On pins and needles

I can't believe it has been this long since I blogged. I really have to do better at this. But on to more pressing matters....Mom's foot. It has been the source of much talk and concern over the past few days. This concern is directly related to the reason why I am just now getting the pictures put up. I'm happy to report that she is doing much better today. She doesn't give me a blank look nearly as often as she did over the weekend, so I take that as a good sign. Right after her surgery on Friday(for a hammer toe and bunion for those of you completely out of the loop) she was pretty out of it. I kept wanting to go poke her to make sure she was still alive but my inherent fear of her slap reflex could have been the death of her. I'm also sad to report that I didn't learn anything from her time coming out of anethesia. She has been under enough times now that I think even her subconscious is learning to protect her. DOH! She was in a lot of pain on Saturday and pretty nauseated on Sunday but today she is starting to show signs of getting back to normal. She sounds better and looks better. She's getting her appetite back also. Now the fun will begin of keeping her down. You can see how far out that pin is in the pictures. If she breaks it due to putting too much weight on it or hitting it, we are back to square one. We are trying to keep her in wide open spaces. The less confining her enviroment is, the better chance she'll have with that pin. If she behaves herself, I have promised her a trip to Wal-Mart in the electric shopping cart. It's the closest she'll be to her Harley for a while. I hope I can keep up with her in that store.

Drinking and driving don't mix

Well, in this case the driving was Mom and the drinking was bottled water which resulted in the pictures you see here as well as a dislocated shoulder on Mom and many bumps and bruises. We know that someone lost a couple of cases of bottled water on the ramp going from I-20 to I-55. We believe that there was one in the road still that Mom accidentally hit and from her description it got wedged between her front fender and tire resulting in loss of control. Fortunately, when she realized this, she bailed and wasn't hurt any worse. She watched her bike go end over end and land upside down on its tank probably about 30 yards from her. We are still waiting to hear if her bike was totaled or not. Of course, wonderboy Steve was called to the scene. He assessed the situation and immediately hopped on the bike, fired it up, and drove it into the back of his truck. He had to have some help when he got to the top of the ditch because as you can see, the forks and handlebars are a bit bent. The guys helped him turn it around and hold it straight while he drove it in. When I heard Steve start it, as I was walking away, I heard one of the police officers start to say, "That son of a...". I'm sure it was followed by "is going to drive that bike up here." He was right. Now we are just waiting on Mom to mend and we are all glad that she is OK. Motorcycles are replaceable, but mom aren't.

Spring Break

We decided to go to Florida for Spencer's spring break this year. We haven't been to any of the theme parks since he was six, so it was time to go again. He is tall enough to ride anything he wants now, but there were still a couple that he turned down. He rode all the roller coasters. It took a little convincing to get him to ride The Hulk, but after he tried it, he rode it three times. He was actually hoarse the next day from all the yelling and whooping on the rides. That's definitely a good sign. We had good weather all while we were there. It never rained and the warmest it got was the 80s. I couldn't believe how well everything turned out. The parks weren't even that busy. The longest we ever had to wait was 45 minutes for a ride one time. A couple of times we were able to walk right on a roller coaster toward the end of the day. That's the best. Spencer and I enjoyed acting goofy and hamming for the camera. Steve enjoyed taking the pictures and not having to ham for the camera. I'll share some more highlights of our trip later, but here are a few pictures for now.

What you talking 'bout, Willis?

I know I've talked about Spencer's reading not long ago on here. Yes, we're very proud of him. He warms the librarian in my heart. Blah, blah, blah... What I didn't tell you about is one of the fringe benefits of having a child who reads above his age level. His vocabulary exceeds his pronunciation skills. And being the mom that I am I have at least one "hee, hee, hee" moment a week. I can only think of two examples right now, but here goes. There's nothing funnier than to hear a child trying to sound so grown and failing miserably. He was talking about something (probably us) stifling him. (Hear stiff- ling) Takes the wind right out of his argument when he can't even pronounce the word right. Then this morning I was attempting to comb tangles out of his hair. I'm asking if he used shampoo when he washed his hair last night because it has a conditioner in it and he shouldn't have tangles. (This doesn't even cover the fact that it also means he didn't comb his hair after the shower.) He looks at me so indignantly and says, "Yes, Mom, but that Suave (hear swave) you bought doesn't have conditioner in it." I look at Steve and go,"Hee, hee, hee! He said Swave." What's the point of having children if you can't enjoy a few laughs at their expense? My mom did and still does. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger right? Besides a laughing mother is a happy mother.

New family addition

It's been a hard winter for pets here. We've lost two of our dogs in a little over a month. First to go was Klondike. He was an inherited dog who died of old age. We figured he had to be at least 15. Then just last week our beloved Jake got run over. He was a rambler and a gambler and this time the cards weren't on his side. He was out on the highway near our house and didn't make it. That one was really tough for all of us since we have had him for 6 years. He actually defected from Mom and Dad's house when we built here and became our watchdog. We really miss him. He was an excellent protector and I didn't worry about anything when he was here.

