Bull Durham's Wife

Bet you thought I had quit!

2004-10-28T19:01:00.001-07:00

Well, I did not quit blogging permanently. I hope nobody has quit reading permanently! Life has been busy with messed up cars, a sick daughter, messed up toes, messed up finances, with an altogether busy life which included Summer's birthday party, school awards, and her class program.

I miss my mommy! She has been away for 2 weeks now, however she is definitely where she is most needed right now. This may be the longest I've ever gone without seeing her in YEARS!!

Summer had a wonderful 8th birthday. I told her that I was not going to give her the "one to grow on" spanking this year because I didn't want her to grow so fast. She insisted though, and wouldn't even go to bed until I had given it to her. I don't think a kid has ever insisted on a spanking so adamantly! She really thought that if I didn't give her that spanking, she wouldn't turn 9 next year.

She finally got one of her own birthstones. Grandma and Pa-paw gave her some "mopal" (Summer language for "opal") earrings and a ring.

It was a really fun day, and she received tons of money from her numerous grandparents, so at this point in time she is officially better off financially than her own parents are!!!

Wow! What a stressful week!

2004-10-05T21:10:00.000-07:00

Well, I figured out this week that I'm not the best stress handler in the world. I went in to Weight Watchers this week thinking I had done really well. I thought to myself "I was so stressed out that I didn't have time to eat". I thought I was going to have at least a 3 pound weight loss this week! WRONG! I obviously did not do as well as I thought I had. I only lost 1/2 a pound. I guess it could have been worse. I could have gained. Nonetheless, I started thinking about all the stress eating I must have done. I just don't even remember what I had to eat last week!!! It must not have been too spectacular!

Oh well. I'm still extremely stressed, but I'm really limiting myself this week and trying to stay on program EVERY DAY!!! (By the way, did you know that "stressed" is just "desserts" spelled backwards?)

Enough about the diet. Let's talk about Summer, bless her little heart. She has had an extremely stressful week too. Please pray for us. ANYWAYS, I thought I'd share a little "Summer Moment" with you. She has decided that she wants to read through the entire Bible in a year. We are in the middle of Genesis 2 where it starts talking about Adam and Eve (or, since they had not yet been named Man and Woman) and how all of the trees in the garden had fruit that was pleasing to look at and good to eat. Well, let me just type it just as she read it. (I must say this was the end of our reading session because she was just too tickled at herself to continue, and thus I will end my blog with her statement).

" The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground. Their FART was pleasing to look at and good to eat" Genesis 2:9--Revised SUMMER Version

Writers Block

2004-09-27T17:48:00.000-07:00

The Wife says she has writers block. Personally, I don't believe in writers block but I thought I'd humor her anyway. She asked me to post something on her blog so here it is... my shameless plug!

"I'm selling out. Not that I ever had much pride, mind you, but now I'm about to demonstrate my utter lack thereof. You'll notice I made a few changes to The Hot Corner over the weekend. The bottom line is this--I need to make some extra cash so we can have our own domain here at Bull Durham's Hot Corner and so we can build some funds to finance our films through BullDurham Producitons. As to the former, I need to purchase a domain which requires an one-time fee and lease server space that will be an ongoing expense. As to the latter, while we do own our own top-quality camera I still need to purchase a few odds and ends before the shooting commences on Needles in a Fountain later next month.

So... I'm selling out. But I never had anything to begin with so what does that make me? Desperate! Here's what you can do to help:

You can take the easy way out and cruise on over to the right hand column. There you will find some useful Web sites just a click away. These advertisements are safe, useful to you, and make us a little cash, too. So start clickin'!
You can become a BENAFACTOR by making a charitable donation via the Amazon Honor System. It's through Amazon so the connection is very secure.
You can surf on over to the Official Online Store for Bull Durham's Hot Corner and BullDurham Productions over at Cafepress.com and buy some of those goodies.
You can purchase Needles in a Fountain memorabilia as well.
I'm also planning on having some really nice caps for The Hot Corner and BullDurham Productions available in the near future so if you know me, you'll be obligated to buy one!
If you have a blog or Web site of your own, you can link to us!
Finally, you can Email us to request our affordable montly, yearly, and lifetime advertising available at Bull Durham's Hot Corner, the fastest growing, hippest, tightest movie blog on planet Earth!

