The brown paper bag......................

I've had a busy couple of days going back and forth to the vet with Moo, doctor's appointments for myself, teaching Bailey to drive(which seems to be keeping me up at night) and Christmas shopping. So when I pick the kids up from school, I always ask how their day went. But lately...........................I'm embarrassed to say this out loud, I've only been half listening. I do the occasional "uh-huh's" and focus in and out, but my mind has been anywhere but here lately. So, one day this week, after coming straight from the Vet, I picked the kids up from school. As I approached the parent pickup, I noticed that Ryley was carrying a brown paper bag. "Great, that's just what I need to deal with today......................a kid who's pooped in his pants.", I muttered to myself. I rolled down the window to talk to my mom at parent pickup and fill her in on how Moo was doing; which brought numerous questions from the kids about Moo; which only made me forget about the brown paper bag. We got home, they had their afternoon snacks and then they started on homework while I began dinner. Later that evening, the brown paper bag popped into my head. I went into Ryley's room and asked him why he'd pooped in his pants today. He looked at me like I was crazy. Fine, I'll play this game, I thought. "Where are your underwear?", I asked him. Again, I got another weird look from him. Then he pointed to himself and said, "on me". "Eeeewwwww, Ryley. You left them on all day? Why didn't you take them off?", I asked. "Cause I like them.", he replied. Ok, this was getting me no where quick. "Where is the brown paper bag?", I spat out. "I put it under the tree for you." he said smiling. "Why on Earth would you put it under the tree?", I asked him. "Cause it has a surprise in it." he said matter of factly. "Ryley, that is just gross! I want you to go and get your underwear and throw them away. I just don't think I can handle trying to clean them today.", I said feeling like I'd just been beaten. "Ok, which ones?" he asked. "The ones with the poop in them!!!", I screamed. I could see how confused he was so I added, "in the brown paper bag.". "You put poopy underwear in the brown paper bag?", he asked me. What? Now I was confused. "NO, get the dirty underwear that you brought home today in the brown paper bag and throw them away." I said. "But there's presents in there, Mom!", he said as he started getting upset. "Yea, I got that! Of the poop kind! Fine! I'll do it myself!", I said. I walked over to the tree where he'd placed the brown paper bag and opened it up. And there, in that bag wasn't dirty underwear, but presents that he'd bought from the Santa shop at school. Grandma had given him money to buy presents for everyone for Christmas. I'd taken one look at the brown paper bag and assumed the worst. He'd tried to tell me and did I listen? Nope, I guess I only heard what I wanted to hear. What can I say? I'm a mom. I am all knowing...............or so I thought. 

Pants on the ground...........

Today's funny gives new meaning to the song "Pants on the ground".........................

I haven't seen much of Kirk these last few days because he's been working nights. This is nothing new to us, but with Moo getting sick and Christmas just around the corner.............it's been kind of hectic for both of us. But this morning when I got up and checked my email, I noticed I'd gotten an email from Kirk. He'd written me a super sweet email saying how much he'd missed me and that he wanted to stay up with me today while the kids were at school and take me to lunch. Well, as wonderful as that sounded I had a doctor's appointment at 9:30 and numerous errands to run. He didn't care. He said he'd just ride with me. So, off we went. The doctor's visit was the first thing on my list and needless to say..............ended up being the longest. I tried to warn him. It doesn't help that my doctor, Brenda Kennedy is also my friend. So, my visits tend to take a little longer and are generally filled with lots of laughter in between serious talk. After the visit was said and done we had a few errands to run and finally it was lunch time. Kirk excused himself to run to the restroom and a few minutes later came back with the biggest grin on his face. "What's so funny?", I asked. He proceeded to tell me that when he went into the bathroom, he noticed that someone was in one of the stalls and had not only taken their pants, shirt and shoes off to use the restroom, but had folded them neatly on the floor. So, apparently there is someone in Palatka who feels comfortable enough to not only use a public restroom for these little emergencies, but feels comfortable.........or brave enough to do this completely NAKED from head to toe!!!! All Kirk could get out between giggles was, "That's some serious shitting when you have to completely undress!".

My golden rule..................

Few people know how addicted Bailey is to herbal tea. She has a mug of sleepytime tea every night before bed. It's always the same.........two spoons of sugar and one spoon of honey. Anyway, back to the story...............Bailey and I were going to watch a movie together since Kirk was working and she asked if I wanted some hot tea. For those of you who aren't familiar with teenage lingo, that last little question actually meant......when you make yourself some, make me some too. Not the other way around. We kept talking and then all of the sudden, Bai decided she should take a shower before we watched the movie. So, while she was in the shower I fixed myself the first mug of hot tea I've had in years. Being unable to drink tea because of my kidneys has made me a little wary of herbal tea as well. And it was heavenly! Oh how I've missed tea..........I'm getting off track here-aren't I? Bailey came back a little while later and was in the kitchen with the sink on for what seemed like an eternity! Finally, I heard the microwave turn on and then the water started again. I finally got up and asked what she was doing. In her hand she held two Santa mugs full of herbal tea that she'd prepared for us. "Did you make that for me?", I asked. "Well yea, you said you wanted some.", she said as if that had ever mattered before. "Why did you make it in those mugs?", I asked looking at the beautiful Santa shaped mug she held out to me. "Uuuhhhh, because it's CHRISTMAS time?", she replied back as if I were the stupidest person on the planet. And there it was..................my beautiful, considerate daughter whom I love to the moon and back had not only done something special for me, but reminded me of a rule I swore I'd never break. Never being particularly rich(in the money sense of the word), I always thought it strange that people bought things like dishes and never, under any circumstances used them. I always thought, if I love something enough to buy it, why wouldn't I use it every, single day? Well, it looks as if I, myself have been caught doing the exact, same thing. I'm the perfect example of someone who uses their good china every, single day, but apparently refuses to use the Christmas plates and mugs for anything but decoration. Well today....................that changes!

