Waiting

If you've ever been to Disney World, you know about waiting.  You wait to check into the resort, you wait to get your tickets, you wait to get your bag checked, you wait to process your entry, you wait to see the characters, you wait to ride the rides, you wait for the parades and fireworks, you wait to order your food, you wait - well, you get (and remember) the picture.

This trip is no different, except I've been waiting for another reason - waiting to see if the stomach bug that attacked Mathieu, Maribeth, and Everley came with me to Florida.  Judging by the viciousness that the bug attacked them, I have absolutely no desire to experience it.  And, after rocking Baby E for a bit on Thursday night (when she needed to express herself, or should I say barf on herself and me), I figure I stand a good chance.

So I've been waiting.  Waiting for that first stomach grumble that will indicate the roller coaster ride my stomach will board.  Waiting and pondering every bite and meal I eat, wondering how I will consider the food should it make a repeat appearance coming up the opposite digestive track.  Waiting to see if the bug will claim my body as its next victim.

So far the bug hasn't reared its ugly head (knock on wood, knock on the wood-looking vinyl floor, and knock on the plastic wood grain in the car).  I'm not sure exactly when I will decide that the bug danger is over, so I guess I'll just keep waiting.

At least I'm in a place where waiting is the norm ...

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The Good Stuff From Today:  Merle helping us get into our new room; unpacking; Le Cellier lunch and our cast member; dinner at Kona and Sandy; Tinkerbell picture with Molly

Vacation?

When some people vacation, they like to just sit on a beach or on their porch in the mountains and just sit.  Other people like to go places to be entertained and work on being entertained until they drop from exhaustion.  I like to go on vacation and get something accomplished in addition to sitting and being entertained.  Here's what Molly and I did today ...

First we got up and went to Typhoon Lagoon.  We went with the sole purpose of riding the lazy river.  Which we did, for one loop.  At that point we decided to get out and sit on the beach to dry off and read magazines.  We then had enough time to make a Wal-Mart run for needed supplies, return to our room, change clothes, and head to Epcot for lunch at TuTu's Italian place, which was quite delicious.

We returned to our rooms and proceeded to work on our project which is our coupon project.  A few weeks ago, Molly decided to start couponing and enlisted Mathieu and me to join her.  Basically she will handle organizing the coupons and finding the deals, and Mathieu and I will do the shopping.  **NOTE - this will not be the show where I go and buy 273 boxes of Ex-Lax because I have the coupons.  I will only buy 79.**

Anyhow, after a initial trip last week that yielded 2 razors and 1 candy bar that ended up being free, I was game to start this new adventure.  So, Molly brought all the coupons that she had downloaded (which were probably 600) and her organizer stuff in the car with us.  For the next few hours, we organized coupons and planned our strategy.  At some point we called time, and left to do some shopping at the outlet mall and have dinner (both of which had questionable results).

So, what is vacation?  It's just what you make it and want it to be for you.  For us, it's a little rest and relaxation, a little fun, a lot of eating, a lot of shopping, and maybe even a little of work.  The important thing is to do stuff that we enjoy without the hassle of being at home and all the stuff we need to do there.  In other words, we had a great day!!

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The Good Stuff From Today:  lazy river-ing with Molly; lasagna lunch; outlet and Wal-Mart shopping; rain showers; crazy dinner eating; coupon organizing

Road Trip!!!

After last night's fun activity, I was wondering how this morning was going to proceed.  Molly and I had planned to leave at 5am, but I was half-expecting a call from Maribeth saying that I could not leave because Baby E would not get well without me (just a little granny-guilt overload for leaving the granddaughter to go to Disney).  But with no call, I decided that perhaps she would recover without me present, and I would go ahead and leave. 

Although Molly texted me at 4am saying she was ready to go whenever I was, I didn't get things going until 5.  Molly came to our house and we eventually got going around 6am.  Here's what we did to pass the time:

*stopped at Sonic for lunch even though this one no longer serves biscuits*stopped at Quik Trip for gas and goodies*listened to Williams and Ree's DVD*stopped at Chic Fil A for lunch with a manager named Merri Beth*stopped at another gas station for gas*played triva games via Molly's iPhone*tried to listen to the Oprah radio network on Steve's first-edition satellite radio but could never find it*listened to Blue Collar Comedy network but never heard any comedy*listened to NPR until I couldn't take it anymore (which was about a minute)*researched cruise and dining plan options*Molly napped*ate snacks*took instagram photos*texted to check on Everley

And all that was in the first hour!!

