Noah's big problem...

I got this over email, and I looked for the copyright and couldn't find one, so whoever did this, you're awesome!

Thank you!

Thanks to everyone for dropping by! I hope you stop again to visit! I had such a great time reading everyone's comments. And a better time checking out everyone's fridges. Makes me hungry just thinking about it!

Funday Monday-show us your fridge

okay so along with my temporary pantry here I've got your standard fare here. Spinach for my hubby's salad, random can of fruit chilling for the hubby also, a grapefruit, partial jar of spaghetti sauce, rice, milk and orange juice. Second shelf, umm cottage cheese that needs eaten, partial jars of pizza sauce, butter, sour cream, mmm big batch of sloppy joe, blueberries, yogurt, and other miscelleanous. Bottom shelf, 2 containers of eggs, I made cookies last night, and I plan on making something with hard boiled eggs soon, and they peel better if they've been sitting around for a while, carrots and mushrooms, string cheese, sugar free jello, and light yogurt. Umm. There's probably more in there, and I didnt get a pic of the door, but it basically has chocolate syrup, jar of homemade strawberry jam, dill pickle relish, olives, ketchup, mustard both regular and honey, barbeque sauce, light mayo, etc. I also have a small chest freezer that is full of pounds of hamburger, ice cream bars, frozen pizzas, fish type things, and frozen pasta. and I mean full! I love having a full pantry, it's a safe feeling of some sort, how about you? I also try and do a big shop once a month--which I just did Saturday, and do less shopping throughout the rest of the time. What you may not see is bottled water or soda. 2 gut wrenching days and I weaned myself off of caffiene. Tough stuff. I'm trying to drink more water, so the bottles were probably sitting around half sipped out of. I have SOME caffiene free soda, but I'm limiting myself to a splash mid-afternoon, we'll see how long I can do that! If you're saying hi just for the fridge, feel free to book mark me and come back for a visit some time soon!

States visited map

create your own visited states map

Someday I'll post about why I have been where I have been.

Just for good measure, my temporary pantry

Fun Monday stuff out of pantry: Okay, so this does not include my flour, sugar, etc, but here's the rest! Check out my cookbook on top, it's the family book that has tons of great recipes in it!

Road kill cupcakes

Kellie made an amazing pool cake and i just wanted to say I was inspired to produce a picture of my most creative (quite disgusting, actually) idea for cupcakes. I took them to a church dinner. Needless to say they didn't go over too well, not much humor in that, I guess, but I inherited a kind of odd sense of humor. The idea behind road kill cupcakes is, of course, to display the "body" along with a facsimilie of a tire (oreo cookie) and road like yellow stripes. Unfortunately, they stopped producing the candies because of a very few complaints from organizations like peta. (not people eating tasty animals, people for the ethical treatment of animals) anyway, ridiculous, and I wish I had gone with my instincts and purchased a case when I had the chance, oh well, enjoy the pictures anyway! And for those of you that might find it, well, distasteful at first glance, check THIS out! Major money maker, and umm, no I have no desire to run over anyone or anything in a vehicle after having sampled these treats. It simply fulfilled the desire for candy. End of story.

All my rowdy friends....

