Guitar Hero

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everyone. We hope you had a great holiday season!

Christmas was fun at the Mushett house this year. After a Notre Dame bowl victory on Christmas Eve (I am still not convinced, but they did look a lot better - is Hawaii really that bad or did ND just finally play like they should?), Santa came to visit Reagan the next morning. Honestly, she didn't care what was in the package, but she loved unwrapping everyone's presents.

She received a ton of great gifts, including the pink guitar and ice skates she asked for from Santa. She must have been a good girl this year! Other highlights included clothes, two Strawberry Shortcake dolls, a Dora doll, lots of games and puzzles, a digital camera, a Dance Cam and a tie-dye t-shirt just like her friends Jake and Eli have ... and that was just the beginning. Oh, and did I mention that she received over 6,000 stickers? We have been "playing stickers" (which entails sticking them on any piece of blank paper we can find - at least it is not the walls yet) non-stop for the last week!

Later that morning, we drove to Wisconsin to see Great Grandma and the rest of Andrew's family. They had a lot of snow so we were able to play outside while we were there. We built two big snowmen only to wake up the next morning and they were gone. Reagan had a hard time understanding that. We were also able to "play house" as we set up the Rose Petal Cottage that her cousins got her. She thought that was pretty cool and "baked" a ton of cupcakes. Thankfully she has not asked where it is since we left it at Great Grandma's until I can find some room in our house for it!

We returned Saturday night and went to "two parties" on Sunday. All of us had to return to work or daycare on Monday, so life is somewhat normal once again.

Here are some photos of our Guitar Hero! Dave...aren't you proud (she is even lefthanded...I know, I need to change the strap.)?

Gotta "go, go, go,"

Reagan's mom

More Fall Foliage and Holiday Spirit

Here are a few photos of Reagan and us at various places lately. You will notice the photo of Andrew and I was taken by Reagan herself. She has really taken a liking to cameras and wants to take photos all of the time. It is a good thing she is getting one for Christmas. Her photo taking skills are pretty good I have to admit. Happy Holidays...

I just found these photos as well. They are from way back in October when we went looking at fall trees!!!! It was also the day Texas played Oklahoma State! Hook em' Horns.

Happy Holidays - The 2008 Christmas Letter

December 2008

Time really does fly as you get older. I am three now and the world is still my bowl of ice cream or cheerios depending on my mood (since I don’t like oysters, I thought this might be a more appropriate cliché)! I hope that everyone has a great holiday season and a blessed 2009!

Nothing has really changed in my life. It is one year later and everything is still all about me! I turned 3 on November 1 and am 37 inches tall and 30 pounds. I am slowly transitioning into a "big" girl, although I still love being a baby (my mom and dad are such suckers for this move). In the transition process, I have totally ignored the part about potty training. My mom is positive I am going to know how to read before I am potty trained. Let her keep thinking that … it keeps me one up on her!

I moved to a new daycare in March and I love it. I get to do schoolwork every day and have already moved into much of the kindergarten curriculum. I know all my letters and numbers, my colors and shapes and probably a lot of other stuff I shouldn’t know. I have my own computer so I can continue to do my schoolwork after hours (an overachiever already) and make weekly trips to the library with my friends.

I started gymnastics right after I turned three. I thought I better do it now since I will only be "gymnast-size" for another year or so since my mom and dad are both six-feet tall. I really like the beam and have dreams of being the next Nastia! I am hoping that I get skates from Santa this year so I can start playing hockey with my daddy as well. That is all I have been talking about lately (Note: Andrew…stop pressuring her!). I still love Strawberry Shortcake and own almost every movie she has ever made. Some people have Brad Pitt…I have Strawberry Shortcake.

I traveled a lot this year as I went to Phoenix, Dallas (twice), Wisconsin (multiple times), Spokane and Ohio (twice). In August, I actually spent a week with my Great Grandma Jan in Wisconsin and the next two weeks with my Grandpa Rick and Grandma Vicki in Spokane. I had a great time (Read: No parents telling me no.)! I went to the water park, learned to drive a car, helped water Grandma’s garden, picked berries and grapes and much, much more. My mom thinks I was pretty spoiled during this time, but it seemed like every other day in my life.

Mommy and daddy are good. They are still with the USTA and Thomson Reuters, respectively. Both are still doing stats for the various sports teams in the Twin Cities, although they have cut way back this winter. Mommy is playing a lot of tennis and her team made it to the National Championships in Tucson in November (of course she missed Halloween and my birthday again, but what is new). She did not win, but she had a fun time with all of her friends. Daddy is really into this hockey thing and is doing quite well (at least he hasn’t gotten hurt which is how mommy evaluates it). His team won the winter league title and finished second this summer. He has moved up a level and actually played a game at Mariucci Arena in December (he scored so he was pretty excited about that). Corby (who is 4 ½) is doing fine too. We are just one big (getting wider every year too), happy family.

Mommy went to Texas for her 20th high school reunion in July and mommy and daddy went back to the US Open in September with their Notre Dame friends. It was a great time as mom was finally able to see Roger Federer play in person. She also saw Robby Ginepri (awesome!!!), Venus, Serena and the Bryan Brothers. Sadly though (maybe thankfully), they did not make it back for a Notre Dame football game this year. I am sure they will rectify that next year as they already have three games on the docket.

The rest of the family is doing well. Grandpa Chris had heart valve replacement surgery the day after Thanksgiving and will be recovering for the next two months. He is feeling well, although I think he is extremely bored as he cannot do much. Daddy, who went to visit him the day after surgery and passed out three times before being rushed to the ER (that is a whole different story – he is fine though), is going to visit him in a couple of weeks. Grandma Vicki and Grandpa Rick are going to celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary in June and there are rumors of a possible Disney vacation celebration with my cousins. Trust me, every chance I can talk about seeing Ariel, Jasmine and Sleeping Booty (no, that is not a typo) in person, I do it!

I miss all of you. Here’s hoping that 2009 is the best one yet. If you are ever in Minnesota, please stop to see me. Also, if you want to keep up on all my activities, visit my blog at www.reagansmom.blogspot.com. It has quite the following!

Love, Reagan
(Andrew, Lisa and Corby too!)

Busy Holiday Season

Like everyone, times are really busy for the Mushett family these days. I have been extremely crazy at work and then with all of the typical holiday activities thrown in the mix - not to mention hockey games, tennis matches, basketball games and much, much more - I just have not had much time to write.

We did finally get our Christmas stuff up in the house, but not without a few disasters. We bought a real tree this year (which we always do), but with the temperature near 0, it was frozen. So we finally brought it in the next day before going to church. Of course, when we arrived home from church, Reagan says "Oh no." The tree had toppled over and was laying on the ground in our living room with water everywhere (or at least I think it was water since we did leave Corby home alone with it - you never know if he decided it was warmer and easier to relieve himself on the tree in the house rather than on one in the cold), but I digress.

We got the tree back up again and started to decorate it when it decided to fall over again - this time with all the ornaments on it - and of course a strand of lights in the middle of the tree shorts out. Just so typical. So once we replaced that string of lights, I put the ornaments back on and ever so slightly tapped another string of lights. That strand decided to start blinking - even though they are not twinkle lights. Needless to say, I gave up and now we have some lights that twinkle near only the top and a tree that is being held up by a bungy cord. Nice ... it was like my very own Christmas Vacation - I am just waiting for the squirrel to come out of the tree next.

