Pictures, Pictures!

It's a rare occasion anymore to get all three of my boys together AND get them to cooperate for a picture. I won't tell you how many I had to take to get them all looking the same way, at the same time, smiling, with no bunny ears behind one or the other of them. From left to right, Patrick (the youngest) Daniel (the oldest) and Kevin (the middle)

 

We were lucky enough to get Rick's coaching buddy, Mike to come to dinner too. Mike said he ate more that day then he'd eaten the previous 6 months. I promised him that when we are in the playoffs next year, I'll cook for the coaches the way I cooked Thanksgiving day. Rick on the left, me in the middle, and Mike on the right.

 

If sharing headphones doesn't say love, what does?? Kevin & Erica shared a movie after dinner.

 

Patrick is used to being the center of attention around here. While he enjoyed having his brothers here and all our other company, he enjoyed the next evening, relaxing with the dog, after everyone had left. Patrick doesn't realize it, but the dog is really the center of attention. LOL!

 

That's all that Blogger will let me post, 4 pictures. More again another time. Because I left out some VIPs that were at dinner, snow pictures, and a few other wild things.
I hope you enjoyed them...

and the Blessings Were All Counted

The past week has been a blur, but the pictures are clear, even tho they are still in two different cameras. I'm starting to think Thanksgiving should be a week long celebration. I'm starting to like it better than Christmas. It's like all the fun without the gimme's and commercialism.
We began celebrating on Sunday with our kids and my sister & brother in law. Kevin & Erica cruised in first on Saturday night late. It's always good to see them. Susie & Truman were next, arriving early on Sunday, while I was in the midst of cooking. I like to cook it all, so no, no one else has to do anything. I did have Kevin & Erica bring the rolls, and Danny & Felicia brought deviled eggs. But I think I'm taking those duties back next year. (I also forgot to buy/make those things, so it was great to delagate at the last minute).
We didn't have pumpkin pie, but we did have Triple Berry/Apple/Rhubarb Pie and those Cream Cheese bars that I "never make for us" and of course, Kevin's Pink Fluff. But all the boys love the fluff, it's not just for Kevin. He just brought the recipe home. So we ate way too much food, watched way too much football and played a game of Trivial Pursuit til I couldn't stay awake any longer.
They even cooperated and wrote up journal cards with what they were thankful for. Which everyone was pretty much on the same page, except Patrick, my out of the box thinker. He was "thankful my mom makes us do these wonderful activities" and leftovers and of course, "thankful for tomorrow when everyone leaves". He likes being the center of attention around here. Which is hard for him to do with two older brothers in the house.
I made it through work Monday and was totally shocked when a co worker offered me FREE tickets to the Packers/Saints game that night. Then I was totally sad when I had to turn them down because we needed to pack for our trip on Tuesday. But it's a good thing we didn't go, the Packers lost badly. It would have been too painful to watch in person. Kevin & Erica went, and had a good time, despite the loss. Our tickets went to another Packer fan friend, who had never been to a game. So I'm glad for that.
Tuesday we flew the friendly skies for 3 hours to Milwaukee and then drove til 2 a.m. (3 hours after landing) to the inlaws house in the woods. Yes, there was snow on the ground and it was 13 degrees. Yes it was d-mn cold, especially since I left my coat packed in my suitcase.
Wednesday after sleeping in, we just hung out at the house until it was time to go to mass/Eucumenical service with the inlaws. Rick and I both got put to work there. I helped with the refreshments and he helped his dad with the collection/handing out programs/everythingelsehisdaddoes. It was a very nice service and the church was packed with people from 3 churches in their community. By the time we got home, Rick's sister had arrived with her husband, daughter and two granddaughters. The grands were already asleep, but we chatted til the wee hours with the adults.
Thursday was dinner at their friend's lodge on the lake. What a nice dinner! We gathered for attitude adjustment at noon and dinner was about 1. It's such a beautiful old lodge, over a hundred years old with alot of old handcarved woodwork and history throughout. Dinner was scrumptious and afterward the kids cleaned up while the adults chatted. Such fun!
Sadly Rick's sister & family had to leave right after, but it was good to see them for a short time. I had fun with the girls, they are at the fun age (4 & 7). All the little ones were so well behaved.
The rest of the weekend was spent relaxing. I put a huge dent in my Christmas card making and showed Rick's mom how to make bows for her packages. She was so enthralled that the next day we went to Hobby Lobby and bought her all the supplies she needed!
Saturday my brother drove up from Illinois to visit. It was great to see him again! We spent most of the day just chatting but took him to the lodge for dinner. He loved the place. After we got back to the house, he showed me some neat tricks with my camera, and we looked at old pictures from Rick's family. It was well after dark when he left, so I worried about him making it home (3 hours).
Sunday, all too soon, it was time for us to go. The snow I had prayed so hard for had begun to fall. But it wasn't heavy enough or falling fast enough for us to delay our trip, so off we headed. Of course, THEN, it started pretty heavy, but the roads were good enough to get us through. It was a very pretty drive, tho, I would have much rathered sit in the house and watch it fall.
After plane delays and plane delays we finally made it home at 11:55 p.m., I headed straight to bed, opening my suitcase only enough to get my jammies out! It was good to be back in my own bed.
Our trip was fantastic, never long enough. The week was peaceful, relaxing and reflective. Just what a Thanksgiving celebration should be.
Pictures another day, I promise!

:J

Happy Thanksgiving!

Rick and I are in the woods of Wisconsin for a few days, hopefully snowed in. I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving. Until I get back in a few days, stay busy with this latest meme.

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping Paper

2. Real tree or Artificial? I have an artificial tree, only because it's more practical.

3. When do you put up the tree? Whenever I can find the time

4. When do you take the tree down? 12 days after Christmas

5. Do you like Egg Nog? No

6. Favorite gift received as a child? All of them! but probably my ballerina jewelry box

7. Hardest person to buy for? My Brother in law

8. Easiest person to buy for? The boys

9. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes

10. Mail or email Christmas cards? Mail

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? An alarm clock from my ex

12. Favorite Christmas Movie. The Bells of St. Mary's

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? When the mood strikes

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? YES!

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Our family Cheeseball

16. Lights on the tree? Yes, White ones!

17. Favorite Christmas song? Oh Holy Night and White Christmas

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Depends, love to do both!

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer's? I can name all of them in the song, but can Santa even name all of his reindeer????

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? A Star made out of tin foil and cardboard. Rick and the boys made it our first Christmas together

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning Morning. One Christmas eve and the rest in the morning.

22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? Commercialism

23. Favorite ornament theme or color? Mostly old or handmade, no real theme, although we do have a Green Bay Packers Tree!

24. Who is least likely to respond to this? ?

25 . Favorite for Christmas dinner? Ham

26 . What do you want for Christmas this year? My wedding ring fixed.

27 . Who is most likely to respond to this? Thats what I want to know!

Happy Thanksgiving!

No, the week didn't breeze on by you. It's not really Thursday, the traditional Thanksgiving. Today, Sunday, my family is celebrating Thanksgiving.
Kevin & Erica arrived last night. Daniel, Felicia, Susie & Truman arrive today. Later today, right before dinner, Rick's Coachie Friend, Mike, will arrive just in time to eat.

Tonite our house will be full of air mattresses and satisfied tummies.
I started cooking last night. The desserts are all baked, a few salads made, onions & celery chopped for the stuffing, and in a bit, Mr. Turkey is going in the oven.

Tuesday, Rick and I travel to Wisconsin to visit his parents. When our boys found out there would not be a traditional Thanksgiving Dinner, they threw a fit. "What about leftovers!?!" "What! You aren't making stuffing!?!", so my idea of a nice quiet Thanksgiving went out the window with the north wind.

But that's what I'm really Thankful for. With the world in the turmoil it's in, and people not speaking to people they should, my family still wants to be together. Even if it is just for the stuffing.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

My Life that is a RollerCoaster

Its up and down, fast and slow and on it goes, and goes and goes.
There's all the work rolls, the "oh no they changing our curriculum" to "oh no, they aren't!"
The "we're moving all the offices, RIGHT NOW!" to "oh, maybe we need to rethink this, and move in the summer with no students around"
Not to mention the meetings, meetings, meetings. I haven't been to so many meetings in my life.
It's all coming to a screeching halt for a few days. Now I can focus on Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday, packing for our trip and leaving Tuesday. Five days in the woods. Me? I'm praying for a blizzard next Saturday night, we'll get snowed in, unable to make our plane Sunday.
What happens to rollercoasters in the snow? I'd love to find out!
:J

YOU know YOU WANT Them!

