Poet Genes

My first poem went like this:

"Oh dear, or dread, here comes the kinfolk you dread,

If you had a choice, you'd rather be dead."

Clearly I was way ahead of my time, both in rhyme and in expressing my feelings about some impending guests. It now appears that another poet has surfaced in the family. According to her parents, Lindley has started writing poetry, and displayed it on her wall.

Clearly her first book will be entitled "Seasons"

And in case you don't read kindergarten, here's the translation:

A cold day
A cold day
Can be Cold
And it can 
snow
The snow
is cold. I like
the snow
You can build
snow men
The snow is cold.

A rainy day
is a lot
of fun
You can
jump in puddles
You can hear
the rain fall
down and
you can
hear the shsh
of the rain

The hot
sun
is hot
Sometimes the
hot sun can burn
you. It is hot
because it is 
hot. Sometimes it
is fun but
sometimes it
is not fun when
it is hot

This literary critic think these are amazing!  At least she didn't offend the relatives ...
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Thankful today for: 90 minutes with Nikki at Massage Envy; dinner at the Doik with the family for Steve's bday; final decision on Christmas 2015 meal and category

LaLa Pickup Duty

Today I picked up Lindley at school. I picked her up once before during regular pick up time, but today I was to pick her up at after-care. Last time I sat in line and waited for her to come out. This time I would be required to go inside the school to retrieve her.

My first mistake was not reading Sam's instructions closely (I had requested detailed instructions). My first error was not reading the street where I was supposed to park the car. Ergo, I parked in the wrong parking lot. Like the one with many signs warning of possible incarceration should someone park there without the proper permit and permission. But because I am a rebel and law-breaker, I parked there anyway.

The next instruction was to go in the side door (or maybe it just said door - again, I did not read carefully). However, the door I attempted to go in was locked. And appeared to be to the gym. However, a high school student opened the door and let me in. However, the kids in there did not look to be in kindergarten. However, the nice high school girl asked me my intentions and then told me I needed to go to the top of the stairwell and turn right and then left and then right (or maybe vice versa - I listen about as well as I read).

I went up one flight and went out, but this did not look correct. I then wondered if maybe the student said to go all the way up the stairwell. While pondering this question, I looked out a window and saw small children playing on a playground - across the way and two floors down. By using my deductive reasoning, I determined that going all the way up to the top of the building would not get me to the playground.

I decided to return to my car and start over. While going down the stairs, about a million high school students came out of somewhere and started going down the stairs. The males started taking off their shirts and the females started talking high-school-femalease. I waited for that storm to pass and then went peacefully and quietly to my car. Which had not been towed. Yet.

Upon re-reading Sam's instructions, I ascertained that I was indeed parking on the wrong street. I then steered my car to the correct street, turned into the correct parking lot, and parked safely where it said "Visitor Parking," hoping that my car license plate number had not been noted and put into the parking police files.

I then proceeded to what I determined was the correct door to enter - mainly because it looked like the main entrance to the building. I immediately walked to the front desk (mainly because it was the first thing one would walk to upon entering) and basically told the young woman there that I needed to pick up my granddaughter at aftercare. She asked if I had checked in before. I wanted to say, "Do I look intelligent to you?" Of course I replied that I hadn't, and she made a copy of my driver's license and then printed out a nametag with my DL photo on it. And then she said the next time I could check in on something and gestured toward some ipad at the end of the counter. Dream on, young woman, like that will happen the next time I am there.

She then directed me to the after care program, by telling me to go left (or right) and then left (or right) and then left (or right). And something about going past the swimming pool. To which I replied, "Whuut?" And she repeated herself and I tried to listen. And then just wandered off, hoping that I would see a swimming pool somewhere.

Eventually I made it to the after care program, mainly because there were all kinds of little kids running all over the place. I saw a lady with a walkie-talkie and hoped that she was in charge of something. I told her my mission, and she got on her walkie and told whomever that Lindley Davidson was ready to be picked up. Wherever Lindley Davidson was at that moment. Walkie-Talkie then asked if I had ever checked out Lindley before (I thought that perhaps the name-badge-getting-ceremony was part of that) and I said no? She then directed me to another ipad mounted on a wall and asked if the mom and dad had given me the password. Luckily they had, which is now stored in my phone contacts under Lindley School Password. She told me to key it in on the ipad, which would have been a whole lot easier had I thought to bring my reader glasses. Instead, I felt the keyboard as if it were Braille, and managed to plug in the password. And then punch "check out" or return or page down, or something. The good news is that by that time Lindley had arrived and they let me take her home.

Luckily, Lindley knew the way out of the school - right past the swimming pool!!

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Thankful today for: Picking up Lindley at school; two miles with KB in the 'hood

Back In The Swing of Things

After yesterday's fun road trip and last night's fun wallet-airport escapade, one would think that today would be a zero day. Well, one would be wrong.

Maribeth's new bed was being delivered this morning and I had her sheets, so I was on call for when she was ready to get the bed ready for sleeping. I ended up going over after lunch and then we ended up making a Wal-Mart run for a few more items. But I think they all will have a good night's sleep tonight!

I also had an appointment with my dermatologist to get a few things checked out. There was my eternal small cyst on my back that a masseuse thought he would "work on" awhile ago. His "work" did nothing but cause me consternation and grossed everybody else out, so I decided to get it completely removed by someone qualified with a knife. I also have a wart/mole on my ankle that I manage to cut every time I shave my legs (okay, so maybe not that often) and decided to have that looked at. And then there's my eternal mole that really hasn't changed that I've had forever on my collarbone. I showed Dr. Derm all those, and a wart on my hand. He put the freezing compound on the wart and told me to come back in two weeks so he could slice off the others. He did say that I had not sun damaged my skin - so I guess my pasty white complexion has some benefits!

Other than that, it was a typical post-vacation Monday - unpacking, laundry, bill paying, and the other catch-up stuff. Welcome back to the real world!

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Thankful today for: seeing Dr. Derm after many years; MB's new bed and Wal-Marting; getting a few things accomplished

So Long Food And Wine!!