The holiday mishaps just keep coming (you cannot have just one). I was making fudge last night, trying to multitask, when the sugar creation I made boiled over the top of the pot and crystalized on my ceramic stove top. Nice ... I have tried three different times to get it off - with not much luck. If anyone has any suggestions, please send them my way! Andrew couldn't stop laughing of course. Ugh!

Speaking of Andrew, he is leaving on Sunday for Ohio to spend four days with his dad and siblings. It should be a fun time for all of them and hopefully some comic relief for his dad since he is bored out of his mind. He is feeling good and should be able to ride a bike soon. They are also bringing Andrew's sister's new puppy up to Cleveland so that should be fun. He is a cute thing, but he loves to chew on stuff (like Uggs, Barbies and tennis shoes). He chewed the hands off Reagan's Barbie at Thanksgiving and she said we needed to go to the store to buy Barbie some new hands. I just laughed and told her I didn't think they had those at Target (her favorite store).

Reagan is great. She is hoping for a pink guitar and ice skates for Christmas, but she is too afraid to tell Santa. We are going to try again this weekend, but I do not see it happening. She has been helping me with all of my cooking projects (thank goodness she did not want to make fudge last night) and she helps wrap every present I do (so when you see the tag in the middle of your gift - that was courtesy of Reagan!).

She also has stopped taking naps during the day at school. It has really helped in bedtime for us, which has been great. She is asleep by 9 p.m., instead of the 10:30 or 11 p.m. it had been. She still manages to catch a few extra Zs on the weekends though (which mom likes). She is really doing great.

Happy Holidays to everyone as I am off running again. A few last minute presents and a lot of wrapping that has to happen tonight.

Gotta "go, go, go,"
Reagan's mom

We Are Back!

We made it through the weekend and are finally back in Minnesota. We had a nice weekend, but it is always nice to be home for a while.

First and foremost - Andrew's dad made it through surgery with flying colors. In fact, he was out of ICU the next day and was released from the hospital on Wednesday. He is doing great, although he is bored out of his mind. Andrew, his brother Brett and his sister Alison are planning on visiting December 14-17 so that should be a nice time for all of them. They ended up just repairing his dad's valve rather than replacing it so that was good. Everything seemed to go fine and he is making a good recovery.

Everything seemed to go fine except when Andrew visited his dad the day after surgery. Andrew, who has an aversion to hospitals and blood, proceeded to faint three times and had to be rushed to the ER after his heartrate dipped into the 30s. He is fine, but it was still a little scary as they had to break out the paddles just in case they needed to shock his heart to make it beat again. Of course, I was at the Children's Museum with Reagan and knew nothing about all of this as no one called me. It was probably better that I was not there, but still a scary situation. I guess it is very common though and there is nothing to be alarmed about.

We went to the Blue Jackets/Coyotes game on Wednesday, had Thanksgiving dinner at Andrew's mom's boyfriend's house (did you get all that) on Thursday and then shopped on Friday before Saturday's drama. We then left early Sunday for Chicago as it was supposed to be the weather event of the year - they have the same weather terrorists there as in Minneapolis - and of course it did not snow until the next morning when we needed to leave. It turned out OK though as once we got away from the lake, the roads were fine and we made it home in good time.

So now it is back to our normal lives...Andrew had hockey last night. I have to work late Thursday. I have volleyball Friday and Saturday. Andrew has Timberwolves Saturday and a hockey game Sunday. And I should proabably do some Christmas shopping and baking in there. It is good to be home again.

Gotta "go, go, go,"
Reagan's mom

Here are some photos from the weekend...


Reagan with Dorothy at the Sesame Street Exhibit...that is for you Grandpa Rick!




Reagan checking out the Christmas Tree at Easton Shopping Center in Columbus...


Reagan ready for game day...too bad Brady is out for the season.

Reagan is way more cultured than I am...she can actually eat with these. It is amazing.


Reagan loved the trains outside of Jen's bedroom window. Here she is after she fell asleep watching the trains.

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving! We made it to Ohio and are looking forward to celebrating the day at Andrew's mom's boyfriend's house. We hope everyone has a very special day. Go Cowboys and Hook 'em Horns!

So I have been horrible this week in my commentary about Dancing With The Stars. Reagan got sick and had to go the doctor during the finale so I missed the final show. Can you believe that? I did watch the freestyle routines on You Tube, but it was not the same. Brooke and Derek were the best as the other two made mistakes, but I thought they were all great. Then we were driving to Chicago Tuesday night so I missed the finale, although Jen TiVoed it for me so we were able to watch once we arrived. (I decided that watching it via TiVo is the way to go as you can fast forward through all of Samatha Harris' speaking parts, not to mention the Miley Cyrus performance.) Derek and Brooke should have won, but I was surprised that Lance and Lacey were third.

Perhaps the best part of the finale was what I am reading afterwards in that Warren and Derek got in a fight and Warren slammed Derek up against the wall. Derek totally annoys me so that makes me happy. :)

On a more serious note, Andrew's dad has his surgery at 8 a.m. on Friday. They told Andrew he would not be able to see his dad until Saturday so Andrew is stuck shopping with Reagan and I tomorrow morning. He will then head up to Cleveland on Saturday, while Reagan and I visit my friend Holly and her family and go the Sesame Street exhibit at the Children's Museum.

I will keep you posted on Andrew's dad's progress.

Gotta "go, go, go,"
Reagan's mom

Turkey Day

It has been a crazy week for me and I am looking forward to some downtime on Thursday and Friday as I do not have to work. The workshop and the banquet went great. I am still swamped with work, but I need a break. I just hate anything having to do with tennis right now (sorry teammates) and so the time away will be good for me.

I did not have time to blog about Dancing With the Stars this week, but it was pretty obvious that Cody was going to go. I do think Lance and Lacey have been sandbagging this whole season. It was very clear after the first show that they were the best. Then they weren't that good, but they have been amazing the last two weeks. They had to make the show interesting again because it looked like Brooke was running away with it. Other comments from this week: Brooke's fringy pants were interesting to say the least; and Kym looks absolutely amazing this year. The boob job was good, but she has done some other work too I think. She used to have a lazy eye or was cross-eyed, but I have not noticed that this season so she must have had that fixed. She also looks awesome when she just lets her hair be naturally curly. She is HOT. I want to look like her. As Andrew asked, "How many times do you think Warren has tried to sleep with her? A thousand? I think more like a million!

On a serious note, Andrew's dad is having his valve replacement surgery the day after Thanksgiving in Cleveland. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers. We are headed to Columbus for Thanksgiving and then Andrew will be going to Cleveland for the surgery.

Not much else is happening. Reagan did not do so good at gymnastics this week and wanted to leave halfway through. Last night, we went to the new American Girl store at the Mall of America and she was totally not interested in any of the dolls. She was more excited about eating chicken nuggets at McDonald's. I was sad she was not into the dolls, but my checkbook was happy.

If I do not post again before Thanksgiving, have a happy Turkey Day and safe travels for all of you headed to be with friends and family (at least gas is only $1.79 a gallon if you are driving!). I'll be thinking of you.

Gotta "go, go, go,"
Reagan's mom

The Next Nastia!

