Good Ole St. Nick

See, when you don't have kids you do crazy stuff like this. You wait in line (thank God with one of your best friends) for 93 minutes to see the big guy. Hoping and praying your dog doesn't make you look bad or pee on anything/anyone. If you are lucky you can catch a couple of good shots and hopefully not the flu from all the sniveling kids in line with you.

St. Nick was a good sport and only slightly surprised I didn't want to be in the photo with them. My K-9 companion posed like a Westminster champ and couldn't wait to get the hell outta the sweat shop they call Ridgedale (what was the temp in there anyway?!?).

Zoom sat perfectly, Foster did his part, thankfully without any nervous diarrhea.

I saved a bundle by bringing my own camera and avoiding the highway robbers they call elves. $17-$45 for a mall Santa photo? Pah-leez!

Heart throb...

I L.O.V.E him...

Courtesy of MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) ―

Minnesota Twins catcher Joe Mauer was named the American League's Most Valuable Player Monday, beating out Yankee stars Mark Teixeira and Derek Jeter.

Mauer received 27 of the 28 first-place votes and had a total of 387 points. Teixeira and Jeter finished second and third, respectively.

The other first-place vote went to Detroit Tiger Miguel Cabrera, who finished fourth in the voting.

Mauer, 26, had 28 home runs, 96 RBI, a .365 batting average and led the American League in batting for the third time in his career.

Mauer won the award, despite missing the first month of play because of a back injury. In his first game back on May 1, he hit a home run in his first at-bat. He was named the league's player of the month for May.

This year, Mauer also pocketed his second Rawlings Gold Glove Award and his third Louisville Silver Slugger Award.

Mauer joins an elite club of Twins who have won the MVP award, including Justin Morneau in 2006, Rod Carew in 1977, Harmon Killebrew in 1969 and Zoilo Versalles in 1965. The MVP award is based on votes from the Baseball Writers' Association of America.

Mauer is only the second catcher in 33 years to win the award.

Halloween 2009

I got the giggles. I mean seriously. Nothing is better than dressing up for Halloween. I thought of our costumes over a month ago, before I knew John and Kate Plus Eight was going to be a global Halloween sensation. None the less we donned our Gosselin gear and had a blast. I wish you could see the full glory of my Hubby's costume. We used a little chocolate brown eyeliner to enhance, "John's," eyes AND we borrowed a pair of vintage rhinestone clip on earrings from the Nickster (thank you love). But, JV's best prop was a pack of ciggies. We roared with laughter as he pretended to be a veteran smoker. He looked the part until he inadvertently dropped his unlit smoke in his cocktail. The cat was outta the bag.

And then he figured out a ciggy would fit perfectly in this baby's mouth.

I mean this is frickin' hilarious. Thanks to Hank for letting us borrow his stroller and the neighbor girl for borrowing me the eighth Cabbage Patch Kid.

The whole gang dressed up!

But the most creative costume was definitely Amy B. She was the above girl from the famous Roy Lichtenstein paintings.

I mean look at the work she went to. I just bought a stupid wig.

Happy Birthday Nooncy!

Dear, Sweet Brutha Nooncy...

Happy birthday my friend! Come on over and I'll make you birthday dinner tonight!

LOVE this photo-damn Twins-he shoulda caught that! Do I really have to wait until Spring to see Mauer again :) ?

Love you!

A New Blog To Luv!

Heart. Be. Still.

www.kateturpin.blogspot.com

Keeping the Turpin family in our thoughts...

hey-lo everyone. it's a somber day today. if you haven't been updated about the loss of lil Jack check in on the Turpin family blog. no words can put it in perspective. love, support and well wishes are being sent to TX. KJ and Dan we luv you. Read more here.

Rest In Peace Jessie...

Recently, I have had a few deep blog posts, so I write this at the risk of being morbid.

This evening I attended a funeral for the young woman you see to the left. Young, as in 24 years, young. Young, as in born in 1984, young. Young, as in at the age where ones body should be fit, healthy, athletic. Perhaps this is the reason her death has me thinking about my own mortality and how a healthy life can often be taken for granted. She was an athlete, an artist, a singer, a graduate with a degree in interior design, an animal lover, full of charm and quick wit. She fought hard, at one point asking her doctor if she could have her slogan word, PERSEVERANCE, tattooed to the back of her bald head. She was a beautiful girl, remarkably stunning even sans hair. A bright smile and a courageous family supporting her in her fight. Nothing seems fair about loss of life, and a long, hard struggle with a incurable and inconsiderate disease, not when you have so much left to do on this earth.

I left the service tonight with profound sadness and a new sense of purpose. Jessie's family shared some entries from her journal. She was a woman wise beyond her twenty-four years. She talked of living a life without any should haves. No regrets, no wishing you had done differently. I will think of her often, living my life with her in mind... without any should haves.

To read about Jessie's journey from her Caring Bridge website follow this link.