Here we are again gathering up the trash...
have you ever really evaluated how much "trash" we can generate?
Marlo says to me,
"In Alaska everything has to fit into one can with the lid shut",
imagine squishing our trash into just one can...
some weeks this would be easy, other weeks it would be
"Holy Cow, you're kidding me".
This is one of those weeks, the cans are already overfilled and
there is still trash to be found
(this is what happens when the cans only go out, not the inside stuff from the week before).
So here we are stuffing and squishing
and shoving and stacking
and praying a big wind or big dog does not come by.
Hubby was determined the cans would be "at the road" and he must have taken them there early this morning.
Midge is already doing her weekly, self-appointed chore of gathering...everything she can find which needs to be at the road.
Have you ever noticed other people's trash?
You can tell if they eat out,
if they are cleaning out rooms,
if they had company,
if they haven't been home much,
what they like to drink,
if they have a dog or a cat,
if they are remodeling/redecorating,
if it was someone's birthday.
The list goes on and on about what you can learn by just looking at someone's trash and they can learn from yours.
Imagine archeologists eons from now...
"gee, I wonder what this was used for?"
in reference to a wooden spoon which is broken...
Anyway, just thought someone might like to know,
it's kind of a "trashy" day here today...

What's up?

Hubby watched kids Saturday night...
I was supposed to help..
It was like someone turned off all of my power, I went into complete sleep mode for about 5 hours, woke up for an hour and a half and then slept again for the entire night, in my own bed.
Thanks goodness Marlo, Midge, and Cliff as well as Tink were around to help Hubby. I certainly wasn't.
I was completely out of it. But, I did get up feeling rested. I still have this "wear you out" cough, and absolutely no energy, but I don't feel as miserable. YaHooooo!!!
Brino began the master bath on Friday evening.
I came home to a repaired main bath and a huge hole in my bathroom. It looks so weird in there right now. Dark and spooky and "old" like. I know when we finish ripping out the cabinet and walls it will be brighter, but right now it looks kind of creepy.

friends

hugging
catching up
chatting
smiling
giggling
laughing
gasping
story telling
adventures
funnies
crying
planning
brain storming
creating
listening
talking
sharing
loving
not sleeping
sleeping
shopping
snuggling
eating
drinking
snacking
staying up late
then later still
enjoying
never stopping
hugging
promises
waving
Some things I do with my friends. Wonderful to have friends.
They make me happy.

Hubby's Birthday Splash!!!

What to do when Hubby's birthday falls on a Sunday and on Father's Day?
Sneak in a surprise get together/party on Monday.
That's right, we got in Hubby's Birthday Waterfight on Monday instead. I am sure he was hoping we would kind of miss this family tradition because it was Sunday and all...
But,
sorry dear Hubby. We still know how to plan and run the hose and strategically place buckets, coolers, water balloons and more around the yard, on the roof, and in the trees!
A great blessing/learning experience is to check out the drive for how many extra vehicles are parked...if it looks like a used car lot, not a good sign.
If someone meets you at the door of the truck with their hands out wanting all of your "important" stuff, not a good sign.
If before you get out of the truck it is hit with a water balloon launched from an unseen culprit, not a good sign.
If it appears there are vultures circling and lying in wait for your demise, not a good sign.
Once out of the truck, everything is fair game. If you are brave enough to be out, you are fair game as well. (Hugs are always appreciated, just not always "wet" ones).

Sick

I hate being sick.
I hate feeling cruddy.
I hate having a runny nose.
I hate coughing and coughing and then gasping.
I truly dislike my "man" voice, however it can be humorous.
I hate accomplishing nothing.
I hate getting tired from resting.
I hate being miserable.
I hate weepy eyes.
I hate relying on others.
I hate having a burn-y chest.
I hate having a sore nose.
I hate being a "pariah" no one will come near.
I hate going from hot to cold to hot again.
I hate giving up an entire weekend to being sick.
I hate trying to figure out which medicine to take.
I just plain, flat out, hate being sick.

Dishes

Perhaps life was easier when we ate off of leaves.
Then we wouldn't have dishes to wash. Just toss the leave (or eat it- a wrap you know) and you were done. Cold food too. That is a great idea, no prep dishes to wash. Or perhaps even an automatic (as in do absolutely nothing) prep dish cleaner upper. Wave a magic wand and everything was cleaned and put away (Merlin had the right idea, evil spirits or not).
Dishwashers were supposed to do those things, but they don't.
Even when the makers "tout" just place on the rack.
But, back to leaves...they were like our paper plates of today only easily replenishable, except in the winter, a bit in the spring and after fall. Maybe not so good an idea after all.
And dishes were and are a great chore item. They can also give you a great time to chat with the children,
teach the children how to cooperate or in some cases delegate.
There is a pecking order to dish washing.
Dish washing does not just involve washing dishes...it involves

• clearing the table/counters,
  
• putting away,
  
• gathering,
  
• scraping,
  
• mixing the soap water just right,
  
• washing,
  
• rinsing,
  
• stacking (an act of art in itself),
  
• drying,
  
• putting away,
  
• wiping down,
  
• scrubbing out,
  
• taking out and
  
• sweeping.

