Christmas in pictures

       

How quickly it all ends.  The photo ops...and Christmas itself.

Here's to an amazing 2009.

Merry Christmas!

In an effort to save a tree (hence the green font), I’m resorting to an e-Christmas Card this year.

We must really be getting old when the year starts to pass us by as quickly as 2008 did. Even the kids agree that the year has flown by. In a nutshell:

Terry completed three triathlons this year, including a Half Ironman. He also referees all over the state now, calling NCAA and Big West women’s [basketball] games this time of year. The day job with the State of California pays the bills so he can “play” the rest of the time. He lost his last grandparent this year, Ralph Conrad, so we made an unexpected trip to Oklahoma in February for his funeral. Grandpa Ralph had a long, full life and was ready for his heavenly home.

Marlyssa, 20, has moved out and is experiencing life on her own. She continues to work at Starbucks, living and working not far from Yosemite National Park. The house isn’t the same without all four girls living here, but it is exciting to watch our first spread her wings.

Layne, 17, is enjoying her senior year of high school. She’s involved in cheer, track/pole vaulting, working out, dance, yearbook, and photography. She will attend California State University/Fresno next fall. She and Terry tinker on the ’65 Mustang and it’s still her favorite thing to drive.

Kaylie, 14, started high school by joining the cross country team and running 5~ miles daily. She now transitions into the track season. She plays the flute the school’s symphonic band and loves reading, listening to music, and hanging out with friends in her spare time.

Taylor, 14, is involved in marching, symphonic and percussion bands. She loves all things “music” and plays the clarinet, trombone and various percussion instruments. Whatever free time she has is spent listening to music, reading, or being with friends.

I am fortunate to continue to work from home with an old friend of ours, coordinating online continuing education courses for pesticide applicators. It’s a field that is new to me...but allows me to be home with the girls and adjust my days and hours as I want. Free time? I have taken up quilting and love it. There are worse addictions than fabric, I’m certain!

Terry and I were blessed to spend a week in Maui in the spring and we will take the girls there this June. My sisters and I took our mom on a Mexican cruise in November – a great trip that we are determined to do again! I’m ready for a season in life of less work and more travel!

If you’re headed to Central California, we’d love to see you!

May God bless you and yours with a Merry CHRISTmas,

and a 2009 full of grace and peace.

Love,

Terry & Cheryl

Marlyssa, Layne, Kaylie, Taylor

The Truth About Santa Claus

An oldie but a goodie...

I remember my first Christmas adventure with Grandma.
I was just a kid.
I remember tearing across town on my bike to visit her on the
day my big sister dropped the bomb: "There is no Santa Claus,"
she jeered. "Even dummies know that!"
My Grandma was not the gushy kind, never had been. I fled to
her that day because I knew she would be straight with me.
I knew Grandma always told the truth, and I knew that the truth
always went down a whole lot easier when swallowed with one of
her "world-famous" cinnamon buns. I knew they were world-famous,
because Grandma said so. It had to be true.
Grandma was home, and the buns were still warm. Between bites,
I told her everything. She was ready for me.
"No Santa Claus?" She snorted... "Ridiculous! Don't believe it.
That rumor Has been going around for years, and it makes me mad,
plain mad! Now, put On your coat, and let's go."
"Go? Go where, Grandma?" I asked. I hadn't even finished my
second world-famous cinnamon bun.
"Where" turned out to be Kerby's General Store, the one store
in town that had a little bit of just about everything. As we
walked through its doors, Grandma handed me ten dollars. That
was a bundle in those days. "Take this money," she said, "and
buy something for someone who needs it. I'll wait for you in
the car." Then she turned and walked out of Kerby's.
I was only eight years old. I'd often gone shopping with my
mother, but never had I shopped for anything all by myself.
The store seemed big and crowded, full of people scrambling to
finish their Christmas shopping. For a Few moments I just
stood there, confused, clutching that ten-dollar bill,
wondering what to buy, and who on earth to buy it for.
I thought of everybody I knew: my family, my Friends, my
neighbors, the kids at school, and the people who went to my
church.
I was just about thought out, when I suddenly thought of Bobby
Decker. He was a kid with bad breath and messy hair, and he
sat right behind me in Mrs. Pollock's grade-two class.
Bobby Decker didn't have a coat. I knew that because he never
went out to recess during the winter. His mother always wrote
a note, telling the teacher that he had a cough, but all we
kids knew that Bobby Decker didn't have a cough; he didn't have
a good coat. I fingered the ten-dollar bill with growing
excitement. I would buy Bobby Decker a coat!
I settled on a red corduroy one that had a hood to it.
It looked real warm, and he would like that.
"Is this a Christmas present for someone?" the lady behind the
counter asked Kindly, as I laid my ten dollars down.
"Yes, ma'am," I replied shyly. "It's for Bobby."
The nice lady smiled at me, as I told her about how Bobby really
needed a Good winter coat. I didn't get any change, but she put
the coat in a bag, smiled again, and wished me a Merry Christmas.
That evening, Grandma helped me wrap the coat (a little tag
fell out of the coat, and Grandma tucked it in her Bible) in
Christmas paper and ribbons and wrote, "To Bobby, From Santa
Claus" on it. Grandma said that Santa always insisted on
secrecy. Then she drove me over to Bobby Decker's house,
explaining as we went that I was now and forever officially,
one of Santa's Helpers. Grandma parked down the street from
Bobby's house, and she and I crept noiselessly and hid in the
bushes by his front walk. Then Grandma gave me a nudge. "All
right, Santa Claus," she whispered, "get going."
I took a deep breath, dashed for his front door, threw the
present down on his step, pounded his door and flew back to
the safety of the bushes and Grandma. Together we waited
breathlessly in the darkness for the front door to open.
Finally it did, and there stood Bobby.
Fifty years haven't dimmed the thrill of those moments spent
shivering, beside my Grandma, in Bobby Decker's bushes. That
night, I realized that those awful rumors about Santa Claus
were just what Grandma said they were: Ridiculous.
Santa was alive and well, and we were on his team.
I still have The Bible, with the coat tag tucked inside:
$19.95.