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The Good Stuff From Today:  safe road trip; relatively good reports about Everley; dinner at Boatwrights; great room location; security kiosk dude

Packing and Puking

Basically the story here is that I needed to pack for a road trip with Molly.  My plan was to be packed by 9:30 pm and have the car loaded.  (I also wanted to deep-clean the house and rearrange the furniture, but that didn't look possible in the two hours I had left before the designated time, although the thought remained in my head as a possibility). Anyhoo, at some point Maribeth texted to say that Baby E (aka Everley, although who knows how long she will go by the nickname of Baby E) had just thrown up all over her and the bed.  By the time I texted back, Baby E had repeated the performance and the second load of sheets was headed for the laundry.  I volunteered for a Wal-Mart run for Pedialyte and a thermometer (since theirs had gone missing/was out of batteries).

I arrived at their house with supplies and went in to hold E awhile so her parents could make some headway in the laundry department.  We gave her a few sips of water - which she didn't tolerate for long - and we rocked in the chair for a bit.  Once Mathieu and Maribeth and cleaned up and gotten their wits about them, they took over and I returned home to pack.

Once home, I reverted to my usual method of packing, which is to count how many days I will be gone and throw in a proportionate number of underwears, capris, shirts, and assorted other clothing.  Of course, this was AFTER I had taken a sanitizing shower (think Meryl Streep in "Silkwood").

Anyhoo, eventually I ended up with a packed suitcase, pretty much on time.  Which just goes to show you that if you take time to get the important stuff done (like rock a sick baby), the other stuff gets done, too!

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The Good Stuff From Today:  Burgers at the Doik with the family; Lindley and Everley time; sick Everley time; getting suitcase packed

A Few Words From Dr. Seuss

After Mississippi State lost in the finals of the College World Series, a friend of a friend posted this quote on facebook.  It's a great quote because sometimes in a moment of defeat, we tend to focus on only the negative.  Instead, we should examine the things that went well, the things that we enjoyed, the things that prove how valuable we are, and the things that make it all worthwhile.

Sure, it may be over, but there was plenty to celebrate while it was going on!

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The Good Stuff From Today:  getting the check in the mail; sweet note from Emily; Lindley and Everley time; picking up Lindley from school

Because It's Summer ...

Love her, love the picture, and it makes me feel cooler just looking at it!!

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The Good Stuff From Today:  4 miles down Belmont with KB; watching MSU baseball

Just A Little Swimming With LaLa

Wonder if they make this swimsuit in my whale size ...

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The Good Stuff From Today:  park workout with KB; Everley time at the pool

One Step At A Time

This should be my life motto.  It seems that every life activity has a beginning, which requires making that first step.  It may be deciding to start something and actually starting it, or deciding to stop doing something and actually say no, or making that conscious effort to move forward rather than just staying put and wishing for forward progress. It just always seems the first step is the hardest, so matter how many steps you know it's going to take to reach your goal. 

Today during our training walk, Bruce took this picture of Moo, KB, Sha-Sha, and me.  I love it not only because of the reference to the Beatles' iconic picture, but because it says so much to me about taking those important steps.  It reminds me that I may have to lead or I may have someone to follow or there may be somebody following me.  It reminds me that I'm really never alone.  It reminds me that sometimes it's important to have supplies along the way to keep me motivated to keep going.  It reminds me that if there's a goal, there's a way to get there - and it always starts with that first step.  But most of all, it reminds me that wherever the road leads, it's a blessing to go there with friends!

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The Good Stuff From Today:  4 miles with Udderly Pink; Noshville lunch; safe travel home for Steve; boiled shrimp lunch with most of the family; Maribeth setting up my Kindle Fire; Lindley and Everley time

Just Another Training Day ...

Yeah, we entered anyway ....

Yeah, this was from last week, but aren't we cute?!

Today was another training walk for Team Udderly Pink.  Our goal was eight miles, which we came pretty close to accomplishing.  Today Bruce joined us while KB took the morning off to take care of her mom.  We stayed on task, mostly because Bruce led the charge and kept us from straying to Dunkin Doughnuts, Starbucks, Pancake Pantry, or any such distraction.  Dang that Bruce!!

