Friday, January 28, 2005

SeaWorld Here We Come

Posting will be non-existent for the next 2 days as I will be going to SeaWorld with my Husband and kids. Yipeee!

In the meantime, my children have again shown how cute they can be. #2 Son can sleep in ANY position. Click to Enlarge:

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

We have a tent in the living room for the kids to play in and for me to stick all the toys in when I am ‘cleaning’. Here is the new way to play in it.

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Which gives you an interesting porthole on the top at this angle as you can see.

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Ok, off to do three loads of laundry, walk the dog, play with the kids, put up the dishes, and so much more… I am looking forward to this weekend!!!!



Thursday, January 27, 2005

Some more Pics

“Now Mom, that is a digger”… note where he is sitting. He has fallen backwards from that position and STILL sits there. Click the pictures to enlarge them.

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

No way am I going to get dressed. Run from mom, run from mom. STOP, the Wiggles are on.

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Farm Boy!

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Wednesday, January 26, 2005

Humor for Dreaded Wednesday

Since I have boys, I saw this and couldn't help but laugh. I remember as a kid telling the other kids to XYZ (examine your zipper). Guess things have changed a lot since then. I wonder which ones my kids will use as they get older?

Top Ten most Polite Ways to Say Your Zipper Is Down......... by David Letterman

10. The cucumber has left the salad.

9. Quasimodo needs to go back in the tower and tend to his bells.

8. You need to bring your tray table to the upright and locked position.

7. Paging Mr. Johnson... Paging Mr. Johnson..

6. Elvis is leaving the building.

5. The Buick is not all the way in the garage.

4. Our next guest is someone who needs no introduction.

3. You've got a security breach at Los Pantalones.

2. Men may be From Mars.....but I can see something that rhymes with
Venus.

And the #1 way to tell someone his zipper is unzipped.....

1. I always knew you were crazy, but now I can see your nuts.

Tuesday, January 25, 2005

My kids

I have some pictures I wanted to share. They’re not in any particular order. Just having some fun.

#1 Son is in ‘school’ twice a week for 3 hours each day. Here are the pictures he painted last week. (The blacked out area was his name.) Click picture to enlarge it.
Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

It’s cold today and the wind is blowing fairly hard. This was just too cute for words (at least to Mom). Gotta love that hair. Hmmm… reminds me of those electrostatic balls.

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

“Who me? I wouldn’t pour sand all over my brother when he was trying to stand up. Not Me!” I could just hear him saying this as I was snapping the picture. What a pair. Mind you, #2 Son proceeding to pour sand on #1 Son when he turned around. They are too quick for me somedays.

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us


Thanks to ImageShack for Free Image Hosting

Monday, January 24, 2005

Potty Training

Went to breakfast with Bou this morning and talked about potty training. I know, I know, not exactly what you normally talk about when eating but when you have kids, all sorts of subjects will come up when eating.

My #1 Son took a step backwards in wanting to go potty – as in he stopped asking and never said yes when I asked. So she gave me a hint. Put red food coloring in the toilet water and tell him if he P’s in it, it will turn orange. Guess what… it worked. I tried it once that morning and 3 more times he came to me and asked to go potty. We used Blue once and Red two more times.

And one of the added blessings is that he now makes sure he P’s in the potty… wouldn’t want it to go anywhere else, might not change colors if it does. Thanks Bou for a wonderful idea!

It's Florida!

First, I should not be allowed to post when I'm on cold medication. Second, it should not be allowed to get this cold in Florida when I'm not feeling good. How Cold? At 8am it is 41F in West Palm Beach.

Image Hosted by ImageShack.us

The question is whether I can bundle the kids up, put them outside and still see them while inside... hmmm... maybe I can hide in the car. It's more the wind than anything. BRRRRRRRRrrrrrrrr.

Sunday, January 23, 2005

Busy Weekend

I reinstalled XP on my laptop after formatting the drive. Now I am working on getting all the software re-installed. All this while taking care of kids, being sick and trying to keep up the house. Ugh. There is a reason why Mom’s are not allowed to be sick.

What does this mean? It means I haven’t been writing about my darling monsters children. I thought I would do something really cool like a couple of the blogs using blog names to make a story. Then I remember why I made C’s in English. GRIN. Can you picture my story? Something like:

Argghhh! Electric Venom came out of the snake. Luckily it did not hit Pamibe who was Fighting Inertia to get up and move, while trying to stay Fresh As A Daisy. All the while a Physics Geek was talking to Little Joe about Orge’s View on Jennifer’s World.