So now it is time to start again. Jake was an Aussie/Heeler mix. We got our puppy from another friend who raises dogs and has gotten three from us. So this puppy is actually related to Jake and our two dogs we have now. His dad is a registered Aussie and the mom was one of our puppies. We hope he has got some good watchdog blood in him. He is definitely smart. He is already fetching. He is 14 weeks old and we call him Bauer. They were calling him Bear so we wanted something close to that. He is a real cutie. The other dogs are still trying to find their place. Pepsi has started playing with him but not Missy. I did manage to get a little video of the dogs playing though. Here's to the next generation.

The Quest

Recently, my DCs (that's dear cousins not darn cats) were down for a visit. Since one is an expert decorator and the other is an expert painter, it was time for some help redoing my bathroom. I'm thrilled with how it turned out. I had the red walls before, but they were repainted a red with a little more of a brown undertone instead of the color I called "caliente". The other walls were all beige before and now they are a lovely brown. I want to lick them because they look like a fudgsicle to me, (my expert painter cousin told me not to do that for at least three days though to let the paint set) but they are acutally Saddle Soap by Benjamin Moore. I had two round decorative mirrors over the sink which we replaced with a large rectangular mirror from Kirkland's and it was even on sale. It's much more user friendly when two of us are in there. We also repainted the light over the mirror to match the other walls. We added a decorative shower curtain and bathroom accoutrements from Target as well. (I love that store!) My problem now is finding a valance. I found one at Target that I thought would work, but when I hung it, it looked too plain. I'm having trouble finding one that ties in the two colors of the bathroom. The ones I have seen with those colors are either too fancy or too ugly. If I had a little bit of sewing ability, I would look for fabric. I'm afraid to even look though for fear I will find the perfect fabric and it will end up being my life long sorrow. So now I have a quest to find the perfect valance. I know it will show up someday, but until then we will just have to look at an empty rod on an absolutely lovely red wall.

Sweet child of mine

OK, this child of mine is quite confusing. He gets totally upset if someone laughs at him, but yet he wants me to make this video to put on our blog to see what kind of comments I would get. He's no Lionel Richie that's for sure. Not much for lyrics either since he's singing the song wrong. Not very good in the wardrobe department. I just took that coat out of the dryer and since it was warm, he felt the need to have it on his head. (Some things are just not meant to be understood.) Anyway, here it goes. I wonder how many of you can even figure out what song he is singing.

Snow Video: Sequel

This is just a video of the snow. Nothing too exciting unless you were here. I discovered that I preferred taking my snow pictures from behind glass even if you can't get the same pictures.

Live Snow

Are you up for a couple of videos? Sorry, I couldn't resist in my snow picture taking frenzy. I'm only posting two of them though. How many of you are afraid to know how many I took?

This is one of Steve and Spencer's snowball fight.

Snow Day

Oh, the joys of a snow day. It happens so rarely in Mississippi, so we always take entirely too many pictures of it. Look, it's on my car! Look, it's on my roof! Look, you can see it in the grass now! So if you are looking at these pictures from another state, please try not to laugh. We probably got four or five inches of snow today and that is a big deal for us. We will have a high of 50 degrees tomorrow and highs in the 60s all next week. That's not even sweater weather. One day of snow is enough to let us know we did have winter though. Hope you like the pictures.

Happy 19!

Steve and my anniversary was on the 24th of November. It's been 19 years. I can't believe how fast it has went by. This year we went to Natchez for the weekend. We wanted to ride our motorcycles but since the high was only in the 40s when we left on Friday , we decided to haul them and ride them around when we got there. We really had a good time. We saw some cool sights and went some places we've been wanting to see. We went to St. Francisville, LA the first night and rode to Morganza, LA which involved a ferry ride across the Mississippi River. That was a cool experience. Also unique considering they are building a bridge there and the ferry will be done away with when it is finished. We also got to eat at Mammy's Cupboard. I've always wanted to eat there. How many places can you go shaped like a giant Mammy? Awesome food too. I highly recommend it. We also had to go to the famous Donut Shop. It was featured by Alton Brown on the Food Network. They were the best donuts I have had in a long time too. That place was busy all the time.

We really enjoyed our time in Natchez. We were there Friday through Sunday and then Joyce and Spencer joined us on Monday and we did some things with them also. I'll post those later. Just wanted to share a few pictures.