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The Good Stuff From Today:  8 miles with most of the team; Sonic-ing with Molly and Charity; Everley and Lindley time; Sam picking up Taco Bell and Which Wich; couponing for free stuff

Game Time!

Today Mississippi State played a baseball game in the College World Series that would determine if they would be in the finals.  It was nerve wracking, but Everley and I found something to do with our hands instead of biting our fingernails off while watching the above-mentioned game ...

 

First you have to make sure you have all the right tools.

Keep working, with one eye on the game and one on the task at hand.

Almost done, but it's time to celebrate - the Bulldogs won!!

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 The Good Stuff From Today:  Everley time and assembling the trike; MSU Bulldog baseball win

The Outside Equivalent of Inside Cat Hair

That would be weeds.  Weeds, weeds, weeds.  In every flower bed, in between the shrubs, swirling amongst the leaves.  I went out today with the intention of pulling some of the weeds out, but quickly became disenchanted with the whole process.  Sure, the big fat weeds were easy to spot and yank out.  The viney-type weeds weren't too difficult, once I was able to trace them through and around the leaves.  But the rest of the weeds were horrible.  Tiny here and tiny there with roots which apparently had the holding power of Atlas.  In other words, this was, is, and never shall be the job for me.

Guess I'll go back to sweeping/dusting/vacuuming cat hair ... Or not ...

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The Good Stuff From Today:  getting my desk decluttered and shelf hung; Jeanne's donation to the 3-Day; good report from KB's mom's knee surgery; Steve's safe but delayed flight home; Molly visit

'Tis The Season

Sure it's summer.  Sure there are a lot of fun things that go along with summer.  Sure there are a lot of things that aren't so fun about summer.  But until today, I had forgotten about the not-funnest thing about summer.  What is it, you say?  Two words - cat hair.  Specifically, the shedding of said hair.

Normally I don't pay that much attention to cat hair, possibly due to the fact that I don't pay that much attention to cleaning the house and sweeping and dusting and such.  But today I have been met with the undeniable fact that I have cats, because they have left their hair everywhere.

I wiped off my desk and five minutes later when Maggie decided to proof read my emails, she brought (or should I say left) her hair to my work area.  There's cat hair on my desk, there's cat hair on my floor, there's cat hair everywhere.

Some might say that this just might be the impetus for me to start a regular house-cleaning habit.  That's like saying that busting a button on my pants just might be the impetus for me to lose weight.  Sadly, neither is true.  Instead I shall have to just gather the cat hair as I find it/it irritates me and then go find a safety pin for my pants.

A friend of mine had her cat shaved to help with her cat hair problem.  I'll do that right after I give the cat a bath.  And I purchase and squeeze in to a pair of skinny jeans.  There's just too much to be done before either of those happen!

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The Good Stuff From Today:  getting this and that accomplished

Fantasy Vs. Reality On A Tuesday

Fantasy:  What my brains says today will look like, with lots of ideas and projects and lists of things to do:

Reality:  What my body chooses to do instead ...

I chose the kitty picture in hopes that it will assuage my guilt.  And it did.  For maybe 6 seconds.  Until reality once again reared its ugly head.

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The Good Stuff From Today:  lunch with Molly; Lindley and Everley time; MB bringing drinks and watching Duggar tv;

Commentators

I'm not exactly what you would call a "sports fanatic."  I do enjoy watching some sports in person or on television.  But that's just it - I like watching the sport - not listening to the dudes (or dudettes) in the booth offering their observations on what's going on.  I especially do not like listening to the older dudes who like to bring in stories of their "glory days" which, after listening to their stories, weren't really all that glorious.

I bring that up because tonight, as I watch Mississippi State play baseball in the College World Series, it dawned on me how interesting it would be if I had a commentator giving a play-by-play on my daily life and activities.  Would it go something like this?

Jackie Joe:  I see Luanne has managed to hoist her butt off the couch during a commercial break while watching "Law and Order."  I believe that would be Season 4, Episode 7, wouldn't you say Billy Bob?

Billy Bob:  Yes, I believe you're right.  Jack McCoy vs that drug dealer.  Luanne is headed for the kitchen.  I'm thinking a glass of chocolate milk - how about you, Jackie?

