Happy Halloween!

The jack-o-lanterns will soon be lit!
The candy will be a hit!

Happy Halloween!!!!

Did I Scare You?

I forgot I had this tshirt and did not wear it last year. I wore it today. I've got some fun socks to wear tomorrow. If you could see me now, you would be scared!

The boys got the pumpkins carved at the last minute
Carving is hard. We seem to have less and less enthusiasm each year
The older one is cleaning up, he needs to remember to put his language arts in his backpack!
The younger one is just finishing his shower
My husband did help carve, but kept wondering off.

I finished a project, but my lips are sealed.
I ran the little one to the doctor over his lunch. He has double ear infections. Who knew?
He got a flu shot. We've never done that before. He almost passed out and felt nauseous when he looked at the spec of blood on the back of the bandaid. We are pretty sure he won't make it as a doctor.

I have lots more random thoughts! I need to gain control before I go to bed!!

Time to tuck the boys in (way past their bedtime)...

You Buy, I Plant

A few blogs ago, I showed the beautiful pansies my older son planted. After he did that, he came up with an idea to solicit business. He designed a flyer and gave them to some of the neighbors with the idea being he'd do the dirty work. He also mentioned he could rake or weed. He struggled with what fee to charge. He decided to leave the fee up to the discretion of the employer hoping they would be fair. He just put the flyers out yesterday. It might be a bit late for pansies! We only let him give it to a few people. So far, the phone has not rang. But, his grandparents are ready to take him up on his offer.

Who knows! This might be the beginning of some business for him. I would bet he'll want to create a new flyer in the spring.

Just some Mac technology insight ~ the flyer was created in Microsoft Publisher on a different computer. I took a picture of it using PhotoBooth on the Mac. I was able to open the file in Preview and flip the image. I had grab it and then add it to the post. I am learning how to use all this machine has to offer!

All West Tennessee Chorus

This year my older son is in the 7th grade. He opted for choir this year. He has a beautiful voice and was singing before he could talk. It is great to see him "use" his talent. This year was his first opportunity to audition for the All West Tennesse Jr Chorus. It is comprised of singers from schools in western TN in 7-9 grades. There is a Sr chorus for those in 10-12 grades.

The chorus is comprised of 200 kids, 25 of each voice part, SSAATBB. The children have spent the last weeks learning the music and preparing for the audition. It is such an achievement. There were 125 kids auditioning for the Alto II part that my son was auditioning for. They only selected 25.

I made him wear nice pants and a blue oxford. As we drove up to the school, we saw kids in Crocs and jeans. My son was not too happy with what his mom made him wear. I thought he looked fabulous. As a judge, I would give the benefit to the child who was dressed appropriately. You had to be there a minimum of an hour in advance. So, we sat in the cafeteria and waited. I had my needlepoint, but my son just sat and got nervous. He looked pretty nervous to me.
They finally called his time slot and it was all in his hands. I was only able to snap a shot as he walked down the hallway.

He said he wasn't nervous by the time he got down there.

As a nervous mom, I just sat in the cafeteria waiting and talking to a woman who used to teach the boys Spanish. Her son was auditioning too. My son came into the cafeteria relieved and smiling. He said that one judge said that his audition was very good. I am the cautious one. I was wondering if the man said that to everyone to acknowledge they were done with the audition. We went home to wait.

All the results were posted on the internet earlier this evening. I am thrilled to announce that our son was chosen for the All West TN Jr Chorus! He was ranked 17 - about the middle of group of those that were chosen. He was excited and relieved. This is such a great opportunity and another avenue for him to pursue. He will have to work to memorize all the music. In two weeks, all the kids come together for 1.5 days of hard-core learning from talented directors. Then, on the Saturday afternoon, there is a performance. I heard from others it is amazing. Music especially chorale music has a profound effect on me. I just hope I am not the mom that is a blubbering idiot out in the audience.

Race for the Cure

My husband and my younger son ran in the Race for the Cure today. We have had a week straight of rain and today the clouds cleared. It was a glorious day with a nip in the air - perfect for a morning run. This is one race we try to participate in each year. Even though breast cancer has not affected my immediate family, I know it has touched lots of lives. Every 1 in 8 women will be diagnosed. I've had my baseline mammogram and need to go this year as I passed the 40 milestone.

Anyway, the Race for the Cure is a big party. Lots of sponsors give away freebies. There is food and drink at the finish. My older son and I did not get participate because he had a morning audition (more to come in the next post.) We went to the race, hung out and got to see the other two finish.

