Busy Weekend

I like looking at check designs in the mailers. It is always fun to have cute backgrounds to display the amount of money leaving my bank account. Here is a design I came up with to celebrate or semi-cultish following of Doctor Who:



Speaking of Doctor Who fans the dear Kate Hadfield fulfilled a doodle request for me. She created some awesome dandelions for me. I am currently working on a few layouts and hope to have them finished by this evening.

:::::::::::::This weekend::::::::

I baked lemon squares for a couple of sister's at Church and Michael agreed to be my taste tester. I passed with flying colors, so I packaged some up and took them to Church on Sunday.

We took the kids to the Buford Highway Farmer's Market. The store always has little taste testing kiosks. The first one we came across was one making our kids favorite meal. There was a triumphant and spontaneous chorus of "TOFU!!!" from the children. They were so excited! We grabbed 4 boxes of tofu and 4 boxes of Mabu Tofu sauce. We did the obligatory stop at the crabs and eels cases.

:::::::::::::Roller Skating:::::::

Rachel was invited to a roller skating party for a girl in her scout troop. The little girl's mother was kind enough to include the rest of our kids. Aaron chose to use in-line skates instead of the traditional style. He is much more confident with the in-line. I dropped my socks on the way out of the house, so I had to watch on the side-lines for a little bit while Michael skated with the kids. Eve was able to do really well after we traded her skates in for a bigger size and then noticed that the wheels barely turned. She thought she was really skating well when she was actually walking on 4 stuck wheels. Noah had a hard time and decided to give up after 30 minutes and the boots caused soars on the front of his ankles. Rachel was really funny because she stuck her hind end out as a counter balance and remarked that her lower back was getting sore. I was able to skate when Michael offered me is boots. Michael ended up loaning me his socks, too. They were rather sweaty, but I didn't have any so I wasn't about to complain. After skating for a couple of hours might feet weren't sore at all and they didn't feel sweaty. My ever techinical gear oriented spouse explained it was the merino wool of the R.E.I. socks I was wearing.

::::::::::::::::Swimming Lessons:::::

Round One: Noah and Eve
Round Two: Aaron and Rachel

A young lady from our Church is the swim instructor for all of the kids. She was great with all of them. Her hardest obstacle was getting Noah to listen. He is a little story teller. She also would correct them firmly, but nicely when they did something wrong. She was trying to make sure their mechanices were sound before moving on to anything else. Michael and I were super impressed with Eve for her positive attitude. She would do what she was asked and put her face in the water for as long as she could and then come up sputtering. She would flash us a thumbs up sign to let us know she was fine. They were all happy to get into the water and learn.

The kicker was the fees to get into the pool for each lesson would be $27.00 and if we wanted to get in and swim with the other kids times the basic 8 weeks of lessons was a tall order. We bit the proverbial bullet and bought a year pass. Someone in the M.L.E.U. called our house and talked to the dryer. What is the M.L.E.U. you may ask...even if you don't I'll tell you anyway...it is the Murphy's Law Enforcement Unit. The dryer blew the thermal fuse, AGAIN! I hate doing laundry, but I hate more piled up dirty laundry. Michael is scattered, covered and smothered with things to do this week. His brother and family are invited to dinner tomorrow, so hopefully he will be able to get home in time to inspect the dryer's element to see if that might be the culprit and then go downstairs to cook a great dinner.

:::::::::::::::::Dinner for Tomorrow::::::::::

Hmong eggrolls

1 (10 1/2 ounce) bag bean thread noodles
24 rice paper sheets
1 (10-12 ounce) package coleslaw mix (or 1 sm cabbage & 2 carrots shredded)
1 medium yellow onion
1 bunch green onions
1 bunch cilantro
1 1/2 lbs ground pork
1 egg (xtra 1 for sealing egg rolls)
2 teaspoons black pepper
2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
2 tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
Red pepper dipping sauce
5 Thai red chili peppers, chopped (birds eye)
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 tablespoon green onions, chopped
1 tablespoon cilantro, chopped
1 teaspoon fresh lime juice (bottles fine)
1 dash msg
1/4 cup fish sauce
2 tablespoons water

::::::::::::::::::::Public Service Announcement:::

A friend of mine sent this video containing a warning about how easy it is for thieves to steal your identity while you are at a gas station:



Smiles!

More Stuff and Things

We all got soaked to the skin, but it was worth it for our amazing tour of the American Falls at Niagara.


_{Font: DJB JANELLE by Darcy Baldwin at The Digichick
Two Sisters Design: Funktastic Backgrounds, Label It Alpha
Sande Krieger: A Traveling We Will Go
Jenn Patrick: Backward Staples
Christina Renee: Proof Sheets, Glitter Splatters
Lauren Reid: Crazy title
Weeds and Wildflowers: Doodles
Amber Clegg: Date Stamps
Kate Hadfield: Paper Swirls}

::::::::::::::::::More Goofy Stuff About ME::::

21. If I have a car with air conditioning I will leave it off and roll down the windows because I love the wind whipping through the car, but I don't care for convertibles because it is a bit too much wind whipping for me.

22. The last time I had a working watch was about 1998 when I had a job at the Credit Union. I don't like watch sweat...you know the build up of perspiration under your watch. I had one with a leather band and it was nice a flat-faced. I tried fancy linked ones and the spinning and clasp adjusting was quite annoying, so I just gave up on the whole watch deal. I figure their is enough people who do like watches around, or have their handy dandy cell phones that they like showing off to give me the time. That way everybody is happy and I'm on time.

23. I have a severe nickel allergy. I discovered this when I got my ears pierced at 21. I bought some lovely silver earrings and 14k gold ones. It was fine at first and then my ears would feel hot. I put antibiotic cream on and let them heal, then put my gold earrings in and within 5 minutes my ears were hot and swollen. I also bought a pair of glasses that had nickel under the top coating. Once the coating wore off the nickel was against my skin, which caused my skin to die. Lovely...so lovely:( Rachel wants her ears pierced, but I have to have her take a nickel allergy test first to see if she's like me.

24. I don't care to wear jewelry. Notice the "wear" part. I think jewelry is an amazing form of art and I find it attractive, but I don't have the same affinity for it as most people. I think of gems as beautiful rocks, but I have no desire to own them. I find the way people value them above the lives of others reprehensible. Michael is aware that I never would like a piece of jewelry as a present for any occasion. Most people see diamonds as symbols of love, affection, purity, and constancy, but for me they are just pretty rocks.

