Ka Boom!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So I woke up this morning at 6:15 to the sound of raindrops and a little rumbling in the distance. Good, I'm thinking, it's been at least 2 days since it rained and things are starting to get dry. Actually that's sad but true. Anyway I laid in bed for about 5 minutes and then decided I had to get up and shut windows and get Grady out. 6:30 Grady is out under our huge tree doing what dogs do best - poopin the big one - when the sky lit up and kaboom hit all at the same time. Let me tell you, you've never seen a dog duck so low and run to the door as fast as Grady did. I so wished I had a video camera on me, it easily would have won something. Luckily Grady seems unaffected by his experience because my first thought was "oh no, he'll never poop outside again". I know I wouldn't. Not after that experience. On a serious note, that lightning must have struck really close because it was an instanteous flash and boom. I hope nobody's tree or house was struck.

I had a fun day yesterday. No blog though. The cable man came and fixed our cable and phone line. Woohoo! We have had a crackly phone for months. Now when I talk to someone it sounds like they're right there. Amazing! But back to the fun. I took Kirby and Kyler to the mall for lunch and to buy Webkinz. A year ago they had never heard of Webkinz and then I buy them for the birthdays and now it's never ending. I think the boys each have over 20 each. They have such a good time with them and Haley and Hannah bring theirs over and they play all day with them so it's all good. I don't take the boys shopping often - first they're boys and shopping isn't their favorite thing. Second for years they wouldn't go anywhere with out their mom. We took mom yesterday too, but that was more because I wanted her to come. First thing we did was have lunch. Kirby had Burger King and Kyler had Taco Johns. Kyler ordered three tacos and potato oles. He only ate 2 tacos, but still. We shopped for a while and Amy and I stopped at Caribou Coffee for a couple of tea slushie things. Yum. The boys said they were hungry again. Back to the food court we went. This time Kyler had a big pretzel and Kirby had a Subway sandwich. They're only 10 and 8. What will it be like when they're teenagers? I might need a second job to be able to afford to feed them at the mall.

Steve and I did a little shopping last night. We're on a mission to find those coiled hoses. Saw them all the time before. Now they're nowhere to be found. Though we only looked in a few places. Afterwards we stopped at Sonic for supper. We ordered the large blackberry ice tea. I think I should give up eating and just drink all these yummy ice teas all summer. Unfortunately, thats not far from the truth. They all have so many calories, that a person can't eat and drink those and not gain weight. But boy were they good.

Well off to check on Grady. He seems to be looking for trouble this morning. And from the sounds of it I think he's found it.
TTFN

Blue Skies

Yesterday was a beautiful day. Unfortunately we didn't do anything. I have this shoulder thing going on lately and Saturday I must have worked it too hard, because yesterday it just ached. That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it. We did go and fill my car with gas and do some shopping. Wow almost $60 to fill my car. I can't imagine those people who fill every couple of days. And unfortunately the price of gas is effecting the price of everything. You can go to the store and watch the prices rise almost daily. Amy and I went to the bread store Saturday. She noticed that their specialty breads had risen almost $1. I worry about all those people who are living on the edge already. If gas gets to be $6 a gallon, I think our ecomony is going to be in big trouble. Actually I think it already is.

We went to World Market yesterday. I always forget to go to that store. Such interesting food stuffs. I was disappointed that they didn't have any dry polenta. But I did score cool plastic plates and bowls and glasses. 50% off too. They had some in green and blue - Amy's colors - I should have bought her some too. They would be the perfect summer dinnerware for her. Then we went to Michaels. They had quite a few things on sale that I wanted to stock up on. I also wanted to check on my Xyron refills. Whats up with Xyron anyway? How hard can it be to make a product and keep the refills available? Anyway I bought some yarn for dishcloths, a scrapbook frame and a whole bunch of ribbons. Then on we went to Sams. Some produce and books and pretzels for Steve. Then we went to Best Buy to check out computers. We decided that the computers at Sams were probably the best deal. So now I just need to convince Steve to take his truck and pick that and a new TV up.

Well Grady is whining at me. He went out once already, but may need to go again. I hope we get alot accomplished today. But with us it's always a crap shoot.

TTFN

Sunshine!

Yesterday was a beautiful day. The sun shone amid some clouds of course. There was a nice breeze some of the time and the temperature was a mild 75. The only thing that kept it from being perfect were the bugs. Oh those nasty gnats. You know the ones that swarm around your head and threaten to get into your eyes, nose and mouth. Evil things I tell you. I only got one bite though and I'm not sure if it was a gnat or a mosquito. Not bad for a bug filled day. We got a lot accomplished. For us anyway. I planted my impatiens and flowers I bought at the farmers market. Steve and I started pulling weeds in the evil flower bed. Steve also trimmed tree branches.

Speaking of the farmers market. Can I say wow? In South Dakota this time of year there isn't the selection of vegetables, mostly lettuces and radishes, some rhubarb and such. But let me tell the flower selection is amazing. I brought my camera but I was overwhelmed and had things in my hands most of the time that I didn't get any pictures. There were baskets and planters with some of the best flowers I have ever seen. I told Amy I'm saving my money next year and coming here instead of wasting my time planting my own. There was a couple of pots that are still haunting me and I might have to go back next Saturday and see if they are still there. I sure I could justify the splurge. Yeah right. Have you seen the price of gas and food? We should probably all be saving every penny now if what they say is true that gas could be 6 bucks a gallon in a couple of months. We'll need those pennies just to get to work. I hate to think that all we'll be working for is food and gas.

I'm excited to have Steve off the next two weeks. If yesterday is any indication, we might actually get a few things around here done. I really want my deck in the back replaced and enlarged. We started working on the back flower bed. 2 years of neglect has really taken its toll. The weeds and grass have totally engulfed everything. But what was amazing was that almost all the perennials were still there. I was sure they would have given up. I think once we get the mulch down , I don't think we'll have that problem again. As long as every year we put down a new layer of mulch.

Today looks to be another nice day. We had a little rain shower again in the middle of the night. I woke up at 11 and it was lightning in the distance quite fiercely. I never did hear thunder very loud so I don't think the storm ever got too close. The ground was definitely wet again this morning so we must have some rain overnight. I just want it to dry up enough so I don't have to always wipe Grady's feet. Both he and I are tired of it.

On todays agenda is more of the same - working outside. But I also want to go Michaels and maybe Best Buy. Michaels was having a good sale and Best Buy had a computer I want to look at. They have a MAC I'd like to look at too, but I'm not sure I could convince Steve to spend the extra money. Not to mention that I would have problems shifting everything over I think. While I'm in the Michael's area I would like to go World Market. I bought polenta there awhile back and it was good. And it is just fun to peruse the food section there. Such interesting stuff, that I can't seem to find in my local grocery. So if we do trek across town, I don't know how much we'll get done outside today.

Wish I had a picture to put in my blog today. I had lots of photo opportunities, but alas didn't have my camera on me most of the day. I love blogs with pictures, so that is going to be one of my goals - add more pictures. Well must get the day started.
TTFN

Rain, Rain Take a Break

I'm beginning to think I should title this a weather blog. Yesterday was a dry day. The wind blew and things started to dry out. Steve and half the city of Sioux Falls mowed their lawns. The percentages of the chance to get rain for the weekend were only 30 t0 40 percent. Things were looking up. BUT!!! What did I wake up to about 4 or 5 this morning (maybe earlier) but the sound of rain drops hitting my windows. Another day of dog feet wiping. Believe me he's no crazier about that than I am. He sits really nice for the front feet but those backfeet are like tickling a little kid. It just makes him crazy.

I was hoping to get outside today and get some yard work done. I still have flower beds that need weeding and those 12 bags of mulch still need to be put down. I want to get some flowers for some pots and I need to buy impatiens for my birdbath area. I think I'll go buy flowers today even if I don't get them planted. It is already late to me for buying flowers and I'm sure the selection is getting limited. Steve is off for the next two weeks and it would be nice to get all the yard projects done this year. But if the weather doesn't cooperate, we have plenty of indoor things to do. I should blog a list of all the things I'd like to see get done around here. I'm just afraid if I see it in print it might be just a little overwhelming.

I babysat yesterday. It was a pretty slack day. The girls played outside for most of the afternoon and after Will woke up he went out and played too. We had a mishmash for supper which was easy and then they watched some tv. Grandpa came over and played with Will and Hannah for awhile. They had the best time covering him up with stuffed animals. They'd cover him up and then he would throw off the animals and they would laugh and laugh. Getting Will to laugh like that is such a treat. He can be quite the serious little boy. And then it was bed time. I was glad I had brought my laptop. I did some digi shopping. TLP is having a sale. Can't resist a sale. I even worked on scrapping. I just can't get into the swing of it though and I tell myself not to buy anymore stuff until I get a few things done. Of course that doesn't always work, but I have held back quite a bit. I have lots of ideas for albums, but not so many for the pages that go into them. I think I need to work with Amy for awhile. Maybe next week we could have a scrap day. I also need a day with my son and have him give me some lessons on lightroom and maybe photoshop. Both of my kids are amazingly talented.