Reagan took her first step in becoming the next Nastia Liukin last night when she had her opening gymastics class through the Community Ed program. I was a little nervous since she is kind of shy and gets clingy when there are strange kids and adults around, but I shouldn't have worried about it. The minute we walked into the gym, she took her jacket off and ran to play on the beam!

She did a great job listening and doing all of the things she was supposed to do. There were 26 kids, including 16 three-year olds. She was definitely the smallest and youngest of the group, but she did great. I was really proud of her. She was funny as every time it was her turn on the apparatus, she would make sure I was watching and then either wave or put her arms in the air like gymnasts do.

She had a good time and cannot wait to go back next week. Here are a few photos of the future Nastia. Next time, I will have to put her in a leotard and "Nasty" clips!

Gotta "go, go, go,"

Reagan's mom

Warren Was Great; Maurice Has Hit The Finish Line

Last night's episode of Dancing With The Stars was a good one. Each couple did two dances, and in the second dance, the Star had to do a 15-second solo. Let's start with that first since that was the most enjoyable part of the night.

Warren is amazing! I cannot believe that a 300-pound man can move like him. He is so light on his feet and he has "it." There are just some people who instantly light up a room when they enter and he is one of them. When I was in college, we tried to describe what traits indicated that a person had charisma. I think if you put a photo of Warren next to the word, that is all you need. He is just awesome. I am sure that is his TV persona as I heard that he can be a real jerk off camera, but aren't most celebrities like that. His first dance was great too. He is definitely safe tonight.

Brooke and Derek were good again. I really liked her orange rumba costume. She is so gorgeous. They will be in the final two for sure, and probably win, which makes me mad because I dislike Derek so much. How can Derek and Julianne be from the same cloth? She is so awesome and he is such a loser.

Lance and Lacey were fun to watch. I really liked their first dance. Lance's solo was a little weak in my mind, but I thought they did a really good job. Like Len said, he is too popular to go home so I think he is on to next week's semfinals.

That leaves Cody and Edyta/Julianne and Maurice and Cheryl. Both were enjoyable last night although Cody and Edyta struggled with sychronicity on the second dance. Cheryl and Maurice continue to improve, but I am not sure it is enough. They still look awkward out there. I also believe that there is no way the show is going to get rid of Cody before Julianne comes back from her surgery (she is going to sing tonight though). Too many people love Julianne (and Edyta for that matter), plus I think the Hannah Montana crowd is going to save him.

So my pick...Maurice is going home.

Gotta "go, go, go,"
Reagan's mom

Gotta Love Minnesota?

Here is what we woke up to this morning. Isn't it too early for this? Reagan loved it and wanted to go outside and play the minute she saw it. Have a good day.

Gotta "go, go, go,"

Reagan's mom

Bye, Bye Susan

Finally Susan is gone from Dancing With The Stars. It is a long-time coming. Now we are getting to the good stuff as the final five are pretty good. I think Maurice is the next to go, followed by Cody, Warren, Lance and Brooke will win. We will see.

At least Cody was safe so that means hopefully one more week of Edyta and the HDTV for me. Andrew did enjoy Edyta's dance last night, even though it was with her husband. She is really my only hope of ever getting Andrew to like dancing, although I am sure he would have no problem dancing if got to dance with someone as hot as her.

The highlight of last night though had to be Maks! He danced to Lionel Richie's Dancing On The Ceiling and he was smoking hot! (Kathleen...I was thinking of you!) He shaved his head and looked fantastic. I actually had to do a double take to make sure it was him. Check it out on You Tube if you have a minute.

Gotta "go, go, go'"
Reagan's mom

Happy Halloween From Tucson!

Happy Halloween from Tucson!

This is the "G" rated photo gallery from the Player's Party. It was a wild night (other teams, not mine) and so much fun. Our team went as "All Things Minnesota," which no one got, but if you are from Minnesota, you will see how cute some of our ideas were! Enjoy!

Paul(a) Bunyan and Babe The Blue Ox! Isn't Babe awesome? Jeanne...you did a great job on this costume.

Paul(a) with Howard Stern!


Indian and Snow Princess...so cute!


Northern Lights! This one was awesome! Good job Luonna (she won best original costume) and Ann.

Team Northern and "All Things Minnesota."

Jolly Green Giant

Mall of America Shopper...this one I think is really funny! Great costume Janie.


Gotta "go, go, go,"

Reagan's mom

Strawberry Shortcake Halloween

Happy Halloween From Strawberry Shortcake!

Dancing With The Stars Update

It was a good night for Dancing With The Stars since Edyta was back on the show and I was able to watch it on the HD TV. I really like Edyta and I am glad she is back on. They need to pair her with someone awesome each year. Andrew also likes her being back with of course his only comment of the night being, "She really should pose in Playboy." I am sure they have already approached her about it and it is only a matter of time.

Last night was an OK show. Brooke and Derek were really good and definitely are the team to beat. I thought Lacey and Lance were really good again as well and Lacey looked just awesome. Maurice was good. Warren and Kym have been only OK lately. I think Warren has kind of checked out a little and maybe wants it to be over.

I felt bad for Cody and Edyta because they had to do the Waltz which is so hard as it is and then to only have been dancing together for one week, it is hard to know each other and really develop a chemistry. There is no way that they are going home though tonight.

Susan really needs to go. She is just awful and it really showed on the group dance (which was stupid). She is just so far behind the rest of the dancers and it is time....

About the group dance. Why did they put all the good dancers in one group (Warren, Brooke and Maurice)? I guess they think Lance and Lacey are better than Warren and Kym, but the first group dance was a disaster. Carrie Ann was right, although I thought she was a little harsh. Andrew really liked the costumes of the first dance - or lack there of since he got to see a lot of Edyta in that routine.

We will see what happens on Wednesday since Barack and McCain are overriding Dancing With The Stars tonight - when is the US going to get its priorities straight?

Gotta "go, go, go,"
Reagan's mom

p.s. - How about Brady Quinn starting for the Browns on Thursday!

Live From Tucson

It is Sunday and I am still in Tucson. Unfortunately, my team is not playing in the finals today. We ended up 0-4 for the weekend, but it was much, much closer than our record indicates. We actually lost 11 of 12 tiebreakers here which was the difference in us being 0-4 and 4-0 and possibly playing on today. Those tiebreakers are so heartbreaking and really killed us this weekend, but I guess it all evened out because we won more of our fair share at areas and sectionals.

Our first match was against Southern California. We lost 3-2, losing three third-set tiebreakers. It was so close, but we just couldn't pull it out. The second match we lost 4-1, and once again, lost two third-set tiebreakers. We really didn't know how to feel. On the one hand, we had lost, but on the other hand, we were so close and easily could have been 2-0.

On Saturday morning, we lost to Florida 4-1, losing two third-set tiebreakers, another match 7-6, 7-6 and another 6-4, 6-4. It was so close, and of course today, Florida is playing for the championship as we speak. It could have been us, but I digress (win your tiebreakers and it would have been us). In our final match on Saturday, we lost 4-1 and lost another third-set tiebreaker. It was tough being so close and not being able to win the big match, but then again, we were so close and that was pretty exciting. In my heart, I know that if Shannon and Sharon were here, we would have been playing on Sunday.

