Meet Me on Monday

This is a great way to get back in the groove of blogging after a long holiday weekend!  Every Sunday night, Java posts 5 questions to answer then link back to.  It's a great way to learn a little more about friends we follow through blogging.

1.  What is your favorite way to eat chicken?

Chicken strips on a salad.  With honey mustard dressing.  Made by someone else.  

Carolina Chicken Salad (Ruby Tuesday)

2.  Have you decorated for Christmas yet?
Nope; it's still high school football season here in the Small Town!  Friday, the football team is going for their 7th State Championship in 7 years; their 12th total.

3.  What is your favorite article of clothing?

Hmmmm....that's a tough question.  I don't know that I just have one.  I really like my pj's, especially my flannel pj's that I wear in the winter.  I usually stay in them all day on New Year's Day!

Then there's my sweatshirts.  Can do without them!  I definitely prefer my winter clothes.

4.  Do you pay your bills online or write checks the old way?

Mostly online.  I still do a couple by check.

5.  Do you make Christmas cookies?

I make quite a bit of candy, but not many cookies.  I just can't get the hang of cut-out cookies, although Pillsbury does make a mean gingerbread cookie dough, so all you have to do it roll it out and cut away!  The only problem is that it makes 15 gazillion cookies.   I do make this amazing Candy Cane Cookie by Pampered Chef.  Really easy and just incredibly delicious!

Candy Cane Cookies

1 package (18 oz.) refrigerated cookie dough

1/4 cup candy canes or peppermint candies (chopped)

1/4 cup pecans or wlanuts, chopped

1 package (12 ounces) white chocolate morsels

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Form dough into a ball and place into center of  15" baking stone (I would think you could put it into a cookie sheet that has been sprayed or prepped with parchment paper.). Flatten slightly with palm of hand.  Lightly flour dough and rolling pin.  Roll dough into a 14" circle.  Bake 18-20 minutes or until golden brown.  

While cookie is baking, chop peppermint candy and nuts.  Remove cookie from oven and immediately sprinkle morsels evenly over cookie.  Let stand 2-3 minutes.  Spread chips evenly into  a think layer.  Sprinkle with candy and nuts.  Carefully loosen cookie from stone with a serrated knife.  Cool 5 minutes.  Cut with pizza cutter

Thanksgiving Leftovers

So much for heading back to bed after letting the girls out at 6:00 a.m.  No, it wasn't to go shopping, it was to spend about a half-hour to look for "the princess".  It was raining, so I thought they would both go out, do their business, and be ready to head back in.  So, I stood on the porch, but I lost site of Ally (the schnauzer).  I kept calling her, then went down to coax her back in.  Dadgum dog has a mind of her own.  After going back in to get the flashlight and looking around the yard, I figured she decided it was time to go to the park for a walk.  (Our house is right next to a park with a walking trail.)  I got in the car and did a quick circle around the park, but didn't see her.  I went home and saw her next to the back porch as soon as I got out of the car.  She is Such. A. Brat.  I'm not sure where she was, but she knew she was in trouble.  No treat for her.  And, looks like she'll be on a leash for a few days.  At least it wasn't a school day and I didn't have anywhere to go.  Brat.
Here's what we did with the speech kids on Monday and Tuesday:

Cute, huh?  The kids love when we do stuff like this!  And, you can incorporate a lot of language & speech into it.  I do have a rule:  anytime we make something to eat, it's put in a bag for them to take home and eat there.  Just in case.  
On Wednesday, I saw one of the special ed teacher's decorated door.  She really went all out this year:

There will be windows with the kids pictures in it on either side of the door, but I wanted to take a picture before they did that.  I told her it was definitely blog-worthy!
Last, but certainly not least, the SRO (School Resource Officer) and the librarian had a little bit of time on their hands on Wed. since there was a school-wide basketball game between the students' teams and the faculty.  We only had a 1/2 day and they didn't run the buses (which saves the school system $25000), so there were very few kids at school.  Okay, back to those 2 having time on their hands (which could be very dangerous!):  The Christmas Tree went up in the office, but there hasn't been a tree topper.  Until now.

That's Mr. Principal...he's now on the top of the tree.  They had some problems with getting it to stay on top, but, they had plenty of time, so they figured it out!  You've gotta keep your sense of humor when you work in an elementary school, people!
Hope everybody had a Happy Thanksgiving!  I didn't even get my camera out yesterday; I was just enjoying being with my family and a friend of ours.  I also was able to get in some time with my new 4 week old grand-nephew...just sitting in the chair rocking him, enjoying his little sounds and smells.  Heaven.

