January Books and General Stuff (Warning: Long Blog!)

OK, Froggy & Otter - here's another entry! You both got on me for not posting since Wednesday. However, Otter you haven't posted on your blog since when? And Froggy, you don't even have one! (You should, you know).

Important things first: Books!

1. Christmas in Plains by Jimmy Carter. I still think he was the absolute worst president we've ever had, without a doubt. But he wrote an interesting book about his childhood Christmas experiences.

2. Fire Lover by Joseph Wambaugh. About a serial arsonist who turned out to be an arson investigator. This one is a true story, I remember hearing about it on the news many years ago.

3. Standing Next to History, an Agent's Life Inside the Secret Service by Joseph Petro. Very interesting.

4. Battleship Oklahoma BB-37 by Jeff Phister with Thomas Hone & Paul Goodyear. This one is a must-read, it is a very detailed account of the crew on the Oklahoma on Dec. 7, 1941. It is very well written, but it is a hard read at times.

5. On the Wild Edge, In Search of a Natural Life by David Peterson. More than a little treehugger but interesting.

6. The Parting by Beverly Lewis. Part one of 3, not as good as her earlier work but good.

7. The Forbidden by Bevely Lewis. Part 2 of 3.

8. American Pattern Glass Table Sets by Gene & Cathy Florence. More research!

9. Warman's Carnival Glass 2nd Edition by Ellen T. Shroy. Learned a lot from this one.

10. The Art of Cars, Disney & Pixar by Michael Wallus & Suzanne Firtgerald Wallis. This one was a lot of fun. Mostly pictures, but a lot of back story on how they came up with the story & characters for the movie Cars.

11. Everything & a Kite by Ray Ramono. Don't bother. Just don't!

12. Fenton Art Glass 1907 - 1939 2nd Edition by Margaret & Kenn Whitmire. This is one I bought. I learned a lot from it, and my Fenton addicition is now stronger. If that is even possible!

13. Perfect Murder, Perfect Town - JonBenet & the City of Boulder by Lawrence Schiller. Patsy Ramsey murdered her daughter. Possibly it was an accident and she covered it up (or attempted to), but she did it. And the Boulder police department at the time were a bunch of idiots. Up until I read this book, I thought that there was a good chance the parents were innocent. But not anymore. John Ramsey might not have been involved, he might not have ever even confronted her but I think he was suspicious but didn't act on his suspicions. But I am now convinced that she is responsible.

14. The Longing by Beverly Lewis. Part 3 of 3, 1 and 2 mentioned earlier in the list.

15. Fenton Art Glass Patterns 1939 - 1980 by Margaret & Kenn Whitmyer. See # 12.

16. We Bought a Zoo by Benjamin Mee. This was really good, and a tear jerker at times.

17. On Coon Mountain, Scenes From a Childhood in the Oklahoma Hills by Glen Ross. Pretty good and some of his stories could have been out of Dad's childhood.

18. Sick Girl by Amy Sliverstein. She had a heart transplant in her early 20's and this is her story. While I realize she did go through a lot and it was not easy - I don't like whining and I really do not like selfishness.

19. Poster Child by Emily Rapp. This one was very good.

20. Storm Chaser by Jim Reed. Stories and pictures of storms he's chased over the last several years all across the country. Including one particular one that was our introduction to the fact that the area we live in is called Tornado Alley for a reason!

21. Fenton Glass Compendium 1985 - 2001 by John Walk. See # 12 & 15, which are better books but I still learned a lot. However, I have a time period that I need a book for, 1980 - 1985.

22. Simple Glass Crafts by Marthe Le Van. Some interesting ideas, but probably not anything I will try.

23. Silver Wedding by Maeve Binchy. I've read it a couple of times before and it's still good.

24. Michael's Book of Arts & Crafts. I have read other Michael's books with this title, they really should put volume numbers on them! This one was pretty good and I got a few ideas.

25. A Labor of Love by Anne Geddes. This is an autobiography, and is filled with the lovely pictures she takes of the babies in costume, flowers, etc. I enjoyed this one.

The snow & ice is just about gone. Otter went back to school on Friday, but I took her and picked her up. There is still a little bit of ice in the front of our porch, it stays shady most of the time. But it is melting away. We took the poochies for a walk today, and there were still a few spots but not too many. It was warm, for January. Very sunny and nice.

