No games!

When I got my laptop, I said I wasn't going to load it with junk.  Nope!  It is for writting my book and doing my Genealogy.  Yep, that is what it is for.  All too soon I went to two local stores that sell new programs for the computer.  Things like Printshop for scrapbooking and another one for scrapbooking.  It was a challenge to load them on the computer.  Remember "computer illerate." Then one day I returned and saw a card game.  Yes, it came home with me.  When Stacy saw that she laughed and said I would soon become a game junkie.  Of course the words "No I won't !" came out of my mouth.  Yes I returned time after time and bought more.  Yes, now there are more games on the computer than I want to admit to.  Stacy just laughs.  Mckee on the other hand, asks what game is the best!  Yea for games, they keep the mind active....

Friday

It's Friday, the day after Thursday and the day before Saturday.  Yes, the beginning of the weekend.  How I use to look forward to the weekend - when I had it off.  Working in the medical field I worked every other weekend, etched in stone.  You would have to be dead to call off on your weekend to work.  And if you were going to be dead, you have to notify them two weeks in advance and that still could be an illegal absence!  Vacation must be put on the calendar in December.  Be sure to date it and send in a written request with it.  Remember it can't include your weekend to work and the first week must be five days.  Did I lose you?  You aren't allowed to call off, even if you are sick - come to work and pass it on to all the patients and workers.  If you call off more than twice in six months you get written up.  These are the rules we lived by.  It wasn't easy when we had flooding.  A few of us couldn't get to work.  They al least didn't count it because it wasn't our fault.  Could you work by these rules.  I did it for twenty years!..... 

Seven going on Twenty

The kids now-a-days are smart.  We may have been street smart, but these kids are electronic smart.  I have gotten into playing games on the computer and along comes a seven year old.  Now, she watches me for a while and walks away.  Wow, I can play by myself.  All I have to do is yell out and she returns like a flash.  "What are you doing?"  I show her and she kicks me off, of course I let her.  Now there are certain ones she likes to play and she makes me help.  On occasion I am playing one and get stuck.  All I have to do is call her and she gets it going again.  I laugh, I was stuck for a while and she just looks at it and knows what to do.  When she returns there are two games I can't get any further on.  I am stuck again.  Mckenzie come help Grandma.......

Clean house yard sale!!!!

I don't need the people from Clean House to come and help me, no, I have Stacy.  As she is cleaning her stuff out, she is cleaning mine too.  No my house doesn't look like the ones on the show, I hide stuff in closets.  As I am getting older I have found out that the newest gadget isn't really needed.  I go to the store and check it out, in front of Bob of course, and set it back down and walk away.  See, when he sees me pick it up he thinks I will never put it back.  The look on his face is priceless when I do.  But I have saved an awful lot and now it is going to our "Clean House Yard Sale."  Come one, come all.........

Pools

I ran into someone while I was out today.  He told a little story that I thought was cute.  This man was at least 75.  He said his brother died and left him something no one else wanted.  It was a pool.  It takes 28,000 gallons of water, needs to be maintained, (he was buying pool shock) and you can only use it three monts out of the year if you are lucky.  And I invite everybody to come and swim because I don't use it he said.   It is the truth.  We get 6 weeks of use out of ours.  By the second week of August we talk about closing it because once the nights are cold we lose the warm water and you need a scuba suit to go in.  I enjoy it if the kids are here since they do use it.  Actually we right now only have about three weeks left of the pool, unless it gets super hot again......

Hottest day of the summer!

My thermometer hit 110 degrees today!  Never saw that before.  And guess who is moving today - yes, Stacy.  All I can say is at least she has enough people helping today.  I did what I could do and came home and cooked.  It started off being chicken until I opened the one package and it didn't smell right.  Now, if I won't eat it I won"t serve it to someone else.  Now what?  Down to my shelf that holds extra groceries.  Yes, rigatoni's sound good.  Two boxes with sauce.  Next is a fresh vegetable salad.  Where are the cukes I bought.  Oh, I didn't buy any this week because I was going to go to the farmer's market.  Never got there.  Bob, do we have any cukes I can use?  He brought some small ones in.  This will do.  Okay everything is cooking.  Must feed the people who are helping.  By time everyone arrived everything was done and ready to serve.  They emptied the truck and now.. Dinner is ready......   

Sally is where?