My younger son has the knack for running. Today was a milestone day for my husband as he could no longer keep up with the little guy. This route is very hilly especially for our area. You have to run up a long hill about 3/4 of a mile before the finish. It is mentally a challenge because you want the finish line to be at the top of the hill. It doesn't work that way. You have to sprint down for quite some time before crossing the finish.

I took some before race shots. This was the first time my younger son got a timing chip. He loved that his time was recorded. In a past race, he opened our eyes to his ability. We did not have a chip which eliminated him from contention in his age group.


I was able to snap two shots right after they started. They are running down the hill they will have to eventually run back up.


Then, I got the photo at the end. My husband finished about twenty seconds behind our son. And, he finished just ahead of his senior vp. We aren't sure if that was a good career move?!?

Before the race, my husband told my younger son that he could skip soccer training if he ran a sub 26 minute 5K. He did it. Our son came in at 25:21. He was 10th in the 14 & Under category. Within that category, he was first in his age group. He just looks like he loves it when he is out there running. I hope it continues!

P.S. - Soccer training was cancelled due to all the rain we've had. Our son thinks he got off the hook. We'll have to set the record straight:)

More Ideas...

On my way home from dropping my younger son's basketball registration off at church, the car guided itself right to the library. I have a list of projects ONE MILE long. The last thing I need to have is a few books to interfere. As someone reminded me, Christmas is only 8 weeks away! I forced myself past the New Releases and a few memoirs that looked interesting. I was not as successful getting past the knitting and needlepoint books. I love to get ideas. And, now that I am the accomplished knitter - NOT! - I need to get even more knitting ideas. The way I rationalize this is that these books don't take too much time to look through and a brain needs fresh ideas. The only challenge comes when the idea leads to a new project. I've glanced through a few books. There are some beautiful sweaters, but the skill required far exceeds my ability. I am really hoping for some quick and easy ideas for Christmas. We'll see!

Lunch with Friends

I even took my camera to document the occasion, but forgot to take a photo. Today, I had lunch at my friend, Cheryl's, house. It was Cheryl, Wendy, Linda and me. We were a play group when the kids were younger. It used to be my son playing with three girls. He'll be dreaming about that ratio when he gets a bit older! We continue to have lunch fairly regularly even though the kids are all in school. It is a time I look forward to. It is nice to spend the time and catch up. We rotate whose house we go to for lunch and the menu spans the gambit. Cheryl brought us back around to sandwiches and they were yummy! I had two halves - one on each type of bread. The vinegar salad was wonderful. It was similar to a green bean salad but with lots of other additions. I need to get the recipe. She ended the lunch with brownies iced and topped with nuts. Of course I splurged (fyi...one of Adam's spelling words this week), I don't have nuts at this house due to an allergy. So, I eat them out when I can.

We talked about soccer, choir, high school, middle school, teenagers (Linda's son turned 13 today!), grades, hiking, weather, church, and we tried to solve the world's problems. I am not sure how far we got on the latter. That is to be continued at the next lunch.

I am grateful for the friendship. This lunch was a highlight in a rather dreary day. We've had another day of steady drizzle. We thought the sun was trying to make an entrance but to no avail.

Here's to our friendship!

Science Diet Tennis

Buddy eats the adult, straight-up, regular, dry Science Diet dog food. When we went to training, the man recommended eliminating the bowl for his food. Instead, we pour it and spread it out on the deck - OUTSIDE. The rationale is that dogs are raised to forage and this gives them the chance to find their food. Buddy gets two scoops and he will stand out on the deck waiting for the second scoop before imbibing. It works great and it takes him a bit longer to eat.

Well, it has been rainy for the past three days. We aren't complaining. We need the rain. This has been the steady mist and drizzle. The yard is messy. After our morning walk, I decided to scoop the food in his bowl and place it near his water bowl. Buddy grabbed a couple pieces and sauntered off into the family like he found a treasure. That was all he did. He had no interest in eating any more of that food.

When my older son came home from school, he picked up the food with the bowl and started lobbing individual pieces to the dog. Buddy loved it. He was trotting all over the kitchen fetching his food and gobbling it up.

Fast forward a few hours (keep in mind that it is still raining and the boys are feeling it too!) - The boys filled up Buddy's bowl for dinner. I lost total control as a game of tennis erupted in the kitchen. The boys had eye protection on - their idea. One was laying on the floor blocking the dining room. The other was at the opposite end of the kitchen. The dog was in the center. Using a ruler as a racquet, the server hit the food across the floor. The dog was turning around and dancing around after the food. Who would have thought they could have so much fun? Apparently, the food stings if it hits you. I just kept stressing they needed to keep track of any food that Buddy did not eat or any pieces that may have made it into the dining room. You can't hear them laughing, but they are! Who needs Wii or TV? I love when these kinds of things happen. It restores my faith in kids. They can make up something out of pretty much nothing and have a good time.

