bye, bye 2006

Nearly time to say goodbye to 2006

This year as seemed to zoom by hasn't it? It seems the older I get, the faster they go, and if time keeps moving along like this, I'll soon be one of those raisins I keep hearing about. (grin)

For 2007 I resolve to:

try not to be bothered this year by those who feel they are entitled to privileges and indulgences, and won't let it bother me so much that they also feel entitled to exploit other people without any trace of reciprocation.

to remember that families must change and grow and I will try to force myself to adapt to the changes.

to stop feeling responsible for the actions of others.

stop letting the chore of buying presents rouse feelings of financial inadequacy.

stop allowing snide remarks from those who harbor feelings of envy and jealousy bother me so much.

try to get rid of some of this butt baggage I'm carrying.

*

Jordan and Jaylen are here. Aren't they growing? They're such beautiful little ladies too!

Quickie

Time for this old gal to hit the hay. Got a day of training tomorrow to go over the new tax software and what's new with the IRS before beginning a new tax season on Jan. 2nd. I'll be sure to pass on any good news if it's to the taxpayer's benefit. The new satellite is installed and I'm excited that it doesn't take so long to load my favorite blogs,,now I just need some me time in order to play more with it.

Later friends!

Stuff

I received beautiful Christmas cards from family and friends (many from dear blog friends), some comfortable pjs, a whole bunch of delightful, delicate, hummingbirds for my collection, a new camera bag, a new scented candle, a new scarf that's so soft I wish I had a blanket like it, and I've ordered my satellite internet and the install dude should be here Thursday afternoon to get it going. I think the most precious gift was being with family. Trish and her girls will be here Friday and that will make my holidays complete. I was able to see Jordan and Jaylen for a short time on Saturday as they came with my sister when she visited, but they were busy playing so it was hugs and a kiss then off they went to hang with the other kids.



It's 9:22 pm and Zach has been in his room, supposedly cleaning it, for over 9 hrs today. What makes a child drag a chore out like that? He hasn't even been able to play with his new toys because he hasn't finished with his room. I'm past ready to hang him by his feet from a tall tree!



I went into town today and ran up on a bargain that Jerri told me about so I've got a head start on 2 of the 2007 birthdays coming up, at 50% off, can't beat that with a stick!



We had a really fine Christmas dinner, the ham was lean and sooo good, fresh green beans, chicken and cornbread dressing, gravy, mashed taters, some more of that broccoli casserole (my son loves it), some Banny-made, fabulous, bread pudding with a delicious sauce, a strawberry trifle (without the puddin, cause Jami didn't follow the directions for preping it, ha!), a pumkin pie, and delicious brownies (also Banny made).

Oh Holy Night!

The children were absolutely precious in their program today. I've put some of the photos in my December Webshots album if you'd like to take a look. I was so proud to be the Nanaw of some of these little ones and they were SO well behaved!!

Ho, Ho, Ho, Whew!

Been sittin here trying to get my head around the stuff I have yet to do and those cells are just a messy muddle. Tomorrow we have to be at the church before 9 so the kids can get dressed in their Nativity finery before the service, then back home after the service to get some housework done and a pasta salad made for the family party tomorrow night at James's mom's house. After we leave there we'll come back to our house so the kiddies can open presents here, then I'm start making the cornbread for my dressing, boiling the eggs, etc,,,so as not to have so much to do Christmas morning.

This morning Jami brought Alexis and Jillian over to stay with me while Jerri and Bubbie did some wrapping of the presents. We played for a bit and I took them back home around noonish, I think. I waited there so I could visit with my sister, Paula, and my two nephews, Fisher and Michael who arrived not long after. They brought their MinPin, Sparky, with them and we spent a good part of the afternoon laughing at Sparky being manhandled by Jerri's cat, Momma Kitty. Once, Momma Kitty even chased Sparky into the house from outdoors and if anyone had managed to have a video camera in hand, we'd have won the grand prize from Funniest Home Videos with that action shot. Sparky was making a beeline for the patio door with a look of panic and terror on her face, Momma Kitty right on her little stub of a tail with a look that said, "I could catch you if I wanted, you crazy little hound."

Mary, 2 Wise Men, and an Angel

Some of our kids are going to be in the Christmas program at the local Methodist Church
here on Sunday. The Baptist Church no longer has much of a youth program so Zach and his sisters have been attending children's church at the Methodist church. All that matters to me is that they're getting the religious guidance they need so I don't think it matters which denomination and as they get older, they'll make their own decisions about religious matters.

Anyway, Merikate is going to play the part of Mary, Zach will be one of the Wise men, Abby, who started out as an Angel, decided she'd rather be a Wise man too, and Alexis is one of the Angels. Jerri called a bit ago to tell me how much fun Alexis had at practice. She told her the songs they'd be singing, who everyone was, and then she said, "I'm going to be an Angel but I wish I was like Mousey (MeriKate), she gets to be pregnant." I can't wait until Sunday morning to see how this program is going to turn out!

Others news of note, and you could have knocked me over with a feather when he told me this,,,James told me to call Hughes Net and order satellite internet for myself for Christmas! I'm so excited, no more waiting for 10 minutes for a photo to load or having to depend on these ancient phone lines out here for a connection!

Merry Christmas everyone!!

I'm Unpolitically Correct

You know what? I'm getting tired of all the politically correct BS we've got going on these days. It's become a sort of madness brought on by folks, who in my opinion, don't have enough to do except stir up a bunch anti-crock.

We drive out intolerance of so many things which might possibly be considered discriminatory and replace it with a worse form of intolerance - we take away the ability or the right to laugh at ourselves or others, we take away simple pleasures because they might infringe on others, we move from having celebratory festivals of our own which have developed over time because they might not be inclusive of the other people who may not celebrate these festivals but allow them the right to hold their own celebrations - we even tinker with simple childrens stories - like snow white and the seven dwarves - which now thanks to PC we can only call SW and the Seven Vertically challenged people - this is only one of the many pieces of nonsense that we get assaulted with day and daily.

We live in a society where the true meaning of Christmas can be lost. Christmas today has not only become commercialised but it also has started to change. The traditions we have taken for granted and have been passed down from generation to generation are, very sadly, being replaced with a 'politically correct' version or, even worse, stopped altogether.

What's happening to us?

I want my grandchildren, and their children, to know the true meaning of Christmas, to know the traditions, to feel the awe and joy of seeing the enactment of The Christmas Story in their school celebrations as well as their churches if they so choose, or to see a lighted Christmas tree, to hear and be able to say, with love in their hearts and feelings of peace toward mankind, MERRY CHRISTMAS!

A Politically Correct Christmas Poem

Twas the night before Christmas and Santa's a wreck...
How to live in a world that's politically correct?
His workers no longer would answer to "Elves",
"Vertically Challenged" they were calling themselves.
And labor conditions at the North Pole,
were alleged by the union, to stifle the soul.

Four reindeer had vanished without much propriety,
released to the wilds, by the Humane Society.
And equal employment had made it quite clear,
that Santa had better not use just reindeer.
So Dancer and Donner, Comet and Cupid,
were replaced with 4 pigs, and you know that looked stupid!

The runners had been removed from his beautiful sleigh,
because the ruts were deemed dangerous by the EPA,
And millions of people were calling the Cops,
when they heard sled noises upon their roof tops.
Second-hand smoke from his pipe, had his workers quite frightened,
and his fur trimmed red suit was called "unenlightened".

To show you the strangeness of today's ebbs and flows,
Rudolf was suing over unauthorized use of his nose.
He went to Geraldo, in front of the Nation,
demanding millions in over-due workers compensation.

So...half of the reindeer were gone, and his wife
who suddenly said she'd had enough of this life,
joined a self help group, packed and left in a whiz,
demanding from now on that her title was Ms.