You know what I REALLY love? Football. Yes, I know, all delicacies of food and my hubby aside, or preferably, both BY my side, i love LOVE football. Now, I always watched the Superbowl (there was homemade pizza in it for me) and especially the commercials. These days, I'm split between dancing around during the plays and commercials, trying to decide which i want to see more, while I race to the bathroom. That game seems to take an extraordinarily long time and no way could i go the entire time without that type of relief. All odd stuff aside, I have no idea when it started. And I feel bereft on Sundays in Februrary and March when its still too butt numbing cold to stay outside for long, and there's no football on tv. And I start to get antsy when the leaves change color and there's frost on the ground. Drives me insane. I think it's all the blood that gets flowing when there's a good game going on, makes the testosterone flare up and coat all the estrogen or something. Lots of excitement and sweaty guy in the air. Either way, the fall has always been when i looked for a boyfriend, or, when my hubby gets a lot more of my huggy kissy attention. And all in all, football is good all around for my mental health. I thought last year when we watched the Bears play (yes I know Grossman sucks, give me a break) that we were going to get kicked out of our apartment. Many a Sunday night game after 10 pm we'd be screaming either "go go go" or "oh no you stupid..." at the top of our lungs (no children or babies in the complex, just so everyone knows) and we'd Shush each other and go back to watching the game. It provided enough exhaustion to fall asleep right away, and enough go power in the morning to at least get to work and talk to my former male co-worker about it. He always seemed to get a kick out of chatting about it for a few minutes, and it was a bright spot in days where I sat and did what seemed like nothing for a whole week sometimes. I have a few players also that I watch whenever possible. I went to a central Illinois college and one of their players has bounced around on the Buccaneers, Ravens, and Saints for a bit. He was truly awesome in college and has had some, but not a lot of success in the pros. He doesnt get much playing time. So, i watched those games to see if he'd play at all. Sometimes they were good games, sometimes not so much. Either way, much better than staring at the wall for 3 or 4 hours. As i hear the newscasters talking about fall and the school supplies hitting the store shelves, i begin to think about football, check rosters, and try to figure out where we could get a real, exciting live game around here. Oh well, maybe it will have to be strictly tv again this year. we'll see. for now.. signing off... talk at you soon..

Things I'm obsessing about

1. Harry Potter-as if you couldnt tell!
2. My hubby-he's driving me crazy by taking some much time reading (see above)
3. food-I'm constantly starving. is.not.fair.
4. trying to organize our apartment
5. reading other people's blogs-so much more interesting than me!
6. grocery shopping--i'm never truly happy without a full pantry, and then some. see #3
7. cool jackets--i am aching for a new jacket. i have 4 suit jackets (2 basic black, one with a zipper, navy blue, and chocolate brown)--then also a crushed plum/burgundy one that's for fall and winter--too warm! -- and a blue jean one that i wear a lot. I'm really dying for another color, something bright that i can just throw on over a teeshirt with jeans that really scream, look at me! he he. Or five. yeah, five!

Trying to be a better blogger

okay, so as time goes on i'm reading more blogs and commenting, and hoping that those new people will comment on my blog too! Because, well I'm trying to be a better blogger. It seems like all those out there with kiddos always have great stories to tell and my womb's not been full yet, so I dont have any little gems like that. So I hope that in some way, you guys rub off on me somehow, so that I'm not a bad blogger and you don't go away! Cause it's like having friends (via Harry Potter)..I digress. Anyway, hope everyone's somewhat enjoying me, and if not, comment and tell me what you want to hear about! I'd be happy to oblige!

Fun Monday-Best Friends

Tell us about your best friend. Particularly things like: where you first met, how long you've been friends and why you think you are best friends. I have quite a few friends but the best one right now is probably my hubby.

We first met: in grade school. We went to same school for about 10 years, he moved when he was going to be a sophomore in HS.

How long: We took pe together in high school for a year. we palled around then and "almost" went out--we're both stubborn as hell, and we WERE both really quiet so we didnt officially go anywhere I guess--neither of us had a license. since we were both too shy, it's kind of like we did one of those pretend " go out" things like in junior high, just a year later. (Frown) we should have gone out but i guess it wasn't the right time. oh well! Then as I said, he moved. We had a mutual friend Pascal. In college, one day I got a forward from Pascal, and he had my hubbys name in his email list. I enquired and sent an email (such a tramp, i know) to my future hubby. We flirted via email for a couple of years, he was going to and into the military, and one summer he came back to Illinois from the coast. We went out on 2 dates, the second one lasting until 5 am. We sat and talked and talked and..well we havent shut up ever since.

Why?:Umm because we have chemistry, I guess. We have the other half of what the other person doesnt have somehow. i have no clue if that makes any sense or not. Where he gets really hot headed when he's angry, i get really cool, when he gets sick he wants to be left alone, when i get sick, i want to be taken care of. I send cards to just about everyone for their birthday, he doesnt send any at all. That sort of thing.

