Small things.

I picked some roses from my garden today,

placed them in a vase and gave them

to Mom to keep in her room.

I thought she would like them.

Who knew she would LOVE them?!

Sometimes it really is the small things that make such a difference.

May 1, 2014

I'm joining with another bloggy friend with the idea of photo journalling the first day of each month.  The photos (with no words) are to tell the story of what my day was all about.  I love this idea but found the concept much more difficult than I had thought it would be which is why I have words with my photos.  Perhaps next month I'll do a better job.

Putting on my face.

Off I go. . .

to pick up my shopping buddy

to do what else?  Shop!

Can you find my buddy?

So many purses - so little time.

Can you read the name on the advertisement card?

"Miranda Lambert".

Who knew she made shoes when she wasn't singing?

Lunch at Panda Express.

First time we had eaten there.

Yummy!

We drank a lot while we shopped.

*wink

Found a few goodies we simply

had to have.

Two new beach towels . . .

a purse and some earrings.

Home to cook a lousy dinner.

Clean up.

Daughter wasn't feeling well.

HK "read" a book to me.

Isn't she brilliant?

Not only does she read, but she reads upside down!

Lil' Mama had bought a new chair for HK - a 

"Time Out" chair.

HK loved it!

(that will change)

Mister and my Mom managed to elude the camera

but they were here too.

So ends my day of photo journalling.

Good night all!

Can this marriage be saved?

I'll keep this short and sweet  honest. . .

I looked out my window and saw a two foot
black snake 
sunning on our patio.

I called to Mister who took a look at said

snake and headed to the garage to get the hoe.

Along the way he "lolly-gagged", which means he walked slowly, even stopping by the bathroom to pee before returning with the hoe.  By this time said snake had slithered off to who-knows-where.

Oh-yes-I-am!

Oh-yes-he-IS!

There is trouble in paradise.

End of story.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

One of my new Bloggy friends (Nicole, at "Journey to Josie") does a monthly challenge on the first day of each month.  She simply asks that you take photos of your everyday life as it unfolds on the first day of each month, which would be TOMORROW.   I love the idea and am gonna join with her and do the same.  I'd love it if you'd choose to join her too. There's no link-up or anything special you need to do to join in the fun.

I'll post my photos tomorrow evening.

BTW, if you've never visited Nicole's blog you're in for a real treat if you stop by.  She takes beautiful photos and "that girl can WRITE"!  Just sayin. . .

Had a bout of gas.

Oh yeah, I.Got.Gas.
It's the only way I can make
myself stay in the dental chair.
Even the mask looks a little wonkie.
I'm smiling so you know I was flyin' high

in the land of nitrous oxide, which is aka
laughing gas, fly-to-the-moon, happy, happy,
I wish I could sit here longer, air.

"Peace on earth and goodwill to all men, women and animals."  Love.This.Gas.

I also love the fact that I don't have to go to the dentist again for 6 more months!

Beautiful places and sweet smiling faces

I've been blog-hopping looking at Easter through the photos of many blogging friends.  Maybe I've seen your photos.  Such fun getting to enjoy the holiday with so many people via blogging!  It's a little like getting to be everywhere at the click of a mouse, isn't it?

"Resurrection!"
One who was dead has come back to life.
I don't understand it all, but thank God I understand enough to know the importance of it all.  That's why we celebrate!

This Easter was exceptionally memorable because our church,

which is 15 yrs old, met for the very first time

in a building that was our very own, rather than

a rented space in a school.

It was the ultimate celebration for our group

of Believers!

Haylee Kate in her Easter dress.

Easter Dinner.

I must admit that I missed our extended family but I tried not to let that fact dampen our celebration.

We invited the young man that Lil Mama is dating to join us.

He is "new" to us so we're all getting acquainted.  He's a long way from his family in Maine.   I always love it when people invite our youngest son (who is single and lives away) to join them for the holiday when he can't be with us.  So, I guess I was trying to pay-it-forward by having another mother's son join us. It was a win/win.

