Agnostic Dating

It's been awhile since I complained, er...I mean, posted anything about The Legal Adult. For the most part, I've tried to leave him alone about his love life. There's always a girl he's obsessing over, or moving on from. (I know, you don't end a sentence with a preposition, but it's early.) Thus, the reason I refer to them all as "Sweet thing". Can't mess up the name that way. However, L.A. got creative and has had back-to-back girlfriends with the same FIRST names. This has created confusion on my part. I can't call them both Sweet thing. So, we refer to them by their last names, conveniently Smith and Jones for this post. Smith is the former and Jones is the current. And the former is his current roommate. (Which I never approved of, but he's a grown man.) Yeah, the plot definitely thickens.
I'm just going to say it, I really like the former one, despite all my efforts to stay unaffiliated. It probably doesn't hurt that she's a seamstress, (although I'm working on getting her into quilting!) is from our hometown in Tennessee, and has been dating him since high school. She's polite, smart, funny, and actually talks to me when she comes over. And yeah, she's beautiful, so if they got married, what beautiful grandchildren they'd make for me. I know we as mothers of sons shouldn't consider that attribute, but I'd love to meet a mother who doesn't! Anyway, this child has moved up here from our hometown and made a new life for herself. But now, it appears my son won't be a part of it. Of course, they'll stay friends....yeah....uh-huh.
Something happens, as something will, and they break up. Enter Jones. She's pretty, brainy, and totally goes along with anything he comes up with. I'm sure that's very attractive to L.A. as he loves to be the center of the world as most college-age guys do. I'm polite and try to engage Jones in conversation, but she is not talker that I am.
The Legal Adult wants me to dislike Smith, just because they broke up. Smith is actually house sitting for me in the near future while we are on vacation, an arrangement we made at Christmas time, when everyone was still in love and the world was a beautiful place.
I've been accused by my son of not supporting him because I don't feel the need to be ugly to her, (or anyone else for that matter). Explaining that finding someone to watch your house last minute is a bad idea did not bode well. So there you have it. The lesson here is: don't get too attached to any one girlfriend/boyfriend of your child. Be kind, but be agnostic. Until there's a ring and a date, just be agnostic about anyone they date.

In a bind over binding

I'm sure you all think I've fallen off the planet, but I'm still here. And I'm still working on that Stars Fell on Alabama quilt. It's the sewing of the binding that I'm having trouble with. In case you can't tell, I absolutely REEK at hand sewing. Apparently, there's a technique I'm not aware of.
I've searched the net for how-to's on the subject, even watched video tutorials. Either I'm so blind that I can't see the stitches they are presenting, or I'm terribly uncoordinated. My choice of binding fabric was hard to match because it's variegated. So, I went with the most prominent color: blue. I won't even start on how sore my index finger is from doing this.


You can see from this picture here that this is where I started. I'm definitely ripping this out.





So, I pose the question to you all: how do you do an invisible stitch? I'm thinking it's alot like the applique stitch, but I've only done machine applique.
Any help is greatly appreciated!

My life has gone to the Dog....

Take a good look at my latest time...monopolizer. Fiona has been fun to have around, but much like having a new baby in the house. There's the getting up at the crack of dawn to walk her, (done by me), feeding her, bathing her, (Hunnybunny does that mostly)and the cleaning of the carpets...constantly. Her first week with us, we found her with a U.T.I. I guess I'm an idiot because I wasn't aware a dog could suffer something like that. But she went to the vet, and she's on doggie amoxicillian.

Then there's the chewing, retrieving, eating paper, jumping up on furniture, terrorizing preschoolers and howling she does. The chewing I expected. Some jumping on furniture was expected, too, as she'd never been around any. But the howling...oh, how pitiful! Just like a kid, she knows how to get to you with the crying.
The picture isn't at all as bleak as I'm making it...she is a very loving dog. I'm sure that with time, and maybe obedience training, she is going to be fine. Look at that face...she certainly has endeared herself to us. And despite all of the aforementioned, we all love her to death.