Bill did not get the job in the local school district, they simply could not afford him. Which is about what we expected. He's not upset. It would have been nice, but we are not worried. However, I think he's going to let me drive the El Camino to work one day next week so he must be in a pretty good mood! :) My 92 year old boss really wants to see it, he had one at one time and he keeps asking me when I'm going to bring "his car to him."

And the redecorating bug is very firmly moved into our bedroom now. Bill's working on another quilt for our bed, we've been using the camo quilt the last several nights as it's been very cold and that quilt is very warm. But he's working on another one which will be on our bed most of the time. I've had the palm trees for many years, and I do like them but it's time for a change. Bill was already making the quilt before I decided, but I think he likes the idea. The bathroom is also going to be redecorated, but only to a point. Remember last summer when I bought a new bathmat? Bill always says that a new bathmat is his clue that I'm redecorating. Well, he was right. I started with a new bathmat and I am now going to finish the bathroom, along with our bedroom and the kitchen. All three are works-in-progress. When we moved into our home over 4 years ago, I had already had the palm tree stuff in the bedroom for a couple of years. The bathroom at that time was in need of work, we rebuilt the shower and a couple of other things. Originally, I was going to paint the bathroom blue and use my Fenton glass in there. I did put the glass in there, but Bill convinced me that we should paint the bathroom the same color as the bedroom. Which is when I decided to go ahead and continue the palm trees in the bathroom.

And that is when I had my S.T.U.P.I.D. moment and sold off some of my Fenton. Never again! Anyway, I'm going to put the Fenton back in the bathroom, the bathmat and towels I bought last summer will stay in there and the bedroom will be easy with the quilt. The curtains in the bedroom will look fine with the quilt, the round tablecloth covers I have on the nightstands will still work and I moved the moonstone glass lamp from the living room to the nighstand on my side of the bed. This one has been easy. I'm still not sure about a couple of things in the bathroom, such as a drinking glass and what we're going to put the toothbrushes in. But I'll figure that out. I had a Fenton vase that I (sold) used before when I had the glass in there, I think I'll probably do something along the same lines. And now, I have several palm tree items that I'm going to put on eBay in the near future! And I think I also have an excuse to shop for more Fenton. Like I ever need one!

It's Still Wednesday and Still Cold!

This is one of the few times I will ever post a picture with a face, especially when it's Otter's face. But you can't really see too much of her face anyway. We took a walk to a hilly area behind us, and she finally got to use her toboggan this year.

She was just about to start off.

There she goes! I could her her yelling the whole way down, she was really enjoying it.

And she's still going. The only problem was that she then had to walk back up the hill. But she rode it down a few more times, until her asthma kicked in and we decided to head home for something hot to drink. I had started having asthma symptoms before this, but we were halfway there so it made just as much sense to continue to our destination as it would to have turned around and walked back home. But on the way back, Otter rode in the toboggan for a while and I pulled her. The ice is so thick that her weight in the toboggan didn't even make much of a dent so it was easy to pull her.

This is a tire track from the street she was sliding down. The ice is pretty thick, I don't know if you can tell or not from the picture. But the sun is shining, so even though we will probably not even make it up to freezing temperature there will be some melting. Not a lot, and the streets will be really fun in the morning but I am going to attempt to get in to work tomorrow. I think I'll be ok, once I get out of the neighborhood and a few miles away. The city usually only clears streets to a certain distance from home, and that is only a few miles away. Which would have been a big problem yesterday as it was still coming down and would be a problem today, but by tomorrow should (hopefully anyway) be ok.

I kind of expect school to be cancelled for tomorrow again, but if there is school then I will take Otter and pick her up instead of leaving her to the mercy of a not-so-tallented bus driver. If there is no school, I think she'll probably stay home so the dogsters can stay inside. They have the garage area to stay in, if nobody is home and Bill's made them a nice spot with carpeting. They would probably spend the day curled up on their carpet, napping!

I'm going back to the warm living room now, although I might have to go get a little more firewood.

