No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service!

Today I picked up two of the 4FLEMZ from school and on our way home we had an interesting conversation. We were sitting at a stop light and two high school aged boys were running with their shirts off down the street. Thomas immediately noticed the boys and said, "Mom, is that really appropriate for them to be without shirts?" Yes, he used the word, 'appropriate.' I had to explain to him that they were local high school boys who were obviously on the cross country track team at RSMCHS and that it was OK for them to run with their shirts off. Of course the next question from Thomas was, "so girls can run like that too?" Ummmmm, my response to him was that it is not appropriate for girls to run with their shirts off. Tommy then gestures toward his chest and says, "is it because of these?" (You can now picture what he was gesturing)
By this time the light had turned green and we were headed in the direction of the local Jack in the Box. Upon approach, we see the boys that were running. They had stopped off at Jack in the Box and proceeded to put their shirts that were tucked in the back of their shorts on before entering the fine establishment. Now Thomas wants to know why they put their shirts on! Ahhhh.  A million questions from the inquisitive six year old. Oddly enough, I love it!
Would any of you like to explain to him why there is a policy of NO SHIRT, NO SHOES, NO SERVICE?

Bieber Fever

Our 'babies' have Bieber Fever! It's the latest epidemic to hit young children around the world!

Be very cautious, it's contagious too!

We hope help is on the way soon, but until then, check out the current symptoms that have taken over one of the 4FLEMZ ...

http://qik.com/video/CA97D9F5B2B74DCDABB0EF860BB9407F

Does your 'BABY' have Bieber Fever?

Taco Tuesday - No bueno!

Last night the kids had tacos for dinner, I guess that means Taco Tuesday is OUT!

So, what do we have for dinner tonight? We feel that we are constantly trying to figure out new or different things to try for dinner. The 4FLEMZ consider ourselves pretty adventurous when it comes to food. We have taken the 4FLEMZ to Sushi (the kids enjoyed the rice and edamame, but they were not sold on the raw fish), we make our own pizza's thanks to Trader Joe, we do a lot of grilling - steaks, chicken, fish (you name it, we probably have grilled it.) We have used the almighty crock pot when we are being really proactive cookers, but for the most part we find ourselves scratching our heads and saying,

"What's for dinner?"

So, we are turning to you - our favorite audience to answer this question for us...

What's for dinner in your house? Do you have any recipes you would like to share that are your family favorites? The 4FLEMZ will work 4 food.

Side note: My Grandma Graham used to have a parrot that would say,  "Hey Good loookin' whatcha got cooking?"- still cracks me up. :)

A Note to Mom

By far this is no Hallmark card, but I would like to use this platform to write a note to my mom for Mother's Day. So here goes...


Lynda GRACE Simpson,

OK, stop the press!!! I know right now you have that look on your face (the motherly scowl) and in your mind you are thinking, did she just call me Lynda? No, let me set the record straight, I called you Lynda GRACE Simpson aka Mom.

On this day, I would like you to know the very reason why I emphasize GRACE.

When I hear the word or the name GRACE, I immediately think of you. I have come to define the name GRACE as the love given freely by God to me. To expand on that even more, I feel, GRACE is earned through faith, hope, and charity.

I know for a fact, that in my lifetime I have seen you exemplify perfect GRACE! Your faith in God is powerful, your hope that you have in me and our family is endless, and your charity toward others has set an admirable example.
Growing up I may not have been able to express myself the way I would have liked in order for you to know how honored and blessed I am to have you as a mother. However, I always new that if I ever had a little girl, I would be honored to have her share the name GRACE with such a fabulous woman. As I have grown older and wiser, your example has taught me how to earn some GRACE of my own. I don't come anywhere close to perfect GRACE, but I do my best to help guide all 4FLEMZ toward our faith, and I hope everyday that we challenge and inspire each other through new adventures and give back to our community and anyone in need.

I truly believe that you are amongst one of the many fabulous gifts God has put on this earth to show people how amazing GRACE truly is. So, today I would just like to say thanks for being you!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY, Lynda GRACE Simpson!

Love your daughter,
Lisa

You can't make this $#!+ up

Yesterday, (Cinco de Mayo) had an interesting ending. Brian called me around 3:30 pm to let me know that his car had just broken down as he was leaving work. To top it off, he was leaving early so he could get Thomas to his baseball game that evening. At this point, we had to call in the troops. Brian enlisted the help of his mother to go pick up the kids (who had to break the news to Thomas that he could not go to his game) and I had to high tail it out of work to go pick him up in BREA!
So, I had to mentally prepare to be stuck in traffic for 45+ minutes. As most of you know, I rarely have to be in traffic, my commute consists of me taking the toll road to and from work. No freeways = no stress :)
As I embark on my trip to Brea I get on the 5 freeway which is easy sailing until I reach the Tustin area. At this time, my A/C starts to pump out hot air and not more than two minutes later my 'check tire pressure' light goes on. Seriously?Seriously! Now I am cautiously continuing on my journey to Brea with my fingers crossed that my car does not break down too. By this time, I have reached the 57 freeway. I pass Angel stadium and then nothing but bumper to bumper traffic.
While I am sitting in traffic I get a slight glimpse of a shinny object out of the corner of my right eye. What is glaring that bright? I look over and see a middle aged woman in a lifted Ford F-150 with her window rolled all the way down. Hmmm. She suddenly proceeds to lift one hand off her steering wheel and I notice she is holding a round mirror (the shinny object that caught my eye) and then she lifts her other hand holding tweezers. Hmmm. Then it begins...

SHE IS TWEEZING HER STRAY CHIN HAIRS AS WE ARE SITTING IN TRAFFIC!

Seriously, you can't make this $#!+ up.

All 4FLEMZ made it home safely (thanks Joanne!), the cars are getting fixed and life goes on.  Now we have a great story to tell.
What's the craziest thing you have seen sitting in traffic?

Fruits of Fleming Labor

The 4FLEMZ had an extremely busy Sunday.

First thing in the morning we headed off to Thomas' baseball skills competition. His team took 1st place and they all did a great job! The UCLA Bruins rookie team has SKILLZ!

Then we headed out for some lunch. We enjoyed a quick bite at the local food court with the intention of fueling our bodies for the long afternoon.

Finally, we made a quick stop at Lowe's for some lumber and some garden items and ...

 

 

VOILA!

We can't wait to see the Fruits of Fleming Labor.

What types of fruits and vegetables do you have growing in your garden?