Thanksgiving Hodgepodge

 

Joyce has come up with some excellent questions for this week, with some help from her friend.

1. If you had known what they knew then, would you have boarded the Mayflower?
Not being a very adventurous person, I would say no.

2. How far have you traveled on a boat and how do you feel about boats in general?
I didn't grow up around boats.  They make me a little uneasy.  

3. What traditions have you kept, acquired thru marriage, and/or tossed? If you're single what are some of your family's favorite Thanksgiving traditions?

We've pretty much kept the same traditions I had growing up.   I once knew a person who used to eat Chinese food for Thanksgiving...it's just what they did.

4. What time is dinner and how many will be round your table? And what is the one side dish you cannot do without on Thanksgiving day? 
2:00, and there will only be 21 of us.  I can't do without my sister's sweet potato casserole.  One of my brothers can't do without mashed potatoes. If you read my post from Friday, you know that a couple of years ago we didn't have them, and he was not happy!

Yes, I know it goes against all I believe in to ask for 'just one', but I made up for it by asking three questions here.

5. Have you ever used a fire extinguisher? Do tell....
Oh, my.  I don't think this is a very good question around Thanksgiving!  Hope it's not a bad omen!  :)
I've never used one.  I came close once.  My mom was working at a hospital on the night shift when I was in college (I think that's when it was, anyway).  One Saturday morning, I was in my room (which was across the hall from my parents' room), and one of my little brothers came running down the hall to tell me the kitchen was on fire.  He had decided to fry some bacon in a skillet that had a crack in it.  Anyway, his running down the hall along with the word "fire" made my mom jump up and run to the kitchen.  She used the fire extinguisher.  I was going to throw some baking soda on it.

6. Tell about a situation that caused you dreadful trepidation and feet dragging, only to realize later it was a true blessing. 
Gosh, Joyce is making us think too hard this week!  When we moved from Ga. to SC, it was hard on me.  I finally (after 11 years) felt like  Ga. was home, then CH was transferred.  Even though it was kind of exciting to be moving to a completely different place, I really didn't want to go.  I had a hard time at first and was actually homesick for Ga.  It turned out to be a blessing because CH converted to Catholicism after we had lived in SC for a few years.  We had wonderful friends and an awesome Church family.

7. Baked, sweet, mashed, hash browned or french fried...which one's your favorite?

Mashed.  With some of the dried Ranch Dressing Mix.  Yum.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

When I was a guard instructor for a high school in Ga., I had the opportunity to accompany them to the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.  What an experience that was!  It was amazing to see what happens "behind the scenes"  and to see NYC for the first time.  In addition to the parade, we went to see "Cats", went to the top of the World Trade Center, visited the Statue of Liberty, visited the Fish Market (although I'm not sure why!), and ate at the Hard Rock Cafe.  

Me with one of my "girls"  (She went on to go to the same college I went to.)

 The band in the Parade.  (The straw hats are a tradition for this band.  I saw a post on FB from the man who was assistant band director:  the uniforms were at the cleaners last week, and the cleaners caught on fire.  The uniforms were lost.  The cleaner's insurance will pay for part of the loss, but the band is scheduled to participate in the local Christmas parade, as well as a big parade in Atlanta.  Talk about your dumb luck.)

Right before the parade began (That's Phylicia Rashad in the apple)

Bobby Vinton

It was quite an experience!  It was a lot of "hurry up and wait", but it was a good time.  Even getting up at 3:00 a.m. to be on the bus by 4:00 was memorable.  And, seeing a billboard with a naked woman on it on the route was interesting.  One of NYC's finest laughed at me and one of the girls because we told him we didn't have billboards like that in Georgia.  It was a great trip.

I hope everybody has a wonderful Thanksgiving.  

Playing Catch-Up through Pictures

MS' Rugby Team played the alumni a couple of Saturdays ago.  Guess where they played?

The view on my way to work on Thursday:

You'll have to excuse the quality.  The sky was just incredibly pink; the picture doesn't do it justice at all.

New toys therapy materials!

I probably shouldn't mention this, but my intern & I haven't figured out how to play "Chuckit  Chicken" yet.  It can't be too complicated, right?

 The Small Town High School won their quarter-final game last Friday, beating the #2 team in the state 14-3.  We beat them the last week in October 55-33.  During half-time a former player who is now playing for an SEC Team was honored.  This is a picture of him (on the right) with a former high school teammate who is now his college teammate:

Picture taken from Facebook Small Town Booster 

You'd be hard pressed to find an athlete that's received the recognition he has but is still so humbled and an all around "good guy".  There had even been some Heisman talk.