So, maybe I'll be even slower to quilt. At least now I have a valid excuse...an excuse named "Fiona".

Surprise, Valentine!

I haven't figured out if I'm a softie, or just plain insane. You be my jury:
Hunnybunny and I had been watching the dog show on the USA network last week when I finally said the words,
"If you were going to have a dog, what breed would you pick?"
"Retriever, like a Labrador or a Golden Retriever. They're really good with kids."

I offhandedly told this to my buddy, Jane, (who has the most wonderful Golden Retriever). The woman has the most incredible memory of anyone I've ever met. She and her son were at the store when she heard that someone had a 10-week-old, black Labrador retriever pup that they wanted to give to a good home. And she, of course, thought of me.

My first thought: "Oh, no. Now I have to back this up. I told him we could get a dog."
So, Jane, and her family went with me to meet this family that had this puppy. It was a small, two room house, and the owners knew this arrangement wasn't going to work out logistically. The dog wouldn't have room, they didn't have a back yard, and a new baby was coming on the scene. With two cats already in the house, I was wondering what exactly they were thinking!
I watched the little 7 year old girl as she held on to that big puppy. Her eyes were bloodshot from crying. This was the last thing she wanted to do. Thankfully, Hollywood, The Pickle and The Diva had come along. So maybe seeing I had kids made it a little better for her. The family had named her "B.B.". That stood for "Butterball". And she definitely had roly-poly tummy.
"I will at least leave her middle name B.B. Is that okay?" And she shook her sad little head.
The ride from their house to mine was somewhat comical as this puppy had obviously never been in a moving car before. She managed to pry away from Hollywood and get herself in the back window.
Hunnybunny was coming in from Indy from his usual monthly business trip and Jane's family waited with us to surprise him. I wasn't sure he'd love her immediately. But he did, as you can see from these photos. That's what made it worthwhile....that sweet look on his face. Here was something, besides his family, that he's always dreamed of having.
Oh, you know what happens next, right? Carpet cleaner, walking her, and apparently I'm her new chew toy. She has been sleeping with Hollywood, and he just loves her to death.
And no, we didn't leave her first name as "B.B.". After exhausting the laundry list of acceptable names, Hunnybunny settled on yet another Irish name: Fiona.
Named after that beautiful brunette on Burn Notice. We call her "Fi" for short. And she seems to like it, and us.

Stars Fell on Alabama borders quilted!

Since a couple people have asked, and I'm more than thrilled to have a reason to use my new Sony Cyber-shot, I decided to show you how I marked it. First, let me say that my hat is tipped to those of you who can mark a quilt with chalk. My art teacher told me to stay away from art implements as a child as I just can't draw. What you see here is your garden-variety quilt stencil, although I guess any stencil would work. I made sure there was enough clearance for my binding strip which will be put on next.
What I have in my hand is a Quilt Pounce. It looks like a big eraser, and has dust in it. The dust is a kind of corn-starch material. It wouldn't surprise me in the slightest if it turned out to be just that.
I run it over the smooth side of the stencil so the rougher side can "grip" the fabric. The best part of using a Quilt Pounce is that if you mess up, it's easily corrected. Maybe you move the stencil slightly causing a double-vision: just take out your iron, and it irons completely off! You just gotta love that....











And there you go. And that's not you..I have a little double-vision aspect going on here. So, do not adjust your eyes. This pattern is a little forgiving, so I think I can follow it.

Thanks for asking. Now we'll get into the squaring and binding next.

