Army of Mom

Hoops

2010-02-05T15:31:00.002-06:00

Yeah, it was unusual to see Hot Rod having to act as the point. Poor kid. Its not his strong suit, but the main ball handler on the team was out sick on Saturday. I'm thinking Hot Rod was probably wishing he had been after this game.

Also odd to see Army of Dad as the coach for basketball. Its the one sport he doesn't coach the kids in. But, the two coaches were both going to be out of town. Since AoD is at all the practices helping, they asked him to step in.

If you look at the two orange kids, Hot Rod is the shorter one in the center of the frame. Check out the kid in the blue with the green t-shirt underneath. Yeah. He's an 11-year-old who is as taller or taller than my 5-foot 10-inch husband. Yeah, really.
And, this was how Hot Rod spent much of the game - on the floor. First, the tall kid kneed him in the head with his stork legs and then some little fat kid on the other team punched him in the neck. Ok, it was a forearm elbow to the neck, but it was intentional. I saw the kid going after him as Hot Rod was dribbling down the court. It was pretty brutal. Hot Rod wheezed and rasped all weekend afterward. Good thing we're playing church league basketball (note my sarcasm).

Good in Bed

2010-02-01T21:35:00.005-06:00

Started reading a new book called "Good in Bed" by Jennifer Weiner (stop snickering).

The heroine is a chubby newspaper reporter with a rat terrier. (OMG, sounds a lot like me). Yeah, I used to be a daily newspaper reporter with a rat terrier (RIP Cricket).

This conversation ensued this evening:

AoM: Hey babe, check this out. Sort of creepy. The new book I'm reading. The heroine is a chubby daily newspaper reporter with a rat terrier.

AoD: Wow. Sounds like someone is following you around!

AoM: Heyyyyy!!!!! You think I'm chubby?

AoD: *walks away shaking his head*

Ready? Ok!

2010-01-31T20:21:00.000-06:00

My cheer squad is called the Cuties and it is definitely an appropriate name. They really are about as cute as little gals can be. Here I am trying to coach them on our half-time cheer so no one stands out there blankly.
And, a sideline cheer is always good.
Getting ready to run out for halftime. The girls are introduced individually as we line up. Little Bit was ready to do a cartwheel.
The cartwheel needs a little work, but its actually pretty cute to see her try.
And halftime on the court. So very very cute.
This is Little Bit's BFF with the ball. It was fun to get to cheer for her.
And, post-game, the girls posed for a quick photo. How cute is that?

I'll Catch You on the Flip Side

2010-01-31T09:35:00.003-06:00

Eye candy, it is. But, I get to go see the eye candy on the right *doing the happy dance* today at the Sci-Fi/Comic Con. *still doing the happy dance* I wonder if he likes 41-year-old baseball moms? Hmmm, no worries. I'll pay my $20 and get my autograph and snapshot with him and I can dream. Hmm, that makes me think. I wonder what he smells like?

*fanning self*

If you haven't seen The Boondock Saints or All Saints Day, I highly recommend them. I would describe the movies as action-adventure-dark comedy. *shrug* However you'd describe it, good stuff. I quote this movie all the time.

And, for good measure, the prayer the brothers (in the picture above) use when they kill bad guys:
"And Shepherds we shall be
For thee, my Lord, for thee.
Power hath descended forth from Thy hand
Our feet may swiftly carry out Thy commands.
So we shall flow a river forth to Thee
And teeming with souls shall it ever be.
In Nomeni Patri Et Fili Spiritus Sancti."

What I've been doing

2010-01-30T10:17:00.003-06:00

Sorry to be an absent blogger. All dozen of you who read have been going through withdrawals, I'm sure. NOT. But, awww, these are the moments when all the time spent pays off. A nice big hug from the cutest cheerleader in the world. Yeah, its scary, but I'm the cheer coach at the Baptist church. Me? Guiding 17 little 5- to 7-year-old girls. Yikes.

But, when they're out there, they are soooo darn cute!

And, I do love to tell people what to do. LOL

Hot Rod got on a selfish team this year. It stinks after he was on a team last year where we only had one ball hog (and he was actually decent). This year? Not so much. Everyone is a ball hog and no one is that great. But, he is doing ok.

