I should be sleeping

but I'm not...but I really am working on it.

D's meet went fine today, but I was finished when the fire alarm went off. Ugh.

Tomorrow she has first warm up, so we have to hit the road.

You all KNOW I don't do predawn anything but sleep, right?

So here's the question....can she actually get to sleep before midnight? Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury, it would be an act of extreme rarity!

All of this for what is hopefully less that 5 minutes in the pool ROFL. The things we do for love!

Friday at last......*deep sigh*

I can't believe how busy I've been this week. You too, huh? I've made and put several new items in the etsy store...I've put a few hours in at the ALC to sub, taken kids various places around town, made that soap, cleaned another pantry, did laundry, did some grocery shopping, dishes, cooking....blah, blah blah. I STILL need to iron and basic clean the house. Hummm, I'm thinking that's going to wait til next week.

What are you plans for the weekend? D has another meet.....both Saturday and Sunday. Once again, no rest for the weary, wicked or anyone else! It should be fun, it doesn't look like stuff is broken down by ages...and she'll get to swim some of her favorite sprints that she lost when she aged up last year.

And THEN there is the Superbowl. I'd like to say that I'm going to make all kinds of yummy fattening appetizers and whatnot, but I might be snoring too hard to cook much of anything. We'll have to see. We'll be leaving Sun am at o'dark-thirty.....and we all know I don't do mornings.

Next week involves some more working, a trip to the oral surgeon, more practices, pep band, and newspaper meeting. And that's just what's prescheduled and I've been TOLD about.

YIKES!!!!

No wonder i'm losing my mind. And as I complain, we all know that these days are almost over and I'm going to miss them like crazy.

Tonight's dinner is going to be EZ - shrimp alfredo and broccoli. Yep, open some frozen stuff, unfreeze it, serve. Ahhhhhh. Sounds wonderful to me.

I'm not sure what I'm going to tackle next, but whatever it is, it had BETTER not be complicated or it's going to get a real good talking to! LOL

later

Remember the other day?

Me too! Bwhahahahahaha

After I finished the pantry and before the soap, I mentioned quilting....well, this is my pathetic start. I am very, very slow. Years ago, I started a yo-you quilt for the girls out of their old clothes, sheets, etc. Well, those 1000 or so yo-yo's were pitched in a move. I had given up on the idea, until about 3 or 4 years ago, my MIL got me into "Grandmother's Garden" quilt. I've lost some fabric, but never fear...I always have an *idea*!! I took the girls to the quilting shop and let them pick out a few fat quarters, and we picked some out together that represent an event in our lives. I'm also using some of the Main Man's old work shirts. In this picture so far, there is nothing overly significant...except we thought it was hysterical (that one day in the shop) that there was money pictured on fabric.

Have I mentioned that we are easily amused?

I didn't think so.

I figure than that after I die, and they go through my stuff and find a zillion little hexagons cut out and not sewn together, they should really have some memories to share!

PaPa

100_0430
Originally uploaded by kadezmom

....you done good!

The Laudry Soap Experiment

The first step was to grate 1 c of flakes off of the Fels Naptha bar. That was much easier than I thought it would be. I let it melt into 2 cups of boiling water. (yes, as usual, I missed getting a picture of a step. Imagine that)

The resulting solution was poured into a tub with 1 c of washing soda and 1 c of borax. I stirred until everything was almost dissoved.

Next, I added a gallon of boiling water and stirred until everything was dissolved completely. At this step, we elected to pour in about 1/8th of a bottle of lavender oil.

Last step was pouring it into a rinsed out jug.

I just put a load in the washer. I will let you know what I think. At this point, it's still to warm to have gelled. It will....I'm just not there yet.

Thanks for the earrings!

Hey AK!!! They DO work with the shawl. Thanks for sending them over here. I love 'em!

Now, I'm too sexy for my job Bwhahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!! Talk about funneeeeeeeeee!

I suppose it's time for me to be off.

whoo de whooo.

Thanks again avon lady!

