Ouch.....

This is our new thermostat.  It's nice, isn't it?  It should be for $800.  Ok, so the thermostat wasn't $800, but the repairs to the air conditioning were.  Add another $250 for the refrigerator repairs and it's been an expensive day. 

Sometimes, the silver lining is soooo hard to see.  The upside to the day?  It's one day closer to a nice weekend with all my boys.

Happy Memorial Day!

Yes, it's 8:20 in the morning.  I think, no - I know, this is the earliest blog posting yet.  What's more amazing, it that we have been up, cleaned up camp and are 20 minutes into our drive home.  Oh, we just passed an Amish family...how cool.  Soon I'll be showered and clean and ready to make our camping plans for July 4th. 

Most importantly, I wanted to take a minute to say Happy Memorial Day.  Thanks to all of the men and women who sacrafice their lives so we could sleep a little more soundly at night.  I found this sign while we were out geocaching this weekend and thought it was perfect.

Billions of Butterflies

It's our last day at camp.  Thankfully, we've been having so much fun and the weather has been so nice that we decided to stay an extra day.  The butterflies must have been excited that we were staying too.  There were swarms of them around our tent and site this morning.  Such a beautiful way to wake up.  The yellow ones were a little (or a lot) too quick for me.  But the black ones hung around for a while and were nice and relaxed...until I got too close. 

What I Learned Today

Since we aren't home to have dinner with the boys tonight (they're not home either), I wanted to make sure I didn't forget to say what I learned today.  You see, that's our dinner ritual.  Each night, the boys, Jeff and I go around the table while we're having dinner and each tell something new we learned that day.  Guests must participate also (much to the dismay of H's girlfriends).  Anyway, here's what I learned.

First, little yippy dogs should not be allowed in campgrounds.
Second, no one should wear a hat that is a moose's head - including antlers.
Third, who in Ohio would like to keep a camel as a pet?  The answer, someone in Chillicothe.

But lastly, I learned where Ohio's Coat of Arms was first created.  It's a little piece of history that would have remained unknown to us if Jeff and I hadn't been out geocaching today.  We visited Thomas Worthington's home and museum and stopped at the scenic overlook.  There, we found the pictured sign that details how and when the coat of arms was created....right where we were standing.  How cool!  Since we will only have cell signal for a few minutes more, you'll have to google "Thomas Worthington" to see who he was - or wait until I get home to ask.

We're off to the campgrounds!

No Shoes, No Cell, No Problem

Ah, the great outdoors.  A lake, a tent, a cooler and a picnic table.  No cell coverage.  It makes for a very short blog when you have to drive seven miles to town to get signal.  Anyway, we haven't lost our touch...it took under an hour to check in, find our site, set up the tent, the air mattress, the chairs and the coolers.  Now we're off geocaching and to hunt down our dinner.  Happy Holiday Weekend Everyone!

Still I Wonder, Who'll Stop the Rain?

There's been a lot of talk this week about the world coming to an end.  H or W informed me that it's been postponed until October.  None of us are on board....we're just wondering when the odd spring storm season is going to come to an end.  We've all had enough of the rain, the hail, the strong winds, the downed trees and the foot tall grass.  When Frank told us (and by us, I mean the whole Fox 19 viewing area) that we were done with the rain for the day, I was excited.  Until I walked outside and this is what the sky looked like.  Needless to say, we weren't done with rain for the day.  But like most of the days, the storm was strong but short lived.  The sun returned, making me cautiously optimistic that camping this weekend won't be a total washout.

Another Top 10

Here's my top ten list of good things about today....

1.  So far, it hasn't rained (yes, it's something to celebrate).
2.  We know that the tornado sirens are functioning
3.  H was elected Treasurer of the NHS for next school year.
4.  W was able to get his baseball game in (around said sirens).
5.  I found Uno so we'd have another game to play in our tent.
6.  The weather forecast for the weekend looks much better than earlier in the week.
7.  It's one day closer to Friday.
8.  We're down to 8 days of school - 7 if you don't count W's graduation ceremony).
9.  The fridge will be fixed tomorrow  - thanks to Sears Corporate Offices.
10.  I got to see a Mariachi Band in person for the first time.  One more thing off my bucket list :)

Stick in the Mud

It's a simple stick in the mud.  The winds ravaged our trees the other night and left us with a mess to clean up.  It's not an uncommon occurrence.  We've all learned to look past the mess and appreciate the sun when it arrives.  However, this stick caught everyone's attention.  I noticed it, Jeff pointed it out when he got home, H made me go outside to look at it and W noticed it when we pulled out of the garage.  It's in the middle of the yard, standing at attention and there's not a tree in sight.  Just one of those things that make you laugh...and it's not often that we all notice the same thing.  At least this time, it's not me that is a stick in the mud.

