Salon Labor Day pool party

One of my co-workers decided to have all the salon employee's over for a pool party today. I believe her goal was to make sure everyone had WAY too much fun, if you know what I mean. She was successful. From what I remember she had roast beef sandwiches, burnt corn on the cob, a smelly tuna salad, yummy chocolate peanut better dessert, pool volleyball and blackjack, tequila squirt gun, many jello shots, and a hookah.
It was nice to get together with everyone and hang out without all the "work stuff" to think about. We had so much fun. Scott and Sema also came with us. Poor Sema was out like a light after the first two hours. That could be because Sandy was making us all play "catchup" since we arrived a bit later than most. I am not going to go into all the details, but lets just say we only stayed for maybe 4 hours and had to go home. Sema and I were in bed by 7:30pm right when we walked in the door and slept for about 13 hours. Nuff said!

(here she is passing out more shots to everyone)

(girls having a good ol' time)

(tequila squirt gun for those who looked like they weren't having enough fun Chad and Scott....)

(Sema looks like she is having a good time not knowing anybody)

(Scott is getting ready to babysit Sema) Chad is hanging with the girls!
(and this is where Sema spent most of the day....with a few other's)

Putt-Putt golf

We were supposed to take Scott and Sema out to Devil's Martini North, but due to the excitement of the football game we were all drained. We wanted a low key night so we decided to go play putt-putt instead. I haven't played in over a year, I was quite proud of myself for doing so well. It was Chad and Tanya vs. Scott and Sema.

We were ahead by a few strokes and they came back strong. It was neck and neck till the very end. We tied!

HUSKER FOOTBALL

It's football season and that can only mean one thing...HUSKER FOOTBALL!!!

Time to put on our GO BIG RED gear and watch the game. Red mohawks and all!

We invited a few fellow "Nebraskans" to watch the game with us.

Oh wait.....TOUCHDOWN....NEBRASKA SCORES!!!! It felt like back home when we used to have our big Nebraska football parties with all our friends! This is what the kids did during half time...they play a little game of their own in the front room

We beat Western Michigan 47-24. It was a good day!

Hiking in Sedona with Scott and Sema

Chad's brother Scott and girlfriend Sema are in town for the holiday weekend. I cannot believe that we have never taken them to Sedona. They come out maybe 3 times a year and never been.

Upon arriving, we got information from the visitor center that the Airport Trail would be a nice first stop. It is higher up than all the other trails and has great views of Sedona.
We find the trial head and start our adventure. This loop trail gives you panoramic views of Sedona's best-known red rock landmarks (plus the occasional thrill of getting buzzed by vintage aircraft). Little did we know this was going to take us much longer than we thought. We were doing great till we let Sema take the lead. haha (she will get a chuckle of of that) Actually I think that it was Chad that said "Let's go up the side of this mountain and see whats at the top". We all followed like puppies.

Through brush, cactus, prickly bushes, & large rocks....did I mention they were very loose? I was concentrating on my step so I don't have any pictures of us off the beaten path. There was lots of rock climbing going on and for some reason I could not get good footing. Scott was behind me & caught the fall of the rocks with his legs. He has some nice bruises to show for it.

Chad and Scott got stabbed in the knee by a very sharp plant..same knee, same spot, probably same bush. They are twins so they try to keep it the same. It was very warm out and we weren't sure how long we were going to be "lost". All I could think about were the kids and what would we do if we didn't make it back in time to pick them up. Like a dummy, I decided to leave my cell phone in the car...great spot!
We were hoping that when we made it to the top we would find a trail. Nope, nothing up there...except for the airport runway! Yeah, we can go to the airport, get to the main road, and walk down to our car...easier said than done. It was surrounded by a fence and barbed wire. We continued to follow it all the way to the end, that seemed to take forever. Miles and miles it felt like when your on foot. That let us back down the mountain. Not somewhere we wanted to go. That was our only option. Down we went and it was not easy. Planes and helicopters flew overhead, we tried to wave them down. Chad fell a couple of times, we were still getting all scratched up and running out of water.
(here we are lost somewhere at the top of the mountain)

(right after Chad fell, Sema couldn't stop laughing at him)

(made it back to the trail, thought we were going to be stuck out here forever!)

We went to have lunch and replenish our bodies before we went on our next hike. West Fork Trail in Oak Creek Canyon was also suggested. I made sure that we stayed on the trail this time!

Unlike the Airport Trail, it's an easy stroll, but you do have to cross the stream in a number of places. Usually, that involves negotiating a few strategically placed stepping stones or taking a couple of steps in shallow water.

Majestic views soon took our breath away as we looked ahead to the red rock canyon walls that rose sharply hundreds of feet above the creek. The path is wide black dirt that takes you past ancient ponderosa pines (smell their bark... its like vanilla!), maples, oaks, ferns, reeds, all manner of wildflowers, and other vegetation. I would highly suggest this hike.

(having a little fun on the hike)

(our cover albums)

Despite the fact that we were lost for about an hour in Sedona, Scott and Sema still had a great time and would go back again and do it all over!

Tanner's big day

Monday was a big day in the Tomasso household. Tanner was getting ready to start 3rd grade, which is going to be alot harder and more work than K-2 was. It was also his first full week of football practice with pads and helmet.
As usual Tanner woke up at the crack of dawn, did his accountable kids chores, made his own breakfast, finished up his chores and came to me with a ticket ready to play some video games before heading to school.
This is how Tanner's school week will be until November. He starts roughly around 6am, wakes up on his own and gets all his stuff done. Off to school at 8:25am, picked up at 3:30pm. Have a snack and do homework. Leave for football at 4:30pm. Practice till 7:00pm. Come home have dinner, finish any homework, read, wrestle or play around with family, in bed 8:45pm. Whew! This kid is going to be very busy. So if he wants to play the PS3 in the morning, who am I to deny him of his only fun time!

