Getting things done...

Casey is home for two weeks straight, which means we have lots of time to get things done that have been waiting and waiting or I just avoided them.

Like Mowing the lawns, it was slightly tall.

Yes my legs are this white, even with a trip to Cancun.

Or gardening and plucking any stray weeds. This is our pumpkin and water melon bed from about three weeks ago, I swear that it is now about triple this full. With Pumpkins too!

Or puppy playing, well we always have time for that. BUT we did get the garage power washed yesterday. I all most love the power washer as much as I do my weed whacker.

And we were able to get the garage power washed because WE FIXED THE JAG!!! This is huge for us folks. Goldie will be sporting her Texas plates next week, and we can resume weekend luxury driving. Nice nice nice.

An Upgrade

We upgraded our mixers, oh Lordy is this new baby awesomeness.

She is stronger, faster, bigger, and better. The difference between the personal mixer and the professional are huge, and I had no inkling of how much I "needed" to make the switch. I started to noticed that my little blue baby would work really hard when kneading dough, pretty much burning up her motor. And sense I make bread for our family ALOT, it was something that was happening weekly and I was afraid she was going to blow up. Now I can happily mix dough for 6 loaves at once, or 9 dozen cookies, or enough icing for an elephant, the massive possibilities are endless.

Love me some KitchenAid.

Afternoon Sessions

Our kitchen has looked like this every afternoon this week. Piles and piles of homework. With me acting as the task master.
Think, think, think.

First Day

Wake Up Waffles
Flag Pole Stand
Crazy 3rd grader Self Portrait

Tagged by Karelle

Tagged to state 10 random things about me by Karelle.

1. I love Vanilla Bean paste, seriously best thing you can buy to make your baking taste better.
2. I love to weed whack, so much so that I use to beg to use Casey's weed whacker/edger, so he bought me my own. Love that damn thing.


3. I have a slight obsession with weather, especially when a big storm like Gustav is coming.
4. With school starting back up, Alex and I have had been having homework time each day, including extra work that I am giving him to bring his handwriting and spelling skills up to snuff. Today's homework time is LONG, and I seriously wonder how families that don't get home till 6pm manage all this work.
5. I love fall/winter cooking. Few things are as great as comfort foods on a cold night.
6. I need a pedicure, I am still showing the chipped nail polish from Cancun. Not pretty.
7. Miso soup, oh yea Gods, is so yummy to me.
8. I once snuck out of the house with a friend to go to some guys house and we played quarters, and then she got guilty and confessed to her pastor at church the next day and we had to stand on stage and confess and tell our parents. It sucked.
9. I love the smell from my hands after working in my garden. Lovely greeny smell.
10. I hate shaving my legs and will stretch it for as long as I can.

How is it...

Dear Alex:

How is it that you are so grown up all ready? How is it that you have a thoughtful, insightful, and more often than not hilarious answer to most questions? It is because you are you, growing into a fabulous boy. With a sharp wit and even sharper tongue.


It feels like just days ago that you were so small. You were in that adorable middle stage between toddler and little boy. You had a rounded face of baby chub and the high pitched voice of youth. Now, you are leaner, there are angles where there was curves before. Your voice now holds so much depth and inflection. You are growing up.

Not long ago we were always holding your hand, keeping you close to our sides. Afraid for you and the outside world. Your Daddy and I are incredibly protective, so much so, that we noticed it was holding you back some as you got older. So we have been letting go, letting you stand apart on your own. And we love the strong boy you are, you know all the right things, and use your brain. A lesson that we are delighted to see take root.
Even though you are growing up, standing apart, and free thinking, I still love that you come back to us. To our safe harbor of home, love and more than enough tickle fests.

We love you Alex, and are so proud of you as you go into your third grade year. Even if that means I can't hold your hand in the hall anymore. More so because you still seek me out at night to snuggle before bed. Always our bugman.



Love Always and Forever,
Mommy & Daddy

Monday DayBook

For Today...



Outside my Window...dark night things.

I am thinking...so so much to do this week. *sigh* I have a love/hate relationship with busy weeks.

I am thankful for... my iPod and inMotion speakers. I need music.
From the kitchen...lots and lots of produce and garden niblets.

I am creating... our cub scout calendar for this year. I FINALLY had another parent step up and take over half of my massive den, so that means I am down to 7 boys. YES!