:::::::::::::::::::Ice Skating:::::::::::

Our teacher for Georgia Virtual Academy organized an outing to the Ice Forum. Aaron had never been ice skating, but after I showed him how to lace up his skates he got right on the ice. He likes in-line skating, but thought ice skating was too fast. We skated around for 45 minutes. He went around a couple of times without me, while I adjusted my lacing. I fell once, which was okay. Aaron told me that his feet hurt and he wanted to stop, so I congratulated him on getting out on the rink and trying. We stopped by Steak and Shake for lunch and had steak burgers with fries (and onion rings). I ordered one of their half and half malts with banana on one side and chocolate on the other. Aaron ordered a chocolate milkshake. Our eyes were bigger than our stomachs, but it was tasty. Aaron used the time we waited to get our orders to show me all the different Pokemon on his new Nintendo DS he recieved as a birthday present from Granny Alice. It was fun just to hang out with him for a few hours.

:::::::::::::::::::Think of Others::::::::

is a trait I try to foster in the kids and I was so proud of Evey. Her pre-school teacher's birthday was yesterday and she was very adamant that we should give the teacher a gift. I suggested flowers and she approved of the idea. When I woke her up for school on Friday and got her dressed and seated for breakfast she said, "It's my teacher's birthday today and remember, I get to pick out the flowers!" I had forgotten...hey it had been almost 24 hours! I hurried her through breakfast and we all loaded into the car and ran by the grocery store. Eve wanted some cut flowers, but I suggested a potted plant. She chose a beautiful purple orchid and helped me check it out, then held it all the way to school. She and the orchid were almost the same height and it was so funny watching her try to back into the classroom to surprise her teacher. The smile on Eve's face was radiant as she got a hug from a very appreciative teacher. I hope this act of kindness is just the beginning!


::::::::::::::::::::::Blood Diamonds::::::::


Description from Amazon.com: Long a symbol of love, affection and faithfulness, the diamond is now increasingly linked with war, blood and brutality. In the diamond-rich West African nation of Sierra Leone, rebels used the precious gems to bankroll a violent ten-year insurrection, leaving a terrorized population and a ravaged landscape in its wake. National Geographic correspondents follow the trail of illicit diamonds from their origin in the muddy pits of impoverished Sierra Leone, to the pristine cobblestone streets of Antwerp, Belgium, to their final stop in the glittering display cases of New York's finest jewelry stores.

Aaron and I watched this as our supplemental history of the day. We were struck mostly by the sad state of people in West Africa who were maimed during the 10 year insurrection. There were children Aaron's age and younger missing limbs. We discussed why people put so much value on this piece of carbon. It was an, often times, frightening journey for those making the documentary. The journalist showed the shot up rusted vehicle of a fellow journalist on the way to where he was headed. It amazed me that large groups of people would spend 365 days a year digging for diamonds in these huge holes scarring the Earth to find diamonds to statisy the world market. They had rich fertile earth they could plant crops and feed their families, but these have been abandoned for the diamond mines...actually much more of their humanity was abandoned when their focus shifted to follow the vanity of the world.

::::::::::::::::::Swim Lessons::::::::::

...start today. I'll let you know how the kids do.

Smiles,

Victoria

Will Haunt 4 Candy!

I don't know how many of you remember Adam Sandler's bizarre Halloween sketch where he would say stuff like, "I'm crazy pickle arm! Give me some candy!" He would use other inane objects and then demand candy. I thought it was hilarious, so I present to you...Crazy Purse Head!


<sub>Sausan Designs: Oogelie Googelie
Needful Things 1 & 3
Brushit Up Striped Alpha


Darcy Baldwin: DJB Pookie Doo at The Digichick on sale today!
DJB ADEE1


Nancy Comelab: Vintage Frame grunge


*Ashley Olson's Doodle Word Frame modified to use only the doodled edge.</sub>


:::::::::::::::::::::::ATC::::::::::::::::

It has been about a year since I made in Art Trading Cards and I really miss making them. What made me want to jump right in and create some more are found on Sandra Evertson's blog. I love the time elements she used. She also had a great art idea shown on her site that you could do yourself and get your kids involved too. She used ink blot art to make Ink Blot Characters. I thought this was so funky.

Here is an example of my ATCs that I have posted over time, but digging through the archives is a bit of a pain, so I will place them all in this one convenient spot:









::::::::::::::Swimming Lessons::::::::

Hopefully the kids will start swimming lessons this Saturday, but I haven't firmed up all the details, yet. The young lady teaching them was part of the lifeguard team that one a competition in our county.

I hope y'all have a great day!
Smiles!

Miscellanous Things and Stuff For Today:

This was the little page I turned into Rachel's pre-school teacher for a class book on everyone's families. She was so complimentary saying this was the best page she had ever seen and wanted to know if she could give me a stack of family photos to make an album for her. I blushed.


_{DJB Michael by Darcy Baldwin at The Digichick
Kate Hadfield: Doodle Frames, Stitched Arrows, Stitched Alpha
Kate Hadfield and Ashley Olson: First Day Jitters
Kate Hadfield and Tiff Brady: Wordy Bits: Vacation
Mo Jackson: Art Moodles, Moodles Alpha
Julie Mead: Some Bunny doodle}

::::::::::::A Couple of Met Layouts::::::::
Thank you to Sausan Designs for these Spunky Quickpages:



:::::::::::Another Big Thanks to Sausan Designs:::::

for this Random Act of Kindess:

Oogelie Googelie



This is so out of this world cool, creepy and fun! Halloween is such a fun thing for our crazy kids and it will be fun to scrap with this amazing kit.


:::::::::::::The Great Inca Rebellion::::::
This show was fascinating. The forensics were incredible.


Product Description from Amazon.com
History reports that the mighty Inca were swiftly wiped out by a small band of Conquistadors. But, new evidence is being unearthed that may help re-write history. Remains of those who died in battle have been discovered, and for the first time physical evidence is suggesting that Spain's conquest of the Incan Empire may have actually taken twenty years. Brought to life through CGI reconstruction and reenactments, the untold epic saga of decades of guerilla warfare and rebellion are finally revealed as National Geographic uncovers the truth behind the Inca's last stand.

:::::::::::::Prop of the Day::::::

goes to customer service at Amazon.com. The post office had said they delivered a package to me yesterday. Alas, no package. So, I put a note out to the postman and put in a email to Amazon. I had an immediate and professional response to reorder at no charge. This afternoon the package was open, but the contents were still shrink wrapped. I got on Amazon's site and they have a feature that calls their representative for you. I love this! I talked to a nice guy who took care of the cancellation right away. I am St oked...Stoked to get Rachel's "Electric Company" dvds! Woohoo!

:::::::::::::Cub Pack Meeting Tonight:::::

The leaders have planned a make-up bike rodeo. It should be fun and the weather looks like it will cooperate this time.