Yes the pool is great in this weather.  It may not be cool water but it is refreshing.  The girls were in the pool having fun, I'm in the house in the air conditioning staying cool.  We had the two dogs on the deck watching the girls in the pool.  Suddenly there was quite!  No dogs were barking!  What is going on now?  I looked out and there is Stacy with Sally in her arms trying to get out of the water.  Stacy said Sally jumped in because they were wrestling and Sally doesn't like anyone going near her baby.  So Stacy had to get Sally to the side of the pool, which wasn't an easy fete!  Sally didn't look like she was enjoying the water.  I thought all labs liked water?  Not our Sally!....

Heat!

Okay, I surrender.  I am done with the heat.  It was 102 degrees on my thermometer today.  The pool water isn't even refreshing.  That temp is 88 - anyone have soap?  Bob would love it.  At least the house is cool.  If you go outside you sweat in two minutes, then go inside and it takes another ten to cool off.  Guess it could be worse, New York was 104.  I know the kids love it.  They will turn into fish if they didn't have to potty and eat. 
Now the new is talking about a new deadly mosquito, two new ones that can transmit deadly diseases.  So why do I go outside?  Maybe we should all stay in the house!  We should stand at the door and guard it against the mosquito invasion.  Yes, we can use cans of deet.  Maybe board up our windows!  Use the fly swatter on every one you see.  Oh my, I think the heat has gotten to me.  Can I have a bar of soap, I'm going swimming!.....

Heat! Hot! Humid! Hazy!

I guess I don't have to remind anyone that the 4 H's have returned.  Why is it that as children it didn't bother us?  Now that we are adults we cry and whine because it's too hot.  When I was young, only people with money had air conditioning.  Those of us that were poor had fans.  There was a fan in almost every room.  We slept with the fan blowing on us.  To cool off we took cool baths, didn't have showers yet either.  Even our cars didn't have air conditioning, we rolled the windows down.  Yes, the good old days.  Now if the power goes off we at least know how to cool off.  Wait, no power - no water - no cool bath - no fan either.  Oh no, what do we do now?  How about the pool?.......

What happened?

I am trying hard to catch up with myself.  I never do though.  I got my latest project off and running.  I called stores in town to see if they would give a donation to the cemetery sign, it was getting to be unanimous, no donations but they would take a donation canister.  Okay my next step is putting some canisters together.  I went to the dollar store and found the cutest canisters.  They look like miniature garbage cans with a flip lid.  I cut an opening in the lid, glued it on and have instant canisters.  Next came signs that are taped on and we are all set to deliver them.   Wish me luck, I have $1000.00 to raise....

There needs to be three of me!

I have more projects going than what I thought I did!  My genealogy is an ongoing thing.  I work on that daily.  Next is I am trying to get accepted into the "Daughters of the American Revolution", at least someone else is doing the hard work for that. Helping Stacy move.  Do you realize how many things you accumulate from one move to the other?  Too much!  I have also been trying to get a sign for our local cemetery where some of my ancestors are buried.  Starting today I am offically starting a fund for the sign.  Anyone wants to help, let me know.  It will cost $1000.  The township will put it in since they own the land.  Also helping get paperwork together for Stacy to return to school.  Plus taking care of Grandma and my house.  Nope, I'm not bored!...

The Swimming Hole!

Summer has really arrived.  There hasn't been rain in days so watering the garden is a must.  The daily temperatures are well into the 90's in our area.  Yes, the pool water will warm up.  It is now 84 degrees in the pool.  I don't have to worry I have the whole pool to myself.  I was in cleaning it and playing when Bob came outside and wanted to know what the water temp was.  Yes, I did tell him the correct temp because he won't go in the water till it turns into bath water.  It is getting close!  He'll get in it soon if the temps stay up.  Peace and quiet gone.....

The puppy is where?

Modern technology - cell phones.  No matter where you are they can find you.  They can even send pictures.  When I was a child pets were never allowed at the table especially when you are eating.  I carried this tradition on after we married and had the kids at home.  My cell phone beeps while we were out the other day.  Yep, it's Stacy sending me a picture.  The picture was of Bella sitting on the chair while Stacy was eating!  Almost immediately I sent a message to get the dog away from the table.  It isn't sanitary!  Did she listen?  Of course not!  Can't she teach someone else's pet bad habits?.... 

Where is it?

"Okay, I know where I put it.  It is right here."  Some days I hate those words.  Yes, I like to put things in a certain spot so I can find them when I need it again.  I have gone as far as telling Bob where the item is, so one of us remembers.  We soon found out that doesn"t work either.  Now there are two of us that don't remember where the item is.  Usually weeks go by and all of a sudden the item shows up.  Too young to be Alzheimers.  I chock it up to having a Gremlin in the house that moves things on me.  Do you have Gremlins?.....

