Mini-Vacation

I do not really like vacations. I much prefer an occasional day off when I do not feel like working. When I am confronted with a whole week in which I have nothing to do but enjoy myself I do not know where to begin. To me, enjoyment comes fleetingly and unheralded; I cannot determinedly enjoy myself for a whole week at a time. ~Robertson Davies

So ... I was away most of the weekend. Saturday we spent up at my DH's uncle's place on the lake -- DH is the caretaker there, so this time I went with him to help and to get away from it all. DD has the job of mowing, and the yard is HUGE so it's quite a job with the push mower. She's done it two weeks now and has blisters on her blisters. But she's a trooper (and the fact it's a paying job helps!).

I reclaimed a flower garden -- neither DH's uncle or his wife are gardeners, so the poor thing was more weeds and overgrown plants than garden. It took me a couple of hours but it was FUN. I pulled weeds, I pruned bushes, and thinned a couple of plant groupings that were taking over. I found amazing joy in the discovery ("Oh! LOOK -- day lilies!") and in the organizing and cleaning. I was surprised at how good I felt when I was done, stepped back and saw the results. The carnage was huge -- it took three overflowing wheelbarrow loads to clean up all the stuff I took out, but it looks amazing. I only hope DH's uncle and wife think so, too. *gulp*

It was oddly relaxing as well -- because I COULDN'T get on the computer (no internet there) I was free to do what I pleased. At home, despite having LOTS of yardwork, I feel obligated to work on the computer because there is always work to be done. I do some gardening every day, but not for hours at a time. And we had a group barbecue and small family gathering. It was good.

Sunday we spent at DH's brother's place on the lake (oh... if only I could say we spent the weekend at OUR place on the lake, but no such luck because -ha- we don't have one.. yet) with the entire family (which is amazingly large anymore -- lots and lots of kidlets). I wasn't allowed to bring the dog up to this one (and I have to say that I think people who don't like, or at least tolerate well-behaved dogs have something fundamentally wrong with them ... no offense to any dog-haters out there, but how can you not like dogs???), so I only stayed for a few hours. It's a long drive up and back, and I prefer not to leave Dakota for more than 6 - 8 hours at once. Still, it was a pretty good day. Ironically, since we were there with the family, I mostly ended up spending the day with my husband -- we ate together, took a long walk together, and when we got back from the walk everyone was swimming (and we didn't choose to) so we hung out on the deck and gabbed. It was a pretty darn good day, too.

Then I came home and had to build all of the pages for next week's LASR/WC website and edit the reviews. We won't talk about the book videos I still have to create. But everyone needs a break now and then, right? LOL...

How was you weekend?

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You Are Dumbo the Flying Elephant

You rather be with your friends than be alone. You prefer to be surrounded by others. If you're bored, you will tend to become lazy and apathetic. You are content to just be. You are a total people person, and you get listless when you're alone. You need someone to bounce energy off of. You are outgoing and a social butterfly of sorts. You pride yourself on being able to get along with everyone.

What Disneyworld Ride Are You?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA.... no.

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Family Day

The family. We were a strange little band of characters trudging through life sharing diseases and toothpaste, coveting one another's desserts, hiding shampoo, borrowing money, locking each other out of our rooms, inflicting pain and kissing to heal it in the same instant, loving, laughing, defending, and trying to figure out the common thread that bound us all together. ~Erma Bombeck

Yesterday I took off the computer -- mostly. I had a few things that needed doing, but I decided to hang with the family primarily. DD and I went shopping for a few things she needed to make some jewelry, went by Tractor Supply Co (who had so nicely given me coupons for the pet food I use) and then home where I told DD we could do a puzzle.

We did a 500 piece puzzle in a couple of hours, and then she asked to play Scrabble. I played, but I admit to getting frustrated because her brain just can't seem to make more than four letter words and the board gets incredibly bogged down. Still, it's a good vocab builder, so I suffered, lol.

DH mostly sat on the couch, found Christmas music on his computer to play (via YouTube mostly) for us and made snarky comments. It's his lot in life.

Today, we might go see "Voyage of the Dawn Treader" -- DD and I have both been going a little crazy to see it. It looks great, though it clearly doesn't follow the book since the White Witch is once again in it. Even so, I'm hoping it will be good. The previews look promising -- and I want to support it so that they'll continue making the movies.

I need to bake up more dog cookies, too. And I might even go whole hog and make some people cookies as well, for the humans in our agility class. We'll see.

How was your weekend? Do anything fun?

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You Are Cherry Pie

You are a total sweetheart, but you also have a tart side to you as well. You can't help but be a little naughty. During the holidays, you try to lighten the mood and keep things fun. You think that the holidays should be a time of joy... not stress. Your ideal holiday has lot of laughter and good times. You definitely prefer a holiday with zero drama. You believe that people often forget that holidays are for celebrating. You try to make every holiday event a bit of a party.