And as for gifts...why, he'd never had the notion
that making a choice could cause such commotion.
Nothing of leather, nothing of fur...
Which meant nothing for him or nothing for her.
Nothing to aim, Nothing to shoot,
Nothing that clamored or made lots of noise.
Nothing for just girls and nothing for just boys.
Nothing that claimed to be gender specific,
Nothing that's warlike or non-pacifistic.

No candy or sweets...they were bad for the tooth.
Nothing that seemed to embellish upon the truth.
And fairy tales...while not yet forbidden,
were like Ken and Barbie, better off hidden,
for they raised the hackles of those psychological,
who claimed the only good gift was one ecological.

No baseball, no football...someone might get hurt,
besides - playing sports exposed kids to dirt.
Dolls were said to be sexist and should be passe.
and Nintendo would rot your entire brain away.

So Santa just stood there, disheveled and perplexed,
he just couldn't figure out what to do next?
He tried to be merry he tried to be gay,
but you must have to admit he was having a very bad day.
His sack was quite empty, it was flat on the ground,
nothing fully acceptable was anywhere to be found.

Something special was needed, a gift that he might,
give to us all, without angering the left or the right.
A gift that would satisfy - with no indecision,
each group of people in every religion.
Every race, every hue,
everyone, everywhere...even you!
So here is that gift, it's price beyond worth...



A Politically Correct Christmas Greeting

Best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low stress, non-addictive, gender neutral, winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most joyous traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, but with respect for the religious persuasion of others who choose to practice their own religion as well as those who choose not to practice a religion at all;

Additionally,

a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling, and medically uncomplicated recognition of the generally accepted calendar year 2000, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions have helped make our society great, without regard to the race, creed, color, religious, or sexual preferences of the wishes.

(Disclaimer: This greeting is subject to clarification or withdrawal. It implies no promise by the wisher to actually implement any of the wishes for her/himself or others and no responsibility for any unintended emotional stress these greetings may bring to those not caught up in the holiday spirit.)

You Just Might Be A Scrooge,,,

If your only contact with three spirits on Christmas Eve is gin, vodka and bourbon


If you turn on the lawn sprinklers on Christmas Eve to keep carolers away


If you buy all of your Christmas gifts at a store that also sells gas


If your favorite version of "Babes in Toyland" stars Michael Jackson


If you get your Christmas Tree at a rest stop at night


If you give bathroom fixtures as Christmas gifts


If your prized Christmas ornament is Santa Claus shooting the moon


If your favorite Christmas movie is Jurassic Park


If your idea of Christmas dinner is a six pack of beer and a cheese log


If you think "Ho, Ho, Ho" is a line from a Rocky movie


If your best Christmas tradition involves a fire and reindeer meat


If your favorite version of "Silent Night" is sung by OJ Simpson

If your favorite past time is putting defective bulbs in your neighbors' string of Christmas lights or defacing Christmas lawn charicatures with egg nog


And, finally - if your only holiday decoration is a rotting pumpkin

I Had an Aunt Ruth Too

Miz Sally wrote a post about her Aunt Ruth a bit ago and it set me to thinking about my own Aunt Ruth.

I've written about her before, how she was my mother's younger sister and was only 13 when I was born, how she was my Aunt but also my very best friend when I was growing up, how I'd sit on the bed and watch her and her friends get all dressed up to go out on Friday nights, how she taught me to dance soon after I learned to walk. I've written about how special she was to me and how devastated I was when she died soon before her 41st birthday. I wasn't done learning from her you see, I still had so much to ask her, to tell her, to share with her. I still miss her so very much but I think I miss her most during this time of the year.

Aunt Ruth loved Christmas and was the one solely responsible for bringing our scattered families together for a huge holiday celebration. She'd tease us unmercifully during the weeks leading up to the Day by giving us little hints about the present she'd bought each of us. The presents weren't grand or expensive but she always chose them with us in mind, always knowing what we'd love the most. I remember one year it was a snowman who, when you took his head off, delighted us with a belly full of candy. After the candy was all gone, we could use him as a sweet, little, container for storing all sorts of things.

Another year she hired a lady to make us darling little cat pajama bag pillows to adorn our beds. She knew our favorite colors so mine was blue and white, Paula's was yellow and white, and Terri's was red and white. I still had my pajama bag until the fire took it away over 4 years ago, it's one of the things I miss most.

My Aunt Ruth was also the clown in the family and she passed her joy of laughter onto my sisters and I. We never knew what she'd come up with and we often managed to get one up on her in retaliation.

She had 4 little boys and sometimes just needed to get away alone, even if it was just to the grocery store. One day she went to town and left my cousin and I to tend to the little ones and we waited until we knew she'd arrived and called the local Kroger, where we knew she did her shopping, and asked them if they'd please page Aunt Ruth because we had something important to add to her grocery list. We didn't give them her last name cause we knew when they paged Aunt Ruth, she'd know it was her. When she finally came huffing and puffing to the phone, we told her we were out of Hershey Bars and could she please add those to her list.

I can also remember times when we went shopping with her and she'd have to laugh when she got to the check-out over some of the stuff we'd added to her cart, a gallon jar of dill pickles, half eaten donuts that we'd opened and sampled before putting them in, a package of hotdogs with a couple missing. She'd just laugh, shake her head, and tell the guy to ring them up.

My Aunt Ruth was so proud of us and I sure wish she'd lived to see all the little ones we have now. She'd have loved them with all her heart and would have remembered every birthday and every other special occasion. She never forgot how to play.

I hope when I am gone that someone will remember me with even half the love as I remember her with.

Trying to get the Spirt

It's not easy when you live with Scrooge!

Photo Challenge and other stuff

To kick off the Photo Challenge, that's due in 2 days, I'm posting a link to my photo interpretation of The Meaning of Christmas. I'm going to be anxiously awaiting the emails with everyone's contributions, Please!

I've been chasing the kids around for a couple of weeks to try to get THE shot and finally gave up. It would have been too difficult to just chose one of our babies anyway, they're all so durned cute! I decided to post this photo of our little great nephew, Parker, who was 2. I took this shot last Christmas eve when he was trying SO hard to have patience while the grownups were visiting and eating cause he wanted to open the presents!

***

Jerri told me yesterday that she was getting hotdogs out for the pups the other morning and standing in line with them was Jillian. She was nodding yes, which meant she wanted a hotdog too, so Jerri gave her one when she gave them to Baby Girl , Skipper, and Bugs. A few minutes later the dogs were back whining, Jerri peeked around the couch and there was Jillian, the hotdog nabber, sitting on her pallet watching cartoons, with the hotdogs she'd taken away from the pups.

This evening she called to tell me about Alexis finding a moon cricket in the house. Alexis thought it was a spider and told her there was a "grand-legged dog daddy" in there! Jerri told her to kill it and she'd vacuum it up so Alexis ran over it with her doll buggy.

***

I went shopping over in Horn Lake, Mississippi (suburb of Memphis) with James today and we arrived back home unscarred and with enough toilet paper and paper towels to last a few months, 3 gigantic bottles of ketchup, my favorite virgin olive oil, a big box of pull-ups, a ********** **** for one of the kiddies, a *** ******* for some other kiddies, and a **** ***** play set for Jilly Beans. We've got to do a search for a couple other things and then I think we're done.

Tomorrow I'll be home for the morning and then pick up Zach for a doctor's appt. Afterwards we're going by to take Jillian her pull-ups.

I need a cup of coffee now. Hope everyone had a great day!

News of Note,,,,or Not

The big news down here in the Mississippi River delta today? The local Sears store in a nearby town got robbed. They broke in last night and took a turkey fryer and a blender. James got a firsthand update on the doings cause I sent him by there to buy my needed 5 gal. tub of laundry detergent, and since it was probably the most excitement the store owner has seen in 30 yrs, he had to share. My only thoughts on the break-in were, "Hmmmmmm,,somebody got their Christmas Shopping done."