Pink Panther 2 addicts another generation

Okay, let me be as clear as I can about this: I utterly HATE slapstick. My sweet Hunnybunny adores it, as most men do. The ads for Pink Panther 2 were popping up on Nickledeon and therefore, seen by the under 6 crowd at my house. When your five year old can do the whole "hamburger" shtick from a movie that isn't even out yet, you know you've lost. You're going to yet another movie that you didn't pick out. But you think you can stall. "We don't have to go on opening night. Surely to goodness we can wait until the reviews are out." But then you don't' know my husband. He had it all planned out and used two little co-conspirators. Hunnybunny briefly mentions that we MIGHT be going this evening, that is, provided MOM is on board with it. Oh, yeah, let's just make MOM the bad guy. You have to give the guy kudos, he knew how to work the room.
Of course I said yes. Two sets of big blue eyes looking at me, hopeful, I didn't stand a chance.
And it is funny, in that warped, man-joke kind of way. I'm sure this movie will be on the top of the weekend ratings as next week the men will (or should!) fork over the choice of the movie to their sweethearts for Valentine's Day. Diva and Pickle were mesmerized by the antics of Steve Martin. It's nice to know that in this age of worrying about what are kids watch, Steve is always around to do what he does best. Make us laugh without being crass or inappropriate. Well, at least the last couple of years it's been that way. (Cheaper By the Dozen,The Pink Panther)
I was thrown a bone....there was some eye candy for me, Andy Garcia. He just ages with fine wine. I wouldn't give it a major thumbs up from me, as I'm not a slapstick kinda gal, but according to my family, it's THUMBS UP!

Working on the Stars on Alabama Quilt...Still

With all the snow and ice, I've actually had time to work on Grandma Hunnybunny's quilt. All that's left is quilting the borders and binding it. The tension just wasn't right every time I tried to do a sample. I played around with it yesterday and managed to get it perfect, (after a few mishaps and some ripping was involved) so I may be ready to bind it this weekend. Then there's the label to think about. Last time, I wimped out, and had my friend, Debra,do a beautiful label for the Boyscout quilt. I may try to do one, or just get her to help me out again. She did such a beautiful job! By the way, she's working on a special project, the Homeless Teen Project for Willis Independent School District in TX. She's taken it upon herself to provide a twin sized quilt for each teen. If you would like to contribute to the Project, she will gladly pay postage for the supplies or swap embroidery. Just put a note in your box. Email her at debraspincic@yahoo.com. As quilters, we should get behind this very gracious lady and send her some donations of
* Miscellaneous Blocks or Quilt UFOs
* Thread
* Backings like Sheets, Shower curtains, Curtains, Tshirt Knits, Wool blends
* Batting (or Pieces), Bedspread, Wool Pieces, Fleece
* Any Sturdy Fabrics
Debra has a heart as big as the state she's from, and she organized projects where we got Quilts of Valor into soldiers' hands, and quilts for a children's home.
This picture is for laughs. My crazy boys, Hollywood, Dyl Pickle, and the Legal Adult. The Legal Adult and roommate were guests at our house while awaiting their power to be restored. It's always good to see him, and since he's grown up, even more so.

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

I remember that song growing up in Florida, and had absolutely NO REFERENCE. What's so wondrous about walking outside in shorts in January? But since I've moved North of the Mason-Dixon line, I have definitely been educated.


I won't bore you with too many pictures, but if you're my family, check out my flickr.com box to the right. We took allot of pics and for all the dangerousness of it all, it's still very beautiful. Grandma Kim, you should've stayed. You'd of gotten your snowstorm.








I am amazed that this old hickory tree hasn't come down with all the ice and snow on it. And when I heard the word "historic" referring to this storm, I cringed. Seems like since 2004 I have been through a few "historic" storms in this region. When we were moving, like in the moving van, we were speeding our way to a line of twisters without knowing. That same winter, the biggest icestorm on record. Grandma Hunnybunny will never let me live that one down. She comes to see us, and we are trapped in the house.

Well, Kentucky's still nice, just nice and cold. And having four seasons is pretty cool, too. You just have to take the good with the bad. The springs here in Kentucky are glorious, and summers aren't the scorchers I've lived through in Tennessee and North Florida. When the weatherman says it's "gonna be a scorcher" at 87 degrees, I just smile. Everybody has their point of reference, I guess.

Editor's Note: My college buddy, Sandy, mentioned that I was geographically challenged. And she's right. For some reason, I always thought the Mason-Dixon line was a little south of here. I guess my confusion came in when I started going to restaurants in this area that didn't serve cooked grits or sweet tea on the menu. I just assumed I had crossed the line.;)

Time flies when you're .....having fun?