Well I should go and make some coffee, fold a load of laundry and wait for Amy to call. She and I talked about going to the Farmers Market today. We don't get many Saturdays where we can do that.

TTFN

Weather

Yesterdays weather was all anyone talked about and was all the news. The day started cool and cloudy. By noon when I picked Haley up from summer singers, the sky had darkened and started to lightning some. Since it's quite a trek from summer singers to Haley's house I was worried we were going to get caught in a downpour. Luckily we both made it home before the sky let loose. It rained all afternoon. Sometimes it came down hard and sometimes it was just a sprinkle. When Steve came home at 4:30 it had warmed up and threatened to let the sun shine. They put us in the tornado watch. We decided to go check the falls and see what the weather had done to the falls. They were amazing of course. All that water, the power. By the time we got home about 8 they issuing warnings and KELO was in their continuous coverage mode. From watching the radars I figured we wouldn't get anything but there were warnings for the northwest part of the city. I did go out on my front deck and take pictures of the clouds. I apologize that they are so dark but the sky was so dark and it made everything look like night. I wanted more of the clouds anyway. I may play around with them in Lightroom later.

Well today I need to clean up my house. I've spent the last few days reading and my house is starting to look neglected. This afternoon I go babysit until 10 or 10:30. The good news is that I don't have to babysit tomorrow. A Saturday at home. Yeah! I hope maybe I can get to the Farmers Market and breadsmith. And maybe it will be half way decent and we can get some yard work done. It'll definitely be easy to pull weeds. And believe me there are weeds.

Not much else to write about today. The weather was the main event of the day yesterday. With this spring, that's about all anyone talks about.
TTFN

Rain Rain Go Away

It's another cloudy rainy day with a chance of severe weather this afternoon. I'm sure we have had other years like this but this is becoming tiresome. Not that I want it to go from this to 90 degrees and hot and dry either. I would like just a week or so of nice and dry weather. A week or 2 where I don't have to wipe off Grady's feet every time he comes in.

We went to Kirby's game last night. It started out cloudy and cool, like its been for most of the games it seems. After about 2 innings it started to sprinkle and then it started to rain, lightly mind you but rain none the less. What is it about sports and kids sports in particular that they think they have to play no matter what the conditions are? I have sat through soccer games when it was snowing. I have sat through baseball games that felt like a hurricane. I have sat through both soccer and baseball games where it was so hot and humid that breathing was an effort. But the game must go on. I understand professionals playing in bad weather, heck they get paid to and there are advertisers to deal with. But kids sports come on. Anyway they finally did call the game. Some one had the good sense to say there was lightning or something and they ended all the games.

After taking Kyra and Haley to summer singers yesterday, I took Hannah to the mall for her day. For the kids's birthdays I've started taking them shopping as part of their present. They can pick out things they want and I get to enjoy shopping with them a win-win deal all the way around.

So yesterday Hannah and I went to the mall and started the day with Burger King for lunch. She ordered a chicken nuggets kid meal and I got a sandwich. Part way through the meal I ask her "How are your chicken nuggets?" She gave me an answer I wasn't quite expecting. " Good. Why wouldn't they be?" UH OK maybe that was a STUPID question. She said too "Well I had them before and liked them." Gotcha. Hannah is very matter of fact about things. She is probably my most serious grandchild and doesn't always get the little nuances of things. Not to say she doesn't have a sense of humor, she does. Anyway we had a good time and she scored quite a few new clothes items and a couple of webkinz and her Ivy and Beanie book. It was a good day and fun was had by all.

Today should be a relatively quiet day. I just have to pick up Haley and take her to summer singers and take Kyra home. Then go back in about an hour and take Haley home. Then the rest of the day is mine. I should pick up around here and do another load of laundry. I'm sure I'll spend some of the day reading my book. It is so good and it definitely needs finishing. It's the Kite Runner that I started months ago and put down for awhile. Next I need to read a Patricia Cornwell book I checked out from the library and then it's off to the land of Jodi Picoult.

Well I think I'll play a game of Zuma and start my day.

TTFN

Watching History

Last night I watched a piece of history. History that should have been a long time ago. I watched a black man clinch the democratic nomination. And I watched a woman get more primary votes than anyone in the history of this country. Whats interesting is that this is making history. Here we are supposedly the greatest country in the world and we are just now having a man and a woman run for President and actually coming close to making it. I have never understood how someone could look at a person and make a judgement about them based on their sex or race. Oh granted we all do that to some degree. We walk down a dark street and see a couple of unkempt kids coming towards us and we become a little fearful. But for the most part shouldn't we wait and get to know a person before we judge them. Unfortunately, I'm afraid that Hillary faced more of that than Obama did. It's sad to think that we as women haven't come as far as we think we have. My hope is that they could be on the same ticket and win the election. That would be amazing.

Well enough on history. It is still cool, cloudy and rainy. I think we are going to get rain this morning. Its so nice to see everything so green and beautiful. I wish we had dug up my little garden patch and planted some things. Maybe next week while Steve is home we can get that done.

I'm taking Hannah out for lunch and shopping today. I started this last year as part of the kids birthday presents. Its fun and amazing to see what each of them picks. Tomorrow I just have to take kids to summer singers and Friday I babysit. I got used to not doing to much the last couple of weeks so this has been an adjustment for me and Grady. I have no plans for Saturday. Yeah!

I started a scrapbook page yesterday. Actually I started it a couple of days ago. Well talk about frustrating. After I spent all that time organizing when I went to use something, the file wasn't there. Sure takes the mojo out of scrapping. I'm not doing a very good job of accomplishing my scrapping goals this summer.

Think I'd better go and rob some money from my husbands wallet. Sounds worse than it is. I never have any cash it seems so I must swipe some from him. He just expects it so it's all good.
TTFN

Happy Tuesday

Well today starts Summer Singers. Kyra and Haley have both joined the last two years. This will probably be Kyra's last summer as she is turning 15 and will have summer school and summer jobs after this summer. Can I just say that I love Summer singers!! I do all the transporting for them and this is the one opportunity I have to spend some one on one time with each of them. Yes most days it's a quiet ride and not alot of talking, but it still gives me that little bit of time all alone with one of them. Now next year, Hannah will probably join and I don't know if she and Haley will go at the same time. That would be too bad as a little one on one with Hannah would be nice.

We had about 2 inches of rain last night. I slept right through it. If there was thunder or lightning I missed it. Unusual for me, but my shoulder had been aching last night and I took some Ibuprofin and Aleve, so I must have slept really well. They are talking rain off and on all week. Everything is green and pretty. The temperature has been quite nice too. Steve is on vacation next week for the next two weeks and I'm sure it will not be quite so nice. In fact on Sunday it got to 85 degrees and there was quite a bit of humidity. I don't think I'm ready for that yet either. Thats one thing about the weather in this part of the country, we are never quite satisfied with it.

I'm not sure what is on my agenda today. After hauling the girls, I think I might spend the rest of the day in my den and organizing and scrapping. I also decided to go through all my pictures on my computer and start putting the good ones in a separate folder. That way when it comes time to print I can just send that folder off to be printed. I also should go through all the old photos and put them in a box or something so I can take them to the local photo shop and have them put on a cd. And then I think I will read for awhile. I have such a stack of summer reading that I might need 2 summers to get through it all.

Well I think I'm off to the showers and start my day.
TTFN

Happy Monday

Well I tried to blog earlier this morning and blogger wouldn't respond. I wondered if it was one of the sites that was involved with the fire that shut down so many online scrapbooking stores. Whatever was the issue was it's quite frustrating to decide to do something and then you can't.

It was a beautiful weekend. Finally!!! I had Scott's kids on Saturday. It was a good time. We didn't do anything special but hungout at their house. The kids spent most of the day playing outside. The girls and I went to the library while Will was napping. That Will! He's quite the character. He has a vocabulary of a 6 year old and the sense of humor of an adult. He chose peanut butter crackers for his morning snack. He was sitting on my lap eating them and I took one. (We've shared snacks before.) But this time after I had chewed and swallowed most of it, he said "Give that back." Um, like I would if I could but you see!!!

Haley had book club on Saturday too. She and some of her classmates from school decided to do this this summer. They organized it and everything. A friend of Haley's lives only a few blocks from them so she walked over there and they had a good time. The next book they are going to read is Charlottes Web.

