Sick Kid and the Million Dollar Cat????

Jordan went to bed with a 100 degree temp...I just made an appointment with the orthodontist...for tomorrow...the only day she is in this week. Oh yeah...Jordan broke his retainer AGAIN!!! The second time THIS YEAR...yes, I mean 2009!!!!

Shaq went in for a second opinion regarding a bump I found on his back. Our vet wants to "cut it out", but, I wanted a second opinion....we wouldn't send our kids into surgery without further examination...right?

Well, today, the 2nd vet said "Yes". It will probably have to be removed...sigh...At least the estimate that the 2nd vet gave me was $200 more than my vet.... hmmm...she also said that it can grow to be as large as a grapefruit....YIKES!

Jeff and a few friends said I'm crazy...especially since he had some medical "issues" about 15 years ago...that cost a pretty penny...but, they were right...he recovered with little problems since....sigh....

The saga will continue....The "Shaq Saga"...hopefully not the "Broken Retainer Saga"

Tis the season of Romance...

On Saturday, Neil went to his friend's birthday party in Livermore. This year his friend moved to Livermore, they were in the same kindergarten and 1st grade classes. They would walk home together almost everyday. We even had to have the "Boyfriend" vs "Boy Friend" talk with him. After she moved, he declared himself a bachelor since there wasn't anyone in his class he wanted to marry. It was so funny, on the drive over ... he was worried that he wouldn't know anyone there...to his relief...there were two other boys there....his friend's old neighbors, and it looks like he has a new "play date". By the end of the night....he wanted to know why the girls were always screaming....and why they liked the "Little Pet Shop" and "Neopets"? After all, they aren't as cool as Bakugan (see Jordan's previous posts)

(I decided not to use Neil's friends name, nor her sister's name....)

Don't ya love Peet's?

This was the week's for Peet's coffee...I treated myself to wonderful company and coffee twice this week....on Monday, it was my neighbor Kathy, today, it was the Canadian...Lori. Lori's shoes are the brown ones in the picture....She "thinks" that she can hide on the internet....it took me less than a minute to find a picture of her. I would include her last name...but, she might (I really mean "WILL") get mad at me....let's just say, if you know her, you know what she looks like...and now you know what her shoes look like....btw: like my shoes? Neil's classmates like them...wait until they see my rainboots!

Warrriors/Spurs, Kiku and lunch with the girls

Last night, Betty Yamasaki and I went to the Warrior/Spurs game...it was a lot of fun...until the game went into OT...sigh...Duncan was amazing....but, hello....the key word in Free Throw is "FREE"....we did have a great view of Tony Parker...sigh....no more games for me until the Houston game with Lori...sigh....

Kiku went to the vet's for a comprehensive exam....no, her eyes are not red...and the red-eye on my camera never works on her baby blues....hopefully, she will pass with flying colors...but for 17 years old....what can they say? Shaq goes in on Thursday....his appointment will be scarier since I found a little pea-sized bump on his back....

Betty, Amber (baby), Sandy and I had lunch at the Prolific Oven...OMG...it was yummy...even the dessert. I had the 50-50 combo, half of a chicken salad sandwich and a cup of cream of mushroom soup....oh my!!! It's been so great keeping in touch with the girls...Betty's son and Sandy's older girls went to Pre-school with Jordan and Neil....it seems like eons ago!

Esperanza Rising - Book Report by Jordan

Jordan has been quite the busy writer lately....he just finished his book report on Esparanza Rising....he wanted to post the summary....

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Esparanza Rising is about a girl named Esparanza who is struggling in life. Esparanza has a life that is a dream to everyone else. Everything changes on her birthday when her Papa is murdered by bandits. Then Papa’s brother Tio Luis takes over Papa’s ranch. Tio Luis then tries to marry Mama, but she refuses. He then sets their house on fire injuring Abuelita.

Esparanza, Mama, Miguel, a childhood friend, and his parents, Hortensia and Alfonso go to Los Angeles and start working at a Mexican camp. There Esparanza meets a girl named Isabel, two babies named Pepe and Lupe and their parents Jose and Josafina.

A girl named Marta and other people go on strike for better housing. It goes on for days and ends when immigration officials come and take most people away to Mexico. The others go back to the camp.

Soon after the strike a big dust storm occurs. Mama then gets a illness called Valley Fever. Valley Fever makes it easy for people to get other diseases. Mama contracts pneumonia while in the hospital. It takes several months for her to come home from the hospital.

Esparanza starts to work in the sheds and fields to earn money. With her money she buys money orders. Esparanza is saving her money orders to pay the hospital bills and bring Abuelita from Mexico.

When Mama comes home from the hospital the money orders are gone. Miguel left that morning and stole the money orders. He called a couple days later to tell them to meet him at a train station in Bakersfield. He used the money orders to bring Abuelita from Mexico and no one is mad at him.

Here is an essay Jordan wrote for extra credit....the latest craze...Bakugan...which was actually featured on "Good Question" last night....

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Bakugan is a fun game to play. I like to play with my brother. My friends and I like to talk about it in school. Bakugan was created by Spinmaster and Sega Toys.

You play by rolling spring loaded marbles on cards. The bakugan marbles open on metal. The cards have metal in them. Some cards don’t have metal, but they all give power boosts. Your bakugan gains the boost of a card depending on it’s type. The six types are Pyrus, (the fire type); Darkus, (the dark type); Sub Terra, (the earth type); Haos, (the light type); Ventus, (the wind type) and Aquos, (the water type).

“G” is the power of your bakugan. You win a battle if your bakugan has more G than then the other. The weakest bakugan that I have is 250G and the strongest bakugan I have is 630G.
There are three sizes of bakugan. The original bakugan are the smallest in size. The medium ones are usually stronger than the small ones. Deka bakugan are always 400 G, they are a little bit larger than a softball.

I also like bakugan because if you get them from another country, only the card would be in a different language. That is why I like playing bakugan.

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I don't usually do this...but, this quote is great: Bill Cosby - "A word to the wise ain't necessary - it's the stupid ones that need the advice."

ANGEL!!!

Last week, Jeff's college roommate visited...this week, Angel, my roommate met me at Stoneridge for lunch. She rode her "scooter" --- more like a mini motorcycle --- from Fresno....it must have been COLD!!!! But, she made it and we had a nice visit...and neither of us bought anything...well, except for chocolates for her mother, Jeff's grandmother and Jeff...no clothes, shoes, purses, etc....

Of course, Ang and I had dessert to go with our lunch....did I ever mention the time I almost got stuck going over the fence after a Marie Callendar's run???? Never Mind....that story can wait...until the boys are out of college...