Company Girl Coffee

Come on in!  Today we're having Hot Spiced Tea.  Grab a cup!   This week I was determined to stay caught up with Home Sanctuary.  Thankfully, Rachel Anne blessed us with some easy days.  Yesterday's involved lighting a Christmas candle.  While I often have a candle lit, yesterday I had a daughter home, not feeling well, so lit scented candles in the rooms we were in, had a nice fire going, and just enjoyed the ambiance the combination offered.  As the other girls got home from school, the first thing they said was, "The house smells so good!"  The sense of smell is so important and many of my favorite childhood memories go back to various scents.  (OK, in all honestly, most of these are food related, but that's another issue!)  I hope my daughters remember things like walking into a home that smells of cinnamon and cloves. 

Remember the reason for the season.  JESUS!

Have a very blessed and peaceful week.

Cheryl

Christmas fun

It's a goofy tradition in our home that ... if you live in our house, you must have your picture taken with Santa annually.  DD#1 no longer lives here, so she's exempt.  Actually, we WANTED her in the pic, but she lives in the mountains and was snowed in and we didn't have another weekend to do this.  So...presenting our annual Santa picture, in all its glory:

Happy 20th Birthday, DD#1! :)

While you're 20 now, this has to be one of my all-time favorite pictures of you!  You were 3 months old and so giggly, happy.  My pregnancy with you was not easy and doctors told me more than once that you may not survive.  Your dad and I cried, prayed, believed, and God brought you through.  He has a plan for you and I look forward to seeing you continue to grow in Him all the days of your life.

Happy Birthday!  I LOVE YOU!

Mommy :)

Coffee's On - come on in!

I'm so glad you stopped by!  I've got Creme Brulee flavored coffee on the stove, quietly perking along.   Please grab a Christmas mug and join me!

My biggest accomplishment this week was my response to Rachel Anne's "Haul Ass" post.  (Ass, in the Biblical sense!)  I decided it was time to make a serious dent in my shopping.  Imagine my surprise when at one of the stores, I was told if I took my receipt to our local mall, I would receive raffle tickets - 1 for every $10 spent in my city.  Wow - I managed to get 31 tickets in the drawing for prizes like gas vouchers, flat screen TV, surround sound system, DVD player, etc.  It was FREEZING and you had to be present to win...so hubby and I ventured to stand in the cold and listen for our number(s).  I'll cut to the chase.  NO, I didn't win anything but feet that were frozen and painful for the next few hours.  BUT it is rare that hubby and I just do 'nothing.'  It was a nice time to just have fun and grab a bite to eat.  I also got a lot of my shopping done, so it was well worth a day of Hauling...