Speaking of books, I finished 19 Minutes by Jodi Picoult. Wow. Not since Poisonwood Bible have I found an author that I want to read all of her books. Amy lent me Vanishing Act and I bought another one at Sams yesterday. Unfortunately at the library all of the books by her were either checked out or on hold.

Yesterday was a do nothing day. I had plans of getting alot of outside things done, but then after breakfast I had either an anxiety attack or something. We did manage to get to Sams and I stocked up on lots of fruit and veggies, but otherwise it was a quiet day.

Today I have to pick up Scotts kids at Amys and watch them until Wendy gets home. Scott is out of town doing something. It's quite the busy week for him. He has a wedding on Friday and Saturday. Thank goodness I only have the kids on Friday. As much as I love them it's nice not to have the whole weekend shot.

The boys have baseball games tonight, but I'm not sure that the weather is going to cooperate. They're talking rain and thunderstorms. In fact all week there's a chance of rain. I'm not going to complain it could already be hot and dry. I'm sure we'll have that soon enough.

Well this has gotten to be quite the lengthy post for me. Better go dust and finish the things on my to do list.

TTFN

Geez, I'm such a dork!

So I've been organizing away in AcDsee with all my scrapbooking things. I'm almost done, just have to do the w's. Last night of course we had severe weather in our area. I have been so afraid of losing my computer and EHD that I've become quite paranoid about it all. So after the first crack of thunder, I decided that I would shut everything down and unplug everything. Great! The weather wasn't that bad here but I spent the night reading a book anyway and didn't turn anything back on. This morning I decided to do a scrapbook page and went into acdsee and was pulling papers and elements. BUT when I went to put them in photoshop not all of them would go there. Amy said it was because some weren't in the folder that they should have been. Like I had moved them or something. Well I knew I hadn't moved them so there had to be another reason. I'm trying this and that and finally realize that my EHD isn't working. It has power but my computer wasn't reading it. Hmmm. So I call Amy. I'm sure my EHD has died and I'm complaining about how I spent all that time organizing and it was all in vain. Then lo and behold I look at my computer. What is that? Well that my dear is the USB thats not plugged into your computer. And guess again. Yep when I plugged it in my EHD worked. Will wonders never cease. I tell you this old age thing is not all its cracked up to be. Actually I don't really think it has anything to do with age but it works well for an excuse.

Yesterday was a dreary, drizzly day. One of those days that just calls for curling up and reading a book. I did just that. I finally finished Friday Night Knitting Club. I wasn't sure I was going to finish it since I peeked ahead at one point when I was getting bored with it and knew how it was going to end. But my better judgement won out and I finished the book. I am glad that I did. Even though I knew what was going to happen and all, I was glad to read about the relationships of the characters at the end. I hope that proves to be a lesson for me. I often peek ahead if a book is starting to bore me. Maybe now I'll either not peek ahead or read on anyway.

Today is a beautiful day. The sun is shining and it is 70 degrees at noon. Bring on more of these kinds of days. I probably should go and do some weeding but I think it is still too muddy and getting muddy isn't on my agenda. Actually I put nothing on my agenda for today. I'm taking a day off and doing whatever comes to mind. I should do a little housework. I watch Scotts kids all day tomorrow so I won't get anything done tomorrow.

Well off to try that scrapbook page again. Maybe I can get it done and have something to show tomorrow. Yeah right!
TTFN

A Cold Night for Baseball

Last night we spent 2 and a half hours sitting at baseball games. Can we say Brrrr? I'm not sure baseball was meant to be played when the fans are sitting bundled up in coats and blankets. Baseball should be played in warm weather right? Amy and I went to Kylers game. Then we trekked across town to watch the tail end of Kirby's game. There must be some overachieving dads at that game because when we got there it was already getting dark and it was definitely cold. So when the game should be done, the coaches got together and decided to play another inning. Are you guys crazy? We're freezing out here!!

We woke up to a little thunder and rain this morning. There were puddles in my backyard. Another day of wiping off the dog's feet. They are talking severe storms this evening. I love a good thunderstorm, but with all the tragic storms around the area lately I'm not so sure I want severe weather.

Amy and I are going out for lunch today. I think we're going to Sanaa's. I've been there before but Amy hasn't. It's in the same area as some of the local art stores so I'm sure we'll check out at least one.

Well I must say my list thing is working out quite well. Who knew that just making a list could be so freeing. I put manageable things to do on my list and then when I'm done with the list for the day I'm done. No more worrying about "Oh maybe I should be doing this or that" I can just put those things on the list for another day. I know the rest of the world has been using this technique for quite awhile, but I has been quite a revelation for me.

Dieting is not going quite as well as it should. But I am trying to eat better and we haven't had fast food for over a week, so that is an accomplishment in itself. Babysteps.

Well should head for the shower and get some of my list items for today done.

TTFN

A Haircut, a few scrapping stores and neighborhood coffee.

Yesterday was a relatively busy day for me. Normally I don't schedule much in my days, I like the casualness of doing nothing. It means I'm always ready for more impromptu nothingness. I started off the day with doing some of the chores on my list. I know, I know, can you believe I actually made a list and then did the things on the list. It worked so well that I'm trying it again today. I had an 11:00 hair appt. It is always nice to refresh the look with a cut and color. At the end of my appointment, Amy and the boys came in for the boys's haircuts. After much bribing with a trip to the pet store and a new webkinz, they were very good this time. While they were getting their haircuts, Amy and I discussed going to a few local scrapbook stores. I was hoping to score some new adhesive and some refills for my xyrons. We went to a new store for me, Scatterjoy. What a nice little place that was. The lady behind the counter was super friendly, just that nice grandmotherly person who you could probably sit and have a cup of tea with anytime. I love local stores!!! I frequent the local yarn stores and come away with that same feeling. As much as I love Walmart for all its Walmartiness, you just don't get that warm cozy feeling there. Anyway I bought a few items for this album I'm making for Hannah and a couple of new albums that I have ideas for. I was never a paper scrapper. Oh every once in awhile my daughter would get me interested and I would purchase some things. But when it came to actually doing it I never really got into it. Then a couple of years ago she introduced me to digital scrapping. All the fun but no mess. While I haven't made oodles of albums and things it is something that I enjoy. But going into that scrapbook store really made me want to paper scrap. I don't have the space for paper scrapping, and I definitely don't need to start a new craft, but oh there's that yearning. I have always loved crafts and taking nothings and making something out of it. So thank goodness for hybrid. It gives you a little of both.
Last night was neighborhood coffee and Pat's house. Her house is decorated so cute. She had just redone her kitchen and I joked about when we were going to exchange houses. It was a very nice evening. Eight of the nine were there, Cheri had just returned from Hawaii and wasn't there. It's kinda surprising that 8 women can get together and talk about a myriad of subjects and leave 3 hours later still friends. Someday I must bring my camera and take pictures of our group. We've already lost 3 members, 2 due to death. Anyway I did really good on my diet yesterday until then. And even then I didn't do too bad at first. She had angel food cake with strawberries, meat and cheese and crackers. Not bad choices. I took the cake and strawberries and a couple pieces of cheese and a couple of meat and a couple crackers. So far so good. Then we sat at the table. She put the meat and cheese on the table along with the nuts and crackers. Well what do you do when you linger and talk at the table with munchies still on the table. Why you continue to eat. Probably 400 calories later and 10:30 at night we finally said good-bye. Now of course thanks to eating so late at night, I am starving this morning. It is going to be a real challenge to stay the course today.
Well I'm off to conquer my list and spend some time scrapping. Long live summer vacation.
TTFN

Brrrr!!!!!

Here it is the 27th of May and my furnace kicked in. I remember many a May when we were running the air conditioning alot by now. What a odd year! The sad thing is I can decide if I should let the furnace run or turn it off and shiver. Yesterday was beautiful. We worked outside for some of the day. Steve mowed and applied fertilizer and weed killer. We bought 12 bags of mulch. To be put on the flower beds at a later date of course. We're not ones to get everything done in one day. I planted my flowers in pots and we bought two rocker gliders and a table for the front deck. Over all it was a productive day for us.

I worked on a tag album for Hannah. It is pictures from her birthday party. I thought it might be a nice little keepsake to help her remember her 7th birthday. But let me tell you I have glue issues. You know those little xyron glue runner things. I have a bigger one that I love, but when I put in a new cartridge I accidently ran it backwards. A definite no no evidently. I now need a new cartridge. So I thought I'd use the smaller one. Works fine except that after 3 small tags worth it was out of glue. It was a brand new cartridge too. Really can they only have that much glue in them. Are you supposed to only barely use them? So I think I need to find a new system that isn't going to cost me an arm and a leg and is dummy proof. I really like all the hybrid options but I don't want to go broke buying glue. Enough of the rant.