:::::::::::::Lunch Break Fun and Games:::::

Granny Sydney stopped by yesterday and brought some belated birthday gifts for the kids. One gift was the game Clue (the Simpson version). Aaron asked if we could play at lunch today. It ended up being Marge in the Nuclear Power Plant with a sling shot. I won. My character was Krusty (Colonel Mustard).

Smiles...and if you are playing Simpson's Clue watch out for the poisoned donut!

Life is But A Dream...

Text says: Row, Row, Row your... nasty piece of discarded filthy styrofoam gently on the lake!



The styrofoam was so gross, but all the kids old enough to be good swimmers were on this thing. YUCK!



_{Font: Stickybet Alpha and DJB Michael by Darcy Baldwin at The Digichick,
additional font: Adler
Meredith Fenwick: This Way brush
Kate Hadfield: Paper Swirls, Doodle Tape and Journal Tape, Music Notes Doodle, and Doodle Alpha
Jenn Patrick: Backward Staples
Gina Miller: Canvas of Color
Michelle Coleman: Hand Stamped Alpha
Christina Renee: Punched Alpha
Weeds and Wildflowers: brown doodles}

:::::::::::::::::::::Book Review::::::::::



Everyone in our family enjoyed Tuck Everlasting. Natalie Babbitt's ability to put you in the landscape of the scene is such a gift. The visuals she creates are amazing. She presents the Tuck family who are very sympathetic characters who have accidently tasted of an eternal spring and have different ways of dealing with the outcome. The Tucks lives become intertwined with a young girl, Winnie Foster, who happens upon the spring. The story moves swiftly and you willingly go with the current. Two of my favorite characters are Pa Tuck and the brown toad. Pa Tuck explains his feelings about life to Winnie in an effort to explain their family situation and why she should avoid the spring, "Not, now. Your time's not now. But dying's part of the wheel, right there next to being born. You can't pick out the pieces you like and leave the rest. Being part of the whole thing, that's the blessing."
This book was a wonderful read. I recommend this as a book that is both great to read and will spark a discussion on what death is and what it would be like to live forever.


:::::::::::::::::::Impressions of Eve:::::::

I was toweling off after a shower a couple of days ago and Eve popped through the door and asked, "What do I need to do to my hair to make me a hottie?" I, incredulously, respond, "What are you talking about?" She made some kind of arm movements like she was piling hair on top of her head and just left the room. The interesting thing is the only person in the house we call a "hottie" is Michael and Eve was definitely talking about a girl. So weird!

...

This morning across the breakfast table I was looking at Eve's eyes. She has big pupils like I do, so I told her, "I bet you will need glasses by the time you're in second grade." She looked at me and said, "But people will call me weird."

me: "Well, Aaron and Rachel wear glasses and no one says anything."

Eve: "Aaron is home schooled, so there is no one around to tell him anything."

me: "What about Rachel?"

Eve: "They just don't say it to her."

...I believe my children have formed some definite opinions on a few issues a bit to my surprise!

::::::::::::::::Product Prop of the Day::::::::

Bar mop towels from Target. Michael was showing the sister missionaries how well our new bar towels wipe away finger smears on the black granite surface. They were quite impressed. I thought he was about to turn into Billy Mays from the Oxy Clean commercials because he was so animated. For those of you who want a nice thirsty great cleaning towel for cheap here is the info.:

Room Essentials 3 pk microfiber bar mop towels (lint free, super absorbent, 16in x 19in) I think we forked over $3.99, but I'm really can't remember.
***Warning: I have already warned Michael that he isn't allowed to sing that awful song "Kokomo" when he is wiping down the counter...and that goes for anyone else so inclined to wipe down my counters. Thank you for your cooperation!


:::::::::::::::::Cave of the Dark Wind:::::::::


Aaron requested this new adventure, so I'm game!

is our new family reading book by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson.

::::::::::::::::::::Poison Ivy in Absentia? :::

I have a spot of poison Ivy right under my left knee cap. The boys went camping a couple of weeks ago and brought back more then their laundry for me! Sometimes sharing isn't a good thing...DISCUSS!

It really isn't that bad it is just a series of 3 icky bumps. I'm just trying to get a bit of sympathy. Michael told me where to find sympathy in the dictionary. It is the same place his father told him the word would be located. Such a colorful family. (He didn't really tell me this time, but he has told me on past occasions. I just banked the information for future reference).

:::::::::::::::::The Heating and Air Person::::

is supposed to drop by our abode, today. It appears that a lot of condensation is coming off of the unit in the garage and leaving a generous amount of water on the carpet in the den. Thankfully, my parents gave us their old dehumidifer a few years ago, so it is keeping the damage to a minimum. The representative who sets up appointments didn't seem to think saturated carpet was a big deal, so she offered to have someone check it sometime next week. I told her no, that really wasn't the best idea. I suppose she hears lots of these stories every day and is a bit numb. I could splash some water on her senses from the bucket in my dehumidifer or squeegy it from the carpet, but that wouldn't be the nice thing to do...so I blog.


:::::::::::::::Addendum to Goofy Stuff About Me:::::::::

I had a lovely friend remind me to list that I tried to cook bacon on a plastic curling iron as a kid. Now there was a good reason for this. I was not allowed to use the stove and I was a latch key kid, so I tried to follow the rules in my moment of hunger. Two problems with my cooking method: 1. the plastic curling iron never got hot enough and 2. you can't disguise the fact you cooked bacon on your mom's curling iron because no matter how much you scrub the brown bacon grease never really comes completely out.

***An addendum to my addendum: My mom replaced the plastic curling iron with a metal one, which I promptly used to try and give extra curls to my Miss Piggy hand puppet. Did you know that acrylic doll hair melts? I didn't. My mom was none to happy...AGAIN!

Another thing: I would try to give all my dolls fabulous hair cuts. I knew that the hair wouldn't grow back, but I always held out hope. So, does that make me an optimist or a nut case...DISCUSS!

:::::::::::::Aaron has to take an assessment and we have a science experiment to do with yeast, so later, gators!

Smiles!

Just A Few Things:

Goofy Things About Me:

1. I believe I am part of a small number of people ever left by their family after high school graduation…at the school. My parents are divorced and each of them thought the other was taking me home after the graduation ceremony. I ended up calling them on the payphone in the cafeteria and having my friend Kelsey drive me home.

2. In the Winter I don’t mind walking around outside barefoot while wearing a sweatshirt. Mind you, it is a Georgia Winter which tends to be mild.

3. I often can’t think of the right name for something so I call it a “Whohah”. My grandmother used to call things like that “hickeys”, but from what my family tells me my word is no improvement and sounds a bit scandalous.