 

These came in the mail today! Aren't the just beautiful?? I was really surprised because I thought Linda said she shipped them yesterday. Maybe it was Saturday, even so, I got them TODAY! If you count, there's only 11. The 12th one didn't come in, but who cares? It's a brownish one, I'll live! I just can't believe I got them already. Which one is your favorite color?
Linda has them in her store www.hilltopmemories.com . Shipping is FREE, and as you can see FAST!

So not even the discombobulation that is going on with the big move at work can spoil my day today. I got my new Distress Stickles!!!!!!

Thanks LINDA!

From Kip, I guess she wants to know.........

Challenge going around...long one...
and a different kind of one for sure, lol!....

Where is the person you gave your heart to for the first time?
Don't know, Definitely don't care.

What were you doing at ten last night ?
driving down a country road in the dark, praying we weren't lost

What was the last thing you drank ?
coffee

What' s going on between you and the last person you kissed?
right this second, not a thing, but give it a few hours and we'll see!

What' s something you really want right now, be honest?
Where do we start with that...okay, I'll be materialistic....top of the line Canon Digi SLR...

Last time you had butterflies in your stomach?
Thursday

Anything annoying you right now?
Yes, and let's leave it at that.

Who was the last person to make you cry?
myself

Anybody you' re looking forward to seeing soon?
My Kids, my sister and my inlaws

Are you going anywhere for the next summer?
I'm sure I will, I don't let grass grow under my feet.

Who was the last person you hugged?
A few dozen football players and my husband

Who was the last person in your room?
My husband

Did you have a dream last night ?
Yeah, about a naked man, but I didn't look at him.

How many piercings do you have?
ears only......

Have any tattoos?
Again why would I ruin one of God's perfect creations

Are you good at giving directions ?
Yes I can get you there from anywhere.

Last time you cried really, really hard?
When I had a meltdown about work.

What is your favorite thing to eat with peanut butter?
Ummmmm....bread?

Could you go out in public looking like you do now?
Of course! And I'd be well dressed in my Packers Sweatshirt!

Have you ever made someone so mad that they broke something?
Yep!

What is your favorite color?
The blue of my husband's eyes

Do you think your last ex deserves to die?
Yes, a slow, painful, suffering death.

When was the last time you saw your Grandpa?
Oh about 47 years ago. I don't remember it.

Do you know anyone with cancer?
Yes

Who was the last person you talked to in person?
My husband and my youngest child. We're spending the day bonding.

Do you think you can last in a relationship for 3 months? Yes
what kind of relationship? 3 months is a short time, I can endure alot of things for 3 months.

What is the last text in your inbox ?
A joke from Jo

Have you lost friends in the past 3 years ?
No, if I lost them they weren't friends

Do you talk about your feelings or hide them?
Seriously? Me? Hide my feelings?

Do you think someone is thinking about you right now?
Sure, I just hope they are good thoughts

Are you excited for anything to happen in the next 6 months?
Let's see, Going to Wisconsin, Christmas, Winter Retreat, the Hilltop Cruise.

What should you be doing right now?
Laundry, cleaning closets, cleaning house, paperwork, taking a few things back to wally world, writing a few cards, and the list goes on.

Do you believe in true love?
Yes

Do you miss your past?
I don't miss it, I'm glad it's past.

Do you think that your ex still likes you?
That's irrelevant to me.

Has a person of the opposite sex seen you in your underwear?
Geez, who told??

If you could go back 3 months from now would you change anything?
Yes, I would not have stressed so much about the upcoming changes to our curriculum because the state is going to change their minds two weeks after a major conference discussing it and we won't end up changing it!

Where 's the last place you went?
To a Football game

what color are your eyes?
Green

At the moment, are you more warm or cold?
I am comfortable.

What are you listening to?
Wisconsin winning the football game against Minnesota!!!!

Do you prefer an ocean or pool?
To sit beside, an ocean.
To swim in, a pool

How long is your hair?
Shoulder length til Wednesday....

Last thing you ate?
BBQ potato chips

Are you a bad influence?
I am not as bad an influence as some people are..........

Would you share a drink with a stranger?
Depends...probably

Can you easily tell if someone is fake?
Yes, I have a pretty good instinct.

Looking back did you ever waste too much time on a certain boy or girl?
Yep!

What' s your favorite card game?
Canasta or Euchere

Know anyone who' s been drunk recently?
Probably one of my sons, but no not really, unless you count Barb's Halloween Sangria!

Do you enjoy drama ?
I get amused at how wrapped up people get in drama. No, I don't like it in my life, it's a waste of my time.

How many months until your birthday?
11 months exactly

Do you believe every one deserves a second chance?
I have to judge that by each individual circumstance.

Last three people you texted?
Jo, Kevin, Patrick

What are you doing tonight?
Watching football and scrapping, finishing laundry and..........

Is smoking one of your turn offs?
I hate being in a room with someone who is smoking. I hate what it does to you. But I can't say it's a total turn off since I'm married to a wonderful man who's only downside is he smokes.

What' s the last kind of soup you ate?
White Chicken Chili too!

What kind of dog do you want?
The one who lives with me

Do you currently have a sunburn?
I would if I went outside

Could you eat nothing but grilled cheese for a week straight?
Yep, I think I could, especially if it's made with Velveeta! Drippy hot.

What color was the last drink you consumed?
Brown

Would you rather shave your head or dye your hair bright orange?
Bright orange, I have too many bumps on my head to shave it.

Could you last an hour without talking?
Sure

Has anyone told you they missed you lately?
Yep!

Are you a Hollister/Abercrombie kind of person?
Your choice in clothing shouldn't be what defines you.

how many hours of sleep did you get last night ?
8

What makeup do you wear on a daily basis ?
None

What curse word do you use the most?
The bomb I shouldn't.

Do you own an ipod?
Classic 120G

Would you rather take the picture or be in the picture?
Both!

Has anyone ever called you lazy?
Yes, but I don't listen

Do you ever take medication to help you fall asleep faster?
Yes

Do you prefer regular or chocolate milk?
Chocolate

Can you whistle?
Yes

How big is your local mall?
Not big enough!

Are you currently wearing glasses?
Yes

Do you own any band t-shirts?
Does a Jimmy Buffet Margaritaville shirt count?

How many aunts and uncles do you have?
Well, none alive really. I have cousins I call Aunt. I know, I'm confused....

Do you crack your knuckles?
Yes, but I already have arthritis, so it doesn't matter does it?

What is your favorite salad dressing?
Western

Do you read for fun?
If it has words, I read it.

Can you speak any languages other than English?
bits and pieces.

Where is your cell phone ?
On the bar behind me

What color is your bedroom painted?
Wood

Are your parents divorced?
No, they are buried in Illinois

What do you like to snack on at the movie theatres?
Dry popcorn with M&M's mixed in.

Have you ever dated someone out of your race?
I only date humans

What was/is your favorite class in high school?
Any class Mr. Williams taught. (freshman civics, Senior Gov't, History)

If you were born the opposite sex, what would your name have been?
Morton

Were you a " planned" child?
There is sixteen years between me and my next older sibling, what do you think? Of course I was planned!!!!

How old will you be turning on your next birthday?
A year older than I am now

Ever eaten an entire thing of frosting?
Yep! and a box of graham crackers to go with it.

Have you read To Kill A Mockingbird?
Several times

What instrument would you like to learn?
Flight instruments or surgical instruments.

Were you ever a safety patrol in elementary school?
Yes, but I let the power go to my head

Do you like dodge ball?
No, I was always the target!

Ever order anything from the tv?
Yes!

Can you write with both hands ?
Yes, can you read it? No

Do you get cold sores a lot?
I am not that kind of girl!

Chapstick or lipgloss?
Chapstick

Last time you got poison ivy?
I am not that kind of girl either!!!

Let's see, I challenge Darla, Cindy and Val!

As All Good Things Come to an End

 

They are all Seniors. They are all Defensive Lineman. They have played all 4 years together. They have grown from boys to men. Last night was their last night together as a team on the field.
They will always be able to count on each other, seniors, friends, brothers and coaches. Their won - loss record should never define them, for these guys have grown from chubby, bubbly freshmen to serious senior leaders. They define what defense is all about, the weights, the agility, the wrap up the opponent tackle.
Some will go on to college and play. For most, this is it, the end.
It's been great to get to know these guys, watching them grow. We've known some since before they started school, and most we've watched develop in just 4 years. But they have become our sons, for the rest of our lives, we will claim them. I can assure you at that 10 year reunion, these guys will still be leaders, successful, decent men. We're so proud of them!

btw, hubby is the blond on the right. He's 6 ft 1 and 240 lbs, does this tell you the size of some of these guys???

