Yesterday was my pup’s 12th birthday. I remember when she used to be able to climb up the rocker/recliner and perch herself on the top to look out the window. She can barely get herself up the stairs now, and can’t make it down at all. I hate watching her suffer the natural side affects of age.
There is one thing that hasn’t changes in 12 years though and that is her fear of a thunder storm or loud sounds like fireworks. It’s our fault, the first thing we took her to the day after getting her as a new pup was a fireworks show at a local park. I didn’t even think about it until the show started and she searched for a place to hide. She buried her head under my arm and shook like crazy. To this day you can find her safely tucked in a ball under my bed on the night of July 4th.
(more…)
Yes, it was a sad fate for Beethoven this morning at my house. His small ceramic bust has been on display atop a piano for over 20 years now. I earned him when I was a young girl/teen through several years of a music festival program. His 8 inches paled in comparison to his 18 inch bronze, Mozart counterpart but his pure white and glossy finish gave him an air of distinction. Unfortunately for him, it wasn’t enough to save him.
(more…)
I’m singing the TV blues today. You see, I’m spoiled. I’ve come to expect a lot out of TV viewing with DVRs and big pictures. It’s all about bigger, badder best, and if you’re married it’s likely that you’ve been exposed to a lot of blue smoke to justify the new toys and their price tag. My hubby got one of those newest, biggest, baddest, best TVs about 8 weeks ago. I’m not going to complain about the new TV, it’s been great - the huge screen and picture quality are awesome and there’s nothing like enjoying the few TV shows we like on the big screen. But I’m not sure I’m sold on the technology. When we bought our TV at the end of January there was such hype over the new 6 color lamp. Apparently the old flat panel technology was a 3 color lamp. So the concept is deeper colors, etc. Okay, now I’m great with the idea of enhancement but our lamp already died. We’re assured that this is not a normal thing and our lamp must have been defective and with it under warranty it’s no cost to us to replace it. That is no financial cost, but the personal cost has been high. You see, it went out late last Thursday, and because it’s so new they had to order a new lamp as no one in the entire Phoenix valley had one in stock (how is that even possible?) Today is delivery day. So it’s now been 6 nights of no DVR and watching TV on the smaller set in our bedroom. It absolutely killed me to have the TV dictating our schedule these past few nights knowing I wouldn’t have the ability to pause or delay starting programs. And guess what? Everyone and their dog calls or stops by when you can’t pause the show you want to watch!
(more…)
Who needs sand, sun and ocean? Apparently all my kids need are beach towels, swimsuits and imagination. Spring fever is an understatement for their readiness of summer.
Technorati Tags:
Family Parenting Motherhood
I like new things. I like new weeks that start off right, new growth that comes with spring and new determination that comes from the adrenaline of starting or beginning something. Today was the beginning of normality again for me after a week of spring break. This morning marked the end of mounting house demolition and return of order and cleanliness. After a week of kids out of school and a weekend to boot, the place looked like it’d been attacked by the Cat in the Hat. I determined to stay off the computer until I could relax with a clean home. Now it’s done, the kids are at school and I’m ready to dig into some computer time. And it’s been a slight break on my blog too with crazy things happening and the kids out of school, so it’s nice to dig back in. *wink*
I couldn’t help but look around my home yesterday and wonder if anyone else’s looks like mine with “regular” use. It seems I’ve been picking clothes up (not to mention myself after missing a few of the stairs on the way down - yipes), wiping down counters and bathrooms with antibacterial wipes and running the washer and dryer all day…oh wait, I HAVE been doing all that. *laugh* My son was happy to have some help finding his room this morning. He does an okay job picking things up but he really appreciates having mom come and help go through all the toys and get everything back together. Funny how those toys are so much more fun to play with when all the pieces are together. It was like a trip to the toy store for all the stuff we found together. And I think he went through at least a half dozen wipes helping me clean his bathroom. I love that he loves to help.