Dateline:To Catch a Predator

okay for about the 5th time now i've chosen to watch these corny to catch a predator shows for an hour on tv. granted there was nothing else on, but seriously, it's like a train wreck, or a kid throwing a tantrum. you just can't.look.away. and the best thing is, that these guys all go, oh yeah i've seen the show. and you STILL bring umm lil raincoats and beer to what's supposed to be a 13 year old girl? Hello? Hello? Something between their ears isn't working. oh right, they weren't thinking with their ears. Go figure. Now I personally am of the "only to whom you are married" sort of thing, so that rubs me a little raw anyway, but to add in these 25-36 year old, "my wife is pregnant" dudes just makes me want to cut their little.. well, you know. umm hello! YOU got her pregnant @$$h0l%! Take the slow down in sex for a month or so as time to remember the good old days of hiding magazines in closets, alright? And what kills me even more is the "I have a daughter about her age at home" what the F@!#! What, so you're gonna do HER next? Seriously though, since no one is hurt in the making of the program, well.. unless they try to run and there's a molester-hating teenaged daughter father out there that tackles them and thows in a few extra whacks for his kids...yeah then they might get hurt. I want to say to these guys--do you remember 13 year old girls? they cry at the slightest provocation, give you the silent treatment, and lock themselves in their rooms for hours because you didnt say their outfit looked nice. Yeah, you're going to get a lot of them aren't you buddy? They'll be world class sl#ts for you until they figure out you're not a rich 25 year old doctor who just wants to hang out with them and maybe have sex sometimes, "if u wantd 2". Which would be about 15 seconds after they open the door and see your un-naturalized - no need for a haircut balding- ate too much Ben and Jerry and drank too much beer gut and your shi##y car that broke down 3 blocks away so you had to walk up the street in worn out shoes to try and get some. And she'll just love you to pieces, right? Just say no to being a pervert--or i'll be watching u- dateline:tcap.

Finished reading... still no spoilers!

For any of you that aren't finished reading your HP book yet and have been tempted to look at your email/blogs, no fears! i have a very slow reading husband trudging through the sixth book as we speak and the copy, of which the last chapter I have just re-read beside me. I feel, done with it I guess. No idea how they will ever put all that happens in this book into a movie. It's impossible. i still have a few questions I would like answered, but I guess at this point I wont be getting them. I just wanted to mention that only two things brought me very slightly to tears, one an unusual death, and one, well, the conclusion of the book, you can say that. The last chapter was happy. I was right in so many ways, wrong slightly in a few, things just happened differently than I expected, but that's okay. I just really really wish there was another series coming, one that wouldnt take so long to write, one... well i'll leave it at that. It took about 9 1/2 hours, but i'm done! Enjoy! post note: I lied before, I was also weepy when I found out what had unintentionally happened to the SEVENTH piece of Voldemort's soul, because I knew what would eventually happen in the end...

Are you a foodie too?

I recently read somewhere something about not telling everyone what you had for lunch because it was bad blog etiquette, but I must disagree! I am a foodie, granted I don't love all food, just the food i love, does that make sense? For whatever reason, almost anything green tastes awful to me! The only fish I'll eat is tuna out of a can, or breaded fishsticks, if you can call them fish! And they must be drowned in catsup/ketchup or it's not right! Yes, I have tried fish since I became an adult, apparently my tastes havent changed! I tried a bit of my husband's fish at red lobster. He said it didnt taste like fish. Boy was he wrong! Ewww! Anyway, I wanted to go WAAY beyond blog etiquette and tell you what I made for dinner last night. Cooking is a hobby, not just a way to eat! Everyone else has kids to talk about and jobs, and i dont have either, so i'm going to talk about cooking!

I was going to make taco salad (well not SALAD as I hate lettuce) but basically it means not using soft or hard taco shells, using chips of any sort and crunching them up on your plate or leaving them whole and using them as scoops..then adding all your other stuff on top. It's kind of like a cross between a salad bar and a taco, if that makes any sense (no idea if anyone else does this or if its a mouse-y type thing). That way if you have picky kids that only eat chips and cheese and meat, then they or you just build it that way. It's more fun if they do of course--it's a big kid kind of thing. Anyway, we only had a few chips and no shells at all and some already cooked hamburger with garlic (mm garlic) and I didnt want to go to the store or make Mr. Mouse stop on his way home from work.