He enjoys it and is getting a little Jesus with his workout. Can't beat that.

I've also spent time in Fort Worth and Dallas. This week, the company owner flew in again. I took him to Fort Worth instead of Dallas for a visit to Sundance Square. He even treated me to lunch at Reata *yummy!*. I had tenderloin tamales. OMG! They were awesome.

We've also had a few UNT games in there. Little Bit loves being the sweeper at the games and we've been lucky to let her have the job most of the time. She loves Scrappy, too!

And, of course, I love to watch Collin play. He's energetic on the court. It also doesn't help that he is soooo easy on the eyes. Check out the muscle definition. Mrs. M, turn away now please and cover your eyes. Collin has NOT been "what I've been doing" as the blog post is titled. Now, I could put him on a to-do list, but I think both he and his mom might have something to say about that. Plus, it could be kind of creepy after his mom and I have become friends. But, you know, I could look past that. A gal can dream, can't she?

I mean, really, look at that.

Then, there is my darling Little Bit. This was on headband night for the UNT students. Of course, I'm sure she batted her eyes and someone got one for her, too.

Now, this would be on Army of Dad's list of what he'd like to have been doing over the past week or two.

More basketball.

And, more cheering. We're on our way to do that in the next few minutes, too. Go Jesus! Yea! :)

Well That Sucked

2010-01-24T22:56:00.001-06:00

Not much else I can say about it.

I guess it would've been a good game had I not had a dog in the hunt. But, watching it from the Vikings fan point of view, that was awful. The Vikes would've won easily a number of times if they hadn't turned over the ball so much.

Then, the refs sucked major ass. I can't even begin to describe the amount of suckiness that came from them.

*sigh*

A Vikings Prayer

2010-01-24T17:58:00.000-06:00

Our Favre-er who art from Mississippi
hallowed be thy name.
Thy bowl will come, it will be won,
In Miami as it is in the Dome.
Give us this Sunday our weekly win.
Give us touchdown passes, but do not let others pass against us.
Lead us not into frustration, but deliver us to the Super Bowl.
For thine is the MVP, the best of the NFC, and the glory of the Purple People Eaters now and forever.
Amen

Go Vikings!

2010-01-24T09:57:00.001-06:00

The photo is a little dated. Ok a lot dated. :) This was pre-season August 2006 at the soon-to-be imploded Texas Stadium. Little Hot Rod was just that ... little. Go Vikings!

Coach Avery

2010-01-22T17:39:00.000-06:00

My own little Jet Terry (with her Mean Green headband on) got to meet former Mavs Coach Avery Johnson (current NBA commentator on ESPN, I think). How cool is that? She was a ball girl last night and one of the UNT handlers took her over to meet Avery. How cool is that?

Link

2010-01-22T15:38:00.001-06:00

Pickle entered this drawing in an anime art contest at the local library. I thought it was pretty cool.

Best of Show

2010-01-14T19:38:00.002-06:00

Nope, not AKC style. More like NRA style. My boy won first place among the fifth-graders at his school science fair then went on to win Best of Show to represent the school versus all the elementary school winners district-wide. Titled "Little Bullet, Big Punch" his

experiment was to see which kind of .22 ammo got the best penetration. He did a great job and is so proud of himself. Maybe almost as proud as mom and dad are!!! Apparently his sister cheered really loudly for him when his name was announced at a school-wide assembly today. His teacher said he was so shocked that his mouth fell open - and stayed open. Very proud, we are.

Who let the seals out?

2010-01-12T20:43:00.003-06:00

Back in November I found myself a tourist in San Francisco and I allowed myself to be sucked into the traditional trip to Fisherman's Wharf for a few hours. One of my favorite things to do was watch the smelly seals along Pier 39.

There were hundreds of them and they were very entertaining. So, I was dismayed to read today that the seals are gone. Go check out the link and look at the picture with no seals anywhere in sight. Scientists have no explanation and no clue where they went. Weird, huh?

Go Mean Green!

2010-01-10T11:06:00.000-06:00

Little Bit has been chomping at the bit all season long to get picked to go out and do the Mashed Potato with the North Texas Dancers and Scrappy. Tonight was her lucky night.

