Out of the Mouths of Babes!

This afternoon the girls and I were out running some errands when they noticed all the political signs lining the yards as we drove past. I figured it was a great opportunity to educate them a little about the upcoming election. I began by explaining the reason behind the signs, who the names were on them, and when the election would be held. I then proceeded to tell them about Republicans and Democrats. As soon as I mentioned the name 'Democrats', in unison the girls began giggling and said, "Democrats! That's a stupid name." Girls, I couldn't agree with you more!

Paperless Dream

I hate paperwork. Oops, hate is a bad word, I strongly dislike paperwork. No, I hate it! I am one of those people who abhors dealing with paperwork. I can remember watching Star Trek and dreaming of the day when our lives were completely paperless like they were on The Enterprise! So far it hasn't happened, but I have done my fair share to move the process along. I pay as many bills as possible online and anytime I have an opportunity to opt out of paper statements I do. In fact, just today I signed up for e-statement through my credit union. It will be heavenly.....no more gazillion page bank statements going unread (because I bank online) and sitting in a basket on my counter until I find time to stuff them into the file cabinet. I've also saved a website that should get me to the correct place to opt out of receiving unwanted phone books, credit card offers and a whole host of other junk mail that I'd just as soon not receive. I wish I could be a true northwesterner and say I'm doing it in an effort to 'go green'. But in reality, I don't care so much about that, I just don't want to have to deal with it. I'm sick of opening, filing, shredding and the like. If the mail doesn't exist then I don't have to worry about it. Just thinking about how many forests will be saved by not wasting so much paper makes me positively giddy. In fact, I think I can see myself turning green right now. Yeah right!

Just for fun...

I've added a poll to my blog - it may move around on the page, but I'll try to keep it near the top/sides so it can be viewed quickly - Thanks Robyn for the suggestion! I can change the question and answers whenever I like, so some may be serious while others might be corny (like candy corny). I love polls and participate in them as often as I can. So the next time you're watching the news and they have a segment on how many Americans actually eat candy corns? Chances are, I participated in that poll to bring the numbers up :)

Foot in Mouth!

It's a well known human foible, to open the mouth and insert the foot. It can happen faster than lightning can strike, at the most inopportune times, and even if it's been censored by forethought, much forethought. Fortunately it doesn't happen to me very often, but when it does, it's usually a doozy! Like the time I was at church camp in the 7th grade and I saw one of the older girls without make-up on and I said to her, "wow, you really NEED make-up." What I meant was that she looked beautiful with make-up on. Of course what came out was that she looked terrible without it! There are also those times when I carefully contemplate my next phrase. I think on it heavily, debate with myself, and over analyze my upcoming comment, only to open my mouth and have words begin flying out like a parabolic trajectory. Now I've done it! And once it's done it cannot be undone! Of course I can't un-say something I've already said! It's like the Running of the Bulls at Pamplona, or the space shuttle launch, or a moving train. It happened so fast it can't be stopped. So I try to back paddle...."what I MEANT was.....", or "it didn't come out quite like I intended." Either way, I'm figuratively sitting there with my head tilted back, jaw opened like a flip-top cap, and a size 7 Havaiana shoved halfway down my throat. It's really a beautiful picture! I wish it didn't happen, but it does. I'm only human, and if you're one of the hapless victims who has been, or will be, around me when I've experienced a bout of 'foot in mouth' disease, or 'word salad' as I've heard it expressed, don't worry, it's not contagious, and I just hope you'll have it in your heart to forgive me.

My Funny Little Petunia

Tonight the girls were getting ready for bed, and they had just finished brushing their teeth when I looked in the sink and saw several large toothpaste blobs. Here's what ensued next: -------- Me: "One of you needs to clean the toothpaste blobs out of the sink." Autumn: "OK Mom." (She then picks up the toothbrush and proceeds to clean the sink with the toothbrush when Cayla walks in) Cayla: "Eewwww, Autumn that's gross. You're cleaning the sink with your toothbrush?!" Autumn: "No I'm not, it's YOUR toothbrush." -------- I literally laughed out loud. Autumn is hilarious and always has us cracking up about something. It was just what I needed and was the perfect ending to my Monday!

Sunday's News

On Sunday afternoon everyone within the sound of my voice knew that I was stuck between distraught and disgust over the recent news about Contemporary Christian Artist Ray Boltz coming out of the closet. I wasn't distraught or disgusted that he was homosexual as much as I was distraught and disgusted that he gave the secular world another reason to think Christianity is stupid and foolish. I'm really heartbroken because this news tarnished his testimony. His music was so captivating and his songs always told a story. I imagine his lyrics touched thousands of people too, but as my sister said, "that just shows the grace of God, that even in the midst of Ray's personal turmoil, He used his music to touch lives." ----------------------- In other news, after visiting my in-laws so Cory could troubleshoot their computer, we heard this obnoxious hissing sound as we stepped out of the car. At first I thought a neighbor might be using a pneumatic tool, but as it turns out, air was rapidly pouring from a slash in my tire where we had apparently run over a box knife blade. Oh goody! Now I get to spend a fun filled Monday sitting at Les Schwab awaiting the dreaded, 'sorry ma'am, we checked it out and your tire is beyond repair. We're gonna have to sell you a new one, but it's against our policy to sell one tire, so we're gonna need you to purchase all four.' Aaarrrrgggghhh!!! There's a silver lining in this cloud though......1) Chances are good we can get away with buying two tires because the other two are in good shape, 2) at least we were at home when it happened so Cory had access to his good tools instead of using the cheesy tire iron and jack the car comes with, and 3) fortunately it happened Sunday night instead of Monday because Cory's leaving Monday at 6am for a week long job out of town. I'm glad tomorrow's a new day. I know things are going to look sunny, even if it is still raining :)

