Saturday, April 29, 2006

We're Off...

...to see the wizard...
Well, we are on our way to Kansas City on Tuesday so maybe it would be more appropriate to click my ruby red shoes together and say, "There's no place like home"...even though it isn't my home...You know what I am getting at.

Stop thinking I have lost my mind it has been a long day! I was working in Housekeeping today in one of the pods of the nursing home. Last night one of the psych people (from the hospital) broke 2 windows and climbed through one and escaped from his ward. He ran outside and smashed a window to the nursing home and climbed through. Apparently, after climbing through the window and ripping even more flesh from his body, he came to an abrupt stop and said something to the effect of "I am looking for the gates of Hell!" Freaky! A few hours worth of stitching up and he is back to being locked up in an observation room of the psych ward. I was cleaning that pod of the nursing home today. What a mess!!! Naturally the residents were very upset by this and were a little nervous. It was not the kind of excitement I was expecting when I went to work this morning.

Anyway, on with us going to Kansas. We are leaving on Tuesday and I am so excited!!! The flower girl dress is FINALLY finished with alterations and it fits perfectly. She looks like an absolute princess. I can't wait to see the bride.

I'll keep you all posted as I can. Oh, I'll say hello to Dorothy and Toto for you too.

Monday, April 17, 2006

Tony Hawk Eat Your Heart Out
























Yesterday I took Tuff to the parking lot behind our house and had a photo shoot of our own. He brought along his skateboard and I started shooting. A lot of the pictures were good but were misses of jumps, tricks, etc but, a few turned out to be really good. Here's a few that I like a fair bit.

Feeling...

...disconnected.

I am feeling really nostalgic today and began looking through my pictures and updating my family tree book and I really began missing my family. I have been working in the senior's home at the hospital the last few days and so my grandparents have been on the forefront of my mind. I miss them terribly when I see kind blue eyes looking at me threw a sea of wrinkled and weathered skin caused by years and years of hard living. Then I start to miss what my life used to be like as a kid. Images of the way my sister, brother and I used to play in the barnyard, in the pastures, in the mud, in the trees, in the bales, in the barn and of the way we used to fight flutter through my mind like black and white movies. Remembering some of the silly things we used to do because our imaginations were working over time. Like feeding the horses Pop rock candy or the "forts" we made by piling fallen branches and scrap wood we found or tunneling through the round bales even though we weren't supposed to be there. I remember having to go to the water trough to fill it for the animals in the dark and being so afraid of wolves that I ran the entire way there trying my hardest to stay in the path of the lights I frantically turned on along the way...our yard light, Grandma'a house light and the barnyard light. I remember running my fastest once I got past the barn because that is right where the light stopped and I was drowning in darkness and fear once more. Running past the grain truck was utter torture because with all the shadows and self-induced fear the grill and headlights of the truck looked like the face of a huge monster.

We got heck more than once in the spring for playing in the pasture where the cows had their new calves nestled in the straw for warmth and for trying to lean up against our favorite cow of Grandma's because we normally could when she didn't have a calf. We got stuck more than once in the pasture as the water from the dugout overflowed and turned into quite a river with a bed of muck and manure that made for a great place to float our crudely crafted "Boats". Some days we got so stuck that our boots were pulled off our feet and were lost forever sinking down into the muddy pit of our pasture.

Taking coffee and lunch out to Dad and Grandpa was usually the highlight of the day when they were out in the field or hopping on the horses to take Dad lunch with a cold (and undrinkably shaken) bottle of beer so he could wet his dust ridden throat. Exploring the cattle paths in the "forest" in the pasture lead to hours and hours of fun and it also lead to unexpected life lessons like the time we found the dead fox or when we learned the bull was not trying to play leap frog with the cows.

When Grandpa was alive I went on walks with him all the time because I felt I needed to take care of him since he was so old. I usually ended up getting carried back by him because I was too tired to continue. I remember watching him take a big stick and making small trenches on the roads to allow the puddles to drain off the road; it helped him to feel useful when he began to feel like he had nothing to contribute to our farm.

I remember pretending to fall asleep on the couch so Dad or Grandpa would have to pick me up in their strong arms to put me to bed. It always made me feel like I lived in the safest place in the world and that I was the luckiest girl ever.

Now, I work too much. I miss my dad, my mom, my brother, my sisters and my neice and nephews. I think it's time to focus on what really matters...family. I don't want to feel disconnected anymore.

Saturday, April 08, 2006

Just a little Rebel

My mom and step-dad came over today with my grandma for a visit. Little did we know they were bringing a surprise guest. Our cat, Jewel, was very unimpressed with our surprise visitor and made her dislike known loud and clear.

World, meet the cutest and smallest guest I have had in my house yet.
























We all fell completely in love with him, except for Jewel. Rebel is a 2 month old Pug and he is an absolute doll.

Wednesday, April 05, 2006

What a Rush...

I went shopping this morning. Actually, I went to exchange a pair of shoes I got Rush because they were too small. Bug & I decided that we would just browse around and relax a bit while we were there. I stopped by the scrapbooking supplies "just in case they had something new". While wandering around in the craft section I found baskets on sale and by sale I mean ON SALE!!! I got 23 baskets that would have cost me $190.00 for...

Oh, it's almost too sinful to tell anyone but oh boy, do I get a rush from getting a good bargain. I don't know if I told you all about the Strawberry Shortcake portable DVD player I got Jellybean for only $30 (instead of $100). It gives me such an adreneline rush. I feel so on top of the world getting a good deal it's almost inexplicable. I thrive on getting great gifts for people for incredible, outstanding even, deals.

Oh yes, but back to how much my 23 baskets cost me. Those baskets cost me a mere $23 plus tax!!! Twenty three dollars... Twenty three dollars... Just saying it gives me the shivers...
What a rush....!

Sunday, April 02, 2006

Take Joy in the Grime

Today was an absolutely beautiful day and as I drove down the back alley to my house I saw my kids playing in the lot behind us. They were climbing the snow mountain created by the clearing of the parking lot and then running through the mud, skipping stones in the puddles and having a blast.

It reminded me of my own childhood, of playing in the pasture where the dugout overflowed from melting snow and created a "river" for us to play in. I don't know how many times we got our boots stuck and had to yell for Grandpa to come and free us. I don't know how many times our boots were so stuck that he pulled our feet out and that was all that would come out. I often wonder, every spring, how many half pair of boots were left behind in the muck.

Today, I perfomed my first "stuck boot rescue mission" and I managed to catch it all on my camera.








































































Obviously this created a fair bit of work for me but, it was fun being reminded of how much fun my brother, sister and I had as a kid.