4. I don’t use an alarm clock because I don’t want to wake the kids in the morning. It’s the only time I have alone. I look at the clock and tell myself how much time I have to sleep, then I wake up about 5 minutes, or exactly on time. I have been using this method for 5 years.

5. I used to have my own C.B. radio in my room. I had two different handles: Ladybug and Moonbeam.

6. The only cereal I will put milk on is Rice Krispies. I can’t stand sweetened milk.

7. I enjoy driving odd little vehicles i.e. golf carts, fork lifts, 4 wheelers.

8. The car I currently covet is a Mini-Cooper S.

9. I like to get to the movie theater in time for the previews and I stay through all the credits.

10. My mother almost named me Heather.

11. A t-shirt that I wear about once a week was purchased in 1992 it depicts the famous slide in the National League Championship Series by Sid Bream of the Atlanta Braves.

12. When I dance with a partner I try to lead. (Michael finds it annoying, but he loves me anyway.)

13. I attended “Winnie the Pooh” charm school at a local clothing store called Sears.

14. One of the dumbest things I ever did when I was old enough to know better: I wondered if I could break glass with my bare hands, so I pulled a shard of broken glass from the neighbor’s garage door. I snapped the piece of glass into two pieces. I also cut my finger. I ran in the house to clean the wound, which bled and bled. I did know to apply pressure, so I stopped bleeding…eventually. I denied to my mother that there was any problem. I have a crescent shaped scar on the middle finger of my left hand as a souvenir…or is it a “stupidenir”?

15. I hate massages. I can’t stand the concept of someone kneading my flesh for any reason. I do not desire to have any of my built up lactic acid released into my blood stream. I prefer a good back scratch instead.

16. I smile at people because it is the polite things to do. I also smile at people to evaluate their personality. If they don’t smile back I tend to avoid them because they are not innately nice people. However, I realize they might be having a bad day.

17. I had my own belly dancing costume when I was 6 or 7 years-old. I learned to roll a quarter up my stomach by watching my mom doing her belly dancing exercises. I haven’t been able to do that in the last 27 years.

18. I back into parking spaces ever since Michael told me how much safer it is.

19. I told Michael that he isn’t allowed to make spaghetti anymore because that is one of the only things I cook well and I would have nothing left in my repertoire but grilled cheese sandwiches.

20. I can take a pen and place it between my upper lip and nose and roll it down to my mouth, flip the pen 180 degrees and then, using my lower lip, place the pen back in on my upper lip.

Smiles!

Rachel and the Common Milkweed

Here is a layout of our trip to the shenandoahs:




The forest ranger Showed Rachel the Milkweed beetle and the earwigs that hide among the plants. The Milkweed smells like lavendar.



<sub>DJB AMANDAG / DJB GINAE by Darcy Baldwin at The Digichick


Sausan: Needful Things Book 1
Sing Spring
Mary Fran: Who Done It kit
Rhonna Farrer: Peachy Keen
Michelle Coleman: Boho Chic brushes
Bren Boone: Luscious Solids</sub>

:::::::::::::::Tomorrow::::

goofy stuff about me just for fun.

Smiles,

Victoria

Happy Birthday, Grandpa Jim!

This completes our September birthday parade!

Also, a Happy Anniversary to Mom and Jim!


***This is my second post of the day, so I shall call it a day!

Smiles!

Accountability

***Warning...serious post:::

Today I finished reading The Lucifer Effect by Philip Zimbardo. My library book has so many little torn pieces of paper as individual bookmarks that it looks like its molting. The book was a difficult read from the stand point of learning about the extreme levels of depravity we humans can reach. He presents his initial Stanford Prison Experiment and its benign beginning that quickly became malignant due to dehumanization and deindividuation of the students who were randomly assigned as guards or prisoners. This book has had quite an impact on me. I have cried reading the accounts of the treatment of the student "prisoners" by the student "guards" and been cheered when Christine Maslach (Zimbardo) was able to convince Zimbardo that the experiment had gone over the line and needed to be shut down immediately. I am also disheartened by our governments behavior in the war in Iraq. Our initial stated goal being liberation has spiralled quickly into abuse and paranoia of the people we were told we were to liberate from their own horrific regime. I worry that we send our troops in with noble goals and leave them in a quagmire of ineffective leadership and corruption were they become helpless and ineffectual. We should hold ourselves and our leaders to higher standards and that is how we can be a beacon to the world.

I approached this book with a huge ethos bias. I saw things with the perspective that was largely dispostionally situated where all blame or praise came from the individual's actions. During the process of reading this book Zimbardo was able to persuade me to see a more situational viewpoint. At no time does he suggest that individuals are not accountable for their actions, but what he does is explain the situational dynamics that create toxic or healthy actions.
It has always been a fascination to me that those who "blow the whistle" on wrong doing are seen as an annoyance rather than a needed brake on folks taking the fast train to hell. Instead of shame those discovered in their wrong doing feel rage and the desire to lash out.

Zimbardo doesn't just leave us in the heart of darkness, but guides us into a brighter place with ideas on how we can be in a better position to model the behaviors of a society that does more than espouse goodness. The first suggestion he gives is to be able to recognize that we have made a mistake and apologize for it. Another is to take responsibility for our actions. If in any situation we find ourselves we recognize that we are accountable for all of our actions we will always have our moral compass aligned. Zimbardo stated that if we start by asking people to do small acts of kindness and service then they will be more likely to perform larger acts of service later. Modeling this behavior is always the best way to get this acts of goodness to stick. My husband is an example to those around him with his standing appointments with The Red Cross to give platelets. This act of sacrifice and charity hopefully inspire others to offer some form of kindness in whatever way they are able.
This book will make you think, feel and evaluate yourself and the world around you. I find it one of the best books I've been fortunate enough to read. The book is thoroughly footnoted, which I also recommend reading as you read the book.

:::::::::::::::Additional Thoughts::::::

I love the message in this commercial:


:::::::::::::::What I've Done::::::

This is a song by Linkin Park that Aaron showed me on You Tube and I thought it was relevant to the book review:


LINKIN PARK LYRICS

"What I've Done"

In this farewell
There?s no blood
There?s no alibi
?Cause I?ve drawn regret
From the truth
Of a thousand lies

[Pre-Chorus:]
So let mercy come
And wash away
What I?ve done

[Chorus:]
I'll face myself
To cross out what i?ve become
Erase myself
And let go of what i?ve done

Put to rest
What you thought of me
While I clean this slate
With the hands of uncertainty

[Pre-Chorus]

[Chorus]

For what I?ve done
I start again
And whatever pain may come
Today this ends
I?m forgiving what I?ve done!!!