One of Those Days

Ugh, I am having one of those days.  Actually, we all are.  What should have been a happy go lucky, normal day has turned into the day from...well, you know where.  The boys are off to dinner with family, with last minute notice of course.  H's band concert got rescheduled for Thursday night...which just happened to be the night that I had two tickets to see Zac Brown.  One for me, one for H.  Guess that's down the tubes too...right along with the family dinner I had planned for tonight.  W left the orthodontists office with new bands that were painful 3 minutes after they put them on....the night before his final band concert.  The icing on the cake is that storms that have rolled through (complete with tornado warnings) has turned the yard into a pile of branches and leaves - just after we got them all cleaned up from the last storm.  I know we all have those kind of days.  Like everything else, this too shall pass.  The best we can do is crack jokes, smile though it and hope that tomorrow is better.

It's Been a Long Day, But....

According to Dr. Phil, using "but" in a sentence is pointless.  It renders anything said before it useless.  For example....I think you're great, but I don't want to date you.  Make sense now?  It's advice that I keep in the back of my mind.  I've tried to work at eliminating it from our vocabulary, but I'm not always successful.  See, I used it again. 

Anyway, today was a day full of buts.  It was wonderful to sleep in, but the dog had other ideas and licked my hand until I woke up.  Roosters sounded wonderful for lunch, but H was late getting home from lawn mowing.  We had lots of fun picking out new ski vests for boating season, but it didn't last long since we had to get home.  The weather was wonderful...sunny and 85 degrees, but that ended when the wind, rain and hail arrived.  Dinner was great, but would have been better if we all were here to eat it.  I love Sundays, but it means that Monday is quickly approaching.

Even though the day was filled with buts....I loved all of the things that came before them.   Normally Dr. Phil and I are on the same page....but not this time!

Another New Tenant

I'd like you to meet our newest tenant.  She's moved into the nest located on the top shelf in the garage closet.  She's got her own private entrance (during the day) and it's quiet and peaceful at night...once we're all home.  We've not had the opportunity to meet her spouse (if there is one) but given her attention to the care of the nest, I have to assume that she is expecting.  As you can tell, she's fairly tolerable of us.  She's not really a people person though, the traffic from the garage sale was a little much for her.  I'm excited to catch a glimpse of her home when she's out, but tonight she wouldn't let me any closer. 

You can bet if little ones start to stir in there, I'll be out there for days trying to capture at least one picture of them.  You have to love living in the forest :)

Day 1

Today is my 140th post...wow!  It was also Day 1 of our family garage sale.  Whew, what a lot of work.  But it paid off.  We made over $100 and we sold the white car!  I thought it might be a long shot to sell a car at a garage sale, but some things are just meant to be.  The girl that bought it was me...about 16 years ago.  If I could have given it to her, I would have. 

Tomorrow, the boys get to help and it should be even busier.  I'm off to have a well deserved cocktail and prepare to do it all again.

A Week of Work

Tomorrow's the big day.  I spent the week preparing and now the garage is full.  The last minute decision to have a full garage sale made the week a little hectic but it's definitely worth it.  The office is almost empty and soon it'll be scarlet and grey and I'll have one more room down.  Now I just need a good night sleep....as soon as H brings my truck back safe and sound.

Be Prepared

The lights of the city are what we are trying to get away from.  So what did we go buy today?  Yep, you guessed it...a light.  Jeff and I are looking forward to getting away and giving all of our equipment a test run.  We plan on camping over the summer with the boys so they can ski on a couple of different lakes.  But before we all go, we have to make sure that we remember how to do it.  It's been a long time since I slept in a tent, in a sleeping bag, cooked my food on a fire and burned a citronella candle.  It's amazing the things that you need when you camp as an adult.  An air mattress, a double sleeping bag, a tent fan, cooking forks....all things that you could live without as a teen.  When I was the boys age, I could sleep on a bed of rocks, eat marshmallows for dinner, wash it down with warm water and never bat an eye.  Today, I'm trying to make sure that the site we reserved has enough electricity to power my coffee pot!

The Heat of May

I've given up on my ode's to Mother Nature.  It's very apparent that my love letters to her aren't working.  She was kind enough to tease us with a couple days of 80 degree weather, dry baseball fields and endless sunshine.  But it was short lived.  Now it's 45 degrees (in May!) and that's the high of the day.  The rain has been nonstop and the winds have been brutal.  Instead of basking in the the warmth of the sun, I've been sitting in front of the heater - trying to get the chill out of my bones.  Not the kind of warmth I was looking forward to in the middle of May.  Hopefully the crazy weather is on it's way out since we go camping next week. 

I love Salsa!