Yesterday began a 2 week stint of bus duty.  Well, really just 1 1/2 weeks since this is a short week.  Here's what I saw when I went outside for my rotation with the buses:

Again, you'll have to excuse the quality.  This one was taken with my cell phone.  Bus duty was pretty uneventful, except for the 5th Grader telling on me.  He had cut the breakfast line, so I told him and the boy that was with him to go to the back of the line.  After he told me that he had been there, and the boys who he cut verified that he hadn't, I told him to go to the back of the line.  The principal came in at the time they got to the back, and he told Mr. Principal "she told me to go to the back of the line and we were all the way up there."  Mr. Principal asked him who told him, and he said "a teacher".  Mr. Principal told him that if that's what he was told to do, he needed to do it.  HA!  Take that, little 5th grader!  :0~

Meet Me on Monday

Every Sunday, Java posts questions so that we can get to know each other better.  Here are the 23rd round of questions:

1.  How many pillows do you sleep with?

Just 1.  I used to sleep with a couple, but I've cut back to 1.

2.  Where will you eat on Thanksgiving?

My house.  A couple of years ago one of my sisters volunteered my house so mom wouldn't have to worry about anything, so it looks like my house is the Turkey Day house.

3.  Would you rather go to a party or host a party?

Definitely go to one.  Less stress.  I'm all about less stress.

4.  How many purses (for the guys..wallets) do you own?

I only have a few that I switch out with the seasons:  I have one for fall, one for the holidays, and one for spring/summer.  I'm just not a big purse person.

5.  What is your favorite kind of seafood?

Shrimp.  Fried shrimp to be specific!

Flashing Back to Turkey Day

Linda at Mocha with Linda provides us with flashbacks on Fridays so we can relive our youth and see how it affected our adult life.  Here are this week's prompts:

What was Thanksgiving like when you were growing up? What days did you usually have off from school? Do you remember any Thanksgiving activities at school, such as a play or a meal? During the Thanksgiving weekend, did you travel to spend it with relatives or did you stay home? Or did relatives travel to you? What was your family's day typically like? Did you watch the Macy's Parade or something else on TV? Have you ever attended a Thanksgiving parade? Was football a big part of the day? And of course, we have to hear what your family ate! Were there any traditional foods that were part of your family's meal? Which of your growing-up traditions do you do with your family today? And if you are married, how did it go merging your two traditions/expectations?

We only had Thursday & Friday off for Thanksgiving when I was growing up.  Since both of my parents are from Tx., we wouldn't go anywhere for dinner. I don't remember anything special going on at school, except a not-so-good lunch of what they called a Thanksgiving lunch, but I always took my lunch to school, so it didn't matter to me.   I remember waking up on Thanksgiving morning, smelling the turkey roasting in the oven already. We'd get up and anxiously await the Macy's Parade to start on tv.  Oh, it was the best thing EVER.  Just having one tv when I was little, it was "watch what daddy wants to watch or watch nothing at all", so there was definitely football on at the house.  The Tx. A&M and Univ. of Tx. was always a must that weekend.  Gig 'em, Aggies!    Mom actually put down a tablecloth, but I don't remember if we ate off of "real plates" or paper plates.  Of course we would have turkey, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, some kind of jello/fruit salad, and rolls.  I'm sure cranberry sauce was in there somewhere, but, ewwww.  Something about seeing it come out of that can just doesn't do for me.  

After I got married, our tradition changed a bit.  Since there are so many of us, we switch holidays with the family and with in-laws.  This year is our turn to be at home for Thanksgiving, and with in-laws for Christmas, although it doesn't really turn out that way.  Mom  is a big believer in making your own traditions, which is what she had to do after she & daddy got married and moved to Tn.   With the boys playing high school football, and the high school having a game on Thanksgiving weekend for the past 6 years (this year makes it 7, but we're here even though YS is in the band), we haven't been able to go anywhere on the "off-year" Thanksgiving.  And, this  year, a few of my siblings just don't seem to realize that it's our turn to be home, and 1 has decided to go to her step-daughter's house on the other side of the state (even though she said they weren't going back...but that's a whole different story).  And, my youngest brother isn't coming in because the stupid airlines have jacked up their prices, AND my oldest sister isn't coming in because she wants to save her vacation days until her 2 boys come in for Christmas.  Then we have one of my sisters who is doing something with her sons, another sister who is going to be entertaining her elderly MIL while her hubby & sons are hunting, and a brother who is going to his son's house for dinner.  So, we will have a meager 21 people at my house for Thanksgiving Dinner, 22 if you want to count my niece's new baby.  So there you have it.  I don't know if that's what Linda had in mind, but, yeah, I'm a little ticked that people aren't following the rules this year, and, yeah, I'm a little ticked that we aren't going to DC to see my BIL & SIL because it's our year to be home and I spoke up and said we could have dinner at our house...again.  And, yeah, I'm also a little ticked because everybody is having to bring a couple to a few things this year instead of just one.  But it's going to be okay, right?

