AVATAR ROCKS!!!!

I almost didn't see this movie, cuz people told me that Avatar was an alien Dances with Wolves. I hated that ending of that movie on so many levels, but I knew I wanted to see it if anything for the graphics so we went. But I was happily surprised. Avatar was very good and far surpassed my expectations. (Never fear!!! Quite literally these wolves can bite back.)

I loved the amazing imagination of this world. The animation was incredible!!!!!! (And I didn't even get to see it in 3-D - though I may have gotten vertigo on some of the flying scenes or at some of the cliff edges/tree limbs.) The "sex" scene is G (french kissing and some groping). One bad word - bitch. You do see people and blue guys die but not overly done or added gross factor.

Overall - Avatar is a solid A and if you can see it the theater you should. (Best gift card I've used yet this Christmas.) Definitely worth going to see!!!! Some of the comments from my FB friends was that it "restored their faith in Hollywood" and I totally agree. Good plot, great characters, amazing animation, and "not a totally sucky ending." (I don't want to ruin it so I'll leave it at that.)

Time out for Illness and Craziness

Stop the world.... I need a Time out for Illness and Craziness!!

Well, we have been hit with "something viral" for three weeks. I'm pretty sure that my daughter M had H1N1 but the rest of us I can't prove - probably, but who knows... Then its just been so busy crazy... I haven't been doing much of anything - just trying to get through each day. (seems like I only check my email every other day - if I'm lucky)

This is just a quick update before I head off to work. Hopefully after tonight's All District Patriotic Concert I'll be able to post some stuff. It's been really eventful - 2 trips to the Emergency Room for 2 different kids in 2 weeks, my fight with the BPA (Bonneville Power Administration) over putting a HUGE new substation and monster power lines in my neighborhood and potentially on my property, sick kids, church stuff, sports, Halloween, etc.,.

A Man Who Knows His Math

This email just tickled my funny bone and had to share!


MAN WHO KNOWS HIS MATH

He writes:I was riding to work yesterday when I observed a female driver, who cut right in front of a pickup truck, causing the driver to drive onto the shoulder to avoid hitting her..

This evidently angered the driver enough that he hung his arm out his window and gave the woman the finger..

'Man, that guy is stupid,' I thought to myself.

I ALWAYS smile nicely and wave in a sheepish manner whenever a female does anything to me in traffic, and here's why:

I drive 48 miles each way every day to work..
That's 96 miles each day.
Of these, 16 miles each way is bumper-to bumper
Most of the bumper-to-bumper is on an 8 lane highway.
There are 7 cars every 40 feet for 32 miles..

That works out to 982 cars every mile, or 31,424 cars.
Even though the rest of the 32 miles is not bumper-to-bumper, I figure I pass at least another 4000 cars.

That brings the number to something like 36,000 cars that I pass every day..

Statistically, females drive half of these.
That's 18,000 women drivers!

In any given group of females, 1 in 28 has PMS.
That's 642.

According to Cosmopolitan, 70% describe their love life as dissatisfying or unrewarding.
That's 449.

According to the National Institute of Health, 22% of all females have seriously considered homicide.
That's 98.

And 34% describe men as their biggest problem.
That's 33..

According to the National Rifle Association, 5% of all females carry weapons and this number is increasing.

That means that EVERY SINGLE DAY, I drive past at least one female that has a lousy love life, thinks men are her biggest problem, has seriously considered homicide, has PMS, and is armed.

Give her the finger?
I don't think so!!!!!

Good and Bad News

After all the great news I’ve heard this week, I was disappointed on how the week ended.

The week started out really well. I found out that one of my friends who is in an abusive relationship is out and in a safe location. I have been keeping her whole family in my thoughts and prayers and so it was really nice to hear that everything was lining up for her.

Then I got great news!! After a very long time of looking, applying and lots of rejection, my sister was offered a fabulous job as an account manager at Web MD. This will be a great fit for her. It will give her a lot of opportunities to grow and really shine professionally in a field that has a lot of potential – and not to mention - pay her mortgage and buy me a Christmas present. (Hey, a girl’s gotta have priorities!) Anyway, I am so very happy for Aon. You should have seen the kids and I do the “happy job dance” when they found out about it. We even called her up and sang her a “lovely” job offer commemoration serenade which probably brought tears to her eyes. (What kind of tears – she’s not saying.)

The North County Recreation Assn auction is coming together and some of the issues (like the Castle Rock and Toutle youth football teams playing at 5:30 way over in Wahkiakum County which over 1 hour away and the slow / low donation amounts) are being resolved so that we will be able to have people attend and support the youth sports in our area. Donations have been picking up and the weather is even starting to co-operate with us. I had visions of this outdoor auction / dinner / dance being in the middle of a horrid downpour all day long. (It still might be a little bit nippy and have a couple sprinkles, but nothing like earlier in the week.) So keep your fingers crossed.

Unfortunately, the work week is ending on a down note. Late Friday afternoon, we found out that our Drug Court did not get the big federal grant we applied for in May. If we got the grant, it would have “saved” our program and really helped it grow to help veterans in our area. Now it is slated to close at the end of the month. I feel so badly for my friend, Debbie, who is the coordinator of the program. She has been through so much this past year. If someone would have told me that we would be shutting down one of the original drug court programs in the state (and one of the most successful) when she was hired last summer, I would have laughed in their face. I am so disappointed. So keep your fingers crossed that by some miracle our Drug Court is saved and is allowed to continue helping people get clean / stay sober and quit doing crimes in our community.

