Sep. 7, 2006
Thursday Thirteen
Posted in Thursday 13
Thursday Thirteen
Thirteen Things I like about myself, as per Denise's suggestion
It was suggested by another TT'er that we (especially we female types) blog about what we like about ourselves. I'm glad. I'd misremembered its being 13 things we're good at. That had me in a cold sweat. I hope I can come up with 13 things I like about myself. Here goes:
1. I like my bizarre sense of humor. I didn't know I had one until Friend Husband was amused by it. Up to that point, no one seemed to think I had one at all, I think.
2. I like my grey hairs. It goes beyond the "I earned them" thing, although I did. I like them because they're shiny and silvery and I remember some of the battles that went into creating them. I think it's important to remember your battles.
3. I like that I changed my life some years back such that I don't have to worry about covering my tracks. I don't think I'd have the energy for that right now. I guess that would be, "I'm glad that I live an honest life."
4. I like about myself that I'll stop and admire flowers, nice smells, small animals, etc. My children think I'm goofy but I think they'll appreciate it when they get older.
5. I like that I keep on trying to garden, even if things don't turn out the way I'd like or the way I'd planned.
6. Ditto the above with regard to quilting.
7. Ditto the above with regard to homeschooling, parenting, being a wife, and just about everything else I do. I used to be a very rigid, very controlled type of person. I miss some of that self-control, but most of the perfectionism was not very good for me. I'm glad I'm more of a roll-with-the-punches type of person.
8. I like that I can cook, cook well, and that I'm somewhat adventurous with my cooking. I've fed a lot people over the years and, as Friend Husband likes to point out, I show love with food.
9. I like that I have intellectual curiosity. This is something that has just developed in the last few years or so. I'll find myself curious about something and I'll immerse myself in that for a while, until I feel that I have a handle on it. It's different than any other sort of intellectual exercise that I've done in past years: delight-driven education.
10. For that matter, I like that I've continued to educate myself past the usual time for education. It's axiomatic, I think, that homeschool parents tend to learn things along with their children, but this education goes beyond even that. It's just for me and I like that.
11. I like that I started exercising and eating better after I got past the worst part of my grief over my mother's passing. I'm not the most successful person at either, unlike my more obsessive friends (cough, cough...GINA), but I think it's been a healthy thing for me beyond the weight loss (which hasn't been permanent for me).
12. I like that I care about people, even people I don't really know in real life. I have a lot of online buddies and it's amazing how much you can care about other people who you probably will never meet. Sometimes I get my knickers in a knot and want to quit but usually I'm just happy to tune in and find out what's going on with everyone and pray for the needs I see.
13. I like that I like who I am, by and large. When I was younger, I hated myself. I'm not sure if it was that I actually disliked who I was, if I was internalizing the messages of those around me, or that I just had a surfeit of hormones (or all three) but I did hate myself and it was miserable to live within my own skin. Sometimes I still go off the rails but it's not necessarily because I hate myself, but because the pain of living sometimes becomes too great to bear...until I can excise the pain with prayer and the love of those around me. And that is something I never had, back when I hated myself.
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The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
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Aug. 24, 2006
Posted in Thursday 13
Thirteen Books I've read recently plus brief reviews
Safe People (Cloud & Townsend): Yeah, no. This was the most boring book I've read in quite some time. It's about how to be a "safe person" to those around you, someone in whom they can trust. And it took page after excruciating page to accomplish this. 2/10
Beyond Mammoth Cave: A Tale of Obsession in the World's Longest Cave (Borden & Brucker): Also a no-go. I couldn't even get past the first chapter without wondering how utterly boring this book was going to be. Perhaps subsequent chapters were less tedious or perhaps the level of writing improved (or perhaps I'm just not interested in spelunking details) but the first chapter shut the whole thing down for me. 1/10
Chocolate-Dipped Cherry Death (Carter): I have a thing for themed murder mystery books. This one was ok, but it was no Davidson substitute. 6/10
Chocolate Mouse Trap (Carl): Ditto the themed mystery books. Ditto what I said about the book above. 6/10
Guide to the National Parks: East & Midwest (National Geographic): In my quest to find out as much as I could about Mammoth Cave before we actually went there, I checked this book out. It gave you snippets of information, beautiful pictures, but not much meat about anything. It's like the USA Today version of the Guidebooks we used to be able to find. I guess it's part and parcel of the dumbing down of America that we have guidebooks that don't do much guiding at all. 3/10
Sippy Cups Are Not For Chardonnay (Wilder-Taylor): In this genre (and yes, there is one) of people who find themselves pregnant, clueless, and yet quite sophisticated, this is not the best pick. It's been done, and better, with less foul language. 2/10
O Pioneers! (Cather): At some point, I became very (rightfully) ashamed that I'd never read any Cather. Seven years later, I finally have. And I enjoyed enough to take out My Antonia, which I haven't yet read. This one was sparely written, which is rarely found today as well as an interesting story. This and Bitter Brew brought up so many memories of my Swedish ancestors and explained some of why they were the way they were. 7/10 (plus bonus points if you give them for reading the classics)
A Bitter Brew: Faith, Power, and Poison in a Small New England Town (Young): This book was a very poorly written smorgasbord of old gossip stemming from a cyanide-laced coffee klatch in a Lutheran church in Maine. The author, purportedly an investigative reporter, does nothing but churn up the gossip cesspool and write in a steamy, almost romance-novel-type fashion, which does not solve any crimes and leaves the reader with a worse taste in her mouth than that which would have been caused by drinking the aforementioned brew. 2/10
There and Back Again: An Actor's Tale (Astin & Layden): We are big fans of Lord of the Rings here, both the books and the award-winning movies they spawned. Sam, as portrayed by Sean Astin, is one of our favorite characters and indeed, until I read this book, Sean Astin was an actor whose craft I enjoyed. Of course, I haven't seen The Goonies, but we won't go there. That said, you can understand the utter disbelief and dismay I felt upon reading this book. This is the only autobiography I've ever read that left me with less respect and interest in the subject. It wasn't until the last couple of chapters that he seemed at all bearable. It wasn't enough to save the book. He tries to set himself (and his family, acting icons Patty Duke and John Astin) up as the defenders of the underdogs, blue collar actors. Right. In almost the next sentence, he'd complaining about the amount of money that he made in a given movie. Guess what, Sean? Making $125,000 over the course of 3 years does not make you one of the working poor. Get over yourself. 2/10
Isaac's Storm: A Man, A Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History (Larson): I have books that I like to reread periodically. I think this one may become one of those. I've read it at least 3 times now and have found different things to like about it each time. This time, I noticed that the rhythm of his writing in this book (and not necessarily his others) is much like the rhythm of the tides, much like the rhythm of the hurricane that he describes. This horrific unnamed storm washed over the city of Galveston, TX on September 8, 1900. The estimates of those dead were between 8,000 and 10,000. I learned more about the Weather Service, hurricanes, the 18th century, and Galveston than I ever thought possible. And I know I'll find something else new the next time I read it. 9/10
Scraping Heaven: A Family's Journey Across the Great Divide (Ross): I probably shouldn't include this one because I'm only 2/3 of the way through it, but it's been consistent so I guess I'll go on the basis of that. This is the story of two wilderness backcountry hikers who missed life on the trail so much after they had children that they figured out a way to pack the kids onto the trails with them using llamas. Sounds fabulous, right? Heartwarming family story, no? No. If the last 1/3 of this book is as whiny as the first 2/3, I'll be surprised that Ross ever got it published. I guess she set out to talk about the hardships on the trail and how life changes when you have children. And I'm sure both of those are true (I can vouch for the second one personally). But I have not found enough of the joy inherent in the backcountry hiking to compensate for the arguments that the hike cause between she and her husband, she and her friends, nor can I find the joy in hiking when you complain about everything that happens along the way. Yes, life is messy that way but for a book to be interesting, I don't think you can express it all without some sort of idea as to why it is a good idea to hike wilderness areas with small children. Give me a little more of that and this book might be redeemed. 2/10
Over The Edge: Death in Grand Canyon (Myers & Ghiglieri): Jen recommended this in her blog and I'll have to say that I enjoyed it far more than I probably should have. I even gave it as a dog-sitting gift to our friends the Rogerses, who have been to Grand Canyon. They seemed to enjoy it too. These two men, one a doctor, one a former trail guide and forest ranger, who both worked in or around Grand Canyon, is a compilation of the various and sundry ways that people have died in or around Grand Canyon. How macabre, you say! Well, after admitting that I like murder mysteries, my reputation may be lacking here, but I found it fascinating. The number one risk factor for dying in Grand Canyon? Being male. Either you're a young, stupid male and do young, stupid male things, or you're an old male and die of dehydration or hypothermia-induced heart failure upon falling into the Colorado River on a rafting excursion. Of course, women have died in Grand Canyon, also from being stupid or having heart failure, but the authors make a compelling case for men being more prone to doing things that will get them killed in Grand Canyon. The grim stories are interspersed with stories of people who should have died but didn't, often due to the intervention of park rangers or bystanders who kept them warm, or kept them from going over the edge. 9/10
The Last Season (Blehm): My sister-in-law told me about a book similar to Over The Edge but which dealt exclusively with Yellowstone Park. While searching for it on Amazon, I came across this book. The librarian put it in my hand as I was leaving for Mammoth Cave. I found it very hard to put down for the next couple of days. It is the story of Randy Morgenson, arguably the most experienced, seasoned backcountry ranger in the rugged High Sierra park area. Randy Morgenson disappeared while on patrol in the backcountry in July 1996. Originally, I thought this book would be a good contrast to Bitter Brew in that it's actually well written and attempts to solve the mystery of what happened to Randy Morgenson. It's much more than that, though. It's an exposition of Morgenson's life, with tidbits about the wilderness, life as a backcountry ranger, and living an authentic life thrown in for good measure. I won't go any further than that and spoil the thing, as I did for one of the Rogers boys last night, in my gushing accolades to the book. Read it yourself and tell me what you thought. I rate it 10/10. (Understand that it has some adult situations and language in it. Little, but some.)