Oldest generally gets to choose their job. And on down the list it goes. Sometimes it just happens to be what happens to be their favorite,
other times it is the best of what is left.
Dishes are also a time to catch up and enjoy what is happening in a child's life or have a one on one chat.
Or, if it happens to be a single day,
it can be a time to look out the window and enjoy the gorgeous view,
a time to reflect,
or a time to make plans,
a time to dream or sing,
or a time to completely "veg" out,
it can be a time to escape (playing with bubbles can be rather fun). Dishes can become
a reflective, chatty, teaching, learning, listening, rewarding experience.
But some days, I think I like leaves best.

Grumpies...

Ever noticed how some people get the "grumpies"?
Some people go through their entire life being grumpy over some small, inconsequential item for the entire day.
Or maybe even the week.
Why?
Someone does something that upsets you,
a little thing really,
like takes your parking place or is a bit rude on the phone.
And amazingly, your entire day becomes focused on this one negative act. Something that most likely wasn't personal, but we take it personal.
Then, we are so focused on this one act
we allow it (random act) to mess up our entire day.
Doesn't make much sense, does it?
We go through the rest of the day telling everyone about this random act,
we dwell on it, we embellish it, we replay it in our minds.
We become so very caught up in this thing that...
Everyone important to us suffers because someone took our place...
silly, silly, silly.

Life goes on,
we can decide how we want to be.
We are responsible for how we are...
happy or sad, irritated or smiling, it is always up to us.
No one else can really take credit for us.
We can try to place the blame for our "grumpies" on someone else,
the one who smashed our finger, finished the milk, or woke us up;
but really...it is our reaction to each and every situation which can be most important.
We decide.
We can give a small irritant the power for the day
or we can blow it off and move on.
It really isn't going to matter later today, or tomorrow, or next week.
And most likely, we won't even remember it in a year so why bother with it?

Grumpies because of something non important (something you just won't remember in a year, or in a week, or in a day), just not Okay.

Unreached Goals...

Yesterdays goals...
caput!
I believe the only thing accomplished was the kitchen cleaned up thanks to Hoperdoo doing her chore.
Things listed, none.
Skirts finished, finally. I took more ribbon off than I put on, actually not true, but certainly it felt that way. Perhaps today I will see them on all together.
Did make it into George, was unable to purchase the flannel back satin for pink flannel...another project placed on hold.
Hubby came home early, two days in a row. Unusual.
I have a huge pile of dresses waiting for pix and listings. When it really happens I am sure it will now be an all day project.
Chaser came over and hung out for a bit...he was bored so he worked on a piece for my machines. Can't wait to see how well they work.
Today...Hubby is going riding, Hoper is gonna play soccer and then Princess for a while, Marlo and Cliff are guiding, and Tink is still at the lake! Wow, I will have the house all to myself for maybe 10 minutes...
Don't think I will make any plans or establish any goals.

lists again...

Why isn't when you can sleep in you can't sleep...
and when you don't have time you can?

Busy, busy, busy working on dresses and skirts. I plan to list a bunch today. Yes, that is my goal for the day..
Along with going to George, finding the smell, working up a bill, and finding the bottom to the bottomless sink. A bit of laundry tossed in would be a good thing as well. Dinner, at least, will be breezy. It is Pizza night!
Yipee for me... easy meal, easy clean up and the beginning of the weekend, yuck because I am tired of pizza.
I am finishing up four skirts for the princess' today. They need them for the "tea" tomorrow. And Marlo has disassembled my swing so I am trying to figure out where to take some pix. I had the swing all worked out...her flower bed is gorgeous right now...lilies are blooming and snaps and this other weird bush/flowering plant.
Off to my "work" center or play room.

Neighborhoods

Most of the time I don't pay too much attention to the "neighbors".
We essentially live in a tiny little corner of an extended family neighborhood.
I mean I did notice there was a bunch of activity across the street months ago when my neighbor died (didn't know he died though),
and I am aware when kitty corner neighbor is not home and his children are,
and I always know when something "big" is going on with the extended family.
see the gardener guy all of the time,
and I know the lady on the hill is needing more care,
and occasionally I see the people who work out of town all of the time. I do occasionally share fresh bread or cookies or cakes with the neighbors
But,
thanks to good neighbors who smelled smoke late last night...
They were coming home a little after midnight and smelled smoke,
because it was kind of late they were wondering who was burning at night,
then they saw some smoke and thought,
"Hey, we are already in the car, let's go see what that is?"
Thank you, thank you, and thank you.

Our shed had caught on fire!
And the dried up grasses around it as well...

I awoke to someone knocking on our front door (I had gone to bed about 11:30), I opened the door to no one and noticed there was an extra vehicle outside,
then I heard people talking (I thought perhaps someone had stopped by that needed a place to sleep),
so I walked around the side of the house to a fellow talking about the shed being on "fire" (He was doing this while running all around with a garden hose),
the house I ran to grab
Cliff and Marlo.
Thank you neighbors who notice things, he had the fire under control and mostly out without a call to 911.
Most everything was "saved" from the shed (I really don't know what, as it was on Marlo's side).