What Holiday Pie Are You?

That's about right...

==============

Cooking Commences

"You will never get out of pot or pan anything fundamentally better than what went into it. Cooking is not alchemy; there is no magic in the pot." - Martha McCulloch-Williams, Dishes & Beverages Of The Old South

We have a family gathering today -- and we have to leave shortly for the first part (a baptism at 8 a.m.!! YIKES!) so this will be quick.

I saw a monarch yesterday. First one I've seen in more than a month. I waved.

I did a lot of cooking this weekend. I was VERY frustrated while trying to find recipes. When I googled "cooking tomato sauce from scratch" the first recipe I found started with a can of crushed tomatoes. Really? :::shakes head:::

I made lazy man's tomato sauce yesterday from the last tomatoes from our garden. I cored them and then cut them up and pureed them, seeds, skins and all! Then simmered with plenty of garlic and fresh herbs (marjoram, thyme and oregano) from the garden for several hours. As long as you don't mind seeds in your sauce (and I don't), it worked out fine -- with none of the blanching and peeling involved.

I made corn chowder from corn on the cob we bought, too. I've never grated corn before, but the recipe called for half the corn to be grated to make a juicy, pulpy addition to the soup (you'll find most not-from-scratch recipes call for cans of creamed corn, which is rather the same thing). It was fabulous soup -- best I've had. NOTHING beats fresh sweet corn. We bought from a local grower so it was really, really fresh.

And, yes, I completely forgot to take pix to post all this on the H&H blog. I'm bad.

======================

You Are Passionate

You feel very intensely, and you are definitely driven by your emotions. When confronted with something new, you tend to love it or hate it right away. There is no in between for you! You always know how you feel, and you have no problem letting everyone else know too. You are honest - probably to a fault. It's impossible for you to hold back.

The Mascot Test

That's pretty dang close to correct!!

=======================

Monday Again

Family is just accident.... They don't mean to get on your nerves. They don't even mean to be your family, they just are. ~Marsha Norman

Crazy busy weekend. And it rained most of it -- finally cleared (sort of) Sunday afternoon, which was fortuitous because we were having a family get-together for my MIL's birthday and if we'd had to stay inside with all those kids? Oy vey.

Dakota is having tummy troubles AGAIN. I have never had a dog with so many digestive issues. It's making me crazy. She had me up half the night needing to go out, and I really tried to not get cranky but MAN am I tired. Today, I'll be taking a stool sample into the vet to see if she has giardia AGAIN. And maybe this time they'll agree to vaccinate her if she does. Cuz, I'm telling you, this is getting old.

We started helping at a new agility class last week. And, as always, there was a bit of drama. One of the dogs, a pit bull, has some dog aggression issues (and before anyone thinks, "Oh.. well.. a pit bull..." -- remember: aggression isn't breed specific and bad dogs aren't born, they're made). Interestingly enough, when they walked in, Dakota was off leash running around while we set up, and in her way (her way being, "All dogs love me.") ran right up to him, licking his face and trying to get him to play. And he didn't react to that in a negative way at ALL.

He's a sweetie toward people, too. And I have to admit to having a soft spot toward pit bulls because they're terrifically misunderstood creatures.

But...

After the entire class was there, we were talking and introducing dogs and whatnot, and one lady lost the leash of her schnoodle (schnauzer / poodle cross). And he trotted right over to the pit who was being kept a little apart from everyone, and stuck his nose in a .. hmm... private spot, and ... **sigh**... yes, he got attacked.

The scariest sound in the world has to be that scream a dog makes when it's scared. Thing is -- the pit bull didn't grab anything but fur. I was the closest, so I grabbed for the schnoodles leash and pulled him away. The schnoodle didn't have a mark on him and, amazingly enough, he bounced right back like it had never happened.

In any case, the instructor separated the dogs to work with them: pit bull, shy german shepherd and a beagle for me (I think she knows I love the big dogs!). She and DD took the little dogs: a dachschund, the schnoodle and a papillion (who is NEVER quiet ... yao, yap, yap... I thought I'd lose my mind).

We're having a grand time.

==========================

You Are a Açaí Berry

On the one hand, you tend to be very controversial. People are always talking about you and trying to figure you out. On the other hand, you are quite wholesome and humble. You don't know what all of the fuss is about. You are unsettled in your life. You're not sure what you want yet, and you're a bit of a searcher. If there's one thing you know, it's that you crave adventure and travels. You want to see as much of the world as you can.

What Type of Berry Are You?

Um... not really...