I'd better get busy around here today, too.  I want to sew a couple of Christmas pillowcases and wrap a few presents.

Blessings,

Cheryl

The Nativity and "Breath of Heaven"

This is a beautiful video produced by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  I am not associated with this church, but believe they did an excellent job of combining Amy Grant's lovely long with the Nativity story.

Enjoy and remember to keep CHRIST at the center of your Christmas.

Blessings,

Cheryl

Ads from the 30'2

I will just say that I'd be happy if I could eat lard, too!

To All Our Family and Friends:

To All Our Family and Friends:

Just a  note to let you know we are hoping to see you Christmas Day!  BUT...

Martha Stewart will not be dining with us  this Christmas. I'm telling you in  advance, so don't act surprised. Since Ms.  Stewart won't be coming, I've made a few small changes: 

• Our sidewalk will not be lined with  homemade, paper bag luminaries. After a  trial run, it was decided that no matter how cleverly done, rows of flaming  lunch sacks do not have the desired welcoming  effect. 
• Once inside, our guests will note that the  entry hall is not decorated with  the swags of Christmas greenery, mistletoe and berries.  Instead,  I've gotten the dogs involved in the decorating by  having them track in colorful  autumn leaves from the back yard. The mud was  their idea. 
• The dining table will not be covered with  expensive linens, fancy china, or  crystal goblets. If possible, we will use  dishes that match and everyone will  get a fork. Since this IS Christmas, we will  refrain from using the plastic
  Santa plate and the Santa napkins from  last Christmas.    
• Our centerpiece will not be the tower of  fresh fruit and flowers that I  planned. Instead we will be displaying a  hedgehog-like decoration hand-crafted  from the finest construction paper. The  artist assures me it is a Christmas tree.
• We will be dining fashionably late. The  children will entertain you while  you wait. I'm sure they will be happy to share  every choice comment I have made regarding Christmas and the turkey hotline.  Please remember that most of these comments were made at 5:00 a.m. upon  discovering that the turkey was still  hard enough to cut diamonds.
• As accompaniment to the grandchildren's recital,  I will play a recording of  tribal drumming. If they should mention that  I don't own a recording of tribal drumming, or that tribal drumming sounds  suspiciously like a frozen turkey in a clothes dryer, ignore them. They are  lying.
• We toyed with the idea of ringing a dainty  silver bell to announce the start  of our feast. In the end, we chose to keep our traditional method. We've  also decided against a formal seating arrangement.  When the smoke alarm sounds, please gather around the table and sit where you  like. In the spirit of  harmony, we will ask the children to sit at a separate table. In a separate room. Next door.
• Now, I know you have all seen pictures of  one person carving a turkey in  front of a crowd of appreciative onlookers. This  will not be happening at our  dinner. For safety reasons, the turkey will be  carved in a private ceremony. I stress "private" - meaning:  Do not, under any  circumstances, enter the kitchen to laugh at me. Do not send small, unsuspecting  children to check on my  progress. I have an electric knife. The turkey is unarmed. It stands to reason  that I will eventually win. When I do, we will eat.
• efore I forget, there is one last change.  Instead of offering a choice  between 12 different scrumptious desserts, we will  be serving the traditional  pumpkin pie, garnished with whipped cream and small  fingerprints. You will still  have a choice; take it or leave it.

I hope you  aren't too disappointed that  Martha Stewart will not be dining with us this  Christmas.  She probably won't come next year either.  But don't fear.  You always have me to rely on.

17 days til Christmas!

The Spirit of Christmas...

Something to think about.

Blessings,

Cheryl

A week of small things...

Welcome! Thanks for stopping by for some Company Girl coffee!

I had two days this week that were my favorite tasks. Tuesday Rachel Anne 'assigned' us to take a break and spoil ourselves. What? For real? And guess what? Tuesday was my birthday! My break consisted of some relaxing time in front of the fire, a piece of birthday cake that my mom sent me :o) and a little crocheting. It was great! Today we were challenged to clean a slate. This could be anything we wanted. For me, it meant tossing old Thanksgiving flowers and then wiping the kitchen counter that had played residence to the dying mums for a week. It also meant takin some time in the laundry room to work on the always-too-crowded counter in there. Big difference and I only spent about 20 minutes total.