Jackie Joe:  No, Bill.  She had some ice cream just after Mr. Big busted down the drug dealer's door.  She'll go for something salty now.  And there she goes!!  Ritz Bits!  That reminds me of the time I ate some crackers ....

The bigger question is, if I did have somebody announcing my every move, would that make me more aware of what I was doing, and why I was doing it, and becoming more accountable for what I was doing?  But maybe I do have that announcer - like maybe my conscience?  Hmmm ...  maybe I just need to turn up the volume.

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The Good Stuff From Today:  Park workout with KB; Everley time; Steve bringing lunch; cleaning house a tiny bit; Steve's safe but bumpy flight up north; watching MSU play baseball in CWS

Training Has Begun

This weekend marked the first week that Udderly Pink,  our 3-Day Breast Cancer Walk team has officially done back to back training walks.  Yesterday we did 7ish and today we did 6ish.  Although it's been a year since we've had to train, it's amazing how quickly the agony and the ecstasy returned.  The icky news is that we've only begun - in the next few months (yes, summer in Nashville) our mileage will only increase.  As will the temperature.

Today's walk was fun.  We meandered around town, noticing stores and places that we've never noticed even though we've all lived here for awhile.  We stopped and made pictures, stopped and had a doughnut and frozen hot chocolate, and stopped for a little window shopping.  It was a good first back-to-backer.

The good thing is that as a team, we're pretty good.  That means we're all slow and prone to want to stop at the same places.  We laugh a lot and talk a lot and get confused a lot (which is why Molly is along - to guide the elderly).  Each of us is getting closer to our donation goals (and you can donate here if you want) and looking forward to those 60 miles in 3 days in Washington, D.C.

We're just hoping there's a Krispy Kreme on the route!!

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The Good Stuff From Today:  6 miles with the team; chicken pasta dinner with most of the family; Lindley and Everley time; safe travel from Omaha for Sam and Steve; finishing the Batman trilogy

Stuff I Need To Do ...

Ummm, like update this blog on the day you're supposed to?

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The Good Stuff From Today:  7 training miles with KB and Sharon; Sharon's house good news; Lindley and Everley time; MSU win;  Batman movie marathon

Just Another Davidson Vacay

Back in the old days, before he went beserk, O.J. Simpson was a television commercial star who ran through airports.  I bring that up only to say that I wish I could have been in the Nashville airport today - I think I could have seen Sam do the same thing (as in run through the airport, not go beserk).  But I digress - let me explain. 

Recently, the Mississippi State University baseball team won the regional tournament (or something like it) and qualified to go to the College World Series in Omaha.  Although he wouldn't be able to stay for the entire weekend, Steve decided that he and Sam would go and see MSU play their first game.

Steve made flight and hotel reservations and then made a call or two to see if some of his friends can get him two premium tickets to the game (meaning free).  Somebody came through and was going to have his people FedEx the tickets to Steve that would arrive this morning.

Steve went to work and texted me several times to see if the tickets had arrived - which they hadn't.  He came home early for lunch and Sam came over so I could take them both to the airport for a 1:15 flight.  While he was at home, he called his connection to report that no tickets had arrived (and then starting looking for tickets online).

Since Steve likes to get to the airport early before a flight (preferably the day before or at least 18 hours before the flight leaves), it was obvious that we were going to have to leave with no tickets.  As we were going to get in the car for the airport run, I asked what was I supposed to do if I got back to the house and the tickets were there.  We had a brief discussions of options should that scenario happen, but nobody seemed too enthusiastic about the possibilities.

During the car ride, Judy/Julie/Jill/Whatever-her-name-was called Steve to offer apologies about no tickets and tell him they had tracked the tickets and were going to re-route them to their hotel and hopefully the tickets would be there tomorrow morning.  I let Sam and Steve out and went back home.

Once I was at home, I couldn't pull into my driveway because it was blocked - yep, by the FedEx truck.  Ms. FedEx lady was walking back down my sidewalk after depositing the envelope (yes, with the tickets) in my front door.  I scurried up the lawn, yanked the tickets, and called Sam, knowing that if I called Steve there would be way too much drama.