On to dieting. It's not happening. Today is a new start again. I know I need to do it, but somehow that isn't getting through to the "lets put food in the mouth part of the brain." So today I am recommiting to Weight Watchers and healthy living. Last time I did WW's' I did all the gimmicks. The pumpkin pudding, all the fake food. I'm not saying that I won't succumb to that this time too, but I am going to try and eat healthy whole foods. So my goal this week is to stick to the plan, follow it as strictly as possible. Maybe if I only set a goal a week, I can do a better job. This week I am only going to worry about eating within my points and making healthy choices. I'll worry about exercise later. Sometimes I think I try to do it all the first day and burn out. Slow but sure wins the race right? I have a hair appt this noon and afterwards I am going to stop at the store and buy veggies. Hopefully the prices won't scare me away.

TTFN

Happy Birthday Hannah

Last night we celebrated Hannah's birthday. Her actual birthday was Saturday, but since mom and dad had a wedding to shoot they had the party last night. I love

summer birthdays. More times than not we have them outside. Scott and Wendy have this nice big triple garage which has practically nothing in it. We all hang out in there out of the elements and the kids play outside. Every party anymore has a pinata. It seems to be one of the kids's favorite things. I don't know if they like the candy the best or beating the crap out of the pinata. Whatevery it is the kids have a blast.
It's nice that Scott and Wendy invite all the relatives and the neighbors. It gives the kids a sense of community. You know that old it takes a village thing. After all the festivities, the adults hang around in the garage and talk and the kids go out back and play. What is absolutely amazing is that with my 6 grandchildren and all their different personalities, there is hardly ever any fighting or bickering. They spend alot of time together too since Amy watches Scotts kids during the day. Somehow they have established roles within theirselves that work. I just hope that I haven't now jinxed them and all they'll do this summer is squabble.
It appears to be a beautiful day today. I have lots on the agenda. A little house work, alot of yard work and maybe a start on cleaning out the garage. Wouldn't that be something.
TTFN

Where's the heat?

Here it is the 23rd of May and it's down right chilly and windy. I'm really tired of the wind. It seems like when its cold, it's windy. But let it get to be 90 degrees and humid and then the air is as still as still can be. I know it could be worse but I'm tired of it.
We don't have Scotts kids today. So of course the weather is crappy and there's a ton of things to do outside. I'm hoping that it calms down a little this afternoon and we can get some things done. I can't believe it's Memorial day weekend already. School's been out for a week for the kids but it doesn't seem right. Though I did see a couple of girls wrapped in towels walking home yesterday from the pool. All I could think of was brr, the pool's open? It was 57 degrees yesterday.
So what have I been doing in the last month. Not much really, hence the no blogging. You have to have a life to write about one. Amy and I went shopping on Thursday and had lunch at Paneras. Good place to eat. Our goal is to try and get out on a regular basis and go to a place that at least one of us has never been to before. I had been to Paneras but Amy hadn't. Next place I want to go is to Sanaas. It is a local Mediterrianan restuarant with all healthy and natural foods. We talked about going to the farmers market today. Maybe we can work lunch into that too. Sanaas and the farmers market are in the same little shopping area. If not today then definitely another day.
Tomorrow is Hannah's 7th birthday. Wow I can't believe my little Hannah is going to be 7. She is my cuddler grandchild. Always quick with the hugs and definitely a grandmas girl. It'll be sad when the day comes and she doesn't want to sit on my lap and give hugs. Unfortunately that day is coming fast I'm afraid. Speaking of coming fast Kyra is now a freshman in high school. The next four years will fly by. Can we put this tape in slo-mo please.
Lets see what else is new. I cooked last night. Thats probably something I haven't done in a month. I made a pasta salad. Just your typical macaroni and pea salad, but it was extra good. I added a little of this and a little of that. Used these really cute mini bow tie pastas. It was either really good or we just haven't had any homecooked food for so long that anything would have tasted terffic.
On the Grady front he is getting better. His craziness is less and less. He still steals things from the sink and likes to shred paper. Probably the worst is the mud. Our yard has lots of dirt thanks to this big tree in the middle that has killed some of the grass. Well since it has been raining alot lately we have alot of mud. What do goldens like better than anything. Water and mud. Even when he just goes out to pee it seems he has to walk through some of the mud. I thought he was good this morning but no, there is mud tracks all over my living room carpet. I really had thought we could clean carpets this weekend too, but not if it is still muddy. Sooner or later it has to dry up right?
Well I should have titled this the whiner blog. It seems like all I did was complain about something. I'll have to try better in the future.
TTFN

Why are weekends so short?

Just when I get the everything done that I had to do for the weekend. Poof, it's over. No time for just fun. Well that's not true. I had fun this weekend too. Kyra, Amy and I went shopping yesterday. Kyra told me on Friday that she thought she was the only one at school still wearing jeans and not capris and shorts. I knew she was stretching it, but she did need new spring things. Hey doesn't every girl. She did pretty well and we even convinced to her get some sleeveless tops. How do we make girls so self conscience at this age? Even overweight girls have beautiful skin and shoulders. Wait until you hit my age and realize what no exercise and dieting has done to your arms.
Speaking of dieting. Can we say ready!!! I am so uncomfortable in my skin. I am going back to doing Weight Watchers online. I bought things to eat and even a pair of shorts to work out in. Now if I can just get past Monday noon I may stand a chance. One day at a time they say, well I say one meal at a time. When I lost 40 lbs a few years ago, I just started one day and never looked back. Not sure that I was motivated but something kept me going that first week and then when I got on the scale and had lost 6 lbs, that was all it took. So that is my mantra this time, just start and keep plugging away. Maybe if the weather gets a little nicer I can talk myself into walking again. If not, then I am ready to exercise in the house for awhile.
Scott is in Fargo for a few days for a photography thing. It feels weird to have him out of town. I wonder what it would be like to have all your children living far away. I'm not sure I could handle that.
Amy and I went to the grocery store this afternoon. I must say that I haven't been there for probably close to a month. We buy alot of food at Sams and eat out too much. Anyway, whoa, have the prices gone up. I don't know how some familys are going to do it. I'm thinking of baking bread this summer and we don't drink milk, but the fresh fruit and vegetables are out of sight. I'll be taking out my flowers and planting vegetables I think. I think the farmers market is going to be spendy too. Glad we don't have a family to feed and can still buy what we want. But even we should cut back. Gas is 3.50 a gallon and cauliflower was 4 dollars a head. Crazy. We'll all be on a diet whether we want to or not.
Well enough rambling for one night.
TTFN

This is Spring

Last Saturday we sat at Hannah's soccer game with no coats and enjoyed a beautiful day. Today, soccer has been cancelled and there is snow on the ground. Such is life on the praire. We were quite fortunate in that we only had 3 inches of snow. Other places not that far from here had a foot of the white stuff. Can we finally get on with the nice weather? I don't want to go from snow and cold straight to 90 degrees and humidity.

Well there is only 3 weeks of school left. Life gets crazy this time of year. With concerts and ball games and swimming lessons and any number of other events, we grandparents get called into service alot. I for one love it. I think maybe I should have had a dozen kids because I like going to all that stuff. I get bored and lazy sitting around too much. This week we have Kyra's chorus concert, the boys ball practices, Hannah's soccer games and swimming lessons. Throw in a hair appointment and the fact that Scott is out of town, and well lets just say parents who have a ton of kids and no grandparents near by must have to learn to outsource.

We took Scott and family to Valentinos for lunch today. Not exactly the best food but the company was good. After we got home from that I took Amy and Kyra shopping. It was a very enjoyable trip. Kyra was in a good mood and we bought her quite a few new things for spring. Amy even got a couple of new tops. I had bought a fair share of stuff for myself a few days ago, so I really don't need anything. That and I hope to lose some weight here one of these days.

I had the nicest phone conversations this week. Thursday I called to talk to Amy and of course she was at swimming lessons with the boys. Kyra and I talked for quite awhile. Unusual for Kyra as she usually just hands the phone to her mom when I call. We have nice conversations in the car but not on the phone. The other one was Will today. Scott called and Will wanted to talk to Gramma. I think I had the best 2 year old conversation ever. He told me all about what he had done. Playing with Hannah. Hit ball. Run, run, run. He even asked me to come over. He's quite the kid.

I did some scrapping shopping today too. Next weekend starts the scrapbooking day sales, but of course I couldn't wait. I don't have any need for new stuff, but it's all so pretty and I have such grand ideas of pages to scrap and projects to do. Well you know how it goes. Summer is coming so there is hope that I will get alot of it done.