Can you believe it's Wednesday already?? Days are just a flyin' by! It will be Christmas before we know it! I've already started on my Christmas cards, have you?
Yesterday I spent most of the day in the scraproom and that was good therapy. Nothing like a day in the scraproom. Except for maybe a day at a Hilltop crop. No other crops compare.
I putzed and puttered with a few things yesterday, then settled down to make Thanksgiving cards. I had fun making them. I'm embossing and inking these and at first it was hard to get the routine down. After about the 4th card tho, I was on a roll!
Have you been to Teresa Collins website yet? I love her Gratitude Journal ! I'm thinking I may do this at Thanksgiving. I can do it here while the boys are home Sunday (11 days!!!) and then also take it with me to Wisconsin to do there with the in laws. I've been trying to think of some quick easy projects to take that will be easy to transport on the plane.
First I need to head to work! Tonite is the CMA's, so my tv night is planned. I hope you have a wondermous day!

Look at the Size of Those Nuts and a few other things

One of the things I've learned to like since moving south is boiled peanuts. Maybe it's the salty water you suck out of the shell before you crack it open to eat the velvety soft peanut inside. Maybe it's just that peanut, soft and yummy. But whenever I pass a Boiled Peanut stand on the side of the road, it's always the wrong time of day. I've either just eaten, or it will spoil my dinner. I never see them on the way to a ball game, although some concessions sell boiled peanuts.
But the other day I passed a stand and the time was right, I was hungry and wasn't eating dinner in a few hours. So I stopped. Holey Moley! Look at the size of these goobers!

 

They were yummy too! Afterwards, I wished I'd bought the jumbo bag, so I could eat more of them later.
Speaking of jumbo, look at the size of these spiders in St. Pete! It was Halloween and this house was covered in huge spiders. It looked so real, for jumbo size spiders. I'm glad they weren't invading Kip's house.

 

Mr. Max had invaded tho, and he was my buddy the entire weekend. We got along great especially after we came to the agreement that he wouldn't lick my face. He is such a cutie dog. He brought his toy to bed with him and he would hop in the bed when Mudgy wasn't there. This is a rare picture of Max resting. He goes and goes!

 

But that was last week and I came home to crazy busyness. Football season enters it's final week for us, as we didn't make the play offs. Which is fine with me because playoffs would have meant we cancel our trip to Wisconsin for Thanksgiving. I cooked my famous White Chili for the coaches this past weekend, so they are happy to have had that.
Today I took a day off and stayed home to make a 4 day weekend. It's been a great catchup from being gone so much and so busy. My house is looking liveable again. I cleaned my bedroom today. It was looking like a teenager's bedroom it was so cluttered!
Tomorrow is Veteran's Day and while I salute everyone who sacrifices so that I may enjoy my freedoms, I'll enjoy the freedom of scrappin' all day long!
I hope you have a good day, what ever freedom you decide to exercise. But make sure to thank a vet!
:J

Truly Momentous, Ordinary Day

The magnitude of this election finally sunk in today. I've watched it coming through my children's eyes. Eyes that didn't ever see the color I once saw. Eyes that accept everyone for what they are.
It is momentous when you see it in people who have worked long and hard for this day. People who have dreamed about it and are no longer here to share it. We have gotten to experience something no one before us or after us ever will.
Wars come and go, inventions change lives temporarily when looking at the big picture. We all live through great things. But I think this is bigger, much bigger. We have experienced world change.
And while I spent this day doing ordinary things, cleaning house, grocery shopping, doing laundry and cooking dinner, it is a far,far cry from ordinary.

Voting, Travel and Life goes on.........

Yep! I voted! I was at the poll at 6:30 a.m. so I could get ahead of the line. I voted 41st in my precinct. I waited a half hour for the poll to open but I voted and was out in 10 minutes. I hope you voted. If you didn't, don't say anything about America and what happens next.
We also voted for Superintendent, Some school board and Sherriff. I think I got those all right also. So there were 40 people ahead of me and about 100 in line behind me. Usually there's nobody. I always vote before I go to work. Never a crowd til today. If only every election were this way.
I had quite a wild adventure this past weekend. As you know, after my meetings I was going to get up with my friends, and stay with Kip. Kip was going to come pick me up when she got off work, but I got bored and jumped on the beach trolley to ride almost all the way to her house. Close to 30 miles I think.
My rationalle was this. All day bus pass $4. Two hours to kill. How better to see the local flavor. I'm so glad I did it! The busses weren't big, trolley size, so I felt safe. It was interesting to see the people riding. I talked to two retired girls on vacation from Minnesota and Michigan. I met some firefighters from Maryland there on for a convention. I watched a guy hit on the two retired girls. He wasn't playing with all his marbles. I also saw people coming and going, to and from work. The ones coming from work looked tired, and they were quiet. The ones going to work were louder and animated. All and all it was a good experience, I really enjoyed it!
Kip did pick me up about 5 minutes from her house. She was amazed I just hopped on the bus and came over. For $4!!!!
I finally got to meet Barb, Kip's college roomie. She is such a sweetheart. A truly beautiful soul with a great husband, son and DIL. They made me feel so welcome in their home and fed me so well. We had Black bean soup, cuban sandwiches and Sangria. That was some kick butt Sangria and there was a point were Kip and I pondered who would drive home. But a walk around Barb's neighborhood looking at the thousands of TorTers did us both well. What fun! St. Pete people are so nice!!!
Tomorrow my box full of goodies should arrive, everything I bought while shopping. We went to the Morning Market. I wish I could have brought the whole market home with me. What a fantastic place. So many cool things for sale, great smells, fresh food, and fantastic crafts. I would love to shop there every saturday morning!
After the market it was off to Ruban Rouge's yard sale. Such bargains! I'll have to get a picture tomorrow when it all comes. All of it fit in my new basket from Ghana that I bought at the market.
The best thing at the yard sale was all the friends I got to see. Jules, Linda, MarMar, and Val. I got to finally meet Debi from the Hilltop board, with her hubby Zutterman!!! Teri called me, but couldn't come play since she is hitting the books hard. I understand, and I'm going to see that girl walk across the stage with her diploma! I'm so inspired by her!
I loved catching up on all the gossip and goings on that I miss not being able to go to crops. I missed seeing a few other friends too. Someday I'll see them all again together, hopefully at WR.
My flights home were uneventful really. It was great to be home in two one hour segments instead of the 8 it took to drive down there. I played with my iPod and in no time I was home.
Yesterday brought back to work, with 4 inches of paperwork waiting for me. Life goes on. I spent most of the past two days catching up on that. I've also planned a celebration for passing our audit and half planned our Winter Wellness (pc for Christmas party) activity.
Tonite I went to the LSS to meet up with some friends for shopping and chat. Like I needed to shop! But it was fun seeing the girls again and to make sure the LSS was still standing.
Tomorrow is another day, I hope it's just as fun!
:J

Still Brrrrrrr!

We arrived in Clearwater this afternoon thinking it might be warmer than when we left north Florida this morning. Not so much!
We tried to walk on the beach as it is so beautiful and they have a Sunset celebration right outside our hotel. It was just too windy. So we went to dinner at a local joint where we were entertained by a young drunk girl full of drama. It was sad in a way, but entertaining. I had a bowl of gumbo for dinner since we had a huge lunch. But now I'm a little hungry.
Tomorrow is our big meeting. I hope they have infor for us. IF not, we've wasted another trip.
It truly won't be a waste, I get to see Kip and the girls this weekend!
Can't wait.
:J

BRRRRRRR!

It got down in the low 40's last night. BRRRRRRR! It didn't bother me so much, I was warm and snuggly. My dog, on the other hand, jumped up on the bed as soon as hubby got up and took his warm spot. I have to wonder, if it's going to be a cold winter for us.

This week is supposed to be more of the same. Even in the 30's in some parts of the county. We won't see that, we are too near the coast. Speaking of the coast, I'll be in Clearwater tomorrow. I think it will be a bit warmer there! I have another school meeting and then a weekend of play with the Hilltop girls.