Starting out in the middle of the girls was pretty cute.

My baby is the one in the UNT shirt. Of course, she was the only little girl out to really "shake 'em down."

She can mashed potato and do the twist.

She can jump around and make her hair fly, too.

And, then Scrappy had to come hang out with her for a few moments. All that Mash Potato-ing musta been tiring.

She is the sassiest little ball girl around.

Josh White hit his 1000th point tonight. That was exciting to see.

And, as always, I like to watch the beauty in motion.

He was doing a lot of ball handling tonight.

I think he finished with five points in the Mean Green victory.

And, defense is always fun to watch. He may have actually escaped getting more than a foul or two tonight, as well. That is unusual for him. He's pretty aggressive. Good stuff. No more games till the 16th, dammit.

The Battle of the Roses

2010-01-09T22:37:00.002-06:00

Yeah, its gonna be ugly. Really, really ugly. This is almost a no-win situation for me. Part of me (a REALLY big part of me) wants to see my Cowboys win next week versus the Vikings in the Metrodome. But, this other small part of me who enjoys having a happy home. If the Cowboys win, AoD will NOT be happy. *sigh* In the past, I've always cheered (in secret, shhh) for the Minnesota teams to beat my teams. It just makes for a happier home. But, this time, I'm not so sure that I can avoid cheering for my team and doing a dance of love when they do well. *sighing again* I guess we'll see what happens next week in Minneapolis.

May the best team win. (if we're looking at QBs, I think Favre is hotter than Romo, if that counts for anything although Jason Witten, Miles Austin, DeMarcus Ware and Bradie James are super hotties.)

Tiny Dancer

2010-01-09T20:49:00.000-06:00

Today was Little Bit's dance recital. It was too cute. Her tap routine was done to Michael Jackon's "Beat It." I loved it except that the dance teacher combined one of the little kid classes with Little Bit's class. So, she wound up in the back row and I could barely see her. *sigh*

But, occasionally, I got a really good angle at her. How cute is that?

But, what stole the show for me was her paquita ballet performance. Here she is with a friend before the show. These are some pretty little girls.

She loved the flower in her hair.

And, she doesn't have a shy bone in her body. She loves hamming it up and performaing.

This ballet had some adorable little dance moves in it, too.

Very pretty ballerina.

And, of course, every gorgeous ballerina deserves flowers after her performance. This little ballerina is no exception to the rule.

Once Upon a Time ...

2010-01-09T10:47:00.001-06:00

There was an adorable little girl. When she was in the first grade, she started developing some sores in her mouth that wouldn't go away. Her mom took her to the dentist, who sent her to an ENT doctor.

What they discovered was a tumor that kept growing and growing. Here is that precious little girl at Cook Children's in Fort Worth (when it was in that old historic building before joining with Fort Worth Children's Hospital.)

For ages, no one could figure out what was going on with this cancer. Here is little AoM with her daddy at All Saints Hospital in Fort Worth. The cancer was eating my face from the inside out. That scab on my cheek was where it was growin through. To this day, I have a thing about picking scabs because I was never allowed to touch it.

By this time, I was at M.D. Anderson in Houston. I was there for a long time. Being a little kid, I honestly have no idea how long it was, but I do know that when we weren't in the hospital, we lived in a hotel there for a while.

It was pretty miserable for everyone, I think.

Every time I look at these pictures, the tops of my hands start to hurt. I hated those IVs with a passion. So, what started me in on the unpleasant memories? Lots of things get me started from time to time, but I've decided to chop my hair off and donate it to Locks of Love, so I'm getting it whacked off. Just seemed the right thing to do after my niece and one of my good friends both did it recently. One of my blog buddies - at Jenelle's Journey - went through a long year of leukemia and losing her hair and wearing a wig. For me, its just hair and it will grow back. I can't imagine going through cancer, treatment AND losing my hair. As a female, it helps us identify ourselves and as a kid, we just want to fit in. When you have no hair, you just don't. I was around all sorts of kids going through cancer in the hospital. So, anyway. H-day is Feb. 19. Army of Dad hates to see my hair go. But, I promise to grow it back for him.

So, who are YOU gonna cheer for?