Boys of Summer - Where Did You Go?

Its cold, dreary and dark when I got up this the morning. I saw on Facebook this morning that it was snowing in Salmon, Idaho. Brrrrr!!! Thank goodness we haven’t had that kind of cold snap yet – I’ll get a few more (weeks hopefully) of produce out of my garden and orchard.

It seems like just last week that it was sunny, in the 90’s and beautiful weather. No wait! That was last week!! Oh well, it is the season of sudden changes. We could definitely use the rain - so I’m not complaining Sadri just commenting. J

I was just really surprised when I realized that it is still VERY dark at 6:15 when I got my kids up this morning. I could swear it was still light out at 5:30am - just yesterday, but obviously not. It’s funny how the march of time keeps going even though we’re not as in tune with our environment or put personal awareness on hold.

Miracle Melon

This started out to be a pity plant but became a miracle melon.
My son asked me this spring "Mom, could we please grow a watermelon plant this year?" I told him yes we could try but it probably wouldn't grow. As a true testament to how many hot days we had this summer, he actually had 3 grow. C is holding his "small" watermelon which was very yummy.

5 days til the Auction

North County Rec Auction is Saturday in a new location and the weather is not cooperating. Donations are VERY VERY slowly trickling in and we're hitting the home stretch.. Hopefully, the Toutle football coach capitulates and they move up the game from 5:30 in Wahkiakum (1 hour down the coast) from here to 1pm in Castle Rock or Toutle. If not, it's going to be interesting seeing how many local parents come since those parents make up about 1/2 of the big supporters. Keep your fingers crossed and let me know if you want to buy a ticket to the dinner / auction / dance on October 3rd.

Today started with a 7am parent teacher conference and has been pretty non-stop til now. I've got scouts tomorrow night and I think I'm also supposed to work concessions out at the football stand. Wednesday night is a parks meeting and auction. I haven't even looked at Thursday yet, but I do know that Friday is a big football game (in the RAIN!!! - ugh!!) Saturday is setting up and actually having the auction. C is gone to webelo woods - weekend camping trip so I need to make sure he's ready and packed for a wet time in the woods. Sunday I'm in charge of the children's mass - The kids are doing all the 'jobs' - lectors, ushers, gifts, greeters and choir so I have to be up and at 'em very early.

I'm starting to get stressed. My life is so busy and hectic right now I can't even see straight. (I haven't even figured out anything for my daughter's birthday next week - including her party. sigh guess. I'll keep this short and get something figured out.)

The Ultimate

I saw the funniest sign the other day. I had to double check to make sure what I was reading was correct.

It was one of those the big lighted outside signs for an old grocery store in a “one horse town” on a little back woods state highway.

It advertised something to the effect that the “Go Get ‘Em” had:

Gas, Groceries, Tanning, Body Toning AND you could get your Chainsaws Sharpened there.

Now that’s what I call a Pacific NW small town one stop shop!!!

Fall Sports Abound

We are completely in the throes of fall sports. Most nights we don't get home until 7pm or later. (Well, I don't get home then but we're all on different schedules so it's really more accurate to say that we ALL don't get home until about 8pm.) The nice thing about middle school sports is that practices are right after school and NO GAMES ON SATURDAY!!!!




M is playing middle school soccer. All that conditioning with high school team over the summer has paid off and she is one of the starting midfielders and is one of the goalies. They've had a pretty good season so far. She is also reff'ing 3 or 4 of the recreation league games on Saturdays. (Just when I could chortle about soccer free saturdays! oh well, she gets paid pretty good to do it and she loves it so its good for her.)






B is playing middle school volleyball and is on the 7th grade team. This is a new sport for most of the girls so there has been a slight adjustment for them, but it hasn't really affected their record. Ithink they've only lost 1 match so far. B even got an ACE in Tuesday's game. She was very excited! B is also on the yearbook and school newspaper. She took this picture of her teammates at Tuesday's game.

C is playing Cowlitz League (youth football - NOT pop warner). He has been one of the starting linemen all season. In fact he has been playing almost every down (only break is when the 2nd string defense is out there.) He is the starting center and sometimes tackle on offense and kick offs. He is the starting nose guard for defense and kick returns. He's loving it and the coach would like to work with him a little bit on learning some new positions.

So sorry we've dropped off the face of the earth. Right now with the various committees I'm on and the organizations, activities and sports the kids are doing, we are super crazy booked. (Even Sunday's I've usually triple booked in the evenings and usually booked solid through the day.) Crazy Fall Schedule!!!

Government Summit III

Government Summit is tonight.

It has been nearly 6 months since the first Government Summit and our Parks subcommittee reported back to the Summit leaders our progress and made our recommendation which is to pursue the option of consolidating. We have met nearly weekly all summer long and have come to the conclusion that a Metropolitan Parks District is probably the best option. Since the devil is in the details, we would like to explore this more thoroughly and report back with a plan. Whatever we do will take another year to 18 months before it’s ready to bring to the voters. Most of the people on the committee think that a Metropolitan Parks District is a great way to go, except the largest city which already has a very good parks system (actually they are one of top small town parks and recreation programs in country) and they don’t want lose anything (which is reasonable) but they have the most voters. So we have to devise a way that it is beneficial to the most people in the county and provides each community with as much of their own autonomy as possible. (There’s too much civic pride to truly consolidate into one big parks system.) It’s not insurmountable, but requires quite a bit of finesse and figuring out how to make it work. However we structure this, the overall agreement/financing must be approved by the voters and the largest block of voters that are sympathetic to parks is in Longview. And so we dance….