I had decided that we wouldn't purposely try to get up this morning and leave super early. We would just get up when we woke up and head out. While I was sort of hoping to leave around 7ish, I was also content to leave whenever. As it turned out, we all were awake around 7, so we got up and got ready to leave. I went out and got some breakfast sandwiches, we ate, and we headed for the car.

We had kept KB in the dark about our car rental, hinting that we had not gotten a medium SUV and had to choose something else. And we may have hinted that it was going to be a little car. So you can imagine her surprise when I pulled up in the mini-van (KB has long legs and was probably wondering if she was going to have to ride 600 miles with her legs hanging out the door). We packed the car and headed out.

The trip went amazingly fast, especially since it seemed that every car was passing us. I looked at the speedometer several times to make sure we were going the speed limit - and we were. But apparently it was slow compared to those zooming past us. We watched "Pitch Perfect 2" since we were too busy returning/getting rental cars last night to watch it. We stopped a couple of times for gas, for snacks, for lottery tickets, and for lunch at Tom-Chee outside of Atlanta. And then we were home!! I dropped off KB and Molly and soon I was pulling into the driveway. Steve was home from his weekend in Auburn watching the Bulldogs win, and was waiting so we could return both rental cars at the same time. Maribeth picked us up at the airport, and a little later Mathieu and Everley stopped by and Everley had a bite of dinner.

After they left, I was pretty much ready for bed and headed that way. Around 10:15pm, I got a text from Molly saying that she had left her lottery ticket in the glove compartment of the car. Thinking that we had lost our millions, I asked if she had left anything else. A few minutes later she texted back saying yes - her wallet. And so began the wallet rental car experience.

Steve was asleep, so I went into the den to continue the conversation. I found a phone number, as did Molly, and she called the rental company. Of course, it was an office in New Mexico, or regular Mexico, or Mars, or somewhere, but they gave her the phone number of the local Nashville outfit. She called that number, who gave her another number, and also told her that the local outfit was closed. Which on their website said they were open. She called the other number, which was the lost and found number of the local outfit, but their office hours wouldn't be until Monday. So, we decided to just go out to the airport and see if that would help.

I picked up Molly and headed to the airport. Once there, I let her out close to the rental area. We were hoping that maybe the car was still in the line - we really didn't think they would rush it to the clean-up area right away on a Sunday night. When she got to the right rental car company area, of course it was dark and nobody was around. So she wandered around a bit, looking for the car, when another company's employee approached her. Molly explained her dilemma, they found a manager, she described her wallet and where it would be, the manager went in search of the car (which wasn't far away), and THE WALLET WAS LOCATED!! Happy days!!

Now you can say that it was all happenstance that the wallet was found. I know different. When this dilemma started, I knew the stress of losing the wallet was huge for Molly. Not only did she have her driver's license and credit cards in the wallet, but also a significant amount of cash. And it wasn't just losing the cash, but losing all of it and the pain of having to call credit card companies and get a new license. And it was late at night and the stress of realizing that it was a mistake that could have been avoided - all was not making Molly a happy girl. So I simply prayed and asked God to put His hand on the situation and take care of it. And He did. He did it because He loves Molly and didn't want her to be any more stressed. Because in the end, that's what God is about - love.

I know God doesn't answer every prayer prayed to Him in the way we would like. And I know that some would think this little prayer about this little thing doesn't seem that important, especially considering all the big things in this world. But tonight, this little thing was a very big thing to one of God's children. And He took care of her. And tonight, for that, and for all of the blessings He bestows upon me, I am forever grateful.

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Thankful today for: quick, safe, fun ride home; Tom Chee lunch with KB and Molly; MB picking us up from car rental place; wallet escapade with Molly and God taking care of it; sleeping in my own bed

Food and Wine - Day 2

Today was an earlier start than yesterday, since we had a 5K to complete. Sure, last night we all were considering just sleeping in and ignoring the 5K, but we all got up and were out the door by 6:30am for a 7:30am start. The race was about 30 minutes away, but thanks to Google, we managed to get to the venue with only a few hiccups at the final few turns.

This 5K was called Quack Attack on Poverty. The fun part was that everyone (well, almost everyone) wore a duck floatie during the race.  Sure, it was warm, and sure, it was sunny, but most of the race was on a path on the outskirts of a park. KB, Molly, and I wogged our way around the lake and eavesdropped on the other woggers along the way (what else does one do during a race?).

Before the race. When we looked fresh. With our duckies.

Wogging through the bubbles!! When we may not look as fresh.
But we still have our duckies!!

Eventually we did finish and get our medals (yes, medals for a 5K!). There was also a lot of snacks and beverages at the finish - we had our hands full - and A SHAVED ICE MACHINE!!! Did I mention that all this was free?  Anyhow, we loaded ourselves up and headed back to the car.

We were hot and sweaty and damp, so as soon as we got back to the hotel, we got showers and cleaned up, just in time to head back to Epcot for some more food and wine. Unfortunately, it was still very warm and sunny, so the walk over pretty much obliterated all the nice coolness and freshness that we had achieved. Our plan was to hit the kiosks at the back of World Showcase. That plan lasted about three minutes, or as soon as we saw the lines at the Ireland station. We skipped Ireland and headed for Canada, Greece, and Hawaii. By this time, the crowds were back at 802 gazillion, as well as the temperature, which was about 802 degrees. We got our food samples and managed to find half a bench on which to put our food to share. The food was delicious, but I was pretty much on a mission to stay in the shade, which wasn't all that great.

We decided to try a few more stations, and I went to the Dominican Republic. Where I was told that the Sugar Cane Cocktail was out (they were running low last night, and nobody had replenished it) and one of the other dishes would be a 20-minute wait, which would have meant another 20 minutes in the oven of Epcot. Instead, when I went to pick up my food, I was told that the fish wasn't ready, so I stood around waiting while holding the two dishes that were in stock. Meanwhile, Molly was at the cheese station waiting for them to restock the cheese and KB was once again staking out a bench in the shade. Eventually our desired foods were ready, so we converged on KB's bench and ate whatever we had been given.