Buddy finished the game first. He was full and lost interest in the random pieces of food scooting around the floor! I just heard my younger son say that he wants to do it again tomorrow night. Will it still be raining? The dad will be back home. He is out of town. I am not sure he'd let it fly - the dog food that is!!!!

Magic Trees

I was busy yesterday cleaning out a hall closet. The beach towels were in that closet. I had a revelation that it might make sense to move the beach towels closer to Elliot's swim bag in the laundry room. So, I cleaned out the hall closet and rearranged to make room for the towels in the laundry room. I ended up with one big bag of stuff for Goodwill. I did find a few treasures in the closet. There was an unopened bag of Army men. My younger son opened them right up and went to work setting up battles in the family room. There were two packages of Magic Trees that we bought when we were in Hot Springs, AR about 1.5 years ago. I pulled them out and the kids watched them grow. It was fun to see their expressions when they saw the full grown trees this morning. I know it is some kind of crystal or salt. I just haven't researched it any farther. The trees soaked up a liquid and then they started to grow. Who ever saw a bright orange tree or even a bright pink tree? It is like magic!

Puzzles

Today is one of those days. It is rainy outside and the weather is cooling down. I love to get puzzles out. We've got a Norman Rockwell puzzle sitting in its box on the dining room table. I saw it and it got me thinking about puzzles. I'd love to find the perfect ones to put together, glue and hang in the play room. I started searching the internet and found this great site, Jigzone with a puzzle a day. Of course, I had to procrastinate just a bit more and try my hand at it. I did not break the average time. I have room for improvement in the days to come!

The site permits you to add it to your blog. So, I thought I'd give it a shot. The puzzle pieces are cut in bulb shapes making it even more interesting.


I did not find any jigsaw puzzles I needed to order, but I will find my way back to this site to try my hand at the daily puzzles!

Burgers, Baby!

I've decided that turning 40 gives me the right to have small ailments every day. They are getting old AND I am getting old!!! This weekend, my older son had a swim meet here in town. We had to be ready to leave the house at 6am. I don't dare complain as all I have to do is get ready. He is the one that has to get in the pool and swim. He had a great meet. I think he cut time in every event. I was worn out from getting up so early. And, I had to spend Saturday afternoon preparing for our PRE lesson on Sunday. I try to do it before the weekend, but it just did not work out last week. On Sunday, David did the swim meet and I did mass and PRE. It was fine. Again, after it all, I was feeling tired. I was lounging around reading the paper and my wonderful husband cooked up a mighty yummy lunch.

We have grown attached to Bubba burgers. I have an aversion to handling raw meat. These Bubba burgers get around that. They are frozen patties you can plop right on the grill. The burger provided some energy. I got outside and got the grass cut. I am glad I did as it has rained quite a bit since then. We even got a few more violas planted and I set a large mum by the front door.

The ailments continued when I woke up Monday in the wee hours of the morning burning up. I grabbed some Tylenol and headed back to sleep. All day yesterday, I was just out of sorts. I was hot, then cold and achy. But, no fever. Weird! I don't know if I have something, if it is hormonal, or if it is just part of getting older! I feel better today, but the weather is very dreary. All I want to do is curl up and read a book. I need to just snap out of it! I made an appointment for a physical on Friday. I don't think there is anything major wrong with me, but it has been over a year since my last physical. I guess I can start worrying about my blood pressure now! Ever since I developed some blood pressure issues when I was pregnant with my older son, I get myself worked up about it. How irrational is that? When I come home, my blood pressure is okay. We'll see what happens on Friday!

I'd describe the last few days as blah! I did make some progress on some projects, but still have lots to do and I keep thinking of potential projects.

Violas and Pansies

We are fortunate to live in a climate that supports some kind of flower year-round. The Begonias were dug up weeks ago as they did not fair well in the drought. Today, I picked my older son up from school. He stayed after for All-West Tennessee choir rehearsal. It was late and he was going to be late to swim practice. I surprised him with a day off from swimming. I had a busy day and the afternoon sleepies were setting in. I don't know what it is but I become a zombie about 4pm. Anyway, I mentioned planting flowers then quickly changed my mind as I was too tired. My older rose to the occassion. He said that he would do it. I don't know if he will end up a botanist, but he does enjoy the plants. He gets it from his paternal grandmother. He was pushing it to get them all in by dark. I took a break from cooking dinner to show off his work. We'll add some mulch this weekend to make it spiffy.

