Back to School

Wow!  Summer just breezed by.  Before I knew it we took our annual trek to the beach

 and then moved Tdawg back to school.

 He is liking apartment living.  He even cooks, cleans and does laundry!  Who is this kid??  I asked for a first day of school pic...

Not exactly what I was expecting.  Gone are the happy to be growing up and going to school pictures.  Well, considering that he is taking: (1)Sociology (2) Sex, Gender and Society (psych 215c), (3) Organic Chemistry (chem 211) and (4) Equilibrium and Analysis (chem 220).  Yikes!  I'm not sure I'd be smiling either.  His classes and labs are pretty much 8-4 four days a week and a short day.  Needless to say, no time for football.

Crazy Days of Summer

This summer has been a little crazy.  Thanks in part to T'dawg.  It has been an adjustment to have him back at home for the summer.  He is used to dorm life.  So he thinks nothing of piles of clothes, trash etc.  Not to mention dorm life hours: sleep until noon, stay up until 4am watching television. 

However, the rest of the fam participates in the world of typical human hours.  Buddy and I have gotten accustomed to going to bed by 10p.  And I'm up without an alarm about 7a.  And Cletus is a morning person.  So he goes into work really early, and thus goes to bed first. And I like my tidy home.

The other challenge has been that T'dawg's skin is breaking out.  After consulting the dermatologist, we were referred to an allergist.  T'dawg's skin was too bad to do the normal patch skin testing, so they did blood tests.  We just got the results in the mail.  On the scale of one to five, with five being the worst.  He scored 3-5 for molds. 4's for cow milk, cheddar cheese and beef.  3 for pork, wheat, gluten and egg whites.  Wow!  Well, that eliminates quite a bit!  We have an appointment to discuss these results.  But my guess is avoidance is the only course of action.  That or treating the symptoms with creams, Zyrtec, Benadryl, etc.

So, looks like the whole family will be eating a lot of chicken and turkey for the remainder of the summer. I would appreciate cooking tips.  I understand that turkey is quite lean and thus doesn't cook well without lots of help (herbs and onions).  So far I have modified my chicken recipes to eliminate the cheese and wheat.  And we have had seafood.  I'm trying to look at this as a good thing.  Maybe even save money since the beef prices have skyrocketed.  And summer is the perfect time to be more of a vegetarian with all of the tasty home grown selections.  The beef that I have will just have to wait in the freezer until fall.

Here's to hoping the rest of the summer is less stressful!

RR Too

A friend of mine has the coolest artwork in her living room.  It is four very large canvases: one big tree divided up in the four seasons with a bible verse to go with each one.  Using that as inspiration, I wanted to paint the same tree in the four seasons and then I'll attach the canvases together to hang as one piece. The verse is done in a Sharpie.  I need to go over them with a paint pen so they can be seen.  And painting the trees with a pallet knife was challenging.  It was difficult for me just to paint the same tree four times. So, I consider them a work in progress.  Only the winter tree is considered a finished work (except the verse).

 

I realized this weekend that I never duplicate my art.  I just can't mass produce.  Someone asked: can you do that again but in a different color pallet.  Hmm.  No, I really don't like to do that.

 

I got so much done this weekend.  I even slept a good eight hours per night. Some of those crazy ladies stayed up until 4a!! I enjoyed the pool and even got a massage.  I needed the massage.  She said I was the worst one.  I get knots between my shoulder blades.  She had to really work!  But I feel oh so much better!!   

 

Saturday breakfast was a fresh blueberry French toast bake.  Lunch was chicken salad and shrimp salad.  And dinner was grilled hamburgers with all the fixings.  Perfect summertime menu!!

 

Well that puts a lid on June and now I'm ready for July...

Red Rooster

I feel so special.! I was given the opportunity to go to Red Rooster twice in one year!  What is so great about RR?  Well, it is on Smith Lake, so it is way off the beaten path, serene and beautiful (inspirational) scenery.  And all you have to do is relax and wait for the dinner bell.  Yes, they actually ring a bell for breakfast, lunch and dinner.  And my goodness, that sweet little lady (Jennifer) can cook!!  And no dishes.  And no laundry.  And no interruptions.  But I'm getting ahead of myself.

Several months ago a lady I had not talked to in years, saw my spring RR pictures and invited me to their get together.  Her daughter and Tdawg went to preschool together...gosh, can it be 15 years ago!??  Anyway, her group had space available.  So there were 9 who scrapbooked, 2 who read books (and napped), 1 quilted, and I painted.

Although it did not start out relaxing.  I had to kill a ginormous spider that morning at the house, and had to crawl (less than 20 mph) down the interstate for ten miles with lots of eighteen wheelers.  That just about made me nuts.  You know how it is when a lane closes,  some behave and take turns.  Others have to be first and cause accidents!  Two of the trucks got together and wouldn't let anyone butt ahead.  Good for them! 