[Chorus]

What I?ve done
Forgiving what I?ve done


[Thanks to Josh Schall (fishy6081@hotmail.com) for these lyrics]
[Thanks to Trish, Joe Gilbertson for correcting these lyrics]

[ www.azlyrics.com ]


:::::::::::::::::::::Next Book:::::::::

Emotions Revealed: Recognizing Faces and Feelings to Improve Communication and Emotional Life by Paul Ekman

:::::::::::::::::::::Personal Observation:::::::::

Today Michael called me on his way out of town to go spelunking with Aaron and the Scouts. He mentioned that one of the other leaders let him know that when he drives he sets his cruise control to the speed limit and just steers. This was an obvious warning to not to leave him behind and that he wouldn't break the speed laws to keep up. After I hung up I started to think about how I drive and my opinion of cruise control. Well, I don't use it...ever. I, in fact, dislike it strongly. Michael, on the other, hand loves to use it on long trips so he can relax his legs and get more comfortable. Looking at it practically and physically I don't use cruise control because it makes me numb to driving. I get sleepy and a bit bored, which are two feelings I don't support for any driver. I like to remain in control...and here is where we cross the line into psychology...I want to be responsible for how fast I'm driving from my brain to my feet. I was reminded just how much I like to be in control of my vehicle and how I drive when I swapped cars with my stepdad on Thursday. He needed to pick up friends from the airport and his Jeep was just too small to fit everyone and their things. I had a blast driving his 5 speed manual transmission. I miss being able to choose when to shift and it's just fun to shift the gears. My first car was a Ford Fiasco Fiesta 1974. My other manual transmission cars were a 1989 Toyota 4x4 Pickup truck and a 1994 Geo Prism. I get grouchy when I think about not being able to find a 7 seat vehicle with a stick shift. If anyone drives past me I won't be using cruise control and, unfortunately, I won't be shifting gears manually.


:::::::::::::::::::::Noah's Questions, Today:::

What do you think is at the edge of space?

Don't you think it would be cool of "The Fabric of Space" was really fabric and you could cut it with scissors?

Do you ever wonder how time began?

By the way, Noah was watching "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" last night. Luckily, he knows that the answer to the quesion of the meaning of life!

Smiles to my fellow earthlings!

Happy Birthday, Rachel!

_{Bren Boone: Luscious Solids
Kate Hadfield: Stitched Arrows, Stitched Alpha, Doodle Borders, First Day Jitters kit with Ashley Olsen
Denise Liemert: Bird doodle
Vera Lim: Doodle frame
Rhonna Farrer: Alpha
Tiff Brady: Felt crown, Wordy Bits Alpha}


Rachel is so excited to be 10! My very serious baby is growing up and she is amazing!
:::::::::::::Central Park Zoo: Part Deux::::




Y'all have a great weekend!

_{Bren Boone: Luscious Solids
Holly McCaig: Pop Alpha
Rhonna Farrer: Snapshot Frames
Sande Krieger: Borderline Frames and A Traveling We Will Go
Kate Hadfield: Animal Doodle
Michelle Coleman: Hand Stamped Alpha
Mo Jackson: Paint Brush
Font: DJB MICHAEL by Darcy Baldwin at The Digichick}

Happy Birthday, Aaron!

_{Mo Jackson: Birthday Candles, Party
Kate Hadfield: Birthday Boy doodles
Sande Krieger: Borderlines
Font: DJB DOODL E Doo! / DJB MICHAEL by Darcy Baldwin at The Digichick}

:::::::::::::Sande Krieger Inspired Layout::::
for our Central Park Zoo visit:






_{Sande Krieger: Borderline and A Traveling We Will Go
Kate Hadfield: Animal Doodles
Shawna Clingerman: The Grass is Greener doodle
Amber Clegg: Date Stamps
Fonts: DJB CHERE/ DJB DOODL E DOO! by Darcy Baldwin at The Digichick}

:::::::::::::::
Aaron and I watched this today:


Decoding The Past: Secrets of Kabbalah
The two comments on the film left on Amazon didn't think much of the film.

Smiles!

Time for the Tooth Fairy Shake Down!

Rachel lost her tooth on Saturday and Noah lost his after church on Sunday. Noah just kept trying to figure out how much money he was going to score from losing his tooth, then calculate how much he would make if he were to lose all of his teeth. I'm not sure what a toothless 7 year-old would bank role, but I believe it wouldn't be a long term investment. Rachel, discreetly, asked if "The Tooth Fairy" had any money. I informed her that The Tooth Fairy would talk to a money broker for an interim loan, but that she could put her tooth under the pillow. So, I went to talk to Aaron "Mr. Ziplock Bag O'Change" Taylor and was able to work out a deal. He loaned me 4 quarters with a deal that I pay him for 3 back teeth he lost a couple of weeks ago and a new scooter for his birthday on Thursday. We shook on the deal, so on Thursday we will head to the store for a new scooter. The machinations of a Tooth Fairy are really weird.

Both Michael and I noticed that Noah's new tooth is coming in too far back, so Michael quipped that when Rachel gets her braces off in November we could keep them and put them on Noah. He was surprised you could do such a thing, then we informed him it was a joke.






::::::::::::::::::::::National Geographic::::


In The Womb- Animals
I watched this with the kids a couple of days ago. They were all fascinated with the development of the animals from conception to delivery. They showed a Golden Retriever, elephant and dolphin. For parents who are disturbed by their children seeing any forms of mating then you would want to skip this because the documentary shows how this whole journey starts out. The kids were a bit grossed out, but since the mating portion is such a small amount of time (especially if your a dolphin) that the more "cool" stuff took up the majority of the film. It was funny to hear Noah explain that sperm are "really just the genetic information from the male". He was so clinical about it. If you have ever met my robot fanatic son you would know that he tends to talk like a old man professor. He put the movie in the other day because he wanted to watch it again.

Our next documentary is Planet Earth. It should be pretty interesting. I'll let you know.

Smiles!

And Guess What Else?!

...(Take a quick breath), And Guess What Else?! (Try to answer, but no use because...) Guess What Else?! I just realized that Noah was asking me a rhetorical question. He was quite ready to tell me without me having to exercise any brain power on my part. He also had to ask his question in a rapid fire succession that made me just laugh. I took him for a hair cut today and he looks mighty fine! Since it was just the two of us he was able to tell me all about every alien and plot point in the last seasons of Ben 10. He also let me know all about the history of Xiaolin Showdown, another cartoon. His eyes flashed with excitement of each exciting episode. He even told me he loved me, so what a great couple of hours with me chatty dude!

::::::::::::::HEYYYYYYY YOUUUUUUUUUUU GUYSSSS!::::

I'm not sure who will be more excited when I give Rachel one of her birthday presents that I ordered from Amazon.com. It's this:


I absolutely loved this show as a kid! Rachel was at a sleepover with her friend Julia and they watched a pledge drive where they showed interviews and episodes of the old show. They have been laughing and quoting from the show since. I'm "Ex" "Cited"... "Excited"!