The pillow wall............

As I walked into my bedroom this morning to make the bed, it occurred to me that Kirk and I may have some sort of obsessive compulsive disorder when it comes to pillows. What started with my one to his two, has now turned into a whopping four a piece. On our bed, after seventeen years of marriage.......... we have EIGHT pillows! Not throw pillows or decorative pillows................regular pillows. My routine is always the same, I start in the middle of the bed closest to Kirk, but by morning I'm literally falling off the bed on my side. And while I've slept, I've unknowingly created a wall of pillows separating the two of us. This drives him absolutely crazy and when he mentions it to me, I just laugh it off. But for some reason this morning, seeing the actual wall.........it hit me. So today, December 6th will begin my new journey. A journey where one..................ok, maybe two pillows will be enough for me. I can do this. I will NOT build a wall and sleep alone.

Freezing on the outside & laughing on the inside!

I guess it's only fair that because my a/c is now working that something else needs to break in order to take it's place. This week's journey deals with my gas hot water heater. After taking it completely apart, we have now realized that Kirk and I have no idea how to fix a hot water heater. We have now suffered for 2 days w/out hot water. Sound like I'm whining a little? You should have heard me in the shower!!! Not only did I scream every time the water touched me, but when I went to turn the shower off.................the handle just spun! There was no turning it off!!!! This should have pushed me over the edge, but for some reason only made me laugh. And the more I laughed, the more I realized how lucky I am that we at least have water. Whether it's hot or cold.........we're pretty lucky. That being said, I'm hoping this will be our last night w/out hot water. Hopefully we'll be able to get someone to look at it tomorrow. I'll have to say that I'm feeling pretty energized after my freezing cold shower. At least I'm not alone in this! Every few minutes I hear Kirk yell, "WOOOO!" from inside the bathroom. This is wrong..............very wrong, but every time he yells it makes me even happier!

Vegetable Beef Stew

1 lb. hamburger, stew meat or leftover roast

1 vidalia onion diced

4 carrots peeled and diced

8 red potatoes cut into bite size chunks

1 ear of corn cut off the cob

1/2 lb. fresh green beans snapped into bite size pieces

3 basil leaves finely chopped

sprig of rosemary finely chopped

2 cloves of garlic minced

1 T. bacon grease

10 very ripe roma tomatoes diced very small

2 cups homemade chicken broth(this is just what I had in the freezer)

This is a very easy, very versatile stew recipe. I usually use whatever beef I have in the freezer & whatever vegetables I happen to have in the refrigerator. The vegetables can be altered to your liking. I've always thought that celery would be good in this. But, I married a man who not only hates celery, but passed that trait onto my 3 children. So, celery is a no go for me. If you don't have any fresh tomatoes, you could always use canned. I only used chicken broth because that's usually all I ever have here at my house. Beef broth in the can would be fine too. If you don't have any broth, water will always work. The broth just gives it that little extra something. If you like your soup thick, I would stick with my measurements, but if you like it more soupy then I would add a little more broth.

Brown the hamburger(for this recipe it is important to use regular hamburger, not lean. I know, I know..........but we need the grease that cooks out of the hamburger for later) in a large skillet. Season meat with salt, cracked pepper & garlic powder. Once hamburger is cooked, using a slotted spoon ladle hamburger out of skillet draining the grease back into the skillet. I used a large wooden spoon to push the hamburger down to get all the grease out. Put the drained hamburger into crock pot. To the hamburger grease add 1 tablespoon of bacon grease(I always have bacon grease in the frig for this sort of thing. It must be a southern thing. If you don't have any bacon grease add a tablespoon of olive oil to the hamburger grease.). To the greased skillet add onions, potatoes and carrots. Season with salt, cracked pepper and garlic powder. This will take about 20 minutes or so. Stir every few minutes so nothing starts to stick. The purpose of this step is to not only lightly brown the potatoes, but marry the flavors of the meat with the vegetables. The potatoes are not going to be completely cooked in this step. You just want to give them a light brown color. Once this has been achieved add chopped garlic, basil, rosemary and green beans to the vegetable mixture. Only sauté for a few minutes or the garlic may burn and taste bitter. Now, add the entire pan of vegetables to the crock pot. Next, cut the corn kernels off of the cob right into the crock pot. Add chopped tomatoes and broth. Cook all day stirring whenever you happen to think about it. Make sure you taste this before serving. It may need more spices. If you like it spicy you could add hot sauce to this or even cayenne. I always serve mine with crackers or corn bread. Tonight will most definitely be crackers!

