Today's Thought

This afternoon I watched as 20 minutes of my life vanished while I was on the phone trying to straighten out a problem with my order from Dell. The first phone call ended with the lady telling me that she'd need to hang up and call me right back. I bet you can guess how that turned out.

The second phone call had me transferred to 4 (YES, FOUR) different departments. I'm pretty sure it was an international call as well. (I will not even go into details on this.) It occurred to me, while I was on hold for all of the transfers, that if the people putting you on hold had to listen to the lovely music, they'd probably get to your call more quickly.

The View from the Kitchen Sink

I was standing at the sink yesterday looking out the window. I realized how much I love glancing out that window to see what is happening outside.

I can see the garden. Right now the potato plants are really growing, we're still waiting for the newly sprouted seeds to take off. Soon, I'll look at the garden and want to be out in it as other chores keep me in the house.

I can see the kids on the trampoline. Often, I can watch them without them even knowing I am there. Last night, they were playing "Tramp Ball." Robby chips soft golf balls towards the kids as they are jumping on the trampoline. The kids' goal is to catch the ball. There were smiles and giggles all around.

Petunia, the dog, sometimes realizes I'm at the window. She will stand outside looking up and in at me--silent conversations that unfortunately may be ending sooner than we'd like.

Sometimes I'm lucky enough to glance out when our covey of quail is on the move. Last summer they had a very predictable schedule.

Out the window, I can see cats sunning and playing, chickens scratching and plants and kids growing. The window seems to frame all of these happenings and make them into photographs in my mind.

What's your favorite view?

Things to Do

The end of the school year is approaching, and with each passing day, the to-do list seems to get a little longer: 4 sets of firefly wings for 3rd grade musical, VBS supplies, summer Sunday school curriculum, plant tomatoes in garden, hoe the garden, mow the yard, flower beds, attempt to schedule time to visit family over the summer....the list keeps growing and growing.

So am I stressed or panicked? No. Rather than be overwhelmed, I've decided to tackle this one item at a time. Each task, when looked at individually, is really quite simple. We'll just keep plowing away, one thing at a time, until the list is completed.

Unfortunately, I've found out that a mother's list is never completed. Items just keep getting added to it.
Anyone want to come fold and put away laundry???

Why I keep kids...

Cheap labor, plain and simple:

Today the boys scrubbed cabinets, walls, baseboards and the kitchen floor while I sat on the couch eating bon bons and watching my soaps.

Seriously, I started scrubbing and T.S. wanted to help. Then C.W. came in and wanted to join the fun. T.S. even scrubbed the table legs. This is definitely a good skill for boys to hone.

An Explanation

I found this poem today. It sort of explains why my house is in the condition it is in.

Song for a Fifth Child
by Ruth Hulburt Hamilton

Mother, oh Mother, come shake out your cloth,
Empty the dustpan, poison the moth,
Hang out the washing and butter the bread,
Sew on a button and make up a bed.
Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?

She’s up in the nursery, blissfully rocking.
Oh, I’ve grown shiftless as Little Boy Blue
(Lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).
Dishes are waiting and bills are past due
(Pat-a-cake, darling, and peek, peekaboo).
The shopping’s not done and there’s nothing for stew
And out in the yard there’s a hullabaloo
But I’m playing Kanga and this is my Roo.
Look! Aren’t her eyes the most wonderful hue?
(Lullaby, rockaby, lullaby loo).

The cleaning and scrubbing will wait till tomorrow,
For children grow up, as I’ve learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down, cobwebs. Dust go to sleep.
I'm rocking my baby and babies don't keep.


Although I'm not rocking any babies anymore (I tried to rock Tryce today, he informed me he was too big.) I thought this was a neat poem.

Bucket List: Part 2

So yesterday I decided you could have two categories of Bucket Lists. One would be things you'd love to do/try but realistically probably never will. Why would you want to make a list like this? Well, one can dream, I guess.

Things on this list might include:

• Travel to the moon
• Visit every continent
• Jump out of an airplane
• Win the lottery (of course if this happens, all of the above might be attainable)
• Win a Nobel Prize
• End world hunger

See where I'm going with this? Me neither.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that it is okay to have big dreams and goals. But what may be more important than creating some check list of things to do before we die is to just live. Live in a way that fulfills you and makes the need for the list nonexistent.

Still to come: my list of things I'd REALLY like to do someday.

A Bucket List??

