Almost There...

Match and Papa are headed to Alaska for a little vacation.

Do you know what I love about them?

Well, beside that they are the best parents ever...

That they just enjoy each other's company so much. And they love each other so evidently.

But they don't get all PDA-ey (yes, that is totally a word), and they don't talk about their love to others, and they freely admit that sometimes the other one makes them a little crazy.

It reminds me of Miranda Lambert's song, Love Song.

Either way...

Papa and Biggie were talking about the trip and Papa was telling him that they were going to go fishing for salmon.

So Biggie tells him, "I don't really like salmon... Actually, I'm almost allergic to it."

Such a character!

Miscellany Monday

It's been a long while since I've participated in Miscellany Monday.

I'm going to give it a go again...

With an abundance of iPhone photos.

one

food truck friday

Glinda and I spend Fun Friday lunch checking out the food trucks in downtown Phoenix.

We split this chicken hot dog with smoked gouda, roasted red peppers, and mushrooms. Then we shared that delicious drink - which was a Honey Pear luncharita. There was no alcohol in it, but it was delish!

Then we went ahead and shared a salted caramel creme brulee. Holy moly!

If you are in the Phoenix area I recommend heading down to the Phoenix Public Market between 11:30 and 1:00 on Fridays to check this out.

There were a lot of people there last week and it was H-O-T, hot! I can't imagine what it's like when the weather is nice.

two

swim graduation

Biggie and Tiny had their annual swim lessons last week and the week before. And they graduated on Friday!

Sissy, Bunner, SuperFan and I (along with a whole slew of cousins) took swim lessons from the same teacher.

Tiny can swim, but he just won't do it when he's at lessons...

Strange.

Here they are all decked out in their swim gear.

PapaBear doesn't like mohawks, so Biggie just did this for a quick second.

Here's Biggie and SisterSmalls - just because you needed to see a picture of her! :)

three

golf and pedis

Saturday morning I took advantage of the sweltering heat and headed out to the driving range with Big T and his oldest son.

I'm getting better - I just need to spend more time hitting the ball.

That's my new golf bag there - it make me look good!

And Big T's older son is in the top picture showing me up. It's awesome. He's four.

And in the bottom picture is his younger son. I am freaking obsessed with that kid. He is SO adorable!

Then it was off to get lunch and pedicures with BFL and her daughter.

Yes, I do realize that my toes are as long as fingers.

four

birthday baseball

Biggie turned six on Saturday, so for his birthday I took him and Tiny to a Diamondbacks game.

It was pure chaos, but they had fun. And when I left them, he said, "Thanks Aunt Airplane! You're the best."

Totally worth it.

During the 7th Inning Strech they played God Bless America. I looked over at Biggie to find him with his hat over his heart. I teared up.

I honestly didn't think that Tiny knew what was going on - he was just sitting there enjoying his "copcorn" and then the DBacks had a great hit and he threw his arms up and started cheering!

And of course, the obligatory self-portrait of Biggie and me.

now head on over to carissa's blog and read something you haven't read before.

The Past

I am about to get serious on all of you.

I apologize. 

I was having a conversation with Big T today about a guy who was in high school at relatively the same time as we were. I don't like him. Big T does.

We argue about it a lot.

Finally today I was able to put into words why I don't like him.

It boils down to the fact that he has never been nice to me and has always made me feel bad about myself.

To be fair, I haven't spent a lot of time with him now that we are adults, but I don't really want to.

Let's back up to high school, shall we?

I am a nerd.

Certifiable.

I have never been into fashion (with the exception of shoes).

I have always struggled with my weight.

And I have had some BAD hair.

As I have previously mentioned, Sissy is 13 months older than me. Which means that we were back-to-back in school.

In a small town.

And she is gorgeous.

And she hung out with the popular crowd. 

And she had lots of boyfriends.

And she was thin to my fat.

And crazy to my nerd.

(Don't get me wrong, I did some stupid things. And I broke the rules now and then. But I have always been a fan of rule-following.)

But it was hard to grow up in that shadow. Real or perceived.

I am the nerdy little sister who always wanted to be cool.

And the dudes that hung out with the popular girls made their fat little sisters feel bad about themselves.


All that to say, I don't want to be friends with that guy. Even if he is funny.


But also to say, that at 31 years old, I am happy with the person I am.


I won't lie - there are some really embarrassing school pictures of me out there and I'm pretty sure that if potential boyfriends saw them, they would be scared.


But if I could do it all again, I would probably do it the same (only maybe without the perm and bowl cuts).


I am the strong woman I am because of my past. 


And I don't have time to hang out with people who make me feel bad about myself.


I have insecurities. And sometimes they get the best of me. But I try to spend more time focusing on the things that I am proud of.


And there are a lot of those things.

Soft and Strong

What would Father's Day be without a post dedicated to PapaBear?

There are a million things that I could say about my dad, but the most impressive thing - the thing that I think speaks to the man he truly is - is that at the State Capitol, where corruption unfortunately wins the day too many times, everyone who knows him can say only good things about him.

People who are so philosophically opposed to his beliefs that they would never agree will tell you that they respect him for his honesty and hard work.

For me, I can appreciate that he always pushes me.

That he always loves me.

That he always picks me up when I am down.

He can be grouchy.

And impatient.

And he can get a little excitable when watching sports. 

But he's my dad.

And I love him.

And I couldn't imagine life without him.

(He's going to kill me for posting this next picture.)

I like my PapaBear in a pajama t-shirt and starched slacks...

For me it says, let's take care of business, and then we'll light up these cigars and party!

I love you, Dad!

