Weekends are for sleeping and taking cute pictures

Or laying around in your underwear and not doing a darn thing. A co-worker of mine suggested I try it sometime. She had done it last weekend and she assured me it was mighty fine. And rejuvenating, and relaxing.


So, I managed to stay in my pj's till around 5 on Saturday. I decided to shower and run over to Hancock Fabrics to get some lace to cover up the boobalicious dress I got a while back. It's fabulous but for work, it needs a little more covered up. So my entire accomplishment for Saturday was adding a lace front to my dress and getting soap and deoderant at target. Wow, I know, impressive.


Oh, and our neighbor who lost their puppy last weekend brought us some steaks - he said he got called into work so he wouldn't be able to grill and he thought we might like to grill. The steak was WONDERFUL. He also gave us some treats and raw hide toys for the dogs. I felt bad that he gave them to us. But he said it would make them happy to know our puppies were enjoying the treats. He also said that his friend that gave him Pedro was bringing them a new dog from Florida. So I would guess they will have a little pup next week. We will have to get them some fresh treats and bones to celebrate.


Sunday was almost equal but I did do a bunch of yard work. I went to Gertens and got some additional day lilies, two white cone flowers, and a really beautiful deep burgundy foxglove.


It was fun to do some gardening but I did manage to get myself mighty sunburned.
Here are some pics:

My little man helped me while I gardened.

And I make my hubsters lunch every morning. I put a note in his lunch last week and told him he had a certified sandwhich made with lots of love. So he jokingly calls them his lovewhich's.

So I took some pictures this morning of his lovewhich in progress. Please note that not only are they made with love by his wife but also with a little help from the girls.

We'll call this the nose kiss Lovewich

The Head Nuzzle Lovewich

And we'll call this the Uuuumm Uuuumm good Lovewich

And because I think her face is the cutest thing EVER here it is in close-up.

Bright and Happy

So my flower is Daisy and my soul is painted yellow

I sense a theme

What color is your soul painted? Yellow Your soul is painted the color yellow, which embodies the characteristics of joy, happiness, optimism, idealism, gold, hope, liberalism, sociability, friendship, death, courage, intellect, confidence, communication, travel, movement, attraction, persuasion, and charm. Yellow is the color of the element Air, and symbolizes the sun, grain, and the power of thought.

Though if you could explain to me one thing I would appreciate it:
Why does yellow embody death???

I embody the characteristic of death???
Optimism, idealism, and death???

So heading off to work this is what greeted me this morning. Fabulous isn't it? Talk about a beautiful way to start the day. Let's see that again shall we:

Happy Friday everyone. And please read past the Daisy part to the important "story" about Girl J's Gramma.

I'm a Daisy sort of gal

I stole this from Kell.

I am a Daisy What Flower Are You?

"You are just a sweet person. When a friend needs a shoulder to cry on, you are happy to offer yours with a box of tissues as well. Once in awhile, you wish you could be a little more dramatic but then sensibility sets back in and you know that you are perfect the way you are."

Speaking of Daisies,

My good friend Girl J (Nettie) has some very special ladies in her family. Our Channel 9 news ran a story on them the other night.
Spread the word and see if we can help out their cause.

Ramblings for Wednesday

I just finished the most interesting and somewhat maddening yet charming book. It is called Winkie. It's a story about a bear who is also a suspected terrorist bomber. I got your curiosity didn't I? Well, read it, it's fascinating.

I also want to comment on what a few of you said in comments over yesterday's post. I was very intrigued that we all picked up on the exact same line in the book. For me it stood out for some reason, actually I should say "jumped out" at me. And I honestly can't tell you why. But I "literally" tripped over it. I was reading right along at a good clip and then suddenly, bang, fell right over. It stopped me dead in my reading tracks. But why? It gave many of us a reason to pause. I find that fascinating. Usually people grab different lines from a book that stood out to them. What about this one made it stand out to so many?