Don't forget to set your clocks back an hour on Saturday night. I love that extra hour. It just seems like we should do something extra special with that hour, doesn't it??

I'll miss the Homecoming football game this week. It looks like they should win. We weren't picked to win last week, as a matter of fact we were supposed to be whipped soundly. But our little scrappers hung in there. The score was 3-7 until half way through the 4th quarter. We drove the ball down to the one foot line and couldn't get it in. Defense got the ball back with 4 seconds left in the game, but it was too late and the refs let the clock run out. UGH! Such a disappointing loss for our guys. But a win this week and next will put us in the playoffs.

I have mixed emotions about the play offs. Yes I want to go to play offs, but we have tickets to go home for Thanksgiving! Hubby says he won't go home if they are in the playoffs. I don't know what I'll do....

Have a wondermous day!

Ramblings, ramblings

I promised pictures so we will start with those. I have to show you the day we set up the booth. This is what the fairgrounds looked like outside our building. Barren

 

A few days later they were setting up the rides, we always have the ferris wheel right outside our door, and this year they added a small roller coaster. It had an oriental theme.

 

Then finally here is the same spot when people were there. The booth right outside our door had American Indians who played a mouth harp and a guitar while they sold jewelry and other items. Their music was beautiful and soothing. So nice.

 

Finally a picture of some of our booth. We had over 50 entries, I couldn't fit them all in one picture!

 

I'll try to post pictures of the winners in our division soon. I have pictures of the scrapbook pages, but not the cards.
I was disappointed that my pictures of the livestock auction did not turn out. GRRRR! I really need to get a new camera. Speaking of, I played with the new school camera today. A Canon. Yeah I knew you were going to ask which one. I don't know, but it was awesome!!! I'm thinking seriously about getting myself one for Christmas.

Our audit at work is almost over. Tomorrow we get to hear what they have to say. I hope it's good. If the food and entertainment were what they were judging us on, we'd be fine! Our meet and greet Monday night went well. Well, except the Superintendant didn't even show. Him or any of his croonies. But all the important people were there, all the vocational people from downtown. I'm sure the super had much more important things to do. We had a great time anyway.
I got to go to all the lunches with them, yesterday our culinary department served coq au vin and a lamb dish. The coq au vin was devine! OMY! and the lamb, well it wasn't my choice at all, but our chef coaxed me into trying it. OMY! If you wouldn't have told me, I wouldn't think it was lamb. Not like the last lamb I ate which tasted like a wet mitten. The lamb was delicious with onions and mushrooms, ohhh yummmy! They also made homemade ice cream and an apple desert that was like an open faced pie. Cravable! Today was Mahi Mahi with shrimp and crabcakey stuffing. Yummy! The dessert was homemade sherbet, not as good as yesterday, but yummy all the same. Everyone raved about the meals. Let's hope they rave about our school.
Going to lunch with the group gave me a chance to get to know them and realize what a small world it is. One of the ladies, is from a small town in Utah, Logan. Alot of us read a blog written by a woman from Logan, Sophia. Thanks to Sophia I was able to chat with this lady about her town, her new hobby lobby, the snow that they got last week. But the amazing conversation came from the other woman in the group. She was from Louisiana. We chatted away and I found out she was retired from Voc Ed for two years. Since then she has been traveling, visiting her children, including her son who is in the army. Now I have to say this woman has an unusual last name and when I saw it, I thought I wonder if she is related to so and so who used to post on one of my favorite message boards, KnK. So we were chatting about her son and where he's been stationed, her grandchildren, his two boys, and then in the conversation she mentioned her son's wife's name, Linda. So I said, "Is she a scrapbooker?" and when she said yes, I about died! "I think I've chatted with her!" I exclaimed. It is amazing how small this world is!
So tomorrow brings another day. Hopefully a good one. I promise more pictures. I do.
:J

A Day at the Fair

It's fair week here in the Panhandle. We've got beautiful weather for it, the fair always brings cooler weather. I've been enjoying it all, taking it all in and people watching.
In the AgriVenture barn I made butter, all by myself. Did you know if you put whipping cream in a closed container and shake, shake, shake it, you will get a lump of butter? It only took a few minutes too! YUMMY!
The ladies & gentlemen of the Art Study club have been a hoot. They are right across from the scrapbooking booth and have kept me entertained completely. I've enjoyed talking to them about their paintings, and their adventures. Such interesting people.
I ventured into the Homemaker's barn the other day, and bought a sackful of goodies to share with the family. Dill Pickles, Jalepeno Peppers, 4 Berry Jelly, Chocolate chip bread, and Blueberry muffins. I'm so glad those little old ladies can, so I can buy it! YUMMMY!
I love to look at the 4-H exhibit. I know from many years in 4-H how much hard work goes into those projects. Tonite is the 4-H livestock auction, which I'd love to see. It's kinda sad tho, the kids have raised their animals (cows & pigs here) for a year and now they sell them to the highest bidder, and well, you know what happens next. Do you know the kids walk their animals twice a day and they get to be like puppies following them?
I'll be back with pictures. Soon.
:J

It Was My Birthday!

A day filled with many phone calls and great wishes! A quiet birthday, but a good one. I'm happy.
I heard from people I hadn't talked to in months, got cards from friends all over the country and it really was a good day for realizing how blessed I am. I needed that!
There was no cake, special dinners, or hoopla. Just a quiet day with a wonderful card from my husband. It made me cry, because I know he means what he wrote. What more do I need.
Well, the new iPod helped too.

:J

Calgon Take Me Away!

I'm feeling just a bit stressed the past couple of days. Lots of little things going on. Everyone always wants something. I need Calgon to take me away!

:J

Still Relishin' the Victory!

Not only did we win, but this next week is a bye week, so we have no football meetings for hubby to go to this weekend. He's been catching up on his honey do list, watching football games that he never gets to watch and getting his hair cut, which he badly needed.
He's still talking about the game, every thing they did right, the few things they did wrong. Hubby's very defensive about his defensive lineman. He can get onto them about what they did wrong, but don't anyone else (except the other coach, Mike) say anything about his boys. He's like a momma hen that way.
The boys were feeling proud and had to pose for me. It's hard to believe they are seniors already. We'll sure miss this bunch of boys.

 

I had to get a picture of Hubby (the blond, grey bearded one) Jason, who is his lineman, and Coach Mike. Even tho they are close to the same age, Mike & Rick figured out that Mike could have coached Rick in High School. Yes, he's been coaching that long. We've known Jason since he was in PreK, so he's kinda special to us.

 

Check out that score board in the back, yep, we had the 35! The one thing I love about this team is everyone is the team, and everyone gathers midfield to hear what the coach has to say after the game, good or bad. Coach saves the really bad stuff for Monday at practice, when only the boys need to hear it. This year the students are really getting into the school spirit stuff. They make their own tshirts every week. It's kinda cute. They run to the sidelines when we get close to scoring or when the other team gets close to score. The week we (the defense) held the other team on the one yard line and didn't let them score. THAT was a good thing! The students helped by yelling, DEFENSE! DEFENSE! DEFENSE!.

 

I'm going to enjoy this week of no football by attending the fair. I'll be in the Scrapbooking booth, so if you are in the area, especially Thursday and Friday night, come see me!
:J

We WON!

It was our first district game this year and we won! It took triple overtime and a missed extra point by the visiting team, but we won! The final score was 35-34, but we won! Have I said it enough? We Won!

I won't bore you with details, but it was a good game in overtime. The game ended with us tied 21-21. On the third overtime when they missed their extra point, I knew we would win. Our extra point kicker never misses! Sooo exciting! We won!

So today I'm off to the fair. We're getting the scrapbooking booth ready for the fair. Entries will be turned in tomorrow, and judging will be later this week. The fair opens on Thursday!

Big Biscuit days the past couple of days. A friend sent me an email telling me that the pant outfit I'd been coveting was on sale! that justified that I could buy it and get free shipping!!! Thanks Kathy!

My night blooming jasmine is going wild! Last night when I got home from the game, the yard smelled sooooo good! The bush is just full of blooms. I suppose last weeks rain did the trick.

I had a great drive in the country to the JV game. That drive always makes me homesick, driving in the rolling hills, the farm land, and then the cornfield at the end of the football field. I saw two deer!

So counting my blessings this week. It's the small things that make life great.