By this time, we had had it with the heat and the crowds and the running-out of foods, so we decided to call today's food festivities over. Molly had a mission to go get a Pandora bead and a Passholder Coin, and went in search of those, while KB and I headed to Starbucks for a long tall shaken iced tea. Once we had those, I went to stand in the hot line to get my second stamp for my free wine glass. Once I had that, we went to join Molly in the Passholder Coin line and stood with her until finally it was her turn. She and KB decided to go to the Magic Kingdom and I opted to return to the hotel with the goal of getting into a nice cold pool. Which I intended to do, until I got back into the nice cool room with the nice comfy bed.

Eventually KB and Molly returned and cooled down and we decided to go look at Pandora rings at the mall, because there was a special sale of buy two, get one free (that way, we could all get a ring). Several hours later, we left with 12 rings. Just don't ask questions. We got four rings free. And tried on every ring in the store. What can I say - I think we all had heatstroke.

We had decided to have a quiet night in the room and went to Target to purchase "Pitch Perfect 2." As we were walking out, I suggested to Molly that perhaps we should change our flights to Sunday night instead of early Monday morning. KB had a client coming in early Monday morning. We decided to table the discussion until dinner, which would be a repeat performance at Shake Shack.

Once we got there, all parking was impossible. We tried the outside lot, but every spot was taken. We decided to try the parking garage, and barely got out of that traffic tie-up with our sanity still intact (well, what was left of our sanity). We decided to try the lot one more time and God found us a place when some dude was leaving and pointed our his place.

Once we were at our table, we discussed changing our travel plans, and KB agreed that it would be a good idea. I pulled up the flights and saw that the change was available, so I changed mine. Molly and KB started the process, but when Molly went to book hers, it popped up that the flight was full. I guess I got the last seat. KB couldn't even begin to change hers, since it was full. Molly tried again, and managed to get a seat - and then noticed that she had just changed her flight to Monday night instead of Sunday night. So, there we were - three travellers with three different flights. Molly's Octoberfest beer finally arrived (they had run out when we ordered but we didn't know until they started to pour it) and pondered our fate. The girl who brought Molly her beer was very apologetic and said she would bring us some free ice cream. We munched on our burgers and fries until someone wondered - why don't we just rent a car and drive? Brilliant!! Ice cream for everyone!!

And so Molly started on that process, and saw that we could rent a car for around $80 for a mid-size SUV, and so the deal was struck. We would return the rental car she had and pick up another and for a fraction of our existing/changed flights, we would be home on Sunday night. We dropped KB off at the hotel and headed for the airport for the car switcheroo. We turned in one, finished the paperwork for the second, and headed to the garage for the new car. The dude out there told us to pick out any car on the first line. Which had several mini-vans. I went back and asked him if they would count, and he said yes. So, now we were going home in a full-size mini van with a DVD player!

We headed back to the hotel to shower and get packed up for our drive tomorrow. Time to head home!

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Thankful today for: fun 5K and treats afterward; food at Food and Wine; Pandora ring shopping and sweet saleslady;dinner at Shake Shack and planning travel; car return and pickup and bonus van rental

Food And Wine - Day 1

Today we got up and had our breakfast, as we had a lot of things to accomplish. We wanted to make sure we were in Epcot when it opened - to be sure we got the Pandora Food and Wine special charm, and to get our stamps for the passholder wine glass (free if you attend the festival for three days). So we headed out (our hotel is walking distance from Epcot) and started our day.

Our first stop was for the Pandora charm. We were fourth in line, and became quite entertained by those ahead of us. Such as the two women who were in an argument with the Pandora cast lady clerk. They two ladies were adamant about the Minnie spacer. The claimed that it was red with white dots, but the one lady clerk was showing them was not the right one - it was white dots over red (or some minute difference - they looked the same to me). They kept arguing with the clerk lady until she grabbed the entire sack of Minnie spacers to show them that these were indeed the only Minnie spacers available. Unfortunately, they were still unconvinced and left.

And then there was the lady who purchased her charm and wanted the clerk lady to put the charm on her bracelet. Now this is not a difficult maneuver - even a preschooler can thread a bead. But this lady asked if the clerk lady could bead her charm - if her line wasn't too long. Clerk Lady looked up and said yes, she had a long line. Which the purchaser lady could have figured out, had she looked around and noticed the 15 or so people in line behind her ...

Anyhow, we managed to get our charm without any fanfare (probably because we were satisfied with the one we desired and did not need the clerk lady to put it on our bracelet). Next we headed to the Festival Center to get the guides for our wine glass stamp. While there, we made friends with the Cutco Representative Lady (and maybe bought a knife or two) and scored some free Ghirardelli chocolate squares. We perused the event merchandise (without purchasing any) and found out that we had to go elsewhere for the wine glass stamps - that wouldn't be available for another hour or so.

We decided to ride Soarin', which was good as usual, except for the small blips on the screen - perhaps it's time to clean up the video feed, Epcot! After that, it was time to stand in the blazing hot sun for our stamps. Oh, did I mention it felt like it was about 900 degrees and the sun was directly blazing on us? Eventually we got the guide and got it stamped, and then it was time for World Showcase to open and time to sample the food!

Our plan was simple - each one of us would visit a kiosk, purchase the main dishes, and then we would meet up and sample all the dishes. I would describe all that we munched on, but by this point, the heat and the sun and the crowds (there were about 980 gazillion people) and the long lines to get the food pretty much were sapping our willpower. We ate at about four or five kiosks, then decided we had had enough and headed back to our room.

Once there, Molly decided to take a siesta, while KB and I went out. She was on a mission to get some Nine West boots that she had seen in Gatlinburg but didn't get, and I needed to pick up our race stuff for the 5K we were planning to do tomorrow (I know - it was a weak moment when we signed up). We managed to accomplish our tasks, and returned to the room to check on Molly.

She had recovered, so we left again to get dinner (we were not going to try to tackle Food and Wine again today, since we had heard that some of the kiosks were running out of food due to the crowds). We ate at Shake Shack and then went to the movies to see "The Intern." We liked the movie (except for the abrupt ending) and headed back to our room to sleep. Tomorrow we have a 5K and will try to tackle the Food and Wine again!

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Thankful today for: fun at the Food and Wine Festival; KB getting her boots and my picking up the race stuff; eavesdropping on other people's stories everywhere I went; Shake Shack and movie with KB and Molly

Food and Wine Festival - Here We Come!!