Bragging time

I have to take a few minutes to brag on my boy. I don't do that enough most days. He has been doing really well in school this year, especially in his reading. They are required to read enough books to have 25 AR points per nine weeks. (For those of you reading this that are clueless, that is the equivalent of 50 picture books.) So that means they have to have 100 points by the end of the year. Well, Spencer and another boy in his class reached the 100 point goal about ten weeks into school, so their teacher gave them a day off. They got to pick the day and they decided to do it together so they would have someone to play with. They got to bring their Nintendo DS's and Spencer brought his Playstation 2 (the teacher provided the TV) and she also had snacks for them. They are not supposed to bring any electronics to school so he was a little stressed. His teacher was laughing at him because he told her that he put everything in his back pack that he normally brings because he thought everyone would assume it was books and not check it. If anyone had even looked at his face, they would have known something was up for sure. There were no checks though and they got to enjoy a day chilling out as you can see in the picture. When they reach 150, they get another day, so we have some heavy reading going on at home. The other thing his teacher told me was that he tested highest in the class on his reading level. They test them every year at the beginning of the year so they know what level books they should be reading to challenge them. He tested at a 9.5 grade level. Since he is just in 4th grade, his teacher said to stick with 4-6 grade books. I said no problem. Can you imagine how hard it would be to find a fourth grader books he could read on that level? I did some research at work and found that the Janet Evanovich books that many of my friends and I enjoy are only a 3 to 5 grade reading level. How depressing is that! My fourth grader is out reading me! It was bound to happen I guess. I'm too old for reading challenges. There are plenty of others out there for me. I'll leave the reading challenges to Spencer for now.

Bonfire 2008

Well, it was time to have another bonfire party. We have not had one since after Katrina when we had so many limbs to burn. We had some more storm damage this year, so it was time to get some fun out of it. We also had a new feature this year - live music! That was a big hit. Steve's helper Matt that worked with him in the ladders last year plays with some other guys, so we asked them if they would play for our party. They were down a few key players so they found people to fill in from elsewhere. Come to find out the people who filled in came all the way from Louisiana down around the Houma and Raceland area. So we had some true Cajuns among us. They even had some original music. Good stuff! Of course we had a hayride and fireworks. That is a must. This year we had another first that was interesting. Someone called the police. Apparently a neighbor heard the fireworks and thought they were gunshots. They called the sheriff's dept. who in turn called us and when they didn't receive an answer, they sent out two cars. They were happy to see it was just a party. I told them to tell our neighbor thank you because I would rather have ones like that than ones that look the other way.

We had around 40 to 50 people here. I think everyone had a great time. I know we did. The weather was great. I don't think it could have went better. We can't wait until next time. It's time to start the next brush pile, so we'll be ready.

Time change confusion

The time change is always a big deal in our house every year. Steve is grumpy because the days are shorter. The cat is freaking out in the morning because she can't figure out why the house is still so quiet and no one is feeding her even though yesterday at the same time it was full of activity. This usually results in a lot of jumping on the bed and sniffing faces and meowing which makes Steve even grumpier. There was an unusual bit of confusion last night though. The three of us took our motorcycles for a ride to Lake to hang something at the library and then we went to supper in Forest at the Mexican restaurant. Naturally, it got dark while we were there since the time had changed the night before. The ride home was a bit chillier than we expected as a result of that as well. When we got home it was around 6 and Spencer announced that he was going to bed. I assumed it was to warm up. Well, lo and behold he was ready for bed! I talked him into getting up and taking a shower. Then Steve went in and said prayers with him. He was giving me this look that said "Are you going to tell him?" I was giving him a look that said "I will kill you and cut your body into small pieces and feed it to the dogs if you say one word." (You know that look. All mothers have it.) Well after that, Steve went out to the shop and Spencer did a couple more bed preparation things such as get his cat and a drink, etc. (You have no idea how many things he has to do to get ready for bed. That was part of where the look came from.) Then as he was rounding the hallway to head to his room after having said final good nights he stopped and looked at me and said "What time is it?" My shoulders dropped at this point and I was probably only about 5' 5" at that moment. I couldn't lie and say something cute like "Bedtime" as I would have when he was 3 or 4. I had to tell the truth. He can read and tell time now. With a huge sigh I said "7:20" to which he responded "Well I still have an hour and ten minutes then." And that's all I've got to say about that.

Will they survive?!?

It's always debatable when you leave males on their own. I have a conference that I am leaving for tomorrow for the library. I will not return until Friday evening. (*******^^^^******) That was my suppressed squeal of delight. Now I have all the laundry done and lunches prepared as well as suppers. I have instructions posted on the refrigerator and I'm only a phone call away. (If I can hear the phone, that is. You know librarians like to party hearty.) I have left them twice before for these kinds of things and they did fine. I have to admit that every time it does make me a little nervous. Not nervous enough to say I'm not going. What do you think I'm an idiot? This is as close as I'm going to get to an all expense paid vacation. And it is in Natchez after all. It's not like it's in Podunk, MS. Anyway, I digress. I'm sure they will be fine. For now, we'll call it Survivor: Swink House. That sure sounds better than what I think Steve is calling it in his mind.