Does anyone out there watch Eureka? I am completely and totally intrigued by the direction the show is going. And I am very surprised. They are not taking it in the direction I would expect. They are not shooting for the happy ending for the main character. They are taking it deeper and more true to life I think. It's a fantastic show. Season one is out on DVD so if you haven't seen it you might want to rent it.

On a really off note I want to give a shout out to the state of Washington. This has been hands down one of the best years for cherries. I'm surprised I am not turning pink. We have been getting these huge containers of cherries from Costco and they are fabulous.

Yes, I did just give a shout out to an entire state.

I'll close with pictures of the yard.

Below is the cutest little plant we got on Saturday. I love that it is an evergreen with pink flowers (Second picture is a close up). And it's going to stay that tiny. It's only about 8 inches tall and about 10 inches around.

Weekend in review

Saturday the hubster and I went with the in-laws on a whirl wind trip through Wisconsin. Our first stop was Winter Wisconsin for some plant shopping. There is a wonderful nursery pretty much in the middle of nowhere. Of course I found lots of cool plants for my yard. Several of which I had never seen before.

On the way to the garden center we passed several fields of sunflowers. They were simply breathtaking.

We then headed north and stopped at a lodge for lunch. I think I had one of the top five hamburgers ever. And the fries were perfect. I think everyone enjoyed their lunch. Just sandwiches and burgers but man were they yummy!

Next stop was the town of Hayward. They have a pretty well known candy and fudge shop which of course we had to stop at. And my mother-in-law also need to find out about getting a ring fixed that she had bought in a shop there. We browsed through several shops and then headed back on the road.

The giant loop we took brought us back into Minnesota north of the cities. We got home a little after 7. Which meant I had time to go get my copy of Harry Potter.

Well, you can probably guess what I did the rest of Saturday night and into Sunday. The weather however was too perfect to just sit and read. It was overcast with a nice breeze. So I forced myself to close my book and go out and do some gardening. We had lots of new plants to get in the ground.

I accomplished quite a bit of gardening. Planted what we had purchased and trimmed back some of the flowers that were done blooming. I also weeded like crazy. All in all I filled up two 55 gallon garbage cans with weeds and trimmings.

That was pretty much the weekend except for the sad part I already talked about yesterday.

I'll take pictures of the garden tonight. Most of the plants we got are done with their bloom cycle so I have to look forward to next year.

I finished Harry this morning. I won't say anything, I promise. It was a good story and I'm a little sad its over. Reading that last page was a little depressing.

My favorite line from the book:

Dumbledore in conversation with Snape.....
"You know, I sometimes think we Sort too soon........"

Compassion and cruelty

I went outside with the pups. I looked up because I heard a scream. And there was my neighbors dog lying in the road. His tail was wagging. Car, my neighbor ran across the road and scooped up his puppy. I ran in to call to find out where we could take the dog, Michael grabbed his keys. Cars in both directions pulled over and people offered to help. The driver was long gone. He had sped away.

The pain and agony in Cars voice as he yelled for people to leave him alone. The kind vet tech on the phone giving me directions. I handed my husband the phone number in case he needed it and he left to go pick up Car and Pedro. I went across the alley and his wife clung to me in tears.

A young couple were there to help. The girl was helping Car to the car. The young man was on the phone probably with the same kind vet tech. There was blood all over Car but the pup was alert, he was panting but seemed ok.

I just held on to Eve as they sped away. My husband parked and came over. He told her that if they needed help paying for the vet we would do that. More neighbors came over. A young girl was sitting in a car crying, wanting to know what she could do to help.

The police came and took a report. The officer said his partner was looking for the red truck that sped away. He took statements from all of the people that had stopped.

Their son came soon after and his mom clung to him barely able to stand up. He was going to go over to the hospital to be with his dad and the dog. But they would be back.

With hugs and tears we told them to let us know if there was anything we could do. Anything.

We weren't in the mood to eat but I made dinner anyway. A double batch. I took half over to our neighbor. Car was home. I asked how the pup was and he pointed to the fresh dirt mound with the squeaky monkey sitting on top. I gave him a hug, more tears, and dinner. He thought it smelled wonderful and there was a smile on his face. Through all that, he managed a smile on his face.