Thank you for all that you do for me and my siblings.

We are successful because of you and Mom - and we will never be able to fully repay you.

OMG, Mommy

So, the other day BIL and one of his employees were setting up the playhouse/playground in Sissy's backyard when Tiny looked out the window and then proclaimed, "OMG, Mommy, they are building me a house!"

And in true Airplane and Match fashion, we can not let it go!

But let's stop hee-hawing around and get to the point of this post.

A very long time ago I was telling O'Dub about a couple of dates that I had been on and he replied, "Where do you keep finding these idiots who are going on dates with you"

I do believe that statement came out different than he meant for it to, and we're going to talk about some of those idiots right now.

Mostly because I want you all to feel sorry for me and think about all of the men you know. Now narrow it down to the single ones. Now the funny ones. Now the nice ones.

Now send them my contact information so they can buy me dinner.

I'm kidding.

A little.

Unless you have a nice, single, funny gentleman in the Phoenix Metro area - in which case - bring it on!

But, uh, back to the lecture at hand.
Perfection is perfected, so I'm 'a let 'em understand...

I went on a blind date recently.

No, really - he was blind.

In his right eye (it was actually glass). And partially blind in his left.

And he kept telling me how beautiful I was (and you can save the jokes, I've already made them all at my own expense.)

And he said he was an Air Traffic Controller.

But really, he worked in the reservations department for an airline.

Slight difference.

Semantics, really.

And at the end of the date he asked me for my number. And in my inability to say no, I gave it to him.

And he texted me less than 15 minutes after he left me at the stairs to the parking garage.

And.then.he.wouldn't.stop.

Seriously, I didn't even have to answer, he just kept texting and texting and texting.

He finally stopped a couple of weeks ago.

I really do hope he met someone else.

I recently had drinks and dinner with a friend and his girlfriend. I won't lie to you, the fact that he had a girlfriend to bring to drinks and dinner came as a bit of surprise to me.

And the whole event was a little awkward. I tried to make conversation with her, but she wasn't much for that. And he spent the majority of the evening telling her how awesome I am and all of the reasons that he loves me.

Wizzuh-wah?

Seriously, I think I started to blush at one point. I mean, I like to hear nice things about me, but he was taking it to the extreme.

And while he was talking, she would look at me.

Super strange sitch!

And then - to just really throw the whole thing into the WTF-is-happening-in-my-life category - he texted me at an unreasonable hour to say thanks, that I have a good energy, and that they enjoyed my company.

Oh, and that he and I should go golfing soon.

Huh?

Seriously, can someone tell me where the normal AND single guys hang out?

Because OMG, Mommy, this is out of control.

Get Out the Pledge

I'm about to dust off the soapbox...

Well, I think it's going to be a soapbox post.

My head is in soapbox mode, but I never really know what is going to come out of my fingers.

I will start by telling you that I have this struggle with blogging - in that I'm not sure you care about the things that I actually write.

I read/see other blogs and people are writing things like their daily beauty routine and other things I care little about.

And I think, does anyone really give a shit?

But people are commenting, so they must be reading.

Then I think, I should just write whatever the hell I want on my blog.

Then I realize that no one is commenting, so maybe no one is reading, so who really cares.

(I just almost went off on a totally different rant, but I am forcing my brain back to the original task.)

Wellness...

well·ness

   [wel-nis]  Show IPA

noun

1.

the quality or state of being healthy in body and mind,especially as the result of deliberate effort.

2.

an approach to healthcare that emphasizes preventing illnessand prolonging life, as opposed to emphasizing treatingdiseases.

(That definition comes from dictionary.com)

I know I have posted here before about my feelings about food. And I really just truly believe that people are unaware of what they are putting into their bodies.

Recently a study came out that initiated a slew of news articles saying that sugar causes cancer. I will admit that I didn't read the entire study, but I did read a bit of the executive summary and I really felt like everyone missed the point f the study, which was that people are consuming more sugar through processed foods than they ever have.

Which is leading to higher sugar consumption, which they are linking to higher rates of cancer.

It does not mean that sugar equals cancer and you should crucify the sugar industry and clean out your pantries and throw all of your granulated sugar away.

It does mean that we should all pay better attention to what is in our food.

About a year ago a friend of mine, who also tries to live a Paleo lifestyle, posted on Facebook that the one thing that she just couldn't give up on was cream in her coffee. So she was using fat-free half-and-half. Until one day she looked at the list of ingredients and sure enough, high fructose corn syrup was an ingredient.

I would challenge you, if you have any fat-free products in your home to check them out, I would bet that they have HFCS or sugar in the ingredient list. How do you think they put the flavor back in after they took the fat out?

Now let's talk about exercise...

I am not saying that everyone should do CrossFit (this does not apply to you, Diddy) - I get that it isn't for everyone. But what I would like, is for everyone to do something.

Is Zumba your thing? Get out there and shake your rump!

Do you prefer long-distance running? Get your head checked. Just kidding - get out there and run.

I would be happy if people would just get out and walk 3 times a week. Just to get their bodies moving. 

Recently I approached the HR Department in my City about starting a wellness program. I am willing to do the work and there are two girls in my department who are willing to help me. All I need is some guidance on what I can and cannot do. (Seriously, so many rules...boo.)

The reaction from the woman was less than encouraging. Luckily for the people of my city, I am not giving up. 

I know I sound like a broken record, but CrossFit and Paleo changed my life.

For the better. 

I have never felt as good as I feel now.

I am in better shape than I probably ever have been.

I can do things that I never thought were possible.

Why don't people want that for themselves?

I just don't understand.