2010-01-07T06:43:00.000-06:00

Really? Come on. You got the hot UT tailgaters.

The hot Elisha Cuthbert is obviously a UT fan, too.

Or someone's drunk mom on Bourbon Street wearing a fanny pack. I think we all know now how I persuaded my dear Army of Dad not to go home to Florida after he got out of the Army. The eye candy is pretty darn good here. Football isn't too bad either. Hook 'em, Horns!

The Church of Baseball

2010-01-06T21:16:00.005-06:00

Annie Savoy says it best: I believe in the Church of Baseball. I've tried all the major religions, and most of the minor ones. I've worshipped Buddha, Allah, Brahma, Vishnu, Siva, trees, mushrooms, and Isadora Duncan. I know things. For instance, there are 108 beads in a Catholic rosary and there are 108 stitches in a baseball. When I heard that, I gave Jesus a chance. But it just didn't work out between us. The Lord laid too much guilt on me. I prefer metaphysics to theology. You see, there's no guilt in baseball, and it's never boring... which makes it like sex. There's never been a ballplayer slept with me who didn't have the best year of his career. Making love is like hitting a baseball: you just gotta relax and concentrate. Besides, I'd never sleep with a player hitting under .250... not unless he had a lot of RBIs and was a great glove man up the middle. You see, there's a certain amount of life wisdom I give these boys. I can expand their minds. Sometimes when I've got a ballplayer alone, I'll just read Emily Dickinson or Walt Whitman to him, and the guys are so sweet, they always stay and listen. 'Course, a guy'll listen to anything if he thinks it's foreplay. I make them feel confident, and they make me feel safe, and pretty. 'Course, what I give them lasts a lifetime; what they give me lasts 142 games. Sometimes it seems like a bad trade. But bad trades are part of baseball - now who can forget Frank Robinson for Milt Pappas, for God's sake? It's a long season and you gotta trust. I've tried 'em all, I really have, and the only church that truly feeds the soul, day in, day out, is the Church of Baseball.

Amen.

Rangers pitchers and catchers report Feb. 18. Not that I'm counting out the Cowboys yet. But, I'm also not holding my breath.

Gotta Love Texas Sports

2010-01-06T09:26:00.002-06:00

I was talking to my honey and mentioning that I hated that UNT was going to play as the same time as the Cowboys on Saturday night because the Super Pit was going to be empty. So, guess what the brilliant folks at UNT did? They moved up the games on Saturday. Smart people.

DENTON, Texas (1/5/10) - The North Texas basketball home games on Saturday, Jan. 9 have been moved to 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. to allow NT fans to enjoy the Mean Green and the Dallas Cowboys.

And, on Thursday, the Cajun folks were smart enough (miracles never cease) to move up the basketball game so the National Championship (go Longhorns!) won't interfere with folks attending (or listening on the radio in my case - kntu.edu for listening live on the radio) to the game.

Woo Hoo. I can get my football fix AND my Mean Green basketball fix twice this week. I may have to rub down the goosebumps.

Speaking of goosebumps ... I had a quality dream last night. Dreamed I was 20 again (wouldn't THAT be nice?) and on a cruise (I'm on a boat, mutha f.. well never mind about that). And, all my friends were there from high school (must be all the Facebooking with them) and there was an NCAA basketball tournament going on (yes, on the ship. It was a dream, people, work with me.)

Well, I got a kiss in my dream from a dreamy basketball player and I was dancing around and being silly. One of the funniest parts of the dream was that I wanted to call my parents and tell them that McDreamy Tall Boy kissed me. I always dated basketball players in high school, never baseball or football. And, it was really silly for the 62-inch tall gal to take boys who were never shorter than 6'4. It was pretty awesome, though. Loved tall guys. Of course, I was boy crazy, so I loved all boys. Tried dating a 5'4 tall soccer player. That didn't last long.

Fiesta!

2010-01-04T13:56:00.003-06:00

TCU's Horned Frogs are playing Boise State tonight in the Fiesta Bowl. I'm wishing I had some purple to wear today in honor of the event (all I have is Army of Dad's Vikings attire). I may have to get me some Horned Frog purple.