On the way home from taking Sadie to school today I was debating a blog post. Should it be "the evils of the time change" or what? Then the morning show we were listening to on the radio had a call-in question. "What is the one thing you'd like to do before you die?" That got me thinking.

Do I have a bucket list? Do I need a bucket list? Aren't we taught to live life every day and be content with what we have? Should you make a list so you have direction in your life? What if you make a list and it is full of things that never get accomplished?

So, what do you think? Should we all make a bucket list? If so, should we specify how many things on it? Can you narrow life down to a top ten or top five list?

What's on your bucket list?

Picture(s) of the Day

This morning I gathered eight eggs. There may be more later, a few of the hens seem to hold out until evening.

This is a sign I have in my kitchen. I wonder how long it has been since eggs were only ten cents a dozen.

16 Random Things about Me

My friends Christy and Janda posted a list, so since I can't seem to think of anything to blog about and I think they are pretty cool. I decided to give it a try.

1. I'd rather play with the kids or do a craft than do housework. (especially dishes or laundry) That's probably why I keep kids--it's a good excuse for crafting and no housework.
2. I could spend all day outside messing in the yard and garden or "checking" on the zoo animals.
3. I think my kids are absolutely fabulous--T.S. can come up with something funny everyday. Sadie can imagine and dream up more than I ever could.
4. I can't believe I lived 23 years of my life and went to college 8 hours away before coming home to Happy, TX to meet the love of my life at Happy High School. What are the odds?
5. I'm really looking forward to our family spending time together at the San Antonio Stock Show.
6. I'd trade anything for Nonnie to be living here on the farm instead of us. I'd love a lunch of home-made chicken tenders and biscuits. Followed by an afternoon snack of a Coke and a Hershey bar (with peanut butter and mini-marshmallows on it if I wanted).
7. I'm glad we can visit Nonnie and enjoy her company at the nursing home. The kids have made some fun memories there. Not many kids get to have good times and eat cheese dip with their great-grandmother.
8. I'm looking forward to working this summer with mom. She amazes me with all of the things she knows how to do around here. Maybe I should start taking notes.We're going to try our hand at a pumpkin patch this year. I think it and the zoo thing go hand-in-hand.
9. Bonza Bottler Day is the best least-known holiday to celebrate. More people should participate, it is important to take time out to have fun with your friends.
10. My husband works way harder than most people in his position. I think the community finally sees that and is starting to appreciate what he does for our kids.
11. I'm blessed to live in a small community that feels like a big family. Sadie (and T.S. next year) has teachers that have known her her whole life. It's fun to raise (or rear as Mrs. Smith would say) children with the people you grew up with. Even better is the fact that some of our parents grew up together.
12. It has been fun watching Sadie and Robby and T.S. with our show animals. At the stock shows, I've missed my dad more than I thought I would.
13. I love to mix Honey Nut Cheerios (the generic bag-kind), peanut butter, mini-marshmallows and M&Ms together for a snack. YUM! Other than that I'm not a big dessert/sweets fan.
14. The perfect day would be one spent outdoors with family and friends. A day with no obligations except just to "be"--be happy, be content and have fun.
15. I can't remember the last book I read. I really need to a)make time to read and b)read more books of substance.
16. I am a picky eater--I really hope my kids don't inherit that.

Okay, so that's 16 random things about me--a little deeper than I intended. Let me know if you decide to post 16 or feel free to post some things about yourself in the comments here.

Bunco

I'm in a Bunco group. A group of 12 ladies get together once a month, eat supper and play Bunco. Bunco is a very simple game played with 3 dice. Every woman/mother needs one thing that is hers. One thing that she can go and do by herself or, even better, with a group of her peers. Bunco is a time for us to come together, share stories, lift one another up and essentially just remind each other that we're all in this together. (how cheesy sounding)

Anyway, this article was in the paper today. It is a story about a group of ladies who have been getting together to play Bunco since the Depression. They decided to call it quits after years of gathering once a month. It made me think of my group. I hope we can keep rolling as long as they did.

Have you seen my spoons?

A strange phenomenon has come over our house. We seem to be missing quite a few spoons. I noticed the other day that there weren't many in the silverware drawer. I just thought the kids had eaten lots of cereal and they were in the dishwasher. Instead, our spoon supply seems to have dwindled.

When Robby and I married 10 years ago we started off with enough silverware to serve at least 12 and probably 14 (can't remember the exact number of place settings we received.) I haven't counted, but I think we are down to something like 8 spoons, maybe less. So where are they?