Tanners first day of "tackle" practice. He is in the middle

Summer Hair Repair

With Summer coming to an end, its time to think about the products we need to repair those dry, brittle ends.

Teen Vogue says

"Summer Hair Special - Try Hair Repair: Bumble and bumble Creme de Coco Masque."

(Product pictured) May 2008

An indulgent masque with a trio of tropical butters which bestows intensive moisture, softness, silkiness and gloss.

Who: Ideal for dry or dull hair, but good for all types (except super-fine); especially coconut lovers and island hoppers; color compatible.

When: Once a week (or as often as you like); following Creme de Coco Shampoo.

How: After washing with Creme de Coco Shampoo, squeeze a generous amount into palm and work through clean, wet hair; leave on for 7-10 minutes (or longer); for added moisture, wrap in a warm towel or sit in the sunshine (you can even leave it in overnight).

Falling apart

So why is it that I am in, what I would call the best shape I have been in, and I am falling apart? I have always been really good at working out and staying pretty fit. Was a runner and gymnast in junior high and swimmer all through high school. I go through phases where I work out really hard for a couple of years, then get pregnant or something and stop for a while. (don't need to worry bout that anymore) I go back to my old ways of eating like crap.
Before I got pregnant with my second child I was really working out hard at the gym with a trainer who wanted me to do either physical fitness or body building competitions. I could never get up in front of people and flex my stuff, but I will work out like I can. I worked out just the same all through the pregnancy and even after. I will say it did make labor and delivery a breeze. One - two pushes and the child flew out! It was awesome!
After we moved further away from the gym, it made it that much harder to go, so I was on another break for a year or two. Before I knew it, our 10 year wedding anniversary was coming up and we were going to Kauai. Better get my butt back into shape! We hired a great personal trainer (TUFFMOM) to come to our house 3 days a week at 5a.m. She was great and had us looking awesome for our trip in less than 6 months. Drop the fat, drop the weight, build the muscle... all was good!
Now wait a minute...I turned 30 then. I remember my knees where starting to go out. I was in pain almost every day. Why my knees...I haven't been injured or anything. The only thing I could think of is the heavy leg press or squats I had done in the past. Not to mention every job I have ever had was always standing and of course the last 10 years would be in some sort of heal cause it looks way better with your outfit, never mind how bad it makes your knees, legs, or feet feel. Doctors said just a little fluid in there, no need for anything major. My chiropractor also said the same thing and he works on it all the time. And after 6 months or so it kind of went away. Although it does tend to visit me every now and then, not nearly as bad as it was a couple of years back.
I was also starting to breakout more on my face. What the heck is up with that? I thought that was supposed to be a teen thing. My skin was doing so well for years and now I can play connect the dots on my forehead and chin...come on!!
Ever since I can remember, I would get headaches. Now they have turned into some form of a migraine. If I get them at work, it cripples me and I have to leave.
I have horrible IBS, it seems like whatever I eat, it makes me sick. Even though now I am eating way more healthy than I have in the past.
I have to see the chiropractor every couple of weeks cause my neck, back, and shoulders are in constant pain. I know most of this is also due to my career. The way I stand and stick my neck out and hold my hands up in the air for hours on end. My husband says that my hands look and feel like an 80 year old. They are so dry, crack and bleed and are wrinkly from all the water I am in daily. He also tells me my vains in my arms pop out so much it looks unhealthy...it isn't though....it really means I am quite healthy. HAH!
And now....Carpal Tunnel, again I believe it's job related. The blow drying and constant twisting of my wrist to make all heads of hair beautiful. I went to my Chiropractor again today and told him about my wrist. After messing with it and doing some stretching and manipulating he pretty much said its all jacked up. I think it was because I almost knocked him out when he was looking at it. Gave me all this mambo jumbo medical talk and said we could work on it. He doesn't believe in jumping into surgery to solve these kinds of issues. We will deal with this. Chad thinks I need to rest and stop working out. That is for sissy's I say. I am strong, I will push through this, I will not stop working out. I know my limits. I need to continue to build my muscles to stay as fit and healthy for as long as I can. I may complain, but that is how I will deal and get past it.
As I re-read this post I can only come to one conclusion....I need to quit my job!
OK, that will never happen!

First day of Football practice

My baby boy is growing up so quickly. I cannot believe that I am allowing my son to be suited up in pads, run around a field in this heat, and possibly get clobbered by other children. Well, I guess I can. We are from Nebraska and we are growing a Cornhusker player here.

Our head coach is from Texas and according to him... the only things Texans care about is football, religion, and politics. From the people I know in Texas, that sounds about right. So you can only imagine how he is with these kids. They will eat, sleep, and breathe football.

They are not in full gear for another two weeks. Our coaches do not want them to even wear helmets yet cause of the heat. They are practicing how to tackle the proper way, running sprints, & tug of war techniques for now. They have the two hour practiced planned out minute by minute. Supposedly this team isn't like the others. They do things a bit differently and hopefully that will mean a great year lies ahead. Tanner is doing very well and seems to be having alot of fun with it. He is a fast runner! I believe he gets that from his Momma! I was a sprinter in my younger years.

Only 18 more practices to go for the month! His first scrimmage game will be Saturday August 30th at a "real" football field in Glendale...we're thinking the Cardinals stadium??? That would be awesome!