Early Morning Cold Wednesday

It's 13 degrees right now. As opposed to 16 degrees 30 minutes ago, so I think that just maybe we are in for another cold day! There was snow last night, on top of all the ice. The ice is still there, it just is under snow. Which can be better for driving, but we aren't going anywhere.

The paper wasn't delivered yesterday, which was a good thing since the roads were so bad. They still aren't good, but I can see the paper has been delivered today. It's at the end of the driveway. I'm leaving it there for a while, I figured that it's happy out there so I'm not going to disturb it. Also known as I am in no hurry to get dressed and go out there! It's cold!

Otter and I decided to sleep in the living room last night, since it was nice & warm from having a fire all day. Frasier slept on his blanket at the end of the couch. I was on the couch and Otter was on the loveseat. Maggie was on my feet. I woke up with a heavy, furry object on my feet about 1:00 this morning. I gently put her on the floor and rearranged my blankets, she sat there the entire time and waited patiently. Then when I got my feet covered back up again, she hopped right back up there and settled into the blankets so I let her stay. She is pretty good about not getting up on the furniture now, although it took her a while to learn that lesson. But when Otter sleeps on the couch or loveseat, Maggie usually gets up there with her and we let her stay. She seems to mostly know that she is not allowed up on the furniture unless somebody is sleeping there. She might be curled up with Otter at the moment, we're letting Otter sleep in a little bit so we are in the back part of the house. The last time I saw Frasier, he was curled up on his blanket and I think he's still there. He did at least wag at me, but he was having a lazy moment and I don't blame him a bit.

I'm feeling really housebound.

Icy Tuesday

We have been home all day, the school announced last night that they would be closed today. Otter was happy, she got to sleep in. I didn't, the doggies still think that they should be fed at a regular time so we got up around 5:00 and had coffee. We have mostly been hanging out in front of the fireplace. I did manage to get out and refill my birdfeeders and we brought in some more firewood.

Here are a few shots from today. Not in any particular order. Captions are below the pictures.

This is the swing on my front porch. It's covered with sleet that has blown up onto the porch pretty far. The porch is long and the sleet managed to get pretty far up it.

Front yard, taken from the porch and looking east. It looks like snow, but it's all ice.

One of the many cardinals, there were 12 at one time. Both male and female, several of each.


When we went outside, the birds left but they didn't go far. This georgeous fellow is sitting in the tree above the feeders, waiting for us to get out of his way.

I think this is a type of sparrow or chickadee, I looked it up once but I can't remember. It's small, white belly with a black back, sides and head. Larger than a wren but smaller than a sparrow. We've also had regular sparrows and the sparrow that has side stripes on it's head, as well as woodpeckers, starlings and one very fat squirrel. No sign of the doves today.


Ice hanging off the front of my car. The car looks white in the picture, but it is actually silver.

From the front porch, looking west. That's my car that is beside the Cool Baby/whatever he changes the name to! His impala is behind the El Camino but it's not visible in this picture. It's about as covered in ice as my car. Otter's school has already announced for tomorrow, and I will probably stay home as well. I don't know how long it would take to de-ice my car, but the temperature has never gotten to the mid-20's even and it's been sleeting all day.

One of those birds I can't remember the name of! I was actually taking a picture of the ice on the branch, I didn't even realize that the bird was in the shot until just now. The ice is pretty thick.

The fence in the back yard, the same one the neighbor's dogs come through, with one of the many cardinals sitting on it. He was also waiting for us to move so he could get back to the feeders.

The view from my back deck, Otter was filming with her video camera and Maggie was just standing there. The tree to Otter's right is the one the cardinal was sitting in, and the wooden fence is just to the right of it. The darkish area at the bottom of the feeder is spilled seed. I also threw quite a bit of seed on the ground and put it up on the dining room window sill.

The seed on the ground was not meant for this particular birdbrain! Notice the white stuff on his nose - he'd been nosing in the ice to find more birdseed.

Playtime!

Maggie looks like she is scared, but she was actually playing with Frasier and was about to jump up at him.

They zoomed off into and around the yard after this, they kept jumping back up on the deck and then running around like headless chickens. Eventually, Frasier tired Maggie out and he kept running for a few minutes. Then he ran, full speed, around the yard one more time and then zoomed into their gate. We heard the dog door flap, and he went straight to his blanket where he just collapsed and took a nap. Maggie stayed out for a few more minutes before she followed his lead.