 So, I have 6 days to get the house in order and make a couple of pies, and make sure we have enough tables and chairs.  That's along with having annual reviews and initial placements at work.  I have no idea why I do this to myself.

Thank You Very Much

I hadn't participated in TYVM in a while, but when I went to Kmama's, I couldn't find the button for the code, so maybe she's stopped doing it.  If anyone knows, please clue me in!  Oh well, I'm going to carry on without her!

1.  To the girls:  Thank you very much for making me jinx myself by bragging on how you've adjusted to the time change.  At 4:45 this morning, thank you Ally for doing your weird "pushing the food bowl with your nose" thing, causing quite a racket (yet I'm the only one that it seems to wake up).

2.  Again to the girls:  Thank you for leaving a "present" in the hallway on Tuesday, and a big thank you goes out to my 2 boys who were in the house but chose to tell me about it instead of cleaning it up.  At least you only weigh 20 pounds, so there wasn't a whole lot to clean up. 

3.  I guess I should send a shout-out to MS for coming home on Tuesday afternoon to do laundry but not letting the girls out when he got here.  (See #2).

4.  Finally:  Thank you to those "professionals" who think they can do my job:  If you're going to go into a meeting and talk about how you've done speech therapy, let's slap an "SLP" behind your name and you can have at it.  You're welcome to do all the paperwork that goes with it, too.

There...that just about does it with the rantings of the week.  Hope y'all have a good one!

Hodgepodge #2

1. What is the most amazing weather you've ever seen?

It would have to be the blizzard of '93.  We were living in N. Ga., and it was mid-March.  It had actually been pretty warm, until the day of the storm.  We had thunder, lightening, and snow.  Lots of snow:  5 feet.   If it hadn't been for no power or water, it would've been absolutely beautiful.

2. What is a sound or noise you love?

All my boys talking and laughing.

3. Do you like seafood? What's your favorite seafood dish?

I absolutely love shrimp. Fixed any way.  I'm not picky.  As long as it's cooked.

4. What part of your day requires the most patience?

8:00-2:30.  That would be when I'm at work.  Oh, minus my 30 minute lunch break, of course.

5. What's your favorite shade of blue?

Blue is my favorite color.  All shades.  I don't have a favorite shade of blue!

6. Do people underestimate you?

Honestly, I think people overestimate me.

7. When was the last time you had butterflies in your stomach?

 I honestly can't remember.  I'm honestly not trying to avoid the question (honest!), I just can't remember the last time that happened.

8. Insert your own random thought here, and remember...I have a wooden spoon and I'm not afraid to use it.

The girls have finally gotten used to the time change:  the past 2 mornings they didn't get me up until my alarm went off!  YAY!

A Bit of Advice

Word to the wise:  When chopping up jalapeños, wear gloves.  Even if you think you don't need them.  Especially when scraping the seeds out.
Yeah, I was that stupid.  I didn't think about it until I took out my contacts. YE-OUCH!  I wasn't about to wear my glasses to work this morning, mainly because I can't see so great out of them.  I washed my hands in milk and in dishwashing liquid.  Didn't work. So, how did I get my contacts in this morning?  I used plastic wrap.  I put a little bit on my index fingers and got them in.
Needless to say, I will be wearing gloves next time I chop those little suckers!

Meet Me on Monday-22nd edition

According to Java:  "Blogging is a funny thing...we tell our most intimate thoughts for all to read and yet most of the time I find myself sitting and wondering, "who is this person!?"  I know them...but yet I don't know them!  I want to know who the person is behind all those words so I thought of a great way for all of us to "meet" each other!"

Questions:

1.  Do you eat Sushi?

EWWWW.  Not at all.

2.  What kind of bath soap do you use?

Irish Spring, the kind with the little microbeads for exfliating.

3.  How often do you talk to your Mom?

A few times a week.  You would think that I would talk to her more, with her just living down the street and all, but I think after living away for 20 years, I kind of forget she's so close.