Must go watch Harry Potter. I can watch them over and over, just like MASH reruns.
TTFN

No Friends

I have no friends. Now before I start to wallow in self pity, I do have friends. Good friends actually. But on Hello all my friends are in the dark. Amy and I "talk" almost every day on Hello and I've come to the realization that I am addicted to that link with her. One of the first things I do when I get on the computer is check to see if anyone is green. How pathetic is that!!!!!!!!! So now that hello is not playing well with Amy and her computers, I'm like friendless. A year ago I didn't even have hello and now I'm addicted. I wonder if there is a computer link for hello addicts whose friends have all abandoned them.
I am so sick of the wind. I know that the "wind comes sweeping down the plain", but enough is enough. Yesterday was a perfect day. Almost 70 degrees and virtually no wind. Could we have 2 of those kind of days in a row please!
Well I haven't accomplished very much this weekend. I opened up photoshop and stared at it for awhile. I have lots of ideas of things to do, but can't seem to pick one and start. Actually I have a couple of things I need to finish first. Neither one would take long but I don't have the mojo for that either. I probably should have titled this post Pathetic!
We went to Sams again today. That and Walmart seem to be our weekly trips. I bought some meat and veggies though, so hopefully I will cook more this week. Of course this is the week that lots of things are going on. At least for me it's lots of things. Tomorrow night is Kyra's concert, Tuesday is neighborhood coffee and Friday I might go help chaperone a dance.
I am counting the days until school is out. Weekends just go by way too fast and I don't seem to get much done. I want those lazy hazy crazy days of summer. But I shouldn't wish away my time because summer will go by fast too.
TTFN

Wow its the 19th of April and I haven't blogged all month. Looking back at 2008 entries it looks like I blog 5 times a month. Well to get 5 in this month, I'd better hop to it. This summer I'm going to try to make a habit of this blogging thing. They say 3 weeks to make a habit, but I think I'm a slow learner. Maybe 3 months will do it.
Another reason I want to blog more is because I need to diet and maybe writing in my blog about how I'm doing everyday and posting recipes that I try, might make dieting and blogging fun for me. I know I need to find my incentive for both.
Will's birthday was yesterday. He turned 2. What a sweet little boy he has become! He opened his presents like an old pro and said thank you many times after he opened them. He was only overwhelmed at the beginning when his other grandparents came. I think the realization that this was all for him came to him then. He got over it fast though and the rest of the evening was a joy. It is so nice that Wendy invites all of us for the parties. She wouldn't have to invite Steve's sister and husband or Great grandpa but she does and I think it makes for wonderful memories for the kids. Not to mention that I'm sure Lori and Cliff enjoy it immensely.
Life has been quiet as usual here. It should pick up now that the weather has turned nice. Hannah has a soccer game this afternoon, Kyra's concerts are the next 2 Mondays and the boys have started baseball practice. I can't wait to start sitting and watching them play baseball. One of the best things about summer. Speaking of summer, 20 school days left until vacation. I for one am definitely ready.
TTFN

Where did March go?

Wow it really is true that the older you get the faster time flies! This month has just whizzed by. I hope April goes as fast and then it can slow down for a couple of months. There is only 7 weeks of school left. Speaking of whizzing by this school year really did. Must be a sign that I'm enjoying it.
Well we're in a winter storm watch again. Golly gee will this winter ever end. It's not that its been a terrible winter just long. And actually that's not true, because some years it's really nasty by November and this year it didn't start until January. Well one thing is for sure no matter what, it can't last long. But I'd much rather have a severe thunderstorm watch than a winter one anyday.
Haley came over yesterday and dusted for me. Her challenge center is doing a service project to raise money for the monkey section of the zoo. They have to earn money by selling or doing chores. She is quite the duster. I might have to have her come over more often.
Next Saturday is Hannah's first soccer game. I love to watch that girl play soccer. I hope she is just as enthusiastic this year as she has been in the past. After her game, she and I are going to go have a little grandma and Hannah time. Being a middle child and having Haley as an older sister, I think Hannah needs a little TLC.
I really cleaned my kitchen today. I didn't clean out the cupboards or anything but I did clean the grime off the top of the refrigerator and wipe down all those little areas that don't get cleaned on a weekly basis. Maybe next weekend I'll do the cupboards. Ha.
Well that's about it for today. I should get ready for our weekly trip to Sams. The highlight of my week.
TTFN

Hey You! Who said you could blog again so soon?

What some people won't do to get out of doing thing! I'm sitting here thinking I should go spend 10 minutes working on my closet in the spare bedroom, but instead I decide hey I should blog. Like I have anything to talk about. Of course that has never stopped me from talking so why should it stop me from blogging.
We're in a snow advisory and the way it changes from hour to hour I wouldn't be surprised to wake up to a foot of snow or absolutely nothing. Right now its a nice spring evening, cloudy and chilly but not anything that would make you think it would snow. Oh well whatever it does it won't last long.
Yesterday was a busy day for me. I left home at 7 to take Kyra to practice. After school I had a hair appt. Finally no more gray streak. And then I went to neighborhood coffee at Carols. For about 25 years a group of us in the neighborhood have been getting together once a month. It is truly amazing. We laugh, we share stories about our families, we've lost friends together. There are times when it isn't something you want to do on that particular evening, but once you're there its always a good time. What's amazing is that in this mobile world we live in there is still a bunch of us who have lived in the neighborhood for over 30 years. Probably something newer generations won't have.
There is only 36 more days of school left. This year has flown by. A definite sign I'm getting older. It's been a fairly good year with good kids. After last year we deserved a break. Next year looks to be ok too. We're losing 15 kids and only getting 7 incoming 6th graders. We've had over 30 kids for so many years it would be nice to have a small group for a change.
Must get ready for bed and watch a little tv.
TTFN

Is it summer vacation yet?

Well today is the last day of my 4 day weekend. I don't have another official day off until May 17th, that's not counting my one personal day I have left. I really don't want to go back to school. I'm just starting to enjoy my time off. Sometimes it seems like a person need a vacation before they can actually start enjoying their vacation. If that makes any sense. Anyway today was one of those days where I'm like " Hey I could start summer vacation now".
Amy and I took the kids to see "Horton Hears A Who". It was a adorable movie and I liked the way they portrayed the book. BUT there was a woman behind us who was just slightly distracting to say the least. She laughed at all the wrong places and was way more into the movie than most of the kids in the theater. I couldn't wait until the end of the movie to see who this weird woman was and lo and behold she looked like your average person. I've never been to a kids movie where an adult was more of a kid than the kids.
I finally loaded pictures to Winkflash so I can get some pictures printed. I got sick of looking through pictures and went oh what the heck lets just print them all. I have to go back and check to see if I have all the pictures from 2007 that I want in there and then I'm going to have them all printed.
I should really go and see if I can get back into my knitting. I've been on a hiatus it seems lately. Typical for me. Gung ho one week and nothing after that. Theres a goal to work on.
Easter was nice. Bill and Joy and family were there, Mary and Butch came too. They hadn't been back for a holiday in quite a few years. I'm glad they could make it. Holidays are an everchanging thing and every year one never knows who will be able to make it and who won't. Anyway the food was good and the company even better. Who could ask for more
TTFN

Happy Easter

I can hardly believe its Easter already. True it is earlier this year than most but it still doesn't seem like it should be today. Maybe that explains why I can't get into getting the grandkids Easter gifts. It was really a struggle this year. I didn't want to buy them cheap junky toys and lots of candy. Let the Easter Bunny do that. But having grandkids with ages 14 to 2 it's hard to come up with a common theme. So what did I do. I bought beach towels. Now theres a Easter gift if ever there was one. If I could have found one with a bunny on it I probably would have bought 5 of them. Since we're not getting together today, I don't know when I'll deliver them.
Steve and I are going over to his mom and dads for Easter dinner. Shock of all shock, I'm not bringing anything. It took me by such surprise when his dad called and said that he and Lori were going to cook Easter dinner that I didn't even offer to bring anything. Now of course I'm feeling guilty. I shouldn't really since I've cooked and brought over many holiday meals the last few years, but that still doesn't stop the guilt. Steve's mom is going to the nursing home tomorrow so this will be a bitter sweet holiday. Even though in reality she hasn't been there for the last couple of holidays it will seem weird to go over there and she won't be there phsyically. And a time will come when we will spend part of every holiday going to see her in the home. The last few years has really made me aware that time marches on and waits for no one. I don't think I like the idea of getting older. I like the age I'm at and would like to stay there for awhile thank you. Of course thats not possible, but it should push me to make the most of today. I'm a great procrastinator, always waiting for tomorrow. Not that I don't appreciate everyday and every moment, but I don't do alot of things because of the old " I'll do it tomorrow" .
I just looked out the window and there doesn't appear to be a cloud in the sky. Should be a nice day. Cold but nice. Yesterday we had snow showers all day and this morning there is frost everywhere. Spring right!
TTFN

March 3?

