I hate "having films taken"

I went to the neurologist yesterday. The PA ordered 2 x-rays and a MRI. I've been there before, and I really do not want to be "going there" again...but I'm guessing that I do not really have a choice.

The pain in my neck and shoulders is not going to leave me much of a chance to not get it checked out...as well as the numbness and tingling in my hands. I would like to just get started doing the things I need to do again, even if it does cause me pain.

Pete is going to get too tired out again...it's not fair to him or to the boys, because Pete will run out of both time and energy for doing things with them.

The PA also gave me some pain meds, so that will help...not that I want to take too many of them. Since I also have Crohn's Disease I cannot take Advil or Motrin, which is the average person's pain med. Not for me...The only pain meds I can take are Tylenol, which does nothing or narcotics, which I really do not like to take unless I'm desperate.

Well, I guess I will see what's going on after I get the tests taken.

Not really looking forward to this...again. I kinda of wish it were possible to ignore this, but it's not.

I forgot!

I did finally clean up the mess in my sewing room on Sunday. It only took me a week to clean it up. Or should I say to even attempt to start putting anything away. But all of my items have been put away. You can now walk in the room and across the floor again.

And would you believe...my husband asks me if I did anything while he was gone. He obviously had not walked into the "study" where he keeps a good portion of his clothing.

I'm learning...

Well...Last Thursday, I took a class at the library. It was how to use Excel. I used to use Lotus 1-2-3 when I was a manager at Kmart, eons ago, and I did not remember anything about it the first day I tried to sit down and use Excel. You would think I would have been able to do something...NOT! I couldn't get the stupid spreadsheet to do anything for me and I couldn't even begin to try to figure out where to get any answers.

Hopefully now I'll be able to use it to help me do my taxes, as well as my new joint venture with my parents. My Dad makes "screen bugs". My Mom makes dragonflies on suction cups. Both could be considered home decor jewelry. I will post pictures when I actually receive them, they will be mailing them to me since they live in Forida. They cannot sell these things on Ruby Lane(http://www.rubylane.com/shops/musibows),
since they are neither vintage or regular jewelry. So they have asked me to post them on Etsy. I will get half of the selling price for my troubles. Not too bad...

I have also opened up an new email account so that I can open up a new shop (JeansDestash.etsy.com) for all of the lace and trims that my parents sent me, that I know I will not be using. They can't use them and they can't sell them easily (unless they use ebay), but for now they are concentrating on Not just MUSI bows.

But...I will have to try to figure out how to keep track of each of the sales, so that everyone gets the money they deserve. A spreadsheet should make that easy...Should...Hopefully I can figure it all out.

I also hope that I'm not making a big mistake by doing this...you know...getting into business with my parents.

Only time will tell!

Brother helping brother?

I forgot to finish this post up last week when it happened during the boys snow day last week...

I couldn't believe it...Alex offered to help Danny with his project on their snow day. I was amazed! Alex asked Danny if they could play the board game that Danny created as a book project. After they were done playing Danny was able to make some minor adjustments to his game (and rules) and finally finish his project. Alex had to make his own game 2 years ago himself, so he knew that it would make it easier to write the rules after playing.

Thanks Alex! That was a very nice "big brother" thing to do.

It's still a mess

I know...it looks like a bomb hit my sewing room!

I did the craft show on Friday, December 4th. I still haven't put away any of my things. My sewing room/study is still a mess. You would never think that I had the floor all cleaned up a week ago.

The kids have a snow day today...mind you, there are only a couple of inches on the ground and it's not even snowing now. So I'm guessing, that today would be a good day to clean it up...again.

I have all of these great ideas for new projects only I have no room to work on them. I'm still trying to finish Danny's bathrobe that I started before before I committed to go to the show. I guess it's a good thing he hasn't really needed it yet (his old one still kind of fits).

I'm going to get off the computer, eat breakfast and then dive in...this need to get cleaned, I can't live with this...and I'm sure it's driving Pete absolutely nuts!

It's not working...

I'm trying to get some work done...it's not really working.

I did post a new item this morning. I've been on the computer for about an hour but I cannot really think of anthing else that I have accomplished.

I need to post more items.

I need to do some ironing before I can take pictures.

I need to get in the shower, before I walk across the street to borrow the light box from my neighbor, so that I can take the pictures.

I need to be by the phone until my nother in law calls with news of my father in law (she brought him to the emergency room last night).

I can't focus...

I'm going to try to go in the shower, bring the phone into the bathroom with me, and just get out as fast as I can. I don't know if my mother in law will want me to come to the hospital to keep her company. My father in law may need a procedure done, waiting alone sucks.

I just might not get anything done that I want to get done...and I actually had a great plan for today...this has thrown me all off...

I hope he's okay.

Craft show tomorrow

I know I've been neglecting my blog but I have my first craft show tomorrow and I'm still not ready. I'll talk about it after it's all done...

I'm trying...

OK...I am trying to help my Mom set up a blog on blogger, for her Ruby Lane shop.

http://www.rubylane.com/shops/musibows

She plans on giving more information on the things she posts that would be information overload if placed in the item posting itself. Sometimes it will be more about the company who made the piece or a little about the stones that are being used, or just an explanation of terms that she has used, that maybe some of us may not know.

However...My Dad is floating around the background (I'm doing this long distance by phone) driving me nuts! He made her get off the phone to help him with something else.

She so far has it started but still needs to start to understand how to navigate the site.

http://musibowsmore.blogspot.com

I guess it will have to wait until another day.

That's okay...now I can go to the gym. :-)

You have to buy a project table!

I love, love, love my new table (even though it is currently missing a leg, waiting for a part). It makes working on my pieces tons easier. I've been having problems with pain in my neck and jaw the past week and a half and this made everything, just so easy. No more bending, leaning over or stuggling to reach. so far I've only used one of the flip up sides and it's done everything I want it to do. The best part is that it only takes up 17" X 36" of floor space when folded up.

Love it! Everyone who ever works on the floor for a project should invest in one.

What happened to quality control?

I finally had the chance to set up my sewing table. Guess what? One of the eight wheels has a bad screw in it so I can't even finish putting it up. Bummer!

You see the leg laying on the ground? That's the one minus the wheel. I'm going to see if I can finish it with out the wheel. I will only use the one flip up side of the table (instead of both) until I get the replacement. Hey...at least I finally have my table. Even without any sides, I still have more space than I had before. And I love that it is counter height, not just regular table height. This will help me save my back and maybe will make me more productive.