Sam and I devised a plan where he would come back through security (he was in the Delta or American or PuddleJumper executive lounge while Steve was somewhere down in the Southwest suburb area).  He would do this without telling Steve, because Sam was not into the drama either.  I drove a bit over the speed limit, pulled up to the departing passenger lane, and threw the tickets out the window to Sam (I might have pulled up on the curb, but we needed a little drama).  Sam grabbed the tickets and ran back through the doors to the airport to go back through security and head for the gate - with not too much time to spare.

As a mother of adult children, I knew better than to call/text to see the results.  I patiently waited until I got a text from Sam simply saying, "Made it!"  Sure enough, he made it on the plane (Steve had already boarded) and gave the tickets to a very surprised Steve, who said Sam was a little sweaty, obviously from his dash down three different concourses to get to the gate.

I am telling you about this because it's pretty typical of our vacation travel.  Once we were in Portland and were told we had no hotel reservation in a city where the hotel were all full (we did, and since I travel with a "travel folder", I had a copy - and nobody made fun of my travel folder any more!).  We ended up with a room, possibly the smallest room ever, but we managed to get four people in it.

We also mess up flight reservations, have flights that are late and arrive too late for planned activities, have been assigned rooms and unlocked them to find people already staying in them, and been given rental cars that we would never have chosen - but they were the only ones left.  In other words, we try to roll with whatever vacation burps come up.

Because in the end, the tickets may not come, or the flight may be late, or it may rain, but those things really don't matter.  We find a way to work around those things.  The only thing that really matters is spending time together.  And hopefully not with complete strangers who are occupying our assigned hotel room!!

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The Good Stuff From Today:  Lindley and Everley time; picking up Lindley from school; Calypso dinner with half the family; ticket arrival

What I Do Instead of Mopping The Floor ...

To be clear, she's saying, "Net Net" because for some reason that is her name for Lynnette (to be fair, Lindley's name for Maribeth is BoBo and Molly is Moo, so we're not singling anybody out).  Anyhoo, I had my camera and manged to take a video and the rest is a result of wasting time trying to get it to load on my computer and then finding some buttons and tabs to create my "movie."

Now to go find that mop ...

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The Good Stuff From Today:  Two miles with KB down Belmont; Sam's help with cruise changes; Lindley time and princess bun; travel planning with Molly; Starbucks and pink backpack

Gallon #3

Today I donated another pint of blood, bringing my total to 3 gallons.  It's just literally a drop in the bucket compared to Albert, but it's a start.  And it's more than those who give no thought to blood donation and a wish for all those who would love to donate but can't because of various health reasons.

There are plenty of places to donate - I go to the Red Cross.  Sometimes I see the regular techs, and sometimes I get a newbie.  Sometimes my initial finger prick says my blood is a "go" and sometimes I get the other hand's finger pricked for a double check (which ends up being okay).  Sometimes I barely feel the needle go in, and sometimes I sense a heightened meaning of "a stick and a sting."  Sometimes I get a bruise of various sizes and sometimes I can barely see any evidence that a needle went in.  Sometimes I get a special prize for donating and sometimes I get the usual juice and pretzels.  But no matter what, I always leave with the sense that I did something good for the day.

According to various internet searches, a gallon of blood weighs around 8.5 pounds.  Which means I should weigh around 25 pounds less.  Hmmm...  Maybe too many post-donation pretzels??

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The Good Stuff From Today:  giving blood and Tech Robin; visiting Everley at her house; dinner and movie with Maribeth

It's That Time Of Year ...

To register for the Princess Half-Marathon Weekend.  You know you've been waiting for a race to enter, whether it's a 5K, 10K, or half marathon.  You know you've been waiting for the opportunity to dress up in a princess outfit and not be stared at by the 5-years olds who are waiting in line to meet Cinderella.  You know that you want to see if I am as incredibly slow as I tell you I am (I mean, how can anybody be THAT slow).  You know you want to do this race, so SIGN UP NOW!!  I'll meet you at the start line.  And if you don't run off ahead of me, I'll see you at the finish line.  Unless you do run off and leave me, then we'll email each other.  Do it.  Sign up!

Oh, and in case you are wondering, there IS a 4-night Disney cruise that leaves on the Sunday after the half-marathon.  Just in case you needed to be on that, too.

See you at the race!!

Before the race - breakfast of champions - Diet coke and Gatorade!

This brings new meaning to the thought of Cinderella dancing.