I am so grateful that my son did this! He will love watching them grow. The boys picked out a few purple and yellow violas for their grandparents. They both went to LSU and these are just the perfect plants for them. I hope they don't mind finding a place for them in their yard. They may even have a grandson that would help them plant them!

Grocery Store

The grocery store is not one of my favorite places. Years ago, I started making a weekly menu. It is somewhat detailed, but leaves room for flexibility. With practices and the boys' events, I can't always guess what we will feel like. I have learned to leave one day OPEN and one day to go out. The open day normally becomes the left over day. If we have a party to go to and need to bring a dish, I will add that to menu. My goal is to go to the grocery once a week - get out and get done! I like the Super Sticky Post-It notes that are long with lines. They are perfect for my menu. I hide it on the inside of the cabinet door for the week. My younger son and husband check the menu - almost daily - to see what's for dinner.

Until recently, I've been supplementing the grocery store with a trip to Costco. Our Costco had fruit that could not be beat. And, the larger quantities guarenteed that we would have fruit for the entire week. My last few trips to Costco resulted in an empty basket. They don't have all the berrries we were used to. I presume they are out of season. So, we are moving on to apples and oranges. We were eating berries with yogurt for breakfast, but have switched back to cereal. I had not bought cereal in a long time. I could not believe how much the price of cereal has gone up at Kroger. I made a point of grabbing some cereal at Target the last week. I guess Target can offer more of a discount. It is a regular Target store, not even one that carries the entire line of groceries.

I like to cook trying new recipes from my cookbook collection. My time today is limited. I did not get creative with the list or the recipes. The boys will be happy:) They are cautiously optimistic when they come to the dinner table and their mom is experimenting!

So, I am off to the grocery. I have about 1.5 hours to get it all done and put away. My younger son enjoys checking out the pantry and refrigerator after I go to the store. I wonder how long it will take him to figure it out today!

P. S. - I made it to the grocery and back. I even got the items unloaded and put away. The blogger wasn't permitting me to upload pictures earlier. I'll keep my fingers crossed this time XXXX!

Meat Loaf

If I was a betting person, I would have bet a small fortune that my kids would have liked the meat loaf from Everyday Food. I made it for dinner this evening using the ground chuck and ground pork. I thought bacon would be a no-brainer addition that the boys would love.

I should know better! The boys looked at it like I was trying to feed them something completely foreign. They added some cheese on top and doused each bite with ketchup. They both did not like it. My older son was convinced I was hiding something in the meat loaf. Too bad my sister lives so far away. She loves meat loaf. As we were cleaning up, my husband said that he thought the meat loaf was good. I know he meant it. But, for a split second I wondered what he might be buttering me up for!

Voice Lesson #1 - DOWN!

I did it! I guess with age it only takes little accomplishments to thrill me. My voice lesson was wonderful. I did not say my voice was wonderful, but the experience exceeded my expectations. I was pretty nervous when I walked in there. My teacher spent quite a bit of time discussing the voice essentially starting from the beginning. I sang quite a bit through college, but have only picked it back up in the last year.

We talked about stretching to relieve tension. Those notes are harder to hit if the stress of the day is settled in your body. Then, we talked about warm up exercises for the voice. I am going to have to pull out my piano stuff with all the chords. I get to re-learn all that. I got this solo book of folk songs perfect for my voice range. It comes with a CD that I can play to accompany me. We had time to start working on one. The songs are fairly simple, but the arrangements are good sounding like more than they really are.

Now, the challenge is mine to find about 30 minutes per day to practice. But, I am excited. I want to learn more and apply it to my voice. I want the confidence back when I sing. I don't know where this will take me, but I am ready for the journey.

Thanks to all of you out there who were thinking about me. La! La! La! I'll have to figure out how to record my voice to share. I will give it a few months before I subject anyone to that!

Friendship

Today I had lunch with a friend, Kathy. It was great to see her. We both have busy schedules and children that demand lots of time. She is often in my thoughts. I can make up lots of excuses. The truth is lots of time passes in between each visit. I am not proud of that. When our children were at the same school, we chatted in the halls or parking lot. Now, our kids go to different schools and we live just far enough apart to make getting together a challenge.

Our lunch today was yummy! Thank you, Kathy, for the treat! Kathy and her children had the opportunity to travel around the world earlier this year. Our next get together has to include a slide show of all those adventures! I feel so fortunate that she thought of us while in those far away lands.

The art on the side of this bag is Aboriginal art. I love it. It has mosaic qualities. I am going to have to research that art technique a bit more. I needed something to put my music in for my voice lessons. Kathy must have known! The lessons went great. More of that in another post.