Snicker snicker. See what I mean? Instead I have been surfing the blogs when I get a moment. I want to share the odd things I read. Not the really nice articles, or important stuff, just the odds and ends that made my day a little stranger nicer.

Like at Bad Example there is a post about “Way Too Much Time On His Hands”. (You have to click on the ‘six line ascii art challenge’ to see the artwork).

Over at Frizzen Sparks there is a question about What 10 people Have Done The Most To Mess Up This Country In Your Lifetime? (Lots of cursing there, so be prepared!)

I usually visit Boudicca’s Voice to read about her kids, but I couldn’t resist this post on Ouch?.

Road Warrior Survival has a Saturday Question of the Day that always sparks my interest.

Lee Ann’s View has a lot in common with my views, particularly this funny article on Stupid Drivers in Florida.

I mosie over to Madfish Willie’s Cyber Saloon and read humor to relax.

Could not resist the Nerd Test at Mellow-Drama.

And to help me increase my Trivia input, I love going to Quality Weenie and reading the Did You Know?.

Ok, I’m a nerd. So I have to visit Technicalities and read about a Database Theft.

Enough for now. I’ll treat you to some more in the future. Scary huh?

Friday, January 21, 2005

Mom’s Sick

It has been a LONG week. #2 Son was running fever Sun – Tues. Still fussy now. Last night, Mom started getting a scratchy throat and woke up with a fever this morning. Ugh. Two kids feeling well and a sick Mom does NOT mix well.

I had some pictures I have been meaning to put out this week, so here are a couple to show you that despite everything, they are still cuties.

You’ll see #1 Son picking up 6 blocks without them blasting out of his hands everywhere:

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Now you’ll see when he couldn’t press them together right:

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Here are the two of them playing together. Notice, no one is pulling hair, pushing, kicking or shoving. Phew.

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Thursday, January 20, 2005

Easy Feta Chicken Bake

Get those recipes out to (recipe(dot)carnival(at)gmail(dot)come (recipe.carnival@gmail.com) by Midnight EST tonight! We are lucky enough to have CalTechGirl from Not Exactly Rocket Science hosting it.

Here is my recipe for this week:

Easy Feta Chicken Bake from Kraft Food and Family

Ingredients
6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
2 tbsp lemon juice (divided)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 pkg (4oz) Athenos Crumbled Feta Cheese with Basil and Tomato
1/4 cup finely chopped red pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley

Directions
Preheat oven to 350F. Arrange chicken in 13x9 in. baking dish.

Drizzle with chicken with 1 tbsp of lemon juice. Season with salt and black pepper. Top with feta cheese; drizzle with remaining 1 tbsp lemon juice.

Bake 35 to 40 min. or until chicken is cooked through. Sprinkle with red pepper and parsley.

Word of warning - this will dry out if cooked too long. Still tasty.

Wednesday, January 19, 2005

Humor for Dreaded Wednesday

Great story....

We've all had trouble with our cats, but I don't think we can top this one: Calling in sick to work makes me uncomfortable. No matter how legitimate my excuse, I always get the feeling that my boss thinks I'm lying.

On one recent occasion, I had a valid reason but lied anyway, because the truth was just too darned humiliating. I simply mentioned that I had sustained ahead injury, and I hoped I would feel up to coming in the next day. By then, I reasoned, I could think up a doozy to explain the bandage on the top of my head.

The accident occurred mainly because I had given in to my wife's wishes to adopt a cute little kitty. Initially, the new acquisition was no problem. Then one morning, I was taking my shower after breakfast when I heard my wife, Deb, call out to me from the kitchen. "Honey! The garbage disposal is dead again. Please come reset it." "You know where the button is," I protested through the shower pitter-patter and steam. "Reset it yourself!" "But I'm scared!" she persisted. "What if it starts going and sucks me in?"

There was a meaningful pause and then, "C'mon, it'll only take you a second." So out I came, dripping wet and buck naked, hoping that my silent outraged nudity would make a statement about how I perceived her behavior as extremely cowardly. Sighing loudly, I squatted down and stuck my head under the sink to find the button. It is the last action I remember performing.

It struck without warning, and without any respect to my circumstances. No, it wasn't the hexed disposal, drawing me into its gnashing metal teeth. It was our new kitty, who discovered the fascinating dangling objects she spied hanging between my legs. She had been poised around the corner and stalked me as I reached under the sink. And, at the precise moment when I was most vulnerable, she leapt at the toys I unwittingly offered and snagged them with
her needle-like claws.. I lost all rational thought to control orderly bodily movements, blindly
rising at a violent rate of speed, with the full weight of a kitten hanging from my masculine region.