And a good time was had by all!

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 The Good Stuff From Today:  4 miles down Belmont with KB; MB and E bringing lunch; meeting Miranda; Udderly Pink updates

Every Now And Then, Even I Have A Limit ...

This just screams all kinds of no to me ...

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The Good Stuff From Today:  Everley time; Starbucks via Mathieu; dinner via Steve; new DL arrival; repotting plant

Dude Turns 50 Today ...

... sigh.

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The Good Stuff From Today:  travel planning with Molly; Mathieu picking up Factory for lunch; Molly picking up pancakes for breakfast; Everley and Lindley water play and wagon time; Tony watching with Molly; safe travel home for Steve

How You Can Recognize Me On Vacation ...

I will be uncannily similar to the woman to the left.  Yes to the outfit, yes to the neck pouch, yes to the hair.  And especially yes to the, "Look at them tall buildings over thar!"

Some may call it touristy tacky - I prefer to think of it as "showing a profound enthusiasm for something new and exciting, thus proliferating one's love of lifelong learning!"

Yup, I can bull*&%# with the best of them!!

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The Good Stuff From Today:  5 miles with KB; Puffy Muffin and Sonic to see Charity with KB and Molly; Lindley and Everley time; spaghetti dinner with most of the family; watching MSU win on tv; getting a room or two cleaned up

Signs of Summer ...

Sure, the kids are out of school and temperatures are rising, but I prefer to look for the true signs of the approaching summer:

1.  Ads for movies that I might actually think about going to the movie theater to see.
2.  That constant battle of open the windows, close the windows, turn on the ac, turn off the ac, open the windows, repeat ...
3.  The sound of my head banging against a wall because I pulled out my bathing suit, tried it on, and am disconsolate because I did not work harder to get in shape/lose weight during the winter.
4.  Attempting to find shorts that (a) fit, (b) aren't hopelessly stained with whatever I did last summer, and (c) might be acceptable in public other places than Wal Mart.
5.  Staring in the mirror wondering if I could pull off cutting my hair short - really short - without looking like Bozo the Clown.
6.  Trying to embrace that "constant dewy look" that only Nashville humidity can bring.
7.  Enjoying the flowers in the yard - then realizing that I need to pull the weeds, trim the hedges, deadhead the blooms, fertilize the plans, mulch the beds ...
8.  Reiterating how hot it is at Disney in July ...  then booking a vacation there anyway.

Yup - summer's coming!!

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The Good Stuff From Today:  2 miles in the 'hood; Mathieu picking up Calypso for dinner; dinner with L&L and M&M&E; movie watching at home

Somebody Needs To Kick It ...

My latest television obsession is "Tabatha Takes Over."  Basically, Tabatha goes to a business that is having problems and basically kicks butt.  She works over the staff and the physical surroundings, and hopefully changes the business for the better.  I like it because I like seeing something crappy turn into something good.

So naturally I wondered what would happen if she came to my house (and me) and took over.  What kind of things would she kick my butt about?  She pulls no punches and tells it like it is, so I can imagine what she would say to me.

She only stays a week with the businesses, and then leaves in hopes that the business will continue with the positive changes.  Could she change me in a week?  Would I be able to keep up with the changes?

Maybe it's time to channel my inner-Tabatha.  My inner-Luanne needs a good butt-kicking!!

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The Good Stuff From Today:  Everley time; morning rain; actually almost cleaning a room; registering for Princess weekend

Cats ...

If you have them, you know you can't live with them and you can't live without them.  I've had them since the beginning of time (mine, anyway), starting back with the cats I grew up with on the farm.  In fact, that's pretty much how I learned how/where babies come from when I witnessed my cat giving birth (and promptly went and demonstrated the technique to my grandmother).  Although I probably also witnessed how (cat) babies were created (we didn't really advocate pet population control back in the Dark Ages), I probably had no idea what I was witnessing (for which my grandmother would have been thankful not to have seen me reenact).

Anyhow, since those early years, I have rarely gone without a cat.  They have taken turns loving me, irritating me, entertaining me, infuriating me, and everything else-ing me.  And just when I think I might have them somewhat figured out, they still have a way of surprising me.

