Monday, August 20, 2007

Come on in and sit for a spell

(...as we say down South when we went you to spend a little bit of time visiting with us. Yep, this might be a long, really rambling post, so you can get your day started with a cup of coffee--or, in my case, a glass of sweet tea--while you sit here and catch up with me. Not that any of you have anything better to do! lol But if you don't have anything better to occupy your time this Monday morning, come on in and "sit for a spell" with me.)

So, how about about some random activities and thoughts from this past weekend?

~ Scout still talks ALL the time and, in fact, put it in proper perspective for me last night when I told her it was almost time to go to sleep. I told her it was time to head to her bedroom, turn out the lights, and get ready to go to sleep. She promptly said (wide awake, I might add!), "But I want to talk when the lights are out." Yep, I'm sure you do! And then, a few minutes later, she said, "Look what I can do, Momma." She closed her eyes, scrunched up her face, and said, "I can talk with my eyes closed."And yep she can! With her little eyes closed and scrunched, she showed me by saying, "See...la la la la la la la."

~ I think I have a huge crush on Anthony Bourdain, who is a chef and the host of "No Reservations" on the Travel Channel. I watched FOUR of his shows Sunday afternoon while...McKenna was at the movies with some friends...Gary and Delaney were at softball practice....and Sydney was taking a nap (ahhh, heaven!)...and I've decided that he is really quite perfect. Well, not really perfect because he drinks too much and swears a bit much and kinda causes a ruckus wherever he goes (in one show he was in Mexico, trying really yummy street-corner food with way too much fat and cholestoral; and then showing how you can buy cheap prescription drugs on the border!), but he looks totally FUN to hang out with! (He travels all around the world, getting to know the culture and trying all the indigenous foods...and since I love to eat and travel, I really can't imagine a better type of traveling companion. Well, except for you Gary...and, you know, you can act sort of Anthony Bourdain-like while on trips, so I'll definitely take you with me the next time we decide to venture somewhere! lol)

My favorite line of the shows I watched yesterday was, "This food is so good that I think I need to take a picture of it and put it in my wallet." Oh yeah, I can totally relate. There have been foods I've eaten over the years---that creme brulee this last anniversary; that totally amazing smokehouse sausage pizza concoction that Pizza Hut did like back in 1990 but which has never reappeared; the fresh pineapple in Aruba; those moan-worthy garlic rolls up in Gatlinburg --that I wish I had taken a picture of, so I could relive it all over again!! I know, I know...I'm weird!

~ I really want to be a Scrabble Nerd! Well, I'm actually kinda ALREADY a Scrabble nerd because I love to play the game and I'm usually pretty good at it! But...after watching Anthony Bourdain on Sunday afternoon...I got hooked into the National Scholastic Scrabble Championship on ESPN2 (apparently, it's the next big "Spelling Bee" type activity!). These middle school kids ROCKED the Scrabble board and I'm thinking that I need to find a competitive club to join! (One of the pairs got a 72-point word and I think the highest I've ever got is maybe around 40; and they knew really funky words like "kol" and "dinaste"; and they each had only 25 minutes for the total game, which would totally ruin my kind of play since it sometimes takes me 25 minutes to come up with ONE word, but still...)

~ Grilled chicken fettucini alfredo and wine makes me really happy!

~ Chocolate cupcakes also make me really happy!

~ I watch WAY too much Disney Channel, but for some reason I'm really not ashamed of it! Adrienne and I gathered with our kiddoes on Friday night to do some scrapbooking and watch High School Musical 2. The two of us watched the opening song and then went back to the scrap room to play and create; I had already imagined that it would be way too loud for me to enjoy it that night and I was right (lots of squealing and jumping up and down was taking place!). So, I watched it Saturday night and got to enjoy every bit of it. And I loved it! And then, on Sunday night, I watched the Sing-a-Long version. I loved it again!! (Gary loves it too...he's like the Perfect Anti-Man...Sydney loves it too and when Troy and Gabriella finally kissed, she said, "That's a good kiss"....and apparently Phats likes it too, but won't admit to it! lol)

~ I am so bummed out because one of our best Alabama football players got arrested Saturday night for disorderly conduct. He's supposed to be a really good guy, and the article at al.com this morning said there was no alcohol or fighting involved, so it really kinda makes you wonder? (At least he's not setting up dog fights, huh?)

~ I AM totally ready for football! McKenna's high school has their "jamboree" this Friday night (kinda like a scrimmage game with a team from across town), then the following week it all starts. So I'm just warning you...if you don't like football, you might get tired of some of my posts during September, and October, and November! LOL

~ I did take a few pictures, which I'm going to share with you now!