• Were they inadvertently thrown in the trash?
• Did the kids "borrow" them to play something and forget to bring them back to the kitchen?
• Are they where the lost socks go to play?

I'm pretty sure that somewhere in another dimension are lonely single socks and lost spoons trying to figure out how to re-enter the world and find their mates and place in the drawer.

Still on my mind...

This story about the 100-0 blowout is still on my mind. There was even an editorial about it in today's Amarillo paper. I posted about it here. Rather than dwell on the negative, I decided to share this story with you.

Here is the headline for the story: "There are some games in which cheering for the other side feels better than winning." It's about a football game played between Grapevine Faith Christian School and the Gainesville State School this year. Gainesville is a maximum-security correctional facility 75 miles north of Dallas.

It's a story about a Christian school going above and beyond to make a difference for some boys who are living in what could seem like a hopeless place. It's a story that should make you feel good and should restore your faith in coaches, kids, parents and sports today. It might even make you tear up.

What do you think?

I read in the paper where the basketball coach at a Dallas Christian School was fired this weekend. It appears that one reason he was let go stemmed from his girls' team beating Dallas Academy 100-0 earlier this month. You can go here for an article about the Dallas Academy coach's perspective; which I admire. (There is also a handy box on down in the article that will connect you to previous stories about this.) Covenant school posted an apology to Dallas Academy on their web site. The coach apparently disagreed with the statement and posted his thoughts somewhere.

The coach says the game, "just happened." What? I've played in some lopsided games and scoring 100 points doesn't "just happen." I remember one game where our coach wouldn't let us start playing defense until the other team got to the free throw line--then it was a 2-3 zone. On offense, we were required to pass the ball at least five times before shooting and then the coach called out the shooter's name.

Could we have run-up the score to 100? Probably. Did we want to? Sort of. Who doesn't want to play in a game where you score 100 points? Would that have been the right thing to do? No. Would we have learned anything? Probably not.

I could expound on this for a while, but won't. Read the articles and let me know what you think.

Eco-Dilemma

We are debating the use of paper plates in our house. I generally just buy a huge bag of them at Sam's and we use them for snacks, light meals, etc. We love paper plates because they are so easy--just use and toss.

But here is the dilemma. In an attempt to save money I decided to quit buying paper plates. No big deal except we are running our dishwasher twice as much. So which is cheaper and/or more Eco-friendly paper plates or washing plates?

I realize you are creating more waste and causing more paper to be made by using paper plates. But, you are saving water and electricity and not putting waste water filled with detergent back out when you use paper plates.

I leave you with some questions:

• Which is cheaper, paper or washing plates?


• Which is better for the environment, paper or washing plates?

I'm not a tree-hugger by any means, but I want to do my part for the environment. After all, we can't go live on another planet when this one is used up. (Although if I have another week like last week, I may check into it.) I also want to make my dollar stretch as far as I can. So, do I buy paper, or spend money on detergent and electricity to run the dish washer and pump our well?

What's a girl to do?

What do your counter tops say about you??

We are recovering from stock shows, company and sick kids. My house looks like it could be declared a disaster area at any moment. We've got old coats, good coats, good shoes, chore boots and other clothing strewn from the back door through the kitchen and into the dining room. Our dining room table has once again disappeared as I attempt to make more necklaces (a post and pictures soon, I hope). As I attempted to clean the kitchen counters off enough to make supper I surveyed what was piled on top and wondered what an archaeologist might think if he discovered our ruins.

Items included:

• a bag of mini-marshmallows
• an empty bag of chips
• two lamb drenchers (I ask Robby why we needed two. He says it depends on what we are giving the lamb as to what size we need.)
• supplement for the lamb
• 3 breathing treatment masks and a bag of inhalers and medicine for T.S.
• an empty bowl that's supposed to be taken out to use to water the cats
• half-eaten pan of brownies
• cell phone charger cords
• numerous pictures that were painted this morning and needed a place to dry

Please don't call CPS or the health department on me. We really do attempt to clean up after ourselves. I probably didn't mention everything I found, but you get the general idea. So what does this say about me? Probably that I'm not the best house keeper, but that I do care for the well-being of the kids and all of our zoo members. It also says that like the rest of the world we are trying to do too many things at once. The solution? I don't know. Everything but the empty bag of chips seems to be essential right now. I'm sure an enlarged mud room/laundry room would take care of everything.

A girl can dream, can't she?

Why I dislike days like today...