A turkey fryer and a blender? Geez, if I were going to risk going to jail and possibly spend time being incarcerated with Big Bertha and her sisters, danged if I wouldn't have grabbed at least one of those big screen TV's in there. Some of our rednecks have loads of lights on but there's nobody home much ( could be they're all out robbing Sears, Ha!)

Another little thing I'd like to share is this holiday smack-down advice from WebMD Etiquette expert, Peggy Post.

Or to save some time, you could use my strategy;

Tell em to leave and then lock the door behind them! But I've not had to do that in a coon's age.

I'm getting kind of excited about Santa's arrival cause I'm anxious to see what Jillian will think of the present thing this year. Last year she wasn't all that interested in things. She was probably thinking we were having a storm of some kind what with all of the paper and stuff being ripped apart and tossed aside by the other kiddies.

I can't wait to take photos!

Ya'll having a good week out there?

Not Enough Shopping Days Till Christmas!

This month is going by much too quickly! Wasn't it just yesterday that it was Thanksgiving, and then Dec. 1st? I have some of the shopping done but I haven't wrapped the first thing,,not that I ever get in too big of a hurry to do that dreaded job (for me) anyway. I did go and buy some more bows and stuff today cause I can't find the ones I put away that were left over from last year. Some day I'm going to run across all that stuff that I put away and I'll be able to open my own shop with it!
I guess I don't have anymore excuses for not wrapping some presents to put under the tree so I reckon I'll get right on it tomorrow,,,maybe.

Zach and I went over to sit with the Chick and Jilly Beans on Friday evening so their Mom and Dad could go out to dinner for their anniversary (which was actually last Saturday but there was the wedding). I didn't do too bad, Jillian may be sporting a black eye though, where she met her rocking chair head-on. The child is a little dare-devil, both of them are, but Alexis has grown enough that it's not such a far fall for her now when she jumps off the couch. But then, Jilly Beans is right behind, she's gotta try it too!





I've got to go Christmas shopping with James some time soon (yep, he got home from his trip about 9:30 last evening), Ya'll pray for me,,,or maybe you should pray for him..

Tis The Season, Again

Christmas Cheer is in the air!



The kiddies are getting excited because Santa's coming soon.


Christmas Parties at work.


And I'm almost done with Christmas shopping.

Parts of my day could have been better.

Since He Who Wakes the Birds is off gallivanting around in South Dakota this week, I've had to dust off the ancient clock/radio/alarm and struggle to remember how to set the durn thing. I will no longer moan and groan when He Who Wakes the Birds comes in to growl, "it's time to get up" cause noone should have to wake up to that alarm racket!
Since I stayed up until after 1 a.m. last night to watch a really good movie, the alarm startled me so badly this morning that I ended up on the floor on hands and knees wondering where in the hell I was, and where in the hell that noise was coming from.

That was my exercise for the day, right there!

After I swilled a few cups of coffee and hustled the terrorist out the door, I had thoughts of going back to bed for a bit but instead I called Miz Bea down at the beauty salon to make an appointment to get my hair cut in the early afternoon. I muddled around here for a bit and left early enough so that I could go by and see the Chick and Jilly Beans. They're doing just fine except they're still sniffling.

I almost went to sleep while Miz Bea was washing my hair before she started in snipping some of the length off my hair but hearing all the local gossip woke me right up so that I managed to go to the grocery after to buy those eggs I've been forgetting to buy for days.

I was getting my second wind and had gotten into the house with grocery bags and purse when I dropped the bag with the 2 dozen eggs in it. Uncooked, scrambled eggs are sure do make a mess, didja know that? I managed to save about 8 of them,,maybe that'll be enough to last until I go back for more.

Right in the midst of the 4 hour homework wrestling session with Zach tonight, as well as cooking a couple of the salvaged eggs for supper, the phone rang. It was Jami telling me if it weren't for bad luck she'd have NO luck,,I was listening to half an ear and she went on to say she'd wrecked her car when a tire blew out, and I said, "well,,didn't you have insurance"? She said, "Yeah, but you'd think you'd first ask how I was doing". I said, "Well, I figured you must be doing ok, you're calling me to moan and groan about it!" but she'd hung up on me. I reckon I'm in the dog house,,,AGAIN.

And how was your day?

Something I'm good at

I'm quite good at a lot of things but one of my best attributes, at times, is probably sarcasm. I think that's most likely the reason that my favorite cartoon characters are

Garfield


and Maxine



There's just something about their attitudes about life that make you come to appreciate sarcasm and the things it will let you say that you normally wouldn't dare to. My favorite time to use sarcasm is when it zooms over the head of the receipient, like a fly attracted to the aroma of watermelon-scented hair spray. Although the effect of the sarcasm is lost, no feelings were hurt and you can get a little relief from those murderous urges that make you want to choke the shit out of someone.

Ok, so now I've got that off my chest.

Has everyone been working on the photo challenge that's coming up in just 10 more days?

Weekend photos

The Chick with Mom and Dad

The Chick

Jerri, Bubbie, and the Chick went to a wedding on Saturday.



We stayed home and played with the Jillybeans.

Still breathing

Just can't seem to get my stuff together lately. My soul is tired I reckon.

Baby Sign and The Three Rs, Conceal and Carry

Good GRIEF, what is this world coming to?

As I sat sipping coffee this morning, staring into space, the voice on the TV news filtered in when he/she began discussion about teaching babies as young as 6 months old, sign language so that they might end their frustrations about communicating their needs to their puzzled parents.

I was stunned! When will they stop pushing this crap on these unwary new moms and daddies who are so caught up in their whirlwind lives and careers that they believe every Tom, Dick, and Harry's pitch for products to relieve them of their guilt for not spending more quality time (which I feel is another product endorsement made up guilt factor) with their babies. You've got to wonder how we ever survived to see adulthood without all the things you're pushed to believe you must purchase in order to raise a healthy and well mannered child these days. It could be that I suffer from brain damage due to the fact that my Momma sat me on quilt on a cotton turn-row, with the family collie as a babysitter, while she picked cotton, but I believe children would be better off with fewer activities, wayyy fewer toys, and less stress put on them about learning all this stuff.

Save yourself the cost of the Baby Sign DVD, book, flash cards, etc,,, by spending a little time watching your toddler and you'll notice that they already know sign language. For example, soon before Jillian learned to walk, she'd crawl to the diaper bag and bring you a diaper. What do you think that meant? After she learned to toddle, she'd take her cup to the fridge and stand there until you noticed. What do you think she wanted? When she climbs into a chair at the dining table, would you think that it was because she did NOT want something to eat? (in all honesty, in her case, she's liable to climb right up onto the table and start dancing to commercial music from the tv, Ha!). When they whack you on the head with their dolly, that definitely means "let's play".

All I'm saying is stop feeling guilty and save yourself some big bucks. If you want always well-behaved little adults who obey all commands then perhaps you should not have had children. Animals, by nature, will behave better.


Conceal-Carry For Teachers

In Madison, WI, in the wake of school shootings in Colorado, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin earlier this fall, a Wisconsin legislator is planning to introduce legislation that would allow teachers, principals, administrators, and other school personnel to carry concealed firearms. The Republican Rep., Frank Lasee, says his legislation would hinge on school staff members receiving srict training on the use of firearms and he also acknowledged the need to work around the federal law that bans guns on school grounds.

Do you reckon it should also include the possibility that in arming your teachers and faculty, you're giving children even easier access to loaded guns? Why bother to sneak them in, lift them from a teacher. You know, Correction Officers are not even armed with guns inside a prison where they'll come in contact with the prisoners, and there's a reason for that.