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The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
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Jul. 13, 2006
Thursday Thirteen
Posted in Thursday 13
Currently Reading
Royal Panoply : Brief Lives of the English Monarchs
By Carolly Erickson
see related
Thirteen Things about Lori
You Are Most Like George W. Bush
So what if you're not exactly popular? You still rule the free world.
And while you may be quite conservative now, you knew how to party back in the day!
What Modern US President Are You Most Like?
Which Anne of Green Gables character are you?
You are most like Anne Shirley. You love to day dream, read romance novels, and TALK! Yet, you are starving for love and attention, that is, till you come to Green Gables and meet Matthew, Marilla, and Mrs. Lynde.
Take this quiz!
Quizilla | Join | Make A Quiz | More Quizzes | Grab Code
Your Pirate Name Is...
Evil Lazy Gracey
What's Your Pirate Name?
Your Pirate Name Is...
Lieutenant-Colonel Jack of the Baltic
What's Your Pirate Name?
You Are The Godfather Ice Cream
Someone crosses you, and they'll end up with a scoop of this in their bed
What Flavor Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream Are You?
You Are 1: The Reformer
You're a responsible person - with a clear sense of right and wrong.
High standards are important to you, and you do everything to meet them.
You are your own worst critic, feeling ashamed if you're not perfect.
You have the highest integrity, and people expect you to be fair.
What Number Are You?
Your Political Profile:
Overall: 85% Conservative, 15% Liberal
Social Issues: 100% Conservative, 0% Liberal
Personal Responsibility: 50% Conservative, 50% Liberal
Fiscal Issues: 100% Conservative, 0% Liberal
Ethics: 75% Conservative, 25% Liberal
Defense and Crime: 100% Conservative, 0% Liberal
How Liberal Or Conservative Are You?
You Are 28% Abnormal
You are at low risk for being a psychopath. It is unlikely that you have no soul.
You are at high risk for having a borderline personality. It is very likely that you are a chaotic mess.
You are at low risk for having a narcissistic personality. It is unlikely that you are in love with your own reflection.
You are at medium risk for having a social phobia. It is somewhat likely that you feel most comfortable in your mom's basement.
You are at low risk for obsessive compulsive disorder. It is unlikely that you are addicted to hand sanitizer.
How Abnormal Are You?
141 FuneralAttendees
You lived to 84, scored 89% in family size, and scored 78% in friends
You have a large size family. The larger your family, the more people that exist to possibly come to your funeral. There were plenty of family members that came to pay their last respects.
It seems that you are incredibly popular. Your philosophy is that you like to have as many friends as possible, and you try to spend time with all of them. This definitely helped your funeral turnout.
You lived to about 80. Your funeral had a huge turnout. A few friends and family members that you would have wanted to attend were unable to be there due to their early death. Still, it was difficult to fit everyone. In fact the only way you could have scored more mourners on this test was to have died earlier! Still, there were tons of very sad people and many tears shed on your behalf.
YOUR FUNERAL STATISTICS
136 more people came to your funeral than to Howard Hughes's funeral.
134 more people came to your funeral than to Thomas Paine's funeral.
130 more people came to your funeral than to Karl Marx's funeral.
109 more people came to your funeral than to the author of this test's.
259 less people came to your funeral than to Tiny Tim's.
859 less people came to your funeral than to Sir Fish's, a whale that beached itself in Vietnam in 2003.
49,859 less people came to your funeral than to Martin Luther King Jr.'s.
If you like it, please rate it. Also consider...
The State Locator Challenge Identify Isolated U.S. States
and
The Real Choose Your Own Adventure Story An original story with 29 different possible outcomes.
My test tracked 3 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:
You scored higher than 80% on Age at Death
You scored higher than 98% on Family
You scored higher than 88% on Friends
Link: The Welcome to your FUNERAL Test written by kafkahateszeppo on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the 32-Type Dating Test
You Are A Fig Tree
You are very independent and strong minded.
A hard worker when you want to be, you play hard too.
You are honest and loyal. You hate contradiction or arguments.
You love life, and you live for your friends, children, and animals.
A great sense of humor, artistic talent, and intelligence are all gifts you possess.
What's Your Celtic Horoscope?
Your Driving Is is: 54% Male, 46% Female
According to studies, you drive both like a guy and a girl.
This means you're a pretty average driver, with typical quirks.
Occasionally you're frustrated and or a little reckless, but that's the exception - not the norm.
Do You Drive Like a Guy or a Girl?
12. Yep, it's a blog full of tests. No, I didn't take all the tests today. I've been taking them over the course of about 10 days and saving them for today. It's a good thing because I don't really have much to say.
13. I'm in a funk that doesn't seem to be lifting too quickly. Benjamin emphasized in his lesson last night that we can't give in to despair. I'm prone to that, although I'm not feeling despairing yet, but I don't want to go there. Time to get to work. At least if I get something done I don't feel like such a loser.
Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. (leave your link in comments, I'll add you here!)
Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It's easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
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Jul. 6, 2006
Thursday Thirteen
Posted in Thursday 13
Currently Reading
The Twilight Zone Companion
By Marc Scott Zicree
see related
Thursday Thirteen
Thirteen Things about Lori
1. It's been an interesting Thursday.
2. I knew we were going to have to take Doug's car into the shop this morning, and I'd have to take him to work so that I could have the van to take 60% of our children to the pediatrician today.
3. Well, I actually took 100% of the children to the pediatrician's office but only 60% of them were seen professionally by the pediatrician.
4. She saw all of us (sans Friend Husband) and I think she thinks we're completely crocked. I don't know how this woman became a pediatrician, she has a totally lousy way of relating to toddlers.
5. We won't be seeing her again.
6. Picked up Friend Husband, went to the bank to rearrange some accounts. Apparently, we'd already done that at some previous point in history and forgotten it? I mean, I know we're ditzy but I think I'da remembered that. Apparently not.
7. I tried to convince Sarah that I was doing a good thing by reading the Twilight Zone Companion (which has synopses of all TZ episodes) so I wouldn't have to waste the time watching 5 seasons of TZ. She looked at me with great incredulity and said, "If you say so."
8. The good news is that Rachel does not have strep. The bad news is that she probably has hand-foot-mouth disease (which I call hoof-and-mouth and get glared at by the pediatrician...did I mention that she has no sense of humor?). I hope it gets better soon because I'm getting royally sick and tired of listening to the whining.
9. Date night tonight! Woohoo!
10. We went walking on the hiking-biking trail, then out for Mexican food, then to the library to sit side by side on a couch and read current magazines.
11. Yes, we are total dorks but we like it that way.
12. I used the word "indefatigable" today in ordinary conversation and stopped it cold. Ha ha ha...
13. I think this may be a "Seinfeld" blog...a blog about absolutely nothing at all!
Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)
Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
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Jun. 29, 2006
Wordless Wednesday and Thursday Thirteen
Posted in Thursday 13
Wordless Wednesday
Currently Reading
Marley & Me : Life and Love with the World's Worst Dog
By John Grogan
see related
Thursday Thirteen
Thirteen Things about what's goin' on
1. Whew! It's good to be home!
2. The picture was from yesterday when we rolled into our driveway. My sil, who is traveling on the West Coast, had just hung up from our cell call because the screams of delight were drowning out all conversation. Friend Husband has a tradition of doing a dance to "Wooly Bully" when we come back from long trips. He was doing the dance and chasing the children all around at the same time.
3. Does this man look 70 years old to you?
Happy birthday (again) to my fil whose birthday we traveled to Florida to celebrate last week!
4. We developed a taste for hot boiled peanuts on the trip. I wonder how bad they are for you. They looked easy enough to fix.
5. This is the first I've been on the computer today. Amazing, yes? We spent the day excavating a hole for our "easy-set" pool. You know how they tell you that you can get it set up in 30 minutes? They lie like rugs. I've been working on leveling a place in my yard for weeks now. I finally told the Big Girls that today was the day. I would level and they would cart out the dirt and we'd get that thing done by tonight.
6. And we did. The ground is all level, the ground cover is in place. I hope that tomorrow will see the pool up and ready to chlorinate.