Moving. UGH!

As a child we frequently moved.  I would just get adjusted, and up we would go again.  I learned how to wrap dishes for moving and we seldomly had anything broken.  We would pack it and the movers transported it.  I am now helping someone pack up to move.  It brings back memories of years gone when we would do this.  Years ago we always said once we moved again, we would never move again.  We haven't.  All I can remember is packing all those boxes and when the movers put them in a room you had to unpack them.  If I ever move again the person who is going to live here can have the furniture, the food, pets, everything that is in the house.  I don't want to have to pack it up and take the things out and find a new place for them.  I only have a few more words to say tonight - I hate moving!...... 

Can't call me

When the kids were old enough to be left alone during the day, they had their instructions not to call me at work unless it was an emergency like someone was bleeding.  They understood because there were times I could not get to the phone for silly things like, "he hit me, what should I do?"  Now that they are all grown, I don't worry about that, besides now we can text instead of call.  Stacy got me into texting.  I never wanted it.  It was just an added cost on my bill.  Well, I had no choice when she started texting me and I had to answer.  Today I was letting her know I was on the way home.  She was at work at the time.  After the third text to her, she sent a text to me saying that she didn't have time to "chat!"  How about all the times you called me at work to "just say hi?"  Wow, the shoe is on the other foot.  I love it!.... 

Lap dog

I am sitting on the couch with my computer.  Bella, the puppy wants to be on my lap, it's bedtime for the baby.  She shoves my arm out of the way so she can lay completely across my lap.  I am typing with one hand and the other hand is firmly on the computer.  Occasionally the little head bops up to obscure the keyboard, and see what Bob is doing.  When is he going to come and sit?  She will climb over on his lap then.  Yes, she dumps me for him all the time...

Updates again

I heard from the book company, all my books are covered under the returnability contract.  Now I can do a book signing at Barnes & Noble.  My book will finally be on the book shelves!!!!
Bob's feeder hasn't been bothered by by the bears - no bears have really been here.  He wants his 5 bucks.  I keep telling him that summer isn't over yet.  At least the squirrels aren't in the one on the deck anymore.  We bought a shiny metal trash can for inside, cut a hole in it and it has no rim or ridges for the squirrel to hang on to, so they are unsuccessful getting in the feed.  They are fun to watch trying to get up on it. 
The garden is growing.  I picked a few tomatoes but nothing else yet.  We are later than others as far as growing time is concerned.  The potatoes are going wild.  The weather is warm at night so I do expect the garden to flourish.  Then I will be the person the neighbors will all be hiding on so they don't get any more veggies.......

Powerpack

I have to laugh at Stacy.  Some days Mckenzie wears her out.  See, Mckenzie likes to be busy.  She would rather be helping than watching TV or doing quiet time.  I do laugh at all the things we get accomplished when she is here.   She is our little whirlwind.  They went to a water park yesterday.  Stacy came home exhausted, Mckenzie was still going.  I have to laugh, I kept up with three of them, including one who wanted all the attention - Stacy.  Yes, this is another time I sit back and laugh.  I did wish you a little girl who is just like you.  Mckenzie fits the order.

In the Chicken coop?

Have you ever wished you had your camera handy when you see a funny scene.  I was getting ready to go out in my car.  Upon backing out of the garage, I noticed Bob on the inside of the chicken coop he was building for Mckenzie's birds.  I was laughing to myself as he was looking out the small window.  I have heard of being in the "dog house," never the "Chicken house!" 

Selling things

I have been helping Stacy sell some things she doesn't need.  She asked for help.  Sure, I said.  I can do that.  A lady called for the lawnmower and of course Stacy had to be elsewhere when the lady could come over.  Okay, Mom to the rescue.  Sure I can tell the lady what brand, size of deck and horsepower.  Now she wants me to show her that it works.  Okay I turned the key, nothing happened.  No, I have never started the mower before, that's Bob's job not mine.  Good thing she knew how to do it.  Yes, the mower started and she bought it.  I was successful!  Yea!  What can I sell next?.....

Last chance!

Yes, the headline on the catalog states, "Last Chance" to order from us. If you don't order from this catalog, you will no longer receive our catalog.  Yes, that is one way to get rid of the junk catalog you receive.  They may say that, but they don't mean it.  I have gotten catalogs that say that and the next month I get another one, and I haven't ordered anything!  Now if there is a catalog that you like but don't order from often that you want to receive they will stop it.  This happens often.  Sometimes you really need something and know what catalog it is in, and you have no computer so you wait patiently every day for the mailperson to deliver it, and he never does.  Now you must ask around to see if anyone has a catalog.  Isn't this always the case?.....

