tomorrow, I'm going to share some snippets from her book Coffee Cup Friendship & Cheesecake Fun.

Simple vs. Real Friends

A simple friend has never seen you cry.
A real friend has shoulders soggy from your tears.

A simple friend doesn't know your parents' first names.
A real friend has their phone numbers in her address book.

A simple friend hates it when you call after she has gone to bed.
A real friend asks you why you took so long to call.

A simple friend seeks to talk with you about your problems.
A real friend seeks to help you with your problems.

A simple friend wonders about your romantic history.
A real friend could blackmail you with it.

A simple friend, when visiting, acts like a guest.
A real friend opens your refrigerator and helps herself.

A simple friend thinks the friendship is over when you have an argument.
A real friend knows it is not a friendship until after you have had a fight.

A simple friend expects you to always be there for them.
A real friend expects to always be there for you!

This is a great book to own or give as a gift. Each chapter describes all of the different kinds of friendships a woman has throughout her life... Chick Flick Friends, Observant Friends, Mentoring Friends, Hubby Friend, Mother/Daughter Friends, etc. It is a wonderful, wonderful little book.

50 Ways to Tell Your Child "I Love You" (Without Saying the Words) - Are you writing these down? Here are ten more ways to "say" it LOUD AND CLEAR!

31. Prepare a dinner or lunch in which the name of every item served starts with the same letter as your child's first name. (Don't worry about whether it is a balanced meal). When your child asks the reason for the strange menu, let him or her guess.

32. In the fall, build a scarecrow together.

33. Ask for your child's suggestions in planning your family vacation.

34. Enter together in a local race for amateur joggers.

35. Attend EVERY open-to-parents function at your child's school.

36. Go on a train or bus ride together.

37. Teach your child a special skill that you know (woodworking, needlepoint, scrapbooking, etc.)

38. On a "rough" day for the child, let a small forgotten chore go "unnoticed." (Or totally forget chores for that entire day. Your child will remember your kindness for weeks and months to come.)

39. Talk with your child about the most significant prayer requests you have... and pray about them together.

40. Join your child in his or her room and build a fort with mattresses, sheets and pillows.

The last ten will be given tomorrow. But remember, this book has 315 MORE ways to spend time with your child... which translates into "I love you."

Blog Linkage - I have two oldies today (just a reminder).

1. If you EVER need funny, interesting, easy, breezy reading material, always head over to Confessions of the Pioneer Woman under my Blog List. If you've never visited, you are missing out.

2. I've said it before, and I'll say it again... this is a great website for anything and everything bargain-wise in Birmingham... http://blog.al.com/bargain-mom. Several of today's dates came from this website. (Thanks again to my friend, Jennifer, who pointed this website out to me several months ago. I check it every week.)

Five Fun Dates... FOR THIS WEEKEND!

1. Sips 'n Strokes is offering a $5 discount when you book a session during March. Everyone will receive $5 off all classes during the month of March at the Highway 280, Vestavia, Trussville and Pelham locations only.

Classes are filling up fast, so please register today for any classes you want to attend. No other coupons will be accepted. Some restrictions apply.

Contact information:

Highway 280
Time Square
522 Cahaba Park Circle
Phone: 408-2836

Pelham Publix Shopping Center
381 Huntley Parkway
Phone: 408-2836

Trussville
1873 Gadsden Highway
Phone: 408-2836

Vestavia Publix Shopping Center
790 Montgomery Highway, Suite 120
Phone: 408-2836

2. Have breakfast or brunch at Another Broken Egg located at 2418 Montevallo Road, Mountain Brook (871-7849). Mikie and I are trying a new breakfast location Saturday morning. Maybe we'll see you there!

3. Take your date for free ice cream Saturday at Bruster's. Got your attention? Stay in your pajamas and head to Bruster's annual free ice cream "PJ Day" this Saturday. It's all day long. Show up in your PJs (keep it classy folks), and you'll get a free waffle cone of any flavor. All locations are participating. (After Mike and I eat breakfast, maybe we'll change into our PJs and check out Bruster's!)

4. The Home Depot Free Kids Workshop is Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to noon. Children ages 5 to 12 can make a rain gauge. It's really quite cute. The first 50 children to show up will receive the craft, goggles and an apron. Make sure to call your local Home Depot and register before you leave Saturday morning.

NOTE - You can also purchase the kits if you need more than the free one you'll receive at the workshop.

5. Take a hike at Oak Mountain State Park. It's going to be a beautiful weekend. Take a fanny pack with water bottles and snacks, and go exploring with your guy or gal. Have a great time outside.

I know most of these dates have been mentioned before on A Simple Life... but you can actually GO on one of these dates in the next two days. I've listed everything from creative to active, a little pricey to absolutely free... And, of course, two of the five dates have something to do with eating. There is something for EVERYONE!

Have a beautiful Thursday. Good weather is here today. Let's enjoy it! Call a friend you haven't spoken to in awhile... or better yet, plan a breakfast or lunch or dinner with her in the next week. JUST DO IT! No more excuses. Tomorrow I'll have ten more ways to say "I love you" to your child, another excerpt from Becky Freeman's book, Weekend Happenings... and maybe some pictures from my dentist visit Thursday morning. Or maybe not!

THIS JUST IN - My pain medication is wearing off (12:23 p.m.). I have a dentist story to share in the morning... if I make it!

Take care, and I'll talk to you tomorrow.

Sincerely,

The Enchanting Belinda