7. My arms feel like spaghetti. I'm going to take something to tame the fire in my oldster back and go-to-bed! Yay!
8. It's stinking hot in south Florida this time of year. We spent a lot of time outside, as I've aleady mentioned. We went walking at a wetlands area one late morning and I came as close as I've ever come to fainting. Trouble is, if I swooned out there on the boardwalk, no one would have been able to come get me. I ended up having to lie down for the rest of the afternoon. That Southern belle thing ain't nothin' to mess with.
9. We had one interesting experience at a gas station next to a state park in GA, where we'd stopped to gas up and use the facilities. Our first clue should have been the tattooed guys standing out by the fuel pumps. I didn't notice the Confederate flag tattooed on one guy's arm. Friend Husband did. What I noticed, as I stayed with the girls in the mosquito-infested outdoor restroom, was the revving of engines (very loud engines) outside and general loudness of talking by more and more tattooed, shirtless men drinking beer. I made some off-hand comment to the girls about needing to hurry up so we wouldn't be killed for being Yankees and of course, said girls went ballistic and were unable to perform. I can't say that I blame them much, what with all the noise going on outside, revving and yelling and such. That one little (stupid) comment caused a lot of discussion about the War Between the States, regionalism, racism, and all sorts of things. What it didn't do was to promote the efficient use of the facilities, so we ended up having to stop again about 30 minutes down the road.
10. No, of course nothing happened, it was just freaky. I kept wondering if the movie Deliverance (which I have not seen but have heard of) was anything like that.
11. I will say that the Cracker Barrel south of Cartersville, GA on I-75 did much to raise our flagging spirits. Our entire experience there was just awesome.
12. I will also say that the Days Inn in Wildwood, FL did not sport decently working air conditioners, which almost put me over the top, as the heat index that day was hovering near 100ºF.
13. Something else funny happened on the trip. When we got out at some random rest area in north Florida, we met some people from Indiana, who were slowly moving all of their earthly possessions from their home in Indiana to their new home in Florida. They were retired and had a little old dog, whom we loved on tremendously, missing our own sweet pets at home. (This was the same rest stop where we saw a sign that read, "Warning: Beware of Poisonous Snakes"...yes, I was sad that I didn't get my very own picture of that sign. Maybe next time.) Anyway, we parted company, spent the next three days with the in-laws, then set out for home. We stopped in Cartersville, GA for the night, having put over 600 miles under our seats that day. The next morning, I went down to get breakfast for the huddled masses and whom did I see in the breakfast area but those two people from Indiana-Florida. I looked at her, asked her if she was from Indiana (I didn't recognize her husband, as I talked almost exclusively to her) and asked her where Quila, her dog, was. We had a huge laugh over the whole experience! What were the odds that we'd ever meet up again?
Here I am! Did ya miss me? One-third of the summer is gone and we're finally home to enjoy it! I hope you're enjoying yours!
Start your list here! Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)
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The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
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Jun. 8, 2006
Thursday Thirteen
Posted in Thursday 13
Thirteen Things about Lori this week
1. Well, here it is another Thursday with nothing important to say.
2. WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHGGGGGGGGGG! How did I get myself into this?
3. No, seriously, we're almost all packed and ready to go. I gave the beloved daughters their highly itemized list of things they need to get ready to pack. They were primed. They now have towering stacks of stuff in their rooms, ready to whisk into a suitcase at a moment's notice.
4. Unfortunately, the quilt I've been working on that needs to be done by Friday so I don't look imcompetent is not going well. I was showing it to an interested mother at the library when I noticed that the whole top row is off enough that it shows. Badly. So I have to rip out one of the only rows that was stitched in with the right seam allowance (all the other long seams I've had to rip out were because of wrong seam allowance problem) to reseat and resew it. Today. Yay.
5. Still haven't basted the twins' quilts.
6. Found out that it's going to be around 100º where we're going. I so don't love heat. But that's ok, we'll be sleeping in air conditioned splendor. Unless a storm knocks out the power. Which is not uncommon. Breathe in, breathe out.
7. Actually, this is the first year I've actually looked forward to camp. I like it once I get there but getting there is not fun. This year the fun of camp is actually overpowering the getting there.
8. Of course, Rachel walks up to me yesterday and say, "Mom! I have no summer skirts. All I have are sweat skirts or winter skirts. I'm going to roast!" What happened to the drawer full of summer skirts from last year, we have no idea. For that matter, where are all of my summer skirts?
9. Took the cars in for oil changes and check-ups this morning. It's a sad commentary on the state of your vehicles when you can tease the owner of the shop about his lack of uniform...and when the owner of the shop shows you his badly stained shirt which necessitated his running around looking like a surfer dude today.
10. Friend Husband suggested that I blog 13 things I have to do today. He's such a fun guy! Here are a few things I'd like to get done:
get stuff ready to mail, already!
finish last load (!) of laundry
cut husband's hair
finish fixing quilt
pack for camp
clean house
baste twins' quilts
11. I know I won't get around to basting the quilts and as I despise cleaning house, I'll probably find a way to get around that too. But hopefully the other stuff will get done!
12. Keziah has been on a peeing frenzy lately, necessitating many changes of clothes and extra laundry. Don't know what's going on with her, as the frenzy predated her (and her brother's) discovery and consequent ultimate enjoyment of asparagus, of all things. They stood next to my chair last night, begging for pieces of asparagus. Anyway, we got to church last night and undertook our usual way of evacuating the van: the Big Girls get out and make their own way into the building, I get David (closest twin to the door) out and take him in and Friend Husband grabs Keziah and gets her inside (you have to crawl into the van to unhook her car seat straps and as my rather large rear end hangs unattractively out the door, I try to get David rather than Keziah when at all possible.)
So K & FH walk in and FH hisses to me, "Do you have an extra set of clothes for Keziah?" I hiss back at him, "Of course not! You know I even forgot the diaper bag, much less a change of clothes. Why?" He looked significantly at her backside, which was sodden. Yay. As FH had just cleaned out the van a few days earlier, I did not hold out hope that I'd find so much as a blanket in the van, much less actual girl-child clothing replacement. I did, however, find a t-shirt of mine in the very back which I'd put back there to change into to play volleyball. I grabbed that, enrobed Keziah in it, and proceded on to the worship service. As she has the bearing of an imperious queen, she looked marvelous in it. It's a little daunting to realize that your toddler daughter has more style and panache in her little finger than you do in your whole body. Maybe she'll take pity on me and help me out, when she gets old enough to talk.
13. Good night, good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow,
That I shall say good night till it be morrow.
Shakespeare, Romeo & Juliet, Act 2, Scene 2
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The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
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Jun. 1, 2006
Thursday Thirteen
Posted in Thursday 13
Thirteen random musings
1. About the dog pictures yesterday...the top picture is our "current" dog, Lucy. She used to belong to Elizabeth but she kept getting out of their yard and running away. Her father (pictured in the Memorial Day pictures) said her name was misspelled. It should have been "Loosie" because she was always...loose. Her brother said it should be spelled Luci, as in Lucifer.
I say "current" in quotes because the deal was that we were "testing her out" (yeah, right) to see if she'd work with our family, especially with the twins. She's a sweet dog, the most affectionate that's ever graced our back yard. Now if we can just get her housetrained, our lives will be complete.
2. The second picture above is of our sweet Ron, who we had to put to sleep about 18 months ago, when his health finally gave out at the age of 15 ½. I was raving to my family about how much Lucy looks like Ronald. I finally got the pictures side-by-side to look. Aren't they sweet?
Here's another one of Ronald, in his decline:
3. This one's for Jana, who challenged us mamas to take this quiz:
Your type is:intp —The “Love of Learning” Mother
“I keep the encyclopedia in the kitchen so we can look up things together while we eat.”
Intellectually curious and patient, the INTP mother relishes those times with a child when they are learning something interesting together. Whether they’re at the zoo or computer terminal, she sparks to answering his or her “whys” with in-depth responses or new knowledge.
The INTP mother is also objective and introspective. She listens to and discusses children’s ideas and questions as she would those of a peer, fostering self-esteem and confidence. Open and non-directive, she allows children the freedom to do for themselves and quietly encourages them to believe they can do it.
Independence, autonomy, intellectual development, and self-reliance are probably the INTP’s highest priorities for her children. An avid reader, she naturally imparts an appreciation and love of reading as well.
Drawn to all types of learning, the INTP may also value her mothering experience for all the new insights about life it provides her.
To learn more about your personal strengths, plus tips for making the most of your natural mothering style, be sure to read your full profile in MotherStyles.
Click here to read about all types
Is there a problem with having encyclopedias at the dinner table? Don't you all have them there?
I cannot live without books. ~Thomas Jefferson
4. We actually each have a travel bag of books when we go on a long car trip. We once went to Texas, visiting Jim and Janet on the way, and went to a Half-Price Books store with them. We ended up carting two bags of books out of there. I think J&J were just shaking their heads. In amazement or confusion, I don't know, but they were definitely shaking their heads.