This man should be presented with the Dumb Ass of the decade award.



Ok, I'm done ranting now.

The Differences Between Men And Women

NICKNAMES:
If Gloria, Suzanne, Debra and Michelle go out for lunch, they will call each other Gloria, Suzanne, Debra and Michelle. But if Mike, Phil, Rob and Jack go out for a brewsky, they will affectionately refer to each other as Fat Boy, Godzilla, Peanut-Head and Useless.

DINING OUT:
And when the check comes, Mike, Phil, Rob and Jack will each throw in $20 bills, even though it's only for $22.50. None of them will have anything smaller, and none will actually admit they want change back. When the girls get their check, out come the pocket calculators.

BATHROOMS:
A man has six items in his bathroom -- a toothbrush, shaving cream, razor, a bar of Dial soap, and a towel from the Holiday Inn. The average number of items in the typical woman's bathroom is 437. A man would not be able to identify most of these items.

GROCERIES:
A woman makes a list of things she needs and then goes out to the store and buys these things. A man waits till the only items left in his fridge are half a lime and a soda. Then he goes grocery shopping. He buys everything that looks good. By the time a man reaches the checkout counter, his cart is packed tighter than the Clampett's car on Beverly Hillbillies. Of course, this will not stop him from going to the 10-items-or-less lane.

SHOES:
When preparing for work, a woman will put on a Mondi wool suit, then slip on Reebok sneakers. She will carry her dress shoes in a plastic bag from Saks. When a woman gets to work, she will put on her dress shoes. Five minutes later, she will kick them off because her feet are under the desk. A man will wear the same pair of shoes all day.

DRESSING UP:
A woman will dress up to: Go shopping, water the plants, empty the garbage, answer the phone, read a book, get the mail. A man will dress up for: weddings, funerals.

LAUNDRY:
Women do laundry every couple of days. A man will wear every article of clothing he owns, including his surgical pants that were hip about eight years ago, before he will do his laundry. When he is finally out of clothes, he will wear a dirty sweatshirt inside out, rent a U-Haul and take his mountain of clothes to the Laundromat. Men always expect to meet beautiful women at the Laundromat. This is a myth perpetuated by re-runs of old episodes of "Love, American Style."

OFFSPRING:
Ah, children. A woman knows all about her children. She knows about dentist appointments and soccer games and romances and best friends and favorite foods and secret fears and hopes and dreams. A man is vaguely aware of some short people living in the house.

We're all lit up!

Zach's still facinated by Christmas lights and insists that we string them up around the porch and the eave of the house every year. When he was little we'd take him for a drive to show him all the Christmas lights and he'd say, "LOOK PopPop, LOOK, They're all lit up!" We still do the drive thing around the Christmas holidays to look at all the lights and he still enjoys it just as much.

Jillian will be old enough this year to really enjoy Christmas. She's already philfering the ornaments off of their tree! Jerri's Christmas theme this year is Santas and she's so talented in doing these things. My theme is sentimental, whatever someone's given me, or I've come across that I liked, finds it's way on the mantal, or tree, or is sitting around decorating some spot in my house. My absolute favorites are things the kids have made.

I really had fun visiting with Trish and the girls on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. I came home on Saturday because I'd promised Zach we'd put the tree up. They'll be back at Christmas but not until the weekend after because of Trish's work. Hopefully, that weekend, I'll be able to get a photo of all the kids together.

My son got a deer on their Thanksgiving hunting trip. He shot it right before dark on the very last day. How lucky is that? I won't eat venison but will cook some of the tenderloin for Zach and James for supper tomorrow.

I hope everyone had a grand holiday!

Oh Well

My Christmas template didn't turn out exactly the way I'd planned but I reckon it'll do for now. Sure was a pain in the pass just to get it to look like this.

I'm hoping to have some time to myself over the next few days to get around to read some blogs. I've been having rigors here from withdrawal.

Quickie

Just home for a few to feed the bird and check on the house then we're going back to Jerri's to spend another night while the big hunters are out stalking the deer. Here's the last page of my webshots album with some Thanksgiving photos of the babies. I won't be able to get my group shot of them this time because Jami let Krysten go away to visit a friend of her's for the holiday, dang IT!

James called a bit ago and his SD hunting trip is delayed until the original date of the first part of December. I swear, these men are more fickle and irritating about travel plans than women could ever be!

We Made It!

Well, I almost made it through an overnighter with Jilly Beans without doing any major damage. I did almost everything right, I gave her the meds on time, was able to change her diapers without her raising too much fuss because I was taking too long, and we made it to bed at a decent time and slept the night through. The only little problem we encountered was when she went into Zach's room to play and closed the door. The same door that, unknown to me, Zach had mostly disassembled the door knob on, by working on it with a screw driver. I knew the doorknob was shakey and rattled a bit, but I did NOT know that if you closed it, it COULD NOT be opened from the hallway.

THAT caused a major moment of panic, I swear. (And swear I did).

I finally was able to take a screw driver and slide it between the door frame and the lock thingy and pop the door open but I had a back-up plan to try to climb through the window if that had failed.
Jillian was patiently sitting in the floor playing with Zach's Yugio cards when I got in. My heart beat returned to normal after about a half hour or so.

I hope Jerri will trust me with her babies again.



Since only Zach, James, and I will have a quick lunch here tomorrow before he goes hunting and Zach and I go to Jerri's, our menu is not as large as it's been in past years. Jerri, Trish, and Jami have been cooking up a storm over at Jerri's so I'll let you know what they had after I've sampled some of it.

Thanksgiving Menu:

Turkey Breast (she's all done and cooling so she can spend the night in the fridge, I'll warm her before lunch tomorrow).

Ham (large, bone in, paper wrapped, cured ham, the only kind I really, really, like)

Cornbread dressing

Mashed taters and gravy

Broccoli casserole

Tossed Salad

bread rolls

Pumpkin and coconut cream pies

Happy Turkey Day!!

Tuesday Doings

I was up bright and early this morning in order to get Zach to his doctor appointment on time. Mind you, I wasn't bright until around 9ish but all you folks who don't do mornings will know what I mean.

After we did the doctor thing, I went to drop off Zach's prescription on my way to the main bank in Helena. James needed funds for his hunting trips (the SD one has been moved up to Sunday) so I thought I'd just do it at that bank. I wrote out the a check to be cashed and handed it to the lady at the drive-through and she took one look at it and pushed it right back out to me, "You'll have to do the whole check again, you made it out to the bank instead of cash, and then I'll have to see 2 pieces of ID to cash it and that's only IF you have an account here with enough funds in it.",,, HUH? The last time I cashed a check on our account they'd told me I had to make it out to the bank and I've only banked at the damned place for, oh, about, 35 years, and I only HAD one form of ID with me,,,AND I was also wrestling with Zach about manhandling my cell phone,,, I was in no mood for a change in their danged policies at that moment. I told the lady to give me the check back, I was going to the branch, that I normally used, to cash it, and HAVE A NICE DAY, Ya HEAR? So off I go, back to the pharmacy, then on back to West Helena, to the branch bank, to cash the danged check. Without any ID, (although I understood the need for ID ,,just not about having to have 2 when I'd banked there forever and a day) and without having to change one danged thing on the check.

Whatever happened to customer courtesy? I felt like a bank robber for a time there.

After doing all THAT, I was finally able to go to Jerri and Bubbie's to see Trish and the girls. Jordan and Jaylen are growing like crazy! They'll be teenagers before we know it! I played Trivia with Trish and Jami and laughed so hard I got a nose bleed.

Jerri had to take her girls to the doctor today with respirtory infections and Jami had to also take Abby with the same. They sure were wishing for a holiday without any kind of illness this year, last year everyone had a stomach virus!