Cold Season

Warning! Explicit content! Due to the graphic nature of this post, personal discretion is advised. Disclaimer: If you are currently engaged in meal consumption it is strongly advised that you completely finish before reading. I have a cold! It's not just any cold either. It's the Queen Mother of all colds. The head honcho! The Big Kahuna! It laughs in the face of other colds. If this cold were a truck it would have a Hemi in it! This disgusting crud has settled into my nose, head, chest, throat and pretty much everywhere except my feet, but who really knows?! My head is spinning and I'm having to hang onto counters and door knobs to prevent falling over. I keep having visions of those little phlegm blobs from the Mucinex commercials. You know the ones....those little cartoon phlegm-dudes that move their entire extended family into a person's chest and setup housekeeping. Currently one side of my nose is clear and open and I can breathe. The other side though, is so stopped up I can't even tell it's running until I feel something slimy trickle down my nostril onto my upper lip. Disgusting! So far my day has been amazingly similar to an infant. I woke up this morning, ate breakfast, then settled onto the couch to take a nap, although it was under the guise of watching a movie. I woke up from napping, ate lunch, contemplated another nap, but decided to blog instead because at least that somehow feels productive. I feel terrible. I can't even take care of my girls. They asked me to make them lunch and my response went something like this, "whatever you can make for yourselves, have at it. I'm not cooking." They probably ate Ding Dong's and chocolate milk, but I can't be sure and I hesitate to ask! I need a maid, and some NyQuil, and then I'm off to take a nap!

Slow Motion Monday

I had a horrible dream last night. If you talk to me long enough, you'll eventually learn that I tend to have very vivid, traumatic dreams. Last night I dreamed that America had gone through a total natural devastation (I think it was a flood) and there were a few safe spots provided by the French (go figure). I had the girls with me and we were trying to get to Cory. We finally made it to the very dark, underground French compound where we were issued a paper that gave us the right to get bread and water and a pillow to sleep on. I finally found Cory and I was just so relieved that the four of us were together again that I didn't even mind that we had all of our rights stripped from us and were no longer in a free country. What does it mean? I'm missing my family and we need to spend more time together? Or is it something deeper? So this morning we're moving in what feels like, slow motion. I left my bed unmade and immediately went to hug my children. I didn't care that they had left the caps off the markers they were using, or that they had wasted a ream (or so it seemed) of paper. I was just so relieved that they were happy, and safe, in our own home, and most of all.....FREE. I think today we're going to fore go all of our regular school work in favor of a history lesson where they learn the blessings of living in a free country. Even if it doesn't make a deep and profound impact on them at this age, I am going to start planting the seed!

Country Living

My mother in law invited me to a Barn Sale outside of town. It's a yearly sale at this fabulous farmhouse out in the country. There's numerous vendors selling everything from antiques, knick-knacks, homemade country crafts, to kettle corn and lattes. We didn't stay very long, but we did get a few ideas for some crafts we could make, like homemade aprons and totes, and I bought a really cute Halloween decoration, which is pictured at left. Isn't it adorable? Since I love candy corn I couldn't resist.

It was a little warmer than a typical fall day, but the air felt crisp and the sun was gorgeous. We had such a good time perusing the crafts, and it reminded me of the type of event that might be featured in Country Living magazine as a "don't miss" event for September. It really made me want to go home and sew or bake, or something else that I don't have a talent for, but thoroughly enjoy. It was a perfect way to spend a sunny, September afternoon.

Coffee!

I'm sitting in my living room watching one of my favorite programs, "Unwrapped". If you've seen it, you know how wonderful it is, and if you haven't, it's a program on the food network that describes in detail how a product is made. Tonight they're talking about caffeine, and they're going into great lengths to tell the viewer about wonderful, caffeinated drinks. They started with chai tea which makes me gag, but now they're onto......coffee (or foffee as Autumn used to call it), wonderful, dark, rich, invigorating, coffee. So now I want a latte. There's just something fabulous about sitting in the warm sun, steaming cup of coffee in hand, and contemplating the rest of my day. Ahhhh. Is it morning yet?

Autumn...the season, not my daughter!