As for me...I went 0-2, which I pretty much expected having to play singles. I just wasn't consistent enough or in good enough shape. It was in the 90s and I ran out of gas in both matches. In the first match, I played a pusher, which was my worst nightmare coming here. I could do nothing with the ball as there was no pace on it. It was a disaster from the start. I lost the first set 6-2, but rebounded in the second set and was actually up 5-4 before I fell apart and lost 7-5. Very disappointing to say the least.

On Saturday, I had a much better match and just played my game. I hit some pretty amazing shots, as well as some pretty awful shots. Almost every game went to multiple deuces, but I just could not win the big point and fell 6-4, 6-4. Looking back, I did not embarrass myself which was my goal, but deep down, I probably should have won both matches. I just wasn't mentally tough when I needed to be. That is the big difference between singles and doubles. I need someone out there to talk to and keep me in the match. With singles, I was on an island with myself (I wouldn't wish that on anyone).

It has been a fun experience and I am glad I got to be here with my friends. The weather was great. The Players Party was x-rated (I will have photos to follow when I get home.) and the experience was one I will always have. Honestly though, being here one time is enough and I will be fine if I never make it again.

You can read my politically correct blog (I am a PR person after all and was writing it for the USTA) from the tournament at http://www.usta.com/sitecore/content/USTA/Global/Leagues_and_Tournaments/Adults/News/35/Lisa_Blog.aspx.

Yesterday was Reagan's third birthday. Yes, I am the worst mom in the whole world as I missed it yet again. I did keep up the tradition of not being there for Reagan's birthday - in fact, the only birthday I have been at of hers was when she was born. Someone told me yesterday that kids do not remember anything before the age of 5 so hopefully she is not scarred for life.

Andrew's grandma came to celebrate with them once again which was nice. Andrew had planned on Reagan opening all of her presents with Great Grandma Jan there, but Reagan had her own ideas. With all of her birthday presents on the table, Andrew needed to take the dog out for a bathroom break and left Reagan upstairs in her bed watching Strawberry Shortcake (yet again). I guess when Andrew was gone (not even 5 minutes), Reagan came downstairs and climbed up on the kitchen table and opened all of her presents! When Andrew walked in, Reagan was playing with her new princess video game. Hilarious! I am sorry I missed that.

I need to get back to work, but when I return, I will post a ton of photos of Strawberry from Halloween, as well as my trip to Tucson.

Gotta "go, go, go,"
Reagan's mom

Cloris Is Finally Gone! Off To Tucson Tomorrow!

Cloris finally was booted off Dancing With The Stars last night. It was about time, but you knew that was going to happen especially since next week each contestant has to learn two dances and she could not even learn one dance. Susan Lucci will be the next to go, although I think Maurice Greene better watch out.

I leave tomorrow for my big tennis tournament. I am playing two matches thus far, but that always changes once you get there as people get hurt or don't play as well as they hoped, etc. We are in the same flight as Southern California, Intermountain, Florida and New England. I am playing the two early matches (7:30 a.m. Friday and Saturday against So Cal and Florida - yikes! good thing I am a morning person!). You can actually keep track of my progress if you are interested as I am doing a blog for the USTA on the usta.com Web site.

http://www.usta.com/USTA/Home/LeaguesAndTournaments/35_LeagueNationalChampionships.aspx

I am really looking forward to it and just praying that I do not embarrass myself. At least the 80 degree weather will be nice since it snowed here on Sunday.

Gotta "go, go, go"
Reagan's mom (who hopefully will turn into Roger Federer this weekend!)

Strawberry Birthday

Since I am being the worst mom in the world and missing not only Halloween, but Reagan's third birthday this weekend when I head to sunny Tucson for my tennis nationals championships, we had an early birthday party for Miss Reagan last weekend with my mom and dad and our friends The Spurrs.

Reagan was in Strawberry Shortcake overload with all the decorations and balloons. Then when we brought out the Strawberry Shortcake cake, I thought it was all over. She was so happy. Here are some photos from the party.

Gotta "go, go, go,"
Reagan's Mom

Susan vs. Cloris - They Both Need To Go!

I hate to say it, but it is time for the two old ladies to go! I am just not sure which on will go first tonight. I am thinking Cloris, but Susan Lucci's time has run out on the show as well. Both are awful. At least Cloris is funny and 82 years old. Susan looks hot in all of her outfits (wouldn't you if you were 4-11 and 70 pounds), but she is just an awful dancer. Susan was absolutely terrible in the group dance last night. I felt sorry for her. She had no idea what they were doing and was out of step the entire dance. At least Cloris is funny and knows her limitations.

On the upside, Lance and Lacey were great. I thought their jive was one of the best dances of the year. They are right back in the competition.

My favorites are still Warren and Kym. I think he is hilarious and he is really good. I am still shocked by how good he is. I also thought he was awesome in the group dance. Kym needed to give him more to do last night, but she is so into herself and her newly-enhanced chest that she sometimes forgets that he is the one in the contest. She looks great though. If I had that chest and looked that good, I would flaunt it too! And congrats to her for finally getting a good partner. She has always had such crappy partners - Mark Cuban, Jerry Springer.

Brooke and Derek were beautiful although there was not much dancing. You could tell they played it safe since she was hurt. Derek still annoys me.

Perhaps the best news of the night in a selfish way is that Julianne has to have her appendix removed (I am sorry for her about that) and Edyta is going to take her place until she can come back and dance again. That means I get to watch it on the big TV once again next week! Yes! Julianne says she can come back in one week, I am hoping it is like 5 weeks so I can watch on the high definition TV the rest of the season - get well Julianne, but not too soon!

Everyone else was fine. Maurice and Cheryl were good. Cody and Julianne were OK. And obviously the last people were not great since I cannot even remember who they were.

It was nice to see Micahel Flatley on the show as well. I cannot wait to see him dance tonight! He is awesome!

Gotta "go, go, go,"
Reagan's Mom

Susan Lucci Might Be In Trouble

I really did not like last night's format for Dancing With The Stars. I felt like the people who got to jitterbug had a real advantage, but then again, it might have just been who did what dance.

Derek and Brooke and Cody and Julianne were amazing last night. They threw so many lifts into their routines and they were so difficult. They were a lot of fun to watch, although I thought it was very interesting that both Julianne and Derek did not know alot about the jitterbug, but their routines were almost the exact same style. They must have talked.

I also thought Maurice and Cheryl were really, really good, as well as Warren (he was hilarious) and Kym. I guess Cheryl knew exactly what to do to light a fire under Maurice, although I thought that he has been really good the past three weeks.

Then there was everyone else. Lacey and Lance were boring - although Lacey was phenominal. Toni was OK. Cloris was actually pretty good for her last night and then there was poor Susan. She was terrible! I know she has broken feet, but she was absolutely terrible and really should be the one to go home tonight. I guess we will see.

The show is super boring this year. Maybe they need to see how much it would cost to get Barack and Caribou Barbie to be on the show and drive up ratings. Just look what they have done for Saturday Night Live.

Gotta "go, go, go,"

Reagan's mom

Stress!

I was so looking forward to this weekend as it was going to be a big family weekend. With only one event the whole weekend - Gopher volleyball on Friday night - I was really excited to spend a weekend with Reagan and Andrew. On Saturday, we decided to drive to Wisconsin and look at all the fall foliage along the river. It was really nice as the temperature was in the mid 50s and sunny. We stopped at a few places so Reagan could run around and play in the leaves.