Go BIG or go home......Updated



It has been 27 days since I planted my super small, elevated fall garden planted entirely in composted material. I couldn't be happier with the results so far. 

Here's a picture of my garden when it was planted on September 22, 2011. It contains cabbage, broccoli, collards & buttercrisp lettuce. And because it was planted in composted material.........I've had a few tomatoes germinate. I'm not sure how they'll do, but as soon as I saw their leaves it made me question any weed that sprouted up......

And here is my garden today.....

I can't believe that in less than a month I am able to go out to the garden on a daily basis and harvest fresh lettuce. What a nice treat!

She who dies with the most fabric........WINS!!

It is time for me to make a confession...............................I horde material. There, I've said it. It's out in the open and I can finally breathe. I don't care how old it is, how small the piece...........if it's fabric...........it's mine! I have hand me down material, new material, old material and very, very old material. It is my weakness. Luckily, with my latest project I am going to use up a good amount of my stock pile. I have decided that after years and years..............it is time to make another quilt. This quilt is different from any of the other quilts I've made in years past. This quilt is called a rag quilt. Each square is quilted individually before piecing the entire quilt together. And the seams are wrong side out on purpose leaving strips of soft, frayed fabric. I am basing my quilt on this particular picture of a rag quilt that I found online.

Rag quilts are exactly what they imply..............made of scraps of fabric that don't seem to belong anymore or are too small. The prettiest ones I've seen contain a variety of fabrics with no particular order or design. In many ways, my life is like a quilt. Like everyone else, I've had my share of "ugly" moments in my life. But, the beautiful ones always outweigh the bad. But I could never wish away these painful parts of my life because what if that changed what I have now? The quilt that I'm making now is alot like that. There are pieces of my quilt that are beyond ugly. But, for some reason, I can still see the beauty in them. And as much as it pains me to include them, I just can't make myself omit them. 

This material was given to me by my grandmother, Mo. I love this particular material for a number of reasons. First of all the material is actually dated and stamped 1968 right on the fabric and second of all...........I'm pretty sure it's never been unfolded since Mo put it away years and years ago. It reminds me of when I was little and lived in the East Palatka house. I'm not sure why, but it does. And for some unknown reason..............I love it! And because misery loves company I also had to include the other ugly one too. They seem to fit together somehow.

pieces from Kirk's BDU's will also be included.................

here's material from the curtains I made for Ryley's room when he was a baby............

here's a piece from Bailey's very first halloween costume. I dressed her up as a witch and made her a dress.

I made throw pillows for the kids out of this material..................

My step-mom made a beautiful Easter dress out of this material for Bailey when she was only a few months old. I bought her hot pink jelly sandals to go with the outfit.............

this is all of the material that I am using to make the quilt. There are 312 7inch pieces and 50 13inch pieces total. As you can probably tell from some of the previous pictures I have already started quilting the individual pieces. I'm only about a quarter of the way finished with this step. Luckily I have chosen a simple X pattern for quilting and because of that can do it with the machine instead of by hand.

This is the quilt that I made for Kirk while he was away at Basic Training in 1997. I used old jeans, red bandana and various patriotic materials for this quilt that depict where our life was at the time. Bandanas always remind me of him.....................when I met Kirk he was a farmer. And he'd wear a bandana around his head when he worked out in the fields. Doesn't sound like anything special, but I remember the first time I saw him working on the farm and thinking I'd never seen anyone look as sexy as him in a worn out pair of jeans and a bandana tied around his head. So, that is why I included that. Kirk will forever be a blue jean man and because of that................I included jeans. My quilts are full of memories. So many things are tied into my quilts. I choose the material so carefully. Each piece needs to mean something to me...........or to my family. Kirk always says that he wants to be buried with the quilt I made for him. I love teasing him that I'm going to have to throw it away one of these days. It's been repaired and washed thousands of times and is still the prized possession of whoever gets to it first on movie night. It's age only adds to it's appeal. How many times have one of us ran our hands over the embroidered parts of the quilt???? I want this new quilt to hold the same kind of memories for us that the old one does. So, I included material that to the unknowing eye might not seem to fit. But, to us...................couldn't be more perfect.

My kryptonite...............