5. Speaking of Jim, it's his birthday today...Happy birthday, ya old fart!
6. This reminisce is for Molly. It's regarding Skyline chili, a Cincinnati original.
The first time I had Skyline, I wasn't all that crazy about it. Friend Husband, Sarah, Rachel and I had just moved here from Missouri and before that, we'd lived in Texas. I grew up (in Texas) with chili. Hot, spicy, meaty, beany, whatever, but I had my own concept of what chili was and it wasn't like Skyline.
I suppose I should back up. The little congregation we belong to is full of Texan expatriates. It's as if every Texan who moves to this area ends up in our congregation. It's another tradition to take said former Texan to Skyline to try the chili. So they coerced us to accompany them to this restaurant after the Sunday evening services.
That should have been my first clue.
The second clue should have been when they brought our food. The group grew eerily quiet and surreptitiously began to watch us as we rolled spaghetti covered in what looked like thin chili indeed up onto our forks. I took a bit and must have looked askance at the fork because everyone except Friend Husband started laughing. And then I knew I'd been had.
Cincinnati-style chili is not Tex-Mex chili, by any stretch of the imagination. The meaty bits are very small and it's flavored with stuff like cinnamon, cloves, and mace. I tell people to think of it as a Mediterranean-style stew and not chili and you'll do fine.
The last laugh was on us, though. After a period of abstinence from Skyline, we're hooked. As a 4-way has something like 8 points, I don't indulge much, but on occasion we can no longer resist the urge to hit Skyline and enjoy.
7. This one is for Elizabeth and her father, who both chastised me for making negative comments about their town a week or so ago. That would have been when I took the children to UDF for ice cream and ended up fleeing because people were glaring at us. I attributed it to the twins' being African-American because this isn't the first time we've had problems there when the twins were with us. Elizabeth and her father insist that their little burg isn't racist. I know what I saw, which was a lot of glaring and hard faces, but perhaps it wasn't directed toward the twins. I never could get a satisfactory answer out of them as to what it could be attributed to, but Elizabeth and her family live there and I'll accept that they feel their town isn't racist. I'd still like to know what people were glaring at.
8. This one is for Betsy, who wanted to see pictures of Rachel B. at her bridal shower:
That's Rachel's mom Sharon, Rachel, and her new ma-in-law-to-be, Cathy.
I'll ask those involved if they mind my posting pictures of them on my blog. I took pictures there for Aunt Debbie more than anything and I did have permission for that. Most people that I talk to a lot at church assume that anything funny or interesting may in fact find its way here, to Lori's Light Extemporanea because, as I told James last night, I don't have a life so I blog about all sorts of random events.
9. Which got us into a whole 'nuther discussion about blogging last night. James says that he has a blog but doesn't do anything with it because he has no life. I said, "You think I have a life? No, but I blog nonetheless. I guess it's a case of 'I blog, therefore I am.'"
10. Which brings me to another point...pretty soon I'm going to be too busy to blog. So does that mean I'll cease to exist? I guess so! I hope someone misses me!
11. I love the month of June...happy June everyone! June has always been special because it's my birthday month. And yes, I do try to stretch out the festivities as long as possible. One year I did have an entire birthday month. Last year, we had a huge storm roll through camp the night before my birthday. I was up half the night with that, organizing the girls back to bed, etc. The next day, we had no power, but the kitchen was fortunately equipped with gas ranges so we were able to turn out breakfast. I waltzed around camp with a tiara and scepter all day. It was totally not me and totally funny. I'd post a picture but, as I said, I was up half the night and on a woman my age that does not equal pretty.
This year, Rachel B. and her honey are getting married on my very birthday. At least I'll get some cake out of the deal, even though it won't be birthday cake. Hey, and a free meal! Yay! And I'll have the pleasure of watching those two fine young people plight their troth.
I will be turning 39 this year. Yes, that is meant to be a momentous birthday, I'm told. But my fil is turning 70 a few days later. Surely that's more momentous. I was thinking yesterday that 39 isn't so bad, really. There are things that I'll never be (thin and prosperous comes to mind) but considering where I've come from, I could be a lot worse off.
12. My mother had many difficulties in her life. One of her difficulties is that she was unable to give birth in any month but June. I say that tongue-in-cheek, of course. But she did have the audacity to give birth to my rotten little brother on my 3rd birthday, thus ruining my reign as queen of the house. Think tongue-in-cheek here people. I love my brother and his family now but it was not fun to share a birthday with your sibling when we were growing up. To add insult to injury, our little sister was due around our birthday but they ended up having to take her early as Mother was having pregnancy issues. Her birthday is the 9th. Naturally she gets her own birthday! Now do you know why I spin out my birthday to last a whole month? Yes, I am spoiled and half-crazy. Maybe three quarters.
13. Well, for a random blog, this has turned out to be way long. Maybe one day I'll learn not to spin such long tales within my Thursday Thirteens. But...as we were speaking of June birthdays (we were, remember?), I'd like to take this opportunity to wish JoAnn a happy birthday a day early. I hope it really rocks, JoAnn!
Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)
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The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
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May. 25, 2006
Thursday Thirteen
Posted in Thursday 13
Thursday Thirteen
Thirteen Things about Lori
1. Ugh.
2. I think we've got a bug.
3. Or something. It could be allergies.
4. Keziah will cough. Then she'll sneeze.
5. It's indicative of the fact that I've had broken sleep over the last two days that I am writing my Thursday Thirteen in rhyming couplets. I'll stop now. I know it's irritating.
6. Yes, that was a picture of Rachel up on the roof. She was so proud of herself, I just had to snap a picture. I think she was supposed to be helping Doug clean the whirlies off but I'm not sure she did much of that.
7. Night before last, my insomnia hit and I missed a few hours of sleep, which totally discombobulated me yesterday. Then last night, a thunderstorm rolled in at 1 AM and woke me up. I had just gotten back to sleep when Keziah woke up screaming bloody murder. We both waited for her to go back to sleep but she didn't. I finally got up to pick her up but I was not a happy person. I ended up losing another 3 hours of sleep last night.
8. Which made me sick and cranky today. And I got to spend hours in the county health facility (don't know why they call it that, you can feel the germs creeping up on you the minute you walk in) for David's eye appointment. His eyes have not changed since the last time we were in, so no glasses this visit. Next visit is on his birthday.
9. Happily, Friend Husband was home when I got home with the five chillens and I went back to bed. I slept for a couple of hours and I feel tolerably well but I know I'm coming down with something. Bleah.
10. I would like to officially welcome Amanda, her mil Debbie, and re-welcome Robin, my newest subscribers!
11. Anybody doing anything special for Memorial Day? We've been invited over to Friend Gina's, a big treat for us. I hope David doesn't throw himself into the firepit. My David, not hers. Actually, that'll be pretty funny. I wonder how her David will react when we are yelling at our David to do this or not do that. The David we named him after flinched a fair amount when he was over here and heard us saying stuff like, "Dave! Don't fling yourself off that chair! David! Get your hand out of the salad!"
12. I spend way too much time playing Neopets.
13. I'm hoping that we're getting a new dog today. I haven't heard from the current owners of the dog so I don't know. I miss having a dog around.
Happy end-of-the-week!
Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)
Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
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May. 18, 2006
Thursday Thirteen
Posted in Thursday 13
Thirteen Things about this week
1. I was going to do this all in haiku but I simply do not have the time. And we're all pleased with that, aren't we?
2. Tuesday, we went to the Museum Center and to Anderson Ferry. I've already put pictures up from the ferry. It's hard to imagine how wide the river is until you're crossing it on a ferry! I tried to give the girls the historical perspective (you know me) and tell them that once, this was the only way to cross the river. Mostly they were just excited to be able to run around and look around.
3. Keziah slept through the whole thing and that's why she's not in the pictures.
4. Yesterday, we went to the Zoo. We were so thankful that the weather changed and it wasn't cold and rainy. The sun even came out a few times!
5. There were a lot of school children there yesterday. I remember the day that I had Abigail, Sarah had a class trip to the Zoo. Abby's birthday is Saturday, so I guess it's the season for Zoo trips.
6. One group of girls (black and white) couldn't figure us out. I heard them whispering stuff like, "Maybe he's a doctor." "No, I think they're babysitting." I finally told them, "The babies are ours." I should have told them that they were adopted but their chaperone was giving me the evil eye so I moved on.
7. When we got home from the Zoo, I went out and finally got my tomatoes planted. I ran out of time to water them. Happily, it rained and rained last night so I didn't have to.
8. So Xanga has this new tracking thing. It is SO freaky! I never gave much thought to who reads my blog, other than people who leave comments and Judi. So I have a lot of hits from Israel? Israel? Who do I know in Israel? I wish you'd say howdy. I'd love to talk about Israel and life and whatever else.
9. Hamilton congregation has a big meeting this weekend. We're excited to attend but I know I'm going to be fried on Monday.
10. We were planning to go to COSI today but I think we're going to stay home and clean the house instead. Oh. Yay.
11. La de da. What else to talk about? Oh, I gained at WW this week. Now I'm officially a sow. Yay, again.
12. My coffee's cold...oh
Time to go upstairs...more brew
Maybe breakfast too.