The yard got some serious attention this weekend too. We had really hot weather (broke records even) last week and the unusual heat wave really brought new life to a new level. We got rid of all the dead stuff and everything is flourishing. I’m sure it will unrecognizable in another couple of weeks. I was so happy to see green buds in my ficus tree that was hit so hard with frost this winter, and blossoms on our citrus tree this year. Yay! And of course more roses!
So what’s new in your neck of the woods?
Technorati Tags:
Family Parenting Gardening Homemaker Inspiration Housework Success Blogging
Well, for the first time I seriously considered voting last night for every OTHER contestant on American Idol like 50 times just to help make sure Sanjaya goes home this week. I didn’t have the patience, but I thought about it! All I can say is that if he doesn’t there is no justice in the universe. Of course, he’s already made it much farther than he should have so unfortunately even though it would be supremely disappointing if he didn’t go home tonight it wouldn’t be a surprise either. It’s not that I hate the kid, I just think he doesn’t belong with the vocal talent he’s in the mix with. Without fail, every time he hits the stage I find myself frustrated that I can barely hear him and wishing for a fast forward button to end it.
I don’t think any of the guys stood a chance with a theme of Diana Ross songs last night. It was like reliving the week of Broadway classics a few seasons ago. I really cringe when I hear such a narrow focus theme for the week. If memory serves me right, there was already one male contender who sang a female artist’s song this season and he got the same “mix” review of not terrible not fantastic - so duh….a whole night of only female artist songs to choose from, what did anyone expect to happen? For the guys, it went exactly as I expected it would. Haley surprised me though, I thought it was one of her better performances and I liked hearing more of her voice. I was glad Simon gave her a lift. Melinda and Lakisha performed exactly as expected and I was very tickled for Jordin to do so well, especially after 2 very long hours of listening to singing. It was a nice way to end the night.
I’ll come back and add to this post after tonight’s show, but I’m already saying I’ll be beyond disappointed if any of the 12 go before Sanjaya.
Technorati Tags:
TV Talk
I was out catching up on a few blogs and was impressed with Carmi’s question for the day: “When you take a moment to observe what others do not, what do you see?”
Carmi impresses me on many levels. His blog is simple, inviting, engaging and thought provoking. His photos are awesome and I love how he packs so much value into so few words. So I’m picking up his challenge today. A few days ago I shared some photos of what inspires me - the word that defined them all was growth.
Today I’ve gone back and edited the photo of the rose bud and added it’s counterpart taken a few moments ago - exactly 5 days later.
Carmi, this is what I see. It is potential, it is growth. It’s always there, but so often overlooked with harsh judgements, haste or just plain ignorance. This is what I strive to take the time to observe. Thanks for helping me stop for a moment and share - not just stopping to smell the roses, but stopping to see them.
So it’s so NOT wordless, but it works for me so this will be my WW post this week. *wink*
Technorati Tags:
Gardening Positive Impact Potential Inspiration Perspectives Success
Well, some of the neighbors hooked up the campers and vacation equipment and left town for this week of spring break. With my husband’s desire and knowledge of anything RV related, I doubt very much you’ll ever see that be something my family does! And with our plans to go to NYC, DC and Long Beach Island this summer we’re staying home for spring break. But don’t worry about the kiddos, they’re having a blast. Yesterday we kicked off the week by spending FOUR hours (and one more for driving) at a local indoor play land. And now you know why there was no blogging for me yesterday! LOL
My son spent at least 90-95% of his time on this one area swinging down the cable. It is amazing and tiring to see their energy and ability for repetition hard at work. With temperatures nearly twice what they normally are this time of year, I’m quite certain we’ll have some pool time this week too. But just watching their excitement over anything vacation sure takes me back to my childhood too. So play on kids, play on.
Technorati Tags:
Family Parenting Motherhood
Couldn’t pass this one up without passing it along…
“If A equals success, then the formula is: A = X + Y + Z, X is work. Y is play. Z is keep your mouth shut.”
Albert Einstein
Smart man that Albert.
(more…)
Like this article? 