So I got to Cullman.  And well, tradition mandated :) that I stop at my fav consignment shop.  My fortune changed because they were having a sale!  Yea me!!  I got a skirt, necklace and well, I call them lauriepalooza pants.  They are stretchy and fun prints.  I wouldn't wear them in public...but they are awesome lounge wear! Don't worry, I won't post any modeling pictures. LOL!  Anyway, I was going to get a pair in spring and so regretted that I didn't.

Then onto RR.

I arrived just in time for lunch. Yea me!!  And what a lunch: BLT salad, and Pimento cheese.  Their pimento cheese was great.  I didn't even know I liked pimento cheese!  I say that a lot about Jennifer's cooking.  During the spring stay it was St. Patrick's day so they Reuben sandwiches.  I thought I didn't like them.  But hers were so good!  Sorry no food pics.  I was too hungry :D

Now that I'm fortified (fat and happy)...on to painting...And a nuclear meltdown.  In all of my packing, repacking and list making.  I forgot my brushes! Waahhhhh.  I really didn't feel up to driving back to town.  I'm sure it isn't that far, but when you already don't know where you are going...  So I dug through my bag.  And found a small pallet knife and made lemonade out of my lemons.

It was a challenge but it worked out pretty well. 

.

I told Cletus what happened and sent him these pictures.  He told me to throw out the brushes, that these were my best acrylics yet.  He knows just what to say :)  He truly is a keeper!

Miracle League Mariners - Spring 2014

One of our last games, Tdawg was able to come and pitch.   It was fun to watch both boys out having a good time together.  Miracle League is so uplifting.  Everyone plays.  Everyone wins.  Everyone is accepted, no questions asked.  And everyone leave better than they came.

Another Year

Another year has flown by.  Hard to believe that this time last year we were moving in! 

We have seen our share of wildlife.  Last night we saw seven deer and three wild turkeys.  They are pretty common sightings.  But this one really surprised us: a snapping turtle in the driveway!

We had to call our neighbor, Kevin. He showed us how to pick it up by the tail.  And put it in a box for transport...back to the woods near the creek.  The turtle was quite stinky and not at all happy.  He hissed and snapped like crazy.  Hopefully he has found new living quarters!

KP Baseball

I have been having fun watching my nephew play baseball.  He is getting pretty good!  Still fun to watch the younger kids.  You never know what they will do!     

The Not So Bummer Summer

I am hoping that this doesn't turn into a bummer summer.  I am one week away from getting these cotton pickin' stitches out.  The procedure wasn't too bad, kind of painful.  Done with local anesthesia in the doctor's office.  A few more stitches than I expected (Cletus counted seven). And the stitches really aren't that bad.  But apparently I am allergic to the waterproof bandages.  The adhesive area is now raw and painful.  And in a valiant attempt not to rip my stitches out, I am on limited activities.  No swimming. No golf. No bowling. Nothing too strenuous. Ugh.  That leaves skeeball, putt putt golf and walking.  Ho hum.

Well, it won't last forever.  I have been to the library twice already. It is sad when you read all of the books your favorite author has written.  Can't they write faster?  Catching up on my fav's latest endeavors, I read four books last week.  But now I am forced to try new authors.  So I researched the latest Agatha Mystery author award winners. Wish me luck.

In a Jam

After years of missing out.  I finally went to Brown's Farm at the right time.  Buddy didn't want to pick strawberries (he was having a fussy day), so I bought a tub of strawberries.  Actually, I bought two tubs of strawberries.  Which didn't look like all that much...until I got them home.

That's ok, I'm a pioneer woman.  I used to be a girl scout.  I can do this.  I have never canned before, but I can freeze stuff.  So a short trip to the store later, I had containers and pectin and lots and lots of strawberries.

After a minor excavation, I found Tdawg's protein shake blender.  Pan (check), 3-4 cups pureed strawberries (check), lemon juice (check) and 7 cups of sugar.  Do what??  Find glasses (check). Reread recipe (check).  Yup, SEVEN cups of sugar!  Egads!  Well, I don't have seven cups of sugar.  And I'm NOT going to my neighbor: "'cuse me, can I borrow seven cups of sugar?"  So I use the 3 cups that I have.

Well, in hindsight, I should have used a bigger pan.  We almost had a disaster.  And I don't have a (candy) thermometer.  So I guessed.  Added the pectin and it was a foaming explosion.  Waste not want not.  So the mix (very hot) went back in the blender to de-foam.  And then into containers.

All in all, it worked out ok in the end.  Back to the store again (for sugar) and made a second batch. And we have lots and lots and lots of strawberry...well, not exactly jam.  More like preserves/syrup.  But it is delicious!  I have been having it on my English muffins and it is killer on ice cream!