Note: My afternoon sub job was going to the business incubator and overseeing teenaged boys mess with power tools. The joke was on ME!!!!! I should have worn sweats!

Look at what can be done in an hour or so...

Scary, isn't it? So then why do I put it off? Because I can, of course!!

I decided not to make the laundry soap yet today. Shannon has asked that I show it step by step. I will.......*IF* it works.

Y'all know how much I like audio books. I finished The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson this morning, excellent listen. This afternoon I started Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. I've read this series years ago, this particular book was published in 1991. Each book is quite long, yet captivating. This one takes 36 hours to play. I started on the 2nd book the first time, went back, read this one, then finished the series in order. Somehow in all of this, I've lost a lot of the details. I plan on either listening or reading the entire series again. I KNOW. IT'S ANOTHER FIRST!!!!!! Hummmmm, maybe this is 2009----year of the firsts. As long as they are good firsts, I'm all for it! Gabaldon's writing sure helped this chore flow right along.

Now, what do I tackle? I have about 2 hours until it's time to make dinner and run D to swimming. Hummmmmmm. Here's a scary one. I DON'T want to knit. Something is seriously wrong! I think I'll change another load of laundry, tidy up the clean up mess, see what happened in the girls' worlds today, and maybe quilt a bit. Hummm, maybe that'll be a good pic tomorrow.

Laterz~
me

I FOUND IT!!!!!

I've been wanting to make my own laundry detergent for quite some time. I don't know why. I could give you about a thousand different anwers, but deep down I really don't KNOW why..I just want to. I've looked at several recipes over the years. I always get stuck at the Fels Naptha or the Zote soap part. ( I hate Ivory, so there is NO WAY it's an option) (click HERE for a few different recipe suggestions)
We were at Mill's Fleet Farm today wandering around. (Today isn't the best day to be a Minnesotan. It's around zero, the movie theater had a line halfway around the building, and our other options include sledding, ice skating or shopping at Walmart, Fleet Farm, Target or Kohls) We chose Fleet Farm. I went in looking to see if they or the Feed Store in town was cheaper to buy Greenies. For what it's worth, the cat ones are cheaper @ Fleet Farm, the dog ones are cheaper @ Farmer's Feed. D and I were wandering, and I decided to hit the laundry aisle JUST IN CASE. Low and behold, there it was...the coveted bar of laundry soap. I was SOOOOOOOOO excited. I'm pretty sure that the people in the aisle, D and the poor guy watching the security camera screens weren't overly impressed with my happy dance. Like I care? Eh.

Now, I just hope I LIKE this stuff. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. The total cost of the ingredients is about $7, and will net over 2 gallons of detergent. It's worth the risk. If I hate it, I hate it. If not, then I hit the detergent LOTTO. We all know that @ $14 a bottle, detergent is no bargain...but it IS cheaper than buying new clothes for every wearing! Oh the choices we make!!!

Later!

The Great Waste of Time Movie Test - 68

Okay, the theory is that if you've seen more than 85 of these movies, then you have no life. Gee, I already KNOW that part. However, do you know how much more LIFE I can put into a situation after knitting to a movie? Obviously, this is made by somebody who doesn't have a clue. That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it. Feel free to copy and play along!



(x) Rocky Horror Picture Show
(x) Grease
( ) Pirates of the Caribbean
( ) Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man’s Chest
( ) Boondock Saints
( ) Fight Club
( ) Starsky and Hutch
(x ) Neverending Story
(x ) Blazing Saddles
( ) Airplane
Total: 3

(x) The Princess Bride
( ) Anchorman
(x) Napoleon Dynamite
( ) Labyrinth
( ) Saw
( ) Saw II
( ) White Noise
( ) White Oleander
(x ) Anger Management
(x) 50 First Dates
(x) The Princess Diaries
( ) The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement
Total so far: 8

() Scream
( ) Scream 2
( ) Scream 3
( ) Scary Movie
( ) Scary Movie 2
( ) Scary Movie 3
( ) Scary Movie 4
(x ) American Pie
(x ) American Pie 2
(x ) American Wedding
( ) American Pie Band Camp
Total so far: 11