So get in on the ground floor of something we hope is gonna be really big! As always, thanks for all your love and support!"

Thanks,

Bull Durham

NEWS FLASH!!! Life ain't fair!

2004-09-15T14:29:00.000-07:00

No. Life is not fair. Life on earth will never be fair. It isn't fair for me. It isn't fair for you. AND it's not going to be fair for your children either. Deal with it!

Every year I'm astounded at how many students (and parents for that matter) waste their lives complaining about the unfairness of this world. Is this a new concept to them? Has everything been fair from birth through 6th grade? I seriously doubt it. I told my classes Tuesday that if they go through life thinking everything is supposed to be fair, then they are going to be disappointed EVERY SINGLE DAY!! Then I went on to tell about the life of Jesus. Was life on this earth fair for Jesus? Did Jesus ever expect his life on earth to be fair? NO! and NO! In fact, Jesus knew from the beginning of his ministry that life would not be fair for him. He knew he was sinless, AND he knew he was going to die a horrible death!!! Is that fair? Is it fair that he had to die for the sins we commit? NO! Is it fair that we have a opportunity to rest in his GRACE even though we did nothing to deserve it? NO! IT'S NOT FAIR....AND I SURE AM GLAD!!!

Sorry, but when I look at the life of Christ, and what he suffered through for my transgressions, I'm quite relieved that life is not fair. Because let's face it, if life were fair, Jesus would have never died, and I would be condemmed for eternity. Let's not waste our time complaining about the unfairness of life...Let's celebrate it!

A Night without the Husband

2004-09-09T22:15:00.000-07:00

Well, last night Chad went to visit his parents. His dad is having a plethora of computer problems. SO, it I was able to spend Quality Time with the beautiful daughter. It was just so sweet getting to sleep next to her. I just loved feeling her little sweet breath on my face, (well, I wouldn't say her breath was that sweet smelling, in fact, it was downright repugnant). I also loved to feel her kick me in the middle of the night, making her sweet presence known. Ahhhh, it was just a wonderful feeling... a cherished moment....something I'll think about when she moves off for college. It's moments like those that get taken for granted. We remember the family vacations, the school programs, the time they stuck something up their nose and we had to spend hundreds of dollars to get it removed, but rarely do we take the time to enjoy the seemingly tiny things that make each day so special. It's the first kiss in the morning, watching her wash her hands after using the bathroom, or watching her as she struggles to get just the right amount of toothpaste on just the right spot.

I am so glad God gave us so many little joys every single day. It makes life so much easier to deal with sometimes.

People I would like to get a hug from

2004-08-30T18:39:00.000-07:00

Okay, other than my husband, daughter, mom, dad, and brothers, there are a few people (men) who I think would be great huggers. You might be asking yourself, "Brenda, what makes a good hugger?" Well, basically I just can't explain it. It's just a feeling I get when I see someone. They aren't even necessarily the best looking men either. I just know it when I see him. So, here's my top 10 list of famous people I would like to get a hug from, but probably never will (especially if they're dead).

10. Denzel Washington (I think it was the tear in Glory. He just looked like he needed a hug).
9. Mel Gibson (It was Bravehart that did it for me).
8. Adrian Brody (There's just something about big-nosed men. They HAVE to hug good).
7. Alfred Hitchcock (??? Don't know why, but his profile drawing looks like a good hugger)
6. Huggy-Bear (how can a guy with a name like that NOT give good hugs?)
5. Michael Keaton (the best Bat-Man ever, AND Mr. Mom)
4. Mark Ruffalo (Don't know why, but he looks like a SUPER good hugger).
3. Matthew McConaughey (Need I say more? Any guy with enough gumption to play the
bongos naked definitely gets my vote).
2. Ewan McGregor (I could just squeeze that man)
1. JIMMY STEWART (He gives the best hugs in movies. They just look good).

