Happy Birthday Boys

We had Marty and the Mexicans birthday party last night. We barbecued steaks and had chocolate and cheese cake. Teddi and Martin brought a friend of theirs little boy , Brando, with them and he sure was cute. He and Olivia fought the whole night but it was sweet. Of course Olivia went thru the house like wild fire just wrecking havoc every where she went. She is the funniest little kid. Then there is Gabbi, I mean the spitting image of Charlee Ann. I laughed at all the pictures of her, reminded me of Cha when she was little. If you notice she looks completely disgusted with us all. She is such a sweet baby but so serious just the opposite of Oli who is just a clown.

The happy birthday boy's getting ready to blow out their candles

Looks like a police line up to me

Sugar and Spice

Fat Baby

Cowboy and Cowgirl. Olivia had a fit to wear Cliff's hat. She about melted down when he wouldn't let her. Trust me these play hats were not gonna do it, she wanted Daddy Daddy's hat and wasn't gonna stand for anything else.

Brando cruising with his chicks






All the sweet kids

Another Beautiful Day

We woke up to another fabulous day. Sunny and warm.

Cliff and I went to St George last night and picked up the Durango. Had to have some work done on it and now it runs great again. We went to Lowe's and bought some sealer that is suppose to make our rock on the back splash shine like it's wet. We are going to apply it on Saturday ,can't wait to see it. It is so much prettier when it's wet. Then we went and had dinner at Olive Garden. Yummy. I brought most of my Steak Gorgonzola home so maybe that will be lunch today.

When we got home we went over to the Mexicans house and helped the poor fat Mexican boy try to order a shirt. He wanted a Dale Jr shirt for the race this weekend so we looked for him one in CA and they only had an XL. He says he needs a 4XL. Really its only cause he likes things so darn baggy. Anyway, I found him a 2XL at Walmart and bought it for him. He tried it on last night and it kind of fits (kind of cups his beer belly) but he wanted a bigger one so Cliff went on line and found a big and tall and got it for him. It won't be here for the race but at least he will have a shirt to represent his boy! Now we just have to get Charlee Ann a Kyle Busch shirt ( I am going to try to find her one this weekend). Tony, of course, has all his Gordon stuff cause as he will tell you, he's not a rookie, Marty is a 20 car fan so I guess that means he will leave Tony Stewart and become a Joey Lagano fan and I don't know that Teddi even cares. Toby thinks we are all a bunch of red-neck retarded heathens so I guess that means we can save our money and not buy him a shirt!! We are praying for him that he repents and joins the NASCAR church of racing, but we don't hold out too much hope. Ah, the lost sheep!!!

Sunny Sunshine

I am so happy today. It is a beautiful day with lots of sun; suppose to be 71 degrees. YEAH!! I would love to spend the day working in my yard and planting flowers but alas I have to work. I guess I should have planned better in my youth!!HA

We are gearing up for the race this weekend. I had my nails done last night and as a long standing tradition for the Vegas race, I got my nails painted in Gordon's new paint scheme colors- red-black- gold. They look cool, with flames from the bottom up. My nail girl, Kimmy just cracks up. She thinks I am so retarded!! She is a darling little Vietnamese girl with a real heavy accent. She says" You so crazy for NASCAR-so a big fan-Gordon this and Gordon that-even nails like Gordon-Gordon would faint if he see your nails-probably win race." She is so cute. She is starting to understand a little. Her boyfriend is a big race fan (Gordon also) and she has started watching the races a little. She said, " mostly boring but sometime Jeff go up and then back and then up and I get excited in my stomach." I said "see you are catching the bug, better be careful or you'll be painting your nails in DuPont colors." HA

My Cute Mexican Kids

And..............It's Raining

Well, we woke up this morning to rain....again. The desert has gotten so much rain this year I hope we have wild flowers. It is cold and nasty today, good day for a book and a cup of coffee. Unfortunately, I have to work.