I love Salsa!  One of the many songs that I dance to several times a week in our Zumba class.  If you know me, you know that fitness is not my thing.  I tried boot camp and it about killed me.  If you don't believe me, ask H...he tried it too.  I'm not a runner...that was a gene that skipped me and landed on directly on the boys.  I tried the Y and that wasn't so bad.  Anytime that you can watch TV while walking on a treadmill, count me in.  On the flip side, the Y didn't offer anything personal.  I need motivation and accountability.  So when Kristina decided to jump on the Zumba bandwagon and offer it at the studio, I thought this might be right up my alley.  And boy, was I right.  I LOVE it!  Anytime that you can dance, lose weight and inches and not realize that an hour has gone by, it's gotta be a good thing.

Anyway, I haven't been able to Zumba for the last six weeks.  Today was my first day back and I had the time of my life.  I love spending an hour a day with other ladies, laughing and dancing until I fit into my skinny jeans.  And once I fit into my skinny jeans, I'll continue to Zumba.  I didn't realize how much I missed it!

Honeysuckle.  It's one of the things in life that makes you go, huh?  How could something so pretty, that  smells so sweet be so vicious?  Well, just ask anyone with allergies.  Spring brings out the flowers, including the honeysuckle, and it works wonders for cleaning out the winter blues.  Until the sneezing starts.  Since the house is surrounded by acres of honeysuckle, sneezing and watery eyes are an immediate reaction.  For both me and W.  The season for it is short (thank goodness) and the rainy weekend has lessened some of the effects.  But it's always good to know your enemy, so here's my picture of it. 

Bamboozled

A day with no plans turned into a day of running around.  One store led to another, to another.  Thankfully, Jeff and I are great at window shopping.  Except when it comes to clothes for him.  I love shopping for H, W and Jeff.  We went with the intention of getting him a new pair of shorts or two...but we each had a different idea in mind.  Jeff made an immediate move towards the khaki/neutral section, only to be shot down when I lifted the perfect pair of plaid shorts.  And like a good sport, he tried them on and agreed that he would wear them.  Imagine how excited he was when I found a very nice blue polo to match the shorts.

I think he'll look adorable.  Jeff thinks he was bamboozled.

Aren't You Dandy!

I'm always amazed by the outdoors.  There is never a day that I venture out with my camera that I don't find something beautiful.  One day it's flowers, another it's birds.  On a good day, I can find something unique like my little metallic bug.  But today, I found this.  Irony comes in a shapes and sizes.  A few weeks ago, I was entranced with the field of yellow dandelions in our yard.  They reminded me of the days when the boys were little and picked them for me by the handful.  But as they complete their lifetime, they turn into these equally beautiful balls of fluff.  Finding a perfect one is hard.  The breezes blow the seeds away and you're left with half of perfect.  But sometimes, when the planets align, you can spot a beauty like this.  Call me crazy (I prefer outdoorsy) but if you look around carefully enough, you find beauty everywhere.

May 12 - Technical Difficulties

Life never goes as planned.

Who would have thought that 131 days into the blog, the missing day would be due to technical difficulties and not because I forgot or ran out of ideas? 

I had a topic all ready...logged in to type out my version of our family diary and found this.  Down for maintenance, sorry for the inconvenience.  I waited until midnight to see if it would come back up and I could slip in a two second sentence before the day ended.  Unfortunately, it wasn't to be.  Nor was it to be at 9am this morning, not at noon, not at 4pm.  It wasn't until I got home tonight that we were back up and running.

Isn't this one of the biggest lessons in life?  Not everything goes as planned...if it did, Murphy wouldn't have a law and lemons would never be made into lemonade.  As Albert Einstein said - "In the middle of a difficulty lies opportunity".     

My Creepy Friend

It's been a long week.  I'm still tired and having a hard time catching up on sleep.  Between Vegas, prom, the "procedure", baseball and work...catching up hasn't really been an option.  So when I heard the weather was going to be sunny and warm, I thought I would hang out on the deck with my camera and see what I could find.  Lots of sitting, very little over doing it.  Most of the day, I tried to get the perfect picture of my favorite cardinal.  You remember the one, the guy with the nest next door.  Well today, he was more interested in acrobatics than he was posing for a portrait.  I did find a cute little yellow bird, a few robins, a woodpecker that's the size of a Klingon Bird of Prey and a dandelion or two.  What impressed me the most was this little guy, my creepy little friend.

Ok, so he's a little creepy but he was soooo cool.  I've never seen a bug with a metallic shell.  In the sunlight, he was beautiful - in the shade (a little closer to me) he was a little scary.  Not a huge fan of his pinchers.  I'm so glad that I got the chance to sit with him for a while.  So instead of stopping to smell the flowers today, I stopped to admire the wildlife - even those the size of a dime.