Have to's and Want to's

2004-08-20T00:19:00.000-07:00

When I finished college, my most prominent thought was "YEA!!! NO MORE REQUIRED READINGS!!!" It's not that the reading was boring, or necessarily bad, it was just the fact that it was someone REQUIRING me to do it. I probably did not finish a single book the year after college because I had such a negative view of reading. After that year of reading rebellion, I started reading for Leisure; something I had not done since I was in grade school. My leisurely reading continued until one week ago. It was at that time that our school REQUIRED us to read a certain book. I'm sure the book is great. I'm sure I will love it when I do read it. BUT there's just something about being REQUIRED to read again. It was so much fun when I just read when I wanted to. Now that it has become a Have To, my procrastinating nature (along with my negative view of reading) has quickly returned because reading suddenly became a chore again.

I think this is how a lot of things are in life. When it's a Want To, it's great; but when it becomes a Have To all of the sudden it is such a difficult chore. Right now, to Summer, washing dishes is a BIG Want To. She just thinks that is the coolest thing. BUT, I speculate, that the first time I tell her she Has To wash the dishes, she will suddenly dislike it.

Sometimes I wonder if we have a negative view of church, and pass that on to our children by saying "We Have To go to church tonight". There just has to be another way of putting it. Church is one thing that should not be considered a chore. Do our children ever hear us talking about church as a Want To instead of a Have To? Do they ever hear us get really excited about going (other than when there's an ice-cream party or something)? Do we ever say, "Man, I really am glad we get to see our church family tonight. I have really missed them!"

One of my goals in the upcoming weeks and months, is to help Summer view church as a Want To, and not a Have To. I will make it a point to speak positively about going because, let's face it, open worship and fellowship with other Christians is a huge privilege, and definitely not a chore.

Long time, no Blog

2004-08-15T21:45:00.000-07:00

Well, I know it has been more than a week since I blogged, but I have been really busy! I started teacher inservice last Monday and we left Thursday night to see my Brother-in-law sing the National Anthem at the Rangers game on Friday. (By the way, he did a GREAT job. We were all extremely proud of him.) We spent the second half of Saturday wandering around Six Flags. Summer finally went on a big-girl roller coaster (Runaway Mountain) and LOVED it. I didn't take part in that ride because I didn't want to be responsible for making her cry in case she hated it, so a BIG thanks goes out to CHAD (the best husband GOD ever made) for taking over for me. Next time, she will do the Titan(for sure) and the Batman (if she grows 1 and 1/2 inches before then).

We just arrived home a couple of hours ago and I am now getting ready for the first day of school! Summer is Super Excited about starting 2nd grade.

Update on diet: It was going great until this weekend. I've been exercising and eating fairly well. This weekend it just went down the drain. I had a whole weekend full of "Last meals" and I must start my diet and exercizing again tomorrow.

Goodbye for now!

Things that I get angry about

2004-08-06T00:40:00.000-07:00

Everything is made to fulfill some sort of purpose. For example, a pen is made to write; a car is made to run; a computer is made to run programs successfully (yeah, right); a DVD player is made to............. play DVD's (bet you didn't guess that one); and the little "sign out" logo at the top of the blog page is made so that Chad can sign out so I can write on my blog, right?

Well, I get angry about many things and most of them have to do with something not fulfilling its intended purpose. I get SO angry when our DVD player will not play a DVD. It was made to play a DVD, so it should work! AND WHEN IT DOESN'T, I USUALLY JUST SCREAM AT IT!!!I just finished screaming at this computer because Chad's blog would not let him log out, so I haven't been able to make any updates in a few days (bet you were dissappointed weren't you?). Well, persistence definitely pays off, huh? After at least 1 hour of pushing buttons and screaming (which seems like an eternity to me) I was finally able to figure out the problem and make the correct adjustments! Boy does it feel good to be able to write on here.