Kathy brought the boys "real" boomerangs from Australia. They will love them. They came with a warning that they really do go. Apparently Kathy's son threw his at a park and hit a woman's ankle! Woops! Again, that will be a future post if my boys do any damage with the boomerangs. They were very excited when they saw them. They were plotting a throw inside to damage the old TV thinking they could replace it with a flat panel, HDTV!!!

This paper is absolutely gorgeous. I just got the boys' fall school pictures. I will send the pictures to my family with "real" letters on this paper.

The relief piece of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph is beautiful. It has found its home on my dresser. The box says Creaxione Artistica, Collezione Argenti. It is from Rome as it the bookmark calendar of Pope Benedict. The idea of a book mark calendar is novel. Like my choice of words? It will inspire me to read and pray - two things you can't get enough of!!


I saw this quote from Marcel Proust, "Let us be grateful to people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom. This afternoon was a treat! I am glad we got to share the time together. Thank you, Kathy, for charming my soul!

As luck would have it, Kathy got a phone call that her younger son was running a fever at school. It may seem like a challenge, but I do believe God only gives us what we can handle. Have fun juggling that one. Hope he gets well soon:))

Blue Cheese & Broccoli Pasta

I was flipping through my recipes the other day trying to find a simple one for dinner that included broccoli. I remembered this recipe from a friend in Bethlehem, PA (Thanks, Annette!) I made it for dinner. Three out of the four of us enjoyed it. My older son chose the plain bow ties! It is one of those quick meals that tastes special. I used a rather strong blue cheese. The next time, I'd choose a milder one or reduce the amount of cheese by just a smidgen. The left overs were yummy too!

BLUE CHEESE & BROCCOLI PASTA
1 large clove of garlic, finely chopped
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
1 tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup butter, softened
4 oz. blue cheese, crumbled at room temperature
2 tbsp freshly grated Romano or Parmesan cheese
Freshly ground pepper
12 oz fusilli or Penne rigati (I only had bow ties)
3/4 lb broccoli cut into bite size pieces

Cook pasta according to directions on package.

In a large serving bowl, combine garlic, red pepper, olive oil, butter, blue cheese, Romano or Parmesan and pepper. Set aside.

Add broccoli to pot of cooking pasta for the last 1-2 minutes to cook the broccoli. Drain pasta and broccoli. Add to serving bowl and toss. Add extra grated cheese, if desired. Serve hot.

Pilates

Over the last few years, I have been a pretty regular attendee of a local pilates class. I can't go in the summer because the boys are home. The class is fabulous, but I have not gotten back into the swing this school year. It occurs in the middle of the day. It is easy to adjust priorities and "blow" it off. The last time I went this fall was in late August. I bought a 10 class pass at that time. I am proud to say that I went back again today! I am not flexible. It requires lots of work for me to participate. I continuously cheer myself on while I am there. The way you feel at the end of class is invigorating. I think it all boils down to the breathing. As I go about my everyday life, I don't inhale and exhale as much as I do in the class. It feels good. I am not going to mention how sore lots of muscles will be tomorrow or the next day. My goal is to make it back to class and get to the strength point that I was at. We'll see!

Pilates is all about the core. By strengthening the core muscles you improve everything else. I know the increase will help with my bicycling and even my singing.

Did I mention singing? I have my first voice lesson tomorrow. Say a prayer for me. I am already nervous! I've heard it is very rewarding, but lots of work. I hope I have the time to give it my all. I am sure I will create a post just about the lesson. I am going to have to remember to breathe!!!!

Do I Dye or Not?

Today, I went to get my hair trimmed. My hairdresser did not change too much. I was worried about all the greys creaping in to my head. I was struggling with what to do. I've gotten highlights in the past and did not know if that would cover up all those odd hairs. Why does aging have include dealing with wire-like grey hair? Anyway, my hair dresser said that the highlights would be fine. She weaved some brown in and actually added "low-lights." They are much softer and seem perfect for the fall.

I am not the best a self-photography, but this will give you an idea.

It is amazing how much better I feel with all the grey in disguise!

Cupcakes

My husband loves to have dessert with his meal. He has a few bite size candy bars or cookies for dessert at lunch time. At dinner, he wants dessert, too. Preferably, he would like to have a different dessert than he had at lunch. Isn't that silly? I guess I am envious that he can have just a little something after each meal and NOT see it on his hips! Brownies are his all-time favorite. He likes the Ghiradelli mix the best. He is the master of determining when the brownies are done. They have to be just done - not too runny and not at all cakey. Back to the cupcakes and the subject of this post - I made some a few weeks ago with a cake mix, diet soda, and two egg whites. They weren't too bad. I googled it find the recipe. I plan to experiment with the diet soda a bit more. If you are adventurous, give it a shot!

