Let the summer fun begin...

Well, I FINALLY got to go see Candy, Chad, and that slightly adorable baby of theirs, Landon. The visit was long overdue and I had a fantastic time. It had been several months since I've seen them, and let's just say Landon's grown quite a bit. :) He's absolutely precious (as you can see in the pictures!) and I just couldn't get enough of him. I know I have posted quite a few pictures here, but choosing which ones to post would have totally stressed me out (you must understand that I took over 50 pictures while I was there, so I'm proud of myself for narrowing it down this much!). As you can see, Landon's very photogenic. He loves to smile!!!

adorable...look at those dimples!!

this was totally candid...I was trying to get Landon to smile and right as I was taking the picture, he attacked Candy with a big wet one. :)

me and Candy

sweet little fam...

Landon with his "Aunt Laura." He loves me. :)

LOOK AT THAT FACE! I love this one...I could just eat him up here.

OK, he's a little happier here....adorable isn't he?

He's exhausted after being forced to spend the day shopping with his mommy and me! :)

Candy's dog had 3 puppies a week ago and they are SO tiny! They can't even open their eyes yet! So cute! (Max did not appreciate me giving them attention though!)

*BY THE WAY...I've convinced Candy to start a blog! Yay! I told her that I was tired of not seeing pictures of Landon, so I insisted that she get a blog. :) I helped her set it up while I was there, so hopefully she'll post pictures regularly so she won't let me down! Check out the Robertson family blog! :)

this is no joke...

Isn't this the saddest sight you've ever seen? This is, in fact, the way my refrigerator looks right now. There's absolutely NOTHING in the freezer, and the refrgerator basically just contains Diet Sam's and a few condiments...no fruit, vegetables, NOTHING. It's always bad at the end of the month, but this is BEYOND pathetic. You can feel sorry for me now. :)

So, just let me know if you're interested in coming over for dinner. We can eat eggs with a little salsa on it. mmmmmmm......

this is so frustrating!!!

Anisa posted a challenge on her blog the other day. She said it was a difficult and rather lengthy quiz and I haven't really had the time to try it...until now. Of course, now that I see how frustrating it really is, I wish I had never even started it (THANKS ANISA!!!). So, if YOU'VE got a few minutes, try it, but be prepared. It won't take you long to get the hang of it.
I haven't made it past 30-something, but I'm not finished with it yet. You've got to try this.

The Impossible Quiz

another birthday!

Happy 27th birthday Alexa!

Today is the birthday of my dear friend Alexa. Alexa and I went practically grew up together and she was also my first college roommate. :) ( I guess that was like 8 years ago....weird).

Anyway, I hope you have a fantabulous birthday today, Alexa! I plan on visiting you this summer!

http://www.wishafriend.com/

Tanning beauties...

Yesterday, Sarah, Emily (Mere's pregnant :) little sister), and I drove to Mere's in-law's house and spent the day with her. Lucky for us, they have a pool, so we basically just sat around it all afternoon (such a hard life). I'm not much into laying out, but I was proud of myself for doing it for 3 straight hours. I'm a little red today (especially considering the fact that it was the first time I've been in the sun this year!), but it'll make a nice little base tan for me to begin my summer! :)

Emily, Mere, Sarah, and me

me, Mere, and Sarah

I'm such a sucker for stuff like this...

I copied Heather and uploaded a picture of myself to see which celebrities I resembled. Here's what they had to say. (Ironically, Minnie Driver wasn't even in the top 10!). I pretty much don't think I look like any of these, but it was still kinda fun to see. :)

http://www.myheritage.com

completely ridiculous.

THIS is the reason why I may not get to do as much traveling this summer as I would like. Stupid gas.

Mere's here!

I got to see Meredith yesterday! I'm so glad she's here for a few days. I haven't seen her since here wedding in mid-March (I know that wasn't long ago, but it seems like FOREVER since I've seen her). Her in-laws live about 45 min. away from here, so her time will be divided, BUT I do hope to have some more hanging out time while she's here! :)

It's time for horn honking and tire squealing!

I'm experiencing a feeling right now that only teachers can fully understand. The last day of school. Mrs. K, a dear friend and teacher (who also just happens to be MSKS' mom), says that she feels like doing nothing but driving around town, honking her horn and squealing her tires on the last day of school. I couldn't agree more. We are getting together later this afternoon to do just that. :)

I brought Max to school with me this morning. My kids have been begging to see him since August, so I knew they'd love it. They were so excited to see him. Max, however, was NOT too thrilled. He was so nervous the whole time and wouldn't even let me put him down. So, by 8:30 this morning, I was heading home with him. I think he was actually relieved to be home in his kennel.