When I got ready to leave, Miz Jillian decided that she didn't want me to go, so I just brought her home with me and we've been doing some major playing at my house this evening.

Well, I'd best be getting the little ones to bed so I'll say good night for now.
Hope everyone's having a fine and dandy week!

Can't think of a title

How's everyone's weekend going?

I was sitting here trying to figure out why everything is so nice and clear on my monitor and I suddenly realized that the fonts and icons and stuff are larger. I've checked all the properties and everything is set at either default or normal so I stopped fussing at Zach for his possible meddling, and his persistent denial of the act, and figure it must be the new update I did to the IE browser. (It's either that or I'm miraculously not so blind anymore.)

I've also been having a tussle with the Mr. Snowman puppet who claimed to have taken on a life of his own, and has been irritating the hell outta me while I was trying to figure out all the monitor view stuff. He has now been banished to his room along with his buddy, Zach. (They'd best be blazing a trail through that area during their banishment too, although it's not likely.)

My Uncle Tommy, the Cajun of the family, who has just moved here, temporarily, from Lafayette, Louisiana to help my Aunt Freda care for her ill husband, came by today for a visit. He's 78 years old, and looks to be a young 65, and is so full of tales that you can't help but like him even though you know that you can only take about half of what he tells you as the straight, honest, truth. We're all caught up on the family news and gossip as well as that of everyone else in the 2 neighboring counties.

Trish, Jordan, and Jaylen will be arriving at Bubbie and Jerri's tomorrow evening so I'll be spending as much time as I can with them this week. I'm sure we'll be playing cards, a trivia game or two, and drinking gallons of coffee (iced tea for Trish) while keeping an eye on the "chillins". Jami is supposed to be there off and on too, with her girls, so I'm really looking forward to seeing all my children, and their children, together.

I've been thinking over the past little while about doing a little project here on my blog and I'd like to ask ya'll what you think about it.

Photography has become a great love of mine and I am always so happy to learn new things when fooling around with it, anyway, I thought that 2 or 3 times a month I might host links from other bloggers, or anyone else who may be interested, in Photo Challenges. I'll try to come up with the challenges and the participants will interpret it with their photos, send me the links to the photo hosting site where they're located, and I'll post the links, here on my blog, after the ending date of the challenge. Even those without cameras can join in by finding photos online that they feel would be their interpretation of the challenge.

What do you think?

If anyone is interested, I would like to suggest for the first challenge, "The Meaning of Christmas", and have December 15th as the ending date for the challenge.

There are some really great, free, photo hosting sites online, Web Shots, Photobucket, and Flickr are 3 that I use and they're all great and easy to use.

I'll be waiting to hear from everyone in my comments or my email (dian1954 at gmail dot com).

Sunny in the Delta

It was so nice today that Jami and I took the kids to the square in Marianna and took a few photos today. If you'd like to see, you can go here and here to look at the two that I've uploaded to webshots so far.

I'm off to put my feet up now to watch a little tv and finish reading my book.

Plotting and Planning

It's the last weekend before next week's Thanksgiving Holiday and I've been sitting here wondering where this month went. Next weekend Zach and I will spend one evening putting the Christmas tree up and getting it decorated and then I won't be able to find many excuses for not wrapping a few gifts. Have to do some more shopping too and that's a frustrating job for me. I can never find what I'm looking for and that's if I even know what I'm looking for.

James is going to deer hunt next Friday and Saturday near here, and then is going on to the big woods, or at least closer to the big woods, up in South Dakota, to bird hunt some time around December 4th or 5th. Guess who has to do the shopping for most of the stuff he'll be needing for his trip? Even doing it online is a pain in my pass due to the nature of the items I have to seek out to order. It's not as much fun to shop for insulated underwear and hunting vests as it is for say,,,toys, or books, or gadgets,,that good stuff, ya know?

Makes note to self to show him how to use the point-n-shoot 35mm camera so he can take pictures for us to look at after his stories have been told 450 million times.

Anyway, Zach and I will have a good ole time while he's gone because we can fill up on salads, the occasional pizza, and maybe some chinese food one evening. This Nanaw will get a break from cooking meat and taters for every meal! I will, however, have to set the alarm clock in order to get the little rascal up and ready for school because nary an alarm has been set around here for years because of "He who wakes up the birds", and he will be gone hunting.

I've also been working on a new, Christmasy, template this past week. I can't be letting Miz Joanie outdo me too often. (grin)

Well, that's about all I can think of for now. Hope everyone has a super weekend!

Women as explained by engineers

My cousin sent these to me, he's gone beyond the occasional blonde joke now. Ya'll help me find something for him that's equally amusing. There were more but these two were sufficient for me to begin plotting my revenge. :-)

A Little This and That

I need to get organized around here but I lack the energy to actually get moving on it.
I could make a list,

1. Things I won't do now.
2. Things I won't do later.
3. Things I will never do.
4. Things I can try to get others to do.

but I'd lose it, that's one skill I'm very good at.



James has been wanting some pups from his hunting dog, Sweet T, so last week she came in heat and he's made a couple of trips over to a nearby town to take her to visit a prospective boyfriend. They've run into a snag though, T. doesn't seem to be interested in the poor fella so the question over the next little while will be, Is she, or isn't she, with pups?

Normally this dog is quite the slut. She's been known to torment the little, short, fuzzy, dog from next door through the fence to the point where the little, whimpering, fella lost weight from not eating. Anyway, I warned them that she was a tease so now they'll have to just wait and wonder.

Reflecting

Are they working on blogspot this weekend or something? This posting screen sure looks mighty strange today.

The other day, when Jerri and I, with the Chicklets, went to Forrest City, we spotted a sight that we see quite a lot of down here in the south. It was one of those Hooptie cars, or what I call a Hooptie anyway, This one was a late 60's, early 70's, convertible that the guy had painted a spring grass green and he'd installed some of those flashy spinning hubs as well as some hydraulic hop kits. There's no doubt that the parts he used to fancy up his ride were worth about 5 times, or more, than the cost of the car. The Chick really took a shine to it and had fun watching the dude hop his car around at the redlight. Does everyone have these Hoopties in their area?

Jerri was telling me about a conversation she had with the Chick the other day and I had to laugh. The girls had been so clingy that Jerri even had to sweep with Jillian hanging on her leg and she told them, "Please act like normal kids and go to your room to play and watch TV for awhile." Alexis looked up at her and said, "But we're not normal Momma, elderly people call us young!" I reckon that child will be getting her drivers license in the next year or so. Ha!

Jami was here yesterday with her girls. MeriKate brought her certificate to show me that she'd been chosen as Student of the Month. She's doubly proud of this since last year she didn't take to school too kindly. All three of the girls made the honor roll the first 9 weeks so everything is good there.

I'm going to go take a nap now. See ya'll later!

Just a lazy old broad this week

But I'm finally getting around to posting something.

Jerri sent these to me today.





The pup in the photo with Jillian is our St. Bernard neighbor and she's directly responsible for this aching back I been sporting. She slipped up behind me while I was bent over in the garden one day and I ended up lying on my back cursing a blue streak. The second photo is how the Chick and Jilly Beans looked when they arrived yesterday to go to Forrest City with me. A dinner of chinese food and a little candy on the way home changed the look somewhat.

I can't WAIT till Thanksgiving when all our babies will be together in one place again. I love those group photos of em!

I better adios for now, it's a'thunderin out there and sounds like it's coming closer. We've had two days of near 80 temps.

Civic Duty

I did it.
It's done.
I voted.