Once we returned home...things started to go south. We received a letter that we lost our appeal on our storm door and will have to remove it immediately (long story short on this...we unknowingly installed a non-approved storm door on our house over 2 years ago and the association decided to finally let us know and to immediately take it down. There are three of us who have the same door so we all appealed to keep the door - and lost). I am not happy. Our property management company is terrible - then the door - and then they raised the monthly dues $30/month all in the last 4 weeks. Needless to say...I am going to really pay attention now and start getting involved with what is happening around here.

Then we are eating dinner when I look down at my wedding ring and notice that the main diamond is missing from the setting - it had snapped off the setting prongs, post and all. Of course I start freaking out and looking everywhere for it - to no avail. Then I started to panic that I lost it when we were playing in the leaves in Wisconsin - not to mention that I had showered, done laundry, cleaned house and emptied the trash since we had been home. I then remembered that I had taken some photos of Reagan and I in Wisconsin, so I looked at those and you could see that my ring was still in one piece. So I knew that the diamond was somewhere in the car or in my house, but being a total pessimist, I figured it got caught in my hair when I was showering and went down the drain. I looked all Saturday night - nothing. All Sunday morning - nothing. I figured it was lost but decided to look in my car one last time just in case. Low and behold sitting on the floor on between the door and the back seat was my diamond in the prongs! I couldn't believe it! So I am sure it is ruined because the setting is broken, but I at least have the diamond. Andrew was glad that I found the diamond, but he is getting a little irritated that this will be my third setting in just under 8 years of me having the ring. Maybe this time I should just get a band or a $5 ring out of a Cracker Jack box.

So once I found it, the rest of the weekend was good. It was my birthday yesterday so that made it a very happy birthday. Andrew and I played tennis in the morning with some of my teammates going to Nationals and then I had a match that night (which I got killed in, but it was still fun). Reagan made me a cake and things were great.

I am waiting the arrival of my mom and dad. They are coming to visit for a week so that will be fun for Reagan. Reagan cannot wait to play golf with Grandpa.

Dancing With the Stars tonight...hopefully this will be the last week for Cloris!

Gotta "go, go, go,"

Reagan's mom

Reagan update

I was looking back at my previous posts and you would think that I only cared about Dancing With The Stars and that I had nothing else going on in my life. Well that is almost true...except that I do have a daughter who is about to turn 3 and every day is a new adventure with her.

So yesterday it happened for the first time (and I am sure it will not be the last) ... Reagan got mad at me and told me "she didn't like me!" She got mad because I moved her car seat to the passenger side of the back seat and she could not get in on her normal side (these are the moments when I fear she has autism). After kicking and screaming, we started driving toward home and it came out, "I don't like you mommy!" I tried not to laugh, but it was sad. I guess that is better than "I hate you," but she is not even three yet. It did bother me, although once we got home and I got her some Cheerios, I was the best again. My little Reagan is becoming a teenager!

Reagan is doing great in school. She actually has graduated from the preschool curriculum and they are going to start her on kindergarten studies. She knows all her letters and numbers (although she forgets 14-19 when she is counting to 20) and is really a smart cookie. They tell me every day how impressed they are with her and how much she enjoys her "schoolwork."

She also earned her first trip to the library with the 'big kids" at school today. This is a really big deal as they take the big kids to the library once a week and Marcy decided that since Reagan is so into learning and education, that she would get to go to the library today. I cannot wait to see how that turned out. Secretly, I am hoping that she hated it since the library was never one of my favorite places when I was in school (i.e. look at my college grades), but I am very proud of her.

Another sign that she is growing up is that we played Candy Land for the first time the other day and she understood all of the rules and how to play. The only thing she failed to grasp was that you did not want to get Peppermint Forest when you are about to win the game. She thought it was "cool" that she got the candy cards. Oh well. That means I win much more often.

Her social calendar is also starting to fill up as she has been invited to a number of parties recently, including one tonight at Pump It Up which is an indoor inflatable place. She loves her friends! She also went on a field trip at school yesterday where they rode the light rail downtown and then looked at all the "castles" as Reagan likes to call them. She thought that was pretty fun, especially when the train went fast! She starts gymnastics practice November 10 as well.

Getting her ready in the morning has become quite challenging as she is not a morning person (like her dad) and she refuses to do anything until the "sky is open" (which means the sun is up). She also needs to pick her own diaper, clothes and shoes and then try to put them all on herself which doesn't really work out at age 3. She also refuses to let me brush her hair so she goes with a rat's nest on her head every day. I am sure I look like the worst mother. Let's just say my stress level is pretty high when I finally make it out of the house in the morning.

Nighttime (when the sky is closed...I am not sure where she got this from) is also a challenge as she wants to stay up until 10 p.m. every night and not take a bath. So not only is she smelly, but she is just a bear in the morning. The joys of parenting!

She is excited about Grandma Vicki and Grandpa Rick coming on Monday. She cannot wait to play golf with Grandpa and go pick apples with Grandma. I think she also knows that her birthday is getting pretty close and that a Strawberry Shortcake cake is somewhere in her future.

As you can tell...she keeps us really busy, but she is an awesome kid.

Gotta "go, go, go,"

Reagan's mom

Rocco's Last Supper

It looks like Rocco will be leaving Dancing With The Stars after his performance last night. He was definitely the worst dancer of the night, and as my friend Kathleen said, he looked drunk. Most men become better dancers once they are drunk, but he is certainly not like most men (of course he isn't - he cooks). I think Rocco's last supper is tonight.

The biggest surprise of the night was Cloris. She was actually good. She should just leave the clowning out of her act (it is so old) and just dance. She was really good last night, and honestly, it is amazing that someone 82 years old can get her leg over her head. She will be back next week.

The rest of the show was pretty standard. I really liked Maurice and Cheryl, but the judges did not. Brooke and Derek were good. Lacey and Lance were really good. They are back in the game. Warren and Kym were not as good as normal. Kym looked great, but Warren did not dance that much.

Everyone else was fine...Toni, Cody, Susan.

One thing I will say is that the women did not wear much last night. Brooke, Toni, Kym ... they hardly had anything on. Andrew probably would have like that, but since he is boycotting the show after the departure of Edyta...or maybe it was just because the Browns were on last night (A sidenote: I hate Derek Anderson and every game he does well means more time that Brady has to stand on the sidelines...maybe that isn't so bad since he is stadning there with his helmet off.)

As you can tell by my summary, it was a pretty boring show.

Gotta "go, go, go"
Reagan's mom

DWTS - At 2:00 In The Morning

So...thankfully... not so much ... I am not sure what I think ... I'm tired ... Reagan woke me up last night at 2:00 a.m. - just in time to watch Dancing With The Stars if I wanted to since it was preempted by the Vikings game (they had no business winning that game). Of course, Reagan went back to bed right away (in my spot naturally), but I was then up for the day, and relegated to the couch, so I had no choice but to watch. Right?

Overall, it was a good show. I thought everyone was good except Susan and Cloris. Really, Cloris has got to go. She actually lost her wig last night and it was just an embarassment all the way around. The choerography was bad and the dancing worse. I am tired of her act. ABC...it is time.