I am wearing... my mans underwear and wife beater tee.

I am reading... In Defense of Food. People you need to read this.

I am hoping... that Nie and her husband Christian are healing quickly. They have been on my mind all day, and all of last night. Praying for them, please pray too.

I am hearing...Fleet Foxes, dooce was right. Plus it is an amazing video.

Around the house...stuff, stuff and more stuff. And about a dozen things to mail out.

One of my favorite things... the Kushiel series, so fantastic.

A few plans for the rest of the week... Tues, work and Pampered Chef party at night. Weds, Jenna is getting spayed, Archie getting groomed, I am waxing the walrus. Thurs, back to school night! Fri, loads of cleaning. Sat, Casey pickup and mexican lasagna making.

Here is a picture thought I am sharing with you...

Prehistoric

There's a party over there...

One of the things I love about Casey is how protective he is of our family and home.

One of the things that can drive me nutty is his constant up and down, up and down, when he hears something outside.

One of the things about Casey is that when he goes and peers from the windows to the outside, he doesn't always flip the blinds back down.

One thing that I have noticed this week, it sure does sound like there is a party going on outside, when I am in certain rooms in the house. Hence I am living my nights like Casey, up and down, flipping the blinds.

So I did some MythBusting and have discovered if the fan is on in my office and Alex's playroom both at full tilt, then those two fans do something to the air to make it sound like a Rave is happening in the front yard. Be you can only hear it from my office or our bedroom.

Turn one off, no base thumping.

Leave both on, I need a glowstick to go dancing with.

It is slowly driving me nutty. Why haven't I ever noticed that sound before???

And on top of that, Alex is totally into a StarWars novel on CD that he listens to at night in bed. So every once in a while, I hear deep male voices. And light sabers.

That is when I get up and turn off the CD player.

Sorry kid, listen to the Rave instead.

Google Rocks

Casey has been in London for the last week, and will be there till next Saturday. We were worried about the cost of roaming with our cell phones, so he looked into all sorts of nifty stuff. Even though we have AT&T, it was CRAZY expensive to call and use minutes. Those Belgrade Hostile commercials aren't telling you about the fees. Anyways... We are a chatty family when he is on the road, making sure that we talk at least once a day, usually always at bedtime. And we didn't want to miss out on our conversations, because he IS in the UK and we are gearing up for school to start. There is so much to talk about!

Anyways... that brings me to Google Talk. Google Talk is basically Internet phone, free, and crystal clear. Even with Casey being allllllll the way over there, we have all most zero delay in sound and the quality is clearer then our cell phones. So if you ever need to chat for free, make sure you have your laptop, mic and speakers, and go Google Talk.

It's awesome and easy!

From my grandmother

I not only got her hair color, I got her personality. Makes me wonder what I am passing on to Alex.

Beyond Me

With a vision like this to greet my eyes, there is no way I could go into the day without knowing that it would be good, that my thoughts were heard, that my heart was full, and that my hands and feet would take me in the right direction.

Both sides of the coin.

It was a good weather day...

DayMoon

I found myself today trying to find color, anywhere, give me some color. Our downstairs walls are still in beigeland, and I am getting tired of it. Our couch is even a resident of beigeland, but that choice was my own mistake.

So after a lunch date with Alex, we scored MarioParty8 for the Wii at Gamestop for uber cheap. That brought some color to our day, but, it is a video game.

After seeing Dark Knight and wondering in its lack of color, and my silently lusting after a green suede vest and purple suit, we came home and ate a colorful dinner of VEGGIES and rice. Yummers.

And then we wandered outside to check on the garden in the heat of dusk, and there she was, the DayMoon in a sea of blue sky. There is some color for me.


We spent our evening Wii-ing, eating, watching the Olympics and swinging on the set. A good day.

My Monday Daybook

For Today...

Outside my Window...it looks gloomy, no bright sunshine yet. But no rain either.

I am thinking... about Casey in England, hoping he is having fun and taking LOTS of pictures.

I am thankful for... the hard work my husband does to provide for us. Our sons amazing creativity! Our dogs who killed yet another snake this morning. Go Pups!

From the kitchen...are dirty dishes waiting to be done, but a ton of veggies to eat up. Our green beans came in all at once, and I am sporting a pile of tomatoes to do something with.