I said I made some High School Musical Cupcakes. Oh yes I did... (and they tasted yummy too!)...

Delaney said this was her "Sharpay" outfit. And, yes, this is pretty much how Delaney dresses all the time...

I did get some scrapbook creating done.This is a page I did from Delaney's birthday party this past June (better late than never, right?)...

I showed this whole layout on my last post, but I wanted to share this up-close version of the fun little paper flowers I made. I loved this technique...

I page I did titled "You go girls" about how I want my girls to go for their dreams...

And I started McKenna's album of her Europe pictures from her Student Leadership University trip. So excited to get started on this! It's an 8 x 8 album and I'm using these Europy-looking (is that a word?) papers and those cool Hambly overlays on each page...



Thanks for sticking with me on that really LONG post!

Now I'm off to Delaney's school (just got a call that she left her I.D. here at the house), then back home to work on some writing stuff. Looking forward to a good week!!!

23 comments:

Kingcover said...

Woohoooo I get to go first!! :D

I believe Gary is quaking in his boots right about now if you decide to run away with that chef. How is he going to cope with three girls, one of whom never stops talking. He's going to age 10 years in about one month. Gary you have my sympathy! Best you get into the kitchen and start learning to cook really fantastic meals so Cheryl will be swayed to stay with you otherwise a man in a white coat will 'whisk' her away. Quite literally. And I'm not talking about a trip to the funny farm here either!!!

Anonymous said...

Oh Cheryl, I am laughing here!!! Love all the talk about food! And Scout is a nut, huh?

Linda said...

beautiful pics, beautiful los, and I totally dig Delaney's style of dress. The girl rocks and she's just as cute as a bug (My mom was a tad bit on the southern side too). Anyway, glad you got some heavenly time alone....that's my fav. Thanks for the update, love your ramblings girl. have a beautiful day.

Tammy said...

Oh, so glad you stopped by- nice to meet you! :D

You are too funny about Anthony Burdane...I've only seen his promos. Not exactly my type...too edgy for me...but he is pretty interesting, that's for sure.

I LOVE your HSM2 cupcakes! My seven yr old strolled in just as I was looking at the pictures, and now I'm in trouble. "I want to make HSM2 cupcakes!" Um...thanks. heehee

We pretty much watched that movie all weekend long...and now, just like the first movie, I have the songs permanently stuck in my brain. Love that fun finale "All for One" by the pool...
Yep, I watch the Disney channel way too much, too...:)

Cheryl Wray said...

King--You so deserve to be the first poster when you post a comment like this!!! LOL I guess Gary better be ready, cause he never knows when I might break for it!!!
Gin--I really did talk a lot about food today, didn't it? Ha ha! I LOVE food!!
Linda--Thanks girl!! I do ramble...
Tammy--So good to see you! I wandered into your blog from somewhere else...maybe Susie Qs? not sure! lol Got a kick out of your HSM stuff too!! (Sorry about the cupcakes! lol)

Adrienne said...

I still haven't seen it yet!!! BUT I did hear the sing along the other night!!!!

Mississippi Songbird said...

My daughter has the High School Musical CD.. She knows all the songs.. So does my son..NOW, I'm humming along..lol

Great blog post!

TK Angels said...

I don't believe that I have seen the show with Anthony and I don't have young children (grandkids too young) to pay attention to the High School Musical. MY time ended-but it will be coming again with the grandkids.

Take care,
Love,
Terri

PS loved the post and read it all. Love football, Hah

Renee said...

I swear, HSM2 is all the rage, isn't it? It seems like that's all the DJs are talking about on the radio these days.

PS. I love your Paris page.

Anonymous said...

Hey Cheryl this is Lorri. This artical was in People mag. I though I would share it with you.

No Surprise: High School Musical 2 Is a Massive Hit
MONDAY AUGUST 20, 2007 09:20 AM EDT

By Stephen M. Silverman

Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens

Photo by: Kevin Winter / Getty

Zac Efron forever!

The dreamboat, along with costar (and possible squeeze) Vanessa Hudgens and the rest of the gang, pulled off a masterstroke this weekend with Disney's High School Musical 2, attracting 17.24 million viewers on Friday.

This makes their original movie's premiere the single most-watched basic cable telecast in history, Reuters reports.

The sequel to 2006's surprise runaway hit High School Musical outscored the previous ratings record holder, ESPN's Monday Night Football game on Sept. 23, 2006, which averaged 16 million viewers.

The numbers for HSM2 also make it the most-watched program on TV since the season finale of FOX's hit drama House on May 29 drew 17.26 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research.