:J

Rainy Days & Elephants

My day started of rainy. I really wanted to just crawl back in bed and hide under the covers, listening to the storm. Two mornings now tho, I've gone ahead and hid under the umbrella as I dashed into work. Luckily I was able to work, usually rainy days bring a network shutdown. Alas, I was a lucky one.
I actually got alot accomplished until lunch. I like the challenges of my job. It is always a challenge of some kind or another. I tackle each one, one at a time, what more can I do?
My laugh today came from my friend Lori. Actually her girls gave us all a laugh. The oldest came to pick the middle one up from school. Before they left campus they painted Lori's windows on her car with "Hot Mama" "Love ya Momma" "Hot Mom w/a Hot Bod". I had seen her windows when I went for my afternoon walk. She wasn't in her office when I got back, but a few minutes later she was in my office. "Did you see my car??!!?" "Those girls! Look what they did!" We all had a good laugh. "Don't they realize I work here?" Too funny! I just love her girls.
I'm off to bed. Tomorrow is another day.
:J

He Still Makes Me Smile

I had a phone call today from my middle son that brought a smile to my face, I just had to share it with you.
He called and asked what I was doing, to which I replied, "just working" as I was.
He said, "I know that 26 years ago you were doing something much more fun as I was the most important thing in your world 26 years ago." Really?
Actually he was wrong. He became one of the most important things in my world the night before when he was born. The other being his older brother.
"yeah, but 26 years ago today you spent alot of time just staring at my beautiful smiling face"
Okay, so he wins, I did, and I smiled back.

He then proceeded to tell me about his most exciting birthday present from his girlfriend. A recliner. I guess that makes him truly a man now, since he has his "man chair". I told him that makes him an old man. But then that makes me an older woman. How can that be? I'm still 26!

:J

Rainy Days and Bad Blogging

I confess. I've neglected my blog for 4 days. I'm so sorry blog and blog readers. I was consumed by life. It gets in the way of good intentions sometimes. But here I am, blogging.
We awoke about 3 a.m. to the rumblings of a storm moving through. I love storms like this one, you hear it coming miles before it ever reaches you. Rumbling constantly in the distance, while rain patters on the rooftop. I lay there and listened, to the rumbling and the rain, as the lightning faintly lit the walls. It was a good half hour before we got one of the big booms that shakes you in bed. Our storm boomed another half hour before it faintly rumbled on. All morning since, our sky has been pouring rain and rumbles come now and then. It's a good thing, we need rain, it's been over a month since we've had any.
So, what in life has consumed me? I had a visit from my sister. She keeps me busy shopping. I hadn't been in JoAnn's in over a month, so it was good to get there. We visited Home Goods. Where believe it or not, I found a set of mixing bowls that I need. You would think after 25+ years of keeping house I wouldn't need mixing bowls, but I do. I am kicking myself for not buying them and am hoping they are still there when I get back to that side of town. We also did Hobby Lobby where I bought my fair share of fall decor. I came home and wound some leaves around my lamps, added a few pumpkins, acorns and pine cones and voila!

What do you think??? Of course I didn't just do this for fun, although fall is my favorite season. I did this because I was having a few friends over for cardmaking in celebration of World Cardmaking day! We had so much fun with my Stampin' Up pal Sharon. She is such a talented lady and we all loved our cards!

As you know we are comsumed with football at this house also. Not a good football weekend for us. Our HS varsity team lost, hubby's Badger's lost, and his Packer's lost. On top of that our Cubbies lost.
There were a few highlights to our football weekend. I won our weekly U pick em football pool. No monetary value til the end of the season, but it feels good when you're the only girl in the group! Our greatnephew in Colorado, Ben, started his first game at QB and threw 3 touchdowns! That's the most by a QB in his league so far this year! He's in 3rd grade.
Here's hubby talking to the refs before the game Friday. Maybe it was something he said??
Yesterday was a Monday. I was consumed all day yesterday with making a sample schedule using the new curriculum for next year. I think it blew them away at the meeting. :) YEAH! I showed them what was doable, and this new curriculum is not going to be as bad as we all think. As the boss says, "we are just going to have to change the way we fundamentally do business." I'm feeling better about it now that I've put it on paper.
The fair is coming! The fair is coming! Next week our fair starts for ten days. I can almost assure you that I will be a very bad blogger then! I will work all day and fair it all night! I'm chair of the Scrapbooking and Cardmaking division, and while it's lots of fun! It's lots of work! Come see me!
Til then, have a wondermous day!
:J

Football Friday

The weeks are just flying by and it's hard to believe that we are half way through HS football season. It was almost perfect football weather last night. There was a nice chill in the air. Just a bit cooler and it would have been perfect.
I would have been downright cold tho. I was chilled because I didn't bring a jacket. I did wear long sleeves, and thankfully, shoes. But sitting up top the bleachers at my favorite spot, I was getting chilly.
We did win, 20-8. That makes the JV undefeated. So our household is happy for another day. A victory tonite would bring happiness for a week. So let's hope varsity holds out for a win.
We celebrated the JV win with dinner at Chili's. It was nice getting out after cooking all week! I was starving. I didn't go to the concession stand as it didn't open until right at kick off. Once I'm in my seat, I don't like to miss anything!
It's funny now to watch as people have staked out their places in the stands. Pretty much sitting in the same place every week, no matter where the stadium. I like the 50 yard line almost all the way to the top. You will never see me all the way at the top, I'm to scared of heights for that.
This weekend begins my jam packed rest of October. I have a stampin get together Sunday, so I'll spend tomorrow preparing for that. Then it will be time to get hot and heavy into the fair preparations. Nothing huge, but little things that take time.
I'm looking forward to the Farmer's Market this week. After last Saturday's score on the veggies and flowers, I'm stoked! I also need to hit HL but I think I will wait til my sister gets here. We can do that Saturday night. So it looks like my agenda is the Farmer's Market, commissary, home to bake, and then HL. Any one want to join me?
:J

Yummm!

What's that smell?? Banana Bread! I'm attempting a new recipe for banana bread. It's a basic recipe, nothing fancy, but my banana bread always turns out dry. The batter for this one was delish, so I'm thinking the bread will be too. I can't wait til it comes out of the oven.
My bean soup turned out very yummy too. I put it in the crock pot at bedtime and as it cooked all night I kept waking up. It smelled so good. My youngest son did not think it smelled so good. I won't tell you what he said, but he did eat 3 bowls of it. So I guess he thought it tasted okay.
My much older sister is coming to visit. She's coming into town for my Stampin' Up party on Sunday. It sounds like we'll have a great crowd for it. Now I just need to get busy cleaning and cooking. I haven't seen Susie in forever, we both lead such busy lives. Okay, I have the busy life, she's retired.
The busyness at work can slow down just a bit for me. There are certain things I don't like leaving undone at the end of the day. The past 3 days I've left my desk a mess and paperwork undone. Not that I had big problems to deal with, just little ones and of course, everyone's problem is most important.
I don't like to wish my life away, but I really do wish it was November 1st. That would mean the fair was successfully over, my audit was successfully over and our state meeting in Clearwater was successfully over and all the questions plaguing us the past year would be answered.
Okay, time for bed, I'm dreaming.
:J

His Proud Coachie Moment

Last night was like most of the nights at our house during football season. I came home from work and started supper, so that as soon as my hungry husband came home from football practice, we could eat. We had a nice meal, I made a shrimp boil with potatoes, onions and corn.
During dinner I remembered I needed to go to the drugstore to pick up a prescription. Hubby volunteered to take me. We get there, pick up the prescription and as we are checking out, the cute young thing behind the counter asks "Are you a football coach?" He beamed. Then she asked "do you know so n so?" "He's so hot!" and he beamed again because yes, he did know that boy, it's one of his lineman, one of his better linemen, one he's known since he was 4. So they continued the conversation about this HOT lineman. Not that she liked him, but her friend does. But she knew about his tattoo on his back..
When we got to the car, hubby was amazed she knew he was a coach. "How did she know?" he asked. Gee dear, I dunno, not many 50+ year old men walk around in high school football shirts. Oh, but he didn't have his hat or his coachie shorts on, so he was amazed she knew. Maybe it was the ear to ear grin when they were talking about his boy that gave it away.