Funny thought, I had taken a peak outside before I went to bed,
taking care of the dog and all, nothing happening...so within about 30 minutes we had flames licking up the side of the shed as well as inside.
Makes you think, doesn't take much time.
As I looked around,
I realized the neighbor's field (different neighbor) would have been like a wild fire had it spread...and,
our home would definitely have been included in this "little" fire.

Thanks again to neighbors who look after us.

Why would we have Seven Children?

That is a very good question.
The quick answer for today is...
so Mitch and I wouldn't need to spend a year installing a fence for Grandmama.
Saturday, 7 AM,
we gathered at Grandmama's home and put up her new, vinyl fence.
Brino had gone over a few weeks earlier and dug out the old, rotted, nasty (yucky face here) railroad ties and then dug around all of the various "utility" stuff to get the post holes ready. (why would there be a waterline going under her house?)
Then, the fencing was decided upon and ordered.
A mass text went out Friday reminding everyone about 7 a.m. Saturday.
Every family was there one way of another except for Marlo and Cliff (they had a last minute trip come up) and Hoperdoo, she was at a camp meeting and Tink brought a friend, (Yeah, more muscles).
It was quite fantastic watching the family work together for a few hours.
My contribution was minimal...I asked a lot of questions to which I usually received this answer
"We are getting there, it isn't important yet!" or the answer I really like,
"Geez Mom, give us a minute"
and the especially loved,
"How come you're so picky?"
or perhaps,
"Why didn't you say something sooner?"
Enough about my contribution...
It truly was rewarding watching the family work together on the project. For the first 30 minutes or so everyone was rather clumped together and it looked as if this was a small state job in process. One person doing something, everyone else supervising...then as the morning progressed, everyone spread out and started working jointly on the fence, but with different aspects. It was great. By the end of the process, everyone had a "job".
Ticklebug worked with Tink's friend and Tink and assembled main fencing parts, Rosco designed a "cutting" area to work in and made cut after cut after cut...he was always looking ahead to what was going to be needed next, Brino supervised, helped everywhere and ran back and forth to the fence store to pick up things that were needed, Chaser worked with Hubby installing the top rails and lattice, Branson was in charge of the tape measure, and Briceman played with Bear, the dog. The boys also found some fantastic dirt to drive their cars in. They were great to go around the string line and did an awesome job handing fence parts as needed.
Grandmama made sure everyone was hydrated and had a yummy treat or a piece of fruit for quick energy.
One of the coolest things (to me) was after the fence was "up" the mess was cleaned up. Trash gathered, disturbed dirt raked back into place, and the fence was washed down and wiped dry (couldn't be dirty with Hubby around).
All in all, was a great morning project for the family...what a great service they provided. And, we had a great time with everyone.

(After I figure out how to download pix from my phone to the computer I will post some pix here of the fence family project).

Paint

Oh, how I love paint...
Paint is wonderful, it is amazing.
It can "clean up" most anything.
Paint covers fingerprints, dead bug guts, unneeded graffiti, oopsies and uuh ooh's, scrapes and drags...
It makes things look fresh and clean, and after the smell is gone, there really isn't a smell. Paint can and does hold odors, you know.
New Paint smells fantastic. It wipes out the "musty, dusty smell" a basement can have. Washing a wall can do this as well, sometimes.
But, there really isn't anything quite as awesome as fresh paint.

The other thing about fresh paint is...
you usually have to move everything to paint.
We can't paint around things very well...so
an opportunity to clean and tidy and arrange and sort and discard presents itself while you are painting. I mean how fun is it to put things back exactly the way they were? It isn't.
Fresh paint gives a space a fresh start...and if the space is having a fresh start shouldn't the things in the space also have a good cleaning so they can have a fresh start as well?
Even when you paint something as boring and unimportant as a hallway...
Paint is just wonderful.
I really like fresh paint.

Wind...

Why does the wind blow?
Does the wind blow just to mess up plans?
Because it wants to?
I do realize there is a "weather" answer to this question...
but
does it have to blow every time something is planned...
have you ever noticed just as something is planned there is a small breeze...then before you know it everything has to change and really blow hard.
You are getting ready to light the bbq and there is a breeze, by the time the burgers are done everything and one has to be moved inside...
Let's go play "ball" before everyone is outside the light breeze has turned into a full blown blow...
Even watering the grass is not exempt from the "wind"...just as the sprinklers turn on, you got it...wind.
I do like "wind" when the house has gotten very hot...or I have burned something...and if the "wind" is coming from the North...
Then I can open some windows and blow out the hot air or the burning smoke...But most times, it would be nice if the wind would blow after I have gone to bed and before I get up. Then, the wind could do whatever it needed to (as a weather need), and it wouldn't mess up too many plans...
other than waking me up because it was blowing...