Our dear friend Bill Engvall would say, "Here's your sign!" if he looked at this. I've been with the Hunnybunny family this past week as Grandmas (Great and Daughter of Great) came to see us. It would have been a good time if not for a family crises, (not our immediate family) and extreme cold temps. Poor Great Grandma Hunnybunny nearly froze her hiney off as she is from Miami. Wouldn't you know it, Kentucky had the coldest temps in 5 years the ENTIRE time they were here!
Oh, and I ended up going to the doctor before they got here. Turns out that the barking cough that I conjured up WASN'T normal. They put me on an inhaler and Advair so I could get the inflammation down. And the doctor suggested that asthma might be the culprit. She correlated the dates on my chart and noticed a pattern. Every November, seems like I come down with some type of barking cough.
"But aren't I a little old for that, Doc? I thought little kids got diagnosed with it." Turns out there is a thing called a "seasonal asthma". Who'd a thunk it? To the left is my RX for myself.

That being said, I'll be by to see you this week. Hope you'll forgive me for not being around as much. But you were always on my mind.:)

Middle School Son's First Date

When I was growing up in the 70's, the phrase for a couple who wanted to be exclusive was "going together".

Typical language between teen girls of the time: "Are you going with Jake?"
"I can't believe she's going with him!"
Now, the terminology is "going out", as in "Do you want to start going out?".
Back in the 70's, the same phrase referred to dating. Things have certainly changed, I remember while working away from home one summer, a guy MAILED me his class ring and the note attached said: "Will you go with me?" . He was great about letters, too. And a year ahead of me in school. So, he wrote me most of my senior year from college. Anyway, enough about my ex-boyfriend.

Number 2 son now has a "girlfriend". She's as cute as she can be, and also goes to his youth group at church, so that's a plus. He comes to me asking if he can start going out with her. And that's how I got my aforementioned education. Now that I understand what he's talking about, (essentially, he wants to have a girlfriend) sure, go ahead. I know that he can't actually take her out in my understanding of the phrase because the rules are that he can't go out unescorted until he's got a license. So, he gets brave and asks if he can take her to a horror movie she wants to see. Knowing Hunnybunny would be as much fun as taking my mother-in-law on my honeymoon, I volunteered to be the chaperon. But, I didn't want to sit in the dark watching some scary movie. So I suggested roller skating. When his dad and I went out the first time back in 1982, that's what we did. There was a caveat to going: he had to call her dad and ask permission.
That's the southern thing to do and it would let us both know how serious he was about this girl.
I prepped him as best I could.

"It's always Sir, not yes, not no, 'yes, sir" and 'no, sir.' Got it? Even if he says you're pond scum, you say, 'yes, sir'. " And he did. The dad was so impressed according to the girlfriend. And I knew he would be.
"But I was so scared," he later told Hunnybunny.
"Good. Never get to comfortable with the dad." He advised.

We pick her up and meet her dad. After exchanging cell numbers, and curfew time, we head for the rink. Even going to the rink is a lot different. It was nice that I didn't have to pay as I was the chaperon. But I had to go through a metal detector, and they searched my purse and bag. All they found was a bunch of quilting books I had brought to read.
As he skated off with her, hand in hand, I kept thinking of that little baby who gave me kisses at 5 months old. The little boy who thought that Hamburger Helper was the greatest meal ever. I didn't cry, but I certainly felt like it. Maybe it was the bond, but he kept coming over to the table and checking on me. I'm sure she was confused, but I wasn't. He was trying to make it easy on me. ( Wonder what I'm going to be like when he goes to the prom?) I think I might have done something right where he's concerned. Of course, with such great material, who wouldn't have?

Resolution or Revelation? Thinking out loud...

I'm not really one for resolutions or publicly detailing them. I guess I always feel like if I don't make it, it's right here in black and white. Or pixels. But we've been together a while now, so I'll risk it and let you know what I'd like to change in 2009.