What is also being taken into consideration is that, unlike the House finale, a lot of people (kids, especially, along with their parents) watched Friday's broadcast at viewing parties – which means the actual number of viewers was likely even higher than what's being reflected in the tallies.

In terms of demographics, Musical 2 ranked as the most-watched TV telecast ever among children aged 6 to 11 (6.1 million), and was the most-watched entertainment telecast ever (and the second-highest-rated overall, behind only the 2004 Super Bowl) among tweens aged 9-14 (5.9 million), according to the Hollywood Reporter.

But wait, there's more to come: High School Musical 3 is in the works – as is a movie feature that will play in theaters. And Musical 4 is in the planning stages.

These are in addition to the already-existing DVDs, CDs, games, live performances and lines of clothing and merchandise that the original High School Musical spawned. Also on tap for the Disney Channel: the upcoming debut of High School Musical: The Music In You, described by the Hollywood Reporter as a musical-documentary from Oscar-winning filmmaker Barbara Kopple that chronicles how some Texas teens produced their own stage version of Musical.

Meanwhile, as far as the franchise's stars are concerned, at the HSM2 premiere at Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif., last week, Efron, 19, and Hudgens, 18, were united on the blue carpet and cuddling safe enough for the throngs of under-12 fans – which in large number wanted Efron's autograph.

"He's an amazing guy," was all Hudgens would tell PEOPLE.

Efron, however, shared his mutual admiration of Hudgens. "Working with Vanessa was a dream come true," he told PEOPLE.

Cheryl Wray said...

Adrienne--I had to watch it Saturday. It was really cute!!
Songbird--I think everyone is singing it!! lol
Tk--Oh yeah, with grandkids you'll get into all of this!! Yay for football!!!!
Renee--It is CRAZY!!! And thanks abou tthe Paris page. That was fun to do!
Hey Lorri!!!! I had actually read an article similar to this one. I can't believe it got such huge ratings. Amazing!! And the next movie will be in the theatres? Cool!

Rhoda @ Southern Hospitality said...

Hi, Cheryl, you've been a busy girl. Just wanted to say hello & thanks for stopping by to see me. You always leave such nice comments.

Rhoda

Anonymous said...

Such great pictures. I love them all.
Hope you have a great day. Is it still hot there?

Marg

Kimberly said...

Glad u had a great weekend and love the layouts.

Heather Landry said...

Thank you for the comment on my blog! My 5 year old is NEVER quiet! I ask her sometimes if her mouth hurts from all of her talking! LOL

Scrabble tournaments! I love scrabble but have rotten luck. I mean what can you spell with QXZVYW anyway? LOL Great scrapbook pages!!!!

Cheryl Wray said...

Rhoda--I always love stopping by your blog.It is always filled with such pretty things!
Marg--We actually got DOWN to 98 today. We were so excited! LOL
Kimberly--thanks!
Heather--So glad you stopped by! I always love meeting new blog friends!! I love Scrabble, but yes it's hard to come up with words most of the time! Especially when you get stuck with all consonants or all vowels, which always seems to happen to me! lol

Jeff said...

I love! the HSM cupcakes. Excellent!

Dawn Bibbs said...

Awww, that post wasn't too long...so what it took me ALL day to read it :-). But that's not because it was too long...I just kept getting sidetracked and I'd stop reading to go do something else.

That chef guy would NOT like me! I do not like to try new and different foods. That would be the perfect diet for me...to move to another country, because I wouldn't eat :-) lol.

What CUTE cupcakes! Ok, call me crazy, but isn't "Sharpay" the name of a super wrinkly dog?

Great LO's. Thanks for sharing.

Danielle said...

I LOVE your new layouts!!!! and those cupcakes look soooooooooo YUMMY!!!!

Anonymous said...

Your layouts are so pretty. I think the Eruope book is gonna be so great. You have to make suer and share it all with us.
See ya!!

Leah said...

Those cupcakes are adorable!! Love your layouts too! So good!!

Adriann said...

Love the LO's! I'm a Top Chef fan and Anthony Bourdain was a guess judge on the show. I enjoyed his personality.

You guys went all out with High School Musical. I'm not up to date with the phenomena because I am the mother of a 5 year old boy. Power Rangers or Ninja Turtles I could tell you about. LOL!!!

Looks like a fun weekend!

Enjoy the week!!

Gretchen said...

I love that you made HS musical cupcakes. :) Drama watched the premiere last Friday night. Thank goodness our beach house has cable, or I might not have heard the end of it! Love the lay-outs, too. You are an amazing scrapbooker. If scrapbooker isn't a word, it should be. Thanks for sharing into your life. Fun to read and get acquainted.