Bad Blogger

I know, I've been a bad blogger. I've been reading other's blogs, I just neglected my own for a few days. So here's my best attempt to catch you up on my life.
I worked all weekend in the house. Putzing as I call it. Just doing this and that, mostly dusting. I dust furniture every week, but there are areas that just get neglected, the tops of tall cabinets, the ceiling fans, the blinds...So I worked on that.
I've been doing alot of cooking. Since my schedule change and I get home at 5ish now, I like to cook. Sunday I made collards, squash and mac & cheese. DH brought home fried chicken. I can make fried chicken but to me it's not worth the time and the mess.
I didn't get much scrap time this past weekend, matter of fact I pretty much neglected the scrap room all weekend. GASP! I do need to get in there and finish a project for the MIL.
I did go to a movie. I saw Nights in Rodanthe, great flick, take tissues. Most of it takes place on the Outer banks of NC in a big old beach house. Please put me there! Richard Gere gets better the older he gets.....he can stay in the beach house with me too.
Work has been busy, busy. Lots of changes forthcoming. I'm on the committee to facilitate the changes and it's sometimes nervewracking. Little ole me with all these Masters degrees, Specialists and Doctorates. I just pray I don't say anything STUPID. I finally spoke up this past meeting and made some valid contributions.
Meetings, Meetings, Meetings. It seems like that's all I'm getting done these days. I'm not a meeting person!
Well, off to work, I have another meeting to go to...
:J

Saturday!

I've already been up and out, and now it's back to the house for cooking and cleaning. I hit the farmer's market early, then breakfast with a freind and now I'm checking emails & blogs.
The farmer's market was bursting this morning. I came home with some gorgeous squash & zuchini, a bag of collards (Yummy!) a cream cheese danish and a gorgeous bouquet of fall flowers for my table.
Afterwards I had breakfast out with a friend. She went off to go car shopping and I'm here. I want to clean today, play tomorrow! LOL!
:J

Cool Weather

I know it seems like I've gone on and on about the cooler weather. It's something I'm really glad is here! I don't think I'll tire of it anytime soon but I promise not to go on and on much more!
I think the thing I love the most is having the windows open and listening to the sounds of the neighbor kids playing. They play so well together despite the vast range of ages of the kids.
It seems like they always have a ball bouncing, a bike moving and a small child in the wagon. There is always laughing going on, and I have yet, in a year, to hear a cross word. It's amazing. I love listening to them.
Having the windows open and hearing them going about their play connects to me to my neighborhood. I can be at home in my house and still feel a part of the world. Today I'm glad I hear the noises I do, the kids, the birds, the dogs. It's a good day when I hear no sirens, just happy play.

Coolness!

We slept with the windows open last night, it was so beautiful out. When I got up this morning it was 61 degrees. I am loving this! It's usually not this cool for another month. It's not unusual to go trick or treating on Halloween in shorts! But for now, I'm loving this cooler weather.
Maybe now my yard will get a bit more attention. I tend to neglect it in August and September, it's just tooo hot to go out there and putz. It needs some putzing done in it. A few weeds to pull, decks to sweep, it's always something that needs to be done.
For now, I'm heading to work, and football tonite. Same tomorrow. I'll have shows tivo'd to watch when I get home tonite. Grey's & Private Practice. I'm glad the new season has started. What are your favorite shows?
Last night I made invites for the stamping party I'm having in a few weeks. Wanna come? We always have such a great time.
Well the sun's up, time to make the donuts.
:J

I've decided that taking a day off to do un fun stuff just is not worth it. I vow to only take days off when I can do something fun. I paid for being off yesterday, a price that isn't worth it unless the day off is fun.
Busy day today, Busy, Busy day. Just busy catching up, paperwork upon paperwork, it must multiply by the hundreds while I'm gone. But I did get mostly caught up, working through lunch.
I was surprised to find a pretty jar of canned hot peppers on my desk when I came in to work. I knew right away who they were from. My friend Linda, is a pepper fanatic. She's been growing peppers in her garden all summer. I'm glad I get to have a jar of her peppers, she loves them that much!

 

After work my friends, Sharon & Ann came over. We're planning some paper therapy, cardmaking in a few weeks. Then after the new year we are renting the clubhouse at the golf course for a weekend of paper therapy. Just going to hang out and scrap. Us and 13 of our friends, eat, drink & scrap. I wish I didn't have to wait til after the holidays.
So for now I'll settle with a few hours of paper therapy next weekend. It will be fun I know.
:J

Sticker Shock!

Since I'm getting over the shock of paying for my glasses today, here's a blog question thingy I got off Toni's blog. I keep telling my self I'm getting two pair of glasses, but my other self is saying yeah, but it was bogo. Yeah right.
Okay, to take my mind off this argument I've had all day. The questionaire.

1. What time did you get up this morning? 8:00 a.m.
2. Diamonds or pearls? Pearls! (I just got a new string!)
3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? MamaMia
4. What is your favorite TV show? Grey's Anatomy
5. What do you usually have for breakfast? A Banana and yogurt
6. What is your middle name? Alison
7. What food do you dislike? Any hot breakfast cereal
8. What is your favorite CD at moment? Poets & Pirates, Kenny Chesney
9. What kind of car do you drive? An old Ford Explorer
10.Favorite sandwich? Pimento Loaf
11.What characteristic do you despise? People who think they are better than anyone
12.Favorite item of clothing? capris
13.If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? Right now, Alaska
14.Favorite brand of clothing? anything comfortable
15.Where would you retire to? The beach in the winter and Wisconsin in the summer.
16.What was your most recent memorable birthday? They are all memorable
17.Favorite sport to watch? Green Bay Packer Football
18.Farthermost place you are sending this? n/a, since this is a blog post
19.Person you expect to send it back first? I dunno
20.When is your birthday? October
21.Are you a morning person or a night person? Probably morning, I get cranky when I'm tired!
22.What is your shoe size? 9
23.Pets? Dog - Dakota Cat - Boots
24.Any new and exciting news you'd like to share with us? I'm getting new glasses
25.What did you want to be when you were little? A ballerina and an airline stewardess and an actress.
26.How are you today? Good, getting over that sticker shock.
27.What is your favorite candy? Dark Chocolate
28.What is your favorite flower? Lilacs
29.What is a day on the calendar you are looking forward to? All of them!
30.What are you listening to right now? Dancing with the Stars
31.What was the last thing you ate? Half a bag of BBQ potato chips
32.Do you wish on stars? Yep!
33.If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Salmon
34.How is the weather right now? Hot and muggy
35.The first person you spoke to on the phone today? My Hubby
36.Favorite soft drink? Water
37.Favorite restaurant? Manny's Pizza
38.Real hair color? Brown
39.What was your favorite toy as a child? my bike
40.Summer or winter? Fall :)
41.Hugs or kisses? hugs
42.Chocolate or Vanilla? Chocolate
43.Coffee or tea? Coffee
44.Do you want your friends to email you back? No, just blog it!
45.When was the last time you cried? Last week when I broke my favorite mixing bowl
46.What is under your bed? probably dog hair, and my prom dress (in a box)
47.What did you do last night? Watched the Packers play football on TV
48.What are you afraid of? losing people I love
49.Salty or sweet? Salty
50.How many keys on your key ring? 5
51.How many years at your current job? 4
52.Favorite day of the week? Sunday during football season
53.How many towns have you lived in? 6
54.Do you make friends easily? I don't think so

The weekend is over and so begins another week. Can I put the brakes on and slow things down just a bit? Our life lately seems quite busy and moving much too fast. This past week flew by and the weekend seems like just a blink! But alot was accomplished, both workwise and funwise.
A few pictures to share too. I took this one of my youngest son a few weeks ago. The spoiled puppy is our 75 lb. lab/chow mix who seems to think he's a lapdog. This is the only place he's allowed to be up on the furniture, and only when he's in a lap.

 

I made alot of progress in the scraproom, rearranging some things, cleaning up some things. We put the round oak table in the scraproom and I think I like it. The smaller area actually gives me more room to scrap, because I cleared out alot of clutter off the big table and only put the essentials on my smaller table. The big table is behind my round table, so it's accessible if I need more room. I can actually fit people in here now, if any one wants to come play!

 

Erica & I went to a workshop today and made these cards & a treat box. I messed the batty card on the right up with the stickles we were supposed to put on the ribbon, so when I got home I redid the ribbon. We had lots of fun, Erica loved learning how to stamp.

 

We got home just in time for the Packers game, which didn't go our way. Tis okay, is just one game. I'm still excited about the Varsity win Friday night.
Monday brings an eye appt. for me. It's time to get new glasses. I'd rather go to the dentist. I really don't like that bright light they use to look in your eyes. It gives me a horrible headache. But I'll endure, I need new glasses.
This week the new TV shows start. I'm looking forward to Grey's and Dancing with the Stars. Other than that, I can pass. Life is too short to sit so still, so long.
Enjoy!
:J

We Winned!