Zach's doctor's appointment went well, the doctor is going to try him on medication for the ADHD but not of the stimulating sort. He's to take Strattera (one of the newer meds) for 2 weeks and then we'll return for evaluation to see if this stuff might work. I'm as nervous as 'ho' in church on Sunday but I promise, I'll be watching for any and all signs of trouble. Doc Bell said he'd be around, except for a few days at deer camp, over the next two weeks if I should need to grill him any more. He's lucky I didn't ask him where he'd be hunting. Ha!

And while I was at the doctor's office anyway, I threw caution to the wind and took a flu shot for the first time in around 36 years. When we lived in England all those years ago, we had to be inoculated for everydangedthing, every year, and every year I'd be sick enough, for two weeks, that I thought I was dying. After coming back to the states I avoided those flu shots like the plague and only had the flu 2 or 3 times in all those years. This thing I have with my heart has made me reconsider though and after finding out they no longer inoculate with a live virus, I let them stick me. If I get sick and die from the inoculation, ya'll sue em for me and have a blogger party, ok?

Hope ya'll are having a nice evening!

Hope I'm not boring ya'll.

If ya'll get tired of these posts with the photo links, please let me know, ok? Not much has been going on around here other than the usual. I see the babies when I can and enjoy watching them play, help with that neverending homework, and PUT up with a big lump that is spending way too much time at home in his recliner lately.

The other day, Jazzi, posted a piece about a Ginkgo tree at her work and it gave me the urge to go out and hunt one up for a couple of photos before I missed the show here. I found both trees in West Helena and was able to get a little closer to the second one so the shape of the leaves shows up better. They're such a riot of bright yellow in the Autumn and I love to see their show during this time of the year.

I thought I'd also put a link to the first shot I took at the old railroad track so you could see what I thought was so odd about it. The more I look at the photos, the more I think that it wasn't my focusing that caused the blur, but just what the cause is, is beyond me.

I took this shot of an old barn that day we rambled also.

On Sunday some of the babies visited and enjoyed playing outdoors for a bit after dinner.

Tomorrow, Zach has another doctor's appointment and I need to get the tags for James's truck so it'll be a pretty busy day.

I hope everyone's enjoying their week!

Razorbacks Get No Respect!

I had to watch that Razorback football team on television last night and root them on even though they couldn't hear my armchair coaching strategies through the TV screen. They sure played a great game to get no more respect than they do in the rankings. The win against SC last night brings their overall stats to 8-1 and their Southeastern Conference play to 5-0.

Take a look at this and tell me why they're only ranked 12th here.

EAST CONF OVERALL
Florida 6-1 8-1
Tennessee 3-2 7-2
Kentucky 3-3 5-4
Georgia 3-4 6-4
South Carolina 3-4 5-4
Vanderbilt 1-5 4-6
WEST CONF OVERALL
Arkansas 5-0 8-1
Auburn 5-1 9-1
LSU 3-2 7-2
Alabama 2-4 6-4
Mississippi State 1-5 3-7
Mississippi 1-5 3-7

I reckon everyone's waiting around to see if the Hogs can keep up the pace against the next three, tough, teams they have to meet up with this month. They still have to tangle with Tennessee, Mississippi State, and LSU. Maybe if they can continue their winning streak through these teams SOMEBODY will sit up and take notice. Ya think?

Lazy Afternoon

Jami dropped Krysten off around 7 this morning to spend the day with us and James didn't work all day, so when he and Zach decided to take the bird dogs out for a little hunting, Krysten and I took a little drive to take photos of the fall foliage.

I took this opportunity to inquire as to her career inclination and she told me, "Yes, she knows what a serial killer is,,they kill people", but she's changed her mind and has now decided to be a witch,,, but not one of those who has a green face!

A hop and a skip from home we stopped to snap a shot of these horses who seemed to be enjoying the sunny, cool day. We turned off our road after a bit and crossed over the highway to mosey down another gravel road to see how much color we could find. I stopped atop an old railroad track to take a couple of shots looking north. Look closely at this shot, do you see the blurry spot way down the tracks there? I didn't notice that until I was downloading the photos and was wondering what was up with my focusing, but when I checked out the second photo I took, it had that same hazy blur in the same spot. None of the shots I took before and after those showed a problem with the lens or anything so now I'm wondering what was up there. Odd.

We turned down another road that ran along part of Crowley's Ridge and poked along till we came to Lost Road. I have no idea why it's named that other than it can be a pretty spooky looking road at night or on a dark and cloudy day. Parts of it seem to be carved through part of the ridge because as you drive along you look to either side and the tree roots are sitting atop banks which are higher than the truck, and their roots are exposed there. You can sort of see this in the photo.

Everywhere we looked there were obvious signs that Autumn had arrived in our little spot in the Mississippi River delta and was giving us a flash of it's colors before leading us into winter.

I survived!

I'm pretty pooped but my day of being surrounded, and out-numbered 6 to 1, by the kiddies went pretty durned well. They all behaved themselves, except for Zach, and he just can't seem to comprehend why little girls don't care so much for wrestling and being body slammed.

I'm thinking that my bed is going to feel mighty fine tonight.

Just some more stuff

I've been having these big ol pangs of guilt for most of the afternoon cause Jethro went all floatey and joined that big aquarium in the sky. It wouldn't be bothering me so much except that I've been slightly ungracious about having to clean his nasty little home a few times already, even after saying to the other humans in this house, that Jethros were NOT my responsibility.

I wonder if I put too much of that water purifier in there the last time I cleaned that thing?

**

Didn't the month of October pass in a flash? Just when I get the hang of writing the 10th month on everything, it's another month and I have to start all over again!

**

The other day while sitting in that doctor's office waiting, the girls and Zach were being almost angelic by sitting quietly while watching The Grinch That Stole Christmas movie. Then Krysten turned her little head and looked at her mom and I and said, "I want to be a serial killer when I grow up."

I gotta tell you, for the first time in my life, I was totally speechless! 6 of the kiddy crew will be in my care tomorrow because school's out and the parents have doctor's appointments, so I'm going to try to get Krysten alone so I can ask her if she knows what a serial killer is. I think they've been watching too many of those scarey movies!

Happy Halloween!!

Our little Tricksters will be on a sugar high for a few weeks after all the fun they've had these past several days. I uploaded some photos of them in their costumes here and here if you'd like to take a look.

HORRORSCOPES

Ascaryus (Jan 20-Feb 18): This Halloween looks to be a scary one for you. But before you go around crying, "Ooooh, I want my mummy! I want my mummy!" think about this: You want more lovin’, right? Well, if you run around like a scaredycat, you will, to quoth the raven, "Neverscore."

Pieces (Feb 19-Mar 20): Vampires are evil, hypnotic people who will emerge in the night and drain you. Sounds like someone I used to date. You need to be careful because you may have closed the metaphoric coffin lid on a relationship, only to find that this person will rise from the graveyard of your heart to worm their way back into your life. One word of advice from "Buffy The Vampire Slayer": A vampire can only come in if you invite them.

Scaries (Mar 21-Apr 19): You've got to pick up every stitch this Halloween because, unless I miss my guess, it must be the Season of the Witch. If only every holiday could be commemorated with a bad Donovan song. Wouldn't it be great, on Thanksgiving, to sit around the table, giving thanks for the bounty we are to receive by singing a rousing round of "Mellow Yellow"? That is truly the most horrifying thought you can be faced with this Halloween.

Tarot (Apr 20-May 20): Sure, you ladies have been looking for some lovin'. But you don't want to go for just any Tom Dick and Harry. And heaven forfend you go for any Jack you find, especially when that Jack is some hollow-headed grinning gap-toothed idiot. But then again, despite his weird exterior, if you look inside, you'll see a flame burning bright. This might be the season of the witch, but if you try not to act so witchy and look past the odd exterior, you'll find hidden depths in the ugliest places..