::::::::::::::What?! Another Vacation Layout!:::

Why, yes!



Text: After a long day of walking the kids were ready to dive into a large New York style pizza. Eve loved the stretchy margherita cheese. Aaron was so hungry he ordered a pizza just for himself. Our only surpise was that John's Pizzeria charged for refills.

_{Background Paper from Festive Papers by Shabby Princess
Water Color heart by The Powers Sisters designs
Pop Alpha by Holly McCaig
Circle Journal paper by Catrine
Cluster Frame Doodles by Ida
Wordy Bits Basic Alpha by Kate Hadfield and Tiff Brady
Font: DJB MICHAEL by Darcy Baldwin at The Digichick
New York skyline was created using a charcoal filter on an extracted photo of a crystal sculpture of the skyline from the internet.}


:::::::::::::::::::::::What A Fun Surpise:::::

Rachel learned that she really like tennis. She attended a Girl Scout clinic on sports and fitness and they introduced the girls to a few sports and Rachel was just gushing about how cool tennis was to her.

Smiles!

Happy Birthday, Eveybug!

_{First Day Jitters by Kate Hadfield and Ashley Olsen Party Favors, Birthday Candle and Moodles by Mo Jackson Boy Birthday Doodles by Kate Hadfield Font: DJB Doodle E Doo, DJB Connorbuck, DJB GINAE by Darcy Baldwin at The Digichick}

Today my mom, Michael and I are going to drop by Eve's class to drop off dougnut holes and apple juice to celebrate her birthday. We kept joking with Evey that we wanted to get our last minute 4 year-old hugs and kisses. She obliged with tight squeezes and Eskimo and cheek kisses! Yesterday afternoon I asked Eve what she wanted for breakfast and she responded cheerfully, "Chicken soup with carrots. Dad will make it!" I thought that quite an interesting food choice for breakfast. We didn't have any chicken on hand so Michael made her a beef stew with lots of carrots for dinner. She seemed to think that was cool enough. ::::::::::::::::::::Happy Birthday, also::::::::: to Carol! She inspires me all of the time and her wit is extraordinary! I hope you have a fantastic birthday, you deserve it!

:::::::::::::::::::::::::New Family Reading Book::::::::: We are in the middle of Gulliver's Travels, but the giants have done some rather risque things with Gulliver so we are putting that book on a back burner. We have moved on to Tuck Everlasting. The writing style and imagery is apparent and amazing from the first few paragraphs. The kids seemed to enjoy the first two chapters we read last night.

::::::::::::::::::::::Double Header::::::: Noah, very excitedly, asked if he could be the first one to read to us. I said sure and he picked There's a Wocket in My Pocket, then he read Mercer Meyer's What a Bad Dream. He did a great job and Rachel was there as a little mother hen correcting any mistakes.


::::::::::::::::::::::TF Apprentice::::::: The Tooth Fairy Apprentice worked ALL DAY on wiggling her loose tooth out of the socket and, VOILA, by 11:00pm was successful! Rachel was finally able to go to sleep and so were we.

::::::::::::::::::::::Blog On::::::::::::: My SIL, Melissa, has started her own blog and it is hilarious! Check out the Hardin Hive if you get the chance. Her kids all have distinct personalities and it is funny to read about her day.

::::::::::::::::::Interesting Product of the Day:::
Charlie's Soap
I read about this on My Scrapbook Art and this will be the next laundry detergent I will try. It is safe for septic systems and it seems to remove everything under the sun and doesn't cause allergies, so it seems like a great purchase. We will see.

What is your scrapbooking style? This is a question people bandy about and I have thought about myself. I am rather eclectic in the bits and pieces that I like. I have the hardest time using just one photo because I often don't feel like I can tell the story of what is going on behind the scenes. I love layouts that are art for art's sake, but my driving force is trying to chronicle the moments in life before I completely forget what happened. I often have to skew photos because I guess I see the world a bit off center, so that works for me.

I have, also, always loved to look at photos. Whenever I would tag along with my mom to visit people I would ask if I could look in the photo albums they would have lying around. I enjoyed looking at the clothes, hairstyles, cars, architecture...pretty much anything. I find life fascinating. There is always something to learn...or re-learn!

Well, here is one more page to our Ellis Island visit:




This is another layout to go along with our family vacation stop at Ellis Island. The children became very thoughtful when they learned about the medical inspection given to those coming into the United States. The test for trachoma was a bit scary and they realized how unnerving it must have been to be examined in front of a large group of people.


My daughter, Rachel, was intriqued by the hanging beds in the dormitory and thought it looked like "fun" to sleep that way, which gave me the opportunity to explain why it wouldn't be like going to Girl Scout camp. I highly recommend this as a place to visit if you get the opportunity!


<sub>Fonts: Dead Letter Office
CK Good Point
DJB MICHAEL/ DJB RACHELZ by Darcy
Baldwin at The Digichick


Background: Ultimate Backgrounds Vol. 1 by Nancy Comelab


Cluster Frame by Nancy Comelab


Doodled Punctuation and Messy Staple by Kate Hadfield</sub>

::::::::::::::::::::::New Book:::::::::

I just started reading the second book in the Bourne series titled, The Bourne Supremacy. I'm still reading Zimbardo's book, as well.

::::::::::::::::::::::Tooth Fairys are on Alert:::::::::

Noah and Rachel both have squiggly wiggly loose teeth, so I guess by this weekend my wallet will be a bit lighter...who am I kidding! I never have any cash and I will probably forget to go by the credit union, so I will have to give the kids a TFIOU (Tooth Fairy I Owe You).

:::::::::::::::::::::::EVE is 4 and 99% :::::

That is what I told her this morning. Tomorrow morning she will be 5. I have already designed a card for her and I'll post it tomorrow. I think she will like all of the yellow I used.

Smiles, y'all!

Life is What Happens...

when your busy making plans!

This photo of Eve makes me happy! I hope it puts a smile on your face, too!



During our family reunion you and your cousins were crafting bead bracelets and necklaces. I asked you to show me what you were making. So you turned around and hung your unfinished bracelet across your nose and gave me this silly grin. Your face just radiated happiness!