Fall Funnies

Every morning, one of the local radio stations announces what are the “official designations” for that day are, such as Flag Day (June 14th) or Grandparents Day (September 9th), etc.,. I was inspired by yesterday’s designations. My inspiration is as follows….


September 22, 2009

Dear Diary,
Today, I saw a White Chocolate Elephant on this record setting First day of Fall.

Designation Translation: It was Dear Diary Day, White Chocolate Day and Elephant Appreciation day. Yesterday was the first day of Fall and it set a new record for the Portland Metro area. This year, we have had more 90 degree days than ever before. Yesterday was the 25th day that was 90+ degrees this year with a BUNCH of 89 degree days which didn’t count. (I must say that I was VERY happy to come home to my nice cool house yesterday evening. – I’m very grateful that finally my air conditioning seems to be working correctly.) Though I must say a 93 degree day in late September feels differently than a 93 degree day in July. (It seems to cool off quickly now days.)

One Down, 99 to Go....

It is September. Fall crispness is in the air. School has started so it is time for me to somewhat belatedly wax poetic about another milestone….. I started my blog this time a year ago. It’s been fun to go back and look at all the entries. I think that the first day of school, cookies and my blog will be forever intermingled in my mind.

This school year has been so crazy ~ busy that I haven’t even had the opportunity to bake my kids their 1st day of school cookies yet. YIKES!!! I feel like such a fraud this year. The store bought cookie dough is still sitting in fridge – guess we’ll just have to have a surprise tonight after I get back from working in the concessions stand.

Although, I’m not as proficient as I would like to be, I’m happy to say that I’ve kept up with my blog. I just read that well over 70% of all blogs created are abandoned within the first couple months. I have been getting annoyed that I haven’t been able to carve out more time at home to post each day.

( Rats! I’ve learned the hard way that people really DO need sleep, AND unfortunately I’ve come to realize that I am not 20 years old anymore. ~ Shocker I know!! ~ Unlike when I was in college or even 10 years ago, I can’t burn the candle at both ends for weeks and months on end. Now I get burned after a week or so of hard core, all out “go go.”)

So… I had a marvelous inspiration during a brain storm session while waiting for football practice to get over. Since I’m trying to save money to pay for my roof repairs and fix my stupid GE oven’s clock, I’m planning on staying in my office most lunch hours. I can write my entries during lunch and then just send them to my home email so that I can upload them from there. Hurray!!!

Oh this is Sooooo easy! I love this!!!

Who Ya Gunna Call?

All I could think as the ongoing media hoopla was reaching deafening pitches regarding the stray cougar in the Seattle park was "Why didn't they just call my soon-to-be, brother inlaw, Kevin?"

He has a way with animals...especially unwanted wildlife.


Click on the link to get the whole story....

Cougar Caught in Seattle Park

I hate allergies!!!

Ugh!!!
Whatever is in the air right now (probably pine tree pollen and grass) is killing me!!!!
(Stirring up all that dust while cleaning the garage this weekend didn't help either.)

For the want of a nail....

You've heard that old saying... For want of a nail, the shoe was lost...For want of a shoe, the horse was lost. And on it continues until the entire kingdom is lost because of something so small and insignificant as a little horse shoe nail coming loose.

Well, I had a shoe nail incident today. My second oven (absolutely decadent I know, but a huge selling point for me when we bought this house) has been having trouble heating up. (Basically, it won't.) So I called my buddy, Lowell at Lukken Electric (Say that out loud. "Lowell at Luck In Electric" It's very fun to say.) As I was saying, I asked Lowell at Lukken to come out to the house and look at it. By the way, they are fabulous!! I highly recommend Lukken for any appliance repairs or parts you might need. They have been able to fix almost all of my appliances that have had problems and when it's not in my best interest, he'll tell me to "stop repairing it" and that I "should just replace it." I appreciate that kind of customer service and honesty.

So Lowell's crew came out and diagnosed the problem with my little built in oven. Sigh....

For the lack of a clock, the oven was lost.

Yep!!! There is some little interface 'master chip thingy' in the clock (which works very well by the way) that must be functioning properly or the heating element won't turn on. Well, it should be a very simple fix. Just get the new part and slap it in there. Except GE doesn't make my oven any more or those parts. RATS!!!!! Since it's a built in appliance, I'm looking at between $800 - $1,000 to get a new one installed. All I could think is that I will have to go back to being like all other mere mortals and really coordinate my cooking for Thanksgiving dinner. Because although I love my 2nd oven, I can't afford it just right now.

Right before I talked with my friend Lowell at Lukken, I learned from the "Roof Doctor" that to repair the flashing around my chimney so that it won't leak any more will easily be $700 - $1000. (If they don't get in there and find a lot of problems - which could get very spendy very fast!!!) So I'm saving my pennies (what few are left after this very expensive 1st week of school!!!!) so that I can get my roof fixed before the Winter storms hit.