===================

Monday Miscellanea

Let no one think that real gardening is a bucolic and meditative occupation. It is an insatiable passion, like everything else to which a man gives his heart. ~Karel Čapek, The Gardener's Year, translated by M. and R. Weatherall, 1931

The family "thing" yesterday exhausted me. For whatever reason, those things are terribly stressful for me. DD had a FABULOUS time, though, and I'd attend for that reason if no other.

My talk with the voles apparently stirred them up as I found two new holes in the gardens in front of my house and they got one of my crocus bulbs (thus far, they'd limited themselves to the greens). Going to make Vitamin D peanut butter balls and drop them down the holes, I guess. Frustrating.

We had a wild turkey at the bird feeders yesterday. Cracked me up. One of my tube feeders hangs a little low and if the turkey stretched her neck a bit, she could eat from it. Of course, she pecked so hard it would swing pretty violently, but she figured it out. It always amazes me how big wild turkeys are AND how smart, considering how incredibly stupid domestic turkeys can be. I imagine she'll be back as this is her second visit that I've noticed (though the first time, she only ate off the ground).

DH saw a bluebird yesterday, too. They are so gorgeous. Made me think about getting mealworms to put out to see if I can attract more. I really love the colorful birds, but they are more difficult to attract. Last year I had a pair of Orioles, but had to keep half an orange on my feeders constantly. I think I'll put out hummingbird feeders this year.

I've been struggling to write the past week -- I just sit and stare at the computer and nothing comes. It's driving me batty. Going to try a couple tricks (going to write the first scene of "Drive me Crazy" from Zach's POV just for grins, for instance) and see if I can't get the juices flowing again.

I planted cucumber, squash and tomato seeds a couple days ago and have them in my spare bedroom (which gets nice, full sun). I should have done it all a little earlier, but just keep forgetting. DD bought seeds for purple and orange striped carrots that we're going to plant outside this week. She asked if there is a way to keep the swallowtails from laying their eggs on the greens because we can't bring those inside (the greens die), so I am going to have to rig some sort of netting to discourage that. It's not as though we don't have plenty of parsley, rue and dill in the garden! Silly bugs.

A friend mentioned that she'd heard there is an invasive plant locally that looks like milkweed but is actually toxic to monarch butterflies. I've tried to find information about it online, but haven't been able to. If anyone out there has heard, I'd sure love more information.

DD turns TEN this Friday. We're going to celebrate a day early (because DH is fishing on Friday and DD wants to go). I have a couple of surprises in store for her. I think it will be a good day. I can't believe she's ten. Where does the time go?

I was notified that our next year's curriculum was shipped and it made my heart go pitty-pat. Why do I get so excited to receive the new stuff? We're trying a new curriculae next year as I wasn't thrilled with what we used this year. We enrolled DD in the Abeka DVD Academy. She'll watch a DVD every day with a teacher giving the lesson and then do the work in her work books. The lesson plan is already done (yay) and I'll have all the tools I need to help her, too. Hopefully she'll respond well to this.

That's enough rambling for now. I still have nearly half an hour to try to write something before I have to wake up the house! Have a great Monday.

===========================

Your Sunglasses Say You're an Artist

You are clever, unique, and a total nonconformist. Your sense of fashion is based on your own personal creativity. You need to be shaded from the mundane parts of life. You feel sunniest when you can express yourself freely and without judgment.

The Sunglasses Test

Okay.

==========================

Not Booking It Today

"Sometimes it's to your advantage for people to think you're crazy" - Thelonious Monk

Normally I do Booking It Through Thursday today, but the simple fact is this: She wants to know all the facts about me meeting a famous author, and I haven't met any. So it seemed silly to participate...LOL.

Of course, I was counting on that for my blog today, so I have nothing much to say.

Hmmm...

((think, think, think))

*scratches head, sips coffee*

Some random thoughts, I suppose. Are you scared?

1. I can't find any slippers this year. I like the "boot" kind and all I can seem to find are the slip-on kind. I don't LIKE slip-on slippers. I want my entire foot kept warm, not just the toes. So, in the meantime (because it is finally getting cold here), I wear the silly, floppy bunny slippers I got for Christmas last year. At least they go all the way around my foot. But it's like wearing clown shoes, and I trip constantly, though so far I have managed to not trip going down (or up!) the stairs.

2. My DD was sure she was going to vomit (I was going to say "yack", but that was just a little too... something) last night. She stripped off her shirt (so as not to get any stray goo on it -- her idea, not mine) and hugged the potty for a good half hour. Finally, after lots of swallowing and prayers to not vomit, she went to bed... her garbage can nearby. I am happy to report that we made it through the night yack-less. Hope she's better when she gets up today.

3. We're supposed to get our firewood delivered today. I'll believe it when I see it. Two weeks ago, they showed up when they shouldn't have, and I was gone to the fair. Last week, they didn't show up and they were supposed to and I wasted my entire morning waiting for them. Fingers crossed.