Sometimes I just wonder how God feels when I do not fulfill my intended purpose. Does He push my buttons to try and get my attention? Does he incorporate adjustments in my programming? Or, does he scream at me? I suppose that my THINGS not fulfilling their intended purpose is nothing compared to what God feels when his creation chooses to take their lives in a different direction than what He indended. Hmmm.....just thoughts.

Hopefully there will be new pictures on Monday. Be sure to go to the Durham Family Photo site and look at them! Have a great weekend!

The End of Innocence

2004-08-02T11:30:00.000-07:00

Well, she's officially grown up. As of exactly 2:46 pm Sunday, August 1st, Summer became a grown-up little girl, (meaning not completely a little girl anymore, but definitely not a grown-up). It was on that fateful day that my wonderful innocent little daughter asked me the infamous question. The question that when every parents hear, they just want to lie straight through their teeth because they know the real meaning. It means your baby is growing up. It is the one question that parents fear from DAY ONE. Yes, THE question. Do I even need to tell what that question is? I think everyone knows THE dreaded question I'm talking about. I hate to even write it. The thought of THE question just makes me cringe at the thought.
Well, here goes:

"Mommy, is the tooth fairy, Easter bunny, and Santa for real?"

What's a parent to do? She prequalified the question before hand. She said "Mommy, I'm about to ask you a question, and I want you to SWEAR you'll tell me the truth." As any other good parent would do, I swore that no matter the question, I would not lie to her. I was prepared for the "How does the baby get in the tummy?" question, and I was prepared for the "Why did daddy leave?" question. I had been preparing myself for those two biggies for quite some time. BUT, I WAS NOT PREPARED FOR THE SANTA QUESTION!!!!.

Well, I was sworn to tell the truth, so I had to reveal. It makes me a little sad, but not her. She was just so proud of herself that she had figured it out on her own. Christmas will be extremely different this year, knowing she does not believe.

It sounds strange, but I feel a little sense of loss. Maybe I can convince her to "play along" and it won't be so bad.

The search for a suitable roommate!

2004-07-27T10:30:00.000-07:00

Poor Shirley has been extremely shy this week! She digs herself to the bottom of her cage and goes underneath her water dish and just stays there. So yesterday I did a little research on hermit crabs. According to several websites these crabs NEED other crabs around in order to thrive. (So why are they called HERMIT crabs if they need friends. Doesn't that go against the idea of being a hermit?) Well, of course I want Shirley to thrive, so like any good mother, (or grandma in this case) I went on a quest to find Shirley a suitable roommate.

The search began at the Hallmark store. What was I going to do? There were over 200 crabs in that one tank!! I decided to treat this just like any other person would when looking for a suitable roommate. I had each one fill out an application, then interviewed the ones that really seemed to have it all together. By the way, all crabs with a masculine shell were eliminated at once. We are a Christian family, ya' know--we couldn't be caught allowing 2 crabs to shack up and live in sin with our permission, and Shirley certainly is not ready for marriage. She has too many issues right now. So after proper interviewing, I narrowed it down to three:

1. MacLaine--a nice, respectable girl originally from Tennessee (I didn't even know they had a beach in Tennessee! )
Problem: She sang country music in the shower. (Shirley would NEVER go for that)

2. Curly--A tiny little crab with cute, curly tentacles. (natural curl of course)
Problem (And I quote)--"I just can't wait to meet Shirley, I can cook crab for dinner on our first night! (hmmmm, I should have put "No cannibals allowed" on the application).