1. More time with God. You know, the Creator of the Universe took out time in His busy schedule to see to it that I walked on the earth, the least I can do is hang out with Him and study His word to hear what He has to say.

2. More family time. This one is actually in the works. Hunnybunny changed jobs so we could actually see him and it's worked out well. Maybe a camping trip would be cool?

3. More quilting time. Oh, yeah, I get the same 24 hours as you, but apparently I'm not using them so well in this arena. It's a crying shame to have FIVE, count 'em, FIVE sewing machines and not use them. I also have every gadget a quilter could ask for so I'm thinking I'm afraid of failure. Ever put off doing something because you're afraid you reek at it?

4. More blog time. Negligent doesn't quite cover it. I've been backing off lately and some of it has to do with the time factor. Some has to do with me thinking maybe there isn't anything else to say. But some of you know that I usually don't EVER run out of things to say...;). And truthfully, I'm writing this blog for me. It's so cool that you all read and comment, (and I appreciate it very much!) but I write to let this stuff out of my heart and head so I don't forget. And sometimes, so I won't carry it around.

So maybe this list isn't as much of a resolution list as it is a time management wake-up call. Perhaps getting organized would make some of this fall into place? I'll give it a shot.

The Highlights of 2008

...and considering Father Time has been on me all year, I'm looking forward to 2009. I would say, "Can things get any worse?" But sure as I do, things will get worse. And I just don't want to jinx it.

My Top Ten highlights from 2008:

10.The long-awaited Dark Knight came into theaters. Unfortunately,in January, Heath Ledger died. That was really sad. So young.

9. Met Jim Caviezel in April.

8. Got to see my husband more in 4 months (with his new job) than in the two years he was with his other job.

7. Watched as America elected a new president.

6. Finished the Boy Scout Quilt for Chip.

5. Finished the quilt top for "Stars Fell on Alabama" quilt for Grandma Hunnybunny.

4. Reconnected with a lot of old friends on Facebook.

3. Got a Minnesota Treadle from 1904 for $10!

2. Watched The Legal Adult become gainfully employed.

1. Put another son in kindergarten and lived to tell the tale.

By the way, I hope and pray for your family a Happy New Year!

It's a girls' night out.......

....and honey, there ain't no doubt....blah, blah, blah. Wasn't that a Judd's song? It's not really a girl's night out as much as it's a LONG weekend for me. I'm going to see my best buddy, Robin, down in Chattanooga because I'm drowning in the testosterone ocean at my house. I'm hoping to get a little shopping done for those guys since they won't be around.

I was inspired by my friend,Katie, over at My Sandbox to take a look at Craig's List and just see what I could find. I've always dreamed of owning a treadle. My Grandma Gussie had a treadle in her sewing closet and always told me someday she'd teach me. Well, she passed in 1985, so that didn't happen. Anyway...here's what I found:
This dear lady had this Minnesota "C" and it was on her porch. I nearly had a hard attack! She obviously wasn't a collector.















She threw in the ORIGINAL AD from the Sears and Roebuck catalog from 1904 as well as the pristine attachments still encased in their original, velvet-lined, metal box!





I always look at old machines like Linus did Charlie Brown's Christmas tree..."All it needs is a little love..". And sewing machine oil, and maybe some WD40.



Here she is, all cleaned up. Guess how much I paid?
$10!

Up to Hoosierville, U.S.A.

We headed north this past weekend. This was due to HB's new job which is based out of Indiana. We were attending the Christmas party, and it was the first time I had met his new comrades. I say new job, but he's been at it awhile now. Basically, he works from our bedroom. He has a business line, laptop, fax machine, the whole works. And he is in sales now. He loves it because he used to do all the research for the equipment he is selling now. We've seen him more in 3 months than in two years. While he loved working at the church doing media for them, the hours got to be too much on our family. So, God is good...all the time.
I guess it's confession time for me. I've been married to Hunnybunny since 2002. This past weekend was our FIRST weekend away without the boys. Wild, huh? If we had the time, we had no money. And vice-versa.
Christmas came early for me this year as Hunnybunny found a Sony store and bought me this Cybershot Digital camera. So, you know me: I went kind of camera happy. Sorry these are taken from the car.