4.  What TV shows do you watch on a regular basis?

Oh, where to begin?  Amazing Race, Real Housewives of Atl, NJ, NY, DC, Top Chef & Top Chef Desserts, Burn Notice, NCIS, The Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice.  I know there are others, but I'm kinda in a hurry right  now!

5.  Did you start Christmas shopping yet?

NO

Double whammy!

I had the honor of accepting this award from 2 different people last week!  Casondra is a new friend.  If you haven't visited her before, you should meet her.  She is just an incredible woman who gives me a lot of inspiration.  I've "known" Kathy for a while, but didn't realize she had another blog!  I've been keeping up with what's going on with her grandkids.  Thank you both!


Here are the rules for accepting this award:

1.  Thank and link back to the person who gave you the award

2.  Share 7 things about yourself.

3.  Pass this on to 15 other great bloggers you recently discovered.

4.  Contact the selected bloggers and tell them about their awards.



7 things about me:

1.  I'm addicted to the Real Housewives...but "only" NJ, NY, Atlanta, and DC.
2.  I don't listen to Christmas music until after Thanksgiving.
3.  My favorite thing to do in the winter is to light some candles and watch movies.
4.  I'm very, very big on traditions.
5.  I'm a rule follower.
6.  I moved back to the small town after living away for 20 years.
7.  I'm a dog lover, but cats:  not so much.

For the 15 recent blogs I'm following:  this is going to be tough, but here goes:
1.  Jeremiah 29:11 
2.  Falling off a High-Heeled Life 
3.  Sanity is Overrated 
4.  Jeannie's Happy World 
5.  Deepintheheartoftexas2's
6.  The Motherhood Umbrella 
7.  Lemondade Living 
8.  A Corgi In Southern California 
9.  Dollycas's Thoughts 
10.  From Tracie 
11.  Leigh Ashley
12.  Life through Bifocals 
13.  Odyssey of a Mom Scholar 
14.  Oops...There Goes My Mind 
15.  Manic Motherhood

If you get a chance, go visit some or all of these ladies!  They are all amazing!

Veterans Day Tribute

I was all set with another post this morning, but I decided to change after last night's high school football playoff game.  I did the usual:  run home after work, let the girls out, grab football gear, and go to the school to help get the concessions ready.  Got there, started prepping, and...Oh, Snap!  I forgot that I had taken the pumps for the cheese, mustard, and ketchup home to wash.  Get in car, drive home (it's all of 2 minutes), grab the pumps, back to the school.  Let me back up:  the first time I was home, I almost grabbed my camera, but thought, "I don't think anything's going on tonight; I won't need it".  Mental note to self:  Don't go anywhere without my camera, even if I think there's nothing going on.  (So, you'll have to excuse the quality of the pictures...I took them with my phone.)  We live near an Air National Guard Base, and, in honor of Veterans Day, there was a helicopter that landed on the practice field (behind the game field).  
Names of deceased veterans from the small town were read, whether they lost their lives in battle or not.  It was a very surreal moment.  You could've heard a pin drop in that stadium.  A tear or 2 may have been shed, especially when Taps was played by a member of the ANG Band.  The flag was raised by members representing each armed service, with an elementary school child singing the National Anthem.  Even though he got a couple of the words wrong, he did such a great job.  The innocence of a child and the hard reality of the world were both represented.

Before the game veterans that are "part of the small town family" were honored on the field.  They were handed the game ball as they were recognized.   The game ball was then presented to the officials, and one of the servicemen did the coin toss.  CH wasn't on the field...apparently he didn't submit his name and information, but he said he didn't need the recognition.  

All in all, a great tribute to the men and women who dedicated part of their lives to the service of our country.
Oh, and the game:  Small town won 42-17.  Next week is a rematch with the #2 team in the state, who just happens to also be in our district (we won during the regular season -actually just a couple of weeks ago- 50 to 33).  It should be a good game:  they aren't intimidated by small town.  If they can get by #2, my prediction is that they win state championship #7 in a row.

Random Friday Post + Follow Friday

This is what I saw the other day when I went online to check the weather.  Could they have caught her in a better pose?

 

I've had quite a crazy week this week. I don't think I remember what my kitchen looks like, to be perfectly honest.  Last Saturday, the 5th grade at one of my schools had a fundraiser at McAlister's Deli to benefit one of the teachers whose house caught on fire a couple of weeks ago.  Thankfully they weren't at home when it broke.  It was, however, a total loss.

Sunday I actually cooked:  Chicken Pot Pie, compliments of my SIL.  To be perfectly honest, YS did most of the preparation.  For some reason, we just had a little bit of a problem getting the top crust to brown.