(x ) Harry Potter 1
(x) Harry Potter 2
(x ) Harry Potter 3
(x ) Harry Potter 4
( ) Resident Evil 1
( ) Resident Evil 2
(x) The Wedding Singer
( ) Little Black Book
( ) The Village
( ) Lilo & Stitch
Total so far: 16

(x) Finding Nemo
( ) Finding Neverland
( ) Signs
(x) The Grinch
( ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre
( ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning
( ) White Chicks
( ) Butterfly Effect
( x) 13 Going on 30
( ) I, Robot
( ) Robots
Total so far: 19

( x) Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
( ) Universal Soldier
( ) Lemony Snicket: A Series Of Unfortunate Events
( ) Along Came Polly
( ) Deep Impact
( ) KingPin
( ) Never Been Kissed
(x) Meet The Parents
(x ) Meet the Fockers
( )Eight Crazy Nights
( ) Joe Dirt
( ) KING KONG (The Original)
Total so far: 22

( ) A Cinderella Story
( ) The Terminal
( ) The Lizzie McGuire Movie
( ) Passport to Paris
(x) Dumb & Dumber
( ) Dumber & Dumberer
( ) Final Destination
( ) Final Destination 2
( ) Final Destination 3
( ) Halloween
( ) The Ring
( ) The Ring 2
( ) Surviving X-MAS
( ) Flubber [the original]
Total so far: 23

( ) Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle
( ) Practical Magic
(x ) Chicago
( ) Ghost Ship
( ) From Hell
( ) Hellboy
( ) Secret Window
(x ) I Am Sam
(x ) The Whole Nine Yards
( ) The Whole Ten Yards
Total so far: 26

( ) The Day After Tomorrow
( ) Child’s Play
( ) Seed of Chucky
( ) Bride of Chucky
(x ) Ten Things I Hate About You
( ) Just Married
( ) Gothika
( ) Nightmare on Elm Street
(x) Sixteen Candles
(x ) Remember the Titans
(x ) Coach Carter
( ) The Grudge
( ) The Grudge 2
( ) The Mask
( ) Son Of The Mask
total so far: 30

( ) Bad Boys
( ) Bad Boys 2
( ) Joy Ride
( ) Lucky Number Slevin
(x ) Ocean’s Eleven
( ) Ocean’s Twelve
(x ) Bourne Identity
( ) Bourne Supremecy
( ) Lone Star
( ) Bedazzled
( x) Predator
( ) Predator II
( ) The Fog
(x) Ice Age
( ) Ice Age 2: The Meltdown
( ) Curious George
Total so far: 33

( ) Independence Day
(x ) Cujo
(x ) A Bronx Tale
( ) Darkness Falls
( x) Christine
(x) ET
( ) Children of the Corn
( ) My Boss’ Daughter
(x) Maid in Manhattan
( ) War of the Worlds
( ) Rush Hour
( ) Rush Hour 2
Total so far: 38

( ) Best Bet
(x ) How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
( ) She’s All That
( ) Calendar Girls
( ) Sideways
( ) Mars Attacks
( ) Event Horizon
(x ) Ever After
(x) Wizard of Oz
(x) Forrest Gump
( ) Big Trouble in Little China
(x ) The Terminator
( ) The Terminator 2
( ) The Terminator 3
Total so far: 43

( ) X-Men
( ) X-2
( ) X-3
( ) Spider-Man
( ) Spider-Man 2
(x ) Sky High
( ) Jeepers Creepers
( ) Jeepers Creepers 2
(x ) Catch Me If You Can
(x ) The Little Mermaid
(x ) Freaky Friday (the original)
( ) Reign of Fire
( ) The Skulls
( ) Cruel Intentions
( ) Cruel Intentions 2
( ) The Hot Chick
(x) Shrek
(x) Shrek 2
Total so far: 49

( ) Swimfan
(x ) Miracle on 34th street
() Old School
(x ) The Notebook
( ) K-Pax
( ) Krippendorf’s Tribe
(x ) A Walk to Remember
( ) Ice Castles
( ) Boogeyman
(x ) The 40-year-old Virgin
Total so far: 53

