Sims 2 Pets

SO, The Sims 2 Pets finally came out. I installed it and played on Wednesday and then for a long time last Sunday... (I haven't had a chance to play since, but I plan to play a bit this weekend.)

Anyways, the pets are so cool. I really like this expansion pack because it is one of the few packs that really pervades every day Sim life.

So, I made a Belle and a Kanga.

I made a little grey kitty named Cosette, and a Beagle named Porthos (hmm???)

Then I made a boy Belle, named Peek - a - Boo and a boy Kanga named Roo. I moved Belle and Kanga in with the Loves, and I moved Peek-a-Boo and Roo in with two of my other families. Then I tried to get puppies. Not so easy.

In the game, you can't directly control the pets like you can with the Sims. Which makes the game challenging. In order to have puppies (or kittens), you have to have a high relationship score among the Sim and each of the two dogs, AND the two dogs have to have a high score with each other... but it isn't easy to get the dogs to play with each other since you can't control them. (Once the sim has a high enough relationship with the dog you can tell them to go play with another dog, but they don't always listen.)

SO, I get Belle and Peek-a-Boo to be great friends, and both of them have high relationships with Mrs. Love. But the option to have puppies never comes up. Wha??? So finally I check closely and realize, I had accidently made Peek-a-Boo a girl.

Damn it.

Don't ask how long I'd been playing.

SO. I make another Belle dog, this time a male, and name him Scamp. I move him in with the Love's, and work hard to build Scamp's relationship with Belle and Mrs. Love. No easy feet since Mrs. Love had gotten pregnant and gave birth to twins, Jessie and Tessie, during this time.

But finally, after ?? hours of playing, Belle and Scamp had three little puppies. Two girls, Smokey and Lucky, and a boy, Squirt. Too Cute!

Salt Water Pool

So our salt water pool is installed now. Grant and I used the Jacuzzi the other night. Such a difference! I can totally tell that the water feels way softer on your skin. It is way awesome. No more yucky chlorine smell!

Universal Studios Halloween Horror Night

For our October date (two weeks ago,) Grant and I went to Universal Studios Halloween Horror Night. We had never been, so I thought it would be fun. Besides, as passholders we got a really good deal on the tickets.

Grant found a really good deal at the Universal Sheraton and we decided to drive up on Friday and stay Friday night and Saturday night. On Friday night we had dinner at the Micelli's by Universal Studios. On Saturday we had lunch at the Saddle Ranch Chop House - OH. My. GOD. they had this sweet potato casserole that was to die for.

We went in to the park and did our thing - the tram tour, Terminator 2 3-D, etc., and then we went back to the hotel to rest for a bit before the late night.

Halloween Horror Night was fun. We did Jurassic Park in the Dark, The tram tour maze (which was way cool - you got to walk along the Bates Motel patio, up around to the Bates House, and through the War of the Worlds/Ghost Whisperer plane wreckage, all the time while being chased by monsters of all sorts. Very cool. I especailly liked the guy in the plane wreckage who was walking around carrying a shopping cart full of found body parts.

We didn't do the other two mazes because the waits were too long. We went to the shows, which were, ok. Well, not really. They were kind of lame.

Here is the problem. When you've been to Knott's Berry Farm, nothing compares. Knott's really does it right. Any other Halloween event I've been to pales in comparison... (Although the Queen Mary did do a really good job, and much of that is the ambiance.)

In any case, we did have a lot of fun. It was a very enjoyable weekend.

Just saw the coolest thing

Just saw the coolest thing.

Thought I'd share.

I was walking back from the office, and i was looking at the sky. It is a beautiful, clear blue today; a shade so true it looks like a crayon melted in the sky...

Here and there are puffs of clouds, some those stretchy, cotton candy ish stratus clouds, an a few solid, puffy culmulus clouds that look as though they could easily support your weight as you rested on them.

As I past the overhang of the building, this low hanging cloud came into view. At the same time, a flock of silvery birds flying in formation passed just in front of it and off to the right.

From my vantage point, it appeared as though the birds launched staight from their resting place on the cloud. They stood out vibrantly against the clear blue sky flying off, as though they had just appeared there to fly after a morning rest in the clouds.

beautiful

Happy to share my birthday with....

Celebrate National Coming Out Day
October 11, 2006

NCOD 2006 Theme: “Talk About It”

“Talk About It” will be the theme of this year’s National Coming Out Day to be celebrated on October 11, 2006. The Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Coming Out Project is an on-going campaign to empower gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and allied Americans to live openly and honestly about their lives.