As far as my teacher gifts are concerned, some of you may be jealous. First of all, my class gave me a gift certificate to a Mexican restaurant...woo hoo!!! I also got a $40 gift card to a day spa in Columbus (the most perfect teacher gift), cute napkin rings from Giggleswick, and some yummy brownie mix. I really wanted to post some pictures of my precious students, but I'm very hesitant about having their pictures on the web without parental consent. You know, for liability reasons and such. I'm sure it wouldn't be a big deal, but it's the summer and I'm not really in the mood to get sued.

So, to all of you teachers out there: congrats on surviving another year and have a fabulous summer. I plan to.

And to all of you who work during the summer: I'm sorry. I'll think of you when I'm sleeping in, laying out, visiting friends during the week, etc. etc.

Don't hate.

And the winner is...

JORDIN..WOO HOO!!!

I suppose this will be the last post about American Idol for a while. It'll be January 2008 before it'll start back up again...sad.
I'm pumped about Jordin winning. I mentioned earlier that I felt like she would win, but I'm pretty sure that Blake won't be forgotten. No way. I bet he'll have best selling albums and be banking it shortly.
I was surprised by how much I actually enjoyed the entire 2 hours of the finale (well, most of it). I really had planned on having the TV on during the whole show, but not really being into it until the very end. I have compiled a brief list of my favorite parts of the show, as well as some not-so-favorite parts. Here they are in no particular order (see if you agree):
Top 3 favorite parts:
1. Carrie Underwood's performance (love her)
2. Golden Idol Awards (very clever...a bit cheesy, but clever)
3. The African children singing (very entertaining...didn't you love it?)

3 least favorite parts:
1. Looking at Sanjaya
2. Watching Sanjaya sing
3. Watching Sanjaya sing again (I was going to fast forward through all of that mess, but then I remembered that I DON'T HAVE TIVO...dang).

I feel like Jordin's last performance Tuesday night sealed the deal for her. Here it is in case you missed it. Fantastic. (Does anybody else think that Simon is just a little sexy? Just wondering.)




*Subject Change:
-Tomorrow is my last day of school with students. They will only be there for 1/2 a day. I must say that I'd be totally lying if I said I wasn't THRILLED about it being summer. The break is long overdue and I'm so excited about the time off. BUT, I'm sure I'm going to be a little sad to see those little munchkins head of to 3rd grade. I sure do love those kids.
-Secondly, Mere's in town!! I haven't seen her since her wedding, so I'm pumped about hanging out! Hopefully I'll be seeing her tomorrow sometime and hang out with her even more this weekend...

YAY FOR FUN WEEKENDS AND SUMMER!!

I sure am going to miss him this summer...

in the bag!

GO JORDIN!!!

I will be floored if Jordin doesn't win tonight. After her performances last night, I think there's no chance of her NOT winning. Surprisingly, however, I've grown somewhat fond of Blake too. I'm not a fan of his style, but he's definitely talented and I'm sure he'll have a record deal no matter what happens. He has a great personality from what I can tell too. This IS a singing competition though, and I think she's the better singer of the two...

I'm anxious to see what happens on the 2 hour season finale tonight! :)

oh no!

Poor Paula! Did you hear? She tripped over her chihuahua and broke her nose! Ouch.
I'm interested to see what she looks like tonight on AI.
I wonder what kind of magic make up can do...
Poor thing.
Read more about it here.

oh, she's the best...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!
http://www.wishafriend.com/

Happy birthday to one of the greatest people in the world. I won't reveal how old she is, BUT I can assure you that she doesn't look her age! My mom (a.k.a. "wonderwoman") is the most amazing person I've ever known. I've yet to find something that she can't do (well, as long as it's not sports related! haha!). She's smart, extremely talented, beautiful, and by far the nicest person you'll ever meet. I only hope to one day be half of the person she is! She's an incredible mother, wife, grandmother, daughter, daughter-in-law, sister, and friend. My sisters and I always describe her as "perfect." Obviously, NO ONE is perfect, but I promise you she's as close as it gets.

I hope your day is fantastic, Mom. I love you very much and I'm proud to call you my mother! :)

don't be scared...

Come on...this is easy...

Give it a try!
(There are only 6 questions so the highest possible score is 60).

Create your own Friend Quiz here

scoop on the finales...