So since I'm in cheap mode right now and would REALLY like two ovens if we have Turkey Day at my house, I talked to Lowell about trying to scavange on the internet and around for another GE oven profile clock. So he gave me a parting "good luck" and promise to keep his eyes open for the part number which is..... WB27K5040. So if you happen to run across one, let me know I would be eternally grateful and you will have a favored seat (and your own basket of Grandma Sutton's rolls) for any and all major holidays!

First Day of School - 2009

It's that time of year again. (It seemed to sneak up on us this year. We were good until the weekend and got so focused on all the "little projects" that it seemed to all of a sudden "Bam!! School is here.)

Here's some pix of the kids before the first day of school. Wow! They have really grown up.

M is a 8th grader this year and is one of the Orientation Crew Leaders. Wow! She's got a lot of stuff. I bet she's going to be very smart by tonight. We already put her Sax in the car - I'm taking that since there was too much to bring on the bus.

B is a 7th grader this year. Doesn't she look so pretty!!!!

She's pretty excited for her journalism class.

C is a 5th grader this year. He is sooo excited for school to start!!! He almost did a back flip when he found out that 3 of his 4 best friends are in his class. (Pray for those teachers.)

Miracle at Home Depot!

Yes Virginia, it's true! I experienced a modern day miracle Friday afternoon!!!

I went into Home Depot for a couple quick items and ACTUALLY had 4 (count them FOUR) male Home Depot associates stop their conversations, walk up to me (a mere woman in a business suit) and ASK if there was anything they could do to help me or was there anything they could help find for me.

It was SOOOO weird! Actual customer service!! It was so amazing that I didn't even have to go hunt one down and drag him off by the ear to help me, I almost went out to check and make sure I was in the right store. (All I could think was "Wow! The building business must be REALLY REALLY down if they are actually waiting on me at Home Depot.")

North County Recreation Association

Castle Rock is a small town. Offially the census says there's a little over 2,100 people in the city limits. But there's probably 5-10k people in the school district. Neighboring Toutle Lake is even smaller. Needless to say, the Castle Rock / Toutle areas are very tight knit communities and life revolves around school and kid activities. There was a huge need to replace our decrepit old baseball fields and create some new soccer fields. So a dedicated group of local business leaders and parents had a vision to create the North County Recreation Association. They raised money, negiotiated for land to be donated and use agreements with the school district and city, applied and received several large grants to build the North County Recreation / Sports Complex back behind CR's high school.

It is truly amazing what they have been able to accomplish with almost total volunteer labor (fairly recently they did hire a baseball concessions manager but other than that its all volunteer support). There is a awesome sports complex with a 2 story club house, 3 or 4 very nice little league baseball fields (part of the state tourney is held there for the last 2-3 years) and 2 girls softball fields. There is a huge area for the soccer fields. In a addition, there is a mile long path that circles this part of the complex and excercise equipment is being installed along it so that you can get a complete workout on the circuit. In addition, work on the new boat launch into the Cowlitz River is going at a frantic pace. (After several years of review, they finally got the necessary permits from the Corps of Engineers late last week. All 'in river' work must be completed by September 15th so not to affect the salmon. If they miss the deadline, they will have to wait until next August to resume.) I walk the loop most nights and it's been impressive to see the progress is going. (They truly are working dawn to dusk.) There are also plans for a campground and playground and paving the parking lot to be put in future phases.

Obviously, all this costs money. So every October, North County hosts a big dinner/dance auction event which raises a lot of money to support all upkeep and maintenance of everything we've built so far. (I've been helping with it for a couple years and it is a lot of fun and has a lot of great items.) So mark Saturday, October 3rd on your calendars. (Place TBD - which is the subject of another post.) So if you know anyone who would like to donate items for the auction or would like to attend, let me know. If you want to donate that would be even better. NCRA is a 501c3 non profit and its tax deductible.

Early morning First Steps

Bob Ingalls, one of my FB friends is always posting inspirational sayings. I really liked this morning's quote.

"The two important things I did learn were that you are as powerful and strong as you allow yourself to be, and that the most difficult part of any endeavour is taking the first step, making the first decision.” Robyn Davidson"

May you be as powerful and as strong as you allow yourself and may your first steps be small and quick.

Hit and Miss

I honestly have been trying to write more on a daily basis, but "LIFE" seems to carry me away. It seems like lately I don't get home most nights until after 8pm (on a good night) or the late nights are after 10:30. I work on computers all day long so half the time when I do have time, I have zero interest. Blah blah blah... reminds me of that new country song where this guy is at the bar bemoaning his troubles and his buddy turns to him and says "I'm sorry to say this, but that sounds like Life to me." Its a good reminder to us all not to get too wrapped up in ourselves and our petty concerns. My dad used to say that "In a 1,000 years from now will they give a damn about (insert whatever was the topic of discussion)?" It was a good reality check.

Now that school is starting up soon and we're full in the swing of extra curricular activities, I've realized that I need to carve out a little time in the morning to jot down my ideas. I've been so on the go, that I got in the bad habit of sleeping in until 6:15. Now that I'm waking up the kids earlier, I've noticed that I'm starting to go back to my normal wake up time which allows me some peaceful time in the morning to pick up the house, organize the "to-do" list, write out the activity/ride schedule, or get some computer stuff done while I'm fresh. It's funny - I'm such a "night owl" and its at such odds with my required "early bird" status as a mom. (That reminds me...Why are all the expressions about time related to birds?)

With all that said. I'm going to try to go to bed early tonight so I can start my new habit. Tomorrow I'll probably elucidate on all the fun and craziness we've been up to.

