Wii finally get to play, too!

You've seen the Wii commercials with the two old guys at the door saying, "Wii would like to play." I've been trying to get my hands on a friggin' Wii console for the girls since before Christmas...not the stinkin' $700 bundle bullshit...just the regular console. Always a day late, it seemed. That is until Thursday. The Hub called around and the WallyHell out in Hardeeville had ONE tucked away in the back of the store. The VERY nice guy he spoke to on the phone agreed to hold it for an HOUR. So The Hub called me, gave me the news, and I told the girls a fib, hopped in good ole Smokey, and hauled ASS. We did a little sneaky-moving that evening, and I took the girls with me to teach my class at the LSS.

As always, I called him when I started to leave the store to let him know I was on my way home. We walked in, and he had the camera ready. (Yes, pics will come later.) He had gone to the WallyHell here and got the two games they really wanted and a few extra accessories. He then put it all into a HUGE box, tied it with a bow, and printed a sign on the side that said, "Happy Birthday Breeze & Kat. Use caution...wild animals" and he had his finger all bandaged up. He told them to be careful opening the box b/c he had a hell of a time getting the animals into the box and they bit him while he was trying. I'm trying desperately to not laugh out loud at this point. They had no clue what the hell was in that box, so they were standing as far back as possible to untie and untape the box. Just as the last piece of tape was being removed, he flicked a throw at them and yelled. They both squealed and jumped like they'd been attacked.

When the lid was opened, they were ecstatic to see that they finally had a Wii! We got them DDR (Dance Dance Revolution), Guitar Hero III, and Wii Play for now. They have played it every chance they've gotten. I played a couple of the games so far, and I'm really groovin' it.

Now, I'm sure you're wondering why they got their birthday gift in June when their birthday isn't until August. Well, Kat flies back to TotoLand in a few weeks, and we wanted them to be able to enjoy it together before that. Plus, we all know that there's no way I could hold onto something like that for long without absolutely bursting.

So after many, many months of trying, "Wii" get to play, too.

License to give gray hair

You guessed it. Breeze has her driver's license now. Check out that huge grin!

When the hell did this happen? That's my little girl, and it couldn't have been that long ago that she was playing with Barbie dolls and learning to ride a bike.

They grow up so quickly, and you look back and wonder where time went. It's even worse for me b/c I feel like I missed out on so much. That's my cross to bear, though.

So anyway, along with the license came a need for wheels. Yes, we could've handed her the keys to one of the other vehicles, but after a lot of discussion, we decided that wasn't the best route to take. So a few weeks ago, we left her home with Nan, went to Savannah, and brought home this.

She had no idea whether we'd come home with it or not, so she was VERY surprised when we pulled up in the driveway. Yeah, you may be saying that we're spoiling her rotten. I disagree. We made a deal with her, and she kept her end of the bargain, so this was our end. Part of her earnings from a summer job (the equivalent of the car payment) will go into her savings account and not be touched, so *technically* she's paying for it herself.

She made her first excursion alone today. And then her first with just her and her sister. Both times went very well, and I'm so proud of her. But yeah, she now holds a license to give me gray hair (and potentially a coronary). When Kat's turn comes, somebody needs to find me a padded room somewhere.

What's an Island Girl without a boat?

Just a girl who's STUCK. That's been me for a while now, but we've remedied the situation. The Hub and I have been wanting another boat since we moved back home. After a long search and several prospects that just didn't feel right, we have a winner.

We went to James Island (outside Charleston) on Monday to look at it, and The Hub, Breeze, and Mom went to get it yesterday afternoon. I was taking a Pergamano class, so I couldn't go. When I got home, there she was.

Check her out! We're taking her out on her maiden voyage on Saturday. Thanks again, Donna and Keith! We look forward to y'all coming down to visit.

And yes, she's almost as tall as the house. If we didn't have this goofy low-pitch roof with no attic, it wouldn't be an issue. Someday we'll be able to remedy *that*!