SOO anyway, long story very well, long, I quick searched a recipe for chili mac. I'd never made it before. The idea is that you cook your meat and add a can of beans, seasonings, a cup of water, a cup of pasta, and a can of tomato sauce. you let it simmer for 15 minutes and then top it with cheese and let it warm until the cheese melts. I had a can of chili beans already (like from aldi for about a quarter, they already have the seasonings in them so I didnt add any more) so I threw it all together and it was SO GOOD! It could have used some more pasta I think. I used my hand to measure and not a cup, and I used bigger pasta shells instead of macaroni. Anyway, if you have picky kids, this might be a way to get them to eat more at dinner time. I served it with some curly fries, my hubby put his fries down and dumped the stuff on top, as i knew he would do, and i ate mine on the side, kind of dipping them some. I think just about any fries would have been good, kind of like chili cheese fries but probably a little healthier since that's usually something you get out that's super processed with tons of cheese! Or just some regular boiled potatoes too if you're watching what you're eating some! It seems like it needs somethign on the side so it might be cornbread or..biscuits something like that. i dont know if anyone else has any ideas...But fries are pretty kid-friendly and they cook at the same time as the chili mac.. sorry for the horrible etiquette. But i did enjoy my food!

no HP spoilers

i swear there are no spoilers on my blog. i am quite pissed that people are flooding secrets faster than moaning myrtle's bathroom. my husband sent me a message saying that they are reading the entire last page on the radio this morning and that several pages of text had been released in the new york times. i just thought it was a review, which is bad enough! and YES I AM going to WalMart (evil as kt thinks it is) at midnight!

Ridiculous Potter stuff

From http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19718438/:
Playing into that theory is the quest that began near the end of book six: the search for the horcruxes. In order to gain immortality, Voldemort split his soul between several magical artifacts, using acts of murder to imbue them. Each of these horcruxes must be found and destroyed before he can be killed. Not all have been identified at this point, but one important clue is that a horcrux can be a living thing. Maybe Harry himself, the lone survivor in the attack on his family, contains a piece of Voldemort’s essence. If true, his death could be vital.

Now this is ridiculous! These people don't get it do they? Okay how does Voldemort create a horcrux? Right he has to murder someone. So..let's see he plans to kill Harry, so if he killed LP or JP he would NOT use HP to create a Horcrux because he was planning to kill him, right? Ohho then you say! Yes, he was planning on killin HP and making Harry's body a Horcrux, but the issue is! That when he attempted to kill Harry, the curse rebounded and "killed" him, well not really, but you know the story. And, again, if he had killed LP or JP and was going to make HP a horcrux so his body was one before he killed HP, he wouldnt because it's inadvisable to make a horcrux of a living thing that can think and move on its own. It's perishable, and you want to save your soul, so to speak. Anyway, I think that these reporters and authors should be required to actually read the books and not just get an idea from their kids before they write a story! Sheesh!

btw i will take down the crazy going movie counter once the book arrives, just leaving it as a count down...

Working out with Gilad

No, I dont' have a hot new pesonal trainer.. well.. okay so he's not hot, and he's on tv, buy hey, i'm still getting a workout. This guy Gilad sounds like Ahnold but he's not a blonde, kind of like a darker ahnold.. anyway, i've been taking a half hour workout in the morning this week, and this morning, my scale had inched over onto a solid number, something it had refused to do for several months. Yeah! so now i just have about 10 pounds to go. okay maybe more, but for now i'd like to go ahead and try and lose 10 and see how i do at that weight. I was 5 pounds lighter than I am now 2 years ago after my appendix bust and not being able to eat for a while. I kept going up over hte winter and that first winter didnt lose any then i lost some this winter and i'm working on keeping on going down. it's tough considering i dont have the normal things to give up like most people. i already hardly eat any bread, fast food maybe 3 times a year or so, no regular soda for a long time, so i cant just drop miracle pounds like other people. I hardly even eat dessert. it might be a sugar free popsicle or low fat ice cream bar, but that's it! So this is all going to come off by hard work. Not so much fun, but hey, at least I'm trying. :-) updated with pic.