3. Laverne--a washed up movie crab who once appeared on some movies, including Beaches, Prince of Tides, Shrimp on the Barbie, and even Weekend at Bernie's. I has been rumored she was on a couple of episodes of Friends, but I was not able to confirm that report.
Problem: NONE! She had money, and better yet, her name is Laverne, which goes perfectly with Shirley. There wad just no way NOT to pick Laverne.

So now I'm looking into getting the cute little letters painted on their shells. Won't that just be SO cute?

So anyways, I took Laverne home and Shirley has definitely come out of her shell (pardon the pun) and I really do believe this is the start of a beautiful friendship! Shirley didn't even dig her hole to the bottom of the cage last night.

I suppose this just goes to show that everyone needs companionship!

By the way, in case you haven't noticed, there is a place where you can comment on this blog underneath each post. (hint, hint)

13 Minutes

2004-07-26T06:19:00.000-07:00

I've been rididng my bike for a little over a week now. When I started, I could barely ride dowm the block and back (less than five minutes). Last night I went for a record (for me at least) 13 minutes!!!! AND, when I got home, I stretched and touched my toes for the first time in at least 2 years--can you believe that? I thought the day would never come!

Have you checked out the new pictures of Summer on the website? Summer may not appreciate me putting up the one where her face is silver. She was not very proud of her beauty makeover outcome.

T-MINUS 6 DAYS UNTIL SHE COMES HOME!!! (and boy, do I have a LOT to do!)

FINALLY!!

2004-07-22T10:42:00.000-07:00

Well, I finally got to get on the computer so I can update this blog. We had an extremely busy weekend, plus I had jury duty yesterday, so this is actually the first chance I've had to get on the computer.

We had a great weekend with Summer and I had to take her back to Hobbs on Monday, followed by going to Ft. Stockton to help my sister-in-law pack, clean and move. I had the worst of worst jobs and the best of the best. I was assigned to cleaning the bathrooms (YUCK!!), but when I finished I was assigned to keeping my baby nephew happy (YES!). I think Matthew may very well be the 2nd best baby I've ever had the priviledge to care for (lagging only behind my very sweet Summer--She was pure joy). He is just so laid back and content. He enjoys being cuddled and held and he seldom cries. He especially liked being rocked to sleep. When he did fall asleep, I went ahead and held him for another 30 minutes because he is just so precious!

The drive from Hobbs to Ft. Stockton was pretty uneventful, but when I told Summer I had to go through Eunice, she replied "Wow Mom! You get to go to another planet". I tried to tell her that there was a planet named Venus and one named Uranus, but not Eunice. I do not think I convinced her that Eunice was not a planet because after about 10 minutes of arguing back and forth because she finally just said "Well YOU'RE the one who told me you were going to another planet!!

I will put some more pictures on the Durham Family photos tomorrow, so be sure you go visit sometime soon!

Shirley Girley

2004-07-19T06:50:00.000-07:00

What an eventful weekend! Summer has had an extremely exciting visit. She got a new computer AND a pet all in the same weekend. We decided on a hermit crab figuring that would be the easiest thing to care for right now. Summer even got to pick between crabs painted like baseballs, leopards, bears, footballs, zebras, soccerballs, etc... Boy! I didn't know hermit crabs came in so many different varieties! Summer sure did pick a winner! She picked a special crab that "just has to be a girl, because it has a flower on it's shell" ( I suppose a boy would have never picked a shell with a flower on it, huh). So, Summer decided to name her Shirley. I think Shirley is a bit of a hermit though (HA!) because she stays in her shell most of the time. If everything works out fine with Shirley, we might even get her a "roomate". And who knows, maybe we can name that one Laverne!

The great thing about hermit crabs is that if you don't like the shell you originally picked out, you can change your mind and pick another one later. They say crabs are a bit pickey about choosing a new shell home though. Didn't their mama's tell them that beggers can't be choosers? I guess they don't have all those cliche's in the crab-world.

A CAR???? HUH??? SHE'S ONLY SEVEN!!