"If you can't be with ALL the ones you love,
then you simply love ALL the ones you're with."

Someone should write a song about that,

don't ya think?  *wink*

Mystery in the Making

Do you like a good mystery?
If so I wish you could do a little sleuthing around my house.  It seems we have a mystery in the making.

The Case of the Missing Jeans

If you've followed me for any length of time you're probably aware that my Mom lives with us.  Dementia has made it necessary for her to have some assistance from day to day so living with us is how we make it all work. . .

A few months ago Mom began to tell me that some of her jeans were missing.  I didn't think much about it until I caught her (on multiple occasions) taking MY jeans off the drying rack on laundry day and jetting off to her room with them.  Wet jeans do have a way of all looking the same.  I understand.  At this point I wrote Mom's name inside her jeans so there'd be no confusion. . .Still, she was suspicious that I was the culprit behind her jeans that had gone missing.

To ease her mind a bit I began to do her laundry on a totally different day than I did the family laundry.  Didn't help a bit - she still thinks I have her jeans.

Today she actually went through my closet (while I was in the kitchen).  She took two pairs of my jeans into her room, laid them out on her bed. and called me in "for questioning".  As it turns out these were jeans I no longer wear (yes, I do need to clean out my closet).  I began to plead my case.  Told her if they fit to keep them.  At this point she's not decided if she's gonna keep them or not.

I don't know if some of Mom's jeans are actually missing "for real".  They could be misplaced in a drawer or in the back of her closet OR she could have left some in Tulsa the last time she visited with my sister.  I respect Mom's privacy and only go into her room to vacuum or clean as she watches.  So the mystery remains.

I'm off now to write MY name in MY jeans.

Things that make you smile.

In Living Color

They were lined up and in full bloom,

their colors waving in the breeze.

There's nothing like the first Spring day
of flower shopping.

Mom and I enjoyed the outing.

So many flowers.

I get my love of flowers from my Mom.

There was a time when I would do my

flower shopping with her because she could name the flowers and knew exactly what each needed regarding, sun/water/soil.  She taught me well.  Now she shops with me and I share the things she taught me with her. I could never have imagined this day.  We have gone full circle.  And, we make a pretty good team.

This is the basket we chose to hang outside her window. She'll take good care of it being sure it's watered regularly.  She'll mother it.  She'll enjoy it.  It will be a part of her life each day from now till the first frost in the Fall.

I was gonna get her a hanging flower basket for Mother's Day, but I decided not to wait.  She needed some Spring and she needed it now.  Why put off til tomorrow what you can enjoy today?

Do you enjoy flowers?

Here's a fun quiz to try, 

 "Which Flower Are You?".

I was a Sunflower!

Tell me which Flower you are.

I love to take these goofy quizzes.

.

Rant.

Behold!

A work of art.

A stroke of Genuis.

A person should definitely "write for their readers".
It's a fact.
With that thought in mind today's post is about "SIPPY CUPS".  What?  You don't find the subject fascinating?  Please hear me out, after all, what fun is it to rant if no one's listening?

Lately I've invested BIG bucks ($$) in all types, styles, and models of SIPPY CUPS.  (Sorry, but I can't even say the words, SIPPY CUP without shouting.)  It was so much simpler when my kids were little.  There were very few SIPPY CUPS at that time and the ones available were simple- a plastic cup with handles which had a lid with a small slit in it to drink from.  Have you looked at SIPPY CUPS lately?  They're complicated and have numerous parts and most include a straw of some type along with all sorts of colorful lids/tops.  Trouble is after one use it's necessary to disassemble the cup, clean it well, then put it all back together again (think "Rubic's cube"), at which time it's supposed to be usable again.

You don't want to know how much time I've spent cleaning these things, searching for lost straws, and trying to figure out why it's not working the second time out.  I've also searched in stores and on-line trying to find replacement straws cause heaven only knows not just any ol' straw will work.  Noooooo, you must have a particular type of straw that only fits that manufacturer's brand of SIPPY CUP.