Come join us at Home Sanctuary!

Blessings,
Cheryl

Christmas Cookie Rules

There is a lot of truth in this!  (My scale disagrees!)
1. If you eat a Christmas cookie fresh out of the oven, it has no calories because everyone knows that the first cookie is the test and thus calorie free.
2. If you drink a diet soda after eating your second cookie, it also has no calories because the diet soda cancels out the cookie calories.
3. If a friend comes over while you are making your Christmas cookies and needs to sample, you must sample with your friend. Because your friend's first cookie is calories free rule #1 is yours also.
It would be rude to let your friend sample alone, and being  the friend that you are makes your cookie calorie free.
4. Any cookie calories consumed while walking around will fall to your feet and eventually fall off as you move. This is due to gravity and the density of the caloric mass.
5. Any calories consumed during the frosting of the Christmas cookies will be used up because it takes many calories to lick excess frosting from a knife without cutting your tongue.
6. Cookies colored red or green have very few calories. Red ones have 3 and green ones have 5 - one calorie for each letter. Make more red ones!
7. Cookies eaten while watching Miracle on 34th Street  have no calories because they are part of the entertainment package and not part of one's personal fuel.
8. As always, cookie pieces contain no calories because the process of breaking causes calorie leakage.
9. Any cookies consumed from someone else's plate has no calories since the calories rightfully belong to the other person and will cling to their plate. We all know how calories like to CLING!
And finally...
10. Any cookies consumed while feeling stressed have no calories because cookies used for medicinal purposes NEVER have calories. It's a rule!

NOW I will get excited about Christmas.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Table is set...

Turkey is done... Fire is lit...

 

Now we must wait for DD#1 to get off work and get here!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Blessings,

Cheryl

I love Christmas!

Yes, I DO love Christmas!  I enjoy the anticipation, the look on my daughters' faces as they open a gift, pecan pie.  I love Christmas.

But in the beginning of November?  Notsomuch.  I was stunned on Monday to hear the radio play a Christmas song.  The kids told me they have been playing them on the radio for over a week.  (What would I know?  I was cruising in Mexico!)  CHRISTMAS SONGS?  What happened to Thanksgiving?

Because our amazing first born was born 10 days before Christmas, we make a distinct effort to not let her birthday get shadowed with Christmas.

So, in honor of November and Thanksgiving, please enjoy my blog's new look.  When I decorate our home for Christmas, I will change the blog over to reflect the same.  I, for one, will not celebrate Christmas until after Thanksgiving.

Blessings,

Cheryl

I'm outta here!

My first three songs give a clue as to whom I'm with, what we're doing, and where we're going!

Blessings,
Cheryl

Laundry-aholic.

There.  I've said it.  I like laundry.  It makes me feel good.  I never understood moms who talk about mountains of dirty laundry.  Maybe it's because ... well ... frankly, I don't want mountains of dirty socks and undies littering my home. :o)  Call me a freak.  I feel nervous when I don't have laundry to do.  I tend to create it when I don't have any to do.  "Create" as in ... washing bath mats and guest towels that aren't dirty, asking my kids if I can do their laundry (their own responsibility).

Now, if only I could be a dust-aholic.  There's a task that's for the birds!

I'd better go check those guest towels.  I don't think they've been washed in a few days...

Lawsuit against God thrown out of court

Apparently a Nebraska legislator has had his lawsuit against GOD thrown out of court because God was not properly served due to an unlisted home address.

I'm not completely sure, but I think trying to sue God is probably dangerous business.

Company Girl Coffee...come on in!

One day this week over at Home Sanctuary, Rachel Anne challenged us to pinch pennies.  I'm really pretty frugal (ok, cheap!) anyway, so this was an easy one for me.  On Tuesday, I took our 17yo daughter to the fair so she could photograph to her heart's delight.  Coming home, we stopped at the grocery store for a few necessities and I grabbed a $6 rotisserie chicken to make for a quick dinner.  When I got home, imagine my disappointment when I discovered that this was about the skinniest $6 chicken I'd ever seen.  I still needed it to feed 5 people though.  I carved it like a turkey (DD#3 can't stand "meat on a bone" anyway), served it with whole grain pilaf, veggies and salad, and looked at what was left of my carcass.  It was pretty scrawny.  Naked.  Empty.  And yet...it seemed worth the effort to boil down the next day.  Know what?  There was still meat left on that naked bird.  About 3 tablespoons of meat.  Hmm...again...the whole "Need to feed 5 people" came into play.  No problem!  Dump the last cup of chicken and rice from Tuesday's dinner in with those lonely 3 tablespoons of chicken and delicious, rich broth, add half a bag of frozen veggies, and we had delicious chicken soup for 5.  Not bad for a too-scrawny $6 bird!