Wild animals are sometimes faced with a "fight or flight" syndrome. Men, in this predicament, choose only the "flight" option. I know this from experience. I was fleeing straight up into the air when the sink and cabinet bluntly and forcefully impeded my ascent. The impact knocked me out cold.

When I awoke, my wife and the paramedics stood over me. Now there are not many things in this life worse than finding oneself lying on the kitchen floor buck naked in front of a group of "been-there, done-that" paramedics. Even worse, having been fully briefed by my wife, the paramedics were all snorting loudly as they tried to conduct their work, all the while trying to suppress their hysterical laughter.... ...and not succeeding.

Somehow I lived through it all. A few days later I finally made it back in to the office, where colleagues tried to coax an explanation out of me about my head injury. I kept silent, claiming it was too painful to talk about.

Which it was.

"What's the matter?" They all asked, "Cat got your tongue?"

If they only knew!

Tuesday, January 18, 2005

100, 101, 102… Going Once

Going Twice, Sold! To my #2 Son as his running temperature the last 2 days. Seems I will not be blogging much because I have a 1 year old child attached to my hip and a 2 year old child pulling my pants leg to pay attention to him.

I must say breakfast yesterday with Bou lightened my day. Particularly her oldest son. He doesn’t seem to like ‘germs’. With two younger brothers I don’t see how this can occur, but it has. Initially he wants to sit by my #1 Son until ‘something’ happens. Last time it was the creamer… this time it was sneezing. Oh, #1 Son doesn’t have to sneeze, he was ‘pretending’. But in the process of this pretend sneeze, food would come out of his mouth. It was pretty gross. But I had to hide my laughter when I saw Bou’s oldest go hide behind her after it happened. The look on his face was absolutely hilarious.

Seems I am lacking in the sense of humor department today (that lack of sleep, whining children issue) so what can I find humorous today?

Monday, January 17, 2005

In My Daddy’s Shoes

You gotta admit, there is nothing like a little boy trying to walk in his Daddy’s shoes. It certainly made me smile… hope you enjoy the pictures as well. Click picture to enlarge it.

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Thanks to ImageShack for Free Image Hosting.

Sunday, January 16, 2005

Face Plant

I would like to share the following story about my #2 Son taking multiple face plants into the floor. In fact, I even have pictures he did it so much. Really! He started with taking out handfuls of clean white laundry. Leaving just a few. Then he climbed into the basket. So far, no problem… he is clean, his clothes are clean, and he is occupied while I fold the other load.

Then he gets on his knees, hands on the side and leans. Over he goes, face plant into the floor. I thought for sure he would have a bloody nose and squished fingers. I run over about the time he lifts up his head… he’s laughing. Hard. I stopped dead in my tracks. It was the cutest face with that laughter. He works the basket back into the upright position, gets back in and … you got it… does it again. And again and again.

With every effort, he gets a little smarter at catching himself and not letting his nose hit the floor. These pictures are towards the end, when he has it pretty down pat. (Click picture to enlarge it).

Lean, Lean, Lean:

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

-------------------------

Hit the Floor:

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

-------------------------

Laugh about it and do it again:

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Saturday, January 15, 2005

Husband is back, so here is some humor

Hello All! I still have not uploaded those cute pictures, I still have not written up any funny stuff my kids did while he was gone. I am just not up to speed yet. I was sent this wonderful piece of humor and wanted to share it until I can catch back up with life. GRIN.

As I've Matured...

I've learned that you cannot make someone love you. All you can do is
stalk them and hope they panic and give in...

I've learned that one good turn gets most of the blankets.

I've learned that no matter how much I care, some people are just
jackasses.

I've learned that it takes years to build up trust, and it only takes
suspicion, not proof, to destroy it.

I've learned that whatever hits the fan will not be evenly distributed.

I've learned that you shouldn't compare yourself to others - they are more
screwed up than you think.

I've learned that depression is merely anger without enthusiasm.

I've learned that it is not what you wear; it is how you take it off.

I've learned to not sweat the petty things, and not pet the sweaty things.

I've learned that ex's are like fungus, and keep coming back.I've learned
age is a very high price to pay for maturity.

I've learned that I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy it.

I've learned that we are responsible for what we do, unless we are
celebrities.

I've learned that artificial intelligence is no match for natural
stupidity.

I've learned that 99% of the time when something isn't working in your
house, one of your kids did it.

I've learned that there is a fine line between genius and insanity.