I hate season finales. It's no fun being forced to wait nearly 4 months for a new episode, and they always find a way to leave you hanging (I guess that's the point though, huh?). Last Thursday was the season finale of "The Office." There were, of course, a lot of unanswered questions: What in the world is going to happen to Jim and Pam? Where's Karen (not that I really even care!)? Who got offered the job at corporate? I hope I don't go through Office withdrawals this summer. I sure am going to miss them (an entire summer without Stanley...one of my faves, Dwight, Michael, Pam, Angela, JIM, etc. etc.??? I may need therapy). The creators and writers of that show are so brilliant. I want to be friends with all of them.

Fact still remains: I love Jim.

Last night was the season finale of "Desperate Housewives." The characters' lives are becoming so complicated, I can't even begin to summarize the finale. I've become surprisingly interested with Carlos' life for some reason, and I'm really hoping that he and Gabbi will end up back together. I was also very glad to see Bree reappear last night. The show hasn't been the same without her. And Edie??? WHAT IN THE WORLD???

I just took the Desperate Housewives quiz to see which character is most like me. I knew it would be a toss up between Bree (obsessive compulsive) and Lynette (my favorite character who's USUALLY a little more level headed than the rest). The results showed that I am most like Lynette. Take the quiz for yourself here. (I'm curious to see how many Edies there are out there!!).

Last but not least, the American Idol finale is this week. It's down to Jordin and Blake. Who do you think is going to take it? It'll be a close one for sure....

My vote is still with Jordin though...

weekend recap...

What an event-filled weekend. I feel like I've been spoiled a little by the amount of time I've been able to spend with my sisters, brothers-in-law, and of course my Henry. I'm fortunate to be able to see Mom and Dad often since I'm still in the same town, but with Kristen and Heather both living several hours away, I'm lucky to see one or both of them every month usually. Lately though, it seems as though there's been one weekend event after another and I've had some good hanging out time with them.
Of course I was camera-ready every second of the weekend, so I was able to get some really good pictures (I should have gone into photography :) ).

The weekend started Friday night when Mom and I went to SA graduation. I went mainly to see two sweet girls who have been good family friends of ours for years. The first picture is Camon who I've known nearly all of her life. Her family lives across the street from my parents and they're practically family. She was the salutatorian of her class (99.7 GPA...seriously?? I don't get how somebody could be that smart). The other picture is Michelle whose family has also been good family friends of ours. I've spent a lot of time with her over the years as her "babysitter"...I would stay with her weeks at a time when her parents would go out of town. (Her boyfriend is the one who was just killed in a car accident the day before graduation).

Both of these girls are special to me and I'm so very proud of them!

Saturday afternoon, the fam went to the MSU baseball game...the weather could not have been more perfect. Henry had a good time and he enjoyed being shown off by us all! :) Here are some pictures from the game. (The bottom picture is my cousin Jake and his girlfriend, Lindsey....so fun to see them!).

Friday night, we ate dinner at Nana's for my mom's birthday (it's this week).

Uncle Bobby gave Henry his first autographed baseball...so cute.

Sunday morning we ALL went to church and had lunch. It was a fabulous weekend, but I always get a little sad when they leave me. FORTUNATELY, in a mere 5 days, I'll be free for the summer (woo hoo!!) so I'm sure I'll be taking a few road trips to visit. Yay for summer!

Here are a few more pictures taken randomly during the weekend.

One more thing...

I've been playing around with the video feature on my camera and I just so happened to catch little Henry laughing. I then decided to play around with vimeo and try to upload it. Hopefully this works so you can see him. To me, there's no sweeter sound than a baby laughing (although listening to George Strait is a very close second :) ). I've watched this at least 12 times already. Enjoy! (Be sure to pause the music at the bottom!)

Henry Laughing from Laura Tomlinson on Vimeo

Happy 1 year!!

Happy 1st anniversary to my oldest friend Mary Straton and her hubby Kell!

It's hard to believe that it's already been a year. I hope that you have a fantastic day with many many more anniversaries to come! Love you both!

*Here are some pictures from that very fun day - May 20, 2006.*

Head on over to their blog and wish them a happy anniversary! :)

prayer request...