Today I saw the best and worst in mankind. I saw compassion. I saw people who no longer cared about where they were going or what they were doing. They just wanted to be there for support.

I trust the Karma Cow now to set things right. Go after that driver in the red truck oh great Karma Cow. Please......................

Happy Friday Dance!

This is a TGIF sort of day.

It is simply gorgeous outside. The perfect day to not be inside. In other words, the perfect day to not be at work.

Sigh.....................

So, since I am stuck here I will make a random list of favorite things:

Puppy Kisses
Hubster Kisses
Oreo Cookies
Steak from a charcoal grill
Or Hamburgers for that matter,
Or hot dogs
So how about anything cooked on a charcoal grill
Cold glass of milk
Baileys on the rocks
Sunshine
Soft cool breezes
Thunderstorms
Mountain air
Mountain scenery
A cabin in the woods
A cabin by the lake
The cardinals in my yard
A kitty in the window
Driving with the windows down
Singing at the top of my lungs
The sound of water
Reading by the ocean
Reading by a stream
Reading by a lake
Drinking ice cold water
My pillow
My bed
A warm blanket
Cold night air
The smell of coffee
The first sip of coffee
Apple pie hot from the oven
Corn on the cob
Holding my hubster's hand while I fall asleep
The feel of Sophie as she sleeps against my leg
Max sighing from down below
The excitement Lily and Caleb have when they first see me in the morning
Socrates sleeping
Slipping my feet into a sexy new pair of shoes
Freshly painted toes
Wiggling in the grass
Lilacs
Roses
Gardenias
A yard filled with daisies

Have wonderful weekends everybody!

Hugs to all

Make the most of a craptacular day

So, I was a little lot cranky yesterday and so was Girl J. To alleviate that we went out for the evening. Shopping of course. What else do girls do???

First up: Kohls. And boy did I find a sexy little dress. It makes me quite boobalicious. I bought the dress but plan to put lace or something across the front. Just a little, but as it is now I am leaving NOTHING to the imagination. But the dress was fabulous and really inexpensive so I figure it was worth the sewing I would have to do.

After that of course we went to DSW and I found these:













They are SO comfortable.

DSW is located in a pretty cute little shopping center. So of course we walked around. Ann Taylor was having a fabulous sale - extra 40% off clearance. I found a black skirt and a cute black tank top. I really needed to get a nice business style black skirt because the one I have got some bleach on it. :-(. And the tank, well, it was cute - the top is all crocheted lace, and it is made out of the softest freak'n material. I couldn't walk away from it. Too comfortable.

Aside from shopping I do have to share a funny. We had pretty good thunder storms yesterday so I knew when I got home that Lily would be a basket case. She was. She panted and paced around my feet all night. I bent down to pet her and she got really scared and pee'd. But then, she looked up at me, got a big smile on her face and sat pretty for me. Right down in the pee puddle. And she swished and wagged her tail through it - cause she was SO happy to be getting love from mom. I quick scooped her up and put her in the kitchen sink to clean her up. Laughing the entire time. I wish you could have seen how pretty she sat for me in that puddle. That little peanut just makes me smile.

People tell us how good we are for the dogs and how lucky they are to have adopted us but I gotta tell you, Michael and I are the lucky ones. They fill every single day of our lives with love and laughter.

Hump Day Ramblings Grumblings

It's hot

Yesterday I was a sweaty dripping mess working out in the yard.

Blech

But between working out and doing yard work I was wired! WIRED! I couldn't sleep.

My brain was going 1000 miles a second. My eyes were wide open.

That is until about 5 this morning. Then I could sleep.

Grrrrrrrr

I say again Grrrrrrr

So, since I'm half asleep and in a slightly foul mood I will stop talking and show you some pictures:

This is Cassandra and Tinker snoozing in the guest room

Socrates crashed out in my chair

Shasta Daisy

Cone Flowers

Rock'd and Tagged

Tink gave me a Rock'n Girl award. Thank You!