Our paper was never delivered today, which I'm glad about actually. The roads are bad, nobody needs to be out if they don't have to. Bill was over 2 hours getting home yesterday, instead of the usual 20 minutes. His school district is also closed tomorrow, but at this point it is just the schools and not the offices so he might still have to go in. He might take a personal day instead, if they are not closed. They should be closed, but they might not be. Just about all the school districts are closed tomorrow. The library announced it was closed today and so did the big mall, which almost never happens. There have been some isolated power outages, but not anything too big.

As icy as it is here, south of us got a lot worse. The sleet was only supposed to last a couple of hours, according to the news this morning. It's been falling all day and doesn't show any signs of stopping any time soon. It was a good day for chili, so of course I made it for lunch. But then I make it just about any day, it's in my Texan blood I guess!

A Change of Plans

Well, we thought we were going out for our anniversary dinner tonight. However, the weatherman actually got it right (for a change) and it's icy. I stopped at the grocery store on the way in to work this morning and picked up DiGiorno's pizzas just in case. And I'm glad I did, because the winter storm started about 11:30. It was not too bad at first, but it got that way quickly. I had already asked my boss about leaving early if it got bad, I was going to leave about 2:00. At about 1:45, they both called me (they were both gone) to tell me to head on out the door. It took me about 5 minutes to clean the car off enough to drive, mostly just getting the side mirrors cleared of ice. I'm very glad I have the remote start on the car, I could start it from the office and it was nice and warm when I actually managed to get into it.

The roads were just starting to get icy when I left, and I actually managed to stay ahead of it most of the time. I got to school just a few minutes before school let out, and in the 10 or so minutes it took for the bell to ring and Otter to get to the car the weather caught up with me. We stopped at the grocery store around the corner from school - I forgot a couple of things this morning. The store was very busy, lots of people apparently waited until the last minute to stock up. But, like I told Froggy earlier, the Borg Queen is always prepared! By the time we got home, the roads were starting to get icy. The stuff I wanted was not urgent and I would have skipped it if the roads had been worse. But we were nearly out of marshmallows and they are so fun to roast in the fireplace!

The highway Bill normally takes has already been closed. He has a couple of back roads he will take that shouldn't be too bad, although there is one particular bridge that can be a bear. But he is a careful driver, especially in icy weather. It's really more the other drivers that are a concern, some people in this area view icy roads as a challenge and go even faster. The highway was closed because of ice, but part of it had already been shut down because some idiot rear-ended a firetruck that was stopped to help out at an accident. This part of the country is known for it's lack of driving skills.

We let the dogsters in as soon as we got home and they got a treat. Then Frasier curled up on his blanket for a snooze and Maggie went to her, I mean Otter's, bed.

The school district Bill works for has already announced that they are closed tomorrow, and from the way it was worded I think he's also off. I expect Otter's school district to announce but at this point they have not said anything. I'll decide in the morning, we are on the outer edges of our small town and the sand/salt trucks don't usually get to us until very late (if at all).

Maggie said that she might have a blog post next week, it's too cold for her to get her thoughts in order. Or at least that's what it sounded like!

Before I forget, I'd like to wish my blog friend Rhonda a Happy Australia Day! And tomorrow is chocolate cake day, which sounds like a good excuse to me.

Too Early Sunday Morning!

It's about 8:45 now. But it was just before 5:00 when the alarm went off so Bill could get up. The only problem with that is that it also woke me up. I got up and made coffee for Bill, then I went back to bed. He did manage to make himself breakfast at least, before heading to his dad's rent house to work. When I got up again, it was about 7:45 and I started the first of what will be many loads of laundry. As of now, Otter is still in bed and I'm going to let her sleep in for a while. The beagle is right beside her! The dogs were fed when I got up the first time, then Maggie went back to bed as well. She has managed to get herself covered up with one of the quilts Otter has on her bed and she looks very cozy. Frasier is on his blanket, he wagged his tail at me a couple of times as I was on my way to make coffee for myself. But that's as much as he was willing to move, I guess he's going to have a lazy morning. Smart dog!