I would categorize myself as a pretty tough chick. I handle physical pain very well. Emotional on the other hand...........well, that's a different story entirely. Anyway, I'm getting off track here. Maybe tough isn't the word I'm looking for here...............maybe it's lucky. I don't have seasonal allergies, asthma, depression, migraines, etc. I do however, produce kidney stones at a rapidly alarming rate! I have passed more stones than years I've been alive. But that, however is not what this is about. Besides kidney stones(which seems to be my only painful flaw) I am allergic to only one thing. It is not life threatening, but it has plagued me my entire life. It took years to figure out exactly what it was. It is my kryptonite. It hides in numerous foods that I unknowingly consume and now it appears that I am also susceptible if I touch it. Being such a shy girl in school, I can remember being mortified when someone would point out to me that my face was covered in splotches. But more often than not, I would be asked if someone had slapped me. Me? I hardly spoke a word in school to anyone. Why would anyone slap me? Anyway, my kryptonite just so happens to be red #40. This is in Cherry icees, orange flavored popsicles, liquid medicines, the list goes on and on. Well, I normally avoid these things at all costs, but last night I wasn't feeling well. Everyone here at my house has had a little bit of a sore throat this week, so I took some liquid cough medicine ran the bath and collapsed into the hot water. As soon as I opened my eyes I realized something was missing. I'd forgotten to add a scented bubble bath to the water. Feeling quite lazy and not wanting to move much at all............and instead of taking the two seconds it takes to stand up & reach into the cabinet for my bubble bath, I layed back and reached for Mag's blackberry scented shampoo and added a little of that to the running water. After my bath I felt much better. But, within the hour I'd started itching. Dry skin, I decided. So I added one more coat of lotion. Long story short, I woke up in the night covered from head to toe with hives. I'd not only ingested red #40 in my cough syrup, but soaked in it as well. Now that the kids are off to school and the house is quiet and no questions need to be answered.................I finally allowed myself to take a Benadryl and another bath(this time blackberry scent-free). So, if you ever want to embarrass me or just make fun of me................throw a little red #40 on me and sit back and enjoy the show.

Out of the mouth of a seven year old...............

My little Maggie never fails to amaze me. She is known for wanting to try things much earlier than the normal child. She feels there is nothing she can't do and this pleases me to no end. By the time she could walk, she could swim. And by the time she entered pre-k she was already head over heels in love with a boy. At first this was cute, but I now have to remind her on a daily basis that kissing boys is not acceptable for a 7 year old girl. Her latest obsession that she must defeat is shaving her legs. My 7 year old, 2nd grader is now insisting on shaving her legs. She cried about wearing shorts this morning because boys wouldn't like her hairy legs. I tried to assure her that boys are certainly NOT looking at her legs. But, that was apparently beside the point. "They might!", she said "and then what will they think? They'll think I'm a boy!!!", she accused. I told her that no one would ever mistake her for a boy, but what do I know? In her eyes I'm just a mom who was never a little girl and who couldn't possibly understand any of this. She was so upset that I almost considered allowing her to shave her legs. Crazy? Yea, I know. It passed pretty quick..........don't worry. My final answer was that she could shave her legs in the 5th grade. You should have seen the shocked look on her face. And then something happened and I could literally see the wheels turning in her mind. And here it comes, I thought. "Well, Ryley's in 5th grade and you don't let him shave.", she said. Really? This was how she was going to win me over? So I said, "Ryley will never shave his legs, no matter how old he gets.". "His face, MOM!", she barked back at me. "I hate to disappoint you honey, but Ryley is no where near needing to shave his face. He has to wait even longer than you do to start shaving.", I said. This was not working out for her. Would she quietly accept defeat? Absolutely! Defeated? Beaten? Not in her eyes. You see, right there in that last statement was all that mattered. She was going to beat Ryley. Life's just a big competition to my little Mag. And I know she will always come out on top. She would make a hell of a lawyer. Even at seven she can usually bring up valid points and work angles I'd never think of. So, today's battle is finished.......................but only until I pick them up from school which will most certainly involve another!!!

The Fart Fan Blues................

It seems that my life revolves around when and if I can sneak into the bathroom unnoticed. That's sad, isn't it? The kids..........or Kirk for that matter, will ignore me all day until I sneak into the restroom. Then, all of the sudden I am in high demand. I do not understand this. I'm so quiet........I tip toe all the way down the hall............silently close the bathroom door................turn on the sink to wet my tooth brush...........and let out a sigh. "I've made it!", I think as I smile into the mirror. As soon as the tooth brush enters my mouth the questions begin from the other side of the door. Or more often than not.............the accusations. My bathroom comes equipped with a "fart fan"(as Kirk so lovingly calls it) that turns on with the light. I cannot switch this off to listen to thousands of questions unless I want to be in total darkness. So, when I don't answer, they repeat everything a little louder. Then comes "MOM!!! Are you listening to me??????", followed by knocking.........and eventually pounding on the door. I am good at tuning out. It's a skill I've worked long and hard at perfecting. That's terrible to admit, isn't it? But for some reason, in this small, confined space..................I cannot! I have been cried to, yelled at and accused of things inside that little room that I honestly thought I had no control over. Clearly I am to blame for chipped fingernail polish, nose bleeds, the internet not working, the cable not working, thunderstorms, a cell phone being dead, an iPod being dead, Ryley yelling at Maggie, Maggie yelling at Ryley, Bailey hitting Ryley, Ryley hitting Bailey back..................the list goes on and on! I'm sure one of these days, not far from now...........I will miss this. But right now, that hardly seems possible!

Go Big or Go Home!



My life of healthy living is paved with good intentions......I have decided to embark on something completely new to me...........an elevated fall garden of proportionately SMALL size planted in ONLY composted material!