We went to the race in Fontana over the weekend and it was a blast. Drove down on Saturday and spent the night and then got up and went to the race Sunday morning. It was a nice day-overcast and not to cool-just right. We just hung out at the track and looked at all the crazies and listened to the music. They had 3 live bands, all regional, except for Gavin Rossdale from Bush. They played last. It was a nice day. We ate a big fat King Taco burrito at the track. They are so good. Carne Asada in homemade flour tortillas with pinto beans and cilantro and onions. They have the best salsa soooooo hot. It is worth the trip just for the burritos.

For the first time EVER we didn't buy any Gordon stuff. We did buy two blow up cushions for our fat butts to sit on (and they were amazing). It finally turned off a little cold just after the race started at 3:00 pm. They only ran 6 laps when they called a caution for rain. We about had a fit. The last time we were in CA for the race we sat in the pouring rain for two hours freezing to death until they called rain delay and ran the race the next morning. But even though there were several other cautions for rain, they finally got the race finished and it was a great race. Exciting down to the end. MAatt Kennseth won and Jeff took 2nd. Every time Jeff would get the lead he would pit and his pit crew would jack him in the pits and he would lose 1 or 2 spots. It was so frustrating!!! It is crazy. My whole neck and back is sore today for being tense. I even have to remind myself to breath I get so wound up in it. I LOVE IT.

We drove home after the race and it wasn't too bad. We got home about 12:30 am and we were just starting to get real tired. That bed felt good and 6:00 am came too early. Now next week is the Vegas race. Can't wait. GO GORDON!

My Baby Girl

Cliff and I went to Vegas last night to see Teddi and Martin. They have a nice big apartment right off the 95 and Craig. Really spacious for an apartment and cheap. Vegas is a mess right now so rent is really a bargain. We ate at El Burrito and then went to a little neighborhood bar close to them and shot pool. Cliff and I got our butts kicked but Cliff redeemed us by whipping Marti Marti on Big Buck Shoot.

We really had fun. We don't get a chance to just hang out with them much so it was nice. Clifford made me drive down and home because, according to him, "this was your idea". So I have been teasing him ever since about all the things that are "his idea". He wants to go to the NASCAR race in CA on Sunday so I guess that means he is going to drive down and back since "this is his idea!"

I think we are going to just stay home tonight and watch pre-race stuff, maybe burn a steak.

Branded

This is the brand that Cliff designed. I love it. It will be chiseled into the log when it is finished. We are going to Vegas today to see Teddi and Marti and little Oli. Teddi said they found a really good little Italian place for dinner. Yeah, I don't have to cook!

One Last Gasp

You won't believe it. Cliff and I went outside last night to go to dinner and it was raining. Can you believe it. We went to have Chinese and I drank lots of nice hot green tea. It was so pleasant on a cold night. We ate soooooo much and still had left overs, so we had that for lunch today. Anyway, today it is pretty again and sunny yet still a little cool. I have to remember it will be hot as hell soon and I will be wishing for a little cool weather.

I have been sitting at my computer all day today (at work) and my back is killing me. I had to catch some stuff up and now I won't have 10 minutes worth of work tomorrow. Boring. I might watch the movie Birdcage if everyone leaves me alone. I love that movie it is so over the top. But then I have an affinity for drag queens so go figure (I know you know what I mean Claiborne)

Cliff fixed my car today. The front left caliper was leaking brake fluid so he changed it. That poor old car. It just keeps going and going. I am of an age that I don't care what I drive as along as it is reliable and paid for. Heavy on the paid for. Anyway the old 1999 Durango has 245,000 miles on it and the motor runs like a champ. She does have some minor problems but they tell me $400.00 will fix that so it's well worth the investment. I will be really sad when I finally have to give her up. She has been a fabulous ride. We went many miles racing bikes and running the countryside having fun in that car. So we will ask blessings for her that she runs a little longer and we will enjoy her while we can. Thanks old trusty friend for all your miles of service!!