These cupcakes were just made from a Pillsbury mix. Since P&G doesn't own Duncan Hines any more, I don't feel compelled to buy their brand. I did not have enough confectionary sugar on hand to make much icing. I made as much butter icing as I could. It turns out my younger son doesn't like the icing made with butter. I put the icing in a tupperware container with interchangeable nozzles on it. I am hooked. It is so easy to ice cupcakes this way. The icing was a tad thin losing some of the dollop shape on the cupcake. I was thrilled to find some Halloween muffin liners in the cupboard. They were third decoration in the house (as they are all gone). As of today, I don't have my pansies planted and nothing up for fall!

Happy Birthday, My Sweetie!

This little boy is 41 today! Happy Birthday!

You are a wonderful man and I am so lucky I found you.

May your day be filled with happiness and may God guide you this year to make your dreams come true! (I am not sure that I can make your WiLdEsT dream come true, but will give it a shot!)

Here's to Many More, My Sweetie!

Happy Anniversary, Ruth & Dennis!

My sister and brother-in-law were married 23 years ago today! I briefly looked on the internet for the appropriate gift after that many years. I am settling on this little post.

May you two have a wonderful day. The weather here is perfect for a ride on the Gold Wing. I hope it is just right there too!

Here's to you both! May the years ahead be filled with laughter, Reese's, sewing, movies and lots of love!

The Rosary

This weekend in our PRE class, all the new students will receive a Rosary gift from the Holy Order our priest belongs to. It is a wonderful gift. Unfortunately, I am not sure they are or will be used as much as they should be. I am going to go pick up some extra Rosaries today so everyone in the class has one. This is one of those things that seems to fall by the wayside in our house.

When my children left the parochial schools for the private schools, I tried to make Sunday night the night we prayed the Rosary together. That only worked for a few weeks. I know we did not pray it long enough to feel the impact. It is just like anything else. The more you do it, the more you feel comfortable with it. I do believe you need to relax, open to Mary, and feel the power of prayer. I hope to work the Rosary back into our weekly activity. We need to knock down the stigma that the Rosary is only something older people pray. Yes. My mom gets atleast one Rosary in a day. She even knows when it comes on EWTN if she wants to participate in the Rosary Hour.

I am in the process of printing down a "book" so the kids have a reference while praying the Rosary. I did not realize is was so lengthy. I am going to need another print cartridge soon! I hope it will be worth it. We only teach these 7th graders for a little over an hour on Sunday. Most of them should already know all these prayers. My hope is the hand-outs may ignite an interest in then and their families to say the Rosary more often. Kids this age can have a powerful impact on their parents. I wish we had time each week to work the Rosary in. There is so much interesting information in the curriculum this year. I don't know about the kids, but I am learning lots!

Thank you for the gift of Mary! And, just a quick prayer to get me moving on to other TODOs...

Imagine me singing (as we prefer to sing this instead of say it):
Holy Mary, Mother of God, the Lord is with thee.
Blessed Art Thou Among Women
And Blessed is the Fruit of They Womb, Jesus
Holy Mary, Mother of God
Pray for our Sinners now and at the hour of our death.
Amen

Happy Birthday, Deb!

For some reason it hit me the other day that a high school friend, Debbie, is celebrating her 40th birthday today! Happy Birthday to You!

Debbie is a wonderful person and I am thankful for the friendship. I have to confess I am not the best at staying in touch! Debbie always had a smile on her face and was friends with everyone. She extends her hand to meet everyone. No one is a stranger to her. I've learned from her trying to say hello to as many folks as possible and to listen to what they have to say. Debbie is intelligent, athletic, a wonderful mom, and a great person. This world is a better place with her in it.

Today is HER day! Deb, please know that you are in our thoughts and prayers today. As you enter this next decade of life, may it be everything and more than you can imagine!

In a recent newsletter from the kid's folk group, Trout Fishing in America, there was a "new" way to sing the song today. Apparently, it keeps you from aging if you sing it in reverse. Here's my song to you (just imagine I am singing it, although it might sound better coming from Aaron)~

You To Birthday Happy,
You To Birthday Happy,
Debbie, Dear Birthday Happy
You To Birthday Happy!

I looked through all my pictures and found these two. One is from some place on choir tour and the other is at a basketball game our sophomore or junior year, I think. They are not the best quality. I am still trying to perfect the scanner and software.



Choir tours were lots of fun. Remember surfing in the bus aisles?



Drill Team! I keep wondering if those Go-Go boots will ever come back in to style.

Enjoy your day and many many more!

