Sunday, March 8, 2009

Two blog questions...or three

I have had some local concern about the code as well as those in the comments. So those who read...do you think I should use initials instead?
Q 2 (code for quesiton 2...heh heh!) If I write too much will I have less phone calls from my dear children who forgot that Texas is heaven?
Q3 I have some nice gray Pop socks with his name in puffy paint on the bottom. There are enough pairs for each of my dear children to have one. Any takers. I am not offended if you don't want them.

Since Friday...

Well, I continued to work on the web on Friday. It is coming along nicely and should debut at the first part of April. Now for the rest of the evening...DH and I started to clean and inventory the home on wheels as we expect to use it soon! We noticed the time and decided to take our walk. I called DD 1 and asked for a grand kid to accompany. I was first offered a two year old, but we were planning a 30 minute plus walk, so we were happy to be accompanied by Grand d 1-2. She was a trooper. I was behind DH who was behind the Bandit who was most often behing GD 1-2. We let Bandit loose and we all three enjoyed watching her zip around 90 miles an hour in a field. She came when called and drank heartily from the lid of the folding cup. I reassured GD 1-2 who was using the actual folding cup that it was the first time Bandit had drunk from the lid. I think she believed me because took seconds! She found a walking stick, but we abandoned it for a while. I was chatting briefly with DD 4 when GD 1-2 starting poking the newly aquired stick in a bare bit of ground. EWWWeh. We had pounded in a fire ant bed. Like any smart Texas gal, she was very willing to drop that stick! When we returned her to her parents, they invited us to join them along with SIL-1 sister, husband, and four boys in the backyard for a Texas barbeque. DS -6 and his lovely wife joined us for a while. It was beautiful out and a big yard for 10 younguns and all the grownups to enjoy! Good grub too.
Saturday, we saw Grandpa who shared family history...a very sweet story he found that Grandma left us about their engagement. Grandpa read parts aloud and I think he was smitten with her all over again! We borrowed his home movies (Super 8 kind) so we can see about transferring them to modern video. He has about 65 reels. We visited with DH's brother and DH tried to help with the plumbing...slow draining sinks, but his efforts were in vain. I was able to visit with SIL who will be having surgery in less than two weeks. Keep them in your prayers! We stopped at Manor Care and arranged to pick up a sister in the ward for church on Sunday. After a little shopping, we ate a very late taco dinner. YUMMM.
Today we went to church and took our walk. It was a bit warm, so Bandit drank out of a ziplock when we got back to the car. I must remember to take water and the folding dog bowl. Might be a good idea to bring water for the humans too!

Thursday, March 5, 2009

Yea! I feel better :)

I woke up feeling a little groggy and slow, but by the time I got to work I felt the best I had since the weekend. We worked on the new web page all day. Currently our district hosts the website on our servers, but we are switching over to a hosting company. They worked with business and started working with schools more recently. They have all our campus websites now, but not the main page and all the other departments. KK and I are copying over the information from the current department pages that don't change very often and setting up pages for those page masters that do have a lot of changes. It is a lot of work on the front end, but will be much nicer and easier for the page masters in the long run. The hosting company has an online chat for assistance and we use it quite frequently. They are always ready to help us make the site like we want it. Nice people.
I tried a new recipe with pinto beans. It was a slow cooker recipe and slow was the key word. It said I didn't need to soak the beans. Ha! I started it this morning at 7:00 AM and now it is a bit after 10:00 PM. The beans are almost done! DH was a good sport and took us on a walk before his breakfast/dinner. However, he was even nicer when he took us out to Panda Express when the beans were still hard! Well, I guess I have dinner mostly ready for tomorrow! I think it will taste good enough to pass along, but don't believe the part about not soaking the beans!
We got to hear GS 4-1 read a book on the phone tonight before he went to bed. GD 4-2 chimed in with a few comments. Both were excited to say goodnight to Papa. Grand kids are so fun! I also saw Miss Pink Cheeks (GD 1-1) after her work out on the Jump Rope team. She created a new jump called the cylinder today. Nice Work!

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Life has ups and downs, but evens out...