Here Comes the Sun

Finally a real Nevada day!! I woke up this morning to beautiful sunshine!! I am so excited. It was warm and nice so I put my plants all outside to enjoy the sunshine.

My sweet Big Daddy was sleeping like a baby when I left. He stayed up later than I did last night. He had worked patching a hole in the sheet rock that we had made when we put the big logs in our living room. He got it all patched and painted and it sure looks nice. Now that there is one versatile cowboy!!HA. He is also working on a piece to hang from the main horizontal log. He is carving it into a flat piece he cut off a log. He is chiseling our brand into the piece of wood. He created and designed the brand and it is spectacular. It is a C flying D that is very stylized and looks kind of like a tattoo or biker symbol. I love it. I wish I had his or Claiborne's artistic talent.

So it is a beautiful day and I am happy!

Damn Daytona

Well it has not stopped raining here for days . It seems to just go on and on. I mean I should not complain but it is just so unusual. It may clear up today but it is still really cold. I went out at about 5:30 Saturday morning to go tan and my car windows were frozen shut. I started the car and went in the house for about 10 minutes but the windows were still iced over. I had to go back in the house and get a plastic spatula and try to scrape the windows. It didn't work out too good because the spatula was too flexible but I finally got it done. I mean I HAD to tan. Ya know?

Well what can I say bout the Daytona 500. What a mess. The race started out fine but just went from bad to worse. And then after Dale Jr took out half the field, it gets called for rain and Matt Kensenth was leading so he gets the win. It was so anti-climatic. I was still whining about it when we went to bed. Cliff finally said, " Are you going to complain about his all night?" And I said, " Well I planned on it, why, is it annoying you ?" He said no, he just wanted to know so he could join in and we could have a full scale bitchfest.

I think we are addicted like a drug addicts. We were so let down by the finish we were just pacing the floor and couldn't get settled down. I mean no last lap fight for the win, no lamenting about what should have been. We've been robbed. Then to top it off, next week is California and that is usually the most boring race ever. Usually Jimmy Johnson gets out front with a monster lead and that's it. Ah well, March 1st is the Vegas race and we will be there with all the drama and excitement. I can't wait. I am trying to talk Cliff into going to qualifying on Friday as I know I won't get my fill just going on Sunday, we will see.

The Trinklein Twins

Claiborne sent me this picture of Tatiana and Matilda Mae in their new Valentines Day outfits and they were so precious I had to post their pictures. It looks like a lovey spring day in Atlanta. Much different than here were it just rains and rains. But were are very grateful for all the rain and for our wonderful lives that are filled with much happiness, fabulous friends, good music, and darling doggies.

Rainy Relaxing Day

Had to post this picture, it was so pretty. We have shattered every record for rain this year. It has really been wet in an abnormal kind of way. If you know Nevada, when it rains here it just pours for about 10 minutes and that's it for another 6 months. It has just rained day after day a soft gentle rain all winter long. I hope we have desert flowers this year!!

We have had a nice relaxing day. We ate carne asada left over from our NASCAR kick off party last night. It was the Budweiser Shootout and boy was it exciting. Jeff came in 5th but it was a fight to the finish and so exciting. Now it's on to Daytona 500 next Sunday. I can't wait. We watched qualifiying today and Jeff qualified 7th. I can't wait, did I say that. There is no sense in liking something this much. The Vegas race is March 1st. Can't wait to smell the burning tires and all that fuel!!!!!!!!!!

My Boy Genius

Tony made the honor roll at school with a 3.25 average. Here he is with his report card and $40 ($10.00 for each A from Mimi and Big D) YEAH TONY!!. They got to have a bowling party and miss school one morning for their party so he was happy. He also got to give Leonard a spanking (the deal they made if Tony made the honor roll.) Tony's grades were crap at the first of the school year and Leonard made him bring them up. It was high drama with Tony being grounded, having all his game systems taken away, no TV the whole deal. It was especially painful for Charlee to see her baby getting the smack down but it was the best thing in the world for Tony.