The reason I asked for prayers on Friday for Bill is that he had a job interview with the school district we live in. It went very well and they seemed to really like him. The problem is that they are probably not going to be able to pay him what he is making now and that is pretty much a necessity for us at this point in time. I think that they would have hired him on the spot, if they could come up with the $$. There is a possibility that they might be able to raise the wage amount up a little, but we don't know for sure. He might not hear from them again just because of the wage issue, but we'll see what happens. But it gave Bill the boost he needed, and he's pretty happy about it.

It is very cold here. It never made it out of the 20's yesterday. Since it was Sabbath, we didn't go anywhere anyway. We kept the fireplace going all day and spent most of the day in the living room where it was nice & warm. The dogs didn't move from their spots too much, although they did go outside a few times - to dig and then get yelled at.

It should be about the same today as yesterday. Tomorrow is when the fun could really start. We have a strong chance of winter weather which could last through about Wednesday. Although the forecasters here don't seem to know what they are doing! However, it's pretty cold so if we do get anything at all falling from the sky it's going to be frozen.

I'm going to run up to Wallyworld later on and get more birdseed, I have 5 seed feeders up at the moment and 2 suet feeders up. I'm nearly out of seed and I am out of suet. I have a few other seed feeders and suet feeders that are not up at the moment, but if the weather gets really bad I will get as many of them up as I can. We've had several cardinals and one woodpecker that keeps coming back. And lots of sparrows, a few doves, some chickadees and millions of those disgusting starlings!

Also, tomorrow is our 24th Wedding Anniversary. (No Froggy, we do NOT count the break in the middle!). The plan is to go to a steak house not too far from where I work, my boss gave us a certificate at Christmas and we haven't used it yet. But it depends on the weather. If it's icy and the road conditions are not good, we'll come home and probably have frozen pizza - how's that for a celebration?! But we'll see tomorrow.

Otter's up! She just came in to see me and is now heading to the kitchen for breakfast. I haven't seen the beagle, but it's a safe bet to say that she's still in bed with the blankets!

One Quick Friday Request

I might post a longer blog this afternoon if I have time, but for now:

4:00 central time, would everyone please remember Bill in prayer?

More details later. Thanks.

Whine Wednesday?

I'm whining because I don't really have anything to say! It's been a busy day and the weather is nice, we could possibly get winter weather including white stuff by Sunday evening into the first few days of next week. So I could gripe about that. But I had to think hard to even come up with that. I'm not looking forward to cold, but we probably need a little more of it. Otherwise, we will have bug problems this summer. We might have them anyway, since we haven't had all that much cold yet.

I have had to treat Frasier's ears twice this week, he acts like he's got another ear infection. Which is a common thing with him. He's so good-natured, he tolerates me rinsing out his ears and never tries to get away or anything. Then he gets his treat, and he's happy. He always comes back to me for affection after that. Maggie gets a treat as well, even though she didn't have to put up with anything unpleasant. Are they spoiled, or what! (Yes).

Any more guesses on Otter's dress? (Hint - it goes well with our Irish heritage).

We watched a funny movie tonight, Moonstruck with Cher and Nicholas Cage. I haven't seen it in years, we forgot how funny it is. It's a good movie, I recommend it highly.

Th-th-that's all, fffolks!

Some Tuesday Stuff to Think About

I have come to the conclusion that there is not a vacuum in the world that can keep up with furry Frasier! I just ran the vacuum through the entire house. I emptied the cannister before I started. And then I realized that the entire house meant the cannister was filled up again when I was finished. And there are a few places I didn't get completely, such as the office and under the beds. Most of it was dog fur, brown in color and long. No wonder the old vacuum croaked! Well, it was old and had been used heavily before we got Frasier but I'm sure that all that dog hair didn't help. Oh well, at least the vacuuming is done for the day. It won't be done again until Thursday or Friday.

Maggie was my helper with the vacuum cleaning. She stayed right beside me the entire time, she would sit or lie down a few feet away from me and she stayed with me in each room. She wasn't wanting to play with the vacuum, and she's never been afraid of it. She just seems to like to watch it. Frasier, on the other hand, was outside and as far as he could get from it! I think he's back inside now, he sometimes will stay in the kitchen until we get through in the living room but today he went outside.