Have a great weekend!

Cheryl

Over at Home Sanctuary this month...

Home Sanctuary

Our verse this month comes from the book of Ecclesiastes, a book which seems to have a little bit of a "cynical" tone.  It was written by Solomon, a king who had seen it all and pretty much knew it all. Some scholars say that this book is based on human wisdom (as opposed to Divine wisdom), but there are nuggets in it that are pure gold, no matter how you slice it.  Solomon observes:

This scripture appears to be talking about the unfairness of life.  At first glance, it's a "hard luck" verse. It makes me think of the USA women's track team who were shoo-ins for the 4x100 gold medal in the 2008 Olympics, but dropped the baton in the qualifying race in a case of bad luck.  What a heartbreak!

But for another team, who had trained just as hard and wanted that gold just as much, that race was a case of having the BEST luck imaginable!  Why, the unthinkable happened!  The gold did not go to the swiftest on that day, and the Russians were ultimately crowned the champions.  Time and chance went their way.

I certainly don't delight in anyone's "bad luck."  In fact, I don't even believe in luck at all.

But Time and Chance?  Now, there's another story.

You see, I believe in the God of Time and Chance.  I believe that there is a Supreme Being who defies all limits of time, who is INIFINITE and all-powerful, and who knows all about my battles here on this earth.  He creates opportunities, chances, if you will, for things to happen.

I absolutely LOVE Ecclesiates 9:11 because I know I am not the swiftest runner in the race.  I know I am not the strongest, or the smartest, or the most capable.  The odds are against me being a successful competitor.  The gold will most assuredly be given to someone else.

But I have a heart that wants to win, and a soul that is giving God every opportunity to make me a "winner."  My job is to stay in the race when my inclination is to drop out after comparing myself to the others.  They seem so much more together.  So much smarter.  So much more connected and well-educated.  Look at me!  I'm a nobody!  I'll never win.

Ah!  But you never know when the God of Time and Chance will say, "This is YOUR day!  This is YOUR time!  This is YOUR race!  RUN, girl, RUN!"

God will put you in a position to succeed if you just keep preparing yourself.  Be willing to do the hard work of conditioning, even though the odds are against you.  Show up for the race, even when no one gives you a chance of winning. Get on the starting blocks and then run with all your might. 

Because "Time and Chance" happen to everyone!  Give all your best to God and let Him take care of the outcome. 
He will put you in the right place at the right time.
He will give you the opportunities you've been waiting for.
You see, this "hard luck" verse is really about a door being left open for all of us, at any given point in our lives.  When we are a David facing a Goliath, or a Gideon facing a huge army of Midianites.  When the deck is stacked against us and there is no hope of winning.  Except.
Except that we believe in the God of Time and Chance, who holds victory in His hands.

Frightening.

I'll preface my pictures by saying this week is Homecoming week at Clovis High.  Today is "80's Day" and the first day DD#2 decided to dress up.  Her favorite 80's look is her dad's practice football shirt, so she asked him to pull it out (yes, I make him keep his 'treasures' boxed up in a cabinet in the laundry room) so she could wear it.  Of course, this meant that Hubby felt the need to try it on.  (We go through this ritual every October - either for Homecoming week or Halloween.)  Because I have nothing else to blog about, I figured I'd share these lovely pictures.  Yes, they are rather frightening.  The resemblance is spooky.  It MUST be October.

Blessings,

Cheryl

Company Girl Coffee...Come on in!

Shoes, shoes, shoes.  Why is it so easy to let shoes pile up in the closet?  I organize them, fling some, and yet ... somehow, the pile begins again all too quickly.  Company Girls were challenged to clean up our shoes this week.  Know what?  I found six pair of shoes to freecycle.  Twelve shoes headed out of my life forever.  Know what else?  Four of them were brand new.  Oops!  And while digging through the shoes, I found a brand new purse that I bought last year when I thought I really 'needed' 3 different red purses for winter.  But I'm not quite ready to freecycle those.  Yet.