Sock Summit

I spent one day with my mom at the Sock Summit Market Place. (The Sock Summit is a national convention of sock knitters.) It was pretty cool. Most things were way beyond my level of experience but it was fun to be inspired. One of the booths was this crazy comic book booth. They taught you how to make super hero masks. They had several there where you could try them on and then they would take an "action" picture of you as the new super hero. Here's a pix of my mom and I hamming it up for the camera. (shock shock I know) What I want to know is how did they know what we were going to wear that day? Only the Shadow knows.....



http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3511/3799605606_9141fcf078.jpg

So we need Super Hero names..... Any suggestions?

Virtego... Smirtego!

The results are back from our doctors visit this morning.
The doc says B has a pretty bad case of veritgo which is unfortunately a viral infection which can take up to 6 weeks to over come. We can only treat the symptoms, so I got her some meclazine. (sea sickness pills) Oh I learned something interesting about that. Yesterday I tried to get some at the store, but they only had the chewable dramanine, which I learned only is for nasuea. (the package may say that it does dizziness and the other symptoms, but it really doesn't.) The non-chewable (or non-drowsy) dramamine which we did not have at our little store was what I needed.

Long story shorter...After an hour in the doctor's office, we ran over to Kaiser and got the correct kind of pills (funy thing is that my pharmacy only sells the correct medicine in a chewable format). I quickly ran her home and then scurried to work.

She gets one dose a day and already B is doing MUCH better now. I was pretty worried about her. She wouldn't even watch tv or read and just stayed in her room for 3 days. Her behavior and general level of interaction with the world is night and day now. She's getting back to her normal silly, kooky self. Hurray!!!

This is the second time she's gotten it this year. I need to research more about it. Anyone know anything about vertigo? Any tips for prevention? cures? old wives' tales? etc....

Lost Weekend with a Twist

I had such high hopes and plans for this weekend. (I was going to cram 5-6 days worth of work into this weekend and I had some fun plans too.) The best laid plans of mice and men are laid to waste.....

Unfortunately, I got sick Friday night and never really left the bed and/or couch all day Saturday. Being so tired from the late night at the emergency room the night before didn't help either. B was also sick Friday night, all day Saturday and Sunday - she had a relapse of the crud from earlier in the week. (I'm taking her into the doctor this morning.)

Sunday: I left the house at 8am for church and wasn't home for more than 5-10 minutes at a time until 10:15pm. After church ,we came home and checked on B and changed clothes. M, C and I then met my sister and her friend in Woodland which is about 40 miles south of us. We went to my favorite U-pick berry farm and picked blueberries for an hour and half. (The kids and I got about 15 pounds. - Sure missed B -my berry picking machine) But 15 pounds is still a pretty good haul. (don't think we'll be making any blue berry jelly, since we'll probably eat or freeze all of it for personal conusmpution becasue we LOVE blueberries. In fact I had a bowl late last night when I got home. They were sooo good!!!)

After berry picking, we ran to the store and got a veggie platter and went to a combined parish picnic at Riverside Park. The kids had fun running around playing with some of the other kids. This new priest we have is really interesting. He is very young - less than 30 but he is very traditional in many ways. He wears the old fashioned clergy "costume" for casual - You know the one you see in all the old movies (pre Vatican II uniform) black pants, black cassosk that comes down to his knees and the black rounded hat. It was cool to see him out there playing the water balloon toss in his full regalia. He's kid oriented and is supportive of our idea to attend World Youth Day in Spain in 2011. That is great! So we're going to start working on a planning / fundraising meeting next week. (I really wanted to go to the one in Australia, but my kids were too young.)
After the parish picnic, we went home and checked on B who was still sick. I had M & C stay home and watch her. I had a scout committee meeting. I knew it was going to be big because we were organizing the entire year, coordinating and identifying fundraisers / assigning chairmen and their duties, in addition to the myriad details that come up for start of the year organizing. The meeting started at 5pm. Knowing how our meetings take for ever and seeing the very full agenda, I half-jokingly told M to call at 9pm to spring me. I half hoped we'd be really effiecient and done by 7 or 8pm so I could take C to get some school supplies. But no such luck!! I didn't leave until 10 pm. UGH!!!!! That's a long meeting and several were still going strong when I left.

When I got home, I had the BEST surprise waiting for me. M had spent the time while I was gone to clean my kitchen. It looked SOOOO pretty!!!! It was so nice of her. She even cleaned out a couple of my cupboards and organized the chargers and extra cords. She did a FABULOUS job. What a nice surprise! Now my weekend wasn't completely lost!

2nd Opinion

Well, the orthopedic doctor looked at Meg's hospital xrays and pronounced that wrist / arm definitely did NOT look broken. HE says its probably just a sprain. He is having her come in Wednesday just to double check. (Keep your fingers crossed...soccer tryouts are in less than 2 weeks.)

Jinxed

My coworker, George, jinxed me! Boy is he going to hear about it when I get to work today!!!

Yes, we were talking about my kids and their seemingly frequent flyer mileage to the Emergency Room and specifically how Megan always seems to get hurt about this time of year. This summer she has been working out with the varsity high school team several days a week doing their conditioning training. We last night during a scrimmage, she collided with another player and fell. She landed funny on her left wrist. (It was at the end of practice, but being the tough dedicated player, she continued playing.) Long story - short.