13. Glad are we, Lori
That haiku you did not write
Thirteen times.
Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)
Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
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May. 11, 2006
Thursday Thirteen
Posted in Thursday 13
Seeing as Xanga was down a good part of the day, I decided to keep myself busy (cough, cough) making thirteen quilt blocks to display as my "Thursday Thirteen". Now that it's 11 PM, I'm finally finishing up.
I had to lighten the picture considerably because the room where I photographed it is so dark. The two large blocks in the middle are for a wedding quilt that we're making for two friends at church who are getting married next month. The rest of them are for that 9-patch swap I've been doing. Before much longer I will have fulfilled my committment to the swap and I can just sit back and wait for the quilt blocks to drift in for me. (The picture I put up yesterday for Wordless Wednesday was a "drift" of the blocks I've received so far.
I told Friend Husband that I wanted to finish 13 blocks tonight. He walked out of the laundry room (which is where I sew) and saw the pile of homespun 9-patches that I've already garnered as a result of the swap and said, "Why do you need to make more blocks? Don't you have enough out here?"
"Um, yeah, those are mine and these are for other people."
"Oh."
Nite nite!
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May. 4, 2006
Thursday Thirteen
Posted in Thursday 13
Currently Reading
Chopping Spree
By Diane Mott Davidson
see related
Thirteen Things about my day
1. You know, I'm not even sure I can write this all down. I've been blogging in my head all day but it feels as though it's all dripped out through a hole or something.
2. My day started out with a bang, courtesy of the twins. Whilst I was eating my breakfast, my little darlings were transporting plant dirt across the house and festooning my bedroom in it.
3. When I discovered the mess (dirt ground into everything, including formerly clean, formerly folded clothes), I went ballistic. The Big Girls came running from all directions while the twins effected a wide-eyed innocent look. All looked worried. As quickly as it had started, my shouting stopped, only to be replaced just as quickly by hysterical laughter. The children looked even more worried, if that would be possible.
4. After schoolwork was completed (I had been contemplating calling it off, as suggested by the principal, aka Friend Husband but the twins' little trick scotched that for everyone...shhhh, don't tell!), I got the van loaded up and we went off to run errands.
5. By getting the van loaded up, I mean that I dug out the clothes I wanted to take to the consignment shop, found the clothes I needed to return to the consignment shop because Keziah no longer wears that size, got the grossly overdue library books, videos, and dvds ready to go (except for 1900 House which I cannot find), cleaned up the twins and brushed and styled Zidy's hair, got bottles ready, got my grocery list & coupons, got the tablecloth I needed to return to one of the other mothers of a child in the musical, and got the Wild Bunch loaded into the car. I ended up forgetting the clothing I needed to return for credit to the shop. Yay. I forgot something else but now I've forgotten what it was that I forgot. Ha.
6. We went out to eat at the Chinese buffet, where few incidents were recorded. Except for David's dumping a glass of ice water out over himself and then protesting violently about it. He "chilled" after a while...
7. Did the consignment store, went to the grocery store. Everything was fine until David decided that he just had to have a nap and he had to have it right stinking now. The only problem with that is he does this irritating, "Eeh, eeh, eeh," until he falls asleep. I finally picked him up and settled him on my chest, while still rolling his cart in front of me. He promptly snuggled up and slept. Just as promptly, his twin sister glanced over from her very own cart and, seeing that her brother was getting "preferential treatment", began to wail like a banshee. Or would it be to shriek like a lost soul. At any rate, you could almost see the thoughts rolling through her small, cute head. "You picked up that boy! That's not fair! Put him down immediately and pick me up. You're not doing it! I must scream at the injustice of my life!" She said a lot more, but you get the picture.
8. We finally got out the door, into the car, and drove toward the Other Musical Mom's house. Only the directions she gave me didn't work. So we're driving around this neighborhood with no idea where we were going in our cruddy old minivan. This is not a neighborhood in which you drive a cruddy old minivan. I figured we'd get arrested for driving while only having one income.
9. Gave up the quest for Other Musical Mother's house and went to the library to pay off the National Debt and pick up some more library books. At this point, David has woken up in a foul mood but Keziah is angelically asleep. I unloaded the Big Girls, unloaded David, and was in the process of balancing a completely zonked Zi and the bag full o' library books when the girls made a fatal mistake. "Why do I have to watch him? Why can't she watch him?"
10. This time I went nova.
11. "I guess it's too much to ask for y'all to hold his hand so he's not made a grease spot in the parking lot. I mean, after all, I know I have a gazillion hands with which to hold Keziah, the library bag, my purse, a diaper bag and his little hand but I think y'all need to work a little in order to feel a part of the family, don't you think?" Naturally, everyone being tired and hot and all, this was not taken as the endearing question it was intended to be. Right. Anyway, now we're all in the library in a bad mood, I've got some stuff I need to do, and no one wants to be the one stuck taking David back to the toys. Sarah finally acquiesed but I think it had more to do with my rapidly escalating temper and rapidly decreasing patience than any real desire to help. Rachel and Abby were no help at all.
12. It turned out to be an exhausting day. My whole body aches. How do single mothers do it? How do women whose husbands work away get by? My hat's off to you, ladies. Don't let the shine of the grey hairs blind you.
13. I just finished SAHM I AM by Meredith Efken today. If you've ever been in an online group for women, you should read this book. It is so spot on one group I was in that I could almost promise you that she was also in that group. But it's a hoot...go read it now, why don't you?
Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. MrsIncredible
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Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
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Apr. 27, 2006
Thursday Thirteen # 15
Posted in Thursday 13
Currently Watching
The Music Man (Special Edition)
see related
Thursday Thirteen # 15
Thirteen Things about why I am slowly but inexorably losing my mind...
1. Ja, the play's tomorrow, ja.
2. I spent 3 more hours this afternoon attempting to bring order out of chaos.
3. Oh. My. Word.
4. Does the phrase "train wreck" mean anything to you?
5. I came home from play practice with the beginning of another migraine.
6. Happily, Friend Husband took me out to dinner.
7. Unhappily, we were surrounded on both sides by the families from sitcom land who proceeded to either berate (very loudly) their children or keep scrunching around violently in the seats such that I was also bounced around.
8. I thought I showed remarkable restraint in not going ballistic in either direction.
9. That was, in fact, baby powder that the twins festooned the house with the other day. My friend Candy (mother of triplets) reminded me to be grateful. It could have been Desitin or Sharpie Markers like her boys got into.
10. Candy and I have self-assigned ourselves to monitor the comings and goings of the wretched children in this play (our collective children excluded because they are, of course, perfection itself).
11. Therefore, instead of being in the audience tomorrow, I will be backstage trying to keep the hyperactive children from a) talking so loudly that their parents can hear them outside, b) missing their cues to go onstage, c) getting them lined up to get onstage in the proper order, with their props, ready to do their lines. ARGH!
12. Yes, I am a patsy. Just put me right there in front of the door. That'll be fine.
13. I thought this was a) supposed to be a positive experience, b) something that I paid someone else to do, and c) something that I was supposed to be able to see as a parent. Grrr.
And now, 13 things for which I am grateful today: In no particular order...
1. Man, that Mexican food just hit the spot.
2. My children don't sass back to me in public.
3. My own personal children are respectful to the adults in charge of them.
4. In 48 hours, this will all be over.
5. Thank you, God, that you've given me the strength and energy to get this far. Bring me home, Lord. Bring me home.
6. Sarah and Rachel know their lines.
7. Sarah and Rachel know their songs.
8. Oh my word, I just bawl when they do the scene between Marian and her mother and when Rachel sings "Then There Was You" in the next-to-last scene. Waaaahhhh! Where in the world did that gorgeous voice come from?
9. The girls are having a good time with this.
10. The musical numbers look great and sound (mostly) good.
11. Did I mention that this will all be over soon?
12. I'm grateful that I will at least be able to be there backstage. One boy's parents cannot be there at all. They're devastated and he's bummed out.
13. I'm just so grateful that Whitney and Friend Husband have been able to watch the twins so that I could get involved with this train wreck...I mean, play. Musical. Whatever it is.
And it'll all be over Saturday afternoon. Hallelujah!
Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)
Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
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Mar. 23, 2006
Thursday Thirteen
Posted in Thursday 13
Thirteen Things about Lori's adventures with The Passionate Vegetarian
Well, I finally have time to go through some of the recipes that I've tried from PV in the last month. We haven't been going very quickly lately. I've been attempting to keep myself from saying, "Nah, you can't do this so just give it up." Giving things up is not necessarily a good thing, particularly if you've made a public commitment and the only reason to quit is because it's too hard....
So, going roughly from worst to best (an admittedly subjective assessment) here are our Thursday Thirteen, another Passionate Vegetarian version.