This is the
Soldiers and Sailors Monument in the heart of Indianapolis. It was pretty cool looking. It was only 15 feet shorter than the Statue of Liberty.








I wish I could tell you something cool about this church, but I couldn't find anything online. Of course, we were driving through town on GAME DAY! It was a miracle that we could tool around at all.

Conversations with The Pickle: How Old is God?

"Mommy, did you know that Christmas is Jesus' birthday?"

"Yes, baby, I did,"

"So, Christmas is when Jesus has His birthday?"

"Yes, Baby, we celebrate Christmas to celebrate when Jesus was born."

Long pause......the wheels were turning.......

"So is He going to be born-again?" Pickle looked at me with total confusion.

"No, Baby."

Another long pause, "Mommy, how old is God?"

No response from me as my wheels were turning...

"Mommy, how old is God??" He definitely used his playground voice

So, I did what any other parent who doesn't know the answer: I passed the buck.

"Go ask your dad," I replied.

From the other room I could hear the interrogation,"Where is God? What do you

mean He's invisible?" "Is He in this room?""Oh, God, I'm coming to find you!".

And that's my prayer everyday.

Father Time is whooping up on me

Coming from the mailbox,I was so excited..three packages, for me for a change. However, the joy was bittersweet. Two of the three were reminders that Father Time has announced his presence.

First, I finally got my glasses! Why I'm excited about that escapes me. Nobody could ever get me to wear them and now I can't read the back of a can or a street sign without them. Remember when I told you about this site, Eyebuydirect.com a while back? Well, I got them. Two pairs for $25.00. The other pair I'm going to use for reading and needlework. I'm just glad I didn't have to pay a fortune just to see.



Recently, I won a $25 gift certificate from Christian Bloggers Online. The gift certificate was for Amazon.com. You'd think quilting books, a movie, something cool like that, right? Nope...it wasn't what I needed. I thought I'd try these:Exciting, no?


Okay, sue me, but I was watching an infomercial about these. I go through shoe inserts so easily I thought maybe they would work. I have that heel spur thing, and translated it means I've been running around barefoot way too long. They feel great, so I'll keep you posted.
It really reeks getting old, doesn't it?

Thanksgiving By The Numbers

1440 miles NOT driven by me as Hunnybunny wanted to drive.

2 different hotel stays: one down, one up. HoJo's isn't as bad as it used to be. Go and price on Hotels.com. Saved us a bundle!
1 visit with a blogging buddy in Marietta, GA. Deborah is so cool!
25 cups of coffee and/or lattes during that week.
2 Older sons not with me this year....one staying at my house because I had heat, one with his dad in Tennessee.

2 turkey dinners and both were righteous. I even learned to like dressing without cornbread in it.

4 viewings of WALL-E on Hunnybunny's laptop by the Pickle on the way down.

25 or more times asked, "Are we in Florida, yet?" by the Pickle.

3 yards of Beatle fabric (You seriously didn't think I was going to make a trip and not buy fabric, did you?) purchased at Wal-Mart in Hunnybunny's hometown.

7 extra pounds of weight due to the way I ate while gone. Diet went totally out the window.

7 copies of Women's Day read cover-to-cover as Grandma Hunnybunny keeps them until I come to town.

45-15 Florida vs. Florida State, in the pouring rain, no less. Now, that was priceless!

Another year of not making with the bird....

We are headed to the Emerald Coast, (well, close to it, anyway) for Thanksgiving. Yet another year of dodging the bullet on making a turkey. Oh, I've done my time on that, I assure you. Since I was a newlywed (the first time) back in '84, I've been getting up at 5:00 AM and putting the turkey in the oven. Only one person that reads this blog (Hey, Karen!) can remember that fiasco of my first Thanksgiving. I had to have the directions read to me as I worked on the turkey. I think we had 20 people in that tiny little apartment. And I was preggers with Jesse, so sick to my stomach that I didn't want any part of eating it. Every year, I always invited those without family to join us. Thanksgiving at my house growing up meant that my stepdad would get up at 3:00 AM to put the turkey in the smoker. He and Mom would actually start drinking then, so by the time we ate, they were definitely feeling no pain. And no hunger. My brothers and I ate by ourselves most of the time. So, the whole concept of a family Thanksgiving was lost on me until I married into this family. It blew me away that folks could cook without the inspiration of alcohol. I dreaded each and every holiday as it would start off like this, and end very badly.