_{Background paper from Summertime Fun kit for DST by Gina Cabrera
Backward Staples by Jenn Patrick
Word Topper by Emily Merritt
Tape and Stitching by Kate Hadfield
Word Bits by Kate Hadfield and Tiff Brady
DJB Ginae/ DJB MANDYK1 by Darcy Baldwin at The Digichick}

::::::::::::::::::Michael Gave Me A Break::::

from my life for a bit yesterday. I had been dealing with Aaron who is a RELUCTANT student to put it nicely. He argued about every assignment. My head was throbbing by the time Michael got home. Then, it was school work with the other kids. Rachel is very self-sufficient, but Noah needs a lot of direction. He was constantly trying to put off his Monday homework. Michael said he would take over and that I should take a nap. I was too grumpy at that point so I did the martyr thing and stayed up and would go in and check on homework. When Noah was finished with his homework we were going to take the kids to a Mexican restaurant. Aaron was still refusing to finish his assignment, so I gave up in a huff and took Michael's suggestion to go to bed. I woke up this morning at 6am with a much need sleep.

::::::::::::::::::Time Matters and Don't Get Accosted in a Crowd::

More interesting learning from Philip Zimbardo's book I'm reading. Two things in particular. One: If people are pressed for time, even if they are clergy going to give a sermon on the good samaritan won't stop to help someone in need. A sad outcome of a study using clergy students.

The second and one that disturbs me a lot is the finding that you are more likely to be assaulted in front of a crowd with no one coming to your aid because each person is of the opinion that someone else will come forward to stop the attack. You are safer when there are 3 people or less because they can figure out pretty quickly that they have to act.

One more thing I remember reading recently was that if you specifically ask a person to watch your stuff and tell them it's important they are more likely to protect it than if you just say in passing, "Do you mind watching this for a second?"

Food for more thought.

Smiles!

A, Mostly, Clean House

::::::::::::A Toe Tappin' Great Movie:::::::

I spent the Saturday cleaning while Rachel was at a sleepover, Michael and Aaron were out doing a clean-up day and rock climbing at Sand Rock, and Noah and Eve were at my mom's house. I'm one who likes background noise, so I had popped in "Murder By Death" and listened to it as I moved around the house. When that movies was over I grabbed Strictly Ballroom.
This movie is so quirky and fabulous! Michael and Aaron came home near the end of the movie and Michael was excited...yes, excited to see I had that movie playing. When it was over he rewound it and played it again. He told the kids to clean in the living room and that they would enjoy watching the movie while they cleaned. There were a couple of times we sent Rachel to do something and she would plead to, "let me just watch this scene, then I'll go!"
I think Michael and I are in agreement that our favorite character is Doug Hastings who is the father to the main character, Scott. This mild mannered geeky guy is a closet innovator and amazing dancer. All of the characters are like a caricature...a little bigger and more colorful, than in most movies. This movie is enjoyable from beginning to end! I highly recommend this film!


::::::::::::::Dryer:::::

Michael was able to fix our dryer that was broken for three days. I have the Mount Everest O' Laundry to clean. The thermal fuse died and I looked up a schematic on-line and looked for information on our type of dryer and diagnosed the problem. Michael took the information and hot-wired the dryer to test the theory and sure enough I was right. He was able to get the part and fix it pretty quickly. What a handy guy!



:::::::::::::Fly On The Wall...Perhaps?::::

Again, this cartoonist has captured one of the quirks in our family. This cartoon depicts how Michael reads books to the children:


If the kids want the book read "right" they give the book to me. If they need a bit of silliness they give the book to Michael. Sometimes when the books are short we will do the readings on the same day. I love Michael's "intrepretations" they are always funny and fairly bizarre.

:::::::::::::::::Aunts, Uncles, and Cousins...Oh, my!::::

Michael's family came over for family home evening and we had French bread pizzas and salad. Michael's mom brought cupcakes and a cake to celebrate the September birthdays, which were Aaron, Rachel and Eve. After everyone left Eve asked, "So why didn't anyone bring me presents?" I told her that it wasn't a birthday party for her, but everyone was wishing her a happy birthday. She, surprisingly, accepted my explanation. The kids love to play with all of their cousins and the kids are really polite. I have some amazing nieces and nephews!

:::::::::::::::::Ballet and Tap:::::::::

Eve begins her ballet and tap classes today. She is chomping at the bit to get started. She keeps wanting to take her outfit and shoes out to try them on.

:::::::::::::::::Cub Scouts::::::

Noah starts back to Cub Scouts today. He seemed accepting, but not excited.

::::::::::::::::Layouts::::::::::

...they are simply ideas floating in my head. Maybe later today I can create one!

Smiles, fine folks!

Short and Sweet!

:::::::::::Another vacation layout:::::::::::

My Sister:

Text: Rachel held Noah's hand while they walked back to the car after our visit to The Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. He was eager for her to tell him her story that she called "Earth Daughters". Whenever she would pause to long, in Noah's estimation, he would again plead for more of the story. I enjoyed watching them walk, talk and listen together.

_{Background paper is Marigold Fields by Katie Pertiet
Flowers from Holliewood Designs
Doodle Alpha by Weeds and Wildflowers
Bookplate Alpha by Christina Renee
Font: DJB Danielle by Darcy Baldwin at The Digichick
Ribbon wrapped frame by Lemonaid Lucy}

:::::::::::::The Vacuum is calling my name...

and trust me, I'm calling it a name, too!

Later, y'all!

Dad's "Souper!"

Was Aaron's comment last night after Michael made some yummy chicken soup. Evey volunteered to cut the onions. We told her it tasted extra good because she helped make it. She agreed it was tasty and ate two bowls full.

::::::::::::To Noah's Surprise:::::::

he has a loose bottom tooth. He told be his tooth was bothering him, so I promptly took a look and sure enough it is very wiggly. He was pleased as punch! This will be his first tooth and he is already spending the money that he hasn't gotten, yet.

::::::::::::The Bourne Identity:::::

was a book I had to rush to read because the queue to read it wouldn't allow for me to recheck it out. I usually read a book first, then watch the movie. In this case the order was reversed. The book was fast paced and packed with dialogue and body counts. Ludlum doesn't frustrate the reader for long by dropping bread crumbs along the way of information, so you don't feel as lost as the amnesiac main character. You also develop sympathy for "Jason Bourne" within a few chapters, so you care what happens to the character. I enjoyed the book and will check out the sequels, shortly. The changes from the book to the big screen for Marie were significant, but I liked them both. A very tangled web, indeed, with all of the antics of assassins and government covert operations. I recommend reading it if you enjoy spy thrillers.

Until later! Smiles!

The Only Reason She Can Find Her Head...

is that it is attached to her shoulders! Mornings with Rachel are like living in a Where's Waldo book. I try to curtail that problem with making sure everything is signed, homework is completed, clothes for the morning are laid out, but as Gilda Radner quipped, "It's Always Something!" Yesterday, it was a frantic search for her ear drops before school. (Rolled under Aaron's bed...Rachel located them 2 minutes before the bus pulled up). This morning it was her glasses. She couldn't remember where she placed them when she took them off. I found them in a tub of toys next to her bed...after 15 minutes of searching. I really am kinda stressing what I need to cover for tonight to forgo such morning dramatics!