Season Finale

The last game of the season.  With all of the rain outs and reschedules, it's only the 2nd game of the year that I got to see of H's.  So in true baseball tradition, the last game of the year must be a memorable occasion.  The away team showed up 1/2 an hour late.  We had a one hour lightening delay....3 outs into the first inning.  we didn't get home from a 4:30 game until after 8 and we didn't win.  Definitely memorable. 

My most memorable moment?  Walking off the field with H after the game, hand in hand, laughing about the final game of the season...very thankful that we'll have one more.

My Backup Plan

In the event that I was unable to blog today, Jeff took the picture and was all set to fill in for me.  Thankfully, things went better than we expected...given my dislike of anesthesia.  I do have to admit, I would have loved to read Jeff's version of today though.  Probably something along the lines of the crazy lady drove me crazy!  But hopefully he knows how happy I was to wake up to his smile and how thankful I am for the plate of brownies he made tonight.  And lastly, how thankful I am that he was willing to be my backup.



Happy Mothers Day!

Obviously, it's not a new picture.  It was taken 10 years ago, the boys were 4 and 6.  It's still my favorite and they are the reason that I get to celebrate today!

Happy Mothers Day to Mom, Jan, Michele, Cary, Jenny and all of the other wonderful moms out there.  I'm sorry we couldn't spend the day with each of you.  Unfortunately, prom kinda got in the way of that.  So here's my mothers day message for all of you.......

A Mother's Love
There are times when only a Mother's love
Can understand our tears,
Can soothe our disappoints
And calm all of our fears.
There are times when only a Mother's love
Can share the joy we feel
When something we've dreamed about
Quite suddenly is real.
There are times when only a Mother's faith
Can help us on life's way
And inspire in us the confidence
We need from day to day.
For a Mother's heart and a Mother's faith
And a Mother's steadfast love
Were fashioned by the Angels
And sent from God above.
Author Unknown

Details, Details, Details

I've been sitting here all night trying to find the words to describe today.  I could fill an entire page with the details of the day....how cool it is to watch H cross home plate, how excited W was when they won their game, how handsome H looked in his tux heading of to a very special night of dinner, dancing and after prom and how W made me laugh out loud when he slipped in one of the funniest one liners after dinner.

The details are great.  They account for each and every minute of the day.  But sometimes, the big picture is all that is necessary.  The boys are growing up...and it's amazing to watch.

We're home :)

We're home.

Last time we were out of town, I had this wonderful and insightful posting about the life of my shoes.  I was well rested, rejuvinated and ready to take on the world.  Unfortunately, today I'm not as lucky.  I'm exhauseted and overwhelmed.  Oh well, I guess you can't win them all. 

Vacation is vacation for a reason.  If it was real life, no one would appreciate it.  

May 5

Yes, I know the blog will log this as May 6, 2011....but it's not sophisticated enough to realize I'm in another time zone.  It's been a great day...but I can't wait to get home.  I miss the boys, I miss the puppies, I miss my bed and pillows.  But yet again, I've had a wonderful time with Jeff.  It's important to have those times too.

So before I go to bed tonight and say thanks for my time away and the wonderful family waiting at home for us...I wanted to wish everyone a Happy Cinco de Mayo....pacific standard time.

Privacy

This is the privacy door hanger that we have in our room at The Palms.  Nice picture, huh?  Can you tell that we're staying in the Playboy hotel and the "fav" hangout of Brittney Spears!  Apparently that girl needs her privacy. 

Bright Lights, Big City

Have I mentioned that I love the lights of Las Vegas? 

I got a few minutes last night to catch some of the lights in downtown.  It's such an amazing experience, no matter how many times you been here.   These are our two favorite places!

Hopefully as we're waiting for elections results tonight (hopefully good ones!), I'll be able to capture a few more!

The Palms

Palm trees.  One of my favorite things from home.  I remember moving to Hilton Head and thinking that palm trees were not an acceptable replacement for the large oaks and maples that grew in Michigan.  Today, we have a yard full of the old oaks and yet, I miss palm trees.  They're ugliness grows on you.  I'm sure the boys will never appreciate the beauty of them, with the ragged trunk and long "leaves".  To me, they'll always remind me of a wonderful time in my life, when things were a little easier, decisions weren't so hard and growing up seemed like such a long way away. 

Leaving on a Jetplane!

Cool airplane, isn't it?  We're on the road again and it's been a long, long day.  The day started at 5:30am in Cincinnati, we had a VERY bumpy landing and we're starting to feel like it's bed time...and it's only 5pm here.  Anyway...with all of the airports that Jeff sees, McCarren is still his favorite.  It's not because of the slot machines, the crazy Vegas stores or the interesting people that you meet there (and believe me, they can be interesting).  His favorite thing to see is the metal airplanes that line the escalators.  They are beautiful.   So since the airport was a little quieter than normal today, I got to capture one....not bad for a moving picture!