Grandma Hunnybunny will be making the turkey, and the rest of us will be taking orders from her. Suits me just fine. Actually, I mentioned to HB that we could go out for Thanksgiving so we could spend more time together. To me, the holiday is about being together, not the food, although that's nice. Of course he pounded his alfa-male chest and said no way. Tradition is tradition. Well, I'm grateful to God that some traditions can be broken. Like the traditions I grew up with.

Kids, Colds, Quilts, and the Winds of Change

Did you miss me? Well, I stayed away from the keyboard to avoid transferring any cold germs. I keep getting the hacking back, but no fever. Sorry I'm whining. I just don't have time for this.

Halloween was fun as the Pickle and his pals went trick or treating together. The Diva was a different princess this year, Sleeping Beauty, and it was my first time doing little girl hair. The Pickle turned into Batman this year, even though his whole room is Spiderman.

Another reason you've not seen me around is that I'm running out of time on "Stars Fell on Alabama" if I intend to get it quilted before we go to Florida for the holidays. Unfortunately, "Stars" has a ton of white on white. Ever tried to stitch in the ditch when the quilt is white on white? I was/am completely "snow blind". Don't laugh too hard at my solution. Blue painter's tape. Yep. I needed to see where the edge was, so that's what I've been doing. I'm sure there was an easier way, but you know me. A friend told me to use the tailor's chalk, but I still couldn't see it.

I found out that I really should be wearing glasses. It reeks to get old, doesn't it? But I already knew that I should be wearing them. It was 2000 when I got my Rx changed last. I've been getting by with readers from Walmart. But I'm cheap when it comes to anything but fabric. So paying through the nose for frames just didn't appeal to me. I found this site. This guy had enough of paying allot for specs so he created this site to deal with it. My eye doctor is young. When I told her that I intended to fill my Rx online, she actually told me what numbers to put in! Some of the sites actually talk you through your Rx so you can make heads or tales of it. I got a single vision Rx, lens included, for $25! I'll let you know how it works out. There is a 2 week waiting period.

In the meantime, the world theater has changed allot, hasn't it? We have a new President and he seems eager to hit the ground running. This is not a political blog, nor has it ever been. But I will say that I have committed to praying for the President-Elect and his cabinet everyday. Especially in light of the fact he hasn't even had time to grieve for his grandmother yet. That has to be hard.
Hope you all are doing well. I'll be around to see you!

In search of the Great Pumpkin

I spent many an hour waiting for this to come on CBS when I was young. "It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!" was probably the coolest thing I had ever seen. Linus always did march to the beat of a different drummer, and maybe that's where I relate.
In all the years that followed, I never made it to a pumpkin patch. The Diva's mother invited The Pickle and I to go and it made for a great outing! Of course, we picked the worst possible weekend to go as the infamous Court Days were going on in the middle of town. But with the help of a local judge, (Diva's mother had interviewed him) we found our way to Two Sisters Pumpkin Patch in Mt. Sterling, KY. (Sorry the link is so pitiful. You actually have to scroll down and search for Two Sisters just to find the address and phone number. I told the owners it would be easier if they had a web page!)
They just made it through the corn maze. I barely did, by the way.

The hayride was a big hit! It had been years for me, and a first for the kids.

And there was pumpkin painting. Diva loved this part.
A pickle in a cornfield! He loved trying to hide from us.
And the old married couple themselves. The way they quibble, it wouldn't surprise me one bit if they ended up together. There was also a petting zoo of sorts and they got to pet goats and mules.
More pictures to the right on flickr.com.