:::::::::::::::


Eve's First Day at Preschool:


She made a new friend named Fiona. Her only bad experience was another child getting to the swing before she did, so she couldn't swing next to her new pal.

A Taylor Tradition:



Eve completes the Taylor tradition of attending Harmony Grove Preschool. The other tradition is pulling the church bell after class. A loud a fun thing to do!


:::::::::::::::::Rachel's Ear Saga::::::::

Ding! Ding! Ding! Round 3!

In this corner weighing in at 67 lbs. is Rachel Taylor and in the other corner is... Otitis Externa weighing in at nothing much, but packing quite a punch!

From what the doctor said Rachel's Inner Ear infection and Strep are all gone, but she has developed an infection in the ear canal. She winces when she has to put on or remover her glasses and if you touch her ear lobe are. She has drops for before and after school, then before bed.

:::::::::::::::::Hairspray:::::::::::

I forgot to mention that Michael and I watched the version of "Hairspray" with Ricki Lake at Tracy Turnblad. Since I had the newer version for comparison it was interesting to see the few differences in the films. I enjoyed the recent film portrayals better in the recent adaptation. I love the additional film time for Tracy's parents played by John Travolta and Christopher Walken. Queen Latifya did an on par job with the original actress. Overall excellent recasting of the film.

:::::::::::::::GVA:::::::

of Georgia Virtual Academy is going okay. There is a learning curve for both of us with the new curriculum, but it isn't bad. I need to figure out how to add German language lessons into the plan. The biggest thing to work with is Aaron reading and following directions, but this isn't new. He read an African folktale yesterday, grungingly. He just doesn't enjoy reading like Rachel does, but the funny thing is he ended up with a great attitude after the story was over. He could explain to me all of the nuisances of the story and moral lesson. He was able to take two different tests without rereading anything. I was glad that he had a positive attitude about the assignment...at the end.

::::::::::::::Making Treats::::::

Luckily, Michael came home to eat some of my oatmeal-chocolate chip cookies. He walked five miles today, so he said he could have a treat. I keep eating them, so I'm glad he is running some caloric interference! I gave some to the neighbor for kindly letting me borrow some baking powder. I made them for a lady I see from Church once a month. Last month was peanut butter cookies. Before I leave her house we determine the treat for the following month. Next month is lemon bars. December is always pre-determined as Southern Baklava month. Talk about just rub them on your thighs because they are gonna end up their anyway kinda food, but they are waaaaayyy to tasty to bypass the taste buds! I'll share photos come Christmas time...(not my thighs...I'm not that cruel!)

Smiles!

Book Worms R US

:::::::::::::Saturday:::::::
Michael and I took our book worm, Rachel, to the book festival being held in downtown Decatur. One of the events was making your own paper. Rachel was able to swish her hand in the tub of water and cotton fibers, then use the screen to create her paper. The drying, blotting and ironing process took about 10 minutes.

What stopped at one of the tents and grabbed a couple of Mad Libs and a book on how to draw fairies and mermaids for Evey.
We also stopped by this shop:
Little Shop of Stories. This place was a recommendation from our friend and Master Book Worm, Kim. Rachel had fun looking at all the books and was a bit crestfallen that we couldn't buy all of them. The store has an adjacent ice cream shop and comfy couches for relaxing.

:::::::::::::::::Labor Day Activities::::::::

Please check out my son, Aaron, climbing "Easy Crack" (a 5.8 climb) at Boat Rock. Michael has the video on his blog.

:::::::::::::::::Resistant Ear Infection:::::

Rachel still has significant pain in her ear. It has been almost a month now. She has taken two antibiotics. The first one, amoxicillan, got rid of the strep throat. I have a couple of emails to the doctor that I hope will help figure out what is going on with her ear.

:::::::::::::::::First Day of School:::::::::

Eve is excited to start Pre-K, today! Her bags are packed with the requested school supplies and she has a great attitude. I'll try to post a photo of her later.

Aaron starts Georgia Virtual Academy today. The company accidently shipped one of the items incorrectly, so instead of Life Science I have music on tape. I'm waiting to hear back from them on correcting the mix-up.

Later, gators!

Horsin' Around

A day late on Blog Day, but here are my 5 recommendations:
Concealed Stars Beth is a writer and an amazing lady. Well worth the stop over to her blog.

Pins and Needles Carol is one of the funniest people I've ever met. Her wit and humor come through in spades. I love her "Things That Never Really Happened" layouts. She is a super knitter to boot.

Free Philosophical Discussions I'm completely biased on this one since it is my husband's blog. I love to read his book reviews and his thoughtful musings are deep and never contrived. There is often fun geeky stuff there, too!

Paper_Moons Anna Benjamin is a super talented and creative lady with a heart as big as the moon. She is the queen of pink and of list making, too.

The Argentinian Digiscrapper Her heritage pages are amazing and I love her quirky style. She is in inspiration.

:::::::::::::::Medieval Times update::::::::

First off, we had a blast! The horses were absolutely astounding with all of the intricate foot work and even dance type numbers. The horses even were called on as mounts during a sword fight. I kept being concerned about them getting an eye poked out. The falcon was released for a free flight around the small arena and then captured a lure. Falcons have such a regal appearance. We ended up as part of the green knights supporters. My SIL recommended the black and white section, but the attendants at the front were so busy we didn't push the issue. Noah's favorite color is green so we just went with the flow. The black and white section is a great one becuase you are positioned mid field to see everything. The green section is on the section by the King's box. The nice thing was that it appeared that all sections gave you a good view. The green knight is the bad boy of the champions, which my kids thought was super cool. My mom purchased the kids each a one dollar pennant to wave for our guy. The kids, Michael and I whooped and hollared ridiculously for our side. There were a couple of times that the crowd is supposed to make the decision for life or death of a knight after a battle. My bloodthirsty heathen children, Aaron and Noah were like a page out of Philip Zimbardo's book. Noah being the biggest heathen of all with wild eyes and crazy hand gestures...what a nutter. The menu included vegetable soup, garlic bread, half of a chicken, spare ribs, herb-roasted potato and apple pie. The food was tasty, but what ever wasn't finished was placed in the handy-dandy Tupperware containers my mom brought. Our "wench", Kyle, said that someone bringing there own Tupperware was a first for her. After the performance we made the kids photos with the green knight and they got his autograph on their crowns. Recommendation: Definitely worth the price of admission. The horses, the falcon, the fight coregraphy and the food are well worth the price.





Cool story: Stone, the kitten

Off to play with my family! Smiles!