35-0! It was such a good night for our boys! It was just a great night for our school as a whole!
A group of seniors dressed & painted themselves up. They did sit-ups every time we scored, one sit up for every point. The different classes were there, each shouting their own graduation year. Those seniors were the loudest tho!
Here's a link to the photos http://www.pnj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Site=DP&Date=20080920&Category=SPORTS&ArtNo=809200803&Ref=PH&referrer=FRONTPAGECAROUSEL
I'm so happy for our boys, the first win in nearly 4 years (since our youngest graduated).
I'm off today to do some scrappin' with a couple of friends. I know it will be fun, they are a crazy couple of women.
:J

I Can Quit My Day Job!

I survived the challenge! I spotted the whole game. It was sooo much fun! I think I can make a career of this. LOL! NOT!
First of all the Dad that was announcing was a nervous wreck. It didn't help that he didn't know how to run the tape player. Okay, it wasn't a tape player it was a CD player. So we had no Star Spangled Banner.
The clock ref didn't stop feeding his face and climb in the booth until 30 seconds before the game started, and we were panicked. We thought we'd have to run the clock. We didn't know he was there. (This ref is my hubby's fav-or-rite ref, he's collecting the paycheck, that's it).
I kept telling the Dad that's it's just a JV game, it's okay if they don't all get their names announced. Varsity is when you get your name announced and pronounced right. (He was doing a fine job) and if you are on the visiting team, if we miss your name, oh well.
Three of the boys didn't have the right jersey on, or they weren't on the roster. That was crazy. But we worked it out at half time. We asked. A mom complained we weren't saying her son's name right. No it was printed on the roster wrong
My job was to tell him all the offensive stuff that was going on, watching the ball, all that. I got it right most of the time. I can now almost tell when they are passing the ball and when they will run the ball before the ball is snapped.
The Dad's wife kept calling him on his cellphone, telling him to announce the snack bar, the cheerleaders, to clean up after the game. He was getting ticked about it. I thought it was humorous. Men are so funny.
So this was really trial run. Tomorrow night is Varsity, we have to get everything right. Good thing I know most of those players and their numbers.
But the best thing? We won 35-0. Hubby has only lost one game as the JV defensive line coach in two years. I'm so proud of him! (and the boys!)
:J

Changing of the Plans

Okay someone switched the game plan and didn't tell me. Our game tonite is a home game. Not at the beautiful north end of the county, where the football field is next to the cow pasture and it reminds me of home. Darn! I was looking forward to that!
Instead I'll be here in town, surrounded by traffic and sirens. Tonite I'm spotting plays for the announcer, so it will be hectic, busy and I'll have to WATCH the game. No chit chat, no watching the hoochie mamas, football, strictly football. Nary a cow in the background.
I'm just hoping it stays cool. Our cool mornings have been loverly. This being a good thing as the air conditioning at work is out. O U T out. I am thanking God that it didn't go out in August. I am thanking God that it's cooled off so that at least the office is cool in the morning. The afternoons tho, when we get that sun on the south and west walls of my office, UGH! Sweatshop!!!!
So I'm off to the sweatshop. I hope you have a wonderful day!
:J

Happy Hump Day!

Time is just flying by for me! Too much to do and not enough time! It will get worse when next week starts and I want to sit in front of the TV and watch all the new shows.
We've had cool mornings the past two days. Please let this continue!!! It was down in the low 60's this morning. I am loving it! I want so badly to open the windows at night, but I know what that will do to my sinuses. It's going to be gorgeous tomorrow night for the JV game. We travel to the north end of the county and it's usually 10 degrees cooler there. I may have to take a sweatshirt. The cool weather is early for us this year, usually we don't get cool weather until the fair, which isn't for another month!
I'm off to enjoy the outside morning for a while before I have to go to work. Enjoy your day!

:J

Is It the Full Moon?

The past few days I knew something was up. I knew in the back of my mind there was a full moon. You can't sit in a football stadium two nights in a row with a clear sky and not know that. But I would have known even if I hadn't looked in the sky.

Saturday was wonderful. Stamptemberfest was a blast! A bunch of crazy fun ladies all day long, stampin' and creatin'. Ann was the best hostess, Sherri cooked some great food, and Sharon taught us some great techniques. It was a great paper therapy day for me!

Sunday is when I could tell the moon got full. I was putting away dishes and I dropped my favorite glass mixing bowl. My favorite much older sister had given me this bowl, many years ago, it came with a stand mixer which bit the dust long ago. The mixer was replaced, but the bowl stayed.
It was a great every day glass mixing bowl, just a bit on the heavy side, nothing fancy, clear, that was just perfect for 90% of the things I do in the kitchen. As soon as it dropped, it shattered into a million little pieces. DH came running to my rescue as he always does and started sweeping up all the pieces. It was then that all the memories of that bowl came flooding back to me and I just started a boohooing.
All the birthday cakes, cheeseballs, 7 layer salads, potato salads, fajita fixin's, fudge, peanut brittle and the like that we've made over the years. That ole' bowl served us well. It's been dressed up for a fancy table and dressed down as a garbage bowl when I'm doing a cooking marathon. Everyone should have a bowl that serves them so well. It wasn't as pretty as some of my other bowl, but it was always the first one I reached for because I knew I could count on it.
I'll probably never have a bowl as good as this one. I don't even know if I could find a bowl worthy enough to replace it. I'll miss that old glass bowl.

A sad day Sunday was for sure. In more ways than one, that ole full moon brought more craziness in our lives as the surf claimed the life of a friend. Chris was a new teacher at our school this year, a real dynamo who brightened a room just by being in it. He was a quick wit and already a real asset to our team.
While visiting the beach on Sunday he was caught in a riptide and pulled out. He was rescued and appeared to be fine, but was being taken to the hospital as a precaution. On the way, he went into cardiac arrest and died. Chris was 41.
We were shocked this morning as our principal made the rounds to tell us. Chris was such a bright spot in our lives for the few weeks he was in it. He was an inspiration to us as he quickly became one of the go getters on our faculty. I know I will miss his quick wit. Such a shock.
For him I will say to all who may ever visit a beach on the Gulf. Obey the flags. A red flag meaning dangerous surf was flying the day he went into the water. The waters are not as calm as they seem on top. Rip Current (undertow) is very dangerous. It will pull you out in a matter of moments. If you get caught, let it take you and then swim to the side out of it. But be safe and don't get in the water. We'll miss you Chris.

The Power of a Storm

Today Ike was 250 miles south of Pensacola, making it's way to Texas. It doesn't mean we avoided Ike's wrath. Here are a few pictures, the first from our newspaper, Pensacola News Journal.

Here are a few from my friend, Mary Ann. We usually have two to three foot surf. The bouys just of the beach were measuring 24 foot waves. The pier is a good 20 feet off the ground at least.
I hope you enjoy these pictures.



And finally one from my friend Lori's sister. Keep those in Texas in your thoughts.


More later, I just got home from a JV football game, we won! 28-20 in double overtime. I hope I have a voice in the morning!
:J

Do You Remember?

I remember the precise moment I learned about the planes crashing into the towers. We were unloading buses on a beautifully bright fall morning, the Blue Angels were practicing their loop de loops over our heads. Since we were only a mile from the base, unloading busses could be difficult as little 4 year old children are amazed by the Blues. They want to stop and watch, they don't care that they need to get into school, eat breakfast, and learn.
Someone came out of the building and said a plane crashed into the towers in New York. Suddenly the Blues were out of the sky and on the ground. It was eerily quiet.
By the time we unloaded the last bus, word came about the pentagon. Because we are a military town, we were extra worried. The chance that we knew someone working in the Pentagon was a good one. I wanted to go find my husband, get my children and go home.
Instead we spent the day keeping the children busy while keeping an eye on the news. And we prayed. We hugged them a little tighter, let them get away with a bit more, and prayed.
We still pray. For all our guys and gals defending our freedom all over the world, pray.

:J

Taking Advantage

I took advantage today, of it being hump day, of the dumpster set outside my door, of a slow down in paperwork. I cleaned out the records vault. I humped it all day long. I was one constant HOP (hour of power). And amazingly I feel pretty good about it.

I got to work this a.m. and outside the door nearest my office was a small dumpster. I walked in and the A.P. of the High school, and my friend, Lori, were cleaning out the office across the hall from me that has been being used for storage. So I asked if the dumpster was for anyone's use. I had to ask because sometimes the HS is possessive of their stuff.