I'm also planning on using it for other things like wrapping presents for the holidays. I know I'm always putting off the wrapping because it kills my back to wrap on the floor. That is where we have always done it in the past....no more. Now maybe the wrapping will be done shortly after the presents are bought instead of waiting until the last few days.

Win a Kindle

I just entered a contest to win a free Kindle from Noobie (worth $259!) and I wanted you to have a chance to win one too!

All you need to do to enter is to click the link below or copy and paste it into your favorite Internet browser:

http://www.noobie.com/kindle-giveaway?ref=1519254985


I know that my 12 year old son would absolutely love to win one. He is an avid reader. We cannot possibly buy all of the books that he goes through, so we don't even try. We are regular visitors at the public library.

I can see the floor!

I have finally gotten some of my things sorted out, enough to get my jean supply and my "in shop" box off of the floor and into the closet. It's not super neat at the moment...but it is off of the floor. Do you see the empty floor in front of the closet door? I will be able to close it if I want to now. There is also empty floor next to (and in front of) the plastic drawer unit. I wonder if my husband will even notice the difference. He probably will, but who knows if he'll actually say something. Last time I started to clean this up, he asked me, "So what were you up to today?" He very rarely asks me that question.

I'm not done with my purge but at least I can set up my work table without any guilt of taking up too much space.

I have also made the decision to send a handful of great clothing, not used in forever, to consignment. Now I need to go through the rest of my things to see if I should sell anything else, and also make it easier for me to put away the rest of my laundry. Only two small piles (nothing like on any of those organization shows on TV).

I have also decided to keep any money I get from my clothing for Jeans and a Sweater. Is that selfish?

The purge begins today

I know I said a few months ago that I was going to purge my stuff and make everything fit into my closets (including all of my crafting and sewing things). Well, I kind of started on it, on friday. I am going to continue with it today. I really want the space to set up my work table in my sewing/computer room. After working in the yard and squatting much more than I should have yesterday...I need my table set up! I need to do a lot of organizing and sewing (to get ready for the craft show) which will be tons easier on my back if I could work while fully standing up.

I just need to get off the computer and promise myself to stay off the computer all day. I must resist the urge to check Twitter and Facebook for a 2nd and 3rd time today...

And I wonder why my 10 year old is so bad. I hate to say it but I think I was just like him as a kid (only not quite as bad, I hope).

FOCUS!

"It'll never be a business"

Today, I discussed with my husband the concept of doing the show. He just gave me this look. I asked what's wrong, he said"you keep putting money into this hobby and then what?". Mind you I do not really spend a whole lot of what I call "his" money on it. He always corrects me and says "our" but you know what?...it's not ours. It is his and my children's, not really mine. And until I can actually make Jeans and a Sweater work...it won't be mine too. Then late in the conversation he says "it'll never be a business". Then of course I get teary eyed...you know...you kind of hope that your own husband would believe you can do it...but I guess he doesn't. In the end he says..."do whatever you want, I won't stop you, I do hope you are a success, really, I hope you can make me a millionaire".

Thanks for the encouragement...It does a real lot for my self confidence. No wonder why I worry about each piece I sell.

I guess I'll just have to work my butt off and prove to him that I can do it.

An actual show?

I was invited (via etsy conversation) to a show at a local college. I was kind of surprised. I have never done a show and I certainly have never been invited to do one. I felt great when I first heard about it, but then I heard it was $105. I said , there is no way I could justify doing this. When I went to the online flyer, I saw that it was $75. Huh? So I emailed the person who had invited me and asked which it was. She came back with..."It's $50 for "emerging etsy artists". Now, that is a price I can deal with!

So do I do it? I'd love to. My fellow etsian and neighbor, from washmycloth, told me she would help me figure out how to do things. This makes it even more tempting. However, my Husband just kind of snickered when I told him. He seems to think this is ridiculous. I don't remember if I told him how much I thought it was $105. I'm going to have to talk to him again about it. I really think that i want to do this, and he makes all of the money and pays all of the bills. I'm just thinking that if I do this, I just might be a little closer to helping me, help pay the bills as well.

The deadline for applying is November 2nd, so I only have afew days left to decide.

I need to figure this out...Anyone want to help me make my decision?

Too late for the vaccine...

Well...It appears to be too late for deciding whether or not to get a flu shot. Alex has had the flu since last tuesday. And now they are saying he has pneumonia as well. He has had a fever of between 102 and 103 since the whole thing started. He is now on the z-pack and prednisone for 5 days (the doctor figures that there must be some inflammation) he says it sounds like asthma, only he's never had a history of it before, so he decided to cover all bases.

My biggest question is...Is it h1n1?do we get a regular flu shot? or an h1n1 shot when they become available? or do we assume (I know assuming is dangerous) that since we managed to not get it from Alex...we're safe?

I've been stuck at home since...forever...I think I have cabin fever. Alex actually started showing signs of illness on last monday so he stayed home. I had a Remicade appointment on tuesday, so that really wasn't a day to do as I wished, since it takes 3 hours and is a 1/2 hour drive away. Danny was home, sick, thursday and friday of the week before.

However...My wonderful hubby has decided that he was going to take the day off from work on wednesday (he gave me a choice of days) so that I can go and do whatever I want to do. First I'll be going to my son's middle school to help serve a "Fall Breakfast", and then I'll be going out to breakfast with my friend Dawn at Panera's. I love Panera's. Then I'll go food (and supply) shopping, since I have only been getting immediate necessities for the last 2 weeks.

Bad nail polish?

I have to say...there are not many things I like about my body, but I have fantastic finger nails. They are thick and strong so I do not usually do not put polish on them. I am also constantly getting compliments on them, they are long and pretty. However, I went to a wedding this weekend and felt like putting polish on to match my dress, it just completes my outfit for me.

Well...I have to tell you something very funny...

Danny hates it. At times when he notices it he will not let me near him. Who knew that he would have such an issue with me wearing finger nail polish? I wear it on my toes all summer long and he has never had any problems with it. Danny says "it just plain, creeps me out!" It is not like I have some bizarre color on, it's just a frosty dark pink.

It's been really funny, but at times, now it has been inconvenient. Danny still likes for us to read him a story before bed, hey we will still do it as long as he will let us. But with Peter sick, it is hard for him to read aloud so I was going to. But Danny is not letting me because of the polish on my nails. Too funny! And too annoying too. Whatever...his choice.