An elevated garden is something completely new to me. And I can honestly say that having a garden no bigger than a sheet of plywood is also new. I'm usually a "Go big or go home" kind of girl, so small is rather new to me. And using only compost to grow these vegetables in is also somewhat of a foreign concept to me. I, like most organic gardeners use it as an additive only. I am a BIG composter..........nothing goes to waste at my house........what doesn't go to the chickens can usually be used in the compost bin. Leftover food(as long as it is some type of plant life), shredded newspaper, grass clippings, leaves and chicken droppings(these are very beneficial for composting.......the bacteria helps speed up the composting) are all compostable at my house. But as I said, I am new to this. So, this time around we're going small. So far it seems to be working out very well. Weeding is a piece of cake, a sprinkler isn't necessary and the dogs will not dig holes next to my collards. It's a win/win situation...................so far!

Here's my baby collards. They are doing extremely well.

 

My butter crisp lettuce is the biggest of the bunch. It seems to LOVE it!

 

Buckle up...............

Having been in and lived through a horrific car accident seventeen years ago, I can't imagine EVER forgetting to wear my seatbelt. But more importantly, ever forgetting my children's seatbelt. More times than I can count, I have watched people drive by with no regard to seatbelt laws or safety. This morning as I was stopped at the red light at the intersection of Moseley and Reid, a car passed by with a woman driving holding a baby. She was smiling and she kissed the baby on the head as they passed. It was apparent that she loved this baby...................but doesn't driving HOLDING a baby contradict this? What if I hadn't been paying attention and ran through the red light? I just don't understand this. We, as a society know how dangerous driving can be. And I understand how hard it is to listen to your baby cry for you in their car seat. I understand sleepless nights. I understand being in a hurry.............I understand many things. But, this.........this one thing I do not understand. Does it really take a life changing car accident to make someone wear their seatbelt? Very few people know that because of my accident I have a piece of my life completely gone. It begins one day and then skips over a few weeks and begins again. On one hand, I know that I am lucky to not remember any of the accident or the recovery days that followed, but I can't tell you how hard I've tried to focus on it, to just remember one thing. Just one! I have numerous scars inside and out to keep my memory of that day alive, but only stories of the actual event and the days and weeks that followed it. To me, it is like a dream, because as hard as I try to find those memories............they're just not there. Sometimes when the family starts reliving "the accident" I think that I've remembered something. But, I've heard the stories so many times and pictured them in my head that I'm sure I'm just living it through them. That was the day, so they say, that the old Becky died...............and the meaner one took her place. I remember who I was and I remember many people. And over the years, my memory has gotten better. But for a long time after the accident people would speak to me when I'd be out shopping or at work.......................and I'd have no idea who they were. I remembered people who were my center, my heart. But even in the beginning it was apparent that I didn't even remember them. And I can't imagine how that must have felt to them. But those people were the first to come back to me. Kirk, Mama, Daddy, the boys, playing with Gabe when we were little, Melissa............but that was about it. I remember driving to the grocery in Welaka that day. I remember thinking what a cute, little store it was and what a small town Welaka really is. I remember thinking that I hoped Kirk remembered to use my id# at Scotty's to get a discount on the living room paint. I remember driving home. And then, it just stops. And I'm not exactly sure when it starts back up again. I drove the epitome of what people refer to as a "muscle car". It was built for speed. I loved my cutlass. I loved the color, I loved the sound of the motor when I revved it up and I loved the attention it gave such a shy girl. It was beautiful. It was royal blue and I'd give anything to still have it. Ryley would have loved it. I wish I'd been sane enough to ask Kirk or mom to save something from the car for me before it was hauled away to the junk yard. The one thing I'd want...................and this is going to sound really strange.....................is the driver side door lock. It was silver with a small point and unscrewed from the door. It was also the thing that gave me one of my numerous scars. As I was thrown from the car through my open window, I was pulled along that lock on my left side. And for some reason..............out of the whole car..................that is what I'd keep. And maybe the steering wheel. Is that weird? I felt so small, yet so big when I drove that car. Making myself drive again was hard after the accident. That was a huge step for me. I felt like I couldn't remember how to do anything. I couldn't remember people, I couldn't remember how to match my clothes...........I couldn't remember simple things. And then one day, it gradually started coming back. But that one small space in my life is still gone. I can't believe I've rambled on about this for so long. I hardly ever think about the accident any more. But today, seeing that.............for some reason, it brought it all back. If you've managed to make it through this whole blog...........please, please, please try to remember to wear your seatbelt. It is so important. I wasn't wearing mine on that day so long ago and I am still alive, but I firmly believe you're only allowed so many close calls. So take a few seconds and do something for yourself or for your family or for the stranger who's life may forever be changed because of you................and buckle up.

I love my handyman!