Once I got Maggie Cat off my suitcase last night, I finished packing. And no, the golf balls were not for me - apparently Steve needed some more. He's already in Florida, working and playing golf (and apparently losing some golf balls). Anyhow, I managed to get stuff stuff into the suitcase (not Maggie Cat) and then got into bed. Unfortunately, sleep wasn't easily obtained, and soon it was time to get up and get ready for my ride to the airport at 6:30am (luckily the butt-crack-of-dawn early flight is no longer on the schedule).

KB volunteered to take me to the airport (she's flying down after lunch and Molly is flying down tonight). I made it to the airport and breezed through security (thank you TSA Pre Check!). Just as I was walking away from security, who did I see but my Krispey-Kreme-before-school librarian buddy Brenda!!  I haven't seen her in ages, so it was great to see her again, although she was in a bit of distress as she had lost her ID. Nevertheless, she was headed to Sarasota and it was a great blessing to have a little bit of a catch-up.

Since I had forgotten to check in (the Pope was on tv and I got all mesmerized with his arriving at the White House), I had gotten a B56 boarding pass. In Southwest terms, that means you board just before the final boarding group, which means you may not have overhead luggage space left and who knows where you will sit. Luckily I could upgrade at the gate (which I did, thank you) and scored an A5 board, which meant I could pick my choice of seats and have space for my suitcase. While I did have seatmates, they snoozed most of the flight (which was safe and smooth, thank you).

We landed in Orlando, and I headed for the Magical Express (although Steve was in Orlando, too, he was out playing golf - and possibly losing more golf balls). Unfortunately my sinuses/allergies decided to create turmoil in my head, so I arrived at our hotel with a possible raging sinus headache/condition. The weather was warm and humid, which didn't help anything. And, my room was not ready, so I had no place to bury my head. I left my bag at bell services and headed out to the Boardwalk for lunch, which is a hard decision to make when your sinuses are having a war with your brain. I eventually decided, ate lunch, and headed back to the hotel lobby to check on my room - which still wasn't ready. So I decided to sit in one of the comfy lobby chairs and snooze as best I could (and do so in full view of the front desk staff, should they take pity on me and find me a clean room). I did find this lady's toenails intriguing - not only were they painted, but they had little bows glued to the top.

So maybe the thermostat
was turned down a little ...

Eventually, at the official check-in time, my room was ready and I headed there. Meanwhile, Steve had finished golf and KB had arrived at the airport, so they both arrived at the hotel about 30 minutes later. We had dinner and Steve left to go to his hotel (typical Davidson travel - he's been here since Sunday, but in a different non-Disney hotel - and he's leaving tomorrow). KB and I piddled around and watched a little tv and then watched the Epcot fireworks from the bridge.  Eventually Molly made it to Orlando and to the hotel. Then it was time to go to bed - we have food and wine to consume this weekend!!

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Thankful today for: KB's lift to the airport; safe, smooth ride to Orlando; ME ride and nice seatmate; lunch and dinner at Big River; RT shelf sale; KB's and Molly's safe travel to Disney; celebrating Steve's bday

Projects

Yes, I've actually really truly accomplished something lately. While they're not exactly "craftsman quality", they'll do. Especially at my house!!  Anyhow, on to the projects ...

Shelves for the Starbucks mugs. Because the hooks just didn't appear reliable.
Yes, I have too many. So I won't be getting any more.
So she said ...

Wall lamps by the bed. Yeah, it really wasn't that big of a deal.
But at least now I don't knock over the lamps on the end tables.
Nor does Maggie the Cat.

Bunk bed spruce up. Using Lindley's Christmas make-it tent from a few years ago.
New bottom bunk rails and ladder thanks to Mathieu.
Curtains thanks to LaLa. Wonder how long they'll last ...

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Thankful today for: finishing projects; packing a suitcase for WDW weekend; helping Mathieu with his uniform measurements; chatting with Aunt Laura on the phone; Mary's contribution to my A-T fundraiser

Fall Cometh

Apparently tomorrow is the first day of fall. Yippee. Most of the time, I like fall. Because I like seasons, fall is my season to cool down, calm down, and get ready for the hibernation down time of winter. However, there are things about fall that I do not like. So why don't we just discuss my likes/dislikes of fall? Apparently if you're reading this, you must not have anything constructive to do.

• Like: the cooler weather. Except for the days in Nashville when it forgets that the weather should be cooler and instead decides to be summer hot again.
• Like: opening the windows and letting the fall air come in. Except for when it warms up and the house gets hot. And I have to go around and close all the windows again. And turn on the AC.
• Like: seeing the leaves turn color and fall to the ground. And even more like the fact that I don't have to rake them (been there, done that) because our lawn more dude does it on his lawn mower.
• Dislike: it will soon be time to change the clocks again for that Daylight Savings Time thing. And I will have to remember to fall forward or back. And remember to change all the clocks. But I like it because it will be darker sooner at night and I will think it's time to go to bed. Is this when I get an extra hour of sleep?
• Dislike: Halloween. Hate the holiday, hate the candy, hate the scary. The only good thing about Halloween? The "It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" show.
• Like: smelling the fall air. Except that all that dried up and disintegrating foliage causes my sinuses to get all excited about allergies and so they go on strike and clog up and cause my eyes to water and my nose to sneeze.
• Like: seeing the trees once all their leaves have fallen. Sorta gives me hope for losing weight. Like it's a sign. A girl can dream, right?

So, on Fall's Eve, I wish you a happy fall season. May your leaves fall in piles and your sinuses always have a full supply of Kleenex!

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Thankful today for: seeing Lynnette finish her project; finding supplies to complete house projects; chatting with neighbor Carla

Monday

Rambo, wagging his tail

Today I was in charge of going to Molly's and walking Rambo. Molly was busy all day, and since Rambo has not been obedient about not climbing out of his fence, someone needed to go and let Rambo out to "do his bizness."  I decided to attempt to get a bit of exercise (if you count ambling along as exercise), so I walked over to Molly's house (she lives about 1.5 miles from my house), visited with Rambo and the cat, and walked back.