Little Red Riding Hood - NOT!

This morning I was out on my bike ride. The weather was absolutely gorgeous. The sky was picture-perfect blue and the temperature was just right. I headed out of the historical downtown area on a two lane road. It is kind of country-like. There aren't many houses. The houses that are there are of the old, small kind. Trees line the road. They are somewhat dense. I noticed some squirrels roaming about and thought to myself that they just better stay out of my way! They were quite rambunctious. Then, I looked thirty feet down the road and there standing on the road was a red-tailed fox!! It took me a few moments. I thought it was a stray dog at first. I looked again and it came to me what it really was. Needless to say, I did a U-turn right then and there. The fox had its tail up and its ears perked just watching me. I did not look back to see where he or she went.

All I know is that I did want to Little Red Riding Hood today!

Fall Break Comes to an End

The boys were off school again today. It was absolutely beautiful here. We only had a few commitments.

I was so impressed with my older son. He spent a half hour with my conductor. He just stepped right up there and sang for him. It was obvious that he was nervous, but he just forged ahead. He still has that naive confidence and is willing to give anything a shot. I pray that is one trait that sticks with him for life. I feel like my courage has weakened in certain areas as I have aged. Perhaps, it is that ignorance is bliss thing!

We tried a new Mexican restaurant for lunch. It was great! The boys and I split fajitas. They ate the meat on the tortillas and I got the vegetables. One of our favorite authentic restaurants has frozen Sangria Margaritas. They are wonderful. We haven't found any place that does it quite like they do. We'll have to go back and see what this new place serves up.

The boys ended up playing outside in the front yard. I am so happy our yard doubles as the football field or the soccer field. I glanced out the window this afternoon. There were a few neighborhood boys and one dad playing touch football. We have so many pilots in this area. It is not unusual for dads to be home. It IS unusual to have a dad - other than my husband - in the front yard. The boys were in heaven.

It all came to an end when it was time for the orthodontist. One boy has red and one boy has green rubber band things. Who invented the use of colors on the braces? The boys get to alternate colors too if they want to. I prefer the solid color. And, I don't think yellow is the best color against their teeth. I guess it gives the kids something to look forward to as they make their way through the braces process.

I was hoping to take some creative picture to post, but no such luck today. My husband's birthday is this weekend. I am trying to whip something up for him. It is one of those projects I should have started weeks ago, but did not. Now, I am not sure I will get it done. I can't work on it when he is around! Ugh! And, I just don't know what he will think of it. Anyway, I will work on it some more tomorrow.

Tomorrow - marks the end of the boys fall break. They will be back to school for the trek to Thanksgiving. I think they enjoyed their day, but are glad to get back and see their friends.

Today was a Treat

The big guy took the day off today and we got lots of little things accomplished. It has been a long time since he took a day and just hung out here.

We started the day with a family bike ride. I rode my new bike and there were no incidents. My younger son amazes me. He has a small, heavy bike. But, he is determined to lead the pack. I can't imagine how hard his legs and heart were working the entire 10 miles. He did not ease up beating his older brother to the driveway!

We cleaned out a game closet at the top of the hallway. It was great to have my husband there to "force" me to part with games we haven't played in years. We have aged past most of the JR games. We loaded them right up with all the other Goodwill items in the back of the Volvo.

We finally got the new shelves put together in our older son's room. They are perfect. He really likes them. Everytime I walk into his room it strikes me as a teenager's den. Where did my baby go?

We hung the mirror in our bedroom. It has been a long time since we have had a full length mirror. I used to have to climb onto the tub to get a full-length shot. It is nice the extra light the mirror brings.

We also hung a mirror landscape in our younger son's bedroom. It brightens everything up too. I just need to work on some window treatment there and he will be good to go!

My husband is going to change out our shower head. I'd like to do the entire bathroom, but this will be a big improvement. The current shower head is pulling in air creating a whistling sound as the water comes out. I hope it is a quick change out - as it should be. I have to shower myself and get ready for choir practice.

In between all this, we made one stop at Home Depot for some hooks. The hardware store is a wonderful place. I worked at one all through high school and college. Every time I go in, I love to walk around and come up with ideas. It happened this time too. We may be moving to the laundry room to do some renovation. I will keep you posted on that.

I just noticed it is raining! Yahoo! We need it to rain and rain and rain. I turned on the sprinkler around lunch time. I should have turned it on earlier!!!

I am thankful for all our accomplishments today. Most of all, I am thankful for those I love. Today was a treat - calorie free!!!