Of course, she is going to stick around since I am guessing they will not kick anyone off the show tonight after the loss of Misty May-Treanor to a ruptured achilles tendon (more on this later). What I would like to see is the show actually eliminate someone tonight (Cloris) and then decide that one night is a surprise non-elimination night - like they do on the Amazing Race.

Here is a quick summary of the show since I can hardly keep my eyes open right now!

Susan was first - not a good night for her. She did the jive and it just does not suit her. She looked old and frail. I thought they had learned their lesson the first week. The costume was not flattering for her and her heels were 6 inches high. How can anyone dance in those, especially when you are only 4-11?

Next were Lance and Lacey - they were fine. They did a waltz and stayed reserved. Actually the judges, except Len, told them they were boring because of it. They have really come back to the field in the last two weeks. They looked like sure-bets for the championship, but Brooke and Warren have easily passed them.

I cannot remember the exact order of who was next so I am just going to randomly comment.

Karina and Rocco were boring - they will be going home soon.

Warren and Kym were really good. Warren did a waltz and performed it great for a 300 pound man. They are definitely one of the couples to beat. They got one 9 and two 8s. Good for them. I am still shocked that Warren is so good.

Toni and Alec were different, but I really did not like it. Toni also did not play to her strength which is her incredible body as she wore a Marie Antoinette costume that weighed 22 pounds and did not show any skin.

Cody and Julianne started hot, but faded fast in the middle. Him using her leg as a guitar, not once, but twice in the dance was ridiculous. There is no way he is going home though because his Hannah costar Miley Cyrus pledged on camera last night that she was going to come to the ballroom and watch him. They would never give up those kinds of ratings, especially since this is a pretty boring year for the show.

Maurice and Cheryl were the surprise of the night and I thought they did the second best dance of the evening. The jive is definitely Maurice's thing and Cheryl looks like she has lost some of that offseason weight.

Brooke and Derek were awesome and made me cry. The song they danced to was so sweet and then to have Brooke kiss her daughter at the end was really awesome. I was also glad that Brooke stood up to Derek and told him to stop being such a jerk. I hate him and I think he is an arrogant little $^#*$% (family blog, Lisa). Anyway...I am glad she stood up to him and hopefully he will start respecting her a little bit.

Of course they saved Misty and Maks until the end. They showed her getting injured. The pop of her leg was so loud and horrible. I could not get over how loud it was. She even thought she had hit the step with her foot instead of suffering such a gruesome injury. Misty was right on when she said the women would not be happy because they would not get to see Maks anymore. I think she was talking directly to me at 4 a.m. It was sad and Maks was pretty emotional too. Honestly, if she comes back from her injury, I hope that they offer her and Maks a chance to compete next season.

It was a good night (or morning in my case) for the show. We will see who gets the boot tonight. I hope it is Cloris!

Gotta "go, go, go"
Reagan's mom

DWTS Preempted in Twin Cities For the Vikings

You can imagine how mad I am about the fact that Dancing With the Stars is going to be preempted here in the Twin Cities so that all of the poor souls who do not have cable here can still be tortured by watching the Vikings tonight on Ch. 5. Since this is a family blog, I will leave it at that, but are you serious? This is a big night on DWTS since we do not know if Misty will or will not dance...rumors are she broke her ankle.

They are going to show it at 1:45 a.m. so if I want to get up and watch it then ... I am sure that I am not the only one that is really mad about this.

Anyway...the weekend was quiet. Went to the apple orchard. Watched Notre Dame play football. Andrew has a really bad cold so we really did not do much else. Made it to church and I played tennis on Sunday.

Hope everyone had a nice weekend...

Gotta "go, go, go,"
Reagan's mom

Breaking News! Misty Off Dancing With The Stars

Internet reports are saying that Misty May-Treanor has had to quit Dancing With The Stars after suffering an undisclosed injury that requires surgery. That stinks in so many ways...

1. NO MORE MAKS

2. Cloris gets another reprieve since they will probably not kick anyone off this week. That means she might be on for another 2 or 3 weeks. Ugh!

3. NO MORE MAKS

4. Andrew's direct quote..."No Edyta, No Maks...there really is no reason to watch it anymore this season." This means to the little TV for me. Ugh!

5. Did I say NO MORE MAKS?

Just a thought...maybe they will bring Kim back to take her place. Hmmmm.

Gotta "go, go, go,"
Reagan's mom

Takeaways From Gov. Sarah's Debate

I was one of the 75 million people who watched Gov. Sarah debate Joe Biden last Thursday. I'll admit, I was really nervous to see Gov. Sarah in action because her performance in pressure situations the last two weeks has not been the greatest and I was expecting disaster. Although she averted disaster - in fact - she did OK (if you discount that she had a number of factual errors - that isn't important is it?), there were still three things that really bothered me about her at the debate. Of course, none of these things would make her less qualified to be vice president of the United States, but it still really got to me.

1. I can see where people would appreciate that Gov. Sarah is just like us. Her down home, folksy, mannerisms are nice if I was at the grocery store (although do not wink at me), but I do not want to see my president or vice president being like that. Do not send a shout out to your brothers third grade class when you are trying to convince me that you are capable of being second in charge of the free world.

To be honest, I do not want the president or vice president to be just like me. I want them to appear, and actually be, much (much) smarter than I am. The president and vice president are the most powerful people in the world for goodness sakes and it scares me to think that someone like me is ruling that world. Some people think that is elitist. I don't. I think it is actually being realistic and admitting that me or someone like me is not ready to govern our country or lead the world. Say it ain't so Sarah...you just do not come across as being vice presidential. Good thing I am voting for a president and not a vice president.

2. If Sarah is really like me she would not be wearing a $2,000 Escada suit and Stuart Weismann shoes that were another $800. I thought she was overdressed for a debate - it would have been perfect for a state dinner or something like that - but not for a debate where she was trying to convince me that she is just like me. A $300 Kaplan suit that she bought at Macy's using a 20 percent off coupon would have been just fine to wear, as well as a pair of $50 Franco Sarto shoes that she got at DSW Shoe Warehouse. Don't get me wrong...I would die to have the suit and shoes that she wore that night...but just like me, I think not.

3. Please do not have little Piper (who is so cute) carry baby Trig. It is OK that Piper holds him while she is sitting down, but please do not have her walking around and holding him. He is way too heavy for her and if she ever were to drop him (god forbid), especially if it were to happen when on TV, the media would be all over Gov. Sarah accusing her of being an irresponsible, unfit mother! I can just see the media clips of Gov. Sarah running side by side with clips of Brittany Spears. She cannot afford to have this happen to her.

Another thing...in all of the media clips I have seen of the family, not once have I seen Todd Palin holding Trig. Whether intentional or not, with Todd not holding Trig it gives off the appearance that he is ashamed of his special needs son or that he is scared of holding him because he has special needs. If he is going to be the primary caregiver of the family if Sarah becomes vice president, then he needs to show that he embraces that role by nuturing that baby who needs all the support he can get right now.

Perhaps the best part of the debate the other night was when Reagan walked up to the TV and put her hand over Joe Biden's mouth (unprompted by the way) when he was talking. She must have heard enough from him, although I thought he was very presidential and impressive.

Politics aside...our family is fine. There is nothing new really going on right now. Thank goodness Dancing With The Stars and the debates keep things exciting. We went to the apple farm today so I am sure there will be some photos of that sometime next week.