( ) Lord of the Rings Fellowship of the Ring
( ) Lord of the Rings The Two Towers
( ) Lord of the Rings Return Of the King
(x) Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark
(x) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
(x) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
Total so far: 56

( ) Baseketball
( ) Hostel
( ) Waiting for Guffman
( ) House of 1000 Corpses
( ) Devils Rejects
(x) Elf
( x) Highlander
( ) Mothman Prophecies
( ) American History X
( ) Three
Total so Far: 58

( ) The Jacket
( ) Kung *** Hustle
( ) Shaolin Soccer
( ) Night Watch
(x) Monsters Inc.
(x) Titanic
(x) Monty Python and the Holy Grail
( ) Shaun Of the Dead
( ) Willa74
Total so far: 61

( ) High Tension (Haute Tension)
( ) Club Dread
( ) Hulk
() Dawn Of the Dead
(x ) Hook
(x) Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe
( ) 28 days later
( ) Orgazmo
( ) Phantasm
( ) Waterworld
Total so far: 63

( ) Kill Bill vol 1
( ) Kill Bill vol 2
( ) Mortal Kombat
( ) Wolf Creek
( ) Kingdom of Heaven
( ) the Hills Have Eyes
( ) I Spit on Your Grave aka the Day of the Woman
( ) The Last House on the Left
( ) Re-Animator
( ) Army of Darkness
Total so far: 63

( ) Star Wars Ep. I The Phantom Menace
( ) Star Wars Ep. II Attack of the Clones
( ) Star Wars Ep. III Revenge of the Sith
(x) Star Wars Ep. IV A New Hope
(x) Star Wars Ep. V The Empire Strikes Back
(x) Star Wars Ep. VI Return of the Jedi
( ) Ewoks Caravan Of Courage
( ) Ewoks The Battle For Endor
Total so far: 66

(x ) The Matrix
( ) The Matrix Reloaded
( ) The Matrix Revolutions
( ) Animatrix
( ) Evil Dead
( ) Evil Dead 2
( ) Team America: World Police
( ) Red Dragon
(x ) Silence of the Lambs
( ) Hannibal
Total: 68

Wow, I thought my total would be much higher. I didn't read before I posted the list and my comments above. Why? Because it was more fun that way.

Have a fantastic day!

go waste your life and watch a meaningless move. Enjoy yourself, and come out happier. Live your life any way you want too, and don't let these crazy quizzes tell you what's wrong and what's right. That's why God gave us consciences!!!

Who's that girl, what year is this,

and am I really letting you see the girls' living room??? Guess so! It's snow week at the junior high this week, and Friday (today) is the ever popular (at least in this district) 80's day. Can you believe she slept on perm rods to get poofy curls just for today? You can't tell from this view, but she also has on some big dangly earrings with a necklace to match. I still can't believe she wore fish-net. In HOT PINK to boot. AK, was that just for you???? I know you love pink. I love to see them having so much fun. I bet she'll come home COLD and with SORE FEET!!!!!

Dog tired and not done yet

Isn't that the way it always goes? I had an uber burst of energy a couple of times today. However, I need one or two more to get the job done. I will. When I'm done blogging. I promise (but I won't tell you if my fingers are crossed or not)