And Tory tagged me for this Meme - so here goes
Rules:
1. I have to post these rules before I give you the facts.
2. Each player starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
3. People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.

4. At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
5. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

8 Things:

1. I used to have to wrap my toes because my little toe was growing kinda crooked toward the other toes rather than straight out. Apparently I wasn't very cooperative because on my left foot my toe smushes over toward the others. Maybe it just doesn't like being on the end.

2. I once ran off with a complete stranger to San Francisco

3. I once spent a summer with my best friend and two strangers we met across the river. She and I had gone wandering around the Pennsylvania/Jersey border and met these two guys in our wanderings. We ended up spending the rest of the summer with them.

4. My friend Susie and I went to Philadelphia to see A-Ha in concert. We became friends with the guy that was sitting next to us in the theater. We spent that summer talking on the phone with him and writing back and forth.

5. Apparently one thing about me is that I have made some interesting friendships with complete strangers. No set-ups, no mutual friends. Just random meetings.

6. Actually, one of the best weekends of my life was with a friend that I really didn't know all that well. We worked together but on opposite ends of the country. I think we had only met once in person before running off for a weekend. To this day he is one of my best friends. And I love him very much.

7. I have memories that will keep me smiling all the way to old age. Memories that I can cling to and hold on to that make me feel beautiful, and special, and unique, and the center of the universe, even if it was only for a moment.

8. I don't like tomatoes - or fish, or seafood, or anything that comes out of the water.

9. I wish I had wings.

10. I break the rules

I tag: Anyone that wants to play.

Weekend Recap

Saturday was a good day home with the pups and the hubster. We put together our new elliptical machine that we got. It was quite the project. But when we were done we had no left over parts and the machine worked!

We also watched The Lake House - We had set out to watch a different movie, The Ice Harvest, but when we popped it into the DVD player it wouldn't play. Turns out the DVD was cracked.
Sigh..................It's bound to happen with the mail order DVD service once in a while. Anyway, The Lake House wasn't too bad. It was a little slow so we actually watched portions of the movie in fast forward. But, it was a sweet romance.

Sunday I got up early and Girl J and I went up a bit north to see my brother and sister-in-law. They live in San Jose but were out here for a wedding. It was a nice drive up. A little over 2 1/2 hours. We picked up Marc and Elizabeth and headed out. Basically that part of the state is all about outdoor recreation so there isn't a lot to do if you aren't going to boat or fish. But we wandered down the road a bit and decided to walk around the little town of Nisswa.

And we had a blast. We browsed all the little gift shops, had some lunch and followed that up with ice cream. We were also able to hook up with Girl J's cousin. She lives in the area so she came down to the ice cream shop and visited with us. Then some more wandering and shopping. The thing that amazed me about their little downtown shopping district is that from the outside the shops look like tiny little small town boutiques. But it is so deceiving. The shops are huge. The buildings go much farther back than the facade lets on. So we were constantly amazed at how much there was to look at every time we walked into a different store.

After that we dropped off M&E at the home of a family member and then headed back down to the cities. And it was a very busy drive home. I never knew so many people go out of town for the weekend. The roads were really crowded. On the way back we stopped and met Girl J's step daughter for dinner. It was a little more than the half way point so it was a perfect break. Then home we went.

When I got home the hubster told me that Lily pretty much spent her entire day staring at the front door waiting for me to come home. I felt a little guilty but also enormously glad that she loves her mom so much. We worked so hard to get her to this point it just did my heart good to hear she not only feels safe but loves us as much as we love her.

The hubster also bought a truck load of mulch. Lost of gardening to do now! I need to clean up the gardens so we can put down the mulch. It has worn down to dirt in a few places so it's time to load the yard back up. About every other year or so we have to do this. Last year we just spot mulched so this is the year for the "hard" work.

But our yard never looks better than after a brand new fresh layer of mulch. And the flowers are growing so well this year it should look spectacular when we are done. And I will take lots of pictures.

Flower Child

I would have been a great hippie

I think I could have easily embraced a nomadic lifestyle.