I've learned that the people you care most about in life are taken from you
too soon and all the less important ones just never go away. And the real
pains in the ass are permanent.

Pass this along to 5 friends...trust me, they'll appreciate it. Who
knows,maybe something good will happen. If not...tough!

Friday, January 14, 2005

Carnival of Recipes Number 22

I did it - AGAIN! ARGHHHHH I fixed all these links TWICE last night only to find out I must have copied over an old version I was writing. Sigh. Thanks for letting me know. They should be fixed - AGAIN.

It's here! I did it! Please keep in mind that I'm a tired geeky computer engineer mother... so everything will be in the same format. ;-) Sorta like me stacking all the Christmas presents by color and size.

A couple of items first before getting to those yummy recipes. And trust me, I read every one of them. They all look delicious. Some are quick and easy, some are more difficult, a couple even won prizes, a couple are great for when you are feeling under the weather and all look like something I want to try. Keep in mind, you may want to check out those blogs that are submitting the recipes. I found one that has book reviews, some that talk about issues all over the world, some that talk about their children and lives (from the USA to Australia), one that helps you out with kids and food, and so much more. Be sure to check them out and see what you can find.

Let’s start with the Hat tip to David at Daily Pundit Archives for this information:

Here's a converter that's attached to a rather fun website about a mediaeval cookbook. This SITE is about as comprehensive as they come.

This is another good SITE

This SITE has tables as well as a converter.

Lastly, did you know that Google has a units converter? Fire up Google, and in the search box, enter something like '375 ml in fluid ounces' to get the answer 375 ml = 12.6802585 US fluid ounces. Google's converter is very clever - it can even do things like 'miles per hour in furlongs per fortnight', for example (2,688 if you must know).

Now on to those recipes. Ignore the geeky, engineering formatting and go check out these recipes and websites. You will be pleasantly surprised at what you find! FYI, I put Salads in with Dinners.


*** Breakfast***

This also go under Lunch, Dessert and other places… but this is my choice for it. Mary Beth of Random Thoughts from Mary Beth sent us this Kuchen recipe. Ohhhh. My mouth is watering. This looks fantastic.

From Dave at Arizona Perspective we get Welsh Pancakes. Something about dough with yeast that makes my mouth water. Yummy.

*** Brunch***

From Linda at Broadsheet we get this Kedgeree and Scones recipe. After having real scones (not in the freezer section), I can’t wait to try this recipe.

*** Lunch***

From Bothenook at A Geezer’s Corner we get this Quick and Easy Lunch or Appetizer recipe. I, too, am on a diet and had not thought about celery with a stuffing. Sounds like a great idea with a great recipe.

*** Soups***

Kris from Anywhere But Here sends us this Haitian Citrus Soup.

From Be at bebere.com we get a. Riff on the Vietnamese Fisherman's Soup Theme. You’ll have to page down to find it under her drink recipes.

*** Drinks***

From Owlish at Owlish Mutterings we get this recipe for a drink called the The Orangutan . Be aware that Owlish did say “God only knows what I'm unleashing on the unsuspecting world…”. Personally, I think you will enjoy it.

Also from Be at bebere.com we get two drink recipes. A Hot Toddy and Thyme Tea. I never knew how to make a hot toddy – but had read about them in books (like Agatha Christie). Cool, now I know what one really is. And the soup looks wonderful, very tasty.


*** Appetizer***

From Jim at Snooze Button Dreams there is a Macho Dip. LOL when I read it. Not a beer drinker myself, but I think I'll let my husband make this recipe!

Not sure if this would be an appetizer or dessert… but I’m sticking here as an appetizer. From CalTechGirl at Not Exactly Rocket Science there is Deep Fried Dill Pickles (also deep fried candy bars). I have not tried either but have heard of and seen both. Now I can give it a shot.

Christina didn’t say whether this was a dinner or appetizer… so appetizer wins this round. From her at Feisty Repartee we have Garlic Skewered Shrimp. I reek of garlic when I get the chance and I love cake (see deserts). Can't ask for a better combo unless you had just plain chocolate in there somewhere.

From Punctilious at Like News But Tasty there are Asparagus bites, Salmon bites and Mini Pepper bites. I love asparagus, so this will be a new way to try them. The other two look just as good.

*** Dinners***

From Venomous Kate at Electric Venom there is a Kate's Garlicky Chicken with Spinach. I love garlic, I love chicken, I love this dish.

From Anselm at Hill Country Views there is a Spaghetti With Quick, Almost Like Home-made, Meat Sauce. I am always looking for good meat sauces for my spaghetti, so I will be giving this one a try!