I am wearing...a night gown, still.

I am reading...my bible and a Proverbs 31 study, who put peanut butter on my planner, to help me get back on track for the school year that is right around the corner.

I am hoping...to stay on track for these next two weeks.

I am hearing...old school Loonie Tunes, and the clatter of Lego's being dug into.

Around the house...is laundry to be done, beds to be made, trash to be gathered, and pups to love on.

One of my favorite things...flannel sheets. :O)

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week...One day of work, which means fours days of housework! Yay! Today Alex and I are going to have a date lunch, with Chili's on the menu and a showing of Dark Knight. He is a bit moody with school starting up soon, so we shall make today a fun day.

Here is a picture thought I am sharing with you...

The sunset at Corpus, it set behind us. I still get confused when the sunset doesn't set on the water. So weird.

14 days across a big pond.

I am thinking of you Casey!
XOXO...

From the Sand with Love

Ahhh two days at the beach were great.
Two days of coffee and snacks in the water were fabulous.
Two days of us time, perfect.

We had a great time at the coast, Corpus Christi was totally not what I expected. Never in a million years would I have ever thought that I would compare it to San Diego, but I did and not just one part of San Diego, but like 7! It was a great town, super pretty, great driving roads, and you can't beat the beach. More to come with plenty of pictures, but for now we are just soaking up all the memories floating around our heads. Loved our trip.

The best hot day.

Things to do on a day that is going to be 101 degrees, but will feel like 107 due to heat index.

• Wake up early, I had to follow Casey's example on this one.
• Garden early in the morning, finishing all my autumn seed planting, bed cleaning, and loads of watering.
• Make homemade ice cream, mmmmm I love my Krups machine.
• Decorate ice cream with a chopped Reese's Cup, makes it even better.
• Crochet a new bath puffy, so cute and easy.
• Watch bad TV.
  

Tagged by the Karelle

Karelle tagged me with a meme, so here goes.

What is your favorite quotable line from a movie?

"I carried a watermelon."

Hmmm I had to think about this one, because Karelle's is honestly right up at the top of my list... but you can't beat Dirty Dancing... oh yeah.



Who is the most famous person you’ve talked to?

Hmm most famous person I would have to say the Giambi brothers, Jason and Jeremy, they are Casey's cousins. I admittedly have zero interaction with them, I last talked to them at Laura's wedding YEARS ago when Casey and I were first dating...

How many bags/boxes of potato chips are consumed at your house per month?

Maybe one or two, it depends if Casey is home. But we use to be able to find Honey Mustard kettle chips, oh gods were they great!



What foreign food dish do you prepare from scratch and serve?

I make a mean batch of fried rice. LOL! It sure can be tricky.



What is your favorite section of the supermarket?

My favorite sections are broken up by store:

Costco: It would have to be the cheese cases.

HEB: The frozen foods.

Whole Foods: PRODUCE PRODUCE PRODUCE

SunHarvest: Bulk Bins.

What was your high school team’s mascot and what were the school colors?

We were the Panthers, rivals to Cow-Pie High. LOL! Loved our mascot. Our school colors were Red and White and then they threw in Black for contrast. I think Cow-Pie high called our school Kitty-Litter High.



Ok, now I need to tag someone.

Heads up LeaAnn and Marty!

Color, a little bit around me.

I have discovered through lots of trial and error that I am the kind of gal who likes cloth big old pockets on straps kind of purse gal. This is my newest and current favorite and of course Target is my source. The wallet is new too after my pink leather one of 5 years ripped down the middle, two half's are not better then one. You can even see my keys which are colorful too, thanks to the XCaret butterfly, the half dozen club cards on my ring and a Tinkerbell key. Every house is 100% better with a Tinkerbell key to get in the door. You should try it. And of course the pocket on a strap must be big enough to hold a book or magazine or catalog without all the world knowing, there is my current look-see, Gooseberry patch catalog.
I have also been stashing a couple pieces of Alex art through the years, you know the stuff you stick on the fridge. But some of that stuff is fabulous stuff and it deserves a frame, which these too do. Sorry for the glare on the right, I was just too excited about getting these in frames to care. :) Alex's school has a great Art Teacher who loves to have the kids do one big project a month, everything from clay sculptures, to oil paints, to pastels, to wax scratch offs. Love our school district for NOT cutting back on the art program.