Danny is also very big into hugs. He asks for at least 10 a day just from me. But with the polish on my nails he double takes and rethinks it, each time. But he decides that the hug is more important than the polish. He had asked me to take it off. I told him that "I will take it off when it starts to chip, and not before." It was not a manicure that I paid for, just an old bottle that I already owned. Should I let him control this? I personally don't think so...he is 10, now if he was 3 and it scared him that would be a whole other story, but he's not.

Flu shots?

Should we all get flu shots? Pete already took his (at work). I've got Crohn's and on Remicade (going today, btw), and the last time I got a shot it made me sick...do I take it again? Danny's always picking up some virus or cold. Alex...well, if everyone else in the house gets one, shouldn't he? This seem more of a necessity than normal. The boys haven't had shots before, but I think we need to do it this year. Or are we just being paranoid? There has only been the flu in this house once in the last 10 yrs...is there any real wood for me to knock on? I really don't want to jinx our family. I'm normally not superstitious but with this...I always try to "knock wood".

The kid's decision

Wow! Danny has been contemplating this one for a while...but I did not think he would really do it. He has finally decided to not do competitive gymnastics anymore. It has been such a big part of his life for sooooo long. He started doing gymnastics in kindergarten and he is now in 5th grade. It seems to have taken over his (and our) whole lives.

Last year, as a level 5 he was going to the gym 7 hours a week. This year, as a level 6 he is now going 12 hours a week. It is an enormous amount of time for a 10 yr old to dedicate to anything. He has missed so much over the past 3 1/2 years, since he has been on the junior Olympic team. He is tired of life passing him by, even though he loves gymnastics.

Danny has finally decided to take a break and maybe try something else. Maybe even a few other things. and it will still take up less time, and probably the same about of money. Swimming, soccer, fencing...who knows? We will have to find something to keep him in the great shape he is currently in, and also find something to help him use up some of his extra energy that he will not be using at the gym.

Last night after the decision was made to not go to class, he seemed like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders that had maybe been there for waaaay too long. I'm sorry that we did not notice that it was that bad sooner. Hopefully his mood swings will not be as frequent or as bad as they have been lately. I'm hoping for a new kid to be coming home from school today.

I'm proud of Danny for making such an important decision.

Old stomping grounds...

It was a very strange day yesterday...My husband went with one son to a football game at our old university where we met. I brought the other son to the libraries there (his idea). Then when it started to rain, and the football watchers decided to leave the game, we met somewhere in the middle of the academic buildings. For 5 years (yes it took me 5 years for a 4 year degree), I walked the halls of this place. I still remember where I was going. It's funny, when we went there all of those years ago, they were always promising to build this and that...and it is all there now. Of course, it is 20 years later. You would hope that they (the university) would eventually get around to it.

When we were done there we went to Fuddruckers for dinner. A place Pete and I used to go a lot, "back in the day", after a day on campus. They do now have healthy choices. They now have the choice of different types of "burgers": veggie (which they always had), buffalo, ostrich, elk, salmon and of course chicken (the typical restaurant substitute). I have to say, I was brave enough to try the buffalo one. I've heard it tastes the same, and it did, especially once you put all of the toppings (cheese, lettuce, onions, ketchup) on it. It was funny, it was a 1/3 lb burger, just like the ones that Pete and Alex were eating only it was tons larger. It almost looked like a 1/2 pounder. The reason why it was so large is because it has less fat to start off with, so it shrinks less than the beef. Would you know...I actually finished all of it and I still had room for fries (I love their fries!). And believe it or not...I felt just fine after all of that. I had no problems at all. I do usually eat low fat, because excess fat makes me sick (thanks to the Crohn's). I guess that will be my solution next time I'm in the mood for a burger. Maybe next time, I'll try the ostrich or elk. Maybe. But then again those might be too exotic for me. Maybe not...

Helping my Mom

The past few weeks I have been helping my Mom get her on line shop looking good. She is on Ruby Lane and they do not have forums to help her (with critiques) like Etsy does. It has been very frustrating. For some reason, she seems to be incapable of writing a description. (Mind you...she always helped my with my homework, including English, as a kid)I have told her before that she needs to let the buyer really see it, as if it were in their hands, by use of pictures and words. She has been very minimalist. I don't really get a picture of what she has posted with the way she makes her listings. I'm not asking her to be wordy. I'm just asking her to be complete. Finally, I decided to tell her that she should describe it as if the buyer were blind. I also added a few questions that she should be thinking about while writing the descriptions. Let's see what kind of listings come out of this advise.

It's funny...I feel almost like the roles are reversed. My Mom has been so critical of me my whole life and now she is asking me to be critical of her. It feels both good and bad. Kind of like I get to get back at her but yet I don't really like the feeling of being sooo critical. I think it is because she is not really listening, even though she has asked for my advice. Is she trying to let me know what it felt like to be my mom all these years? Or does she really not understand it?

Anyone want to help me help my mom with a critique? If so...here's a link to her shop.

http://www.rubylane.com/shops/musibows

Tell me what you think? Please leave me a note in my comments.

Ideas?

I don't know what to write lately but I have gotten a few ideas about what to sew. We'll see what happens over the next few days. Hopefully, I'll get to my sewing and get my ideas completed...So far I've completed one new purse and I've gotten 2 other bags started. Sometimes the cutting and "designing" is the hardest part, especially when you are using a pair of jeans to make them with. I'll post pictures when they are done.

Oh...and by the way...I did finish the comforter last week. I just haven't put it on Danny's bed yet. Thankfully he hasn't needed it. Once it makes it's way to his bed I will post a picture. I did not manage to finish it in the 7 days I had originally promised, but I did finish it in 9. Not too bad considering he did not need it yet. Thank G-d!

Many issues

There were many "issues" in my house this morning. Getting the kids ready for school today was...shall I say...less than enjoyable. To start off, today is picture day in school. So nobody got dressed until breakfast was eaten and teeth were brushed. Alex was a real pain about what he was going to eat. Then, we got a call this morning from Danny's friend saying that if Danny was walking to school with him, then he needed to be at his house in less than 10 minutes. He hadn't even eaten breakfast yet. I made him something for him to eat while walking...but of course, it got left on the kitchen counter. That is Danny's tortilla and cheese rolled up, sitting on the cutting board. Whose fault was that? Of course it was mine...who else's fault could it have possibly been? Not Danny's...I should have just said "you don't have time, NO". But he started to whine, he's been looking forward to this all week, and he whines at too much that I absolutely can not or will not let him have, so since I thought it would be possible...I tried it. Not again!

