Radio Disney and New Jersey

Every year, Radio Disney does free concerts. This year, they will be having a concert series starting at the end of June until the end of August, at Morey’s Piers, in Wildwood, New Jersey. If you’re looking to take a vacation to New Jersey and you’ve got young ones, this might be a good idea. You could combine a Jersey Shore beach vacation (Morey’s Piers is a great place for one) and check out some of the New Jersey attractions, with a free concert that the kids are sure to enjoy. After all, it’s Radio Disney, people! And, who wouldn’t want to see Radio Disney? Well, I’m not sure the boys would. But, recently, I have not met a girl that wouldn’t. Those girls are ga-ga over all those Disney artists: Miley Cyrus, the Jonas Brothers (can I get a swoon out of all the tween girls?), Raven, the High School Musical Cast… You could even hit some New Jersey water parks or amusement parks. Ah, that’s the life.

Beauty in the Back Window

Today, I was driving home from Tae Kwon Do. The Jeep Cherokee (an SUV) in front of me was filthy. I think it helped that it was. The back window had a swath of clean area, where the wiper had run. Through the window, I could see a girl or woman, I'm not sure which. This girl was sitting in the back seat. She was leaning toward the front seat, her every movement highlighted by the sun. They must have had the windows rolled down, because her hair was blowing in the wind. She was talking avidly to the man sitting in the front seat. Her hair was flying. I could see her bangs waving in the wind and she frequently reached up to brush her long hair from her face. Her hands never stopped moving. I could not really see her. It was her silhouette I was seeing. But, she was beautiful. She was full of life. She was excitement embodied. She was life, and life is beautiful.

Online Savings

Most of us are trying to save money, these days. One of the easiest ways to save money is to use coupons. Something else we’re all doing is trying to save time. An easy way to do that is to shop online. I have mentioned Ebates before. Now, I want to recommend GoGoShopper.com. They provide coupons for more than 2000 online retailers. If you’re going to shop online to save time (and gas), you ought to take advantage of all the great deals you can get with online coupons. This can be especially useful to get free shipping. Many stores have coupons for free shipping if you know where to look. This is one site that groups online coupons by store. They’ve got coupons for just about anything. Click here to check them out.

Why Should the Military be Godless?

What an excellent post: This is no Holy War

Home Improvement

Well, it has started. We have started 'improving' our home. Gary got home from a six month deployment and promptly started ripping down walls. He also took down all our exterior shutters which I am happy about. They were cheap, plastic, ugly, and didn't fit the house well. Plus, we'd had several fall off because of high winds. Now, I have to find new ones. In the meantime, the house looks better without the old ones.

And They Want a Two State "Solution"

Holocaust Denial Widespread Among Israel's Arabs

What kills me about this is that Muslims sit in Israel's government. This is not a country that does not allow citizens of other religions freedom. In fact, they are very respectful of other religions and those religions' religious sites. Yet, many Arab nations and many Muslims want to "run the Jews into the sea". Even Israel's own Arab citizens don't like there being a Jewish state. "More than 40 percent of Israel's Arab citizens say the Holocaust never happened, and barely one half think Israel has a right to exist..." Yet, it is all our fault that Iran hates us. It is all Israel's fault that the Palestinians (Israel's land that they've given over to the Muslims) bomb Israel constantly. Yes, Israel is a peaceful country that agrees to all peace treaties offered them, even though they know it is just an opportunity for the terrorists to rearm. *sigh*

Xavier's Going to Need Some Motocross Gear!

Xavier is my wild child. He’s also a lot of fun to be around. Last summer, we watched a co-worker of Gary’s do motocross racing. Xavier fell in love immediately. Gary’s friend fell in love with Xavier because he was busily throwing rocks in the ditch full of muddy water and rolling down the hill toward said ditch.

At any rate, Xavier has since decided that he would like to pursue motocross racing. I always knew this would be a big pull for him. After all, he much prefers to ride his bike in the ditch than on the road. He’s not a ‘tame sport’ kind of kid. He loves things that are loud and fast.

In fact, when he was just a little tike (2 ½), he had an invisible motorcycle. I’m pretty sure he had modified it so that it didn’t have a muffler, because it was extremely loud. It also didn’t have any brakes. One day, I told him to park it because it was time for bed. He told me that the brakes weren’t working. “But,” he said, “that’s okay, because I have this parachute that will deploy and stop me. I’ll just push the button…. Sorry, Mom. There must be a malfunction. The parachute didn’t deploy.” Sigh.

So, now, I am researching motocross gear. It’s not cheap, but it sure is fun! And, my boy’s going to love it.

Oatmeal Isn't the Answer

Ever since I started Tae Kwon Do, close to six months ago, I've struggled to find the delicate balance between eating too close to class and not eating close enough to class. Recently, a friend suggested oatmeal, to be eaten a couple hours before class. I thought that was a good idea, so I tried it yesterday. That oatmeal was delicious. It really was. But, it made me so sleepy! Oatmeal is definitely NOT the answer! I'm back to the drawing board. I'm finding, though, that a 'half' meal, that includes equal parts carbs and protein, eaten 2 hours before my class, seems to work well. Now, I just have to figure out what to do on those days when I am at the dojang for the 2 or 3 hours immediately preceding my class.

Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix

Warning: Spoiler If you have not read this book, and mind it being spoiled for you, do not continue reading this post.

This is my favorite and most hated Harry Potter book. This book, every time I read it, makes me cry. In fact, since finishing the Harry Potter series, I have avoided reading them, again. I just can't stand the pain of getting so attached to characters, and then having them ripped away from me by an author who just can't seem to give Harry enough pain. And, I loved Sirius. He was such a good bad boy, and he was Harry's family, the only family he had left.

Xavier has been listening to the Harry Potter series on CD. Harry Potter is what got Xavier reading. He went from not reading at all (outside of doing phonics lessons) to reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Then, he decided that he wanted to listen to the rest of them. Unfortunately, that means that I've been listening to them, as well.

So, now, my emotions are running wild (like they weren't before). I'm sure it doesn't help that Gary is due home soon, but we don't really know when. But, really, did she have to kill off all my favorite characters? In the end, only one of my favorite characters remains, and I'm not even talking about Harry. Oh well. It is an excellent series. I do love it. I just wish that all the people I love didn't die in it.