All my possessions in my van

Flowy cotton clothing

Sandals and little sunglasses

Dancing to the rhythms of life

I could have wandered

Lived in different towns

Stayed in some, moved on in other's

Read endlessly

Or discussed peace and love

No thoughts of violence

Except where the gov't was concerned

And then fighting for what I believed in

Having the will to stand up to everything that was wrong with the world

Bravely facing down and questioning authority

And when it was done, heading back on the road

Making love and dancing

Yes, I could have been a hippie

The Big 400

In honor of 400 post I have photographed some of my favorite things
My puppies

Wild rice and cheese burgers
My Happy place painting by Jay
Day Lily Garden
Summer storms
The Simpsons

My rocking chair
Vase from Mike
Fairy from Denver Ren. Fest
"Dust Bunny" it reminded me of my kitty Socs
Docks Hound - one of my favorite photographs

Being greeted when I come in the house by these guys
My chair
The best barbecue sauce on the planet
Cognac and vanilla liquor - does it get any better????

Our Grill

I could have taken a million more pictures to share with you but it was getting to be a pretty long post already.

Don't Forget, You're Here, Forever!

But it doesn't have to be that way. Homer found a way to deal with it, see below.

But You can change that!

I know it's a cartoon, but I found this episode completely endearing. And I just thought I would share.

If you have a bad day at work don't look at it as: “Don’t forget: you’re here forever,”

Take Homer's view instead - the work day will be brighter and happier.

One event - multiple outcomes

Sunday we had an amazing thunder storm. It hasn't rained much here in a long time. We have had drizzle, we have had momentary downpours but we have not had a good rain in a while. Sunday, we finally got one.

It started to roll in while I was out at Kowalski's grocery store. I had been craving their burgers with wild rice and cheese so I stopped there on my way home. As I walked back to my car with burgers and potato salad in hand I found it fitting that a storm was rolling in as I was walking out with food for the grill.

But driving toward home it looked as though the real storm was already past us and heading east. So there was hope yet for burgers.

When I got home the hubster was happy with my purchase. He was looking very forward to dinner time.

After putting away the burgers I looked outside and the clouds had gotten a bit darker. So out I sent the puppies. Gotta potty before the rain hits. Storm warnings weren't listed for our area but I figured it was better to be safe than sorry.

Drip------Drip----Drip. The first tiny raindrops fell. And then a crack of thunder. So I sent in the now shivering with fear puppy collection. Ok, so only Lily and Caleb were shivering with fear, but still.................in they went.

And Lily was pacing, panting, and looking for a place to hide.

Once she was somewhat settled under a desk with dad I took my book and headed out to sit under our screen tent. I was reading a good murder mystery so a thunder storm just seemed perfect. The rain started coming down, lightening, thunder, the works. It was fabulous. The tent was keeping me pretty dry. And I couldn't have been happier. I read a good 50 pages or so but then the rain got a little harder, it got a little windier and the tent started to leak. I was getting a little more than damp so I ran into the house.

Lily was still pacing, panting, and changing where she wanted to hide. Poor little peanut. Caleb just sat in the middle of the floor looking at me and shaking.

Eventually the storm passed. Conveniently it was down to a soft drizzle at best right around dinner time. So I headed out to fire up the grill.

Only to find our wonderful screen tent on it's side.

So the hubster came out with me and we tried to get it back upright. Only a support poll had bent over. Thus pretty much ruining our screen tent. We pulled it apart in hopes of salvaging it. And we got pretty wet doing it.

Not to mention the dog poopie I stepped in unknowingly. And then went sliding oh so elegantly across the pavement as soon as my poop covered sandal hit it. Leaving a very attractive skid mark across the concrete. Lovely, simply lovely.

Well, we got the burgers cooked, Lily didn't have an accident, and we can probably unbend the pole and use the screen room again. But still, I found it interesting how many different effects a single event had.