Fun Monday-Show me your ride

Here's the task: I wanna see your CAR! It can be your current car, the first car you ever had, maybe your first new car with that new-car smell, a car you wrecked once, or even the dream car you would drive - given all the money in the world! Oh - and if you have a truck, SUV, lawnmower, whatever the local authorities allow you to drive, let's see it! From: Tiggerlane

This is my truck and my hubby's bronco. We're currently adding to the bad-environment due to low gas mileage. However, we do recycle and try and conserve energy by turning off lights, etc. so sue us! Anyway, I love my F150, I can actually SEE over the steering wheel, which is amazing, and in the car i had before, it was almost impossible. Also it has extendable pedals which allows me to sit further back from the steering wheel and air bag than before (did you know that approximately 10 inches is the recommended distance?) Being nearsighted and at 5'2(that's generous) I always had a horrible time with sitting too close to the steering wheel. And that truck is mine. mine mine mine. and no one else can have it! We've been having the "what if we have more than one kid" talk and what would I be able to drive and haul kids in--it would almost certainly have to be a truck or SUV, Have to have those extendable pedals, and umm that's about it--but for now my truck is ALL mine!

ps please dont sue me, i dont have any money!

Skunk-dified

Well, there ya have it, the title says it all! We stayed with my folks on the "farm"--they don't really farm, just live in the country--and my mom gave the puppies (just over a year old) a lecture about not getting up at 5:30 am. They didn't--they whined to get out at 5:15 am, so I let them out--and a "more white than not" skunk was 15 feet from the house. They barked and snapped at it and Cole got the brunt of the stink. Willie not as much. They finally got away and my dad got a gun and shot at the skunk--it was in a hole. Anyway, I went and got Matthew up and got him to hold the flashlight and while they shot like a million bullets into the ground. Anyway, long story short, the dogs stunk, the skunk was dead and we were all wide awake before 6 am. The kicker--the dogs were to go to the vet at 10 am. I conned mom into helping tomato juice them and we did, then dog shampooed them. Cole still smelled some and Willie was fresh and well--he smelled like dog. So we got them loaded into the back of the truck in their LARGE pet carriers--no van ride for them! And got them into the vet. We got Willie in and got his rabies shot, wormer, etc. He weighs 70 pounds. Then we got Cole in and he's scared of tile floor, so they wormed him etc. on the rug and the vet carried him over the tile and he weighs 76 pounds. I hadn't even showered yet so I got to go home and get showered and get the skunk smell off--I got to hold Cole while the other animals went in and out of the vets..How fun! Later on Matthew took our 52 Ford F6 (old grain truck) for a ride and there was a tiny fire because of a gas leak. He he. It was much funnier after it was over with. He got some teflon tape on the hose and it's all better. I guess it got skunked too! Well, we're back in CR now and all set for getting some sleep.