I guess it's a good way to start the week. And maybe get a few calories burned, and maybe store some burned calories in reserve for the weekend. Did I mention that I'm headed south for the Food and Wine Festival at you-know-where this weekend?

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Thankful today for: early morning Molly visit; getting my steps in by walking to Molly's and walking Rambo; watching Lynnette's continued progress on her table; spaghetti dinner with Everley; chatting with neighbor Carla

Drive-In Hangover

No, I did not go to the drive-in party last night. It was a double feature ("Inside Out" and "Minions") so it lasted well into the night. However, it would appear that not every thing (or every one) lasted well into the night. Maybe I would have gone, had I known sleeping was involved!!

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Thankful today for: Maribeth picking up Cheesecake Factory for lunch; Steve's safe flight to Orlando; stopping by Maribeth's with requested chicken; watching Emmy Awards on tv

The Table Project

Lynnette decided they needed a new dining table. She had a vision for what she wanted and she procured said table from Craig's List. Her vision was a white table and so started the process of liquid sander, paper sander, paint, repaint, varnish, and varnish some more. Of course, along the way, she had a spectators. Who became helpers. Meanwhile, I was inside, just in case I needed to go get supplies. Like Sonic.

First one needs to fuel up ...

Then one needs to watch the master at work.
And ask a lot of questions.
Like, "When is it my turn to paint?"

And then, once our painting clothes were on, it WAS our turn!
And we did quite well!!

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Thankful today for: Brunch with Molly, Katie, and Everley after their hike; Lindley and Everley time; watching Lynnette paint her table; Molly coming over to help move table; sending Lynnette, Maribeth, Everley, and Lindley off to the drive-in; talking to Lindley (who remembers none of the conversation) when she got back at midnight from the drive-in

Typical

This is Maggie the Cat. As you can see, she's half in and half out. And showing her rump. This is a typical pose for her. Of course, I allow her to be half in and half out. I raised the screen so she could pose as she liked. And so she sat, just as she pleased, as long as she wanted. And when she was done, I closed the screen and the window. Cats aren't spoiled - they just find willing humans to do their bidding!

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Thankful today for: Lindley and Everley time; Miss America rehash party with Lynnette and Maribeth; Baha Burrito for dinner

TBT

Just in case you're wondering why I have such bad ankles ...   Apparently it started early ...

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Thankful today for: Lindley time at the Doik; Steve's burgers on the grill for dinner; Mathieu putting rails on the bunkbed/,n

Doing A Little of This and That

It's always a good feeling when I actually get things accomplished. With so many possibilities in my humble abode, sometimes it's hard to choose exactly which task to undertake. So I just create a new list and do those! The good news is that I got some stuff done - the other news is that the list is still long with things that I still need to do. Seriously, does anyone ever finish a do-to list?

I knew today I might have some down time to get some things accomplished, since I would be sans car most of the day. So, in no particular order, here are my accomplishments for today:

• Got up in time to make a Wal Mart run in order to get a chuck for my drill. Because my former existing chuck apparently dissolved into thin air. Except that Wal Mart did not stock said chuck. But they do stock new drills that do not need a chuck. So guess who is the proud owner of a new chuck-less drill? Which I think was a return based on the appearance after I opened it. Oh well, it works.
• Got my car in for the 20,000 mile checkup and the recall. The checkup consisted of oil change and tire rotation. The recall was about some sensor in the passenger front seat. So you can feel safe now if you ride in my roller skate.
• Managed not to call/inconvenience anyone to take me home/back to the dealership and instead relied on the dealership shuttle. I was the first off going to my house and the only one for the return trip. I was wearing my "grass cutting clothes," so I'm sure I made a great impression. Who cares - I was gettin' stuff done!
• Installed two wall lamps next to the bed in the bedroom. I think I like them - I guess I'd better since they are screwed into the wall. Of course, once they were installed, I decided that I probably would have done them differently if I had them to do over. But if I had done them my do-over way the first time, then I would probably have second thoughts on that, too. I obviously need to attend a 7-Step Program for Do-Over-Achievers.
• Put together some packages for some people and actually got them mailed. Hopefully with the correct things in the correct boxes with the correct addresses to the correct people. If not, surprise to the people that get the boxes!!
• Made it to the bank with some checks to deposit before the checks expire. Or the people who wrote them write me and ask if I've received and/or cashed them. Nice to be solvent again.
• Reconciled my checking account. Apparently (according to a daughter who shall remain nameless), I am the only remaining person in the world who actually reconciles a checking account. I once used a program that all I had to do was hit a button and it did it automatically, but that program and I had a tiff, and so I no longer trust the button procedure and do it myself on the program. Sure, the bank could tell me my balance, but the bank does not know what I just spent at Wal Mart. And I need to know my up-to-the-minute solvency.
• Started sorting the Duplo/Lego collection that has started multiplying in my den. And then realized that the items I had chosen to sort them in are insufficient for the numbers of building blocks that I have. Which meant I would need to procure more sorting items. And possibly re-sort that which I have sorted. A dose of OCD, anyone?
• Emptied the trash. Two days before trash day. Which means the family won't have the challenge of stacking the trash/recyclables as high as possible. And I won't have trash in the cans over the weekend.
• Ordered a few things from Amazon. Which I might not have necessarily needed, but remembered that I had intended to purchase them. And I remembered them and was on a device on which I could contact Amazon. And so I ordered them. Whatever they were ...

So you can see that I had a very productive Wednesday. The good news is that there's still plenty of stuff to do tomorrow (and every day forever). Yippee??

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Thankful today for: getting car serviced; nice shuttle drivers; packing boxes and getting them mailed; putting up new bedroom lamps; sorting Legos

Time To Register!!

This morning at 11am CST, registration opened up for the Star Wars Half Marathon that will be in Disney World in April. If you've never entered one of these before, then the process will seem crazy to you. And it is indeed crazy - but it must be done!

So today at 10:55am CST, I was ready. I had logged into my Active account (for entering races) in case that helped things along. I was logged into my DVC/AP websites, because that's where I would get the link for the early registration for us special people. As you can see, I had two computers with several browsers ready to go. So, as soon as the magic hour hit, I was on it like lightening, and completed my registration. However ...