Back to school for Otter today, but Bill is still off through tomorrow. He had Monday as a holiday and he took two vacation days for today and tomorrow. He is still helping his dad at the rent house, although I think they should be winding down pretty soon.

I finally found a shade for my new lamp, the one with the glass piece. The shade is new, Walmart was about the cheapest and also seemed to have the biggest selection. The lamp is in the middle of the sofa table, but I think I'm going to move it to one end.

No photograph of Otter in her dress yet, we didn't have time yesterday and haven't gotten around to it today. Eventually! It's a really nice dress and the perfect color for her red hair.

Also, I don't know if I mentioned this or not but Otter has decided not to go to camp this year. She has been for 4 years, two at one camp the Methodist church sponsors and the last two at the camp the Baptist church sponsors. She's enjoyed it, but she said that she thinks she's done everything she wanted to do and she is getting to the age where most kids stop going. It is up to her, if she wanted to go then she certainly could. But she really wants to get a job next summer.

It's been warm the last couple of days. Warm for January in NE OK, that is. But it could be pretty cold by the weekend. Saturday might find up camped out in front of the fireplace all day. But the nicer weather the last couple of days has got me to thinking about spring. And spring storms. I'm not in a hurry for them, last year was bad enough and I don't want to go through that again (or anything worse).

Bill thinks he's changing the name of the El Camino. Stay tuned for updates, he's got a couple of ideas but nothing is decided yet. But the nose art won't involve an ice cube! (Although it will still most likely involve a nekkid lady).

Futurejedimom, enjoy Disney! I'm sure your critters will make sure you have a good time. And also that you get plenty of excercise. :)

Our Thanks and Gratitude

Thank you, President Bush. For eight years of safety, of knowing that we could sleep soundly at night because the bad guys were being kept away from our borders and that our children were safe. For eight years of protecting the sanctity of life, born and unborn. For eight years of knowing that our leader was a man of honor and was not afraid to acknowledge his faith. And courage. And strength. And Texas Pride. Our prayers are with you and your family as we all go into the next phase of our nation's history.

Sunday Shopping Sucess!

We have a prom dress! Otter and I went to J. C. Penney's this afternoon in search of a dress for the prom, excuse me Spring Formal! They had several, she found 4 to try on and she picked one of them. The first one she tried on was a long formal, with rhinestone straps and a train-style skirt. It was a very pretty dress. But it was backless, which she thought might be just a little bit past the dress code. The school relaxes the dress code slightly for the prom, but only slightly. It was a good color for her, sapphire blue, and it looked good on her although the train could have been a problem. She tried on two short formals next, one was sapphire blue with a black "cummerbund" middle and was pretty, but it was a balloon-style skirt and didn't look like it was constructed quite like it should have been but it could also have been tried on roughly before and maybe a stitch or two pulled out. It was strapless with a corset-style back. The next one she tried on was also a strapless, short formal and was black with a white area on the skirt, the skirt was full with a layered effect which is where the white area was. It was nice and looked really good on her. She had one more to try on, it was a long formal with spaghetti straps. It was green, more of a grass green than emerald green. It had a spangled sequin-ish area at the high waist and hung in small pleats to the floor. She seriously considered this one as well. Well, I guess you could say she seriously considered all for of them! There were several other styles & colors, but these are the four she liked the best.

So, which one did she pick? (Froggy, I've already told you, if you'll check your text messages today). J. C. Penney's had all their formal dresses on sale, so the $90.00 dress wound up costing us $69.00 plus tax. It was a good buy. And Bill likes it, which is always a good thing.

She's decided to wear her shoes from last year, since the school won't allow most shoes and they have to be barefoot. We went to another store and she found a necklace and earring set. She's not sure yet about her hair, but she has a little time to figure that one out.

