Black Friday Booty!

Feeling adventurous, and having a babysitter, Tom and I decided to venture out on Black Friday morning in search of deals for the first time ever! We woke up a bit late, 5am, and just missed out getting our laptop at Office Depot. It was frustrating, since we were only about the 20th people in line! Luckily, there was a Radio Shack in the same complex that just opened that week that had only a few people in line and didn't open till 6am! They only had one laptop, being a new store, but somehow we snagged it! Yay! The Gourleys have leaped into the 21st century and finally have a laptop AND wireless internet! Amazing! Of course, the only reason I get to use it is because Tom is at work....(he's a bit obsessed at the moment!) We also got a good deal on a new digital camera, about time I think, we had our other one over 5 years and 5 megapixels was a bit outdated! The best part of the camera is that it takes video, which I can and have downloaded for all to see! As usual, it's video of Jace, he's the most interesting to watch anyway! And the video is of him and our other Black Friday find, a ride on fire truck that plays the Book of Mormon song...it's hilarious! Everytime Jace plays with it I'm like, "1st and 2nd books of Nephi, Jacob, Enos, Jarom, Omni, etc....." I wonder what the song is really? Does anyone know the name of that tune? Well, enjoy the videos, there should be more to follow soon! Love to all y'all!

So...my lawn melted....

Synlawn? I can think of a better name for it! How about S*@!lawn! After 2 days, it started to melt! Before I could even enjoy it, I had about a 1 foot by 22 foot long strip that melted! And worse, it is getting deeper into the yard every day! I bet it is almost 2' wide now! It is the section closest, although still 3 1/2' away, from the house. Synlawn claims the melting is due to sliding glass doors and windows on the house reflecting light onto the glass, which is like a magnifying glass and melts it......hmmmm......ok....except for a few small items...

1. Are they crack? Seriously. This is not a rhetorical question, I really want to know, because my understanding was that this product was made for the "out-of-doors", where hazards such as heat, windows and sunlight are kind of "the norm". Especially in LAS VEGAS.

2. Are sliding glass doors and backyard windows unique to only my home? Just speculating here, but don't almost ALL homes have sliding glass doors and backyard windows!?! Isn't one of the points of landscaping so that you can look out the BACKYARD WINDOWS and enjoy the view?

3. Although the windows are of varying lengths and widths, the melting is extemely consistent throughout the 22' length of my yard, with the most damaged areas being several feet to the side of the nearest window. Who knows, maybe this will have an unexpected and happy ending, as it seems the windows on my home are able to bend light, making time travel and cloaking devices finally possible!

4. Shouldn't this stuff have a pretty high heat tolerance? Last time I checked, I live in the desert.
5. How do I know it's not just defective grass? If so, will the entire lawn eventually melt? Is the melting plastic lawn giving off toxic chemical fumes all day? Is it same to walk on? Crawl on? Maybe I am not concerned ENOUGH!

And oddly enough, I have yet to find even a single mention on the internet about melting synlawn, melting artificial grass or melting artificial turf...has it never happened before? I suppose I never even considered the possibility of it melting. Like, "Duh", it's made to be outside, of course it doesn't melt"....DUUUUUUUHHHHHHH!!!!!!!

Anihoo, Synlawn says they will replace it, (they haven't yet), although I want to figure out how to keep it from melting again, if the windows are indeed the cause, before they do replace it. I doubt they will replace it a second time. Maybe I should just demand my money back, although I'm sure I would lose my lawn and have to pay more for someone else to do it and risk having the same issue....

Moral of the story? BUYER BEWARE! If it seems too good to be true...IT IS!!! So sad. I loved my perfect lawn;-(

Well, I'll keep ya'll posted on the progress of this Tale of the Turf.

Victory is Mine...er...Ours!

It's done! Well, 99.9%...just some minor details to work out (like hooking up the irrigation without electrocuting myself). Isn't fake grass amazing?!? I know it doesn't look "real", but it does look perfect, always will! No water, no fertilizing, no weeds, no bugs, no holes, no nuthin'! And it is sooooo soft! Still can't get over how much I love it! Anihoo, hope you enjoy the pictures, I have more on my facebook page. I'm gonna go chill in my backyard oasis now! C-yA!

Goodbye Dusthole, Hello Synlawn!

Now, the moment that we've all been waiting for, or just that I've been wating for...work has begun on our backyard oasis in the desert! When completed, it will include a water fountain, stained concrete patio, tropical plants and palm trees, and over 300 sq ft of gorgeous, green, never-needs-watering-or-maintainence artificial grass! Only in Vegas, baby! So, what was the catalyst for beginning this incredibly ambitious project, you ask? If you know my family, you already know it was my mom! Can't do anything without her! And she is amazing! Of course, if you have never dug dozens of holes in the concrete desert using nothing but pickaxes and your bare hands in over 110 degree temperatures, you may not fully appreciate the enormous effort put into this. And if you have, well, you shouldn't be free to roam the streets, nutbag! It was insane. But, almost it's done! Here are some pictures of the progress, with more to come once the grass is in! Yay!!! I so happy!

Mama & Jace Photo Shoot!

So, Tom never reads my blog, so this should be safe to post! Jace and I took some pictures for dad for Fathers Day...on the sly! And Jace was sooooo excited that he screamed and cried during 98% of the shoot...teething...who knew, right?! However, we managed to salvage a few gems, hope you enjoy them! Also, the silver tongued sales demon at the photo place seduced me into buying 1.3 million wallets of each pose, so everyone expect a package arriving at your doors soon!

~Creepy~ ~Crawler~

Jace has almost got the crawling thing down! You can check him out in this video! You will also catch a glimpse of his amazing typing skills! Court reporting school, here we come!

POOPSUCKA!!

They say a picture is worth a thousand words...can you imagine what words this picture evoked? This morning when Jace woke up from his nap, this is what I found...Note the playful expression on this poopstained face and the large wet pee puddle underneath him...where do you even start in a situation like this? I followed these steps:
#1. Gasp in disbelief and stare in awe
#2. Cry, Laugh, Cry, Laugh, Cry
#3. Put baby in bath of 1 part water, 200 parts industrial strength denastifier
#4. Wash, Rinse, Repeat, Repeat, Repeat, Dry, Smell, Wash, Rinse, Repeat
#5. Burn crib and all bedding

TaDa!

P.S. Anybody got an extra crib?