Goodness gracious, how did it get to be March 3. I am ready to be done with winter, but somehow I'm not ready for it to be March. Is that even possible? We've had just little tastes of spring like weather lately. You know those days when it gets to 39 degrees and you throw caution to the wind and not wear a coat. Unfortunately mother nature says don't get too cocky and threw us back in the deep freeze this morning. The wind is just a howling out there and the wind chill is -7. Guess I'm back to wearing a coat.
On the home front not much is happening. It really is the "I'm sick of winter" doldrums. Tired of being always in the house, but there's nothing to do outside. And outside is getting darn ugly. The pristine white snow is now black. The dog poop in my back yard is starting to show through. Yuck. All weekend we sat in the house and did nothing. I knitted most of the weekend. I went with Amy to take Kyra to get new glasses and her talent show practice. Other than that I didn't even leave the house. Pathetic. Not much on the horizon for the week either. I have a dentists appointment today. Haley has a play thing at school tomorrow night. Otherwise it's pretty dull.
I don't have any pictures, but I have three knitting WIPs. A new pair of socks, a scarf and a sweater. Any bets on getting all three done? Well enough with this pathetic post. It sounds down right depressing and really I'm not depressed just bored with winter. Can't wait for baseball season.
TTFN

Why is the perfect sunrise photo today?

I never take my big camera with me when I go to work. I don't like having it at school and leaving it in the car with extreme temperatures doesn't sound all that smart. So I carry with me in my purse a small little digital camera. Unfortunately I'm not all that pleased with this camera, so I hesitate to take it out to take pictures that require a good telephoto lens. It takes fine pictures of people and kids but I don't think it would do the sunrise any justice. Hence on mornings like this when the sun is hitting the buildings with the absolutely most beautiful light I just keep on driving and harassing myself for not stopping and trying to take a picture. This has happened a number of times when I take Kyra to Special Edition. Today was one of those days. We have a beautiful catholic cathedral close to downtown. The sun was illuminating the spires perfectly today. I will never know if a camera could even capture the beauty because I didn't stop today to see. You see besides not having my big camera with me, I am a wimp. It was cold this morning. Brutally cold. Shivering handshaking cold. I can only hope that one of these mornings I will see the same beautiful light and the temperature will be warm and I WILL stop the car and try to get a picture. Or on an evening like tonight when the temperature is above zero I WILL STOP and get a picture of the most amazing jet plumes floating in the sunset. I WILL STOP and take a picture. Because words cannot do justice to the beauty of this world.

One finished sock

I finished a sock. It fits and there's not any major mistakes. Now of course I need to make another sock, because while being different is something I aspire to, wearing one sock is too different for me.

So I'm half way down the cuff on the second one. If I just didn't have to work or clean or cook I could whip out tons of socks.

Has anything else exciting happened lately? Of course not. We lead a quiet existence. Its mostly work and hanging out at home these days. The weather has been cold. Can't say I want to get out and do much once I get home. I did take the grandkids shopping for Valentines day. Took Haley and Hannah the day before Valentines to the mall. They bought Webkinz for their Valentines present and we went to Dairy Queen for a blizzard . Beats a card and candy in my book, but when I made that comment to Haley she gave this look like "what! you're not getting me anything for Valentines Day". So Valentines Day I took Amy and the kids to the mall. This time we had lunch and then went Webkinz shopping. Of course Kyra is not into Webkinz, so I took her to Hot Topic. Later we went to FYE and I bought her some used cds. She must have thought I spent too much money on her because she snuck a 20 in my purse while we were at Target. What a kid!!!!!

On the Grady front, he's becoming a much better dog. He still steals things out of the sink but over all he's settling down. He still dislikes his crate and has separation anxiety. I've been home with him for 6 days now, so I'm sure tomorrow will be traumatic. I can't wait until the weather is nice and we can take him out to play. That should help wear him out.

I need to go make some brownies and a pot of sausage and bean soup for the week. I also am planning on making a low calorie lasagne for supper tonight. Leftovers for lunch the rest of the week for Steve. Should make him happy. I thought about making more bread but, then I realized that I would eat way more than my fair share so I shelved that idea. Maybe next weekend.

Off to finish the housecleaning and cooking so I can knit more on that sock.

TTFN

Cold Continues

It was another good day to just stay indoors. I don't think it went above zero today. Yesterday the wind blew 40 miles an hour and made it just miserable. At least today there was no wind.
We did go to Walmart, but otherwise it was just a good day to stay in and make soup and bread. And thats exactly what I did. I made 2 kinds of soup. Both new recipes and both are quite good. One was a broccoli wild rice soup and the other was a ham and bean soup. Then I made Herbed Oatmeal Pan rolls. Can we say yummy? I'm hoping they freeze well. But of course my diet went out the window this weekend. Kirby's birthday was yesterday. He turned 10. Thats so hard to believe. I still remember Kyra, Steve and I going to Perkins after going to see her new brother. Somedays that seems like only yesterday and other times it seems a lifetime away. Anyway we went to Royal Fork for supper. Buffets are no place for a dieter with little or no will power. But I am ready to get back on the wagon tomorrow, so thats a change from days past. Normally I'd think I had blown it and might be six months before I could get back at it.
We only have two days of school this week. I have so many things on my want to do list that I'm sure the time will slip past and I will have only accomplished a little. They're talking snow tomorrow. It would be nice to see some clean snow, but I'm not sure about driving in it. The last snow we had was not fun to get around in even though it wasn't that much. I also have to go pick up Will and Hannah at Amys tomorrow and go to their house. Really hoping the weather isn't too bad.
Well must go back to knitting and watching the grammys.
TTFN

Short and Sweet

Just a short post tonight. I want to get back to reading Pillars, only 100 pages left. Then I don't know if I should go on to World Without End or read something else in between. Decisions, decisions. I probably should just keep with the same story, but this has taken me so long to read that I'm not sure I want to spend another month building cathedrals.
On to the diet front. Well 3 days into it and so far so good. I can't say I have been perfect, but I am doing so much better than before. I'm hoping the scale will go down some and that will be the encouragment I need to really get it together and keep going.
We went over to Scott and Wendys tonight. We hadn't been over there for a month I bet. Hannah clung to me as usual. Haley had a headache and was pretty quiet. Will was just his usual goofy self. Unfortunately he was running to his room and took the corner too soon and crashed his head into the corner. One nasty bruise on his earlobe. Hannah kept saying "He has something blue on his ear" and sure enough, on the top of the ear is one nasty bruise. Poor little guy. Of course it didn't stop him for long.
Grady is still sleeping in our room at night. Other than he and I both have to go to the bathroom about 4 in the morning he's doing really well. We've started giving him a kong with treats and peanut butter when we leave him in his crate during the day. I think he's doing better there too. So far none of the neighbors are complaining about him barking all day.
Well off to read and maybe finish Pillars.
TTFN

Superbowl Sunday

Who's winning? I really don't care I guess. The game is on two tvs in the house and I don't even know the score. It's been a quiet weekend. Most of ours are. We went to Sams yesterday and Walmart today. That is as exciting as it gets around here. I did read a little today on Pillars. My goal is to finish it this week. Its a great book but a slow read for me.

Well we finally broke down and let Grady sleep in our room last night. He did great. Unfortunately he has taken to barking whenever he's in his crate. Could make for a long day for him tomorrow. Besides drugs, I wonder how you get a dog over seperation anxiety. You can't just sit down with them and explain things to them. "Yes we will come back. It's really only for a couple of hours. Just sleep and then we'll be home." Nope none of those little pep talks works for dogs. Maybe this is just a stage and he'll outgrow it soon. Hopefully.

Well tomorrow I'm going to get serious about dieting. I've said that now for a gazillion Mondays, but I am as ready as I'll ever be. When you're not even comfortable in your own skin its time. So I'm going to try to blog everyday about my dieting as a motivation. Maybe if I feel I have to be accountable to my blog it'll keep me going.

We're supposed to have freezing rain and snow tomorrow. I'm hoping more for the snow. I'm not even sure I want a snow day. I definitely don't feel like going to school tomorrow but I don't want to have to have a make up day in May. Next week we only go 2 days, so I can wait for that. Well off to read more Pillars.