The Ugly Word

I know one thing, getting old is not for sissies!  They joke about planning their lives around doctor appointments.  That is no joke.  Last month, I had a three hour eye doctor appointment!  It was intense!!  I guess the days of breezing out the doctor's office with just a sticker are over.

Tdawg had an appointment with our dermatologist, Dr. M.  He couldn't make the appointment due to school commitments.  So I took the appointment instead.  I had a something on my foot I wanted removed.  So, while I'm there, I ask Dr. M about a place on my back.  I can't see it hardly at all and it seemed to be hypersensitive (kind of a mole or a scab).  He said that it took priority, the foot could wait. So he cut it off the place on the back and sent it to the lab.

Two weeks later, I go in for the follow up and to take care of my foot.  Dr. M said that the pathology on the spot came back cancerous.  (That UGLY word!  I keep hoping I'll never hear that word again.  It is an odd feeling when you hear the C word, your ears get fuzzy and your mind goes completely blank. Medically, I think it is called "shock").

On a positive note, Dr. M said it is the best of the three skin cancers; basal cell.  He will cut it out in his office the end of this month. There will be a few stitches and no getting it wet for two weeks.  And that should be it.  No chemo.  No radiation.  And probably (hopefully) no other occurrences.  He said that 1/3 of basal cell cancers are sun related.  2/3rds are genetic or unknown.

I don't believe in coincidences.  I think my taking Tdawg's appointment is divine.  And asking Dr. M to look at my back (I was going to just blow it off) was also divine.  I am confident that I will be ok.  But I would appreciate prayers because my mind goes nuts every so often.  I'm fair skinned and have lots of moles, so I start imagining all sorts of things (usually about 2am).

Well, y'all asked...

"Well butter my butt, and call me a biscuit!"
I think I'm turning into one of 'dem crazy county folks.  I met a former neighbor for lunch at Jack's (mercy me). And spent 2-1\2 hours there. I was beginning to wonder I'd the po-lice would come get us for loitering.

Then onto the Dollar General. It is a glorified gas station without gas. You don't have to get all fancied up to go there...even though they have some mighty purdy of 'dem plastic flowers. And Lord have mercy the place was packed! Goodness gracious, all I needed were some hangers.

Welp, y'all wondered what I do all day..

Sadness

March is over.  April is half gone.  Where does time go?  It really does dissolve like snow.

One of my bestest friends is in pain and I don't know how to help.  I know of her pain...it hasn't gone completely away.

I lost my mom when I was 25.  I was young, newly married, living out of state.  I was in denial.  We found out right before Easter, that year, she had Stage 4 lung cancer.  The by-product of heavy smoking since she was a teen (harder knowing she could have made better choices). She was going to fight.  She did radiation and chemo. She hated losing her independence.  She hated losing her hair even more.  She couldn't write (too shaky). She couldn't read (no memory).  She couldn't drive (seizures). But I still didn't think that she would leave before Christmas of that same year.  I was in shock.  I was completely numb and I didn't even know it. (as a side note: don't ever paint a room when you are numb. I guarantee you won't like the color later).

Twenty-six years later, I have been without her more years than I was with her. I'm still upset.  She barely met Cletus.  She never met the boys.  I never got to know her as an adult.  I wanted her back!  I have been cheated!  Then I had a dream.  She was back.  But still sick.  She was going to have to go through the radiation and chemo all over again, because I was selfish and wanted her back.  I guess I grew up that night and realized that some things you just can't change.

I still miss her...everyday.   

Pinterst Fun

We had our second Pinterest party at church.  I missed the first one back in the fall.  But jumped in with both feet for this one.  I suggested we do a wreath....so, I was volun-told to teach it.  Not hard.  Just a grapevine wreath. You can make your own, but I just went to Jo-Ann's with a coupon.  Then pick the flowers you like.  The original was hydrangeas.  Not my favorite.

So I got a variety of flowers at the Dollar Tree.  Some burlap ribbon (with wire works better) and a letter.  My first letter was too small for the wreath. 

This was my sample wreath:

And then today, I made one for V, since she wasn't able to come today.  Sure hope she likes it!

We had a few ladies come to play.  Sure glad I thought to bring wire cutters to take the flower arrangements apart!  Side note, you probably could get away with not using a hot glue gun but I used it sparingly at the end.

It was fun to see the creative side of people.  S put a bird on hers.  L put feathers on hers.  Everyone's looked great!  I could do that every weekend :)  Too bad they don't make animal print flowers.  Tee hee hee!

So Long February

For a short month, February sure was long.  And crazy.  The weather was nuts.  It was freezing cold for days on end.  We were told that snow was coming to the deep south.  And we got...well,  I'm originally from Denver and spent 3 years in Alaska.  So that is barely a dusting!  But down here, they closed schools!  Crazy!