Maggie was acting really strangely yesterday. Otter put a few rawhide chips in the dog's toy basket and Maggie pulled one out. Frasier was not interested in it at that point in time, I was sitting with him on the other side of the room scratching his ears and spoiling him. Maggie suddenly ran and jumped up at him and I think she tried to bite him. I pulled her away and told her NO as loud as I could, then the little brat did it again but she snapped at him a couple of times this time. At which point Otter grabbed her by the collar and put her out in their small yard. Frasier never reacted, he never even growled at her (although she did at him), and he never even bared his teeth at her. Otter gave Maggie her rawhide and then we let Frasier go out into the back yard with a rawhide. Then we gathered up the rawhide chips from their basket and I put them away. Later, I went out and opened up the gate to their small yard. They acted like best buddies and chased each other around the yard. Maggie has never shown any signs of aggression before this, and Frasier was definitely not trying to take her treat outside - he was on the opposite side of the room and had zero interest in the rawhide. She seems to be in a good mood today, but we are going to watch her the next time they get rawhide. In fact, they will probably not even be allowed to be in the same room with each other when they get them the next time.

Otter rented the movie Sleepy Hollow yesterday. I didn't realize that she'd never seen it before. She enjoyed it. But then it had Johnny Depp, so she pretty much was guaranteed to like it. It's a good movie, I saw it years ago and enjoyed it.

I made soup in the crock pot. I started it last night, then let it cook all night and part of this morning. We had it for lunch and dinner today and will have it for the next couple of days. It's good and I enjoy making it. I don't make it too often, though. I also think my crock pot might be going out. It didn't seem to be as warm when I checked the soup after the first hour on high. I've had the crock pot since right after we moved to Tulsa, the one I had before that wore out because I used it so much. I have certainly gotten a lot of use out of this one, I just haven't used it much lately. But it is something that I will replace, and I'll get another large one like the one I have now.

So, any guesses on the dress yet?

Some Thoughts on a Cold Friday

It's still pretty cold, but not nearly as raw and bitter as yesterday was. It might get up to about freezing, but probably not over. But the sun is shining and the wind is very light. It was 16 degrees at 6:00 this morning.

However, I'm still having to deal with my asthma as a result of yesterday so I decided to stay home today. I did have to take Otter to school, we didn't want her to stand outside in it waiting for the bus this morning but that was a short trip. I also went to the post office later to mail something, but again that was a quick trip and I didn't have to be out much.

As far as wearing jeans goes, I decided to only wear dresses and skirts to work and church and I am going to try to stick with that. I have occasionally worn my jeans to work, such as the day I wanted to clean up the atrium in the office. But I might not wear them the next time. I have several heavy weight skirts that are actually pretty warm, the problem yesterday was that I had to be out in the weather a lot which is not normally what happens. Then I had several errands after work, which only compounded the problem. I'm very glad I have a good heater in the car, I just had to get in and out of it a lot of times.

Among other things, my boss had someone move out from one of his rent houses and they left a bunch of stuff behind. Like lots of clothing, quite a bit of their kitchen stuff and some furniture. This is not the same one I got the vacuum from, this is another one. He gave them until a certain date to get their stuff out before he had it hauled off, but they said that they didn't want anything else and he could do what he wanted with it. So I went over there with him yesterday. And left with a trunk full of canned food, 3 bottles of champagne, some assorted kitchen ware and a very good size wooden jewelry amoire - which still contained a lot of jewelry. Most of it is costume, but good quality costume. There are several rings that are the real thing and a few watches I might put on eBay. Otter has already scored one necklace and she'll go through it tonight. I'm sure she'll find several other things she wants. The amoire is pretty big, I'm not sure exactly where I'll put it. But I'll find a place! I found a place for all the canned food, that wasn't a problem. I just had to rearrange my pantry a little bit.

I left the dogs inside both times when I was gone this morning. Tempting fate, I know, but they did fine. Maggie probably slept the entire time, curled up on Otter's bed where she was when we left to take Otter to school. Frasier was parked on his blanket when we left, when I came back he was still there but he looked worried and then extremely glad to see me. Not like he was guilty, just like he was glad I was home. I think maybe he just didn't know where I was and he is very much a mamma's boy. When I got back the second time, they both greeted me at the door and then they went back to their naps.

Yes, Froggy. We will look for shoes on Sunday. That's kind of a requirement for us, we look for shoes in just about every store we happen to be in. And Sunday will be no different, don't worry. :) But the dress is our main focus, along with jewelry if we do find her a dress. However, since we are starting out at Penney's at the mall, I'm sure I can talk her into going to the shoe store as well. Shouldn't be too hard at all. Imagine that, a teenage girl who loves shoe shopping! What is the world coming to? :)

Baby, It's Cold Outside!