Gotta "go, go, go,"
Reagan's mom

p.s. - Very sad about Kim Kardashian although not really surprised. Cloris has got to go, but I have a feeling she has another week left in her. Also, devastated about Helio. He probably will not be in the ballroom anytime soon. I wonder if you can dance in jail. Ugh!

It Is Time For Cloris To Go

It is really time for Cloris to go. Don't get me wrong...I admire that anyone 82 years old is out there doing what she is doing, but last night was really embarassing for both her and her partner. The beginning of her dance was good and I thought she might be able to pull it off, but the middle and the end were just awful and it put her partner in just a horrible position. She was fun the first two shows, but it is now time to end the misery for everyone involved.

My other huge disappointment from the night was once again Kim Kardashian. I am just seeing nothing from her. It is really sad. She is so beautiful and should be just awesome, but clearly she is not. I am getting tired of her "inner zen, I am a shy girl act too." Anyone who makes a sex tape with Rick Salomon cannot be that shy. Maybe she needs to pretend she is making a sex tape once again so she can let down her inhibitions and dance. She is in serious danger of going home in the next couple of weeks.

Actually, there were a number of people who were not that good. Having only three days to prepare was hard on most of the couples. Others who need to be worried in are Rocco DiSpirto and Maurice Greene for sure.

My favorite dance from last night was actually Julianne and Cody. I thought they were really good and their scores were lower than what I expected. It is hard for him though to come across as sexy. He is just not that type of guy, but I did think they were good. Brooke and Toni were good again, although I thought Brooke needed to be more passionate in her paso doble. Warren was my favorite guy, although I thought he struggled a little and was not as good as the judges said. I also am not sure what I thought about him wearing eye liner! I am sure his football buddies are going to give him grief about that!

Susan Lucci was good, Misty May was not so good in my opinion (she does not look good either - she has really bad skin and it bugs me) and Lacey and Lance were only OK. They look the same every week.

Perhaps my favorite part of the night took place in my own home as Reagan and Andrew danced two separate numbers. Here is the video from both of them...I think Reagan is ready for the show. Andrew still needs to work on his moves.

Gotta "go, go, go,"
Reagan's mom

Dancing With The Stars - Show Two

So I missed the first hour of Dancing With The Stars last night if you can believe that. This tennis thing really gets in the way sometimes. I did win my match last night which gave us the league championship so that was exciting. Talk about pressure knowing that you have to win your individual match to win the title! Thankfully, my partner made some good shots and we won.

Once I got home though, it was all about Dancing With The Stars. Andrew gave me a quick update (Edyta obviously had not been eliminated yet) and then I was ready to watch. I missed Warren Sapp, Misty May, Brooke Burke, Cloris Leachman, Toni Braxton and Maurice Greene, but I watched them on You Tube this morning (You Tube is awesome).

My worst nightmare came true as Edyta was eliminated and I probably will have to watch the show upstairs from now on. Bummer. Since I am all about conspiracy theories - this one reeks of it. She must have had something major going on over the next three months to give her such a loser partner. She is definitely a fan favorite and to have her gone after the first week is sad.

Overall, everyone was much better last night. I guess the first-night jitters really get in the way. Warren continues to surprise me. He was great. I thought Misty was pretty good (I didn't realize her legs were so long) and Brooke and Toni were good. I really enjoyed Ted McGinley (he looked really hot once again) and I thought Rocco was good too. He has a very engaging personality - it makes you want to root for him.

My biggest disappointment was Kim - I thought she was going to be awesome based on the song she picked, but she was boring. She might not last very long because people have a real hang up about her. She is beautiful though, I am just not sure how she could not make it.

My pick to leave tonight is Cloris - although I think Susan and Cody have to be worried. The one thing those two have going for them is their huge fan base. There are so many people who watch All My Children and Hannah Montana that I doubt they will go this early. We will see....

Gotta "go, go, go,"
Reagan's mom

Dancing With The Stars - Opening Night

It is going to be a long season of having to watch Dancing With The Stars on the little television now as there is no doubt that Edyta and her partner will be the first to go tonight. Andrew let me watch it on the big, high definition television last night and he even came down when Edyta danced, but when it was over...there was sadness for both of us. I knew I was going to have to watch it for the rest of the year on the small television and Andrew knew he would not get to see what Edyta (or what she isn't) wearing for the rest of the season. Bummer.

There is also no doubt as to who will win this year as Lance Bass should not even be able to compete on the show. He was by far and away the best dancer out there. The only hope is that Warren Sapp - who was funny and will be around for a long time - can overtake them. Warren was pretty good and much lighter on his feet than I thought he would be.

For the women, I think Toni Braxton and Kim Kardashian were the best, although Brooke Burke will be around for a long time as well. Can I just say that Toni Braxton looked so amazing and I hate Brooke Burke? Anyone who can have two babies in 20 months and look like that...it is just not fair.

Although tomorrow will be her final night, Cloris Leachman was hilarious. I was laughing hysterically. You go girl...at 82 years old and doing what you did, that is awesome! I enjoyed your post dance commentary as well - although the FCC would probably prefer that she is off the show. Did you notice that once she finished (and it became a family show once again) there were a ton of commercials for Disney theme parks?

Biggest disappointment of the night went to Susan Lucci. Although she looked fabulous (she is 61 for goodness sakes), she looked old and frail when she danced. I really expected her to be awesome and she was far from it. I thought she might make the final three or four, but now it is looking more like a week 5 or 6 departure.

Andrew's biggest disppointment of the night (after Edyta's partner of course) was Misty May. She was not very attractive at all. He always thought she looked hot on the volleyball court, but last night, he was very disappointed. I didn't notice since I was salavating over Maks the entire time (Welcome Back...boy did I miss him!).

The rest of the celebrities: Ted McGinley looked hot and was good; Rocco DiSpirto was OK; Maurice Greene can dance - just not ballroom style; Cody Linley I thought was better than what they gave him credit for.

Comments about the rest of the professionals: Julianne looked amazing like always; Cheryl Burke looked fat and not amazing; Kym Johnson looks to have had a breast enhancement (that was the first thing Andrew noticed) and I liked Lacey although I cannot wait to see her do a waltz.

Reagan was really into it as well and asked us to dance during each performance. She said she cannot wait to watch it tonight - although it probably will not be as fun on the little TV. Thanks Jeffrey Ross - idiot!

Gotta "go, go, go,"
Reagan's mom

Dancing With The Stars Starts Tonight!

I have been waiting all summer for tonight and it is finally here - the season premier of Dancing With The Stars. I started singing the song to Reagan this morning on the way to daycare, but for some reason she was not as excited as I was - I am sure once she hears the song played by the Dancing With The Stars Band, it will come rushing back to her, and if that doesn't work, having to watch it three straight nights for 2 hours a night will surely work. I am sure Andrew is dreading the next three days (except for those 3 minutes that Edyta dances).

I have to admit, I am only lukewarm to the cast this year which is maybe why I am only writing about this less than eight hours from the debut. I am not really excited about any of the celebrities they have dancing coming into the show. I am thrilled about the return of Maks (as I am sure you are Kathleen!) and then I always love to watch Julianne. I hope they have her sing on an episode or two this year as well.