In case you are new to this blog.........................here at our house, we are engaged in an on-going battle with our air conditioner. This summer has been our most trying yet. It seems that every week something else needs to be repaired. In a perfect world we'd have just broken down and bought a new a./c. But, since my life is far from perfect & I am a stay at home mom with 3 kids and a husband to feed, we do what has to be done to make the old girl keep running. This weeks a/c fiasco started at the end of last week. Kirk and I were awakened to a terrible, loud sound coming from outside. We ran outside only to realize, yet again.........that it was our a/c making that noise. Since we live in the city, it wouldn't be fair to subject our neighbors to that horrible, loud, screeching sound. So, we turned it off and decided it could wait until morning. Bright and early Friday morning, Kirk disassembled the old girl and found the new problem. The fan blade itself needed to be replaced because in the center of the blade, the piece that holds it on to the shaft of the motor had literally disintegrated. Kirk looked up replacement blades, but I could tell that it all came back to his famous phrase of, "if it's made of metal, I can fix it". I could see his mind working this over, but he didn't share his idea with me until two days later. After suffering for days with no a/c, I finally agreed that since it was already broken, it wouldn't hurt to try and make the missing piece out of metal and then weld it to the blade. So, off he went to weld as happy as if I'd just told him I'd bought him a new truck. Nothing, absolutely nothing makes him happier than welding.

Look how happy he is holding the welding gun...................

Here he is welding the fabricated piece onto the blade...................

I don't know how many times I asked him, "do you think it will work?".

And finally........................the moment of truth. Was he really able to fabricate the missing piece out of metal and then weld it on????? Yep, that's exactly what he did! And it worked! The balance isn't quite right, but that seems to be his only complaint with his work. As for me, the fan is running, the a/c is working and I am one happy girl! Life is good.....................and nice and cool once again and it didn't cost us one penny!

Our day at Hanna Park.................



We had such a good time today visiting Grandma  Mary & Big Daddy at Hanna Park in Jacksonville......

My little Maggie-Moo has had her snack and is now ready to wear it down to the beach!

Aunt Marsha & Zoe having their snack.............

Uncle Joshie with his favorite little girl..........................

Grandma & Mama are ready!

Ryley is patiently waiting for the fun to begin.....................

This is a picture that Ryley took looking up from the camp site and I just loved it........

Daddy & Maggie using the outdoor shower to rinse off all the sand.....................

Maggie loves striking poses for us!

She's our little diva!

Mag & Grandma are completely worn out after spending time at the water park, beach & playground. It was a wonderful day for the whole family!

Our golden egg....................

Here's a few of Kirk's "girls", as we affectionately call them.

We have a variety of hens, including Rhode Island Reds, Black Sexlinks, White Plymouth Rocks & one Silkie. The run(or aviary as some may call it) that Kirk built for them is quite impressive. Although he has just informed me that tomorrow's job is cleaning it and the coop out thoroughly. Yay for me!

This is our Silkie. She was given to us by a friend that could no longer care for her. They'd had two baby chicks at the time and one of them was pulled completely through the fencing by a wild animal. This one survived, but was missing most of her feathers. So, we took her and she's grown into a beautiful, healthy girl. She's a very small breed and will stay about half the size of our regular hens.We call her our "little dinosaur" because of her blue beak, feet and earlobes. She's very interesting. Her skin is blue and her bones are blue as well. Apparently they're quite the delicacy in China. We, of course will not be eating our hens, but we are hoping for miniature blue eggs soon.

Here's our "little dinosaur" on her lower perch. Kirk put this perch in especially for her. She's somewhat of a loner because of her size and can't seem to make it up to the taller perches to be with the other girls. Notice all the feathers that hang down from her feet. She's a beautiful girl!

This is our very first egg! It's quite a big deal here at our house. Kirk has loved and taken care of "his girls" for four months and nothing could have made him happier than seeing this first egg. He was so excited when he found it that we all had to come out and look at it before it was removed. It had a few small, black feathers on it so we're assuming that it came from one of the Black Sexlink hens. It's very light brown in color, almost peach and this picture did not do it justice. I haven't told him yet, but "his girls" have already laid another one. He takes such pride in raising and caring for them..............which only makes me love him that much more.

my therapy sessions........................