Today there wasn't a straw in the entire house that would match up with the workings of the SIPPY CUPS we have.  So what's a YaYa to do -I made my own, sort of.  I made a small cut into a bottle nipple then put it into the bottle inverted and screwed the lid on.  Then I put a generic straw through the inverted nipple,  and  Wah Lah!  It worked!!  Little Missy took to it easily

and I may have gloated, strutted and sang my own praise for a while.  

It was glorious!  

Perhaps I need to patent this idea (?).

I'm getting a little carried away.

Later Lil' Mama came home from school and I did what normal people do in such a situation. . .

I went shopping and bought 6 more new cups.

I.Am.A.Woman.Obsessed.

Which is probably why God

intended that menopausal women

not give birth.

"You're Welcome."

Oh my.
There was a job to be done.
And, I knew it was up to me to do it.
Sometimes you just gotta roll up your sleeves and "get'er done".

Soooooo I gathered my supplies.

Dressed for the job. . .

Poured myself a little Margarita Sweet Tea
for refreshment.

And commenced to "Spring Clean"

the entire house!!

Boudxy's house!
Hosed down, Lysol-ed, flea-sprayed
and ready for a new season.

He let me take his photo as he snuggled
in for the night IF I promised not to tell
anyone he sleeps on a pink blankie.
(The male ego is a fragile thang', ya know.)

This story may or may not have been embellished a bit, but the fact is that I did get Boudxy's house sparkling clean.  My own house?  It's gonna be tough to squeeze much of a "Spring Clean" into my routine this year. Now if anyone asks if I've done my Spring Cleaning I can honestly say I "Spring Cleaned" the entire house.  I just won't tell them it's Boudxy's house I'm talking about.

If you want to borrow this idea feel free to do so.
"You're welcome."

E-I-E-I-Ohhhhh!

Old McDonald's got nothing on me,

(except a farm and some animals)

but other than that I'm right there with

him.  Take a "look-see". . .

Bunnies.

Chicks.

And things that grow in the dirt.

Chives.

Dill.

I happened by a Farm Supply Store yesterday.
I travel the same highway each and every week when I take Mom for her weekly beauty shop appointment.  Funny, I had never noticed this store before.  I think Spring causes one to view things differently, doncha think?  I made a quick stop to buy the herb plants, and (once I got past the smell) I enjoyed watching the bunnies and the chicks.  Spring has definitely sprung in my part of the world.  

When we lived in Oklahoma I put out a small garden each year.  Since moving to LA I've tried, but given up the idea of having any type of garden.  I fought the fight, but the rabbits won!  They eat anything and everything I've tried to grow.  My Dad ALWAYS had a garden and I think of him at every turn this time of the year especially.  I just can't let a growing season pass without planting something.  I know he would be happy to know that. This year I'm gonna have three herbs pots, Mint (planted yesterday), Chives, and Dill.

I like mint in my "Sweet Tea".
Chives on my baked potato and in salads.
Dill?  I love dill, but other than dip, I don't really know how to use it.
Any ideas?

April 2nd Day!

April 2.
Poor little neglected day hardly gets any attention after all the antics of it's forerunner.  Here is what April 2nd looked like for me.

Laundry to be folded.

Drying rack was placed on the patio - UNTIL the rain began.  Then it was all brought inside.  Very attractive, don't you think?!

Pulled pork slowly cooking and making the house smell WON-DER-FUL.  (I still use my old vintage crockpot much more often than my new one  - nothing cooks like it does.)

New mint plant.

Potted and moved to it's home

on the front porch where it waits 

(and hopefully grows)

to merge with a Summer pitcher of good ol' yummy

Sweet Tea!

April 1st may be lots of fun,

but April 2nd is when all the work

gets done.

(Gee, that rhymes!)

Hope you've had a good, productive day!