Broccoli in Dijon Mustard Sauce, pg. 708. I am one of those strange people who actually likes broccoli, as long as it's cooked. Raw broc does yucky things to my gut. This broccoli dish didn't wow me, though. The sauce was a bit bland and grainy. I added extra mustard but it still wasn't something I'd make again. 4/10
Eastern European Casserole of Sauerkraut, Cabbage, Apples, and Noodles, pg. 287. Now Robin's family liked this a lot. My family liked it the first night. Unfortunately, it makes a lot and it was not as well-loved after the first evening. It's very monochromatic (in the brown ranges, that would be) and for a family that's accustomed to in-your-face spice, it was not something they clamored for again and again. 6/10
Chilaquiles Windflower, pg. 376. Ditto this casserole. While very very pretty to look at, we got very tired of looking at it on our plates for days on end. Good the first day, though. (This is a sort of Mexican lasagne made with corn tortillas, so it might be extra cool for someone who can't eat wheat.) 7.5/10
Sweet Harvest Applesauce Breakfast Bundt Cake, pg. 1015. This tasted just fine and had the added benefit of being a lower-fat quick bread, something hard to find. It just didn't win its way to the hearts of my family. I liked it pretty well but contrary to popular belief, I wouldn't eat a whole cake, even if it was low-fat. 6/10
Dairy Hollow House Curry Spice Blend, pg. 901. Good but very black-peppery. 6/10
Old-Fashioned Whole Wheat Bread with a Touch of Sorghum, Conventional Method, pg. 521. We eat a lot of bread, unless I make a bunch by hand and then it goes to waste. This recipe only made two loaves of bread and they were gobbled up within a couple of days. 8/10
Wintertime Salsa, pg. 913. I miss salsa when it's not summertime. I simply won't buy tomatoes in the winter, when they're likely to taste like cotton balls. This is a good way to deal with your own personal salsa cravings in the midst of the cold dark times. 8/10
Dairy Hollow House Skillet-Sizzled Buttermilk Cornbread, pg. 451. Generally speaking, I adore food that specifically uses cast-iron skillets to cook it. I am passionate about my cast-iron skillets. As you may have guessed, this cornbread does and it's pretty good, as cornbreads go, but it's not nearly the fluffy confection that the Sayra's Cornbread recipe in Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant is. That doesn't even need the honey that my crew strews upon it. But this recipe is just fine too. As an added note, the author of PV is working on a cookbook exclusively dedicated to cornbread. Should be interesting. 8/10
CD's Basic At-Home Light Omelet for One, pg. 884. I was prepared not to like this. It contains non-fat dry milk, which I generally hate with a passion (we once went through a "thrifty" phase where I made our milk from dry and it has colored my world ever since). And I'm no good at omelets. And, although my very beloved cast-iron skillets can do many beautiful things, they don't generally do eggs in a gorgeous manner. No, I don't own a non-stick skillet. I broke my last one and haven't replaced it. Having said that, I loved this omelet! And it didn't stick to my pan! And it was Weight Watchers friendly! And it used up leftovers! Now if it could make me young and thin again, it would get a perfect 10, but that's a lot to ask of a food substance.
Oven-Roasted Asparagus, pg. 685. Asparagus is truly one of those gifts that God sends us to let us know He loves us. We eat tremendous amounts of asparagus in season and Rachel is downright passionate about it. (If you think I'm waxing poetic, you should hear her rapture in talking about asparagus.) This is the way I make asparagus most of the time anyway. It's good to know that a professional foodie and I agree. 10/10
The Salad, pg. 68. I can't remember if I talked about this before. Perhaps I did. But this salad is awfully good, chock full of yummy garlic (which is so good for you) and will make you love salad all over again. If you don't want to buy PV, go out, find it at your local public library, and copy this recipe out of the book. With fresh lettuce season upon us, you'll thank me. Really, you will. 10/10
Garlic Spaghetti (aka, The One, the Only, the Greatest Garlic Spaghetti), pg. 864. Ahhhh...it's hard to type when you're salivating but I'll try to get it done. I'd heard over the years about this garlic spaghetti, intriguing snippets here and there, but never saw the recipe until I started really studying the cookbook for things to make. This one lives up to the billing, with two caveats. It's really, really rich. I mean rich. It also contains a raw egg which almost but not quite gets cooked by the freshly drained pasta. If you have folks who are 1) old, 2) young, 3) immuno-suppressed and/or 4) raw egg phobic (like Friend Husband), you might not want to make this for them. Make it for yourself, though. I've had something like this in Boston, when I traveled up there prior to the advent of Abigail. It was sheer garlic intoxication. Oh, I guess a third caveat is that you really have to like garlic. I'm telling you, this is a magnificent dish, and quick too. Ok, well, I'll stop raving about it but you have to understand that I am definitely passionate about this yummy (but definitely not WW friendly) dish.
Seeing as I did not try out 13 dishes that I can remember, I'll bestow upon you the recipe for Garlic Spaghetti. When you eat it, toast Crescent.
Garlic Spaghetti
8 oz. spaghetti or fettuccine
1 raw large egg, preferably free-range
7-8 cloves garlic, peeled
3-4 T. butter, softened
1/4-1/3 freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 t. dried basil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Crushed red pepper (optional)
Vegetarian bacon bits (optional)
Bring a large pot of water to a vigorous boil. Drop in the pasta
As the pasta cooks, gently warm either the bowl from which you'll serve the pasta or individual plates.
Combine the egg, garlic, butter, Parmesan, basil, a little salt, and a lot of pepper in a food processor. Buzz, pausing to scrape downt he sides, until a thick paste is formed.
When the pasta is done, drain it, but do not rinse. Quickly transfer to a bowl (the warmed serving bowl, if you wish) and dollop it with the garlic paste. Toss like wild, adding a little more pepper and maybe a dash or two more salt. By now the garlic aroma shold be driving you crazy, so...
Sit down and eat, serving the dish ASAP on the warmed plates, passing the red pepper, veggie bacon bits, and, if you like, additional Parmesan and a peppermil. Swoon.
And it is definitely swoonable.
Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)
Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
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Mar. 16, 2006
Adoption Day!
Posted in Thursday 13
Thirteen Things about ADOPTION DAY
1. Wow. I'm just sincerely overcome.
2. My Adoption Day festivities (think waterworks) started last night at church. We'd dressed the twins up in their Ethiopian clothing that we purchased in-country. Keziah fell asleep in the van on the way to church but David was wiiiiiide awake, shaking everyone's hand as we walked down the center aisle to sit down. After the service started, he wanted to continue his winning extrovert ways by shouting, waving, talking, etc. all at the highest possible volume known to baby man. His sister slept right through it.
I took him into the back of the building to keep his noise farther away from my fellow congregants. I started thinking about his family in Ethiopia. Who did he look like? Whose personality was so outgoing and loving? And what about Keziah? Who does she look like? What talents do they possess as an inheritance of their biological family?
I was sitting on the back pew with David on my lap thinking about this stuff, trying hard not to cry and feeling just so sorry for his biological family, in their very serious problems and sorrows and hoping that those who remained were well and knew that the twins were being cared for.
3. This morning I hopped onto Mapquest to get directions to our county probate court (which handles readoption). It told me to go down a street that didn't exist. Oh yeah, that's a great way to get started.
4. We got all gussied up in our Sunday-go-to-meetin' clothes in honor of the occasion and the people we'd be meeting. We talked to the girls for a couple of days about the honor of the judge, how he represents the judicial system, etc. We also reminded them of when we had to go to the CIS building in downtown Cincinnati to get fingerprinted and how we had to go through a metal detector to do that. I reminded them yet again how it wouldn't be funny to make any comments about the metal detector, guns, knives, bombs, etc. All in preparation for this solemn occasion.
5. I could have saved my breath.
6. No metal detectors. No courtroom. No gavel. No powdered wig (well, Friend Husband threw that in). It was rather anti-climatic. As near as I could tell, we didn't even need to see the judge. I'm not sure what purpose he served.
7. Ok, sorry, I'm getting ahead of myself. We walked into the correct office (yay!), sat the Big Girls down in the outer ring of chairs, and followed the clerk to her desk to fill out paperwork. We'd dutifully made copies of everything that they asked us to copy and brought the originals for verification. I was a little nervous about our CIS form, as I wasn't sure we'd brought the right one. I'm still not sure we did, but they seemed happy with it so I kept my mouth shut. (That's one lesson I was trying to convey to the girls: Keep your eyes open and your mouth shut.)
8. First hard question: "Which one was born first?"
"Um, I don't know."
"Well, which one do you want to be born first?"
"Um, Keziah?"
Ok.
9. Answered a lot of other questions, got copies of the paperwork, followed the nice clerk lady back to the "hearing room". Ok, surely now we'll have pomp and circumstance, the thrill of the courtroom! I should have known better. It was a larger room (giving David more room to run wild) with more chairs and a microphone. Hey, and the judge came in with us! Yay! The only question I recall his asking us was, "Where are they from?" I'll have to check the paperwork and see if he signed anything. I'm not exactly sure what he did except to watch us sign the papers.
10. "Well, ok, you're done. Are you ready to leave?"
"What?!"
"You're finished. Here is your paperwork."
"Um, could we get a picture? With the judge? And with you?"
"Oh sure, let me go try to find him."
That was one slippery "judge".
Snap, snap, we were done.