TTFN

One Month Down

January always seems like the longest month. It seems way longer than a month ago that it was Christmas. But here it is the last day of good old January and I wonder where did the time go and wow its February tomorrow. One things for sure this month. It's definitely felt like January. It's been below zero at least a day or two a week all month. Tuesday the temp kept falling all day and the wind blew like a son of a gun. Just one nasty day.
Well Grady is taking to not sleeping at night. He barks and barks. I'm sure he has separation anxiety, but how do you cure it on a dog. I don't want to get into the habit of bringing him upstairs to sleep in our room. I don't think that would solve our not sleeping problem anyway. I guess we just keep our fingers crossed and hope he outgrows it.
I started knitting another pair of socks. I'm down to the foot on one but I haven't knitted in a week. I think a full night of sleep so I could stay up past 8 would be a big help. I ordered new needles from Knitpicks and hopefully they'll come soon. They're made from harmony wood so they should be pretty. And I'm sure they will inspire great knitting.
On the grandkid front, Kyler broke two bones in his hand last week. He was running in the hall to get ready for bed and fell and landed on his hand. That makes for 3 broken bones in the Wolff household and the boys are only 8 and 9(almost 10). Amy and Scott never had a one. Haley's doing a report on Emily Dickinson. I hope she emails me a copy of it. Kyra is having some girlfriends over Saturday night. I think that is a first for her. Kirby's birthday is less than 10 days away. Wow hard to believe he'll be 10.
I'm still reading Pillars of the Earth. I'm over half way done, but man is it along book. Good but long. There again if I could stay awake longer I might make more progress.
Thats it for now.
TTFN

Best son in the world or I have a dog why?

I have always thought I have the best kids ever. I hope they know that I think they're terrific everyday. But today qualifies as a give the kid a reward day. Grady (better known as Now What Did You Do dog) had diahrrea today in his crate. Scott not only cleans up Grady's crate but he cleans up Grady and even throws in the blankets and things into the wash. What a kid. Some kids would have just left it for someone else to do. Anyway I do have super dooper kids. I hope they know how much I appreciate them. Not just for things like this but everyday. My hope for my family has always been that we'd be a close knit group and be there for one another. So far so good.
Well the cold has struck. It is supposed to get below zero tonight and into the weekend. Just give me a snow storm and warm it up a little. This cold is awful. I just want to stay in and hibernate. School of course won't let me do that.
I went with Amy and Kyra to Washington High tonight. High school is just looming around the corner for my little Kyra. Seriously where does the time go. I try not to think too hard about it, because it really could be depressing to think that in just four more years she'll be out of high school and figuring out what to do with her life. She's such a great kid, I hope she continues to do well in high school.
It definitely is the winter doldrums. I started knitting again. I almost had one whole sock done when Grady got into my knitting bag. Destroyed the sock. Broke the needles and shredded a $8 skein of yarn. Note to self - do not leave dog unattended. Lesson learned. I just wished I had taken a picture of it. Oh well.
TTFN

What a do nothing Saturday? I have spent most of the day on the computer. I did accomplish quite a few computer tasks though, so the day wasn't a complete waste. We hardly even left the house and it was such a beautiful day. I think the high was 39. Definitely not the usual weather for the fifth of January.

I don't think I could even do a blog challange today, that's how little I did. Scott and Wendy and the kids came over to sled on the hill. Poor Will. He rode with Haley more than with anyone else and she kept wiping out. Once they went flying into the street and crashed. The snow is definitely packed down. We need about 4 more inches of the fluffy white stuff.

I need to go to the grocery store tomorrow. If ever there was one chore that I put off, grocery shopping would be it. I think I would even cook more if I just didn't have to shop. Even with the prospect of a Starbucks to shop with doesn't do it. Luckily we go to Sams on a weekly basis and buy meat and produce, otherwise it would be slim pickings around here.

Well I could ramble on about nothing but I think I'll call it a night.

TTFN

It's All Good

Have you ever thought you could write the next great novel if only you had a title? Well that's how I feel about this blog. If only I could come up with a great title I could blog. I know some people blog first and then take their title from the blog. I tend to like to do things in order. At the top is the title and then the body, so..... you have to have a title first. There must be a condition and a drug for this problem.
Well tomorrow it's back to work. It seems pointless to go back for 2 days, but as Amy pointed out it gives the kids a chance to ease into it gradually. It's been really nice to not have to go outside these last few days if I didn't want to. It's supposed to start warming up tomorrow and we could even have a little melting. I like the snow though. It could keep dumping fresh snow down every so often. Just none of this really frigid temperatures thank you.
I'm ready for tomorrow morning. I grilled a couple of chicken breasts and cut one up into pieces, cut up some peppers and put some greek yogurt into a container. Lunch is done. I even made Steve a sandwich. Now if I can locate my black pants I'm set. I think they are in the closet. Better check tonight.
I thought I would start dieting Jan 1, and I have made an attempt at it. I have eaten better than usual the last couple of days, but not as good as I could. Maybe being back at school will help. I hope so. I know I really need to get serious about this and follow through. I've been practicing at this dieting long enough. Last time I did weight watchers online and it worked really well. This time it isn't the motivator I need, but I still think its the best plan out there. I'm going to keep at it and this weekend really plan out what I need to do for the following week. In my case, no plan means no diet.
Along those lines, Amy, Steve and I went to Sam's tonight. I bought lots of fresh food, some teriyaki salmon, sugar free hot chocolate and chicken breasts. Unfortunately my spinach ended up at Amy's house. My plan for tomorrow is to have oatmeal for breakfast and a half a grapefruit. Lunch will be grilled chicken, pepper strips, greek yogurt and 2 clementines. Supper is going to be teriyaki salmon and baked sweet potatoes and some other vegie. Snack of sf hot chocolate and some other fruit. Maybe if I list my foods for the following day I will stick to it better. Can't hurt.
I need to get back to knitting. I have one sock close to done and the other one nowhere near even started. I started a sweater earlier too. They won't get done if I don't get back to them. Reading is going slow too. I started Pillars of the Earth. I think I just need to turn off the tv. With that note I think I'll work a little on the CPU as Haley calls it and then turn in and read awhile.
TTFN

Happy New Year

Well it's 2008. My motto for the year is: All things great in 2008. I should work for an ad company huh! Now if someone starts putting that on all their things you'll have seen it here first folks. Start sending in the royalties.

We had a great time last night. For the last few years we have spent New Years Eve playing games at my house. As the kids get older it becomes even more fun. Sorry about the sideways picture. Somehow I thought it would right itself. It does in some programs. Will made me think of Scott so much. Even though it wasn't Will's idea to take off his pajamas, Scott always ran around the house in just his diaper or underwear. Couldn't keep clothes on that kid.

I have made so many resolutions in all the years past, that if I had followed them all, I would be a perfect human being. Of course since that is not true, I'm making only one resolution this year. Drum roll please. I resolve to: Be happy with what I have and not wish for all the things I don't have. For example, I'm always wishing for a bigger house. Well really this house suits us just fine most of the time. I know many people who entertain in much smaller houses and do it well. So I resolve to be happy with my little house and entertain more inspite of it. I could go on and on but that's really not the point. The point is I have a really wonderful life and I'm going to focus on the nontangible things and quit worrying about tangible things. Off soapbox.

Now of course there is a difference between a resolution and a goal. Am I going to set goals for this year. Duh!!! So here is a list of goals for 2008.

1. Lose weight. I know this is one everybody does, but it has to be my top goal. I just don't want to have another year of being overweight and all that goes with it.

2. Declutter my house. I think the overweight and the clutter go hand in hand.

3. Knit more.

4. Scrapbook more

5. Stay up until 10 most nights. I could get more of the other two done if I didn't fall asleep so early.

6. Watch less TV

7. No Diet Coke

8. Blog regularly. It was nice to go and read the few entries I had over the past year.

9. Have more family dinners

10.Give more

I'm sure the list will change over the year, but that's the beauty of goals. They are something someone strives for and they can come and go with out all the guilt of a resolution.

I'm off to dry my hair and see if I can't accomplish something this first day of the year.

TTFN

Another day in Wonderland

Man I wish I had taken pictures today. Just when you think it can't get any prettier it does. We had another inch or so of snow today. With absolutely no wind outside the snow stays on the trees and makes for a magnificent landscape.

We had to babysit for Scott's kids today. It was a short day so that was nice. It's also nice that Will is almost two and not near as needy. I love that he talks, even if sometimes I don't catch what he is saying. Summer should be fun with him and the girls. The girls always come up with games for Grandma to play. Mind you these are not your usual games, like Monopoly or Sorry. No siree. We have to have a Princess Party and I had to graduate from Haley's school for the Creative Mind. I laughed so hard at the Princess Party. Haley made Hannah a bra out of paper. Hannah was Ariel mind you. Hannah being the ham she is kept saying "my bra, my bra" and doing this weird dance. You had to be there.