Today is one of those days that is mentally exhausting. Sadie had a great day at the county stock show Saturday. T.S., on the other hand, seems to have developed asthma and stock show dust seems to be the trigger. After a miserable day of coughing Saturday, he seemed a little better Sunday morning. By Sunday evening it was apparent he needed to go to the doctor. His breathing was pretty good and his color was good, but he was still coughing some.

Monday we headed to the doctor with the thought that he might have an infection or just needed cough medicine. The doctor thought differently. His lungs were not sounding good and his oxygen level was not good. You know it's bad when you start off seeing a nurse practitioner and end up seeing the doctor as well as both nurses. We were sent home with instructions for breathing treatments and to come back Tuesday to learn what things we could do as preventative measures.

So here we are today. The short trip to the doctor to get educated turned into another breathing treatment and coming back to the office a few hours later to assess where we were. His oxygen levels are still not where they should be, but his lungs sound better and his color is good. The doctor sent us home with instructions for breathing treatments every 2 hours and to check the oxygen levels and report in.

So, now we are to the exhausting part: keeping up with the treatment schedule, wondering if his oxygen is good or bad, wondering if we'd be better off in the hospital....
T.S. is hyped up on albuterol and steroids--a bad combination for a four-year old boy. He's bouncing everywhere and can't hold still.

Sometimes I think it'd be easier to go get a 9 to 5 job and hire a nanny.

As Seen on TV

Sadie loves infomercials, especially the short "commercial" ones. She is determined we need to buy the pan that makes the 4 mini-hamburger patties. I can hardly wait to show her this site. It analyzes TV products in a sort of humorous way. The only thing Sadie and I keep wondering is why Billy Mayes has to shout. Just tell us about the product already.

How to Tell if Your Church is "Kid Friendly"

I am very thankful that our church is "kid friendly." We don't send the kids out after children's time and for the most part, the low rumble that comes with the numerous kids in our congregation is not only accepted but welcome. Here are some signs that your church is "kid friendly." (in no particular order)

• No one minds that your 4 year old son takes off his shoes and socks five minutes into the service.
• Peppermints are provided in the foyer and no one stands guard over them limiting each kid to only one. (Although sometimes I wish we did, but I don't want to be the peppermint guard.)
• It is perfectly acceptable for your child to run up the aisle (barefooted) to children's time and "slide" into his spot on the floor. It is also acceptable for him to run up the center aisle and slide into his pew. (We did discuss this today and T.S. promises not to make a habit of it.)
• Your preacher stops in the middle of the sermon to acknowledge the child (usually his granddaughter) that is waving/talking to him.
• Members of the church tell you that you are being too hard on your kid (when you take them out to discipline) and you should, "just let them be kids." These are the same people that would have never let their kids get away with what you are trying to stop your child from doing.
• When you get a new preacher, he is often confused about which kids belong to which parents because babies are handed off and kids take turns sitting with their friends regularly.

Is your church kid friendly?

Fire-Safe Cigarettes????

While watching the news the other night, I was surprised to hear that Texas is now a state that requires the sale of "fire-safe cigarettes." I immediately thought, "Isn't that an oxymoron? Is there such a thing as a fire-safe cigarette?"

Apparently there is. They are cigarettes that have special paper that is designed to let the cigarette burn out if it is not puffed. You can read the AP article here. Some smokers say they taste bad. That made me wonder, "If they taste bad, they are probably treated with a chemical. If they are treated with a chemical, that means they probably cause cancer. If they eventually cause cancer, there will be huge lawsuits in the coming years."

This is apparently a big deal. There is even a Coalition for Fire-Safe Cigarettes. (I'm thinking that anything that has its own coalition is a big deal.)

I don't care for smoking, but I think if someone wants to make that choice it is his/her choice. I think it is interesting that people are trying to make cigarettes "safer." (another oxymoron) I also understand that fires caused by cigarettes are a big problem. I'm not trying to take a stance on smoking or start some heated debate.

Two things made me find this topic interesting: 1. the thought of fire-safe cigarettes and 2. the government is regulating one more thing.

Does this seem to be a little crazy to anyone but me?
I'm thinking about forming a coalition--The Could Someone Leave Us All Alone and Let Us Make Our Own Decisions Even If They Are Bad Coalition.

Side Note

Thanks to everyone who went to the Campbell's page and clicked to help the FFA. I'm taking the link off of the sidebar because the goal of 250,000 clicks has been reached. I think it is interesting to note the promotion was set to run through at least next spring and possibly later--they reached the 250,000 goal in just 3 months. $250,000 went to the National FFA organization. So, Thanks!