11. Well, that being anticlimatic, we decided to go out to eat for lunch. But since it was only 10 AM, we went home first and the girls did some schoolwork. Yes, we're that mean. I would have given them the day off but Friend Husband wanted them to do a half day of work, since he also had to do a half day of work. O-kay...
12. We celebrated in true Krull family style by going to our favorite Chinese buffet. Yum! A good time was had by all.
13. Keziah's fortune cookie read: "Courtesy is one of the best peacemakers."
David's fortune cookie read: "Dare to dream, hope, believe, seek, feel, find, and love."
@~@~@~@~@~@~@~@~@~@~@~@~@~@~@~@~@~@~@~@~@~@~
Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)
Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
View More Thursday Thirteen Participants
And now for the pictures!
Ok, just for the record, I didn't wrap the "Aunt Jemima" around Zidy's head. Rachel did. It's supposed to be a neck scarf, but she didn't want it there at all.
Playing on the floor in the clerk's office.
Still playing...clerk and Dad in the background...
The "hearing room"...and a complaining older sister
The very-important-clerk and the family, post-adoption
The judge & us, post-paperwork
At the Chinese restaurant
Zidy's celebratory lunch
For Dave, it's all about the food
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Mar. 9, 2006
Thursday Thirteen
Posted in Thursday 13
Thirteen Things about Lori
Y'all know how much I love blog quizzes so I offer a few to you in the spirit of Thursday Thirteen.
You Are Coke
A true original and classic, you represent the best of everything you can offer.
Just the right amount of sweet, just the right amount of energy... you're the life of the party.
Your best soda match: Mountain Dew
Stay away from:Dr Pepper
What Kind of Soda Are You?
Reeses Peanut Butter Cups
Very popular, one of you is not enough.
What Kind of Candy Are You?
How You Live Your Life
You seem to be straight forward, but you keep a lot inside.
You're laid back and chill, but sometimes you care too much about what others think.
You tend to have one best friend you hang with, as opposed to many aquaintences.
You tend to dream big, but you worry that your dreams aren't attainable.
How Do You Live Your Life?
Your Fortune Is
A man can keep his youth, by giving her money, furs and diamonds.
The Wacky Fortune Cookie Generator
Your Luck Quotient: 42%
You have an average luck quotient.
There's been times when you've been extremely lucky... but also times when you've been very unlucky.
You probably know that you can make your own luck in life, if you're open to it.
So listen to your intuition as much as you can. It's right more often than you might expect.
How Lucky Are You?
Who Should Paint You: Andy Warhol
You've got an interested edge that would be reflected in any portrait
You don't need any fancy paint techniques to stand out from the crowd!
What Artist Should Paint Your Portrait?
You Are 30% Boyish and 70% Girlish
Even if you're not a girl, you're very feminine.
You're in touch with your feelings, and your heart rules you.
A bit of a emotional roller coaster, one moment you're up and the next you're down.
But no matter what, you try to be as cute and perky as possible.
How Boyish or Girlish Are You?
On Average, You Would Sell Out For
$1,123,950
At What Price Would You Sell Out?
You Are a Boston Creme Donut
You have a tough exterior. No one wants to mess with you.
But on the inside, you're a total pushover and completely soft.
You're a traditionalist, and you don't change easily.
You're likely to eat the same doughnut every morning, and pout if it's sold out.
What Donut Are You?
Your Blogging Type is Artistic and Passionate
You see your blog as the ultimate personal expression - and work hard to make it great.
One moment you may be working on a new dramatic design for your blog...
And the next, you're passionately writing about your pet causes.
Your blog is very important - and you're careful about who you share it with.
What's Your Blogging Personality?
You Are Rain
You can be warm and sexy. Or cold and unwelcoming.
Either way, you slowly bring out the beauty around you.
You are best known for: your touch
Your dominant state: changing
What Type of Weather Are You?
You Have a Phlegmatic Temperament
Mild mannered and laid back, you take life at a slow pace.
You are very consistent - both in emotions and actions.
You tend to absorb set backs easily. You are cool and collected.
It is difficult to offend you. You can remain composed and unemotional.
You are a great friend and lover. You don't demand much of others.
While you are quiet, you have a subtle wit that your friends know well.
At your worst, you are lazy and unwilling to work at anything.
You often get stuck in a rut, without aspirations or dreams.
You can get too dependent on others, setting yourself up for abandonment.
What Temperment Are You?
You Are Kermit
Hi, ho! Lovable and friendly, you get along well with everyone you know.
You're a big thinker, and sometimes you over think life's problems.
Don't worry - everyone know's it's not easy being green.
Just remember, time's fun when you're having flies!
The Muppet Personality Test
Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)
Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
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Mar. 2, 2006
Thursday Thirteen
Posted in Thursday 13
Thirteen Things about Lori
1. Hey! D'ja miss me? Huh, huh? Did ya?
2. I'm posting today because of Friend Gina (see! I'm ok!) and Friend Kelly. She posted her very first TT today. Welcome to the insanity!
3. Patty was involved in a bad accident yesterday. Thank goodness she walked away from it unhurt. You can see pictures of her car at Naomi's site.
4. Kinda makes my little problems paltry doesn't it? Not that much is really going on wrong, just life flowing past me.
5. I've been working hard on David's baby quilt. The good news is that I finally figured out a way to include the middle block that I originally made for it. It's a Peace and Plenty block and I really wanted to use it as much for for the name as for the block itself. There's so much famine and unrest in Ethiopia now...it's a wish for the country as well as for David (and Keziah).
6. The bad news is that that blasted quilt has 4 inset y-seams, which are a royal pain in my ample tush. I'm managing though.
7. Another fine thing is that when I was planning out the block setting, an Ohio Star appeared. I just love serendipitous things like that! Now it'll have a sort of a double-pattern developing. I think. Anyway, it's cool.
8. The Big Girls are practicing their lines for The Music Man. We did the scene with Marian and Charlie Cowell 10 times on Tuesday. I was ready to pull my hair out by the roots by the end. Have I mentioned how much I dislike this play?
9. Welcome to Lori, my latest subscriber! I will definitely have to start a Lori blogring now. Any suggestions for a name?
10. Here's another question for y'all. I got myself involved in a block exchange sort of thing for one of my small quilt groups. We're supposed to make 9" 9-patch blocks for each other, using the provided background. So I have to decide what sort of a 9-patch block I want. I originally thought that I wanted a 9-patch in Amish colors, then I thought in homespuns with barn reds or Prussian blues. I just don't know what I want, and as the blocks are in different sizes, I have to figure out what to do with the blessed things anyway. I have two quilts in progress that I could use them on: an Amish friendship star that the guild made me when I was President (which needs borders) and a tiny little baskets quilt that I've been working on for a while. Yes, after the twins' quilts are finished...and the blocks I'm making for other people are done. Right. I should live long enough to finish my quilting projects. So help me figure out what kind of a nine-patch to work on so I can buy the background fabric and have it cut out before the next meeting. Which is the second Tuesday of the month.
11. What else, what else? Yes, I've been hanging back from updating here. We are really busy but I also think I spend way too much time online, so I've been trying to cut back. It is hard though, and I miss my Xanga pals, not to mention the fun people who read this blog over on Homeschool Blogger.
12. AND I had some sort of spyware/adware on the computer which took 2 full days to get off. Well, 2 half days anyway. I don't have full days to devote to anything, however noble it might be. But it seems to be gone now, hallelujah!
13. Tonight is date night! Yay! We're planning to go see Walk The Line and go out to eat. Should be interesting. And I'm so very thankful that next week is Spring Break! I think we all need a big ol' break.
So have yourself an excellent afternoon!
Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. Kelly (because I promised)
(leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)
Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
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Feb. 23, 2006
Posted in Thursday 13
I saw this on a couple of blogs yesterday and thought it was hilarious. Of course, the very first one that I got I lost. In my obsessiveness (I think Friend Husband has rubbed off on me), I kept punching in my name and getting different messages. These were the ones I thought were the most hilarious:
SlackerMom will have to write:
I will stop pretending that I’m talking to someone on my cell to seem wicked cool
'What will you have to write on the chalk board?' at QuizGalaxy.com
SlackerMom will have to write:
I will not forget that people can see me
'What will you have to write on the chalk board?' at QuizGalaxy.com
SlackerMom will have to write:
I will not refer to my parents as the parental units
'What will you have to write on the chalk board?' at QuizGalaxy.com
Thirteen Things about SlackerMom
Since I don't have anything interesting to say today, I'll just put up 13 things I've been/done in my life.
1. Daughter
2. Sister
3. Friend
4. Wife
5. Mother
6. Grocery clerk
7. Pizza maker/deliverer
8. Bridal consultant
9. Therapist
10. College instructor
11. Homeschooler
12. Avon lady
13. Quilt store clerk
Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)
Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
View More Thursday Thirteen Participants
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Jan. 5, 2006
Thursday 13
Posted in Thursday 13
Thirteen Things about SlackerMom
Woohooo! Yes, that was me you heard screaming bloody murder this morning when I logged on and saw that Texas had in fact beaten USC last night to claim the National Championship.