It's not a diorama. It's a habitat!

Oh, the joy of having a nine-year-old! I realize it is only going to get worse until he's probably 30 and he realizes I do know a few things. The problem is that by then I'll be 60 and will probably have forgotten most of them. The assignment was to create a desert HABITAT in a diorama format. I think he did pretty good. He got a good grade and that is the main thing. It is amazing what can be done with Playdoh, toothpicks, google images, dirt from the driveway, cheap toys and of course the necessity of any school project - hot glue. Especially when these things are having to be done the night before the project was due. After we got going and found a common ground, things went pretty smooth. He certainly looks proud of it. He also had to get in front of the class and talk about his habitat. His teacher said he did excellent on that. That made us happy too. At least this was good practice for the reading fair which will be in a few months. I imagine I'll need a stiff drink after that project too.

Selena Bueller's Class Off

Well, when Greg was here for a visit, we made a deal. I had to sub at the high school and he and Steve wanted to ride motorcycles. Since Greg did not have a motorcylce here, I told him that he could ride mine if I could take his car. I fully expected him to laugh in my face, but surprisingly he said yes. After I got over the initial shock, I grabbed the keys and ran. I got off to a bit of a slow start since I wasn't used to the car and its clutch. I did enjoy having the top down and the looks I got from the kids at the school when I pulled up though. About 11, I had a class off and I decided to take the delicious Spyder for one last spin. (Get it. Spyder - spin) That was when I knew how Ferris Bueller felt in the movie. I felt a little naughty because school was still in session even though I had every right to be gone. Plus, even though I was in such a cool car, I still looked like as much of a dork as Ferris did because I couldn't wipe the big, dumb grin off my face at every stop light. I zipped by the Forest library to show off and got some coffee at Cups and then after checking in with the guys who were in town on the bikes, it was time to go back to work. I loved my 50 minutes of seeing how the other half lives. Once I was used to the car, it was a very fun drive. I plead the fifth on how much fun though. I didn't even have to have a Cameron to weigh me down. (Spencer was still in school.) So I have to thank Greg for giving me a taste of the finer things. I hope he had as much fun on my Harley as I did in his car.

Greg's Visit

We had such a great time when Greg was here. We just hung out and rode motorcycles and enjoyed the beautiful Mississippi fall weather. This is my favorite time of year if you haven't guessed already. I think one of Spencer's favorite things was Greg's new car. He recently bought a Toyota Spyder. Very cool ride! I know when he and Steve came to see me at the library Monday afternoon they left some of my senior citizens fanning as they pulled away. Of course Greg took him to school one morning to give Spencer a chance to show off. I don't think Greg minded that much either. When they got close to where Spencer's drop off is, Greg said he asked him if he wanted to get out there and Spencer told to just wait until they got up to the sidewalk because there were more kids there. He's no dummy. You've got to maximize your cool moments in life because for most of us they are few and far between.

Ms. Earlene's

Greg was visiting this week and it was perfect motorcycle weather. Mom, Steve, Greg and I went riding of course (Greg on Dad's Fat Boy). First we went to Meridian to the Harley shop and then we went to a place I had heard about at the library from Mrs. Logan and Martha (members of my awesome book club in Lake). The name of it is Davey's but everyone calls it Ms. Earlene's after the owner. It's south of Newton about 14 miles on Hwy. 15. You would never stop there and if there weren't cars there, you would probably think it's an abandoned building. Best southern food you are going to get anywhere though. It's like Cracker Barrel on steroids. You fill your own plate and often have to share your table with other guests. She asked us to sign the guest book and in looking through it we found names from all over the US from Maine to California as well as Belguim, Germany, France, Italy and England. You don't just get a meal there. You get an experience. There truly aren't too many of those left, so I'm glad we could share it with Greg. Hope he comes back soon, so we can share it again.

PS We did this yesterday which happened to be Greg's birthday. Cool way to turn 4?. We'll leave that a question mark since he is only about 25 at heart. :*)

Rodrigue Studio

After much work, I finally got Spencer to take an art class this year. He didn't want to do it because he felt he had better things to do with his time after school. Well, the first week they studied the Blue Dog paintings. Rodrigue is an artist from New Iberia, LA. We were in the New Orleans area last weekend for a wedding and I saw something in a magazine about his studio a block off Jackson square. We went to check it out and it was actually open on a Sunday. Spencer was thrilled and took a bunch of pictures and I took a couple of my own. It kind of made me nervous being in there taking pictures with him because one of the sales ladies was working with some customers while we were there and the lowest price I heard come out of her mouth was $15,000. Wow! Don't touch anything, Spence and make sure the flash is off. Hopefully, this will help keep him interested in art class though.

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