2004-07-17T15:32:00.000-07:00

I was looking at an old paper this afternoon and Summer asked me to show her where the car ads were. When I asked why she said she wanted to buy a car and she figured she better get looking right away so she would find one in time for her to drive. I then asked her where she was going to get the money to buy a car. Then I told her that by the time she's 16, it'll probably cost $5,000 for a piece of junk. The she said that she was thinking a limo would be the perfect car for her. (A LIMO???? Where did she get that idea?) Well, I said "No Way" to that one and she said she might be able to settle for a bug.

Her logic never ceases to amaze me.

Summer's Home!! (temporarily)

2004-07-17T07:04:00.000-07:00

Well, I finally am proud to announce that I have Summer back for the weekend. She looks even more beautiful than she did last time I saw her (2 weeks ago). It is really amazing how our children get more beautiful every day.

She's definitely started using some "new" words that we must work on correcting when she gets back for good. We're not making a huge deal about it this weekend though because we're just planning on having a grand ole' time!

Pa-paw gave her a new computer and she is REALLY enjoying it a bunch!!

I'm just glad she's home.

T-Minuus 11 1/2 hours

2004-07-16T07:42:00.000-07:00

I get Summer back for the weekend in less than 12 hours!!! Wooo Hooo! I've been getting to talk to her about every other day, and that sure is making things easier on me. The only problem is that it will be really difficult taking her back on Monday. ;(

I think I will call Mom and see if she wants to garage sale. Maybe we can find some bargains!

The Woes of Dieting

2004-07-15T07:54:00.000-07:00

Well, this week I officially began my 1,458th diet, all of which have resulted in me gaining 100 pounds over the course of 9 years...go figure. Okay, so maybe that number is a tiny exaggeration, but it feels right. I feel like I start a new diet every morning because I have my "one last meal" almost every night!!! For those of you who do not diet, (which is probably very few because even my thin friends diet), the "one last meal" is the big blowout before the main event. It is the one meal in which you eat everything you're going to deprive yourself of once the diet actually begins. My "one last meal" this time started at noon and went until midnight. I had everything from ice cream to a huge serving of lasagna with LOTS of oily bread to a whole bag of movie-theater-butter popcorn.

Anyways, I've actually done pretty well on my diet, but I have been thinking about why dieting is so difficult. Why is it so hard to just stop eating when I'm full? Why must I eat the whole bag of popcorn instead of just a little bowl of it? Why must I have two hot dogs instead of one? Hmmmm....not sure, but I think it has to do with addiction. Let me explain.

When someone is addicted to alcohol, what must they do? NEVER TAKE THAT FIRST DRINK!!! IF they don't even take the first drink, then the others cannot follow. Can an alcoholic wean themselves slowly off of the booze? Can they say, "Well, I used to be an alcoholic, but this time I can control it". BAD IDEA!!! Because once they take that first drink, they have another, and another, and another, and so on.

So, that is how it is with my eating. I take the first bite, and I'm hooked for the rest of the day. The problem with food addiction is that you can't just stop eating altogether. (That would cause even more problems). We food addicts can never rid food from our lives. We must continue to eat that which we are addicted to, but learn to control our intake, and that's probably the most difficult part of it!!! If I never had to take a bite, I wouldn't have to have another.

So, how am I going to do it this time? WITH A LOT OF HELP!!! (And a little goal-oriented motivation).

Well, that's my rant for today. Maybe tomorrow I'll talk about exercise--my body cringes even at the thought.

This is Just a test

2004-07-15T07:52:00.000-07:00

We haven't been able to get our blog to publish, so this is just a test....it is only a test.....in the case of an emergency this blog will self destruct (or something like that).

First Try

2004-07-13T15:22:00.000-07:00

I just thought I'd see if I can do this myself. I'm still trying to get my thousands of pictures organized into albums. I'm not sure I'll make it by the time school starts.

Just So I Can Be a Member

2004-07-13T10:19:00.000-07:00

This blog exists just so I can be a member and have a profile.