This is an odd thing. I did, in fact, graduate from that "esteemed" institution with my B.A. in psychology (and that's where Friend Husband got his graduate degreee and where we met) but I've never been a big supporter. Having grown up in Austin and been force-fed UT and UT football my whole life, my main goal as a senior in high school was to go elsewhere. Anywhere. I applied (and was accepted) to Rice University, Sweet Briar, and Wellesley (hey, the last 2 were girls' schools, I figured it would gain points with the parentals) but ended up at the hallowed halls of The University of Texas at Interregional. So, I went there and hated most of my 4 years there (yep, I did graduate in 4 years...makes a difference when you're paying for it yourself). But when I saw that Texas had slipped past USC to win the game, I whooped so loud the neighbors could hear me. What's up with that?
We had to then ritually sing the Texas Fight Song (yet another odd custom that has been bred into me over years of training...Mother would have been so proud). I taught this to the girls during one of our long treks to Cincinnati Children's Hospital last spring when we were having Sarah evaluated. (Incidentally, the words that are on the link above are not the words I learned as un undergraduate there. They're much much tamer.) So, to the tune of "I've Been Working On The Railroad", you sing this song and at the end, you're supposed to yell epithets at the opposing team. Of course, this is not something that I wanted to teach the young 'uns so I substituted "Then they say some cuss words". Of course, that became the very favorite part of the whole song for the girls.
Another interesting thing about UT is that they light up the main building tower orange after a sports win and when a sport actually garners the #1 ranking, they light up the tower with a number "1". They will be doing that tonight. You may see it yourself from the University Co-op Tower Cam if you wish. But if you don't want to, here's a picture or two from previous #1 seasons. It's not uncommon for UT grads to have huge framed posters of this in their homes (I know my stepfather had one in his home office). Yes, they are that crazed.
And yes, if the tower looks strangely familiar to you in a not-good way, it is the site of the Tower Massacre where Charles Whitman took it upon himself to shoot and kill 13 people walking around the campus. That was the first thing I thought of as I walked onto campus the first time to register. Although I wasn't even a twinkle in Daddy's eye when it happened (well, maybe a twinkle), it's definitely a part of the whole Austin-UT-Tower mystique/history thing. Yeah. I'm so articulate this morning.
Enough about UT. Did y'all know that "tump" is a word? Well, I know that those of you from Texas and possibly the rest of the South know that it's a real word, but even Bookworm recognizes it as a word. I was just so tickled by that. Anyone (who doesn't hail from the South) wanna guess what it means? And no fair looking it up either.
I read a lot of books whilst we were traversing this great nation of ours a couple of weeks ago. I'm so delighted that I got over my car-sickness enough to be able to do this. The first one I read was Midwives by Chris Bohjalian. It was quite a good read! Had a surprise in it that had me open-mouthed and indignant and having to explain everything to Friend Husband. I'm not nearly as good at explaining things as the author is at writing them so he just didn't get it.
Our book club book this month is Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden. I was set out not to like it because the woman who suggested it was just so into it. It turned out to be better than I thought. The imagery in it was magnificent. I find myself wondering, though, how much of it is historically accurate and what part of it is a Western man's reading into what is the tradition of some Eastern women. I guess I'll never know.
I also started reading (again) Debi Pearl's book, Created To Be His Help-Meet. I wish I could be as positive as Debi Pearl about everything. I'm sure my hubby would be a much happier man.
Once we got back home, I've been on a glut of Savannah Reid mysteries (G.A. Mc Kevett). Yes, not very high-brow, but most of the books I read are escapes, not heavy thinking. I especially like the ones that have a tie-in with food (no surprises there, mate). I've got a collection of Diane Mott Davidson books (located on my cookbook shelf because they have such good recipes in them) and I'm working to collect Joanne Fluke books for the same reason. Actually the recipes in the Fluke books are mostly cookies, so my family is rooting for those more than the Davidson books. So anyway, I've now read every Savannah Reid mystery in our local library. Anyone have any other mystery-foodie book recommendations?
I just finished Everyone Worth Knowing by Lauren Weisberger (of The Devil Wears Prada fame). I liked this book better than Prada. It's sweeter, which is an odd thing for a book of this genre (crazy young Manhattanites) to be. But the whole lifestyle is still kinda crazed and bizarre for me. When I was the age of the heroine in this book, I was married and was staying at home with our 2 babies. It's a far cry from the Manhattan party scene.
Speaking of motherhood and Manhattan (we were, weren't we?), I'm reading What Do You Do All Day? by Amy Schiebe. I thought it was going to be more about the oddity of being a SAHM in New York (and it is) but apparently our lives still don't have much in common. I don't know what I was looking for, exactly, but it's just not as interesting as I thought it would be.
And that was a good segue into Alan Alda's autobiography, Never Have Your Dog Stuffed and Other Things I've Learned. I grew up watching M*A*S*H religiously (yes, that's what kind of an upbringing I had) and I was looking forward to reading this one. Eh, it was ok, but not stunning. The most impressive thing I learned was that Alda has struggled with various things and has basically thought, thought, thought his way through them. And he loves his wife. And that's not such a bad thing but it doesn't make for a terribly interesting book. Maybe I'm just jaded but that's how I felt about it.
And so, there you have it! Thursday Thirteen and a book review, all in one day. I just give and give.
Links to other Thursday Thirteens!
(leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)
1. Jen (thanks!); 2. Leanne ; 3. Renee ; 4. Colleen ; 5. Lori ; 6. Jennifer ; 7. Jennifer ; 8. Nancy ; 9. Uisce ; 10. TexasIvy ; 11. Karen ; 12. Stacie ; 13. SquashedToad
Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
View More Thursday Thirteen Participants
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Nov. 17, 2005
Thursday 13 #1
Posted in Thursday 13
Thirteen Things about Me and mine
1. Keziah said a sentence yesterday! She pointed to David and said, "Dat Bubba." As I looked at her with stark incredulity, she pointed at him again and said, "Dere!"
2. Yesterday was our first snow.
3. It made me sad. My mother was a born and bred Texan who had the misfortune of spending a winter in North Dakota. Ever since then, she had a thing about snow. She hated it and hated the cold. So...being the lovely daughter that I am, I would always call her when we got our first snow and say gleefully, "It's snowing! It's snowing!" And she'd always retort, "Better you than me!" So I miss my Mama.
4. Welcome to my newest subscriber mcsms! (That would be on my Xanga blog.)
5. So I got skewered at Curves this morning about having a non-traditional Thanksgiving. There's this one lady (who I actually like a lot) who is totally whacked out by the fact that we don't celebrate Halloween, Christmas, or Easter and now that I've decided not to have a turkey-fest next week. It's kinda funny but I'm getting a little tired of it.
6. Denae asked me yesterday if I'd ever heard of FlyLady.net. Yep! I'm proud to say that I was on her YahooGroup when there were only about a thousand people and she answered e-mails personally. She's the reason why my dishes get washed every night, the bathroom isn't a total disaster area, and that I have any hope at all with regard to my house.
7. On Tuesday, Jen had a blog about a knit-it-yourself digestive tract. Yep, I'm not kidding. I sent the link to my friend who knits and she promptly returned with two other links, one for knitted breast prostheses, which made me laugh so hard I actually hurt myself, and another for a very perky knitted uterus. Friend Who Knits offered to make me my very own perky knitted uterus to put on my mantle. I may take her up on it...it's not everyone who can have a uterus on display on her mantle.
8. And can you imagine when the children are going through my stuff after I croak? "What is this?" "You know, Mom's knitted uterus." "O-Kay!"
I really live to make people wonder about me.
9. So Thanksgiving is next week and I checked out a bunch of books to solidify my menu. I know we'll have a vindaloo and a wat (Indian and Ethiopian, respectively) and I'll go ahead and make the much hated (by me) sweet potato casserole, but I need to get a few other ideas. Maybe I'll make pickled beets and that pickled carrot salad that one of our guests (and I) like. I just love cooking different types of ethnic foods! I love even reading cookbooks of any ilk.
10. I need to get my garlic planted before the ground freezes.
11. Yesterday, I called a local friend who's in the hospital to find out how she was doing. She was a little loopy at the time so I made the comment that she sounded like she was "hopped up on dope". Which she was and she laughed. My daughter said, "Mother! No wonder we never get invited anywhere with them!"
You know, I've always been an overachiever but I never dreamed I'd be able to embarrass my children even before they were teens. Go me!
Self-same daughter, who got a part in the "commercial" for their big play (I'll have to rant about that another day) informed me yesterday that she needs a costume consisting of a frilly white shirt and a long fancy skirt. Like next week. Yeah, like that's going to happen. Why is my child the only girl in this "commercial" who has to provide her own costume? Grrrr!
12. I am so thankful for a happy day yesterday. It was so hard to get out of bed and I was sure it was going to be yet another awful day. But it turned out to be good. Yeah! Just goes to show you that you can't judge a day by its early morning.
13. Ok, this was harder than I thought it would be! It's easy to just blah blah blog. But organizing it? Nope...organization, in any way, shape, or form, is not my forte.
Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)
Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
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