OMG! These are the mornings I hate being a mom...I thought that we were finally past having problems getting ready for school. I can tell you...I am not looking forward to when the boys need to get up an hour and a half earlier when they start high school...I'm just glad I have almost 2 years to wait for that one...

I'm hooked!

There are so many talented people out there in cyber world creating so many great things by hand. There are also so many people promoting these talented people with a chance to win their stuff in free giveaways. I am hooked! I can't stop entering these giveaways...there is so much great stuff to be won (and admired)!

Here are a few more that I have found:

giving away "green" bags by kootsac
http://rikrakstudio.blogspot.com/2009/09/great-greenies-giveaway-with-kootsac.html

giving away a peyote stitch bracelet by Windyriver
http://ejdssteam.blogspot.com/2009/09/artisan-jewelry-september-giveaway.html

giving away plantable seeded greeting cards by Botanical Paperworks
http://women-prenuergalore.blogspot.com/2009/09/rewiew-of-plantable-greeting-cards-from.html

Giveaways

This is not a giveaway...Last night I spotted a link to a very interesting giveaway, that then lead to another giveaway and then another giveaway, and then another giveaway. Amazing...I was surprised to see all of these blogs linked. And all with some great giveaways...I entered a bunch and stayed on the computer much longer than I had originally intended. I'll list the blogs that I found that apparently always have something going.

a little etsy love

http://etsyfix.blogspot.com/2009/09/art-under-glass-giveaway.html

Audry's give away blog

http://audreysgiveaways.blogspot.com/2009/09/inventing-liz.html

Indie craft corner

http://indiecraftcorner.blogspot.com/2009/09/september-giveaway-pieces-of-me.html

women-prenuers galore

http://women-prenuergalore.blogspot.com/2009/09/review-and-giveaway-hazel-aid.html


If you go to check these out...you'll probably find tons more...I just decided it was time to get off of the computer and get some other stuff done.

Have Fun!

Clueless at the gym

Yesterday when I was at the gym, I met two women who had just joined and had no idea as to what to do. The one women was commenting on how they try to get you to buy their services that are so expensive. After talking to them for a little while, I discovered that they really have absolutely no idea what they are supposed to be doing while there. The one women was just lifting (and lifting and lifting). I don't think she was even paying attention to how many reps she was doing. I suggested to her, that she count to 10 rest and count to 10 again, after a few seconds of rest. The other woman had said that she had a goal of 20 lbs, 30 reps on this one machine...only she was starting immediately at 20 and barely able to do only 15 reps. I suggested to her that maybe she should start with 10 lbs and work her way up. I was afraid to give them many tips since I just know a few things that are good for me, and maybe not the next person. I am really glad that I have a built in trainer...my husband who is a physical therapist. When Pete walked me into the gym the first day, he told me which machines I should start with and approximately how much to do. These poor ladies have no one. I have decided that the next time I see either one of them, I am going to suggest to each of them that they should actually shell out the bucks for one session with these trainers, just to get them started in the right direction, if they are going to get anything accomplished without hurting themselves.

I'm actually worried that they are going to end up hurting themselves, and I don't even know them. They are both at least in their 60's (if not older). The funny thing is the one woman told me I looked 18...I'm 42...I know I have always looked young, but it has been a really long time since I heard anyone say it. It always feels good to hear it. I'm just hoping that the time I get to be their age, I'll only look like I'm in my 40's. I know...Fat chance that will happen...

How loud is too loud?

This is the age old question...How loud is too loud? Only it is not the parent complaining this time...it's the brother. They are sitting at the breakfast table eating...Danny is listening to the cd his dad took out of the library for him. It has "Living on a Prayer" (Bon Jovi) from Rock Band 2, one of Danny's favorite songs of the moment. Danny needs to blast it. He has already blasted it once, before Alex came into the room. Alex is trying to read while eating. I figure, if I can hear it loud and clear while on the computer (on another floor)...it's too loud. Let poor Alex, who is not really a fan of music, have a little peace. He didn't make Danny turn it down unreasonably. I can still hear it. Danny...Just deal with it this time...OK Danny...Now that "Dead or Alive" (from Rock Band 1) is done...just finish up and get ready for school...

I promised

Not only did I post that I would have Danny's comforter done within 7 days...I promised it to Danny too. Which means that I will definitely get it done. Seeing my son heartbroken (and cold) does not appeal to me. I always try my best to not break my promise.

It will be done...and hopefully with less than the next 7 days.

It's starting to get cold at night

Well...it's starting to get cold at night. Pretty soon we are going to need to start using comforters...I guess that means that I will need to work (very consistently) on Danny's comforter. He will need to have his really soon. He gets colder at night than the rest of us do, since he has very little body fat (thanks to gymnastics).

I am so sorry that I had to take on this project or that I decided to make it striped...I should have just made it color blocked, you know only about 4 seams on a side. It would have been much easier. Hindsight is great! It's a pity I didn't learn a lesson from my mom. When I was pregnant with Alex, she asked me what kind of blanket did I want her to knit/crochet for the baby's room. She gave me her pattern books and left it up to me. Guess what? I'm still waiting for it! Almost 13 years later. I wonder what she did with all of that beautiful yarn... I thought that once I was pregnant with Danny she would have rushed through it, but I don't even think she attempted it again.

I will have it finished within 7 days...I hope. I will post a picture of it (on his bed) when I'm done.

Moods...

I sure hope that Alex's mood has changed greatly from yesterday. He argued with my husband over the stupidest little thing...forever yesterday (after all of the arguing with me). I'm not sure what bug he got under his bonnet yesterday but...OMG! It was a horrible mood that I hope to not experience any time soon.

He has school today...as well as a new challenge to start. He is going to be taking his math class at a local college, he's 12. It's a special class for kids gifted in math. He has been looking forward to this class since he first heard about it back in January. He had to take an entrance exam, 3hrs long, to get in. And he made it in. I knew he could do it. We are all very proud of him. 350 kids take the test and 60 kids get into the class each year. If he focuses on the class instead of the minor little things that bother him he should be just fine. I think that maybe he was nervous about starting this class today and couldn't find the words to express himself...or didn't want to admit that it was a problem. He's 12, that one happens all of the time. Denial of feelings.

Good luck with your class this afternoon, Alex, and have fun with it! I know it seems weird but my son LOVES math, personally I'm not a fan, but hey...

Minor breakdown

I just had a minor break down and sceaming fit at Alex. We have "piles" in the house that need to be cleaned up. Pretty much they need to be cleaned up by me....