I have to hand it to Leonard, he really worked hard to see that Tony brought up his grades. I am really thankful to him that he put forth the effort for my grandson. Leonard knows what happens to kids who lose focus and have no one to steer them back on course. Leo is living proof that people can change their lives. So a big shout out to my son in law for all his hard work and love for Tony.

Well last night was our last night of league bowling. We ended up in a tie for 3-4-5 place with games won. We actually ended up in 5th places after they went to pin fall to decide places. We won $312.00 for the team, and Leonard won a 200 game patch and $10.00 for being one of the high handicap men. It was sure fun and we will all miss it until next fall. We bowled 3 games of no tap ( where if you knock over 9 pins, it counts as a strike). It's way harder than it seems. We still got our butts kicked but we had a lot of fun. Cliff was fit to be tied cause he was sure he would break his streak and break 200, but no luck.

Tonight is the Budweiser Shootout at Dayton. NASCAR season Yeah-Hell-Yeah!!!

Cool Rainy Day

When I woke up to go walk this morning it was cloudy but still kind of warm. Looks like rain for the weekend. Kind of nice. Charlee Ann about kills me. She can walk so fast that it just wears me out. Gives me a goal to work for. Mostly she has to let me catch up once in awhile. Youth, how disgusting.

We went to see "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" last night. What a lovely movie, I really enjoyed it. They did a fantastic job of showing that period in history and the special effects of his transformation were almost unbelievable. Great movie. Cliff balked about going because he just hates going to the movie theatre, but even he enjoyed it. He's an old curmudgeon when it comes to going to the movies! Good thing he's so damn cute!!

Tonight is our last night of league bowling. Hopefully another league will start soon. We really enjoy it and it's such good exercise. I think we will end up 4th or 5th. Probably 5th. It was a lot of fun and the first time I have been a part of a league. In fact I had maybe bowled once in my whole life before Cliff and I started going. Anyway it's now one of my favorite things to do. I am not that good (127 average) but I like it.

NASCAR season starts this weekend YEAH!!! The Budwiser Shootout in Daytona. Go Jeffery

Spring Has Sprung

Boy is it a beautiful day today; 70 degrees and way too nice to be stuck inside. It has been a slow day at work today and so I watched the movie "Eagle Eye". What a trip and what a message. It should be required for every adult in America to watch it. Now that's a good job where you can make big bucks and put your feet up and watch a movie and drink coffee all afternoon. I was real put out the few times the phone rang and I had to actually pause the movie and DO something. Modern technology is the bomb-diggity.

I am going to make Big Daddy Navajo taco's for dinner tonight. We were watching "Diners, Drive-In's, and Dives last night and they were showing Navajo taco's. Cliff said the only way he had ever had them was with chili. I said, "That's not a Navajo taco. " After a lengthy argument over the finer points of Navajo taco's at 11:30 last night in bed, during which time I threatened to thump him with the remote if he did not concede that I knew more about the fire art of Navajo taco's than he did ( he never did concede the win to me) I have now set out to prove that I am the Navajo taco Queen. So this evening I will present my version of Navajo taco's and he can read em and weep!!

Hell of A Game Cardinals

Baby Gabbi with her 3D glasses for the super bowl ad's

Leo pigging out

Big Daddy wathcing the Super Bowl ad's

Just got finished watching the game. What a heart stopper! I thought the Card's had it for a minute but Cliff said there was way too much time left. Sure enough! Oh well it was a hell of a game. I have a sore throat from screaming so loud. Poor Gabbi finally got use to us all yelling but at first she thought we were all mad. poor baby with such nutty relatives.

We ate till I am just sick, just picked all day. We made sliders for lunch then had raspberry cheesecake ice cream sandwiches. Then we picked at klamata olives, hot pickles, green onion cheese ball with crackers, summer sausage, chips and dip all afternoon. THEN we had nachos and key lime pie for dinner. I am full as a pig! So much for losing 3 lbs last week I am sure I gained it back today.