Monday the church sponsored a "Women's Appreciation Dinner".  We had a nice dinner, followed by a speaker, Cooter.  Okay, Cooter isn't his real name, but it fit him, for sure.  He was a very good storyteller, but there was just one problem.  As I was listening to him, I thought, "something isn't right".  The more I listened, I realized what it was:  He says his /l/ sound at the beginning of the word with the back of his tongue.  Yes, it bothered me the rest of the night.  I don't think anyone else realized it, but to my trained ear, it was kind of irritating.  But, like I said, he was a good storyteller, and I did my best to ignore the error!

Tuesday we had our special ed dinner out.  We went to the local location of the restaurant I had gone to during our Sisters' Weekend.   This location didn't disappoint, at all.  And, it's always nice to spend some "away from school" time with coworkers.

Wednesday I had a band booster executive board meeting at Panera.   The broccoli-cheddar soup is amazing, by the way.  

Yesterday was a day off!  YAY!  CH went to Applebee's to eat dinner (they had free dinners to veterans) so I just grabbed something from the freezer at the grocery store for YS & I.  I know, I know...I really should've cooked, but I had a case of the lazies.  

Last Friday was really weird.  When I got home from work to let the girls out before I went to help setup the concessions for the game, it started sleeting.   At first I thought it was hail, but it just kept on coming and kept on coming.  This is what the rail on the porch looked like:

 Weird, huh?  It stopped just before I left to go to the game, which was weird, too.  The small town HS scored 21 points in the first 7 minutes.  The Mercy Rule went into effect the 2nd half, plus the quarters were reduced to 10 minutes instead of 12.   Even with cleaning up the concession stand and literally being the last person to leave the stadium, I was home by 10:00...the game started at 7:00.  Weird...just weird.

Sunday afternoon, one of my sisters called and said she was bringing this over:

 Sorry I didn't get a picture of the whole pie, but MS was home.  I don't think anything else needs to be said except that I ♥ my sister.  No. Lie.  I also love living close enough to my sisters so they can do nice things for me!  Especially when they bring me apple pie!  (This last sentence was added after Kimert chastised me for not specifying what kind of pie it was!)

One last thing:  I've posted views from one of my schools this past winter in the snow.  I was walking past one of the Kindergarten classrooms on Tuesday and was just stunned by the view and wanted to share it:

Absolutely gorgeous, isn't it?  And, just to be fair, here's a shot from the parking lot of my other school:

I'll have to try to get a picture of the view behind the school...it's beautiful, too.

Have a great weekend!

Veterans Day

I've worked in 6 school systems in 3 states over the 27 years I've been a Speech Pathologist.  This is the first school system that has recognized Veteran's Day.  Sure, it's a day off, and I suspect that the kids have no idea why they're getting the day off.
I have a few Veterans in my life:  
My daddy, who joined the Navy as an airplane mechanic and worked on an aircraft carrier at the end of WWII.
My FIL, who was a career Army man and a helicopter pilot during the VietNam War.
CH, who attended USMA to play football, and spent quite a few years (until YS was born) in the National Guard.  He didn't participate in Desert Storm, although he was chomping at the bit to go.
My BIL (CH's brother), who is full-time Army National Guard and is a veteran from the conflicts in the middle east.
An older brother who retired from the Naval National Guard as a SeaBee and is a Desert Storm Veteran.
In addition, I also have family members who will one day be able to say they are veterans: 
My oldest brother who is full time Air National Guard.  
1 nephew who graduated from USMA.
1 nephew in ROTC in college.
1 nephew who will be going active in the military after completing ROTC training while in undergrad school (he's now in grad school).

To these men in my life, and all of the men & women who have ever put their lives on the line for the love of our great country, 
THANK YOU!


Please make it a point to tell service men & women thank you for their service.  It will make their day.  It always chokes me up a little when I voice my appreciation to them.

Here are a couple of pictures of my favorite veteran:

My "Super Duper Paratrooper"!  (He's the one coming down first.  I could always tell which one was him because he was the first one down!

CH before the "C":  He was a lean, mean, US Army fighting machine!

Wednesday Hodgepodge: The Initiation

Joyce has taken the initiative to pick up where the Random Dozen has left off...kind of!  Isn't her button just absolutely beautiful?  Her Daughter1 made it for her!  This is the first edition of Wednesday Hodgepodge:  7 questions to answer with the opportunity to add your own random item.  I ♥ this idea! 

1. Do you think you're more like your mom or your dad?

Definitely my mom.  Sometimes I think I'm so much like my mom that it's scary.