"Understanding is curing ignorance and curing ignorance is abolishing fear."
Author: Matt Marty

Domisticated? Not so much!

So... today is my birthday!!!!!! Happy Birthday to me!!!!!! I'm 28. Lord. Where did the time go.

I wore jeans to work today. I sang a song to my doggies, "Its my birthday I'll where jeans if I want to, jeans if I want to, jeans if I want to... ' I made up a whole verse. Sadly (or maybe not so much?) I can't remember all of the words. Sort of a spur of the moment thing.

So last night, I made 22 beanbags on Donna's sewing machine. gary was so shocked he wanted to take a picture to prove it.

I made the bean bags out of this leftover denim we used to make our bedroom curtains. It felt very Sound of Music ish.

I have a whole stack of presents on my desk from the kiddos. One is this huge Santa Bear stuffed animal. yeah.

Andrew is getting his tonsils taken out today. He is going to feel so much better in a few weeks. He'll be able to sleep much better!

Ok I better go teach now.

Buybye

Obsession

I am watching Nip/Tuck.

Never seen it before, so I don't really understand the story line, but Rosie's on it. Only some of my blog readers remember me from my Rosie-obsessed days, but hear I am again. Watching The View, reading her blog a few times a week, and now, here blogging with Nip Tuck in the background to see her. Seriously. Crazy. I know.

Anyways. I have so many papers to correct. I am looking at them.

"Hi papers. I know I should be correcting you. I see you.

But really. It is a friday night. If I tried to correct you right now, I couldn't truly give you the attention that you deserve. You understand, don't you? I thought so."

I desperatly need to go get my nails done with my seester. Tammy??? When are we goooooing???

SO, I wrote an email to my friend today and I thought part of it was pretty funny, so I thought I'd share it with you:

SO, the excitement of my week was when I got to yell at Brett for peeling the candy shell off of his M&M during a descriptive writing lesson and saying, "look, my M&M is naked! It can be a stripper now!" for his whole group to hear, including my most niave little girl who still can't figure out why 5th grade girls have to watch a movie about periods when she's been punctuating sentences since the first grade. Lord.

hee hee. That was a pretty good sentence. I enjoy a good sentence.

I went to dinner with Angie and Andrew and Cori. Cori has the Little Mermaid toy closet with all of these rubbery-plstic clothes tha you can dress Ariel in. Ariel has this ball gown, complete with these white elbow length gloves. Problem? Instead of two white cylinders with an opening at one end, they created a thicker, round outline at the end of the glove where Ariel's hands go, which makes the "gloves" look like two little condoms.

So inappropriate. (my brain, not so much the toy...)

Cool - this episode has scientologists in it... kinda kooky...

By the way, I wasn't crazy about the first episode of South Park - it was ok. not great. Yeah, really not worth mentioning.

Ok. I am going to go now, becasue I am absolutly rambling senselessly. Becasue itis Friday. I am always soooo tired on Fridays. I always type the word becasue incorrectly. Also studnet. I don't know why. My fingers just hit them in the wrong order.

Ok. Night.

Mish Mash

This week has seemed so long! I haven't been able to watch hardly any TV (poor me!) and my shows are just piling up on the DVR. (Oh how I miss my other boyfriend, Tivo.)

So anyways, Student - Led Back to School Night was a total success for everyone who tried it, so I am super happy.

Fall seems to be a cosmic time for me to reconnect, as I am once again back in touch with another old friend from high school. (Last fall, if you recall, Angie and I started talking again - and now we hang all the time.)It is really nice emailing with this other friend, too. I almost can't really believe it, but it is pretty cool.

Its 7:30 already, and if I leave for school now, well that would be good.

OH! I got two moled removed (gross? sorry!) They looked kind of funny so we just wanted to make sure there was nothing wrong with them. They have some stitches in them, I guess so that the scar is not as noticable. It is itchy!

Have I mentioned Cathy? She is my new 5th grade partner and she is becoming a fast friend. We have a lot in common, it seems! I so LOVE my 5th grade team this year - we are all so awesome! We work together so well and support eachother. Seriously, its very cool. It helps because my class, well, there not gelling like they did last year. I know, though, that my last years class was amazing - a once in a lifetime expereince.

Ok. I really should go now.

Love you, peeps!