OK...I just had another screaming fit at Alex because he interupted me and still will not leave my "piles" alone. He thinks that going thru the pile of approximately 100 papers if he finds one sheet of his...it's good. In the mean time he (1) makes a mess and (2) he wastes time that he could actually help me. He keeps saying that he wants to "help" me but he is only making things worse, by not just doing what I ask of him. I don't know what to do anymore. It's past driving me nuts!

The long wait...

Somehow I forgot to write about my weekend with my sister and two nieces. It was Labor Day weekend. We all managed to keep busy, nobody complained they were bored, and the only fights between the kids were between the siblings...not the cousins. On Saturday we went to the zoo, the girls enjoyed visiting the rain forest. That is one of my favorite parts of the zoo these days. My 12 year old niece hates "serpents"...her word. She is a girl after my own heart...I don't usually look around the reptile house too long...I usually hang out near the lizards, so I don't have to see the snakes. Quite frequently my sons will try to trick me into looking at some legless animal...not usually my high point of any zoo.

Then on Sunday, the day before Labor Day, we went to Niagara Falls. Of course we find out that that is the second busiest day of the entire year. We walked around for an hour or so, eat our picnic lunch we had packed and then we decided to take a look at how long the line was for Maid of the Mist. We stood on line while Pete went to investigate the situation. When he came back, we found out that from that point, we should be on the boat in about an hour and a half. My guests had been looking forward to it for weeks...and we don't usually stand on lines (neither Peter or the kids have much patience)...But we decided to go for it. I think we actually stood on line for closer to 2 1/2 hours (maybe even 3), none of us had actually looked at our watches at the begining. The kids did pretty well. They all just goofed around, Danny started to get annoyed and kept saying "this better be good", then Danny had a bloody nose (good thing we had lots of tissues and some water), that didn't make the waiting any easier. But...when we finally got on the boat, I think we all agreed that the wait was worth it. It really is not something that you can experience a whole lot of places in this world, especially for not a whole lot of money. Everyone decided that it was really awesome.

Waiting in line is not always so bad!

All in all we really did have a great weekend. My nieces decided that maybe next summer they might come visit us for a week. Wahoo! I have been offering that on up to them for the past few years and the answer had always been "not a chance".

It was a great weekend!

Chauffeuring...

Today was the day for chauffeuring the kids around...Bring Alex to a scout project, come home feed Danny lunch before gymnastics, bring Danny to gymnastics, can't go home 'cause it will take me as much time to go home and come back before getting Alex from his project...but...hey...I got to go shopping in between...3 separate places...things accomplished, while taking up time. All of this while Pete is at a college football game with his dad. This morning he was feeling guilty, I told him to not worry about it. The times weren't all crammed together...and I got in some shopping...Did I say that already? It wasn't such a bad day...and Pete was feeling bad. And it always helped that the weather ended up beautiful too...A good day...Now I have to go back to pick up Danny from gymnastics...

And then dinner...what's for dinner?

The gym?

While in Myrtle Beach, I discovered that my body is not as bad as I thought and I had every right to show it off in a bikini...but I couldn't. After seeing a size 20 lady in a string bikini, I thought if she could do it, I could do it (and I'm only a size 6). But you know what?...I still couldn't bring myself to bare my belly. After watching that particular woman, who is obviously confident about her body, wearing a bikini, I made the decision (with my husband's help)...to join a gym.

Just so you know...I have absolutely nothing against big women (or big people in general). Some of my closest friends and relatives are large. I just feel that if I don't want to be seeing (or have anyone else seeing) my partially naked body why would I want to see someone elses, who is much more out of shape than mine. It is possible to find a sexy bathing suit at almost any size without baring it all (if that is what you are looking for).

I am determined to be bikini ready (meaning...there won't be anyone asking... "what is she doing wearing a bikini?") by the time I need to put on a bathing suit again. Considering I live in a place that only has 3 months of "summer", I have plenty of time.

A great gift...

My Aunt Marilyn decided to offer us a week of her time share to use for this year. She has offered it to us before, and we have never taken her up on it. We decided to go to Myrtle Beach. The place was amazing. We expected to walk thru the door and find a large hotel room or maybe a suite...but when we walked thru thru the door, we found a duplex instead. Unbelievable! We lived almost normally, if it is possble to live normally when you are away visiting a new place. There was a full kitchen, dining room, living room and two bedrooms each with a full bath.


I made sure to send her a thank you note expressing how much we appreciate the gift. She sends me an email saying (1) that it was the best thank you she has ever received (2) she is "going to save it forever" (3) "we're gonna do this again, right?" WOW! She's going to give us another week again? Do we take her up on it again? If we do, do we do it again this coming year? It seems like we would be taking much too much from her. It is quite a large gift. We'll have to think about it...

Both kids are now in middle school...

Wow..that was a weird feeling...both of my boys are now in middle school. I just went to the bus stop for the first day of school with both Danny and Alex are at the same stop, same bus this year. Both Alex and Danny kept checking their watches every minute or 2. I think that both of them were anxious. I hope that they do not end up too late that Danny rushes thru getting his stuff to his locker and ends up with trouble opening up his lock on the first day of school. You know...the first time it really counts if you can get it open easily. It doesn't help Danny that he can't even reach the top shelf in his locker, either, just one more thing for him (or me) to worry about. That's OK I guess 'cause he makes friends easily and can just ask anyone to reach anything for him. We tried to not put much up there. I can tell you though...I will be doing lots of locker checks on him. He is not the neatest individual.

This is gonna be an interesting year...I hope we can all survive it, and that I am able to not give in to yelling. The "sport" that I grew up with and hated and have appeared to inherite. Hopefully, I can change this...I really do HATE yelling. It just seems like it comes naturally to me. I guess you learn what you grow up with. That sucks and I'm determined to change it...

So sad...

I just found out that my old school crush, Caleb, committed suicide on Monday. I had a crush on him all thru school starting, I think, back in 1st grade. I just saw him in June for our 25th high school reunion. I even confessed to him that I had always had this crush. Caleb had always been popular, good looking and sweet. He never seemed to realize just how good looking he was, at least he never showed it. He was always friendly to me even though I wasn't exactly popular like him. I wonder what he was thinking...he had a gorgeous wife, 2 beautiful children (young children, who now have to make it without their father), a great job (not that I'm sure it was he dream job or not). But OMG, what makes people do things like that? I wonder if going to the high school reunion made things worse for him? I don't have a very "sucessful" life, but even I enjoyed going to the reunion. It didn't make me feel any worse than I did before. If anything...I think it has made me even more motivated to succeed at making my purses and yoga bags. No one that I chose to speak to put me down. Something that many people in our school might have done 25 years ago.