2. Do you like roller coasters?

No.  I can tolerate the older ones, but don't put me on one where your feet dangle down.  We used to live near Carowinds, and they had a new Rugrats ride.  (A kiddie ride, okay?)  You had a harness and your feet dangled down.  Nothing major; you got on and rode around some turns.  People on the ground had super water guns so they could shoot you with the water.  When you had on a bathing suit, you slid around in the seat.  I didn't like it...Not. One. Bit.

3. How did you name your blog and do you now wish you'd thought about it maybe another five minutes before you hit publish? Would you change your blog title if it were not a huge pain in the derriere? (French makes everything sound a little nicer doesn't it?)

I thought about it for all of about 1 day.  I live in a small town, but, to be perfectly honest, it doesn't feel like it's as small as it is (around 8000 people) because there's a bigger town attached to it.  If I had to do it over, I probably would name it something else, but I have no idea what I would call it.

4. What is the best wedding gift you received? Not married? Didn't get any gifts? Then what is the best wedding gift you've given?

We were given a set of silverware from CH's Danish grandmother, his mor mor.  We only use it for special dinners:  Christmas and Easter, mostly.

5. What is the one bill you most hate to pay?

LOL!  Now that's funny!

6. Is the glass half full or half empty?

"Is the glass half full or half empty?  Depends on if you're pouring or drinking." Bill Cosby

(Yes, I'm avoiding the question.)

7. What is your favorite word? Okay okay. Calm down. How about one of your favorite words?

I don't know that I have any favorite words.  Payday, maybe?  

8.  Now, this is where you insert one random thought of your own...maybe something that struck you as funny, something that recently had you scratching your head in confusion, something that annoyed you a teensy bit, something on your to do list, something you are looking forward to, whatever. As long as it is in keeping with the friendly tone we've all come to know and love on Wednesdays then we're good. Don't make me get out my wooden spoon. 

Sometimes we find the most random things in our yard.  I found this yesterday:

  Interesting, no?

Head over to Joyce's to link up.  It's gonna be a good time!

Saturday Rugby

MS should know how much CH & I love him:  we braved the cold weather Saturday morning to watch his last Fall Rugby Game.  After his game, we told him that we weren't staying, and he said something along the lines of, "Well, yeah, it's really cold out here."  The boy's a genius, I'm telling you. 
They didn't play on the same field where they usually play; the games on Saturday were sponsored by the rugby team in the big city.  Only the game wasn't played in the big city.  It was played out in the sticks, in the middle of nowhere.  Among the trees.  The name of the park:  Possum Park.  NO.LIE.  The Rugby Team's Name is...you guessed it...the Possums.  The name fits perfectly for their field.  I thought about getting a picture of the sign as we were leaving, but didn't ask CH to stop.  I did, however, manage to get a picture of this:

 Definitely a unique hat. Yes, that is a possum on top of his head.  Don't worry, he's not that crazy or redneck; it's not his pet, it's a stuffed animal.   Here are a couple of pictures of the game, so you can get an idea of the surroundings:

A field in the middle of the woods.  And you thought I was joking.
And, just to show you how classy of an establishment it is, check out this picture:

The final score was 54-0.  MS made 2 scores.  One of the opponents got a yellow card.  There was some cussing involved.  
Spring season starts February 5th in Tuscaloosa.  Apparently that's the real season.  I'm still learning; by this time next year I should be a pro at being a rugby mom!


**Sidenote:  For those of you missing the Random Dozen, go visit Joyce at From This Side of the Pond.  She's starting a new random; questions should be up Tuesday night (if I understood correctly). YAY, JOYCE!

Meet Me on Monday 21st Edition

According to Java:

"Blogging is a funny thing...we tell our most intimate thoughts for all to read and yet most of the time I find myself sitting and wondering, "who is this person!?"  I know them...but yet I don't know them!  I want to know who the person is behind all those words so I thought of a great way for all of us to "meet" each other!"

Questions:

1.  What is your favorite kind of pie?

It would be easier to say what kind I don't like:  Peach.

2.  Have you ever ran out of gas in the car you were driving?

Nope, never.

3.  How many languages do you speak?

Only 1.  My minor in college was Spanish, but I am in no way fluent.  I did just enough to complete the courses for a minor.  

4.  Do you take daily vitamins?

Yes.  I also take fish oil, black kohosh (an absolute must these days!), aspirin, calcium, and B6.

5.  What is your worst eating habit?

Sweets.  Nothing else needs to be said.