Company Girl Coffee

Dispensing....this small thing was one I did NOT want to do.  My procrastination was ridiculous because I knew there were 6 soap dispensers and it would take me no time at all.  (I'm OCD and tend to keep my dispensers pretty clean anyway.)  I put this off in a state of rebellion until after dinner...at which time I took the less-than-10-minutes to give them a nice scrubbing.  How easy was THAT?  Come join the Company Girls!

Maggie. Hunter. In that order.

This is my Maggie.

Maggie May.  Yes, after Rod's song.  We've had Maggie since 1997 and it was estimated that she was probably 3 years old then (we were her 3rd family).  That makes her about the age of DD#3/#4.  Which makes me nervous.  Maggie's a big girl (yes, takes after her mama LOL) and big girls don't usually make it much into their teen years.  Maggie's never had an enemy (except feline).  The yard man, the weed man, even late night TP'ers are her best friends.  Maggie is deaf, having lost what seems to be the last of her hearing in the last month.  She has cataracts.  She has lumps and bumps that I know aren't normal.  But she is happy, pain-free, stares at me with the most soulful eyes I've ever seen, and still comes running to me when I open my arms.  I tell her she's my favorite girl.  My real girls scoff, but they know she's my favorite furry girl.

This is my Maggie.  I love her.

 

This is Hunter.

"My" does not apply to Hunter.  He is not mine.  He is his own.  We 'inherited' Hunter a few years back and he is now 8.  Hunter has nicknames:  Hunter Bunter (no, we're not good poets), Dumb Dog, and, hubby's personal favorite:  Hunter-I-don't-like-you.  Now if you say any of these to him with a smile on your face, he will smile back and wag his tail in a clockwise circle.  Hunter eats my peaches until he's sick for days on end.  Hunter howls at leaves.  Hunter howls at oxygen.  Hunter wakes us up early on the weekends by barking at hot air balloons.  Hunter spent time in Doggy Jail and lived to tell about it.  Hunter eats sprinkler heads faster than hubby can replace them.  (See above nickname.)  Hunter pees on anything he looks at.  But, in spite of all of his Hunter-I-don't-like-you traits, Hunter tries so hard to please and has the softest face.  Ever.

This is Hunter.  I even love him, too.

The answer is: Three feet.

The question is:  Approximately how far is this shopping cart from the "Return Carts Here" rack?  Three feet.  Unless you loaded your groceries into your trunk and then were carried away on a stretcher, can't you just take those few extra steps and return the cart?  Give me a break.  I must be getting really old since things like this are bugging me more and more.  Walk the extra three feet, folks.  Unless you're on a stretcher, of course.

Company Girl Coffee...Come on in!

Rachel Anne Ridge over at Home Sanctuary has an amazing thing going.  "Small things."  Huh?  Small things?  What do they matter?  They matter a LOT.  Monday through Friday Rachel gives each of her "company girls" a "small thing" to do.  Yes, that's all.  Just one small thing to turn our homes into sanctuaries.  The things are easy, do-able.  Today's small thing is to do something silly over the weekend.  Huh?  Yes, do something silly to create an atmosphere of you in your home.  Rachel has captured what many of the housecleaning email lists have missed out on:  Choose one simple activity that will help make your home a sanctuary for your family.  (I'm thinking a game of Pretty Pretty Princess with my hubby and teenage daughters may be in order!)

This week I had a favorite small thing.  "How do you pick up the floor?"  Because we have new flooring, our floors have stayed pretty well picked up (this is also because not all of our furniture is back in place yet).  But it was a great reminder of how nice it looks when it's picked up and I spent about 15 minutes walking around each room and picking up a stray item here and there.  Know what?  It took very little time.  And it became a habit that I've been doing each day.

If turning my home into a sanctuary wasn't enough, Rachel Anne has PRIZES!  Oooh how I love a good prize.  Did I mention these are GOOD prizes?  Each day you participate, you track your points and send them in at the end of the month.  (I even won a couple of months back!)  If you haven't checked out the site, go do so.  It's surprisingly easy ... and a whole lot of fun.