I did the regular stuff today. A load of dishes, a load of laundry, some exercise bike, some crocheting and some errand running were all a part of my day. Then it was 3pm and something nailed me. My conscience after reading Shannon's blog, maybe. I don't know. At any rate, I decided to put some of the jewelry I've made and not worn (until the "photo shoot" up on etsy. Great, in theory, I know. You know this involves me running all over the house, inside and out, trying to come up with a good way to capture the "real" color. *sigh* That only wasted an hour. I know. Not too bad. However, DURING that hour, while pics were uploading, I decided that I really need to clean. I always really need to clean. I'm not a clean freak, and there is always SOMETHING in dire need of attention. I decided that the girls would do their built in bookcase in their living room and I'd do our entertainment center. Naturally, just taking stuff off the shelf and dusting would NEVER do.....if I'm going to that much work......(if you give a moose a muffin!) I need to Murphy's Oil Soap and then lemon oil the wood and dust off the stuff. Then I need to sort the stuff. Why touch it anymore if it's only destined to leave for some other home. That only lead to the sorting of video games, cds and dvd's. (I detest plastic covers, our all end up in those big album like cases). Ah. Take another look at the picture. Do you see that tiny door on the bottom right-hand side? I OPENED IT. It's been about 3 years since I'd done that, and apparently that day I said a four letter word, dusted and shut the door again. SO, I went through 12 years or so worth of remotes, cables and some reading program that wasn't worth a hill of beans. Then came the "A-HA" moment. If I drill a hole in the back of that cubby, I can put the wii remotes and chargers in there with all the other game thingies. They are sitting all around and making me crazy. You know this means a trip to the garage, right? Thanks to D, she went out there and found the drill and the bit I wanted. However, she forgot that a battery doesn't like subzero temps and was dead. Now I tromp out there. (I have one MESSY detached garage that is booby trapped beyond belief) The hole went in easily and that was that. Then the lightbulb lit up again. Now I'm thinking I can drill a hole in the floor and run the cable through the basement (under the floor of living room, along the ceiling in the basement) so I can stop tripping on it. PTL we couldn't figure out where in the heck we'd be in the basement to check for the wires. I'll save that for another day.

I did pretty well. I was still movig at this point. I stopped and put dinner in the oven, washed and oiled the entertainment center. Then I sat down. Here, in front of the computer. I got up long enough to snap the above picture. The boneless pork loin roast comes out in 7 minutes. The potatoes are out of the microwave and I need to reheat the corn from Sunday. That. And put everything else back on the shelf. *sigh* Granny always said that Fern always told her that her (Granny's) entheuasium just didn't last long enough.

I totally understand.

The Big Baby's at it again

Yep, my dog is acting human again. It never fails to crack me up. That thing in my right hand is a crochet hook. Ella is obviously not daunted by such implements. She's afraid of the crackling of plastic flags, loud trucks a half mile away...but she's not afraid of knitting needles, scissors, crochet hooks or cat's claws...all of which might ACTUALLY harm her, especially when she's decided it's time to jump on my lap. I don't always get much warning. Such as it is with Miss. Persistence.

Don't you like my retro afghan? It's authentic late 1970's to early 1980's made by Aunt Charlie. Who says Red Heart yarn won't last forever?!? I use it to protect the chair from the cat's hairball removal system. TMI? Yep. That's me. Everything you didn't want and more.

HEY. MISS GENEROUS OUT THERE-----THANK YOU FOR MY STEPHANIE NEWTON CD. You know who you are, and I've got a pretty good guess.

I was such a good girl. I crawled into bed before 10:30. However, I forgot to announce this to the main man. We all know and love him. You know, Mr 0's and 1's. I scared him. He thought I was sick. I had turned the tv off and was listening to my ibook hoping to go to sleep at a decent hour like regular people. He got worried, came to bed, asked me a zillion questions, most notably about the consult with the oral surgeon. That just amped me right back up. As you can tell, it's 11:53 and I'm good to go. I'm fighting it. I really am. I'm going to try again with that ibook here in a bit. I think he may have to take her to that appointment. I'm just not sure I'm the right woman (or man) for the job. I don't do teeth, he doesn't do eyes. That's just all there is to it around here.

On the craft front, I've been heavy on the gift item and crocheting some hats for charity. I love doing it. I also knit a camera cozy for K. Her camera should be here soon. I wouldn't want it to get broken by any laxity on my behalf!!!! For shame!

Have a wonderful rest of the day and sleep some for me, would ya?

Another Day Off.......

And the girls are getting fiesty! I love it. No one was hurt, injured, etc. in the making of this photo! We are running out of ideas of what to do, so they are resorting to being crazy. (oh and in case you were wondering, both of my daughters and the dog are in this picture. The question is can you figure which body part goes with which kid? Yeah. Not as easy as it would seem!)