Saturday Sampling 11/06/2010

Mrs. 4444 hosts Saturday Sampling every week.  In her words:  'Looking for some especially good posts? The posts here come recommended by the authors themselves or have been linked up by admirers of the writing for their humor, inspiration, poignancy, or just plain entertainment value. Got a favorite post from your week? Link it up, whether it's old or new, your own or someone else's."

This week, I recommended Glennon's post "Dear Evy".  That post is one of the most well-written posts I've ever read.  If you choose to visit, make sure you have a box of tissues next to you.  

Friday's Fave Five: BRRRRR Edition

 

1.  No football game last Friday.  (YS' high school played their last regular season game on Thursday night.)

2.  Last Saturday, we held the biggest band festival at the Small Town High School to date:  25 bands with the last 2 bands having over 250 members.


3.  This surprise gift from CH:

 4.  Living in the best country in the world, and being able to exercise my right to vote.

5.  A  3 day work week!

What were your Fave Fives of the Week?

Little Friday

I'm going totally random a day late!

What is "Little Friday"?  That would be Thursday.  I guess it makes people feel better when they can have 2 Fridays in a week.

I found the most awesomest banana muffin recipe, courtesy of Cat Can Cook.  To get the recipe, click here. The only thing I did different was use 5 bananas, just because that's what we had.

We finished watching The Tudors.  If you haven't seen it but may be interested, be forewarned that it should not be watched with little ones around.  I'm sure the makers thought they had to show everything in the first season to get people to watch it, but personally I don't think it was necessary.  It was neat to watch it with a computer nearby to check the historical facts.  They seemed to do a pretty good job with sticking to the facts.  Now that I know I can watch "Pillars of the Earth" through Netflix, I'm going to get caught up on that.

I saw that Rick Fox was voted off of DWTS Tuesday night.  I didn't see him actually get kicked off since it was election night and we opted to watch The Tudors instead.  Poor Rick.  I'm really surprised Bristol is still there.  I hate to sound like a coldhearted gritch (new word courtesy of southlakesmom at I didn't know THAT!), but I think they were going for the sympathy vote for Jennifer Grey.  I get that she hasn't been done with chemo for that long, but she does have the dance training, so I'm thinking that with her being in jeopardy last week, the producers thought they had to do something to keep her from going home.  Brandy:  Can anybody be more full of herself than she is?  Get a grip.

I can't believe I forgot to participate in A Wee Bit of Me yesterday. I saw it last week at A Defined Life but completely forgot about it Tuesday night.  I'm hearing some rumblings about other people starting up a new meme, but I don't think it's happened yet.  Any suggestions?

MS had his first voting experience on Tuesday. Going into the building he said he didn't know who to vote for, so we stopped at the sample ballot outside the door so that he could review it.  

The meteorologist says we're in for some cold weather by Friday:  the high is only suppose to be around 49.  And, we may see some flakes flying around.  Guess I'd better get the hot chocolate ready for the rugby game on Saturday!

The meteorologist wasn't my favorite meteorologist, but it was his co-worker...who I met last Thursday at the football game.  Yes, I have no shame.  One of his sons is on the football team we played, and another son is in their band.  He said the tv station asked him to do a remote broadcast from the game, so he jumped on it.  He was such an incredibly nice guy.  I should've had the camera guy take a picture.  Maybe next time!

Wednesday "Waff"

Wednesday "Waff":  The title is a little bit of "speech" humor.  Kids often substitute a "w" for an "l", so instead of "laugh", I wrote "waff".  I was going to spell it "waugh", but, when we lived in Georgia there was a "Waugh Street", only it was pronounced "Wah".  There is the background for the title.  I've been holding onto e-mails I've received just in case I needed  wanted to use them in posts.  And, since Linda is taking a break from the Random Dozen and I've got nothing (since all I did yesterday was watch The Tudors and spend some time with MS), here's the first installment:

Why childrens' homework should be checked before it's turned in....

 

A first grade girl handed in the drawing below for her homework assignment.

 

The teacher graded it and the child brought it home.
She returned to school the next day with the following note:

Dear Ms. Davis,
I want to be perfectly clear on my child's homework illustration. It is NOT of me on a dance pole on a stage in a strip joint surrounded by male customers with money.
I work at Home Depot and had commented to my daughter how much money we made in the recent snowstorm. This drawing is of me selling a shovel.

Sincerely,
Mrs. Harrington

Unfortunately, I don't know who to credit with the e-mail, so if anyone knows the author, let me know.

And, on the subject of not knowing who to give credit for their writing, remember the post "How to Awaken a Teenager"?  The author ran across my post and let me know it is her work!  The author of that post is Laurie at Manic Motherhood.  Go visit her!  You'll be glad you did!