Molly was on a Southwest plane to Phoenix. Sure, there was internet on the plane, but the internet speed was somewhat lacking (remember dial-up anyone?). It was very important that she get in this race. She and I were messaging back and forth (that form of communication was not as slow). She was unable to get on the registration site, so I said I would register her.

Except when I tried to register her, the site said that the challenge (another story for another day) was "on hold." But you could refresh the page in hopes that the "on hold" would get unheld and you could register. So I spent the next 25 minutes refreshing the pages on two computers every three seconds. And I got Molly registered (actually I'm giving all the credit to God, who can do all things)!

And then I tried for another 30 minutes to get Steve in, to no avail - the early registrations got sold out. Oh well, at least I have two weeks before I get to play this game again during regular race registration!

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Thankful today for: two miles with KB; race registration; some wal-mart-ing; seeing photos of MB's grilled cheese day; chatting with Marilyn on the phone

Rambo

He looks a little guilty, doesn't he?

This is Rambo. He is Molly's dog. Molly has a fenced in back yard so Rambo can run around. However, Rambo can climb the chain-link fence. Molly tried an electric fence, but it didn't work so well, either. Molly has spent a lot of time putting slats in the fence so Rambo will not climb the fence and escape. However, Rambo is very good at finding un-slatted places so he can climb out. Lately, though, Molly has discovered most of his climbing spots and slatted them. Until today, when Molly is out of town and driving back home. This morning Rambo found a spot and climbed out. He followed some man and his mother while they were out on a walk and apparently went home with them. The man's wife looked at Rambo's tag and called Molly who then texted me and I had to go pick Rambo up from some stranger neighbor on another street. Looks like more slatting in Molly's future!!

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Thankful today for: safe travel for Steve to Connecticut and Molly to return home; picking up Rambo; 

Miss America

Tonight the Miss America pageant came on tv. This is NOT the Miss USA pageant, which is another kind of pageant animal. Donald Trump is in charge of that one, so that says a lot. No, I'm talking about good old Miss America. You know, the scholarship pageant.

Growing up, watching this show was a huge deal. We would even have ballots to vote for our favorites. Of course, most of the top ten would be women from the South. Just take it from Suzanne Sugarbaker ...

       

Anyhoo, back to tonight's show. I was flipping through the channels and happened upon the broadcast. It was a few minutes into the program, so I missed Vanessa William's song, but I did get to see a Miss America Official Dude apologize for the organization that took her title away a long time ago (if you don't know what I'm talking about, you're probably too young to fully appreciate the pageant anyway). Well, once I started watching the show, I couldn't take my eyes off of it. It was amazing and odd and mesmerizing. I didn't have my ballot, but I really thought it would come down to Miss Mississippi or Miss Tennessee. Miss Mississippi got first runner up (in case Miss America cannot perform her duties, Miss Mississippi will take over) and Miss Georgia won. Anyhow, if you didn't get to watch it, you missed a lot, so I thought I'd share my highlights ...

• Vanessa Williams apology - she deserved it. It's just too bad it came so late.
• The judges - I didn't know several of them. Thank you google!
• Every few minutes, the camera would pan to a face of a judge. And every time, that particular judge looked like he/she was in pain. Except for the Shark Tank dude - he was always smiling. Zendaya, who is a Disney Channel star, had on the enormous glasses - maybe she was trying to look smart (she's 19, so she probably has no idea what Miss America is about).
• They had a short segment where a bunch of former Miss Americas were on the stage. As a former Miss America watcher, I wanted to see each one of the introduced. Instead, they had a camera fly-over with no names mentioned. Maybe they weren't even Miss Americas, but some residents of a local assisted living community.
• Talent - my favorite part. There were singers who could have chosen better songs, Miss Mississippi played some fancy fiddle song - where was "The Devil Went Down To Georgia"? - there were a couple of dancers , a pianny player who played some Opus Something, and the nurse who told a story (and then got ripped by the ladies on "The View", who then got a  whole lot of backlash over their stupid remarks. Oh, and there were a couple of ladies who didn't get to perform their talent, which leads me to ...
• The elimination process. So there are 52 to begin with. Then they whittle it down to maybe 15. Then they strut their two-piece swimsuits, and knock off three. These 12 walk in their evening gowns and then they get ready for talent. Except they only call 10 to do talent - two more are off the list.Then it's time for the scary questions, but only seven get to answer a question, so three more get eliminated. Finally they announce the runner ups, and three are left - two will get nada while the other will be Miss America.
• Everytime a girl got announced as a finalist, she would bend her knees and bend down like she was doing a squat. Which I'm sure she did plenty of to get her body is Miss America shape.
• During the question phase, each judge had a question to ask. Too bad some of the judges didn't bother reading their questions. So maybe then the judge would have a chance to ask someone or google what the question was about. So maybe the judge would understand the question he/she was asking.
• Apparently Phyllis George came out to crown the new Miss America, or so they said. They used their fly-by camera to show some woman walking out on the stage - who knows who it really was.

Anyhow, the show was fabulous. I texted Maribeth, Molly, and Lynnette during the entire show, because it was so fascinating that they needed to hear about it. Although none of them bothered to turn it on.

No matter - I taped it, and we're having a Miss America rehash party on Friday!!

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Thankful today for: First Watch with MB, Everley, Net Net, and Lindley; Everley and Lindley time; safe trip home for Steve; watching Miss America

Lazy Day At LaLa's

There's boiled peanut time.
The big thing is to convince some people that sucking the juice is not preferable.

There's the obligatory trip to Target.
For essentials.
And a Starbucks cake pop.
Which may or may not be an essential.

There's the non-nap.
On LaLa's lap.
Because WE ARE NOT TIRED!!!

And it's not always about that kid.
Some people DO like naps on LaLa's bed!!

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Thankful today for: Early Everley time; seeing deer in E's neighborhood; Target-ing

Together As One

Today I went for my regular blood donation at the Red Cross. It just happened (or maybe not) to be scheduled on September 11. It seemed to be the appropriate thing to do on this day. Apparently it was the thing to do for a lot of people, as it was pretty busy at RC HQ. As I was waiting in the lobby, one lady came out saying that it was an hour wait to get checked in, then another 30 minutes to get your blood sucked out. Since she was on her lunch hour, she couldn't stick around to finish it. I considered rescheduling my donation for later in the day, but since I really didn't have any plans, I decided to stick around. And it wasn't long until my name was called and I got checked in. I did wait awhile for my blood-giving turn, but was entertained by others who were also waiting.