From Amy at Prochein Amy there is VELVEETA® Taco Mac & Cheese . Yummy. I could have used it last night!

From David at Daily Pundit Archives there is a Smoked Pork Pot-Roast

Kris from Anywhere But Here sends us this Citrus Chicken . I love dark meat... though my
Husband likes breasts. I'll try it with both and see what I get.

From Kathleen at Baggage and Blathering there is a Yogurt-baked chicken. -- looks easy and tasty.

From Sally at Whimsy Capricious there is a sweet apple pork casserole.Yummy! This is on my list of giving it a try.

From Jovi at Meandering Musings there is a Tempora batter. I never realized how easy it is to make the batter. I’ll be eating this at home instead of restaurants now.

From Boudicca at Boudicca’s Voice there is Enchiladas Suisse . Hmmm. I love Mexican and this is a winner.

From David at Third World County there is Classic Red Enchiladas—with a twist. Sounds like I'm going to be doing more Mexican soon.

From Romeocat at Romeocat CatHouse Chat there is Baked Chicken 101 . Cool, that looks easy and delicious.

From Virgil at The Redneck Gourmet there is Fried Seafood Salad. Wow... that is a nice dinner!

From gEye at The Glittering Eye there is a
Székely gulyás . Pronunciation tips are included with the recipe. It looks delicious. I have found that I like a lot more European food than I realized after spending 6 months in Germany.

From Jeff at Trub. The sediment of life. there is Burning Ring O Fire or Championship Chili. Yowsa. That is some chili.

From Amanda at aussie wife there is Champagne Risotto. Have to see if my Husband and I can make this sometime together... taking turns watching the monsters children.

From Triticale at triticale – the wheat / rye guy there is Copper Penny Salad.. Other than that particularly chili sauce, I have everything else on-hand. I like that in a recipe.

From Allan at Inside Allan’s Mind there is Curried Vegetable Couscous. I have not had Couscous in a long time. Now I have a recipe to try.

From That1Guy at Drunken Wisdom there is Joe’s Chicken. Easy and I have the stuff on hand almost everyday. Gotta give this one a try.

*** Desserts***

From Shawn at Everything And/But Nothing there is a
Cream of Coconut Cake. I love to bake and cannot wait to give this a try. My Husband loves Cream of Coconut Cake.

From Tinker at The Secret Life of Shoes there is a. Dump Cake recipe. I love easy recipes that taste great. And this sounds delicious.

From LW at The Laughing Wolf there is a. Laughing Wolf Oatmeal Cookies. I love oatmeal cookies. Haven't had any in about 6 months... I think it is time to remedy that situation.

From Karen at Let’s Play Restaurant we have My Husband’s Banana Bread. I love banana bread and this sounds delicious. And fairly easy.

From B at Booklore we have Apple Bars. These sound delicious. Of course, I love apples and this just makes them even better.

From Christina at Feisty Repartee we have Italian Creme Cake.

From Matthew at Physics Geek we have Red Velvet Cake and Cream Cheese Frosting. And this cake looks delicious. I can't wait to try it. I love to bake. Looks fairly easy too. Yum Yum.

Thursday, January 13, 2005

Husband Out, Posting Light - some humor

Ok, my Husband was told last night he had to go to some meetings in Philly. Usually he watches the kids in the morning and evening and I get a chance to write up some stuff for my posts. Then during the course of the day, I post them or upload pictures or surf the blogs. And I have some cute pictures... sigh... It'll just have to wait. Ain't gonna happen today and tomorrow. Also, I am doing the Carnival of Recipes for this week. Sweet! But difficult. What little time I have on the computer will be to work on that post (and this one... which I started at 10am and will now post at 2:15pm). I did receive some more humor on that deals with age... thought you might enjoy it.

Humor about Age:

Have you been guilty of looking at others your own age and thinking, "Surely I can't look that old?"

I was sitting in the waiting room for my first appointment with a new dentist. I noticed his dds diploma, which bore his full name. Suddenly, I remembered a tall, handsome, dark-haired boy with the same name had been in my high school class some 40-odd years ago. Could he be the same guy that I had a secret crush on, way back then??

Upon seeing him, however, I quickly discarded any such thought. This balding, gray-haired man with the deeply lined face was way too old to have been my classmate. Hmmm,...or could he???

After he examined my teeth, I asked him if he had attended central high school.

"Yes. Yes, I did." he gleamed with pride.

"When did you graduate?" I asked.

He answered, "in 1951. Why do you ask?"