I went to work and stayed until just after 9:30 AM. This cold or whatever took the starch out of me. I came home thinking I would do some work on the computer, but instead took a long nap all day on the couch. Brother-in-law 4 came by to update us on his wife's condition. Her surgery is March 19th and will involve a lot of removal and skin grafts to make sure this cancer is all gone. They can't find where it keeps developing from. She will have to heal and then have radiation followed by Chemo at MD Anderson...which they thought they weren't having....and where they didn't want to go. However, they will do what they have to do. Keep them in your thoughts and prayers.
My brother called and is anxious to take a look at the surveyors work, but hadn't looked at the mail. Haven't heard from the other sibling's representative. Be glad when this is done.
DH and GD 1-1 had a bit of an outing...dog walking and WalMart shopping. They probably both needed a break! SIL 1 is sick too.
The good things today. DD 3 joined us on this day some years ago...a wonderful addition to a great family. Also, DS 6 wife came to earth on this day...(so did her little sister!) So we are doubly blessed on this day. It is warm and wonderful in our state today. I bet you all wish you were here!

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Gastric distress disappears and yucky nose takes its place! That's all of the negative!
Good things...I heard from the land surveyor today. His preliminary notes indicate the property is really 24.4731 acres. Boy Poppa would be steamed to know he paid taxes on 25 acres all those years. I guess they round up! Anyhow, I was happy to have step one moving forward. The sibling and the sibling representative have been sent the results and a possible division. DH is mailing it tonight, so they should get it in a day or two.
DH made dinner again. We had wonderful burritos. He seasoned and shredded chicken (delicious), made his salsa (delicious), made rice with cilantro...maybe with lemon too. This was served with black beans, cheese and fresh avocados on flour tortillas. I told him I don't know why he allows me to cook! He cleaned up the kitchen too. He spoils me and I need to be nicer to him.
We took a walk off the Trinity near the high school. The sun was setting as we headed west. Silhouettes of leafless winter trees were surrounded by rolling pinks and greys. The river mirrored the sky and rippled a bit as a graceful long necked bird floated across. We thought it might have been an egret. The pictures our Creator leaves for us....how blessed we are.

Monday, March 2, 2009

Gastric Distress

I have it and don't feel like writing much. I left work 10 minutes early. I slept about 3 hours and was fed a nice warm bowl of tasty potato soup by my personal chief/husband. Toasted bread kept coming as long as I would eat it. Now I think I might have skipped the last piece. :) Other than that I can't complain.

Sunday, March 1, 2009

Other stuff and another poem...not mine!

I saw the elementary librarian on Friday who was in a very big rush...sort of like the rabbit in Alice in Wonderland. She did take time to tell me how much she enjoys GD 1-2. She is in a reading group after school and apparently she has won the heart of the librarian. Hmmmm...I was not a bit surprised! She has mine too.
Today was the Stake Conference from SLC. Elder Edgley of the Presiding Bishopric read this poem:

I Walked A Mile With Pleasure

I walked a mile with Pleasure,
She chatted all the way;
But left me none the wiser
For all she had to say.

I walked a mile with Sorrow,
And ne'er a word said she;
But, oh! The things I learned from her,
When sorrow walked with me.

Robert Browning Hamilton

How true it is. I think you even learn more of Pleasure when Sorrow is your teacher.

Jo Rose

I have a much easier time remembering my Papa than Momma! So in an effort to preserve what I do remember, I worte this poem. I don't know if it will make sense to anyone but me, but here it is. I am not into editing poems because I write them for me more than to please other people, so don't look for rhymes and count syllables! :)
Spring to my eyes in vibrant pink of japonica
Stroke green slashes in fields topped with yellow jonquils
Sprinkle violets in the green beneath my feet
Lead me to the hyacinths for my soul
Gather bits of nature’s wildest weeds
Vase them into graceful memories
Sing to me just like the whippoorwill
Let me hear your Irish lullaby
Throw your arms up in branches of the Dogwood tree
Busting forth in blooms of white pure joy
Fill me with your sweet scents of lavender
Fling seeds within the wind to little wrens
Hide nuts beneath the leaves for squirrels to hunt
Flit through my day arrayed in cardinal red
Let me not forget the Rose.