All I can say is OMG!!!

When does school start?

How many more days until school starts? I need to go and count...the boys (especially Danny) are driving me nuts...

6 more days...or 3 more days without Peter to keep "the calm". Danny believes that all day every day should be about fun. He is going to be in for a rude awakening when school starts. He will need to get all of his work done before any playing happens. The sooner he gets his work done the sooner he will get to play...so sit down and do your homework now and not later. I can see this is going to be a big problem. I'm trying to not let it get to me but the anticipation is already getting to me. His attitude today did not prove anything else to me but the impending doom...I wish I was a much more laid back person than I am, but with my genes, that was never gonna happen...

Alex just came in and asked what to do with something. All he did was argue with me.

I'm falling apart here...I can't hold it together without getting annoyed anymore. I need to have one of my children do something...anything...the FIRST time I say it. That is something that NEVER happens in my house and I am trying to figure out how to get it to happen, BEFORE I lose my mind.

It's a pity I don't like taking baths...or I would say"Calgon...take me away..."

The fish got new life...

One day last week, when it was finally nice outside, Danny did not want to do anything but read. He said he was too tired to do anything. Pete and Alex went for a really long bike ride and I got stuck at home with the lump.

So I decided to do a project that had been waiting for me since last summer. Paint my resin garden fish. He was all chipped and originally all gray, and now he kind of looks like "The Rainbow Fish". I have have him living far back in the back yard, near the bird feeder. I just discovered that you can even see it from the sidewalk, he's so bright. He's different...that's OK...I had fun painting him, even if he is funny looking, I like him...

I need to be able to to close my closet door...

I soooo want to be able to close my closet door! However, I have a stack of clothes to create with sitting on the floor in front of the door. I know exactly what I want to do with most of the pieces, I just do not have any space in my sewing/computer room to do it. I am determined to get everything cleaned up and organized. If I can manage to get everything in my "study" off the floor and in my closets then I will reward myself with a sewing table, which will then make creating much easier. I plan on documenting all of this on my blog so that hopefully if people are watching me, it will keep me on task for the pure embarrassment of it all, you know...kind of like those shows on TLC and HGTV that embarass the homeowner into fixing their messes. I would never say that my house is ever that bad but it will hopefully give me a start.

The order of things will be this:

(1) Clean out bedroom closet to make room for clothes from the study closet. This will entail purging, with hopefully some selling of old clothes, whether at consignment or on craigslist, I'll have to decide when I see what clothes are "going away". Hey...a few extra bucks can only help, 'cause the table I was looking at cost $130.

(2) Starting a new shop with destash things from my closet and other supplies. It's a pitty I gave away a lot of my old craft supplies, I could have made a few extra bucks to help my room.

(3) Finally moving my Jeans and a Sweater stuff into the closet.

(4) Buying a sewing table that will then allow me to start wanting to sew regularly for Jeans and a Sweater, which is the whole point of all of this. Well, that and making my husband happy, not that he complains, but I know that he'll love this.

I've been wanting to do this for a while. I know my husband will appreciate it, he is a neat freak and my little messes drive him nuts. Hey...he got the neat one in my family...you should see my mother and my brother (my sister has a little of the clutter gene too, not any worse than me though)...they both belong on "Clean House" (from Style Network, I love that show!). If they lived in LA, I would nominate them both and they would probably make the cut.

Now that school is started and I'm all alone at home...here it goes...

it's been a long time...

I know...It's been a really long time since I posted last. I've been trying to get ready to go on our first family trip to the beach...Myrtle Beach. Well be leaving on thursday. We're driving and I'm not looking forward to Danny's..."Are we there yet?" over and over again. I'll try to get more posts on after we come home, but it will then be time to get ready for school. Once the boys are in school everything will be easier.

Been busy

The past several days I have been trying to deal with some issues that Alex had at camp. It has not been a very pleasant 2 days. And my family wonders why I have stomach ulcers...At least, Pete was home today to help me try to deal with it all, He came home from camping with Danny last night. But my stress level is still through the roof.

I need these problems to end abruptly. I wish they would but I know that they are going to take a really long time to thoroughly work through.

My Secret to [One Day Maybe I'll Be A] Success

I saw this on one of my friend's blogs...I decided that I needed to share it as well. I think tomorrow I will try it in a modified version.

My Secret to [One Day Maybe I'll Be A] Success

Posted using ShareThis

I hope that this will help all of those procrastinators out there (including me).

I've gotten some stuff done...

Well so far I've gotten the clothes and toys to consignment...just about finished steam cleaning the carpet (needed a break), but I havn't gotten anywhere with Danny's comforter. I have thankfully gotten advice from 3 people as to how to finish the comforter..so at least I now know how I will be finishing it. I will be using a version of hand tying, I will be using buttons instead of just the knot showing. When I'm done with rinsing the carpet I will start sewing. It needs to be off of Alex's floor by about 3:30pm tomorrow.

I probably would have gotten much further (on my list) had I been actually feeling better. For the last week my tummy has not been feeling well and it started getting worse yesterday. It is feeling a little better now so I need to get moving before it gets bad again.

They are all gone now...

Well... I'm alone now. Pete has taken Danny for 4 days to scout camp. It will be weird being by myself for almost 3 days. Alex will be home Friday evening from his scout camp. There are a few things that I want to get done without the kids around...steam clean the carpets and bring a giant load of stuff to consignment, some of it is mine and some of it is the kids. The boys get any money that comes in from selling their old toys and books. They share all money, some things started off as Alex's, some as Danny's, and some of it they each bought for themselves...so in the end , they share it all. I also want (have) to get Danny's comforter mostly done. I need to get it off of Alex's floor before he gets home.

All of this means that I need to get off of the computer very soon! BYE!

I started...

Well...I started to lay it out...At the moment it is sitting on Alex's floor. When Danny saw it he asked "Why is it in here?", well..."Where else could I put it that I wouldn't have to move it for a week?" If you didn't read my other post...Alex is at scout camp for a week, so it can stay put until I'm ready for it.