"You were in my class!" I exclaimed.

He looked at me closely. Then, that ugly, old, wrinkled son-of-a-bitch asked, "What did you teach?"

Odd Thoughts

And I thought I had issues with roaches… until I read about these dastardly LITTLE CRITTERS at That1Guy’s Drunken Wisdom.

Then at 2 in the morning… some other thoughts come to mind.

Where do family sayings come from and start? Some my families favorites are “6 of one, ½ dozen of another” or “NameHere has more blank than Karl has liver pills” (fill in blank with whatever NameHere has a lot of).

Why do headrests in cars never fit me? Is it because I’m short?

Why is it when my husband is going to be gone for 2 days do my children do something difficult? Like #2 Son getting up every hour last night.

Ahhh such is life.

Wednesday, January 12, 2005

Not Quite Humor for Dreaded Wednesdays

Got this from a friend...

Check out this CNN HURRICANE MAP-- when you get to the map, click it and watch them go. Jeanne had a weird path. -K

Humor for Dreaded Wednesday

I received some humor in the email on the same day Harvey posted THIS ARTICLE. After you read that article, here is the humor I received:

People over 35 should be dead.

Here's why .........

According to today's regulators and bureaucrats, those of us who were kids in the 40's, 50's, 60's, or even maybe the early 70's probably shouldn't have survived.

Our baby cribs were covered with bright colored lead-based paint.

We had no childproof lid's on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets, …and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets. (Not to mention the risks we took hitchhiking.)

As children, we would ride in cars with no seatbelts or air bags.

Riding in the back of a pickup truck on a warm day was always a special treat.

We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle.

Horrors!

We ate cupcakes, bread and butter, and drank soda pop with sugar in it, but we were never overweight because we were always outside playing.

We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle, and no one actually died from this.

We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then rode down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes.

After running into the bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem.

We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the street lights came on

No one was able to reach us all day.

NO CELL PHONES!!!!!

Unthinkable!

We did not have Playstations, Nintendo 64, X-Boxes, no video games at all, no 99 channels on cable, video tape movies, surround sound, personal cell phones, personal computers, or Internet chat rooms.

We had friends!

We went outside and found them.

We played dodge ball, and sometimes, the ball would really hurt.

We fell out of trees, got cut and broke bones and teeth, and there were no lawsuits from these accidents.

They were accidents.

No one was to blame but us.

Remember accidents?

We had fights and punched each other and got black and blue and learned to get over it.

We made up games with sticks and tennis balls and ate worms, and although we were told it would happen, we did not put out very many eyes, nor did the worms live inside us forever.

We rode bikes or walked to a friend's home and knocked on the door, or rang the bell or just walked in and talked to them.

Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team.

Those who didn't had to learn to deal with disappointment.

Some students weren't as smart as others, so they failed a grade and were held back to repeat the same grade.

Horrors!

Tests were not adjusted for any reason.

Our actions were our own.

Consequences were expected.

The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke a law was unheard of.

They actually sided with the law.

Imagine that!

This generation has produced some of the best risk-takers and problem solvers and inventors, ever.

The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.

We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned how to deal with it all.

And you're one of them!

Congratulations!

Please pass this on to others who have had the luck to grow up as kids, before lawyers and government regulated our lives, for our own good !!!!!


People under 30 are WIMPS !

Tuesday, January 11, 2005

Jan 11th only - go comment for Breast Cancer

I stole the words from CalTechGirl at Not Exactly Rocket Science...

Greg Hammond is raising money for breast cancer research today through a comment-a-thon. Greg and his friends and sponsors will be contributing $1 per comment on THIS POST between 12:01 AM PST and 11:59 PM PST to the National Breast Cancer Foundation. All you have to do to help is drop by, the sponsors are picking up the check!

For those of you who don't know the Hammond's story, Greg's wife Cheryl fought breast cancer on and off (mostly on) for almost 5 years before she passed away last spring.

Greg hopes to raise $1385.oo for the first 500 commenters.



I was #205... so go on over and add a comment.

Updated at 8:00pm with the link actually working. There was 492 comments... come on... just a few more!

Not ToDay

Last night I came home to dinner and these roses (click to enlarge picture).

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Wow. Just because. Gotta love my Husband.

So what is going on with today? Yesterday #2 Son got his shots in the afternoon and today he is fussy fussy fussy. No problem, I’ll just start doing all the phone calls and stuff.

This morning I had problems reaching the A.C.E., when I did reach them I found out their new hours are M/W/F only. Sigh.