We eventually went to the Emergency Department to get it checked out. (It didn't feel broken, but we decided to go just in case.) One good thing was that we got to see our old neighbor Carolyn who works in radiology. It was actually a pretty quick trip - less than 3 hours, but it was still 1am before I got home. Well, they don't think its broken, but decided to put a splint on and refer her to the orthoped just to be safe. Well this splint is HONKING HUGE!!!! She's had casts smaller. Bad thing is that soccer tryouts are in 2-3 weeks and if its broken, she's out for the season. oh well....positive thoughts!!! Only a mild sprain.

We'll keep you in the loop.

Oh - Toe is me!!!

Last week I had the entire toenail removed from my left big toe. I'm really glad! I had really bad ingrown edges that actually curled down 1/4 inch and back under my main nail about a 1/4 inch. Earlier this summer, one part didn't get cut and was growing out the end of my toe. (that was pretty painful) Needless to say my toe and nail got infected, so the whole nail had to be removed. It was pretty interesting procedure. It didn't hurt as much as I expected. (But it was still kinda numb for several days afterwards - which is really an unexpected blessing.) Tuesday, they ripped off the medicine impregnated gauze that was embedded on the area where my nail lies. YE-OUCH!! So I'm back to it really hurting beyond the normal "sensitivity" to pressure etc.

Now, I have full feeling and it must be healing up nicely because those nerve endings are exceptionally sensitive. This creates its own challenges in the manner and type of dressing I can use and the shoes I wear. (I lucked out! This summer is the first time in the history of our courts that we can wear open toed - sandle type shoes and no nylons.) However those shoes are killer on my feet. I've been battling a painful case of plantar fascititus (sp?) for the past couple years. Yes, my arches are falling and the tearing of that support band on the bottom of my feet is nearly crippling at times. I have only been able to wear a couple pairs of shoes with my specially formed inserts for at least a year - with an occasional sandal or flip flop thrown in if its not for too long.

Well, the only shoes my toe dictates I wear for the next month are split toe sandals or flip flops. (Most other types cut right across my toe nail bed or pull on the dressing so that it feels like some one is squeezing it as I walk.) But these shoes worn long term are KILLER on my feet. Looks like I'll be going in for a cortisone shot in another week or so which though not ideal, will keep the swelling and pain at bay long enough for my toe to heal so that I can start to wear normal shoes again. Guess it was good that I did this in summer. I definitely wouldn't want to do it in the winter. Anyway I can't wait to get back to "normal." Come on September!!!!

7+ hour Kenny Chesney concert

We had a blast at the Kenny Chesney Concert on August 1st at Qwest Field. I think he set a record for attendance.

Barc and me hanging out waiting for the concert. She was quite the little trooper!! (country music is not her favorite.)

CJ, Meg and Me clowning around.

Meg and Me.

Sun City Carnival....

Brooks and Dunn were AWESOME!!!! I love those guys!

They did a good show and I really enjoy their music.

Lady Antebellum kicked off the 7 hour concert.

Nose Bleed Seats in Qwest Field!

But for $20 each it was worth it! It meant we got to enjoy a fabulous lunch at Cheesecake Factory and we could see just fine. We were in the shade and could dance around and have fun.

The only down side was the loooooooonggggg hike up the ramps to get to the 3rd level.

THAT was crazy!!!!

Kenny's Concert started just as the sun went down over the Sound. It was very pretty.

WOW!!!! Kenny Chesney puts on an AMAZING show. It was non-stop for over 2 hours. (We finally had to leave at 11pm to go home. I had a 2.5 hour drive home and Chris had to finish packing for his week long scout trip. Kenny was still going strong as we got on the interstate.) Like I said....WOW what a performer!!!

Seattle Fun

We went to Seattle for the Kenny Chesney concert the first week of August. It was a lot of fun!! I really enjoyed showing the kids some of our old stomping grounds and doing some "touristy" things. We ran out of time so we didn't get to visit Pike Place Market, but did FINALLY got to go up in the Space Needle.

I took the kids to the Cheesecake Factory for lunch. We had a fabulous lunch and then enjoyed delicious cheesecake. The crazy thing is that the chocolate lover extraordinnaire - got key lime while my kiddos had about every other chocoalte version available. They were all very yummy and was a wonderful treat.

We visited the Fremont Troll.

The kids thought it was pretty cool - C really liked it... especially when he realized that it was a REAL VW bug that the troll had in his other hand.

Below are the "3 billy goats gruff" which is just below where the troll is. (I just love the sense of humor in that neighborhood.)

St Bridget's which is just a few blocks away from our little apartment near Sandpoint and Children's Hospital. This the parish where M was baptised. She loves going back and learning about her history. She is especially fascinated with the hospital she was born at.

Some of the pretty stained glass at St. Bridget's. It was a beautiful sunny Saturday morning and we really enjoyed the few moments of peace and tranquility.

The kids looking out over Elliot Bay from the Space Needle.

More Space Needle Pictures. It's been years and years since we've been up there. B has been REALLY wanting to go up for past 3 or 4 years, but always something happens and we can't. So this time we made it the priority and we had a lot of fun. It was very pretty that morning.

Over looking downtown Seattle from the Space Needle.

Where we lived when M was born. It was a great little apartment. (The carpets were a horrendous orange shag, but we had our own patio, storage area and a little yard garden.) It was close to UW and a very easy commute for me.

Craziness......