The multi-colored stripe thing on the bottom of the picture is the pillow sham that I forgot to return with the original comforter, so I'm kind of using it as inspiration. I know I should probably bring it back to the store but if the comforter is damaged anyway, it's just going to get trashed...so why worry. I used to be a softlines manager at a large discount department store and I know that we used to have to shred things that we "damaged" and "wrote off" before tossing them in the garbage. And I figure...we should get something extra for all of the trouble I'm now going through because of their bad quality. No reason to just throw it in the garbage when I can get some use out of it. I know...I'm bad...

Frustration...

I just started making a comforter for my son...yes, a comforter. I bought this blue and green comforter at Target. Danny fell in love with it. We took 2 of the colors directly from the comforter and put them on the walls, bright blue and bright green. I washed the comforter, only to discover that the batting had shifted on the inside. When I went to exchange it the lady at the service desk told me to do myself a favor and return it and go look for something different. She had also had one and it did the same thing. I went looking for something else to use instead, and came up with only girly things, 5 girl and one boy. Great! Now what? Well I sew...I found the exact same colors of blue and green in fleece blankets, so I bought one of each. I'm gonna make him a comforter. I may be sorry...I just started cutting it out today. We'll see...

Deadline...what's a deadline?

Alex, my 12 yr old, just left this morning for a week away at scout camp. Before he left he need to do 2 things...pack (obviously) and take care of prerequisites for his merit badges that he is going to earn this week. I have been telling him that he needs to work on the prereqs since school ended, almost 4 weeks ago. "I have plenty of time" and "I'm doing something else", were 2 statements I heard a lot of the past few weeks. When did he start to pack? Yesterday at about 5:30 pm. When did he finish his prereqs? He didn't. He was working on them furiously for the past 2 days, and getting totally stressed out and being a total brat about it.

My husband and I kept trying to tell him that he was probably doing 5 times the amount of work than any of the other scouts were for the same badge. He would not cut corners. He will see when he gets there and will hopefully learn from this experience and not leave everything for the last minute. All it ever does is stress him out and tick me off. I have a very short fuse (thanks, Dad), I keep trying to let things go but I guess that is where he gets it from...me. All day yesterday I kept telling him that it won't be that big of a deal if he doesn't finish it before he goes, he can always finish it later, and still earn his badge.

Being a perfectionist and a procrastinator at the same time does NOT work very well. He will need to learn where he can "cut corners" without loosing any points on his projects.

Where is the sun?

Why is it... that whenever I do have time to take pictures of my new items, there is no sun? Pictures just don't come out as nice when I have to use software to enhance them. I have 3 yoga bags waiting to have pictures taken so that I can post them. "Picture it" software is my best friend right now, I guess...

Is it dangerous?

We had a fun afternoon planned yesterday. Once again my husband was off (he has several vacation days to use up before the end of July), and we were planning to go to miniture golf (they call it putt-putt around here), and then play tennis later on the town courts. It was beautiful, but cool, outside. Then, as Danny, my 9 yr old, was waiting in the driveway for the rest of us, he decided to ride his scooter. The scooter that he has wanted for 2 yrs that I talked my husband into buying. Mind you...he bought a trampoline, with a surround, without even consulting me. Back to Danny. We had each walked back inside for a second to do something, to suddenly hear a blood curdling scream. My first thought... he broke something. He didn't. He just scraped up his left hand really bad. I'm glad (1) he's a righty, and (2) his gymnastics this week doesn't really include using the apparatus, like it usually does. Of course, as soon as my huband reaches Danny (I got there first), he says "I knew the scooter wasn't a good idea..." So now Danny falling and hurting himself is my fault...lovely...

So, after I patched him up and gave him some tylenol (by the way we weren't yet positive that he didn't break something), he sat and vegged in front of the tv for a while. Then next thing we know Danny was having a fun noodle fight (you know those foam things you use in the pool). I guess nothing's broken. Then we finally got a chance to play tennis. We skipped the putt-putt, we figured that the club would be tough to hold. At least we got a chance to have fun...And Pete didn't mention the dangers of the scooter to me later. Personally, I don't think a scooter is any worse than roller blades. But I guess that's just me.

A nice quiet day

This morning I put an order in the mail, finished # 3 yoga bag to be posted (just need pictures), Danny had a friend over, Alex worked on stuff for his merit badge that he needs next week, came home to another sale (little, but hey, they all count!). It has been a very pleasant day. Virtually no yelling. If my son could learn to take responsiblity for his own actions there would have been none (yelling, that is) all day. I guess today was somewhat productive. It's been a long time since that happened.

Woohoo...I finally sold a purse!

I have been wondering for a long time...Is it even worth renewing the purses in my shop? Nobody has ever bought one. Well, maybe it is. I actually woke up to a sale on a purse, not a yoga bag...A PURSE! Wow! I didn't think it was ever going to happen! I had, until now, only sold a handful of yoga bags (and one coin pocket). This has restored my confidence, a tiny little bit, but I am still not going to make any more purses until I can get tons more yoga bags made. OK...just needed to blurt...Thanks for listening.

I wish he would listen the first time...

Yesterday was quite trying. My husband was camping. Both Danny and Alex had things I needed them to do. Alex was supposed to put away his laundry that has been sitting for the last 3 days. Danny was supposed to write a summary of the last book he finished. He did agree to write it, 2 days ago. Neither one happened. I was waiting and reminding but so far only half of a summary was written and there was lots of yelling in the house this afternoon. I was guessing it's never gonna happen. I'm just going to let Pete deal with the summary himself. It was his idea in the first place. We ended up going to walk to the local grocery store instead. We always try to walk if we do not have tons to buy. Since it had finally stopped raining, we would give it a try.
I'm giving up on making them do these types of things, the stress is not worth it. None of it is required, for now. I'll just dump Alex's clothes on his bed and he can just deal with it. And with Danny...I'll let Pete tell him what to do when he gets home. He'll probably do it the first time he asks. Thats what gets me soooo mad.

Something I would not do by myself...

I am NOT great with directions,(in college a friend called me "the navigator", 'cause I got us lost) so one thing I would not do by myself, let alone with the kids in tow, is to try to go someplace I've only been there from one direction and now try to find my way out in another direction. Did that make any sense? I've been to this one neighborhood by car coming from the west but today we were trying to ride our bikes out of it to the east after an already long bike ride. I would have been afraid to get lost and the kids get too "tired" to go on. My husband has (1) a much better sense of direction than me and (2) much more patience than me. I wish I was much better at both.