Had to take my #1 Son to school for the first time in 3 weeks. Dropped him off and he had tears in his eyes when I kissed him and said goodbye. Sniff sniff. I hate that part. #2 Son was still crying and fussing the whole time.

Went to have my teeth cleaned. They asked us to leave (and reschedule) because #2 Son was yelling and crying. It was bothering other patients.

So, off to the drive up at the bank to deposit our checks for the hurricane damage we had. They won’t deposit them. #2 Son is now fussing and yelling. Into the bank to find out what is going on and why. I already had to send them to the Insurance company and get them endorsed… now what? I had to get someone else to endorse them as well. I had NO clue. Oh well. I’ll figure it out and fix this problem as well.

And so the day continues. The good news is I get to see those Roses every time I walk in the door. Certainly helps. Grin.

Monday, January 10, 2005

Have You Ever…

Done something you really didn’t want to do for the sake of someone else? Well I did yesterday. I cannot believe it. I went on a Farris Wheel at Lion Country Safari for the sake of my kids. I am TERRIFIED of heights. As in it will make me physically ill and faint. I can overcome it at times with a lot of patience and work. The number 1 thing I forgot was that Farris Wheel cars swing. I was green when I got off. I never threw-up nor fainted.

All for the sake of the kids to get up there and see how much ‘fun’ it would be. My Husband loves this kind of stuff but could not take both kids by himself. So I had to take #2 Son on with me. I don’t want my kids to be afraid of heights. I have got to be out of my mind!

In the meantime, my #1 Son actually rode some other rides as well. Here is a picture of him on this ride that goes up and down with a pull of a lever. He was concentrating so hard. And of course #2 Son was busy trying to escape.

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Expansion

The train is growing and growing and growing. This is not even all the track! But I loved the thumbs up when asked if he was having fun.
Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Sunday, January 09, 2005

Tag, I’m it!

Yep, I agreed to host the Carnival of Recipes #22. So if you have a recipe you wish to submit, please do the following:

E-mail: Recipe.carnival (at) gmail (dot) com
(recipe.carnival@gmail.com)
By the Deadline: Thursday Night, Midnight EST
Content: Recipe
Entrant: Anyone
With What: Send link to blog entry of recipe or E-mail Recipe


Saturday, January 08, 2005

Ein Beer Bitte

Ahhhh. Those were interesting days. I hate beer. Though, I did enjoy beer while living in Germany. I wish I had kept all those emails I sent out about the stuff I did over there. But I didn’t, such is life. Back to this story…

I did make some lifelong German friends. Every year we send a little gift over to each other. Little because otherwise it would cost a fortune to ship it. And this year, we got some great gifts. Including the item found around my son’s neck. The beer stein was given to us when we got married in 2000. I just couldn’t resist putting them together and taking a picture since #1 Son kept running off with the ??? (I don’t know the name for it – I call it the beer stein holder). He just made me think he was perfect for asking for “Ein Beer Bitte”.


(yep, that is Bou’s site you see on my Laptop. Didn’t realize it until I cropped the picture!)




Men and Lactation

Visiting Paul’s blog (Time Enough for Love) , I ran across an entry on Male Lactation that took me to THIS ARTICLE . Of course, I thought of Harvey, Orge, Graumagus, Contagion, Little Joe, T1G, Jack, Alex, Frank, and Glenn. Particularly the quote in the article “It is common knowledge that human males have nipples”. We have seen a few of these in the PJ party Harvey use to hold and other miscellaneous pictures/articles. I just couldn’t help but smile. I don’t know whether it was the discussion of breast feeding or thinking of those pictures/articles or my sick twisted sense of humor. Or better yet it was the quote “The volume of milk produced will be small relative to the amount that a female can produce.” I guess you have to have breast fed to really see the humor in this quote. But it made my day.

Friday, January 07, 2005

Kid’s Songs

Ok, when did I put my head in the gutter recently? I have been listening to kid’s songs for months now, but just today I heard them a whole different way. Like the chorus of Yankee Doodle:

“Yankee Doodle keep it up
Yankee Doodle dandy
Mind the music and the step
And with the girls be handy”

“With the girls be handy”????

There is more, but instead I will pull myself out of the gutter and ask another question about music. Will my children be seriously demented because they listen to Jazz, Classical, Country and Janet Jackson? When I am in a rather odd mood, I have a Janet Jackson CD I listen too… a lot. That mood has hit me lately. The Country? Because it the station with the best Road reports. And I listen to anything and everything except Acid Rock. Just can’t hear Acid Rock as real music. To me it is just noise. From Stone Temple Pilots to Travis Tritt to AC/DC and so on… I’ll listen.