Ringing in the New Year

2010-01-03T13:09:00.004-06:00

Army of Dad and I rang in the New Year at home on Thursday evening with some friends and The Boondock Saints. Very nice and laid back. (cheap, too). The little kids went to stay with my folks in the sticks. We went down on New Year's Day to retrieve them. My kids, of course, were wandering around the back 40 and having a blast when we got there. Papa was persuaded to give Little Bit a wheel barrow ride around the yard, too. She has on her hearing protection (on her ears) because brother was doing a science experiment that involved shooting. I consider wearing the hearing protection around the house so I don't have to listen to the kids. :)

The kids were treated to a New Year's Day visit from Santa Claus (who was held back from his traditional Christmas Eve visit because of bad weather). Look at the smiles on Little Bit's face (and my mom's!!!). I'm not sure which of them enjoyed this more.

Out in the back pasture and junk area of my folks' house, Santa came out to the shooting range to drop off a few gifts he forgot to deliver to the kiddos.

I love the smiles on Little Bit's face. Her new pink boots were put to good use this week. Her french braids are courtesy of a baby sitter (the older sister of one of Hot Rod's best friends). And, I like her pink side arm and holster.

And, Pickle and Uzz pose for a quick shot on New Year's. Uzz is in Phoenix this weekend. He'll be shooting the Fiesta Bowl for TCU. Too cool, huh? I asked him to bring me back a shirt.

The science of shooting

2010-01-03T11:17:00.003-06:00

Hot Rod and his dad spent a lot of time getting things set up this weekend for a science fair experiment. The boy is doing something about which kinds of ammo have best penetration.

Dad spent a lot of time figuring out ways to check out the theory and wet phonebooks seemed to do the trick. Here they are recording some data about how the shots penetrated.

And, that is some mighty fine shooting by a 10-year-old if I do say so myself. Dad had him shooting in different corners for different ammo (and different phonebooks to absorb the shots). Not too shabby.

Merry Collin-mas!

2009-12-28T22:12:00.005-06:00

Yes, Virginia. There is a Collin Mangrum. And, this is our Merry Collinmas gift to you. I thought this first shot was super cool with the ball actually in the frame. I still take more bad shots than good ones, but every now and then I get a good one. I like this one.

Tonight was my mom's 70th birthday and fortunately, she didn't mind celebrating at a Mean Green basketball game. I come from a sports-loving family, so it is all good. Plus, I got my voice back, so I could heckle again. The last two games have been painful for me without the ability to yell at the refs.

Yeah, just a good pic. No. 3 for Texas Southern - his name is Junior Treasure. Ahh, the jokes I wanted to share. But, he sank some nice shots.

Collin started tonight, which was super cool for the super fans. :) Played well, too.

I was shocked to see him lose a ball because his ball-handling skills are awesome, but when you look here, it is sort of easy to see why he lost the dribble - easy to do when the dude has ahold of your arm!

Super Sweeper Girl. Too precious.

Two words: leg muscles. Yeah. Enough said.

Such a good defensive player. Hard to believe, but he didn't have a foul tonight.

Little Bit was so excited to encounter one of the cheerleaders before the game. She even got to hold her pom-pons. She was in heaven.

Happy 70th Mom!

2009-12-28T06:15:00.001-06:00

Today will be my mom's 70th birthday. I've been fortunate to have her around for this long. From lifelong heart problems - including open heart surgery in November 2007 - to breast cancer in 1989. The stroke in 2005 wasn't an easy recovery either. But, through it all, she has kept on kicking and stayed mean as ever.

I was lucky to have her fly out to San Francisco to sitesee with me after a work trip just after my birthday last month. We had a great time and I am blessed we got to do that together.

Tonight, she is coming out to see a UNT basketball game with us. Not sure if it was her way of celebrating this milestone, but it appropriate for our family to celebrate with sports. So, I guess if she's happy, its all good.

So, here's to you, Mom. I hope you have many more years ahead of you.

Christmas DeLights

2009-12-21T21:06:00.003-06:00

Took the little girl to see the lights at Vaderville in Providence. It was uber-cool and Little Bit squealed with delight. If you go, take some canned goods for the Hope Food Bank. My favorite part was the Christmas hymn of Twisted Sister's O Come All Ye Faithful. Yeah, good stuff.