A simple rain storm

Was thrilling and the perfect backdrop for a story
Nourished a very thirsty garden
Terrified a little ten pound peanut
And her little brother
Demolished a tent
Made dog poop soft and skidable
Created fabulous steam effects while burgers grilled
Cooled me down after a hot humid sticky day
and I later learned
Caused someones yard toys to blow away down the neighborhood
Girl J attempting to be a nice neighbor ran after it and rescued it
Only to get home and realize that she was now sick and in pain (she just had surgery)
And had to spend the rest of the night laying down
Power went out in parts of the cities
And I'm sure more than a few car accidents happened
News on it here
And it looks like we got about an inch and a half of rain in that storm.

It was just a simple rain storm but boy did it take the ordinary out of a quiet Sunday afternoon.

Just stuff

Have you checked out http://www.pandora.com/? It’s way cool. You pick an artist and they will play music that is similar in style. I could get addicted to it. Trouble is, it’s filtered at work so I can’t listen to it. ***sob***

So I’m listening to Phantom 105 out of Ireland.

I set up our screen room tent yesterday. Sophie and Lily joined me inside. Not knowing how to get out really stressed Lily. Sophie on the other hand just hung out with me. Until dad got home. And then she went charging to the backdoor. And bounced off the screen. I laughed………………..

Dad called last night and while we were talking I was petting a dog that was sitting next to me. It took me a minute to realize it was Caleb.

I’m trying to grow my hair out a little. Which means I have a headband on. They give me headaches. Oh the prices we pay……………..

A week from Sunday I get to see my brother. He’ll be in the state for a wedding. I can’t wait. The town they are staying in is about 3 hours northwest of the cities. I’ve never been up that way. It should be very cool.

I was looking at what our options were for spending the day together. Aside from fishing and boating, not much. Miniature Golf. Casino. Shopping. Of course when you read their shopping itinerary they include a grocery store in the suggested “shopping tour” so I’m not sure how much actual quaint shopping they have.

We could also go on a riverboat cruise. On Sunday they have a brunch. But I don’t think it’s the kind of brunch we would have in mind. I have a feeling eggs benedict and champagne are not options on the menu.

We also have friends coming from Germany in August.

So many things to look forward to.

Including Ren Fest and the Fair.

Well, sigh, I don’t have a whole lot to say, so I will close with this picture I took on my way to the bus this morning. My Shasta Daisies are blooming. And they are gorgeous.

We were given a half day on Tuesday so my 4th of July holiday got to start early. I met Girl J at the Mall of America for the semi-annual sale at Victoria’s Secret. I didn’t find much but when we moved on to DSW I found these:

Aren’t they fabulous????????

After our shopping trip I had to take Soc’s to the vet because he has been pulling out the fur along his back. At Dr. Skadorn’s office my cat is famous. Or maybe that is infamous. For one he’s crazy, for two he tends to have problems with crystals building up in his urinary tract, and for three, along with the crazy goes being high strung and very in need of routine. So apparently his new routine includes ripping out his fur. But the doc said we caught it plenty early. We are trying some non-invasive methods first to get him to stop. This includes coating his fur with bitter lime and putting a t-shirt on him. He hates the shirt so we are seeing if a bandana is enough to dissuade him. ***Note we are doing full blood work-up to rule out any physical problems he might be having just in case.

Our 4th of July was pretty quiet. They hubster worked on a new utility sink in the basement and I did random busy work around the house. I watched Good Night and Good Luck which was excellent. And I also watched most of Casanova. It was ok. Nothing to write home about.

Though we planned for a 4th of July in the basement we didn’t need it. Maybe all of the fireworks people have been setting off for the last two months helped, or maybe it was because the next day was a work day but the dogs were virtually unphased.

Of course timing couldn’t have been worse, I looked at the clock and got Lily and pups out about 9:15 to go potty, trying to get ahead of all the fireworks shows. But, as with the last time, as soon as Lily stepped outside our neighbors set off ALL their fireworks. But she did pretty good. I was proud of her.

We did start our Eureka marathon. It was fun. Nothing spectacular but good family together time.

And in closing here are the pictures I promised:

The Hubster's Back

Blurry picture of the dragon we just added

And then all of mine(in case you haven't seen them enough :-) )