HP5 OOTP Review

Wow. Wow. That's all I can say. Since we went to the midnight show in a town 1/2 hour away, we're totally exhausted, but I definitely think it was worth it. There were a few things that we were disappointed with: the loss of Kreacher as the bad guy, absence of the Quibbler interview, and the odd stance on Occlumency which made it seem more like an attack than portrayed in the book. The fight scenes, the special effects in the room of requirement and the hall of propechy, as well as the fight between Dumbledore and Voldemort were fabulous! The casting for new characters was amazing. Luna Lovegood's tone of voice, odd comments and manic look after she'd been thumped by a Death Eater was priceless. She flew on a thestral like she was enjoying herself immensely. Umbridge's manner became more sinister as time went on, her pink suits were horrible and I dread hearing the kittens on those awful plates mewing anymore, and Bellatrix was scary good. Sirius' death was handled almost carefully and politely-muted sobbing and then revenge. Also quite a few things made it into the movie that made me thump my husband because I knew they were coming: Harry and Cho talking about nargles in mistletoe, Dumbledore providing Harry's defense and using his full name (about 7 names long) to do so, and Hermione telling Ron that he had the emotional range of a teaspoon. Classic! Harry almost seemed like he was descending into madness, and the general nature of Voldemort influencing him and possessing him at the ministry was a little over the top. But I suppose it made good film. There were quite a few things I could even fathom, but I will say this, the 2 hour film seemed like nothing. I was so interested in what would happen next that I didnt notice time going by, and I wasnt even tired until we got outside in the truck and I could see what time it was. We are going to see it again this weekend with my little sis-in-law, which we've done for every movie since they began coming out, so I'll let you know if my thoughts change on anything.

Harry Potter

Yeah! Today is the day for the HP 5th movie to come out and we're going to the midnight showing! Also the 7th and final book comes out in about 2 weeks and boy am I excited! I am sorry for the end of the series, but it has been 10 years in the running and I'm tired of waiting. If you're one of those that refuses to read them on principle (it's the devil, people are reading it because they're from a cult) think REALLY hard and wonder if millions of people are going to be okay with worshipping? Hmm. Not. Well, anyway, I am happy to read a good series over good winning over evil anyday. Anyone have any thoughts on how the series will end?

It's Showtime

I'm so nervous! I've invited a few other bloggers to check in on me and that means that I should be smart! intuitive! thought-provoking! creative! Hmm. Well, I try. It's hard to be super-creative and smart sounding when all you've done for the last month is relax, watch tv, and take care of the house. But it is GREAT!

My husband got his first job out of college and we moved 3 hours away, I've had one job interview and I was thrilled to get it. It's something that would be great for me career-wise, and I was happy just to get the interview, but it didnt work out this time. Luckily, I can take my time and find what I want, unlike every other time, when we've needed my income to get by. This is great! I've always had to settle for less, because there were never openings in the field I wanted to get into. Also, I've applied for graduate school twice with no luck. The first time I had a horrible scholastic interview because I had a migraine. The second time, I was about 3 down on the list I guess, because according to some people inquiring, I was NOT considered academically ready. The college gpa required for this is a 2.5 in any major. The subject is like sociology and psychology. I had a 3.93 in psychology in 2001. Plus 5 years working in the field before applying. And several semesters of business classes that correlate to the field in the last year that I recieved an A in that should have proved beyond a doubt that I could do the work. Apparently not, either that, or they are lying and they used that to cover for the fact that they've not admitted a married student. It's bull. So now, I may get to try again in like 10 years once we are done having kids and they are in school. Then maybe these supposedly progressive people will get with the program and figure out that some people that aren't 22 with a 2.5 gpa in p.e. can figure it out. In any case, I won't be re-applying to the same school. They've let me down enough. I will try elsewhere, and maybe another 10 years of experience will give me some credit.

Well that's lame enough for everyone to read, just thought you should know why my posts are kind of boring right now.

Why do people hate Rachael Ray?

Yes, Rachael Ray can be a bit perky. She's a white Oprah, who isn't afraid of eating. She has a real-girl figure and uses her HANDS when she cooks. She isn't afraid of saying that most people don't have time to cook, and that that's okay, she gives you options that really do seem to be just as easy as waiting for take out, and less expensive too, her specialty is 30-minute meals, a show on Food Network that in 30 minutes(duh) including commercials, she makes a healthy meal that tastes good. It's no-holds barred though, she considers not using butter a good reason to eat hot dogs.. well for those of us with high cholesterol that's not too good, but she ALWAYS suggests substitutes for healthier eating such as using white meat chicken, turkey based products like hot dogs, bacon, gives options for people doing special diets without carbs etc. and also gives busy people permission to do things like buying "salad out of a sack" instead of buying a head of lettuce and chopping it up, and add a few things, viola you have your own meal. Yes, she's perky, but she's so REAL, some of the cooks have a big bunch of gourmet stuff already ready and she goes around to the cupboards and gets stuff, but usually it's stuff we all have in our cupboards--which is great, granted, it's all at the front conveniently grouped together--but it IS television after all. And she makes dessert! She tells little tidbits about her own life, and makes you feel like she's not a huge star, which she is! She has her own talk show now, and rumor has it her own magazine is coming out too. Crazy! She's also written quite a few books, cookbooks on 30 minute meals. And, yes, she's perky. Get over it!