Carnival time

Every year the volunteer Fire Company has their Carnival.  We use to go to Carnivals when the kids were young.  If you go, be sure to go there hungry and with pockets of money from the money tree, never did find that.  When you go in, the first thing they have in your way are the games.  So whatever your kids win has to be carried all night, and not by the person who won it.  All that means is I don't get to go on any rides because I am babysitting fish and stuffed animals.  We didn't have backpacks back in those days.  Stacy was our wood splitter and she would go to the game that you had to hit the bell.  Of course when they saw her they knew she would never hit the bell.  She hit it every time.  So then they let her stay and she became part of the game.  Try to beat the girl.  It was fun to watch.  Good thing she didn't want to run away and join the carnival like most kids!  They would have let her.  Now that all the kids are gone we rarely attend the carnivals.  Maybe if there is one around when Mckenzie is here we can find one.  I want Stacy to have the same enjoyment as we did.  I know she'll drag me along just to carry all the prizes....

Late entry!

I am putting this entry in late.  Had a busy day and I finally got to sit.  I needed to pick up a few things in one of the big box stores.  Off I went early this morning.  One store led to another, oh, don't forget I need lunch.  Then I continued to the next store and got what I needed there.  The big city is half an hour away so to conserve gas, I wait till I need a few things then go and get them all in one day.  Upon arriving home it was time to cook up supper and make a few phone calls.  Then we went to cut grass and do some trim work at Stacy's.  I still think there should be no grass.  Everyone should pave their lawn.  This way you can conserve gas too.  All you have to do is hose it off.  Bob doesn't agree with this.  Maybe he will tomorrow, he has to cut our grass....

Who are you?

I don't really know all of you that read my blog, but I do hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing it.  My life has never been simple.  I was on my own since I was 5 years old.  I look at my grandchildren and amaze myself.  Though back in those days we didn't really have to wonder who was hiding around the next corner.  All the neighbors watched out for the kids.  My Mother was a single Mother of three and had to work.  We never had enough.  I guess that was why I always made sure my kids had enough.  Bob and I both worked hard to get where we are now.  I'm sure there are a lot of families out there that are doing the same. 

Today we must all take a few minutes out of our celebrating to thank the troops, past, present and future for keeping us free.  Have a good Fourth.....

Have a good day!

Wow, you're having a good day!  Yea, until someone else calls you just so they can tell you they are having their usual bad day, because they want it that way.  some people I swear are born miserable.  They came out crying, the Doctor didn't have to swat them.  Maybe that is when it starts.  I always like to look on the bright side of things.  I am not a negative person.  I do have relatives that no matter what you do or say, it is never good enough and nothing makes them happy.  There is nothing I can do to help their mood, I do try.  I am happy to get up every morning, to hear the birds, to see the sunshine, to be on the upside of the ground.  I have come close to being on the other side, so I do live life happy.  Besides, if people see you smiling they want to know what you are up to.  That makes life fun too.  Try it......  

Electricity

Turn off your power to your house.  What do you see?  No TV, no radio, no computer.  What do you hear, other than the kids crying, "why did you do that?"  No air conditioner, no fan, no music, actually no noise.  At my house since we are in the country - no water.  So now you can't flush the toilet.  Whenever the power goes out, I always have to use the toilet.  Unlike a man, I can't just go wizz in the woods.  So we really run into problems.  The coffee or tea in the morning, gone.  Keeping the kids out of the frig is another problem.  Oh, today was wash day, not going to happen.  Go read a book, ride your bike or even better - go for a walk.  What would you do?  Think about it......

Double grave site?

As you all know, I am heavily into Genealogy.  There is a cemetery down the line that my Great Grandparents are buried in.  I've been there once, found the only family stone, took pictures and came home very happy.  Yes, I found the site and the open land where everyone was buried.  The person who has volunteered to bring this cemetery back to health has contacted me about the gravesite of an Uncle.  He was going to take pictures of the stone for me.  It is nice to have someone else's perspective on this.  So the pictures show up and they are not the same stone that I have!  The birth date is wrong but the death date is the right one.  It also states he was in the War and has a military flag on it.  So, who has the right stone?  Did John have 2 stones?  If so, why?  Stay tuned.  Another puzzle to solve......