Kids' Family Fun

I had to head back to Castle Rock because unfortunately, I haven't won the lottery yet and work awaited. The kids stayed an extra week in Idaho and had fun with the Millward side of the family.

The kids pose with Grandpa and cousin with one of the 1 LARGE sturgeon they caught.

(One of C's fish was a 7 footer.)

Grandpa took them to Balanced Rock and to the natural hot springs swimming pool near by.

The kids clowing around at the Hagerman Horse Fossil museum.

(Some of the oldest horse fossils in the United States are there - back when horses were smaller than our golden retriever.)

Hot Enough for Ya?

Yesterday was the second day the weather was over 100 degrees and it's supposed to be another scorcher today. (Yep! Another day of 105 with tons of humidity.) It was even 92 degrees at Astoria - out on the coast. Thank God I work in an air conditioned office!!

Speaking of air conditioning. Tomorrow I get the compressor replaced on my poor little heat pump. Couple weeks ago, it was 92 degrees outside and 93 inside. UGHH!!!!!! When the HVAC tech came out to check it, he did something to help it run at least a little bit until we could replace it. On the good side, my tomatos, egg plant and peppers are LOVING all this heat. I actually got my first ripe tomato last night. I don't think I've ever had red tomatos this early before. (though how much of it has to do with me not usually getting my garden planted until 4th of July - I'm not sure.)

Cabin Continued

More Cabin Fun.....

B doing what she loves....

She is such a fabulous photographer. I will have to post some of her pics. Her flower artwork is amazing!!!





The "Hey Lady! Cooking Show" brought to you by Sadri and her amazing Mojito Fruit Salad.

The appreciative audience.

B frosting her German Chocolate Cake her Aunt Laura made her.
(It was YUMMY!!! )
and very pretty too.....

B is officially 12!

Meg floating with friends past the cabin.

I love this picture. The girls floating by the fly fisherman.

Cabin

Some of my favorite things while relaxing at the cabin over the 4th of July.
It has to be one of my all time favorite places in the world. (a little slice of heaven on earth) Thanks for the great times everyone. It was so nice to be able to relax and enjoy the time with my family.

Fluff & Stuff

Harley & Trooper hanging at the cabin

(Usually Trooper was "running with the big dogs")

Chris and Trooper taking a little siesta after a long day of fun playing in the river and woods.

The family waiting for the fireworks at the Lodge at Bill's Island.

(Very impressive display of pyrotechnics. )

Wild Weather....

We had a couple thunderstorms that had some good sized hail in it.

(It was a good thing we ran the last little bit of our hike - but still was soaked.)

Sunset from the deck at the cabin overlooking the Snake River.




The cabin is made for reading and relaxing which Barb is taking full advantage of.

Megan & Trooper hanging in the hammock.

Fun with Friends

Me and Bridget

When we went to Idaho this Summer, I was able to spend some time with some friends. (Like my friend Mary who has been one of my friends since kindergarten and my friend Julie.) It was really great that I was able to meet up with Bridget, my college roommate. It was so fabulous to get caught up with everyone on and their lives. I really enjoyed it and hope to see them again soon.

Bruneau Sand Dunes

Here's some pictures of our trip to Bruneau Sand Dunes State Park in Idaho.
The kids at the lake - Those hills aren't really hills. They are massive sand dunes - some of the tallest in North America.

M, B, C and trooper at the Bruneau Sand Dunes.

New Hair Do....

I'm really excited!!! I got my hair cut last night into a new style - which I LOVE!!! What's really nice is how many compliments I received today on it.
What kind of makes me chuckle is the inevitable question asking "Was it hard to cut ALL that hair off?"
No.... My outside now matches my inside.

Ruined by Republicans

I am angry!!!!
As I was writing out my grocery list this morning, I realized that I can't spell with confidence anymore.

I reflected for a moment on my disabilities and devined that it is a product of the education I received in the 1980's when we were lead by Ronnie and George the first.

Thinking more about it - I can definitively point to the exact moment when Republicans ruined my ability to correctly spell vegetable names.

It is so sad!! I grew up in Idaho and now forever guess myself on the CORRECT spelling of potato and tomato. (and don't get me started on plural versions)
Arrgh!!!! (cry of pain and frustration can be heard across the land)
Dan Quayle - You ruined a generation of brillant minds!!!!

Withdrawals

It seems that I am suffering severe computer related withdrawals. It is very hard to carve time in my schedule right now to get on the internet and write. I keep meaning to and remember and such great ideas, while I'm in my car or at work or at a game...but can't do anything about it until I have time at home. (My poor Facebook account is very neglected as well.) Yes, I'm developing quite a serious case of "Internet Guilt." (kind of like a mild case of Catholic guilt, but more high tech.) Big sigh!!!!


I did do a little updating with my site. Pruned some blogs (sorry Bella) that haven't been posting in a while and added a couple of my new and old faves... still can't load one of my all time favorites... O'Malley's on the Web. He's way too "techy" for me and has some funky interface that won't let me link with him. Another sigh.... You just wait O'Malley! I'll get you and your little dog too.... (evil chess cackle wafting in the background)


I promise I'll have to tell you about a few of the Summer Solistice Full Moon craziness that have shown up recently. (There was a guy who was arrested for burglary / stolen car due to his distinctive and excessive colonge and another guy who was driving backwards the wrong way on the interstate for several miles laughing himself silly all the while. - I haven't seen him yet because he refused to get dressed and wouldn't come to court.) These are both stories that need to be highlighted. Oh and the funniest story I've experienced ever in court....it revolves around industrious indignant cops, ribbed condoms, illegal drugs and non industry approved containers. :) Totally cracks me up!!! That one needs it's own entry cuz it's just too darn funny!!!