4. My birds (the wild birds, so I suppose they aren't really "mine", but I do feel a bit protective of the critters) are eating me out of house and home. I have flocks of them every day -- mostly finches and juncos, but I have plenty of titmice, nuthatches, chickadees and woodpeckers as well. Oh, an my cardinal couple who show up at dawn and dust each day. There are some afternoons I have to go refill the feeders because they've cleaned them out. It's amazing, and in all the years I've been feeding, it's never happened before.

5. We have a mole in our yard. DH is furious and wants to throw down poison. I'm trying (in vain, unfortunately) non-lethal ways of eradicating the cutie. Still, if it does come to murdering the unsuspecting, only-doing-what-God-built-him-for creature, I want something targeted so we don't just randomly kill other critters. DH doesn't care what I do as long as the mole goes away... anyone have any ideas?

I mean -- look at this face. How can I want to kill something like this:


6. I finished the galley's to my holiday story, "The Christmas Curse" yesterday and it's off to production. I imagine it'll come out sometime in November, but I'll certainly keep you posted! Why is it, though, that after reading this thing through... oh... fifteen or twenty times, I don't think it's nearly as cute and wonderful as I did originally? Seriously, I loved this story. LOVED it. Now? Sheesh...

I could probably go on, but it occurs to me that I overslept this morning (didn't get up until 4:45!!), so I have work to do. Lots and LOTS of work. Ugh.

==============================

You Are Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream

A classic and an original, no wonder everyone snakes your style!

What Flavor Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream Are You?

Saturday Self-Esteem

To free us from the expectations of others, to give us back to ourselves - there lies the great, singular power of self-respect. ~ Joan Didion

I was thinking, the other day (I KNOW... danger, Will Robinson, DANGER) about the fact I haven't received fan mail on my simply stupendous writing (LOL, and I'm humble, too) and wondered what would happen when I finally have A NOVEL out and, of course, imagined piles of emails and letters coming in, praising me on my masterpiece.

Then I popped over to Jenny Crusie's blog, where she posted a bit of mail that had been written to a fellow author, and then defended herself against the angry responses to that. And I recall reading a post at Tess Gerritsen's blog (which has since been removed because Tess didn't want to give any publicity to an angry reader) that was all nasty spewing.

And I decided if that was the kind of mail I'd get, I'd rather have none, thank you. I'd forgo the thousands of positive messages to miss just one nasty one, because -- those are the ones that seem to matter. Why is that? Why can we be called beautiful or wonderful or smart or amazing millions of times, and disregard all of that when one person says we're ugly or stupid or worthless?

We were at the grocery store the other day, and the lady bagging the groceries told my DD she was beautiful. DD stammered a thank you and we finished and headed out to the car. And, along the way, she told me she didn't think she was in the least bit pretty.

Huh?

Though I am surely biased, I think she's lovely. And smart. And funny. And upbeat. And I try to tell her this on a regular basis. But there are things that work against me.

My SIL makes DD take her glasses off for every picture. She has told DD that her eyes are beautiful, and that the glasses make her look unattractive -- oh, maybe not in so many words, but the implication is there.

Comments have also been made, phrases like, "He who indulges, bulges" whenever the DD wants to eat junk food. My in-laws are absolutely freaky about fat. Obsessive. Worried. It is the topic of conversation on a regular basis.

So, DD told me the other day that she thinks she's fat. I can tell her constantly how wonderful and beautiful and amazing she is, but that's not what she's heard. She hears the negative: you're ugly and fat.

And, I think that's true of any of us. It's the reason why, as a (hopefully!) good crit partner, I couch any negatives between positives. To be an effective crit partner, you have to point out the weaknesses, but must also make certain that the author understands that you still love her baby.

Even so, it will be the negative that stands out.

And, isn't that a shame.

==========================

I hope to download some pictures I took yesterday and post them later today or tomorrow. When DD checked on Pillar Place: Monarch P2 upon rising, it was incredible. All but two of the butterbabies had hatched and were clinging to their chrysalis's, drying their wings. I tried to get pictures of them all just hanging there.

AND... it ended up only raining part of the day, so by the time they were ready to fly, we were able to take them out and release them! Yay! So... ten more butterbabies are in the world. And they are truly beautiful. We have two more that should hatch this week and then we're done (thank heavens!) for the season.

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Thanks to Tori for finding me another quiz!

The Disney Heroine Quiz

You are Jasmine. Princess Jasmine is a girl who only a few special people can get close to. She has a pet tiger named Raja who will obey only her. Jasmine is smart, and fun, and beautiful, according to Aladdin. You have Jasmine's fiery spirit, and you probably have a few close friends as opposed to many acquaintances. You are admirable, for you stand up not only for yourself, but for your beliefs, friends, and whosoever is being picked on. You have a very strong character and you know exactly what you want.
Take this quiz!








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