Lately though, it has been Jazz, Classical or Country. With Janet thrown in for a day or two. Wonder what my boys will listen to when they grow up after having this for months at a time?

My Toys

#1 Son keeps taking off with the toy pictured here. It was bought for #2 Son. While #1 Son was busy in tent city, #2 Son pushed it away and played with it. (click to enlarge pictures)
Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

#1 DogSon was trying desperately to find a comfortable place to lay down in the sand. I got the ‘look’. Just too many toys in the way for a dog.
Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

The 21st Carnival of Recipes is Up

Matthew of Physics Geek hosted it this time! Click HERE to see all the great recipes. You might even see an interesting picture. Go ahead... take a peek.

While there, go to the main page and peruse the rest of his blog. Well worth your time.

Thursday, January 06, 2005

Tent city

My in-laws wanted to get something for the kids to play with outside. So I suggested this cool tent setup. It said it could be folded up and put away in a minute. Hmmm. Since when did I start believing advertisements? I guess only at Christmas time.

#1 Son was having a blast. First he helped me haul it out to the yard and looked just as confused as I felt.

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Then I put some of it together. No Way was I going to put all the pieces together. It takes FOREVER to undo it. Fold it up? Just minutes, undo all the Velcro and ties? Forever.

Enjoy #1 Son playing through the tents… and you can play ‘Find #2 Son’. He is in some of the pictures. (click to enlarge the pictures)

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Wednesday, January 05, 2005

More Humor for Dreaded Wednesdays

Got this from Not Exactly Rocket Science.

Want to annoy those around you and still have fun? Go pop some bubblewrap.


Humor for Dreaded Wednesdays

The jokes I have been sent lately, I will not post out here. So I did a search on the web and found some of these, as well as sending you to a couple of other blogs that have some good humor links.

"The doctor said he would have me on my feet in two weeks."
"And did he?"
"Yes, I had to sell the car to pay the bill."
===
Q: Why do seagulls live near the sea?
A: If they lived near the bay, they'd be bagels
===
Note: You may have to be a floridian to appreciate this one:
"Waiter, there's a fly in my soup!"
"No, sir, that's a cockroach, the fly is on your steak. "
===

I never said they would be good jokes! GRIN... these links below are much better... enjoy.

MaryBeth
has an addictive game - Twins.

For some laughter see Tammi’s posts:

Funny
Funny Email

Tuesday, January 04, 2005

Auburn Wins Sugar Bowl

I don't blog about my Husband very often. One of the things he and I have in common is that we like college football. He particularly likes Auburn since he graduated from there. Even when they aren't winning, he watches and supports them. So that they won the Sugar Bowl, makes it all that much nicer.

Way To Go Tigers

What is Your Name?

“Me!” Not the answer you expected? My #1 Son seems to think his name is “Me” when responding to the question of what is your name. It always makes me smile. But as the speech therapist pointed out – it is not the correct answer. So any poor sucker person that calls this week will be required to talk to my son and ask him his name.

Then the problem will be getting the phone back from my son. He does love to listen to someone talk to him. Notice, I didn’t say he talked back. He will occasionally answer with a yes or no, but don’t expect much more. Call! But be prepared to talk to a 2 year old. ;-p

Monday, January 03, 2005

Cowardly 3.14159265358979323846...

Or better yet… Carnival of Recipes #20 is up. Amy at Prochein Amy did a GREAT job on putting out the recipes. As you can see from my title, she was being very creative (and humorous). My recipe was Chicken Pie (Cowardly 3.14159265358979323846...). Go on over and take a peak. It is worth it just to try and figure out the name of the recipes!

Sunday, January 02, 2005

Fire Wood For Sale

I finally got some pictures. The first two are of the same tree. This is shortly after Hurricane Ivan hit my parent’s house. I only found pictures of this one tree. There were two trees in my parent’s yard and a neighbor’s tree that went down. The second tree in my parent’s yard went to the front yard, this one in the pictures went down in the backyard.

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

And this is my Bro-in-law near the root ball. He is over 6 feet tall.

Free Image Hosting at www.ImageShack.us

Now what happened was that the guys cutting down the trees were suppose to take the cut pieces to the road in front of the house or in back (thru the wooded area to the road in the back). Instead, they dropped it right behind my folk’s fence and did NOT take it all the way to the road in the back. A lot was happening with my dad then and no one noticed. Such is life. Hence – Fire wood for sale!!!





Ok, I’m exhausted. More blogging later. Happy New Year!