Looks like a couple tablespoons of salt.

 

Then it got warm.  And then cold again.  Snow, they say.  Yeah right.  But...it really did snow!

And it was so pretty for a couple of hours!

New Yoga Poses

I think I may have created a few new yoga poses tonight.  The flailing windmill where I tried to desperately to keep my balance on my left (formerly broken) foot.  And the pictured: downward facing cow.  Despite my lack of grace and flexibility, I did have a good time and plan to go back.  One day I might even be able to do the Evil (or Eagle).  I also hope that I can eventually get out of bed in the morning.

Classics 101

So, one of my 2014 resolutions or goals was to read some of the classic literature that I missed along the way.  I started with:

Ernest Hemingway's last great novel The Old Man and the Sea.  Yes, I picked it because it was short and readily available. I enjoyed the book and thought it was a charming fish story.  I appreciate that is was the last catch of Santiago's life, in a life of struggle, while looking back on his life and his youth.  But I didn't get all of the deep meaning: " the Jungian concept of  individuation entails a process of gradual and lifelong connecting with the unconscious at ever deeper layers, ultimately with the collective unconscious which is hard to define but in some ways can be understood as nature itself."  Say what?  Oh I mean...yeah, that too??!? Huh??

I surely must not be much of a deep thinker.  Reminds me of when I read and watched The WIzard of Oz. Another charming story of a girl, who wants to runaway and figures out that home is best after all.  Then I read that it is really about politics.  The Yellow Brick Road being the gold standard and the Emerald City being greenbacks.  The Wizard being a corrupt politician. America being the Wicked Witch of the West.  Scarecrow the American farmer.  Tim Man is the steel industry. Cowardly Lion is the American military in the Spanish American war. The winged monkeys are the Native American culture. What what?!?  Oh yeah, yeah I see that...not!

High school English class totally ruined the classic Alice In Wonderland for me.  All about the British monarchy.  I like the book. Then I had to do the research and write the paper.  I wrote the paper.  My mother (the English major) proofread it. Read: marked it up in red.  Then my Dad got a hold of it and rewrote it.  Pretty much none of what I wrote remained.  By the way, it was a horrible experience...and I got a crappy grade out of it.

I think from now on, I'm just going to read the book and decide for myself.  If all I get is information at the shallow end of the pool then so be it.

Quilt update: first row

I got started!  Found a great baseball material to go between each of the tshirts. 

And then I found this great puzzle piece (Autism symbol) in the same neon colors of the tshirts to tie it all together!  Not sure about the back yet.  I might do a fleece?

Roadtrip to the Ham

Had a good road trip to Birmingham.  T'dawg is doing well with his physical therapy.  I went with him to see the doc.  He showed us a lot of pictures from the operation.  The bones, rotator cuff and bicep tendon all looked good. Whoo hoo!  The labrum was torn in two places. The doc ended up putting in 5 anchors (two for one tear and three for the other).  And said he thought from the fraying, that part of the tear was an old injury.  Likely dating back to his baseball days (4th grade?).

T'dawg said he was concerned, prior to surgery, that nothing would be discovered.  He had a lot of pain.  And he had tried therapy.  But the MRI only indicated a small tear in an area that was not hurting.  The doc said that the MRI was read incorrectly.  But said that he goes more by what the patient says than the tests.  Tests are a good tool.  But nothing still compares to going in and actually looking around.

I had a similar experience with my shoulder.  The test indicated bone spurs and arthritis.  I did rehab but didn't get any pain relief.  So I told the doc to go ahead and clean up the bone spurs.  When he got in there, the rotator cuff was full torn!  So, I didn't doubt T'dawg when he said it hurt bad enough for surgery (and possibly missing football).

Since he is young and in excellent health, he is healing quickly.  He can start getting out of the brace and ease back into driving. No running nor arm weight lifting (legs are ok) for three months.  And therapy will start getting intense.

It was tough to leave him again.  But so good to see the smiling face and the good report from the doc.

Designer Purse for Less

Want a custom designed Vera Bradley purse for less?   The least expensive item is: a placemat!

Fold in half and stitch the two short sides on the wrong side.

Turn right side out.  It could have been either pattern.

See how cute?  I got a pink one too.  I picked out some cute buttons.

The next time I'm in town I will go to Jo-Ann's or Hancock and get some handles.  I'll blog the finished product later this week.  Or you could leave the handles off and use like a makeup bag.

Sew Much Fun

 My new little friend is out of the box!  I made a bobbin and got her threaded and ready to go.

This is already sew (hee hee) much easier than the old Singer my Mom had.  I know I have only scratched the surface of what she can do.  But I'm excited :)