I awoke to the smell of melting plastic this morning. Apparently, we've gone through another Moxi box from our cable company. The tech is coming out this afternoon. Good. I find that reassuring. It also gave me plenty of time to procrastinate what I really ought to be doing. See. All is right in my world.

I know nothing, but it's been awhile since I blogged. I have no projects to show. I was making the slippers Ak and Jane were making (no hyper links today, I'm too attitudy)... but I couldn't figure out how to sew them together. After the third attempt, I threw it all away. I got the yarn cheap...and I wasn't overly happy with it anyway. Phooey on that! I'm working on something that might be seen here, so that's out of the question. I'm also considering making a hat or two for charity. I need to find and print out patterns, tho. See. I make life so complicated!! (and I wouldn't have it any other way)

So for the remainder of today, I want (??) to exercise, play rock band, get cable fixed and get ready for what I am hoping is a low key week.

Have a good one!
s

What do you do with another 2 hour delay?

K chose to play with the dog. Good choice, I'd say. The poor dog thinks we don't love her anymore. She's spent more time in the kennel in the last 6 moths than she has in the previous 2 years. Yep. She has NO IDEA what she's done wrong. The answer is nothing. It's just called life.

I don't have to tell any of you how crazy this week has been. D stayed home Monday, and school was cancelled after 2 hours..... it was called off yesterday and today was a 2 hour delay. now we are coming up on a 3 day weekend. My girls are going to struggle with the first full week of school in who knows how long (before Christmas). But that's not for another week and a half. Yesterday afternoon we picked up a couple of ingredients for dinner after K's IEP (which went remarkably well). While we were out, we picked up 2 movies and 2 video games for the weekend. I think friends are coming over, but I'll be the last to know (or second to last, the main man will be the last, last). Who knows. I'm ready to head up to Aldi's and get restocked. I haven't done a good grocery shopping trip since the middle of December. Time does fly.

For those of you who DON'T know, here's a bit of history on K. (I hear the grumblings, yep, here I go, so SKIP THIS PART if you want to) That poor kid has struggled her rear off most of her life. She had a rare seizure disorder Idiopathic (West Syndrome/Infatile Spasms I know Wiki isn't always the most reliable source, but it does the best summary I've ever read, and the statistics are in line with what we were told. It took me awhile to catch on to the seizures (she usually looked like she was tripping and catching herself), so she wasn't diagnosed until she was 22 months old. Since then she's been on this marathon to catch up. Yesterday I was told that SHE IS IN THE NORMAL RANGE ON THE BELL CURVE ON READING. Yep. I yelled this. Thank You Jesus. That's a big answer to many years of prayer and hard work. (low-normal, but hey, we were no where under the bell for years in both reading and math....she's getting a B+/A- in Geometry right now, so I think it's safe to say she's under the bell there too) To be honest, I tend to forget where she's come from, and what hurdles she's already cleared. But every now and again it's good to reflect, remember, and to be thankful. And to be vocal. Why? Because ignorance isn't bliss. When K was diagnosed, there really wasn't a prognosis, and the path to follow when the ACTH DID work was not really obvious, blazed or written down. We've done a lot of trial and error, with her doing the brunt of the work. Yesterday, we actually discussed the college route with teachers, admin and the guidance counsellor. She's to go in and go through whatever it is they do to help figure out what college is right for her. I don't know if she'll do community college first or go straight for the 4 year thing. Heck, we still have a couple of years. Things can happen, but she has by and large surpassed our wildest dreams and expectations. Now, to start studying for the ACT. Actually, I hope she has to write an essay (gasp! did I just say that?) because what a story of survival and beating the odds academically she already has. I keep telling her she's so far ahead of the game because she KNOWS what she needs. She knows what trips her up. I didn't have that kind of knowledge at 22. Knowing what works for you and what doesn't is half the battle. Now, I'm not saying that all or any of this is EASY, mind you, but......