I have been wanting to clean the vault for a few years. Two things stopped me, time and having to haul it sooooo far across campus to dump it. So I made the time and cleaned, and cleaned and cleaned. We could hold a dance party in the vault now, there is so much room. It felt so good despite how my back was hurting when I was finished. I just kept at it, I knew if I stopped, I'd quit. Now that I'm home and have rested, I don't feel as bad as I thought I would. We'll see how well I get out of bed in the am.

We've started getting the outer bands of Ike this afternoon. Outerband rain is like no other. It's a heavy, fast rain. It's usually over fairly quickly and as quickly as it started, it stops just as quick. I hope the football game Thursday and Friday night don't get rained out. Athough I wouldn't mind Friday night, it's quite a drive. But I'm going to hit a few scrap stores on the way to Friday night's game. Ones I never get to go to they are about an hour from the house.

I'm looking forward to Saturday's all day Stampin' Up party. It's at Ann's house and she is a riot! I would so love to bring her to a Hilltop Crop, she'd fit right in. For lunch we are having Deliciously Simple. I guess it's some kind of home food demonstration party type thing. Ricky, our favorite masseuse is supposed to be there too.

Well, I'd better hit the hay. Tomorrow is our auditor's previsit, the big audit is next month. I want to be bright and shiny in the morning. Good thing I got the vault cleaned!

:J

We have a victory!!! WOOOHOOOOO! My Packers won and looked good doing it. I am so happy for Aaron Rodgers, hopefully he can move out from under the shadow of the Legend that was #4. He looked so awesome tonite, and someday, just maybe someday, they will forget about the that other guy (you know, the traitor).
It was a big biscuit day as my friend Kip likes to call them. I got our new windfeather flags at work. It took me awhile to get them up, along with a trip back to the factory for a new pole, but it was worth it! They look so awesome.
My latest CTMH order came in and I love it! I ordered two card sets and some stamp pads. I'm using the cards kits to make cards for my co workers as gifts. I am going to give them a set of cards for Christmas. These will be quick and easy for me to do for that. The new catalog came with this order, and OMG! love alot of it too. I've been waiting for CTMH to come out with a stamp pad revolving case for their stamps and they must have read my mind. It's in the new catalog!
My new stamps came from Violette's that Jean picked up for me. I love them! Such cute little fall stamps. I need to get busy with them now too.
This isn't really my big biscuit, but my niece's. She got engaged Saturday night! I'm so excited for her. She deserves much happiness.
That's my day, it was a good one!
I hope you have a good day too!

:J

Morning Monday!

I am just going to have to resolve that I am an every other day blogger. Just can't seem to get here to blog every day, even with all the time I spend on the computer.
Even today I'm on a run, have to make lunch and get to work so I can get back home to watch my Packers play! GO PACK!

:J

How are these days getting by me still? I am not that busy of a person, that I can't post about my uninteresting life every day.

So Friday was a good day. It makes two days in a row that the elephant wasn't sitting on my chest the whole time I was at work. That in itself makes me a happy woman. I had to go pick up the windfeathers (feather flags) we had made to advertise for school. Last year the big P wanted ideas to help promote our school. I suggested the wind flags and he agreed. So I got put in charge of the project!
Our flags turned out awesome!

I also ordered our tickets to fly home for thanksgiving. I can hardly wait!!!! We're just going for the weekend and leaving the boys behind. Poor babies! We'll do our family thanksgiving the Sunday before. That way they can take all the leftovers home to eat while we are gone. After they do all the dishes of course!

Football last night was exciting. It was great too see old friends I hadn't seen all summer. Football is a sporting and social event at our school. There are as many people on the track surrounding the game as there are fans in the stands. Although the fans cheered our team on, it wasn't enough, they lost 20 - 28. But not without thrilling moments when our receivers returned two kickoffs for touchdowns.
Dh's D line played well, but penalties on offense killed us.

Today is house cleaning, tropics watching and Sam's club shopping. Hubby's idea not mine. Maybe he'll buy me something????
I hope your day is a great one!

How do these days get past me? It's not that I'm living the exciting life, that's for sure. Life is just passing by sooooo fast, too fast for me.
Interesting article in our local paper this morning. 56% of the people living here in my county a)don't like living here, and b) plan to move in the next 5 years. Interesting. We chose to live here, this is where DH's Naval career ended, and we could have moved back home (up nawth). But we had one son in HS, one in Middle and one in elementary. We had good friends, lived in a good area, and were living a good life. I don't know what's happened here the past few years, but it's not the same town we retired in. Too many Walmarts (6) as opposed to the two we had when we settled, too many convienence stores, too many fast food places, too many car lots, too many many stuff. Not enough gas stations or grocery stores.
They closed my Albertson's this week. Soon it will be a Publix and I'll be happier. I like Publix. I wouldn't buy my groceries there everyday, too expensive. But I have the commissary for that (grocery store on base). Maybe Publix will improve the quality of life here.
In general, life is good for us. We're not as active as we once were here. But I think that comes with age and we would slow down a bit anyway, no matter where we lived. Not that we are sedentary by any means.
Speaking of not being sedentary, football starts Friday night for us. Keep good thoughts going for our boys as they try to break their 2 year losing streak. DH says they look good and the coaches are nervous. He told me to come get his wallet and cellphone at halftime if they are winning. LOL!
Friday I'm booking our flights to Wisconsin for Thanksgiving. The boys are not happy about that! Of course they are more worried about food then they are us going. They love the food at Thanksgiving. But we decided we need to go back up there, probably as often as we can afford to. Hubby wants to help his dad do some things before winter. I just want to get in the country.
So life goes on and it's quality life, it is what it is, and only what you make it.
So I do, make it that is.
:J

No Profound Words Today

I blog hop alot. Probably more than I really should spend my time doing, but I do. If you aren't a blog hopper, try it. Just click a link on some one's blog and go where you've never gone. Then click on a link on that blog and so on and so on.
So where am I going with this?
I just read the neatest story about motherhood. It puts it in perspective for me. So rather than copy and paste the whole story, so someone can misconstrue that I wrote this, here's the link My Life is a Gumbo Pot . And thanks to Michele for the stepping stone to this blog.
Where's the best blog you've ever hopped too??

:J

Back to Life

I have virtually hidden out at my house. Other than Saturday when I went to Natalee's SU party or out to dinner that night with the hubby, I've been a recluse.
Now granted, Gustav had something to do with that, but I had something to do with it too.
I thought I would spend the weekend scrappin'. But I just didn't feel inspired. I have projects I want to do, but when I sit down to do them, it just seems hard. Making cards at the SU party was easy and fun. But when it comes to just playing in my own room. Blah!
Would you say I'm in a funk? My butt hurts from sitting so much, I'm not a sitter. I am bored with tv, bored with shopping, bored with the computer. I guess I AM in a funk.
I have been inspired to eat, and too cook. Of course none of what I want to eat or cook is good for me. LOL! I know one thing, I need to snap out of this. It just isn't me. At least I don't think it's me. Is it?
About Gustav, it's rained alot all day but we've only gotten 3 inches. We had some winds, gusting to about 45 miles per hour. We even had a bit of thunder this evening. All in all we seemed to have weathered Gustav well. Thank goodness he didn't turn into the monster storm they thought he was going to be. But now when we do get a monster storm, will all those people who evacuated this time be so quick to leave next time? Now we have Hanna & Ike. Can we have a weekend without a hurricane bothering us?
I did get my family reunion pictures uploaded for the family to download. It doesn't seem like that was only a month ago. My new blog head is another from the Mississippi River. I used to love the barges going up and down the river. As kids we would always try to get them to wave to us. Did you know they (the tugs) all have names? Barge companies often name them similarly like Dixie Rose and Dixie Lee, Delta Queen & River Queen. That way we could tell if they were from the same company. Did you know that they post the barge traffic in the newspaper where I'm from. They put the day, time and name of the tugs who went up and down the river. Am I rambling? Okay I'll go do the dishes...
:J

Stormy Monday Morn

We've had 30 different tornado warnings since Midnite in our area. The rains and blustery winds come and go, so we're still keeping one eye on the weather channel. We'll be fine, DH is sure they will have football practice this afternoon. I told him I didn't think so since we are under tornado watch til 4 p.m.. But coaches think that doesn't apply to them. Parents think it applies to their children tho, so the coaches may be the only ones there. Crazy coaches.
Prayers for the folks west of us.
:J