To Kayak Or Not To Kayak

We started out on Friday night with the car loaded for a destination about four hours from home. We rented an RV, a glorified cabin, for the weekend at a state park. The major driving force was the chance to get to kayak. You would have thought we were staying for quite some time with all the stuff I packed. The only thing is - I forgot to pack my older son's underwear and pj's. He was a trooper and squeezed into his brother's underwear. He wore his bathing suit for the drive home today and he still loves me!

The RV was okay. The accomodations could have been worse. We were thankful for A/C, running water, a potty and a shower. We had to bring our own linens and towels. The mattresses were covered in plastic. Yes! I heard every move we made while we slept. The boys were in bunks at the other end of the RV.

This state park is only for RVs. They go all out for October. Folks rent the spots for the month and put their all into the decorations. When we drove up, we were welcomed with tons of Halloween lights. Who knew? We took a walk around to see the scaries and lights. In the upcoming weeks, they have contests and entertainment - all for Halloween! I am so thankful we live in a country where folks who like to do this can.


The next day, we made our breakfast. I packed disposable stuff but did not have any bowls. The family played right along. We had our fruit and yogurt in cups looking like fancy parfaits. The boys had their Lucky Charms in cups too. The milk sank to the bottom and the cereal (primarily sugar!) rose to the top. They did not mind.

We stopped at Front Office/Gift Shop/Bait Shop for info on the hiking trail. We got our waters. The boys got their walking sticks and we went on our way. There was a new trail leading to the older trail keeping us off the road. We had no idea what we were in for. The weather was hot and humid. My husband went for a jog the morning before. He normally rides his bike. His hamstrings were talking to him for this entire hike. He went down hills on his tippy-toes. One of these days he will stretch out those muscles!

To Kayak or Not, Continued

We saw lots of creatures - turtles, lizards, toads, white tail deer, and more spiders than you can imagine.


There were so many spiderwebs blocking our way. You never knew when you'd walk right through them. We started using the walking sticks to clear our way. All in all we went about 4 miles up and down hills. The creek bed was totally dry as the area rainfall is way below normal. When we got back, everyone was hungry. We started the grill and licked our lips for some yummy burgers. My husband and I enjoyed a nice cold beer too. We were all settling down to catch up on some zzzzz's we missed the night before when my older son said that he had little bugs crawling all over him and they itched! Can you say heebie geebies? Guess what? We all had bugs on us. I could not believe it! Our youngest son got off the easiest. I, on the other hand, still feel like things are crawling all over me!!!! They were seed ticks. They were rampant. They were quite a challenge to get rid of. Let's just say, from that point on, we became best friends with the bug spray. The park interpreter said the seed ticks were all over. She was very nonchalant about it. The little critters are no bigger than the period at the end of this sentence. I think they should have had signs up all over warning about these little nuisances. I guess we are just "city" folk and aren't used to things like that. I am not sure what purpose in the food chain these guys serve. I know they made me appreciate my home sweet home even more!

We spent a few hours catching some football. The RV even had satellite. Our alma mater did not fare very well. We squeezed in a few games of Yahtzee! Two of the four of us ended up with yahtzees! I was NOT one of them. I could not roll a thing. It was fun, but not very lucky for me.

We recovered as much as possible from the bugs and got ready for the kayaking. We all wore long pants. You could smell our bug spray perfume if you got too close. We had our wake up call. We did not need a million mosquito bites too. I had never kayaked before. We had one tandem and two solos. I was a bit nervous. But, it was amazing!!!! It was the perfect time to be out on the lake. It is a man made lake with dead trees as obstacles. We saw Egret, lilly pads, beaver lodges, woodpecker, a nutria (a beaver looking animal with a rat tail), and beautiful scenery. My older son got the prize. As he was leading the way through the lilly pads, a fish jumped out of the water and hit his arm. He reacted moving the paddle and the fish flopped back into the lake. He remained his composure. I think I would have freaked out! He said that if it had landed in the kayak, he would have preserved it. The boys raced in at the end and my older son pulled it off by just a smidge. It was such a good time. I bet you can guess what has been added to the Christmas list!



When we got back to the RV, a friendly frog was waiting for us! We joined him outside for a campfire enjoying s'mores. The boys loved throwing sticks and leaves into the fire.

We got up this morning, packed it all up and returned home to our sanctuary. I have never enjoyed a shower more! The laundry is going strong washing all the clothes and linens in hot water.

The memory of those seed ticks will last with us for some time! Fortunately, the kayaking memories will win out. It is definitely something we will investigate. We don't know where we would do it around here. I'll keep my eyes open for a used one. Then, there is the challenge of transporting it or them. I am not sure that the four of us could only get away with one. I am so glad we tried it and have found something all of us enjoy!