Shockingly, very little

"What I accomplished during my mini-blogging-break, Alex" ..... ding, ding, ding!!!

Funny how I took five days off because I was sick of the computer, and what was the first thing that happened once I finally logged back in? I clicked "upgrade" for my Blogger account to take advantage of some new features, and wound up spending hours online trying to figure out a way to combine what I liked about my old template with what I like in the new. I'm still not sure I've married the two very well, so I'll give it a week to grow on me. Then, if I still grimace every time I see the new page opening up, I'll switch it back to the tried and true (and simple and plain and boring.)

In the meantime, here's the list of what I did on my Summer Blogging Break (Because I'm sure you're just dying to know):


**Went shopping for new jeans. Depressing.


**Visited the bombing memorial again.


**Really had to ask myself .... if I bought a new laptop over a week ago, and it's still sitting on the floor in the box ...... did I truly, truly need it?



**Lots of PTO crap junk stuff opportunities.


**Hosted a birthday party for Kendrie



**Technically, my sister hosted it, since she was kind enough to let us swim in her pool. At least until the storm blew in, at which point we bagged it and went to a movie.



**Figured out, thanks to a few of the comments on my latest photos, that if I take the UV lens off the camera, I can still get the natural-candlight photos that I like of my kids birthday cakes ... (thanks for the tip!)



**And wondered when on earth did Kendrie start this totally cheesy, jut-jawed, open-mouthed kind of smile? And how long will it last??? I guess following closely on the heels of the "my teeth must not show at any cost" close-lipped smile that she's done the past year or two, this should be a pleasant change. Strangly, it is not.



**One final day at the water park ..... which loosely translates into one final day of public swimsuit humiliation, thank goodness some things are over.


**Read three books (see sidebar).


**Watching Barley the fabulous guard-dog protect our family from the vicious dinosuars of the world .... oooops, doesn't look like she's doing too well.



**"Ahhhhh, victory is MINE! Take that you rogue dinosaur, and leave my human family alone or vengence will be mine as well!!!"



**Entered the eleventh circle of Hell (ie, shoe-shopping with Brayden) and lived to tell about it.


**Family night watching National Treasure and making smoothies. Have you seen that movie? If not, you really should.


**Took part in ginormous group bike ride around the lake (more on this later):



**Took a nap


**Hosted a sleepover (OK, I confess, the nap came AFTER this)


**Went off Atkins and practically swan-dived into the carbs ..... which leads to carb-hangover of the worst kind.


**Totally and completely LOST MY SHIT and snapped at the Homeland clerk, "Well, maybe next time you shouldn't ask that question unless you see a BABY'S HEAD COMING OUT!!!!!"


**Packing (more on this later)


**Other stuff I don't want to talk about right now.


**Sooooooo, what did *YOU* do while I was gone???