Thank you notes

Someone in blog-land posted about writing thank you notes and I thought I'd comment on it. Yes, writing thank you notes is just as important now as it ever was, but all those that either weren't taught about it, or were forced to do it (and like all things, got pissed about it and say that they won't make their kids do ANYTHING their parents forced them to do) --it just seems like common sense, common courtesy, and politeness has gone by the wayside. People just have ignored the wisdom of generations and cut out decency in favor of working more, or what, I dont' know. I guess I actually THINK about the kind of rules I grew up with and what I was supposed to do, and what those rules mean for myself and other people, and I can't think of one right now that has or would steer a kid wrong. Back to thank you notes: I don't even require a handwritten and mailed one. A quick email to say thanks is good enough. How do I know if anyone gets a present I send them if they don't say something? That kind of thing drives me insane. And it is good practice for kids writing thank you notes for references, for job interviews, and just good practice in general for how to be truly thankful for something. All those with kids under K age, you could either do it yourself, or have your kid draw a picture on the inside of the thank you card and you write their name. Use your imagination. Teach your kids to be truly thankful for what they have, teach them to go out of their way to thank those that do for you. If one of us does it, if all of us does it, then maybe the next generation and the next will be a little more concerned for their fellow humans. Crime rate going up, no one can discuss anything civilly, everything is you vs. me, i am right you are wrong, sheesh! Let's take the focus off who has wronged us and teach our kids to do the right thing!

Harry Potter

Next week we're going to the opening midnight showing of the HP5 movie! Yeah! so exciting.

Geocaching

Last weekend we went Geocaching, well, we went with someone who was hiding one. For those of you not familiar with the "sport"--if you could call it that, and from my limited knowledge, it basically goes like this: There's a website that you log in to if you hide or find a geocache. If you hide it, you put in the gps coordinates of your location (accurate to within 4o feet) on the website of the little plastic container that holds a little item with a number on it and some pencils. If you find it, you write down the number and go back to the website and enter it in. I have no idea what the point is other than a more adult version of hide and go seek. However, we did get to bump down some pretty crazy "maintenance only B" roads in Iowa and use the 4WD in the Bronco. My hair was fuller of dirt than it has been since I was a tiny girl. And the funny thing is, my husband had the opportunity to go without me, get some guy time, and he invited me along. I don't know what to think of that. I appreciate being included, but I worry that with just working all the time and then spending the whole weekends with me that he'll get tired of it. I love him so much, and I want us to both have our independence without alienating each other. I probably do depend on him for too much, so I want him to feel free to have the guy time without me and provide some balance for both of us.

Butt onions

Okay, so the title of this blog is a little odd, you may have clicked here on accident looking for a recipe or new flavor of toilet paper, but i digress. Today the Chicago Cubs played the Washington Nationals. Well, to me, from a long distance on camera, the NATIONALS split across the buttons on the chest, a man moving from base to base looks like he has "butt onions" on it instead. Just another little note from the weird but interesting mind of me.