There is absolutely nothing better to me than simultaneously playing tennis and purging my soul to my best friend. And today, that is exactly what I did. I didn't get..............no that isn't correct.............I didn't allow myself the opportunity to do anything for myself over the summer. I love taking care of the kids(and Kirk, for that matter), but everyone needs a chance to vent a little. So tennis in the mornings after dropping the kids off at school, is "my time". But, in all honesty...................I don't have much to complain about. I'm actually a boring kind of girl. There isn't a whole lot of drama that happens in my life. I get excited over new recipes..............I love hearing all the latest gossip from my teenager when she comes home from school, I read books ALL the time and miss my husband tremendously when he's on graveyard. And because I don't work, my days tend to blend into the next. But, in-between those boring moments...................life, love, laughter and tears happen. And besides my husband, I look forward to sharing these comical, serious & heart wrenching tales with my friend. She knows me so well that within a few sentences she can tell if something is bothering me. And I feel I know her equally well too. I tend to be quite a talker and sometimes it's in complete circles. But, I honestly talk to very few people. And the down side of that for these people is that once you get me started, it's hard to get me to stop. I cry easily, but usually don't share why. I keep it all bottled up inside myself and sometimes sharing it with Kirk just isn't enough. And don't tell him I said this, but sometimes it's Kirk that's bothering me. Mandy and I call this our "therapy sessions". And that's exactly what it is for me. I feel lighter, less burdened after one of our "therapy sessions" and ironically, not one thing has changed except that I've let a few things go that were bothering me and altered my perception on others. I am lucky to have a friend that doesn't try to change me. Instead, she helps me see another version of situations and myself that I may not see. I guess the best part is that she's always on my side. Don't get me wrong, we disagree on things all the time. And we don't always see things eye to eye, but that doesn't mean she's not on my side or doesn't trust my judgment. Having someone I can honestly tell the whole truth to, without judgment is a rare thing for me. Yea, she might tease me about something stupid or silly that I did, but that's ok. With most people, I tend to leave out embarrassing parts or parts that may make me sound like the bad guy. I don't do that with her because it doesn't matter. To her, I'm just me. The Becky that is boring, outrageous, hysterical, absurd, OCD, hilarious, lonely, sad, embarrassed, furious and happy. The same Becky that makes very many mistakes and it's very comforting knowing that, just being me..........................faults and all....................is still ok.

rainbows in the morning....................

I can only assume that what is strange to me, must be fairly common to others. Or maybe I have that backwards and it's the other way around. Anyway, today is Monday and I've already encountered a traffic jam due to a chicken on Reid Street. Ok, I'll be honest........it was more like a little hold up. We don't have enough cars here in Palatka to have a traffic jam. The chicken just strutted right across the road oblivious to all of the cars. Ryley wanted to catch him and Maggie almost cried thinking that there was a chance that poor chicken would get hit. But we were running behind as it was, so after he/she successfully crossed the road...............on we went. Next came the poop. Yep, you heard me right. Confused? Yea, me too and I'm the one telling the story. Let's see............how can I put this without you thinking terrible, bad thoughts about me? The truth? Well, I guess that will have to do. I was either too preoccupied this morning or maybe I just completely bypassed the "poop sidewalk" all together this morning on my way out. Surely that's the only way I must have missed it. Anyway, let's get something straight, right off the bat..................I love our new Boston terrier, Moo............really, I do. She's full of energy and loves us completely, but I'm pretty sure she's atleast one fry short of a happy meal. Her very favorite thing to do is poop on the sidewalk when we let her out before bed. By this time every night, I'm tired or Kirk's tired and we could care less where she uses the bathroom as long as it's not in the house. So, in all honesty...................we're to blame. That doesn't make me any less upset about this though. I still don't understand how something so small can poop seven turds at one time! Gross enough? Oh yea! Well, that's what I get for buying her Kibbles n' Bits homestyle. I get to see a rainbow each and every day...............................full of brown, red and green turdlets(as Kirk loves to call them). So, if you ever need to get a hold of me in the morning, you can usually find me out front hosing off the "poop sidewalk" for all to see. I'm pretty popular with the neighbors as you can imagine. Right about now, you're probably thinking you'd like to swap places with me..............walk a day in my shoes. I know, I get that alot. It's the rainbow...........................it gets em' every time!

My silver lining

Our freshly painted toes after our pedicures. Bailey's on the left(she got blue daisies on both of her big toes), Maggie's toes are purple with white daisies and I'm on the bottom.

Maggie and Bailey's beautifully manicured fingernails. Mag's on the left and Bailey is on the right.

I don't think that many people know this about me, but I do not allow myself the luxury of getting pedicures, manicures or even haircuts. I cut and color my own hair and give myself my own version of a mani/pedi. This is by no means something I am proud of, but over the years it just sort of happened. I can only imagine the shock and disgust towards me that some people may be feeling right about now. It is not that I feel that I don't deserve these things, but more like................I'm wasting money on myself by doing this. Did that statement just contradict itself? I guess I do tend to talk in circles. Anyway, since I don't allow myself these luxuries, today was quite the treat for me and the girls. Grandma Brenda decided on a whim, that the girls needed a "day at the spa". All four of us got pedicures, Maggie and Bailey got manicures and Grandma and I even got our eyebrows waxed. We left out of there feeling like new women! We were feeling so good about ourselves that we were quite surprised that Kirk, PaPa and Ryley even recognized us as we walked into Chili's. I was walking on air, feeling pretty good about myself as I sat down in the restaurant. We talked for a few minutes to the guys about what we'd had done and teased Ryley that he should have gone with us and had his toenails painted. I mentioned to Kirk that I'd even had my eyebrows and upper lip waxed(yep, I said it). Instead of saying something like, "Oh really, I didn't notice.". He said, "yea, I can tell. It's really red!".  "What???", I yelled and covered my mouth. And then he leaned around Maggie and whispered, "But you look really beautiful.". And right there......................in those five little words..................was my silver lining.

First day of school...................

uugggghhhhh...............Mom! No pictures please! 9th grade here I come!

Bai loves her new zombie brains backpack!

My little 2nd grader and favorite 5th grader!

After working all night, Kirk is barely hanging on. It was so important to him to ride with me to take the kids to school.