Blessings,

Cheryl

Give her a chance, folks

Wow - I'm amazed at the backlash Sarah Palin is receiving.  People have determined that she's not cut out for the job and Senator McCain is doing America a huge disservice by bringing her on board.  "She should be at home raising her children."  "It's not fair to her newborn son or pregnant teenage daughter."  Wow.  Give her a chance, folks.  She has done nothing but prove to be capable in all of her other endeavors.  Having a pregnant 17 year old certainly won't change her ability to step in as President, should something happen to John McCain.  The bottom line is that she is a working mom, not so very different from many families.  She is good at what she does and maybe, maybe that just makes some people nervous.

Amazing Grace

Sarah Palin...welcome aboard!

 

Plugging my ears

I am not a very political person by choice. Frankly, politics don't interest me that much, though I don't bury my head in the sand. I recognize some men have done a better job than others as President. I voted for the current president, but know the economy is in the toilet. I supported him sending troops to Iraq, but also believe it's time to come home. Not all of this is his fault, though he is the scapegoat.

But I am already tired of hearing what the other candidate is or is not doing. Can't a candidate (both of them, please!) just stick to what they plan to do and how they plan to do it? Walking through the grocery store parking lot last night, a man felt he needed to share his views by blaring (it could be heard on the other side of the parking lot) the Democratic National Convention on the radio. If I wanted to listen to that, I would have been at home on my couch doing so. Just like I wouldn't blare whatever I am listening to and force it on others.  That is rude. I hope the next two months fly by.

First day of School 2008

Two freshmen, one senior.  Something about seeing a senior drive off to school for her last "First day of school" kind of makes me feel old.  But how can I feel old when it also seems like it was about 3 weeks ago that I walked her into Mrs. Tsuchiguchi's Kindergarten class? How did it happen that my youngest are starting high school when I'm certain it was no more than six months ago that my husband and I brought these four pound babies home from the hospital?  When did my oldest grow up, moving out and starting a life of her own?

Why can't things slow down so I can enjoy every moment just a little longer?

The tormenters are now The Tolerables.

The tormenters are becoming more tolerable every day.  Once they became quiet (and less messy), they soon became people I looked forward to seeing each morning.  Except that they generally arrive before my coffee is finished brewing.  Then they proceed to work into the dinner hour.  Not that I'm cooking dinner, but still...

Before:

During:

After:

I can't possibly post the AFTER pictures until they're DONE.  Silly. :)

 

Anybody interested in buying a very cool dresser?

Pounding, Crashing

The pounding was getting louder by the second. This only meant one thing to me: the men were nearing at a rate I never expected. With each crashing noise and whirring of their tools, I soon expected to be face to face with the tormenters who had made my last 24 hours a living nightmare. The 15 hour break during the night was a solace to me, but I knew they would pursue their mission after they rested. Did they have a new plan for today? For now, I remained safe behind my closed door, knowing little would separate me, should the tormenters complete their task today. While the sound is deafening and my head is beginning to throb, I hear faint sounds of Jackson Browne playing in the background. "The Load Out" lyrics came to me easily and became my new focus. Maybe they will get me through the uncertainty of the next few hours. The pounding. The drilling. The air compressor that is providing power to the tormentors. It's ceaseless now. How many tormentors are there, anyway? An early, quick glimpse revealed two, but perhaps a third has joined them by now. At any rate, I am outnumbered. Today should be the end of the noise, the mess, and the need to hide behind a closed door.

And so goes day two of our flooring remodel. Thank goodness for wireless internet.

Summer Shots 2008

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Godtube

I swiped this from Danell over this morning - it was too good NOT to steal.

Have a blessed day,

Cheryl

I've been busy

First, DD#2 turned 17 and this is the best picture of her at her party:

(Next year I won't entrust my camera to a teen and count on good birthday pictures.)

Then I've been playing with quilt squares to make some Binkies:

Next, well, we are no longer the Last American Family to Not Own Video Games. We bought a Wii. And I love it. I am terrible at baseball and golf, but you ought to see me box and play tennis! No, not simultaneously.

Then I learned to can. I can. I can can. No, I don't DANCE. But I can now can. It's a messy process that leaves no counter space free.

But the finished product? 19 quarts of nectarines. Aren't they beautiful?! Stop looking at my broken tile. I know it's broken. And one day I will know what I want to replace it with and I will do so!

How did I accomplish it all? Diet Cherry Coke, of course! LOL