I've also been getting a lot of funny, crazy phone calls as well this week. This isn't an example of those, but will give you a flavor of the my "normal" phone calls.
I usually answer the main phone line, "Superior Court Administration. This is Alice. How may I help you?"
On Friday, I had three calls right in a row that replied to me "Hi. Is this Nancy speaking?"
"No, this is Alice. May I help you?"
After the 3rd call in less than 4 minutes, my coworker turned to me stared in amazement and shook her head. I laughed. What can you do?



In my future blogs, I also want to make sure I share my experiences at the wonderful parish mission we had this past week. I learned so much about my faith and have been filled with a lot of peace. Thanks to Father Tony Judge and Father John Kuehner and the Redemptionist Order of priests, I was pleasantly surprised attending my first Catholic "holy roller" revival. It was very uplifting and I learned that one of my childhood goals was met.... (Hurray! one more thing to check off my bucket list.)

Well, now that I've left you some teasers and me some inspiration, I think I'll turn in.

HorseTrek 2009

We pick up M tomorrow evening. She has been on a 9 day (182 mile) serious back country horse ride through the Oregon Cascade mountain range. Yesterday she was riding / following on the Old Oregon Trail. She riding a horse called "Night Shade" if I remember correctly. It is a black Appy (with white speckled butt). When we attended the midTrek BBQ on Wednesday, she regaled us with many stories. (A lot were funny and interesting, several had me realizing the liability release I signed wasn't just another simple piece of paper you are required to sign before you participate in any activity - they were serious.)

All in all. She has been having a marvelous time. She has been hanging with a lot of the more vetern trekkers including the trail boss' daughter. Scott, the trail boss, said she was "really good with horses" and would really like her to come down and ride with them this Fall and Winter. I guess they have been impressed enough with M's skills that she was the 1st year trekker to ever to be "a dragger" or some such title. In other words, she was allowed to lead a string of 3 pack horses laden with a bunch of their gear. So basically... M is in heaven. Can't think of a better time for a girl like her who loves horses and has a special knack with animals. I'll regale you with more stories later - especially about beans, buckets of creek water and mutant chipmunks.

I Topped The Rock!!!!

B, C and I "Topped the Rock to Save the Library" this morning.

A little background in case you didn't read my earlier posting....

Several years ago, the city could no longer afford to run our little library, so it has had to have an operations levy every year since then. This last year, the library levy failed to get the super majority by just 4 votes and thus failed. The library has been running on donations ever since (yes those little cans at the grocery store).

The Friends of the Library hosted a 5k Fun Run & Family Fitness Walk called "I Topped the Rock". It incorporates some of our little towns famous features such as "the rock" which is a large basalt outcropping / hill just on the edge of town and our new river walk trail that meanders by the Cowlitz River. In addition, there was music, an auction, and semi street fair set up in downtown. (Most of it was blocked off this morning.) There were 2 bands playing. One "Carl Wirkkala and the Ghost Town Riders" are friends of ours. Carl grew up in our house and we bought it from his Dad. The drummer is M's best friend's dad. They are actually pretty good and Carl has made several trips to Nashville. (He's a really good songwriter and musician.)

Anyway....

It was a pretty neat little 5k fun run. It starts out in front of the library, goes on some city streets for about 6 blocks, then accesses the river dike path north of town. We went south along the trail until we reached "Castle Rock" at the south end of the town. We hiked up the steep hill trail until we reached the top and received our commemorative bracelets. Then down a different trail to the end of the south part of the path in Lion's Park. Then we turned around, went up the path until we hit Front street and walked along it (past the middle school) back to the library. It was a really fun time. Barbara ran it in about 31 minutes. Chris and I took our time and were 59 and 62 minutes respectively. I think the Rock really slowed down the times. There was a short 1 mile course which our friend accidently ran then went and redid the 5k so she really got in her excericise for the day. I liked that Top the Rock fun run had prizes for youngest to complete the course (5 years) and oldest (86 years). There were several 6 and 7 year olds and 77 year old runner and another 85 year old walker. That was just awesome to get that range of participants!!!

Since this was a fundraiser to save the local library there was a Storybook Theme Contest. We dressed up as our favorite story character, but didn't win any prizes. (The group of teachers dressed up as "Mother Goose and the Rhymes" and the little girl dressed as "Laura Ingalls" in her full length calico dress and bonnet took the top prizes. They were awesome!!) B was the accident prone Bella (from Twilight). C was "Billy" and Amber was "Little Ann" from Where the Red Fern Grows. (his choice - and favorite book) Our friend was the one of the fisherman from A River Runs Through It. I was Ferdinand the Bull and kept smelling the lovely flowers I had brought with me. (The local paper and internet media "guy" took pictures of us in our costumes.) I guess there's a Utube spot for it.

It was also announced that B won one of the coloring contests to help promote saving the library and got a free icecream cone at one of the local cafes. We all admired her pretty artwork which was hung up on the window outside the icecream shop.

There was a lot of fun music, food, and the Army had their rock wall there for the kids to climb. Good times all around!!!