OnlyOneEye (May 21- Jun 20): Horror is in the eye of the beholder, whether that eye be bloodshot and yellow, peering at you from the shadows of the night, or whether the eye is a horrible dismembered giant radioactive eye. What is truly scary? A werewolf? A werewolf is not so much a horrible half-man half-beast as a chronic undershaver. A headless horseman is just the victim of a particularly bad hair day. In much the same way, you can find the brighter side of anything that comes your way, no matter how horrific or annoying.

Dancer (Jun 21-Jul 22): Scary is relative, and we don't just mean your crazy relatives who threaten to come visit for six weeks, but rather the idea that whereas a movie with monsters made out of cardboard boxes and paper mache may have been the scariest thing you'd ever seen when you were eight, it now looks like crap. You must get over your initial fears of a new project or relationship; although it seems insurmountable now, if you stick with it, you will eventually be able to overcome it.

Tao (Jul 23-Aug 22): Frankenstein's monster was, of course, made out of the parts of a couple dozen other people, which must have been hell when it came to custody hearings. Nothing's more awkward at a family reunion than having one-tenth of Cousin Harry show up at the buffet. You, too, feel like you're being pulled in twenty different directions, but you'll soon receive the jolt you'll need to get on your feet again.

Vertigo (Aug 23-Sep 22): Pity the poor skeleton who wanders around on Halloween, looking so unfashionable in all-white a full two months after Memorial Day. Of course, he can't help it, and he is actually successful in the love department; after all, he is "ribbed" for her pleasure. This week you'll find that you attract more flies with honey than even dead zombie flesh, and being inherently nice to the opposite sex will make them flock to you like vultures to a skeleton.

Webra (Sep 23-Oct 22): Zombies are pretty well-known for trying to suck the brains out of people's heads. As was every high school algebra teacher I ever had. Coincidence? Considering that those people were always pale on the point of being green, had trouble communicating more than moans and incoherent screams, and had awkward, stumbling walks down the hallway, I think it's lucky I escaped without some horrible "Night of the Living Dead scenario." You escape a horrific fate worse than death , if you can steer clear of boring people at parties.

Scareio (Oct 23-Nov 21): You think you're being slick, but the truth is that you're like a ghost; people can see through you, and all the noise you're making is more effective scaring small children and dogs than actually doing anything. It's time to leave your old haunts and take care of that grave matter that's all your vault.

Sekeltarious (Nov 22-Dec 21): Boo! Scared ya!

Capricandycorn (Dec 22-Jan 19): You're in the zone this week! The Twilight Zone, that is, and it's going to be a creepy thrill ride with an incredibly ironic twist at the end that serves as a commentary on our mixed-up Cold War nuclear society. Don't let the creepy situations you get yourself into this week get you skittish. Let them get you Skittles; why not go Trick-or-Treating? It's fun to dress up, get given stuff, and not have to give ten percent to a big guy named Huggy Bear. And Halloween candy doesn't count as calories!

Ha!

Down south, Bubba called his attorney and asked, "Is
It true they's suin them cigarette companies fer causin
People to git cancer ?"

"Yes, Bubba, sure is true," responded the lawyer.

"And now someone is suin them fast food restaurants
Fer makin them eit fat an cloggin their arteries with all
Them burgers an fries, is that true, Mista Lawyer?"

"Sure is, Bubba."

"And that lady sued McDonalds for millions when she
Was gave that hot coffee that she ordered?"

"Yep."

"And that football player sued that university when he
Gradiated and still couldn't read?"

"That's right," said the lawyer."
"But why are you asking?"

"Well, I was thinkin .. . . What I want to know is, kin
I sue Budweiser fer all them ugly women I slept with?"

Ornament Exchange

Jerri's doing an ornament/card exchange over at her place and she wanted me to let ya'll know in case you wanted to participate. Click here to surf on over and check it out.

I Remain Frustrated and Furious

The meeting on Wednesday was a total waste of time except for the fact that he has a certain diagnosis of ADHD but things didn't go as I had hoped and I feel as though we're only up to step 1 1/2, maybe. The psychiatrist's attitude was sort of, "Let's get this over with so I can get out of this hellhole." She met with Zach for 15 minutes or so, met with Jami and Zach for 10 minutes, then sent them out with a prescription for Welbutrin. I was not given a chance to even talk to her, much less, be able to ask my questions and voice my concerns. I gave the prescription to the receptionist and told her we wouldn't be needing further appointments and I'd sign forms to have his records sent to our family doctor.

The place was more or less another one of the assembly line care centers that we're so graced with here in the delta and it pisses me right OFF!

To round out the day of disappointments, we got Zach's 9 week grades. He had A's and B's in every subject except for Math, and that was a big fat F. I've known for 9 weeks that he's been stuggling the most with 4th grade math, why else would I be spending hours, upon hours making him worksheets for practice, going over and over the areas where I see he's having the most problems? His teacher also knows that he's struggling with math (not with the basic problems, but those that take more than 1 or 2 steps to solve) and in order to let me know that she knows I get this little, short, report that says he's enrolled in a computer assisted course called Math Concepts and Skills for 10 whole minutes each day!

Now I could be wrong, but I am thinking that if I spend 4 to 5 hours working with him each day, this 10 minutes of computer assisted instruction isn't going to do the trick. Ya think? I'm getting all fired up here folks. I feel like a momma bear with a cub who's in danger and I'm about ready to bite some heads off.

Anyway, I'm taking Zach to see the family doctor again as soon as we can get an appointment next week. I'm going to gather up all my research and get ready to get down to business to see if there's not something that can be done to help this child and I'm not going be afraid to step on as many toes, or heads, as it takes!

Oh, and before I forget,

Happy Halloween Ya'll!!

No Rest for the Wicked

Jethro

I had thoughts of snuggling back down this morning but those were very quickly dashed by the rumbling noises coming from the ancient cotton picker in the 20 acre test plot of cotton that joins us to the south. Normally these experiment guys don't get in much of a hurry to do their farm-ly chores so I guess the threat of rain has put the hitch in their pants today.

Ah well, the living room floor needed vaccuming anyway.

The school Halloween Carnival went off without a hitch and I expect the Athletic Department (AKA the football team) raked in some big bucks over the activities from the past week. I know it lightened my pocketbook a tad. Zach wagged home around 5 lbs of the most useless candy that could be had,,you'd think if they were going to keep the dental association in business, they'd at least make it a family affair and put some good chocolate stuff in there for Nanaws, huh? He also, with the utmost care, (at least as much as an active 9 yr old can care) brought home his prize goldfish. I'm not sure who thought up THAT bright idea for a prize but I'm going to be on the lookout for them and think of appropriate revenge.

Where does one put a goldfish when one is not prepared to adopt a goldfish? Luckily this Nanaw cans her tomatoes every year so Mr. Goldfish spent his first night at his new home in a quart canning jar. Don't laugh, so far it seems that this fishy is the only one that we know of that survived the night, other fishy prize winners have told us that they've been having numerous fish funerals.

Since Jethro (aka Mr. Goldfish) survived his tight confines overnight, we made a side trip to Walmart to buy a fish bowl yesterday, and since no fish bowl was to be had there, we ended up spending $20 bucks on a desktop aquarium home for the little fella. You do the figures, $1 goldfish - $20 goldfish home, we're spoiling him already so he'd better not die or this could get to be a very expensive prize here.

Later on today there's Zach's first appointment with his psycologist. Ya'll wish us luck cause he's hinted that his report card (that they'll be getting today also) is going to be sporting a big, fat, F in Math. This would upset me much more if I didn't know how hard he's worked to do this stuff and how hard I've worked to help him learn it. I hope these folks can help us cause I will surely die of exhaustion and a broken heart if they don't!

Blinded by The Light

I was cold and still sleepy after Zach left for school this morning so I snuggled down on the couch and drifted off to sounds of the Today Show. Suddenly this light appeared behind my eye lids.