Today my husband bribed my kids to go on a longer bike ride by telling them that we would get to an ice cream shop in the middle of the ride. We started off on our standard bike ride, then took a different turn to head to the library, to borrow some movies (remember, I said I was cheap), then thru an unfamiliar (nice) neighborhood to the ice cream shop and then home. During this trip we went through a horrible intersection. I'm glad it had crossing lights or else I would have said "not a chance", with 2 kids on bikes who aren't yet ready to cross a busy street by themselves. I know that they weren't by themselves but even with us, they do not necessarily make the right choices yet. And these poor choices could leave them in the hospital or worse. Those few minutes were way too stressful for me to ever decide to inflict myself to again. I would rather jay"walk" a little way down the street instead, less cars and only coming from 2 directions. Is that bad?

I so wish that I was as laid back as my husband. Most things do not bother him. I wish I could say the same for myself. (Maybe that is part of why I have ulcers.) My husband is away for a camping weekend with "the boys", his college friends. I think this year it will be his 23rd yr. So the kids are all mine 'till he comes home sunday morning. "I will survive this summer. I will survive this summer. I will survive this summer." Sometimes I think that I would be better off with girls, I seem to have problems with "boys will be boys" but I'm trying...

Tomorrow, while the kids play video games for a little while, I'll sew...I hope.

We love a hike...

Keeping the kids busy (cheaply) was very easy today. My husband had the day off so we went to the Niagara (Falls) Gorge. It's nice living really close to Niagara Falls. We get to visit without a long hawl (approx 25 mins). We packed up a lunch and set off. We were planning on exploring a section of the gorge that we hadn't been to before but they were repairing the stairs and taking the other stairs would have added another 2 miles to the hike. D would not have made it up. There are some 200 or so steps (never actually counted). I just know that everyone stops at least twice to rest on their way up. The path we ended up taking had caution tape on it so D thought we were gonna get in trouble for crossing the tape. Then we saw a few other parties of people who had also crossed over. He felt much better about not getting into trouble. After a while we bumped into a great spot near the water (off the path) that looked safe to go to. Again D thought we were going to get in trouble, there were signs everywhere that said that if you went off the path you would be prosecuted, so he was nervous. We decided to "cop a squat", Pete's words, (and A had never heard them before and was quite confused) and have our lunch there. It was beautiful. We got to watch both a loon and a gull go fishing for their lunch, while we ate ours.

While we were hiking my husband, Pete, came up with and idea about D and his reading. Since he is reading these great books during the summer, why doesn't he write a summary of each one now. He can use some of these if the genre is right, for his next school year. I know it is cheating a little but hey...he did read the book... and I think he will run out of time next school year to do all the reading they want from him. D is going to be going to gymnastics for 4 days a week (12 hrs). He will probably need to rewrite it to make it appropriate for the project anyway, his summary will just be a reminder for him. Is this cheating too much?

It was a pretty tiring day. After we got home we just vegged for a few hours. Vegging is good when you've been outside all day, even if it involves a screen. But actually the kids barely played video games when they came home, They mostly read. Tomorrow I believe it will be a long bike ride for the four of us ending in a trip to the ice cream shop. Yum!

No sewing today yet...maybe a little later...but I did finish another bag last night.

I am cheap!

I am cheap! I don't go to the movies too often, 'cause it's just too expensive. I normally pick and choose which ones would be better seen on the "big screen". If my husband and I don't feel it will make a difference...we typically wait for it to head to DVD. And when finally on DVD we don't usually go to Block buster (we only go there if we happen to have a gift card someone gave us), like I said I am cheap. Have you ever seen a "red box"? Only $1 for a movie for 1 night. Works for me! If we don't get it there then we usually borrow it fom the library (like I said, cheap). Today, however we will be heading to the theater itsself...

Do any of you have a Regal Cinema near you and have kids? They have what they call free family film festival all summer long (running when your local schools consider summer, so dates are slightly different). In my town, it is running every tues, wed and thurs morning at 10 am. They will play a G and a PG movie each week. They vary slightly from town to town. You should go to http://www.regmovies.com/ to check out what it's like in your town.

Last night A had a boy scout meeting and D had his last baseball game of the season, so they were both up late last night. Since the boys are tired today and it is gray and gloomy, we will be heading there this morning. This week they will be playing "Alvin and the Chipmunks" by us. Surprise, surprise...they both agreed that they want to see it. My 12 yr old wants to see a G rated movie! Will wonders never cease? I can tell you that I was shocked when I heard that one!

That should take care of half the day...

My first summer...

I have never blogged before but I thought I might give it a try...

This is the first summer that my 2 sons have had almost nothing scheduled. The 9 yr old, D, only has 4 days of scout camp which my husband is going to go with him. He also has gymnastics class for 5 weeks in the evenings, but his days are free otherwise. My 12 yr old, A, has one week of scout camp as well, he goes on his own, and he has one week of science camp at a local college. Other than those, he is totally free.

This is also the first summer since I have started Jeans and a Sweater. I am trying to balance keeping them busy and trying to create and post items for my shop. I don't think it is working too well.

My biggest problem is keeping them occupied with out them wanting to play video games. The weather has not been the greatest so far this summer. We spent our Forth of July evening bundled up in jeans and sweatshirts. That has never happened before. There was even dew on my blanket that I had only placed on the ground about an hour before. Kinda creepy...A keeps blaming it on global warming.

In good weather, there is the local pool, bike rides, our trampoline, water fights, and hikes. In bad weather, there is the library (and reading), science museum, renting movies (preferably from the library, aka, free), playing board and card games. After a while it all gets old. I'm trying to think of lots of new things to do before they start to complain that they are bored. I would also like to be able to fit in creating. But as you can see...I'm not doing that, I'm just playing on the computer.

I will figure it out soon, before I kill my kids or they kill each other, which is more likely. I love them dearly but sometimes they just drive me nuts!

Today we went to a library near a bike path. D was complaining he was bored until A showed him a tiny toad. We saw all kinds of beautiful things while we were there: 2 toads, dozens of snails and slugs (D had to move most of them to the side of the path, he almost stopped walking 'cause he squished one himself), a doe and her 2 fawn, a dragonfly, a bunch of dining needles, and some pretty flowers. Most of these things are now immortalized on my new cell phone's camera. There were a few ladies walking around on their lunch hour, totally getting a kick out of us and the pictures. I do have to say though...D took a picture of some tiger lilies that are now the wallpaper on my phone. So all in all today ended up pretty nice. With a great souvenir on my phone!

Yay! I hope a lot of days end up like today...My perfect day would have also had a bunch of sewing...maybe tomorrow...