For instance, tonight, as I sat at my desk attempting to get something done, I kept hearing a paper-wrestling noise.  I knew Maggie was afoot, but figured she must be scratching the empty box she has recently taken as her room (and I have yet to remove) or scratching some other paper that was left unattended.  The noise was beginning to bug me, so I turned around and saw this:

The question is, why is the cat in the filing cabinet?  I tried to read her mind (since she refused to answer my question) and have come up with the following answers:

1. Maggie is in the filing cabinet because she had some questions about the house - mainly to see if her name was on the deed.

2.  She was trying to be helpful and be ready in case I needed her to file some papers.

3.  It is her weight control check.  If she can fit into the file, then she doesn't need to lose weight.

4.  It's my filing cabinet - wait, it's her filing cabinet and she wanted to make sure that I knew it.

5.  She's a cat - like she needs a reason for anything!!

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The Good Stuff From Today:  Safe travel to Florida and back for Steve; Red Lobster lunch with M&M&M&E; mindless Wal-Mart/Target shopping; rain showers; park workout with KB and Cindy

Little Pitchers, Big Ears

Lindley has reached the age where she hears everything you say.  And usually has a question about what you said, or what she heard, or what she's thinking about it all.   For example, on our recent tram ride from the ship to the beach, the automated tram announcement was playing and ended with, "And remember, no smoking."  To which Lindley promptly asked, "What's smoking?"  To which Molly replied after thinking about/stumbling for an answer, "Something that you never want to do."

Clearly we've reached the point where spelling becomes necessary.  The only problems with that are, (1) I feel sometimes like I need pencil and paper to write down the spelling to get it straight, and (2) I have a feeling even our spelling time is limited before somebody figures out what we're talking about.

In other words, we need to watch what we are saying in front of little people with big ears - or at least big listening skills.

Which brings me to our lesson for tonight.  I began to think what would happen if everything that manages to come out of my mouth was heard by those I didn't want to hear it?  What if those mean judgmental words about someone were said so that someone could hear them?  And what if those people could spell (if I thought spelling mean things would be more noble)?  What would I do?

The answer of course, is to keep my mouth under control and not say things that I wouldn't want anybody to hear.  To stop saying anything that might hurt or dishonor someone and instead only say things that would honor and praise someone.  Wouldn't that be easier to manage than having to monitor the other stuff?  I think so - I just have to start working on it.  Come to think of it, maybe it's not the big ears I have to worry about - I just need to worry with my big mouth.

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The Good Stuff From Today:  early morning walk down Belmont with KB; a few slow laps at the Y swimming pool; homemade strawberry jam from Bill Crocs

Point A to Point B

Supposedly the fastest way from Point A to Point B is a straight line.  Which makes sense.  On paper.  The real issue is if you are at Point A and want to get to Point B.  How straight the line doesn't matter - what matters is how long the dang line is, and how long it's going to take to get you there.

Then there's the problem with whatever detours, disasters,  and diversions there may be on that straight line.  And whether the straight line is even fun - maybe a different line would be be more exciting and worth the extra time.  Maybe the whole idea from Point A to Point B is not the destination, but the journey.  If that's so, then who the heck cares if a straight line is the fastest way?

All I know is that for me, when I'm at Point A and headed in the direction of Point B, I want to get there.  As in immediately.  Whether it's at the end of a trip and I'm headed home, or at the beginning of a program to get me in shape or to lose weight, I want to be done with it and at the finish line - like right now.  I don't care if it's a straight line or a squiggly line or whatever - I just want to get to Point B.

Which usually leaves me at Point A.  Which is not where I want to be, as in Point B.  So the only solution is to get going - whether it's to step onto the plane, or write out a menu, or do whatever it takes me to get on the path and moving - straight line or not!

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The Good Stuff From Today:  Everley time; finishing Lindley's photo book and taking it to her; ordering replacement cards for those lost last week; sweet note from Susanna

Then We Had To Leave The Boat And Go Home

My sentiments exactly, Baby E!!

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The Good Stuff From Today:  safe, smooth flight home; sleeping in my own bed

Castaway Saturday ...

Somehow, when it comes to grand-parenting, the ratio of happiness and fun is somehow directly proportional to the amount of grandparent worn-outness ....

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The Good Stuff From Today:  Beautiful start to Castaway Cay; family beach cabana; couch naptime with Everley; awesome Disney Channel movie watching with Molly