Yes, I am one of those conoxious (to borrow an old term from my cute-as-a-button nephew) people who loves to change templates. You're sure to see more in the following months, so please don't get upset when you show up and things are all switched around. Since fall is my favorite season, I figured it was only natural that I find some leaves and post them to my blog. There is not one single thing about fall that I don't like. In fact, I love pumpkins, crisp air, new sweaters, changing leaves, sunny mornings, cloudy mornings, apple cider, hot chocolate, the fall LL Bean and Lands' End catalogs, the start of the school year, candy corn, my mother-in-laws homemade chicken noodle soup that she makes during hunting season, harvest festivals (or Halloween parties if they're not held at church :) ...... I could go on but I've got work to do..... Happy Autumn!

Make Mine Chocolate

Well, since I can't serve my family chocolate for every meal, I decided to give this menu planning thing a try, so after perusing my kitchen for just the right combination of foods, I prepared the following ideas:

Monday

Roasted Turkey

Stuffing

Mixed greens salad

Rolls

Tuesday

Three cheese baked Rotini

Diced red peppers

Baby peas

Homemade country bread

Wednesday

Cheesy hamburger biscuit cups

Green beans

Thursday

Marinated, grilled flank steak

Steamed vegetables over seasoned rice

Friday

(Heavy appetizers - it's game night with friends)

Teriyaki pork tenderloin bites

Jalapeno cheese dip with fresh bread and veggies for dipping

Shredded beef taquitos

Orange chicken skewers

Saturday

Settle up the bets you won because I didn't follow through with a single item on this menu :)

Organized Schmorganized!

I love organization. I firmly believe that there should be a place for everything and everything in its place, and my main floor looks pretty good if I do say so myself, but my basement is another story. While adoring the "Pottery Barn" look, I am entirely too cheap to go out and buy a plethora of beautifully matched bins or containers, where everything can be perfectly placed and stacked neatly together. And even if I wasn't so cheap, there's always the odd shaped item that doesn't fit neatly in the containers, thereby sticking out like a sore thumb and ruining an otherwise aesthetically pleasing living space.

Today I tackled the girls' play room. A couple of years ago I did buy a dozen or so shoe box sized, see-through Sterilite containers with matching lids. They worked pretty well for a while, and even though I'm still using them, they're not exactly in the same shape they were when I bought them. It's tough to get my children to understand that the boxes are not chairs, step stools, or weapons. Needless to say, the boxes are cracked, but still functional! So once again I put toys of like items in the boxes, labeled them with my trusty label maker and set them together on the shelves.

There's still the peculiar little items like the Rubik's cube from a yard sale last summer, badminton rackets, the ever endearing, fast-food meal toy, and the boxes of games with MOST of the pieces, that don't quite fit neatly into an organizational plan, but at least they're stored in an orderly manner.

So, one room down and a couple more to go. My storage room is next on the agenda, but Martha Stewart I'm not, so as long as it's fairly tidy and I can actually find things, I figure I'm one step ahead of the game!

You Know What I Love?

Just a few things that are near and dear to me: 1) Baby animals. I love them in pictures, I love them in person. I'd really love to have a baby penguin, but somehow I don't think it would fare too well in our climate. 2) Granola! I always wanted to take a granola bar, crunch it up, pour milk over it and eat it like cereal. Now, thanks to Honey Bunches of Oats "Just Bunches", I can do just that. Yummy! 3) Unlimited long distance! Gone are the days of paying $.15 or $.20 cents a minute for a long distance call. Now, for a measly $15.00 a month, I can spend as much time as I like staying current on all the events going on in my friends and families lives. It's glorious! 4) Longaberger Baskets! Not only are they beautiful, they're incredibly functional, and with a collection in excess of 100, I have one for every need or occasion!

My Political Take....

Is anybody else loving the Palin family as much as I am? Sarah Palin is not only beautiful, but she's got a good head on her shoulders and really is a breath of fresh air in this overly stuffy election year. I have had a great time visiting her official website, reading her bio and learning what she believes in. I think a vice presidential family that is SO down to earth would be such an asset to our country. It's perfect that they're not professional politicians. They're 'regular' people like you and me who pay taxes, raise children and live in the real world. McCain really made a smart move in choosing her for his running mate.

Labor Day

What a great Labor Day weekend. As opposed to sitting at home wishing we were doing something more fun, we decided to take a final summer vacation. We went over to the Seattle area to visit my sister and instead of doing our normal mall-shopping, we thought it would be fun to do 'touristy' type things. So we headed to Packwood for the world's largest yard sale (well, it's actually a flea market) on Friday, then on Saturday we visited Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium, and on Sunday after church we went to Northwest Trek where we got the chance to get up close and personal with animals native to the northwest. Bison, moose and elk are really HUGE when they're just a few feet away!

The girls had a blast getting together with their cousins. It's always amazing to me how close they all are, and how well they get along. They're just as content to stay home and play with Legos as they are to visit the zoo and attend the same Sunday school class. As long as they're together, they're good! Here's a few snapshots of our crew over the weekend:

We're typically home bodies, but I'm glad we took the opportunity to branch out, take some fun photos and make some lasting memories. Now, if I only I had time to scrapbook :)