I'm glad she played with the dog this morning. This picture was a surprise when I uploaded some knitting pictures. I'm going to miss these little surprises when she gets her own camera. It's being shipped and should be here any day. Tearness! (yes, K, I caught that one yesterday, and I like it)

Toodles~
s

NOTE: Upon seeing that pic bigger than a thumbnail....that was yesterday afternoon before going to the meeting. Eh. I'm leaving it as it. I enjoyed seeing her play with the dog then AND I thought I was well out of the picture. (we're not going to mention that I also forgot all about it *sigh*) Color me wrong.

I'm Back, part 2

Okay, here's the last first for Friday. We went to Reid's Harvest House for supper. We met my dad's sister and her husband. (Yep, that'd be my aunt and uncle!!) I've prob. eaten there more than I have at any other restaurant. It's a buffet, and they fry food like nobody's business. My two favorite items there are the fried chicken and the bread pudding. At any rate, it was Friday night and it was seafood night. Hold on to your chair. I am 37 years old, and I've had my first sampling of frog legs. And you know what? They DO taste just like chicken!!! I did hold myself to one :P.
After basically closing Reid's down, we moved over to Reid's Best Western and sat in the lobby and talked until midnight or so. Around ten, my cousin joined us. My oldest Dd went straight up to the room and crashed. My youngest finished her book, hated everything on tv (read: didn't want to miss out on anything), came down and hung out with us. It was a wonderful time to just see and hear everyone again. Funny stories were told, and I was sad to see the evening end.

Yesterday came, and we headed back on home. However, whoever gave us the stomach flu. Thanks, but sharing isn't always caring!!!!! I do have to say that I'm glad that I went. Building memories that will last forever. Gotta love it.

I'm Baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack,....so you'd better watch out!!

As you can guess, I've been away. Based on my last post, I bet you know where I was, too! I went to Aunt Charlie's funeral. We were all over Southeastern Illinois. My aunt LOVED horses. Not your average gee I love horses.....we're talking PASSION. She and my uncle could almost always be found atop a horse whenever time allowed. They went on trail rides, were (and he still is) ACTIVE members in a riding club, etc. She wanted to be taken to the cemetery in a horse drawn hearse. Bless my uncle's heart, he found one. It was beautiful. The day was beautiful as well. Us Minnesotans were thrilled with the 50+ degree weather. My cousin from South Carolina had on long underwear. Perspective is everything!!!

Oh, and you have to know about this too. Aunt Charlie was a hard core Republican. As in campaigned regularly, helped many people into elected positions, etc. I thought nothing could have made me smile yesterday morning,but when I opened the door to our hotel room, I was met by the Southern Illinoisian headline telling me that ole Blago (the governor) was likely to be impeached. I took the front page and off we went to the Funeral Home. I pulled my cousin Linda aside and told her about the headline. I bet she didn't think she was going to be able to smile either! But, we had a good chuckle.

There has been a lot of time for planning this funeral, and it was evident. It was amazing. The whole thing reflected my aunt, her life, her interests, her passions and her personalities. It was wonderful to see family I hadn't seen in decades. I'd also forgotten how much I love it there. That little corner of Illinois just off the Mississippi River has always held a special place in my heart. It was nice to understand directions given by things that have been gone for 50 years as landmarks. I'm too young to ever have SEEN the landmarks, but they are such a part of my upbringing....... and I'm not even going to TALK about loving the sunshine.
After the funeral luncheon was over (and have I ever forgotten what good cooking in a group IS.....YUMMMMM) we went for a ride to show the girls things they haven't seen since they were too young to remember. We did some cemetery hopping and saw the grave of the guy who surveyed Chicago (long lost relative, long story) Pop and Grandma, Granny and Grandpa and a few other family headstones. After all that, Mother and I decided it was time for some fun. So we took the girls to their first covered bridge. This one lies right outside Chester, IL. You can hardly tell it's January!!!!
The girls were more than ready to cut loose and had a blast playing, posing and checking out the sites.
It's getting late, so I'm going to sneak out of here now....but I hope to return tomorrow to tell you about more firsts that happened yesterday.