When I sat down in the blood line, there were four men already waiting for their bloodletting. A lady sat down after me. I waited for the men to get called, and then the tech called for the next person. The lady and I both stood up, and then she told me to go ahead - like she was ahead of me. And so I did. Even though I was really ahead of her. I'm not sure if she thought she was really ahead of me in line, which she wasn't, so I went ahead. She was having fun chatting with the college kid who was giving blood - he told her that he wanted to be a dentist, but he hates shots, so when he's a dentist he will just have his nurse or tech do that part. And he has two other sets of teeth in his jaw, so if he's ever in a car wreck and loses all his teeth, his other sets will just move down.

It was a day to do something positive in honor of a day when we lost so many people. And as we all sat and waited to do our part, it was a day to remember that indeed we are in this together.

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Thankful today for: Everley sleepover; Steve and GDiz's safe travel back to Columbus; pizza with MB and Everley; people and techs at Red Cross

A Different Kind Of Pickup Line

Today I was given the task of picking up Lindley at her new school. I'm still not accustomed to thinking about her in kindergarten, mainly because it seems like just yesterday my own kids were in kindergarten. So even though I'm trying to transition, I still think of her as simply going to a new preschool daycare.

But today I was to pick her up at school. There would be no going in to her room and getting her. No, this was serious elementary school picking up. Lynnette gave me her special hang-tag which had explicit instructions concerning pickup on the back. And while I intended to follow them to the letter, lest I be put into pickup detention, I fully expected for something to go awry.

I pulled into the correct place at the time Lynnette suggested so that I would not be blocking traffic out on the main road (the school is in the heart of the Vanderbilt campus and also amid several construction projects in Nashville, so traffic is a given). Of course, the hang tag said to "pull into any of the three lanes). As I pull in, there are only two. And only one has cars in it. So I decided to take a chance and pull into the other lane, hoping that a third lane would materialize.

As I pulled around the corner, passing several parents in their cars and wondering if they were taking down my tag number, I saw the third lane. I pulled into the middle lane and ended up being the second car in that lane. Of course all this happened thirty minutes before school would actually be dismissed, and I had forgotten any reading material (Sam and Lynnette had suggested I bring some), but since I have Solitaire on my phone, I had something to occupy myself with. Other than looking out my window to see if I was at the right place. Of course I had turned my car off, as the hang tag had stipulated.

Thirty minutes later, some lady with a clipboard walked around. I saw another lady lead a group of children out a door close to where I was, but they all seemed quite large and old to be in kindergarten. Then a loud voice over a loudspeaker started calling children's names and adding a direction at the end of the child's name. It was like, Joe Smith South Lane Two (or something like that). It was enough for me to panic, wondering if I was at the South Entrance or the North Entrance or was I supposed to be at another entrance. I hadn't heard Lindley's name, so I began to wonder if I was even at the correct school.

But then they said her name, although I didn't remember her direction and/or lane. I looked at the close-by door, expecting to see her, but she never materialized. I then began to panic with the thought of what if the traffic line started getting dismissed and she wasn't in the car - what was I supposed to do then?? But then I kept looking out my rearview mirrors and saw her walking up between the lines of cars. I stuck my hand out the passenger window and waved (because the security guard was there and I didn't know if I would be apprehended if I were to leave my car). She saw me and trotted to my car and got in. Apparently all the kids were secured by then, and we were all dismissed to leave. After turning back on our cars.

We then headed to Everley's daycare and picked her up - a much simpler procedure, since I've been doing it for the two of them for the past several years. Well, it was simpler except for the fact that Everley's teacher was new and had no idea who I was or who I was picking up, even though I figured she would, since I am LaLa. Oh well, I guess it was a learning day for everyone!!

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Thankful today for: pickups and remembering snacks for the trip to LaLa's house; Lindley and Everley time

Guilty Pleasures

Lest you think I am a deeply thinking, cerebral type person, I just thought I would share with you my guilty television watching. No, I'm not talking about those naughty adult shows. They would probably just confuse me. And no, I don't watch any show where people are plopped down in who-knows-where and have to eat gross stuff and learn to survive - and sometimes nekkid at that. Naw, I'm just talking 'bout regular folks - and these happen to be Texans.

The first show I would like to present is "Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders - Making The Grade - Season 10". Yes, season ten. And yes, I've watched most of the seasons. It's shown on CMT, which should tell you something. But just in case you've never seen this show, let me give you my rundown.

This show is about little girls who have always wanted to be a part of DCC (which is Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders - you need to memorize that early, because you will hear it about eighty-eleven times during the hour) and now they're all grown up and ready for tryouts. I think about a gazillion females start the process, and slowly the boss ladies whittle them down to about 50 who go to training camp, and they they whittle those down to the actual 36 who make the team.  Here are the main players:

Main Boss Lady Kelli is the end-all and be-all. She don't take nothing off nobody. And dresses to the nines (for Dallas) to do it. She's been the main boss lady for centuries, and has the thick skin (and big hair and shoes to go along with it) to get stuff done. She says what she thinks through her mouth and her expressions and is a hoot. And you needn't even think about crossing her and questioning what she says.

Second Boss Lady Judy has long blond hair, which I seriously don't believe is all that natural, considering she's as old as Kelli and been doing this as long. And they both were DCC back in the day. She plays second fiddle to Kelli and chips in with her two cents about all the "candidates."

The candidates consist of last year's DCC (remember what that means?) who made the initial gazillion female cut and the rookies who danced their way into the finals. Each week they put on a two-piece bathing suit type outfit that probably would fit Lindley or Everley and learn dances and kicks. They practice and cry and smile and do it all with full makeup and hairdos. The ones who aren't doing too well get called into the office to talk to Kelli and Judi and there's lots of tears and thank-yous and yes ma'ams and then somebody gets the dire "this will be your last night." For kicks, they bring in the dance coach Kitty who, in case the candidates have any confidence left, watches the dances and gives her opinion. And then, one day they get fitted for their outfit/uniform/costume, which I believe they attempt to make out of a cut of material roughly the size of a man's hankie.