Summertime

Everyone else seems to be writing about childhood memories of summer, so here goes:

We had no air conditioning, I spent a lot of time going "ahhh" in front of the fan to hear my voice sound funny. Early in the morning when it wasn't too hot we'd sit on the porch and listen to the birds, look out over the fields and smell the hay. I also spent a lot of time running in and out of doors getting popsicles from the huge freezer in the basement. I thanked my mother a few years ago for never scolding me, no matter how many popsicles I ate. We also got to go shopping at Aldi with mom all those summers back, and we got to pick out, oh probably 12 cans of soda and that lasted 12 days, 14 if we were really holding back. I usually got 4 of each, cola, root beer, orange (whistle) and lemon lime. Nothing tasted as sweet as those cans of soda hoarded in the crisper in the late afternoon. I always watched Days of Our Lives with mom while she folded laundry during the only break she seemed to take each day. I hopped around ran and sang, visited the horses, talked to the cats, the dogs, everything that seemed to be moving about. Sometimes I helped in the garden, but mostly I just grabbed a few strawberries and kept running. Occasionally we got to run through the sprinkler, but I remember more "sorry it hasn't rained and we don't have enough water" than sure, go ahead. There wasn't much on tv til late afternoon and then I'd hop up every commercial and sometimes miss half the show because I'd wandered outside. After dinner when the sun was going down, I'd often ride the horse, talking to her like she was human, chasing flies off her back. If we were lucky, there would be popcorn and a 16 oz glass bottle of REAL Pepsi split three ways. I could stay up a little later because I didnt' have school, but usually I was tired enough to go to bed pretty early. By the time I was old enough to have friends with cars, we'd spend a lot of time driving around the neighboring towns square, cause even if the boys weren't cuter, they didnt know us either. I ate a lot of taffy and drank a lot of soda. We dreaded the end of summer, but couldnt wait for SOMETHING else to do. We also had the county fair and sometimes state fair to attend. Between Jr High and High School on Saturday mornings I trained pups up at the fairgrounds and at show time the dogs always got a vanilla ice cream cone passed through the sliding glass of the old F150. I also hid in my room reading books again and again, daydreaming and wishing that summer would never end.

Sneaky Birdseed Thief

This little critter shimmied up the new bird feeder pole and ate about half of it today. He came back several times, shimmied up and shimmied down. We now need to invest in something to keep the critter out of it, and a squirrel feeder.

I get to be in the paper..not in the criminal arrest section

I replied to the Cedar Rapids Gazette
request for Harry Potter Fans to discuss their thoughts about the movie and books. Here is the email I sent. Then they emailed back and wanted an interview. Cool. So I called back and gave my interview. It should be in the CRG on July 12 and 15. Neat-o.

How do the movies compare to the books?--For all the films that have been released to date, they do an adequate job of giving the storyline to the novel, but as with all movies based on books, they tend to skim over the surface and add in a few details for feature film. This gives loyal readers a satisfaction in immersing into the life of Harry Potter a little deeper and more colorful than our imaginations, and gives young and unintroduced future readers a glimpse that may well tease them into exploring the books. There is a noted lack of depth in characters compared to the books, but that is to be expected for the length of the film compared to the length of the books. Basic characterization, sets, and design are all top notch and rich in detail. Most true Potter fans would agree that WB is doing the best that they can under the circumstances. All in all, the books win hands down, but the films do justice for publicity of the books and for the economy.

What do you think of the cultural legacy author J.K. Rowling has left behind?--She has done an amazing job of taking a basic story line (good vs. evil) and weaving a depth of character and humor, finite details and magical connections into an amazing tale of adventure, loss, and yes, love. Like all great authors, she draws us in, the young and old, the experienced and the fresh eyes devouring a chapter book for the first time. Her legacy will spawn book sales and unbridled imagination for generations to come. Book sets will be passed down and read at bedtime again and again, whether it's the parent or child begging to continue for "just one more chapter." People of all ages have come together for book clubs, midnight releases, and the sharing of theories, somewhat uncommon in this age of technology that changes so fast every day. Her legacy will be of a generation, make that multiple generations of readers that value a good story, the good winning over evil, the light beating back the darkness, and at the end, a certain satisfaction, no matter what is to come. Long after the fanfare of the movie releases has died down, the action figures and toy sets quit gracing the shelves of the local toy stores, children will snuggle in, forget that the computer exists, and read until it gets dark, turn on the light and go on until they're eyes are blurry, not just the 7 in this series, but many more adventures. Her legacy is a dream: a world of children who read for fun, know the difference in right and wrong, and giggle when they see mistletoe, because it may well be full of nargles.