Here’s the rundown of celebrity contestants once again and their professional partners
• Toni Braxton, singer, 40, and season one DWTS champ Alec Mazo
• Lance Bass, singer, 29, and Lacey Schwimmer
• Ted McGinley, actor, 50, and Inna Brayer
• Cloris Leachman, actress, 82, and Corky Ballas
• Warren Sapp, former NFL star, 35, and Kym Johnson
• Rocco DiSpirito, chef, 41, and Karina Smirnoff
• Kim Kardashian, TV personality, 27, and reigning DWTS champ Mark Ballas
• Maurice Greene, Olympic gold medalist track and field star, 34, and two-time DWTS champ Cheryl Burke
• Misty May-Treanor, Olympic gold medalist beach volleyball player, 31, and Maksim Chmerkovskiy"
• Susan Lucci, Emmy-award winning soap opera actress, 61, and Tony Dovolani
• Jeffrey Ross, 42, comedian, and Edyta Sliwinska
• Cody Linley, 18, actor, and two-time DWTS champ Julianne Hough
• Brooke Burke, 36, TV personality, and Derek Hough

I am really only excited about Kim Kardashian (she is really beautiful), Misty May-Treanor (probably because she is with Max) and Susan Lucci (anyone who is 61 and looks that awesome deserve some support!). I am not really interested in any of the men this year, although I guess Lance Bass would be considered the favorite because of his N'Sync background. I am a little intrigued by his partner since she is new to the ballroom this year and comes from "So You Think You Can Dance." I guess they are adding a hip-hop night to the ballroom just for them. Hmmmmm. I am predicting right now that Warren Sapp is going to be terrible - which will be a huge departure from the rest of the football players who have been on the show.

I will wait until after I see them all dance to post my predicted order of finish, but I am guessing that Jeffrey Ross might be the first to go because I have no idea who he is. If he is the first to go, it is going to be hard to convince Andrew that I need the hi-def television to watch the show since Edyta will be gone too!

Gotta "go, go, go,"
Reagan's mom

Reagan's First 5K

Reagan ran her first 5K last weekend (she is #453) at Como Park in St. Paul. She actually ran about 1/3 of a mile, which is way more than I ran (let's just say I walked slowly!). It was for Camp Odayin, which is the Heart Camp that my friends - the Spurr Family - work at every summer. This camp, which has kids with heart ailments attend from all over the country, has been so great for Jennifer after she received her heart transplant and so we thought we would support the cause at the walk. Reagan was awesome (in the rain) and everyone that ran by her was commenting about how cute she was. It was a lot of fun and we cannot wait to participate again next year.

The rest of the weekend and week were slow. I worked a volleyball tournament at the U all weekend and Andrew was on Reagan duty. Thank goodness we did not go to Notre Dame last weekend like originally scheduled since it rained like cats and dogs there from Hurricane Ike. It would have been a nightmare. We had our fill of Notre Dame as they played in the volleyball tournament so I was able to catch up with a few friends.

Nothing much on the agenda this weekend. There is another volleyball tournament at the U so I will be there for six more matches. Andrew and Reagan will be watching Notre Dame again I am sure. Andrew is "recklessly optimistic" as he terms it. I am not even close to being at that point yet. We will see after the next two weeks.

Our biggest thing now is trying to figure out what Reagan is going to be for Halloween. She still does not understand what Halloween is, and she does not like candy (still great for Dad so he can eat all of it), but she loves looking at all the princess costumes. She must have said " oh, beautiful" at least 20 times (if you have not heard her say beautiful, it is pretty funny as she is so dramatic!). I am guessing this will be the first year of many that she will be a princess of some sort!

Gotta "go, go, go,"

Reagan's mom

p.s. - Dancing With The Stars begins on Monday of next week. I will have a full report in the next couple of days.

More photos of Reagan's First 5K at Como Park in St. Paul...

Back From Spokane

We all made it back from Spokane in one piece, although Reagan misses her Grandma and Grandpa an awful lot and with all the tears that were flowing from the eyes of Grandma and Grandpa at the airport, I think the feeling was mutual.

You can tell that they spoiled her a lot while she was there because she is always talking about something they did while she was there. I think her best memories though are the deer and turkeys in grandma's and grandpa's yard and the train coming by every day. They also took her to a big cat farm where Raja (from Aladdin) lived, as well as the white tigers which she talked about whenever we would drive past it.

They also must have gone shopping a lot while she was there because every time we would drive by the grocery store, she would say, "There's the store!" She also had about 10 new pairs of shoes and a whole suitcase full of clothes waiting for me when I finally arrived to get her.

My cousin's wedding was really nice. Jason and Nikki looked tremedous and the weather couldn't have been nicer for the outdoor affair (although I wish they would have told me the reception was outdoors too as I went in a sleeveless dress!). The highlight of the event had to be the first dance...they started dancing to unchained melody and then all of a sudden the music cuts out and changes to Baby Got Back where they did this whole cheorographed dance. It was awesome! The toasts made by the best man was good as well, and the toast by Jason to Nikki's mom and dad was unbelieveably touching and heartfelt. I was really impressed with my little cousin! It was also nice to see my whole family together as most everyone came - cousins, aunts, uncles, kids galore. It was a fun time. I am only sad that we had to leave early because Reagan was tired.

Andrew was able to play golf twice while we were there so he was happy about that and then we did a lot of family parties. I also took Reagan to the merry-go-round that my parents used to take me to when I was growing up. That was pretty neat to see her ride on that and this time she could ride all by herself. She is growing up so fast (as you can see in the photos where Grandpa let her drive the truck...I was a little nervous about that!).

We returned home on Monday night and have tried to get back into a routine for Reagan. We are still working on that. She did just fine at daycare after being gone for three weeks and got right back into her schoolwork. Bedtime has been a little harder. She was so good about going to bed with my mom and dad, but with us...not so much. I think she knows how to take advantage of her parents (and at such a young age...so sad). She has come into our bed in the middle of the night every night since we have been back.

I feel like I have been in a time warp and now it is back to real life. Some updates on things going on in our lives....

* Andrew's dad does have to have open heart surgery to replace a valve in his heart. They are still working out all the details, but he is hoping to have it in the next month or so. Andrew is planning on being there for the surgery and then we are going there for Thanksgiving to help out in any way we can since he will be on the shelf for at least three months after the surgery.

* My friend Jennifer does not have lymphoma so that was great news. They actually found some medicines that have been working and she is doing really well. We are doing a heart walk for her on Saturday which we are really excited about.

* Sad news with my sister and her family as their Scottie dog Barkley died suddenly last week. He was only 1 1/2 years old, but I guess he got an intestinal infection that is common with that breed of dog and he could not survive. They are all pretty sad, but as my niece Ava said, "He is in the sky with his parachute looking at us!"

* Andrew's brother Brett got a job in Omaha and started there last week so he and Alana were busy moving once again.

That is all for now. Enjoy the photos. A description of them...1. Reagan driving Grandpa's truck; 2. Reagan and her cousin Carson at the wedding; 3. Jason and Nikki; 4. Big Girl Reagan; 5. The Merry-Go-Round; 6. Reagan doing her project with Grandpa; 7. The finished project; 8. Mommy and Reagan ready for the Browns game...bummer that Brady Quinn did not play.

Gotta "go, go, go,"

Reagan's mom