Sandy - I'll get you emailed hopefully in the next couple of days. We busted a move home...Jeff got sick, and we didn't waste any time on coming home. Sorry to have missed you.

Gone, but Never Forgotten

Aunt Charlie
1943 ~ 2009

Thank you for teaching me how to ride horses.
Thank you for all the awesome hours on rides.
Thank you for teaching me that you don't always have to act grown up as a grown up. (in the GOOD way)
Thank you for always listening.
Thank you for putting up with my snot nosed ways...I was a NIGHTMARE for a few years.
Thank you for loving me.
And how could I forget the AFGHANS????? It was my envy on the ones you and Linda made that fueled the knitting passion I carry today....and that is priceless!!!
I'm so glad you were are part of my life. I couldn't have asked for anyone better.
As much as I am going to miss you, I am so thankful you are no longer in pain.

GO GET YOUR SQUISHEM TEST LADIES!!!!

Dishcloths ~ Cleaning up the New Year.

These dishcloths are going to Shannon.....she has really become a good friend over the past 6 months. She motivates me in ways she'll never know.

I know, it's Jan 5, but I've never been too good at resolutions. However, AK mentioned to me that I needed to have a plan. As I purged what was on my mind for what seemed like forever, I found that I DO have a plan for the year.

1 - I am journaling my food, for better or for worse (Erin, this one is all you)
2 - On purpose exercise CARDIO or strength training. This does NOT include walks. I need to get that heart rate UP or build up those muscles 5 times a week
3 - I need to declutter: my mind, my house, my heart....my life. I need to sift the wheat from the chaff. However, I'm not going on a burning or purging spree. This is to be done a little at a time. If I ask "why do I have this" and I have no real answer, to the pit it goes.
4 - do more as a family....move more somehow. Lately, it's been playing wii games. It's still better than being glued to the couch watching football/basketball/nascar/real housewives of orange county/parental control. But baby steps is the key. I don't want to shock us back into our shells.

Time to get a groove on again. Gotta get this box to the post office!

Later!
~s

Meet Karen

Shelly and Karen
Originally uploaded by kadezmom

Hey!

While I was at my parents, I was able to meet up with Karen. She lives on the east coast and was driving through to get back home. Her hubby is an awesome man who drove OUT OF HIS WAY so week could meet over coffee.

Happy New Year

Yep, I'm a little late, but better late than never.

We had a wonderful holiday, but we are wiped out. The main man only had Christmas Day off the entire time we were at my parents. That poor man worked his kazootie off. However, I thank him. I have a good life. I do miss him, though.

Anyway, I can't even begin to summarize everything. The food was wonderful and the company was better. I do believe I have spent more time with my mother since July 1 than I have in the past 5 or so years combined. It's always good to see both her and Daddy, but as Dorothy says, "There's no place like home" the dog is back from the kennel, and the cats are not so impressed with the intrusion. They were liking it just fine without her. Too bad. She's back.

Our trip back was wonderfully uneventful. AMEN!! Only a few things remain unpacked....clean clothes. I have the second load of the laundry in the washer. Mother was wonderful and helped us keep the laundry under control. We had KFC for dinner, and when he picked up the dog, MM also picked up milk and bread.

Vacation's over and tomorrow I have the ever glorious job of figuring out what to cook. All good things must come to an end! Other than laundry, I think I'm going to try to continue playing until Monday. I can clean then. Lord knows the dirt isn't going anywhere anyway.

Oh yeah. My ipod died last night. *sigh* PTL MM is lending me his for the moment or I'd never get to sleep. No one is there to read me to sleep!!! Hey. It helps. So, did anyone out there get a new ipod and want to get rid of their old one??? *wink* I wish these things were made to last forever. But I guess not. I've tried all the troubleshooting tips, but I do believe the baby is dead. At least it's dead due to over use than for being underloved!!!

Welcome to the start of a wonderful year! It is what we make of it, not what cards we are given to play!!! (and here comes the heaping pile of coals, just for saying that!!!)
Later