My Christmas tree is coming down tomorrow. Grady has rediscovered it and the ornaments are now new chewing toys. So before anymore are chewed, the tree is coming down. And all the decorations around the house. I will probably leave my village out for a little longer, but I'm even ready for that to be gone. This is definitely a first for me.

I have just been a scrapping fool these past couple of days. I could do one layout after another if I didn't have other things to do. I came up with an idea that I'd like to work on for the coming year. A book about the great grandparents for my grandchildren. They will know so little about them, that I thought this might be a fun idea. Kind of keep the family history alive, kind of thing.

Well even though today wasn't too tough. I'm tired and ready for bed. Hard to believe I've been off from school for a week now. 5 days left of vacation. yucko

TTFN

Living in a Winter Wonderland

I just thought yesterday was beautiful. Today we still had all the snow on the trees, but we had some fog too. The fog made the trees even more wintery and then the snow was like someone had put cotton balls all over the trees. It was totally gorgeous. Of course I didn't take any pictures. And it wasn't even extremely cold. I don't mind the snow so much but I hate the bitterly cold.

I did two layouts today. I finally have the pictures and the time. It was nice to do it. I forget how much I like doing it. And when I don't worry too much about it I can actually crank them out pretty quickly. I loved this picture of Will and Hannah. I'm not sure this is the final layout. I want it to be special just like the picture.

Other then being on the computer it has been a couple of lazy days. I had visions of really deep cleaning out the spare bedroom. Unfortunately the after Christmas doldrums have hit. Still have a few days for some spark to strike me. Steve and I went and looked for dressers for that room. I would like a nice one (but not too expensive), so I can put my seasonal clothes in it and even have some room for toys. We found one but I think I'll wait awhile. I would like all my clothes purging done first.

The Christmas tree is still up. I almost caved and had Steve bring up the boxes. Tomorrow we babysit, but Saturday I think it's going. Why does the tree always look fine until the day after Christmas and then it starts to look disheveled and tired? Mine is even an artificial one. One of the major mysteries of life.

We've had two tragic car accidents in the area this week. One was a young father. He and his wife and 10 month old baby were heading to Huron for Christmas. No seatbelt. Just sad. The other one was last night. An eight year old was killed in a two car collision. An unbearable tragedy for some family. So heartbreaking at this time of year. These should be reminders to us all the appreciate what we have each and every day. Give everyone an extra hug today.

TTFN

Christmas Recap

Christmas was wonderful, weird, funky and a bit sad. I'm not sure how else to describe it. First and foremost it was wonderful. It always is in my book. Christmas couldn't be bad no matter what, because Christmas is in the heart. So no matter what any of the other variables are, if Christmas is in your heart nothing else is important. I love every aspect of Christmas.

So this years Christmas was great. We all sit in my uber tiny living room like a full can of sardines. We laugh, we eat, we open presents, and then we laugh some more. Just fun stuff. This year Kyra added to the hilarity. She bought her uncle Scott underwear. Not just any underwear, but underwear with words and a zombie printed on the butt. Too funny. (on a side note he wore them later at the great grandparents and displayed them for her). Christmas was weird and funky because I didn't label the kids presents and then forgot which paper was Kylers and Haley's. And the presents I gave this year were not the best. I'm not sure why. Maybe they'll be better next year. The bittersweet aspect of Christmas this year was at the great grandparents. It was so evident this year that Grandma won't be there next year. Her alzheimers is getting to the point that I think she'll be in a nursing home next year. It makes me nostalgic for the old days and grateful for one more year to be together. I think once we can't go to their house anymore, we won't be able to get together as easily.

Mother nature cooperated beautifully this year. We had 4.9 inches of fluffy white snow. It came down so nice and gently all day. It was absolutely gorgeous. Of course we didn't have to drive any further than across town. I took this picture today. It really was a Currier and Ives scene.

I'm experiencing a little of that Christmas letdown this year. I have the urge to take down all the decorations and return things to normal. But I'll resist. I know I'll be sad if I do. I hate when everything returns to normal and those blah and gray January days take over.

Scott brought the kids over today to go sledding on the hill across the street. We let Grady go over and sled with them. What a riot! But how cool is it that you can take your kids to the same hill you went to all the time. And that hill is just across the street from Grandma and Grandpa. When I think I want a bigger house, I need to remember these small details. Maybe they're not so small.

TTFN

Hard Work Often Pays After Time, But Laziness Always Pays Off Now

My new mantra.

Hard to believe there is someone else out there who shares my philosophy and had the wherewithall to make a picture of it.

Christmas is progressing along nicely. I've wrapped about 7 presents and have 30 more to go. Christmas cards are being shipped here waiting for me to get the letter written and the stamps bought. April 15th seems like a good deadline for those. I made a wonderful white chocolate popcorn concotion. I'm sure that will be gone by Wed. I've come up with 2 projects that should only take a week or so to finish. So you see things are right on schedule.

On a serious note, we had major fun Friday night. We rented a 14 passenger limo bus to go look at Christmas lights. It was so nice to be able to have the whole family together to do it. It wasn't even about the lights. Of course I didn't take a picture nor did Scrapbook Amy. I hope the kids will have a wonderful memory of it anyway.

For some reason bed is calling my name. I think I'll listen to it.

First Big Snow

I wish I had taken pictures yesterday. Grady had such a good time playing in the snow. He would find an apple and then throw it in the air. Then he would dig to find it and start the process all over. Of course for a dog any excuse to dig is a good thing.
We had 4 inches of snow. Just the right amount if you ask me. Enough to turn everything white, but not enough to stay forever if we get some warm days. Snow's great if it doesn't last all winter. I hate it when we get a big blizzard in November and then the snow stays until March or April. Makes for one long winter. This is just perfect. It adds the right touch for the Christmas season.
Speaking of Christmas, I seem to have lost the umph. I finally put all the decorations on my tree and Steve put up my village, but otherwise I'm not psyched to do much other decorating.
I hope I haven't hit that old age, Christmas bah humbug age. I always thought even if it was just me I'd still do all the Christmas hoopla, but sometimes it really does seem like alot of work for such a little time. I haven't even worried about the shopping. Now that's a good thing actually. Sometimes I obsess over that too much.
At school we go to Sertoma tomorrow and then we're taking the kids to the mall. That should be interesting. When we used to go to Target with all the kids that always put me in the Christmas mood. So hopefully this will too.

Hello again

Another ordinary day in an ordinary life. I took Kyra to Special Edition this morning. I love doing that. It seems like a weird thing to have to leave home 40 minutes earlier than usual and actually look forward to it, but I do. First off I get to spend some time with just Kyra. Second I usually go to Starbucks, so that's a treat in itself. And thirdly I get to see some of the most amazing things. Like the sunrise this morning. Even if I had stopped and tried to take a picture it wouldn't have done it justice. Absolutely breathtaking the way it broke through the clouds and shone through the parking ramps downtown. Definitely one of those never to be repeated moments. By the time it took me to go about 8 blocks the clouds were coming in and obscuring the view. You had to be up and out early this morning or you'd never know what you missed.
I haven't knitted in about 5 days. I'm not exactly sure why, except that I haven't had the urge. I need to get back to it though.
Otherwise this was just an ordinary day in an ordinary life. Just the way I like it.
Good night all.

Where does the time go?

I wish I had some cool pictures for my long lost blog, but alas I've been neglect on picture taking along with blogging. Haley just informed me she has a blog now. Maybe that will be what I need to get back to blogging.
Back to school tomorrow. Where did my 4 day weekend go? Well Friday I went to the doctor in the morning. I'm not sure what I did the rest of the day. Oh I did go to Walmart with Amy later in the day, but overall it was a wasted day. Saturday I babysat Haley, Hannah and Will. Poor Will was sick so we didn't get to do anything, but hang around the house. Sunday Amy and Kyra and I went to Starbucks and Target. Nothing too exciting there. Today Steve and I worked outside and played with Grady. Later in the afternoon Amy, Kyra and I went to Hobby Lobby looked around downtown. Love Zandbros. I should do all my Christmas shopping there.
Speaking of Christmas shopping, I should write down all my ideas and just go shopping. If I set my mind to it I could probably be done in a day. Unfortunately I always try and second guess myself and end up spending way too much time shopping. Christmas should be interesting with Grady and all his shenanigans.
I'm watching dancing with the stars. I don't think there is a really good one in the group this time. It really is more of a popularity contest this time.
Hopefully I'll get back to blogging more regularly.
Goodnight all.