Anyhoo, I love this show because I never wanted to be a DCC, so these women with these dreams amaze me. I can't help but like them because they are so real and so pursuing their dreams. And then I feel sad for the ones I really liked but who got cut. And I am amazed at how tiny they are and how high they can kick and how they can kick high and then fall into a jump split or split kick or something. It's just all around amazing, mainly because Kelli, Judy, and Kitty are not my life coaches.

My other show is "Texas Flip And Move." This show is on the DIY network and is another show that I can watch knowing that I will be doing none of that.

This show is about three teams of Texas - The Snow Sisters, the Young Guns, and The Lone Wolf (apparently naming your gang is important). The Snow Sisters are indeed sisters who work for their daddy who is in the house moving bizness (and probably does other stuff). The Young Guns are a young married couple, and the Lone Wolf is a older/middle-aged dude with an awesome mustache.

The premise is that the area around Ft. Worth, Texas, is booming, and everybody is getting rid of old houses to build new mansions. And so these teams go to the auctions to buy the old houses before they are torn down. If they win the auction, then they move the house to some trailer lot, where they fix up the house to be auctioned a second time, hopefully making a profit. Once the Young Guns bought a house that literally fell apart when they tried to move it. But another time they bought an old school portable building and turned it into a two-bedroom house with a workroom (and put plastic brick siding on the outside).

Anyhow, there's a lot of fun Texas-style banter among the teams as they try to outdo each other and make the highest profit. They are all amazing in their efforts to rehab houses. As is the auctioneer who sells the houses. I just wish I could see the rehabbed house moved to its permanent home. Although judging by the buyers who are shopping for the finished houses, there are a lot of lakes in Texas, because everyone wants a house "to put out at the lake".

So apparently Texas has a whole lot of interesting people out there. They certainly are putting out some entertaining television. But I have an idea for another - I do think it would be an interesting match to see a showdown between the Snow Sisters and the DCC Boss Ladies ...

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Thankful today for: family dinner; Lindley and Everley time; surprise package in the mail; afternoon rain shower; clean house thanks to Daniel

Humpty Dumpty Remix

So, in keeping with my "let's actually train" scenario, I decided to get out this morning and do a slow two-miles with KB. I couldn't be gone too long, since GDiz is in town, but I figured two miles would be a good recovery walk. And it was - until about the last mile. At that point, I stepped on something (a log, a stick, an acorn, a piece of sand) and my off-balance, non-correcting ankle decided to twist the wrong way. I tumbled to the ground, skinning my knee (no photo - skinned through my britches, although the britches sustained no damage) in the process.

Anyhoo, I sort of writhed on the ground a bit, with KB to the side desperately trying to help (probably deciding whether to call 911 or run to get the car). Eventually, as is the usual case, the pain subsided enough for me to get back on my feet (with KB's assistance) and hobble back to the car.

If this weren't such a common occurrence, I would probably deem it a catastrophe. However, since it has and does happen on occasion (I was not wearing my ankle supports), I pretty much know the routine - rest it and take some Tylenol. This will delay my actual walking training for awhile, but maybe I've learned my lesson - although which lesson it is, I'm not sure. Typical!!

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Thankful today for: getting two miles in; KB's help during mishap; MB bringing Whitt's BBQ for dinner

Happy Labor Day!!

Since I had to do laundry last night (because packed, damp, sweaty clothes are no picnic if you let them stew for a few days), I actually got unpacked. Which gave me a good start to today - trying to figure out what day it is and what else I need to be doing.

Steve is bringing up GDizzle for the week, but I got his bed ready before I left. I invited the family over for dinner, so I guess I'd better start thinking about that, which means a grocery store run. There's also a bunch of other stuff that needs attention - maybe I need to make a list for that. It's always nice to have a lot of options.

I'm just glad to be back home.

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Thankful today for: Steve and Gdiz's safe travel to Nashville; family dinner with chocolate pies; Lindley and Everley time

Just 13.1 Miles Through The Parks ... And Anaheim ...

After falling asleep last night around 8pm, I got a solid night's sleep, so waking up at 4:30am was no problem. Molly and I got up, got dressed, and headed to our corrals. At 5:30am, the first corral was sent off, and soon we all were on our way for the Disneyland Half Marathon!!

After wogging in and out and about Disneyland and California Adventure, we hit the streets of Anaheim, passing cheerleaders, bands, hula dancers, Spanish dancers, antique cars, and many supporters yelling encouragement. Eventually (around Mile 9), we made it to Angel Stadium! Once you enter the stadium and start running on the warning track, you're greeted by thousands of cheering fans! The announcer even announces your name as you show up (well, as many as he can read off the prompter of who has entered the stadium).

  

The good news is that once you leave the stadium, you're close to Mile 10 - only three more miles. Unfortunately, those three miles were pretty much in direct sunlight, and my body was about ready to give it up. But, thanks to more bands and cheerleaders and supporters, I managed to make it to the finish and then back to the hotel for a quick lay-down on the bed and shower before the shuttle picked us up for the airport.  This weekend I managed to snag four medals - one for the 10K, one for the half-marathon, one for the Dumbo Double Dare (doing both the 10K and the half-marathon), and one for the Coast to Coast Challenge (for doing a half-marathon both at Disney World and Disneyland in the same year). And if you're wondering where the 4th medal is, it's in yesterday's blog post.

Soon we were at the airport waiting for our flight back home to Nashville. The good news is that the flight wasn't full, so we weren't cramped together for the four-hour flight back home. God gave us a smooth, safe flight home and I actually finished reading a book on the way home! 

Another half-marathon is in the books. Our next planned one is in November, so it gives me a good incentive to see if I can do better with that one.

Guess I need to start training!!

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Thankful today for: all the supporters and groups along the course whose encouragement keeps us going; race volunteers who provide water and encouragement; a beautiful day for running and for flying; nice shuttle driver who pointed out the "Hollywood" sign on the mountains; sweet baby and mommy who shared a airplane row with me; sleeping in my own bed