My asleep brain: Whoa, is this THE light? It can't be The light, my feet are still cold.

My trying to wake up brain: Don't be so stupid, go back to sleep.

My asleep brain: But look, it keeps getting brighter and brighter. Something's going on here.

My trying to wake up brain: Well, if you don't believe me, open your eyes, but that's going to mess up this great nap we're taking.

My asleep brain: This is too cool, but it's getting so bright it's uncomfortable in here.

My trying to wake up brain must have given up the argument at this point because I opened my eyes to see the sun glaring through the kitchen blinds, directly into my eyes, as I lay there snoozing on the living room couch. I quickly shut them but the moment was gone and I got up from my warm spot and greeted the day. Again.

Doncha just hate it when you think you might be having an other-worldly experience and life wakes you up?

Haunted Trail

this little pumpkin had a great time.

I think the kids had a good time but I wore out long before they did.



I also took some photos of Zach's friends who went with us but I forgot to ask permission to post them. I'll try to remember to ask and will post them later if I can.


One of Zach's classmates made this little cuties to sell for their carnival. Aren't they the sweetest little things? Who knew you could make such sweet ghosts from flour and salt clay?

Little Bits and AT&T Still Sucks

This danged dial up is still giving me grief. The lines are so bad out here that early in the mornings I can't even log on because the noise on the lines is so bad. That sucks because lately early mornings are the best times for me to log on for any length.

Now for recent news updates from my spot in the delta.

I'd searched and searched for this photo of Jordan and Jaylen to put in my webshots album and finally found it. Trish gave it to me a couple of months ago and I love it. Jordan and Jaylen are doing exceptionally well in school and aren't giving their momma too awful much grief. (Are they Trisha?) Jordan is about done with the fall softball (I think) and is busy now with youth basketball.

The Chick had a nasty ear infection last week but other than it making her a little cranky, she's been going about business as usual. She takes a dance class on Tuesday afternoons and a tumbling class on Wednesdays. She's at her Auntie Cindy's this weekend so they can go to the State Fair.

Jilly Beans has been sick this week and even stopped eating for a day or two. This is something that makes her Momma worry a lot because this baby really loves some groceries! She came to visit us last night while Jerri and Bubbie went to a ball game and she and Zach had a great time. She discovered (all on her own) how much fun it is to stand on the gliding foot stool for a little dryland surfing even though it puts a few extra gray hairs on her Nanaw's head.

Zach has been busy with homework (which is still giving his Nanaw a major headache) and with the activities his class has to do for the school's Halloween Carnival this week. Thank goodness the carnival is Monday night so our pocketbook will have a rest after that.

MeriKate has been having headaches every day so Jami took her to see the family doctor this week. They did a CAT scan and found there are some problems with her sinses left over from the accident she was in a couple of years ago. They are sending her back to Children's Hospital in Little Rock as soon as an appointment can be set up.

Krysten and Abby are both doing great in school and Abby doesn't even fuss so much about having to go anymore. For awhile there, she was hating the whole idea of school. Krysten is in 2nd grade this year and is already reading at 5th grade level, she loves books.

Our young neighbor, Jessie, came by with a friend last night to show us her Halloween getup. I didn't have a chance to snap a shot of the look on Jillian's face when she saw the girls, but I wish I had.

Tonight the little park/hiking trail nearby is hosting a "haunted trail" for the kiddies in the area to trick-or-treat. Zach is looking forward to it and hopefully I'll be able to snap a few shots of the entertainment. (ha!) Monday night we'll be at the school Halloween carnival and I plan to have a seat at the Bingo game for however long it takes to win a prize. I haven't been lucky enough to in the past but maybe this year's the year! Then, Saturday night, Jessie is having a Halloween party. She always invites all our babies to the event and they're all really looking forward to it.

Well, that's it for now. I hope all is well in your neighborhood this weekend!

Dragging

Please excuse my lack of posts here lately. I'm trying, I really am, but even mudane things are becoming mountains these days and I just get too tired to think.

James has been home for the past 3 days, harvest is done, and there will be a little field work to keep him busy for a few more weeks,,, but not enough, so my winter insanity may be starting early. I'm not sure I can make it through till spring without doing someone bodily harm.

Put In My Place

I was raised to believe that everyone is entitled to their opinion but this doesn't entitle them to be ugly about it. I've always kept this part of my raising in mind when stating my opinion about any matter of things that may come up in a conversation and just such a conversation occurred the other day that caused me to have to dig deep to take a firm hold of this advice to keep from becoming really ugly.

My husband has an uncle who's the type who'll take anything and turn it into an argument. He's been married about 4 or 5 times and the more I think about it, the more I realize the women probably left him in order to keep themselves out of prison for murder, because the man is an arrogant ass. Actually, he's an ignorant, arrogant ass, and he reminds me so much of my father and oftentimes, my husband.

An ignorant, arrogant, ass is someone who has an opinion about something and insists that their opinion is the only correct opinion that can be true about it. The ignorant adjective is used in order to describe their certainty that they know all the facts about the subject because they read it in a newspaper article once or on the NBC nightly news. (Modern day IAAs have often read one article from an internet site). I'm not saying that there is not much to be learned from such sources but the IAA mostly only uses ONE source in order to make their decision in a matter because they're more interested in having their say and having you agree with them than they are in the truth about anything.

Ok, now for the conversation.

While sitting in the kitchen waiting for time for the visiation for the uncle who is deceased, I was talking with an older lady, man, and my mother-in-law. We were mostly just making small talk but one of them mentioned something about the war in Iraq and how they sure hoped it wouldn't turn out to be another Viet Nam. IAA uncle, who hadn't been doing anything other than his usual staring into his coffee cup, suddenly jumped up from the table and shouted, "I was there! The Viet Nam war was what it was because of YOU people, YOU protested, YOU didn't let us finish the job over there, YOU are to blame for it!"

I almost started laughing at the man. It was such a shock to see someone actually behave like that in front of folks who weren't family, but I noticed how the older lady across the table from me kind of turned pale, over being shouted at like that, so I quickly changed the subject.

Then later on I screwed up and said I didn't like Bush and the man started shouting at me "for being so stupid, and women like me were the reason women shouldn't be allowed to vote!"

In a calm voice I told him that I thought he was in dire need of a brain transplant, and a padded room, then excused myself before he could launch another tirade, and went outside to sit in the swing with my sister-in-law.

Has anyone else had a dressing down from their neighborhood IAA lately?

We Must Do Our Part to Prevent Terrorism

PLEASE DO YOUR PATRIOTIC DUTY ON SATURDAY

As you may already know, it is a sin for a Taliban or Al Qaeda male to see any woman, other than his wife, naked and that he must commit suicide if he does. (actually I didn't know this, hmmm).

So this Saturday at 4PM Eastern time, all American women are asked to walk out of their houses completely naked to help weed out any neighborhood terrorists. Circling the block for one hour is recommended for this anti-terrorist effort.

All men are to position themselves in lawn chairs in front of their house to prove that they are not Taliban or Al Qaeda, and to demonstrate that they think it is okay to see nude women other than their wives. To show support for all American women and since the Ta liban and Al Qaeda also do not approve of alcohol, a cold 6 pack at your side is further proof of your anti-terrorist sentiment. For good measure, have various pork products cooking on your BBQ grill.

The American government appreciates your efforts to root out terrorists and applauds your participation in this anti-terrorist activity.

GOD BLESS AMERICA.

IT IS YOUR PATRIOTIC DUTY TO PASS THIS ON.

My crazy cousin sent this to my email. I don't reckon he knows that it's supposed to be a good bit cooler by the weekend,,,,,oh wait,,,,maybe he does!