Many of you may have heard about the terrible car accident early this morning in Starkville that included 7 teenagers, one of which was killed. I think that some of the passengers were in high school, while a few of them were also in college. I'm not positive on their ages, but I have heard of all of them although I don't know any of them well.
A girl I used to babysit and housesit for weeks at a time is graduating high school tonight and her boyfriend is the one who was killed (he was a freshman in college). I just saw her earlier this week and met her boyfriend for the first time. He was very friendly. It's such a devastating situation, and I know there are no words that I can say to comfort her when I see her tonight at her graduation. It's going to be tough for so many of the students there as well as other friends and family members who are coping with this tragedy.
If you're reading this, I ask that you stop now and say a prayer for these kids, family members, the schools here, and the community. These kinds of accidents are never easy for anyone.


Psalm 10:14 (New International Version)
But you, O God, do see trouble and grief; you consider it to take it in hand. The victim commits himself to you; you are the helper of the fatherless.

very interesting...

I've told you before that I'm not a political person. I would like to be more knowledgeable with politics someday, though (it's on my to-do list). I think it would make me feel smarter. :)
Anyway, Anisa took this quiz on this site (fun site if you're the quiz-taking type....CLAIRE) and I thought I'd give it a try.

Here's my political profile:

Overall: 80% Conservative, 20% Liberal Social Issues: 100% Conservative, 0% Liberal Personal Responsibility: 75% Conservative, 25% Liberal Fiscal Issues: 75% Conservative, 25% Liberal Ethics: 75% Conservative, 25% Liberal How Conservative/Liberal are you??

my brother...

This week at school, we've been having "themed" days. Monday was "wear green day," Tuesday was "hat day," Wednesday was "crazy/backwards day," today is "change your name day," and tomorrow is field day.
Anyway, I allowed the students to decide this morning who they were going to be today. I must say, they came up with some very interesting names to say the least. Some of them are famous people, made up names, other students' names, etc.
One of my students decided that he was going to be Ladanian Tomlinson, who, as I'm sure you know, is a pro football player (doesn't he play for the Chargers? I don't really keep up). I, then, of course, explain to the class that he's my brother.

Most of them believe me.

I guess I should tell them the truth at the end of the day, but it's just so fun.

You see the resemblance don't you? :)

my kinda, sorta, MIGHT AS WELL BE, nephew...

OK, it's been too long since I've seen him. Candy emailed me pictures of Landon and he's gotten SO BIG! It's been almost 4 months since I've seen him (I'm very ashamed of myself) and I can't get over it. Look at that adorable face!! She said that lately, he's been talking about how much he misses his "Aunt Laura." (I feel like I might as well be related to him!)

Candy, I'M COMING TO VISIT SOON! TELL LANDON TO STOP GROWING UP SO FAST!

Here are a few of the absolutely adorable pictures she sent. I could eat him up.

time waster...

If you have one of those jobs where you sit at a desk and stare at a computer for 8 hours (totally NOT a description of my job!), you'll love this. Some of you may have seen it before, but if you haven't, you need to check it out. It's an online 20 questions game and it's crazy weird. I came across it last night and played for a while. I tried to trick it, but I couldn't. You are to pick a category, think of something in your head (person, place, thing, etc.). You will then be asked questions about what you chose, and after you answer a certain number of questions, the computer is somehow able to figure out what you chose. It's weird. Last night, some of the things I chose were: Tom Hanks, George Strait, Jerry Seinfeld, "Dawson's Creek" (shutup), and "The Sound of Music". The computer got it right ever time. (It actually can be kind of frustrating).
BUT...
I know there are some of you out there who need something to pass the time at work, so...

HERE YOU GO! :)

I'm getting nervous...

I just got finished watching AI. Jordin has had my vote for several weeks now, and I still do love her, BUT, Melinda? Excuse me? She was incredible tonight. No offense to all of you Blake fans out there, but he's my least favorite of the 3. Still, I'm curious to see what's going to happen tomorrow night. I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO THINK! What do you think?

My little boy is ONE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAX!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU, HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR MAX, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! :)

(If you are a first time reader to my blog, I must explain that this birthday post is indeed for my dog...I am quite obsessed with him, as you will soon see...)

Max had quite an exciting day today. I made a doggie treat for him (see green plate below...HE LOVED THEM!) and gave him a value bag of his favorite bones...Dingos of course! His Aunt Heather gave him a blog shout out this morning, he got a birthday email from Dogster , and his girl crush, Reese, whose mom is a friend of mine who works with me, gave him a birthday card! He blushed a little after that one. :) THEN, sweet Nana came over and brought him the cake that you see above (isn't that so cute?! It looks just like him!) AND some mini tennis balls made JUST for little dogs. Max loves them. He definitely got spoiled today, and he wanted to thank all of you who made his first birthday so very fun! RUFF RUFF!!!