What was I so worried about last night? The kids did great this morning. It never fails to amaze me that I.................a person who could literally make a career of worrying..............managed to give birth to such sane, rational, easy going children. Bai may have gotten her shyness from me, but she's as confident as her daddy. Just like her brother and sister............they are sure of themselves............even if, at times.........they don't realize it. Why is letting go so hard? I was so proud of Bailey this morning. More often than not, I am the one who needs a shoulder to cry on. Not the other way around. Leaving Bailey was even harder than I'd expected though. She may be the oldest, but she carries my heart with her wherever she goes. If she was nervous, it didn't show. Under stress, she has the calmest face you'll ever encounter. She has more control than I've ever seen. Which makes it even harder to tell(since mother's are supposed to just "know") when something is wrong. As we neared the drop off point, I began to panic, but she was completely unfazed. She said goodbye and stepped out of the car as my little girl. But as she turned to walk away.......................there stood a tall, beautiful, completely composed young lady, full of life and ready for whatever this new phase of her life was going to throw at her. And that is when I began to cry. What happened to my little girl and who was this mystery young lady wearing her clothes????? Next was Maggie and Ryley's turn. They'd already told me that they didn't need me to walk them to class, but I was prepared anyway......just in case. The whole ride to school they talked and smiled. They couldn't wait! They were going to get to see their grandma every day, make new friends...................it was going to be wonderful! So, we pulled into the loop to drop them off and I asked them one more time, "are you sure you don't want me to walk with you?". "No, we're fine! I've got it all memorized in my head!" Maggie said as she started rambling off directions to where grandma stands in the morning and then on to her classroom. Ryley just rolled his eyes at his sister and smiled. Part of me was bursting with pride over how mature they already are, but the other half.......................well, she was getting a little teary eyed because her babies no longer needed her to hold their hand. I'd just started thinking what perfect, nice, caring children I'd raised, when I watched Ryley help Maggie out of the car. How thoughtful, I thought. He handed her school supplies over to her and then, out of nowhere, Maggie threw his lunch box at his head and pushed him out of the way. "Mag!" yelled Ryley...................and there they were..................my "real" children. And in that moment, I realized that everything was just as it should be. As I waved goodbye to them one last time and started to drive away...............Kirk reached over and held my hand. He always knows exactly when I need him. Even after working all night, he made sure to ride with me to drop them off on their first day. He held my hand the whole way home and listened to me ramble on about the kids and occasionally sniffle when I got a little upset. I'd be lost without him.

Cheesy Chicken Casserole

preheat oven to 350*

5 roasted boneless skinless chicken breasts shredded(it seems that my whole life is divided into fifths, I would recommend a breast per person)

6 T. salted butter(I highly believe that this will make or break the recipe. If you use margarine, it DOES matter)

6 T. all purpose flour

2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. ground pepper

3 cups milk

1/2 cup mayo

2 tsp. lemon juice

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

6-8 pats of butter

1 lb. cooked pasta(I prefer Barilla campanelle, but that is for looks only)

1/4 cup panko lemon pepper bread crumbs

This is a very simple and versatile recipe that is a HUGE hit at my house. The roux that I use in this recipe is from a recipe that was handed down to me by my step-mom and I just love it! You can either make this exactly as I do or use this recipe as a base and change it up to your liking. If you don't think you'll like the hint of lemon in the bread crumbs, then use regular or italian or none at all. I think it adds a wonderful flavor to the dish. I have one at my house that doesn't like them so I just omit them from a small section of the dish. The same goes for the chicken. I usually make the chicken ahead of time and this works very well for me. You can use leftover chicken, but make sure that it is a dish that had flavor and that everyone liked. I roast the chicken with lots of herbs and spices because that is the flavor that we like. I also shred the chicken back into the roasting pan so I don't lose any of the yummy crispy parts that may be left in the pan. These little things are important. I hate bland food. Sauces should have lots of flavors mixed together to form something completely their own.

In a saucepan, melt the 6 T. butter and then add the 6 T. flour, salt & pepper. Gradually stir in the milk and continue stirring until thickened and bubbly. Remove from heat and add mayo, lemon juice and half the cheese. Stir until blended. To the cheese sauce add shredded chicken and cooked pasta and mix until coated. Pour into buttered casserole dish. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Next, sprinkle bread crumbs and then randomly place pats of butter. Place in 350* oven for about 30 minutes or until bubbly and golden. Be careful not to overcook this recipe. Everything in it is pre-cooked. You are just helping the flavors come together by heating it up one last time. The last thing you want to do is dry it out. I usually serve this with a salad and a side of roasted green beans, but tonight..................it's canned peas. What can I say? I'm lazy!

Playing in the rain.................

Ryley and Maggie playing in the rain..........

Ryley

Maggie

racing down the driveway.........

rain angels....................

Best friends...................

..........forever..........

My sweet babies had such a good time playing in the rain yesterday afternoon. Every time it rains, they beg me to play outside. Somewhere along the line, I guess I lost the excitement that comes from doing something so simple, yet so satisfying. I'm determined to join them next time.