Like really cold. As in we barely made it into the 20's, and it's the very low 20's at that. We could get as low as 6 degrees tonight. It's so cold that just going from the front door to the car is a problem for me, since I have cold-induced asthma. I've had to be outside a lot more than I wanted to today, and I am paying for it now. Froggy suggested I wear a mask when I'm outside, but they don't fit right because of where they hit on the bridge of my nose. I broke it several years ago. I have a very warm coat, so glad I bought it, lots of gloves and a nice, long scarf I made - Otter calls it my Dr. Who scarf. But I'm really regretting my dress/skirt only decision as far as work clothing! I have tights & hose, and socks as well as several pairs of boots. But this is the bitter cold that gets past all that. I don't like it! Yes, Froggy - I can already hear Dad. He usually recited his "move back home to TEXAS where you belong" speech in the spring time, but winter weather could occasionally get the speech. Although when it was snowing here, he usually said I was lucky.

We had snow this morning, but the wind blew it all away. So now it it just cold, but it doesn't really look like it. It's miserable outside. Frasier and Maggie were probably curled up in the garage all day, they didn't feel cold when I got home. But Maggie was absolutely crazed, when she saw me coming into the garage. She was manic. I let them in immediately and they have been inside ever since. Frasier is curled up at my feet and Maggie is probably back on Otter's bed, she is getting pretty good at arranging the blankets to where she gets covered up.

One other side-effect of the cold, dry weather. Lizard skin! I probably should buy stock in a company that makes lotion or chapstick. I seem to be using a lot of it lately.

On a lighter note, Otter and I are going prom dress shopping Sunday afternoon. I called around, a couple of places said that they only have a few but they do have them. Penney's said that they actually have quite a few, so we are going there first. Then, depending on our luck there, most likely to Otter's favorite jewelry & accessory store to use up her gift card on jewelry, etc. to go with the dress. Shoes aren't a big problem, since they have to take them off at the dance anyway. She's got several pairs of dressy shoes but I'm sure she won't mind if she "has" to go shop for more! She's her mother's daughter, after all. :)

Cold!

It's too cold for this Texan! It's supposed to get to 10 degrees tonight. It might even get as high as 12 degrees, according to the meterologist I heard on the news tonight. Don't know where he got his education, but the last time I checked 12 degrees was not warm! It was supposed to be in the low 50's today, but I don't think it got there. The cold front started coming through about 3 hours early, but that is about normal. We are not really supposed to get anything wet, white or frozen. Just very cold. Let me back up a bit, there is a very slight chance of possibly getting a dusting of snow tonight. But since it was the local forecaster, we will either have a real heat wave or 3 feet of snow! Either way, I'm getting the blankets out tonight! Think it's time to get that quilt that Bill made last year, the camo one that is super warm. And then if he's lucky, I'll let him have some of it. (Bill steals the covers, so I always have to have my own extra blanket in self-defense).

I've been thinking about angels. My friend Jan had a wonderful post on her blog about her father's encounter with an angel when he was in the hospital (twice, same angel) and it got me to thinking about them. Froggy, I know you've had a situation where you thought you were surrounded - when Mom was in the ICU the time I came to visit and she got sick. Anybody got any stories? I very much believe in angels and I think that we all have a guardian angel who looks over us. (Incidentally, the blanket I've been using lately is what Sweetie gave me for Christmas - it has two angels on it and it's very warm).

Jan asked about Frasier finding Maggie's chip. I don't think he ever did, and she ate it happily. His chip went outside, where it might still be if he didn't eat it. I took both hounds with me when I went to get Otter from play tryouts. I think one of them wanted a name change - to RALPH. Other than that, they enjoyed getting a ride in the car although Maggie was really antsy when the car stopped and her Otter was slow getting to it. They know the word "ride" in connection with their names means that they are going somewhere. Usually, it's to the vet. But they still like to go for a ride.

I have not felt the best today. I didn't sleep well last night, mostly because my allergies were acting up I think. I've been having cold-type symptoms trying to come on all day and my asthma is reminding me that it's still there. But I'm going to try to fight it off, whatever it is. We had chili for dinner tonight, and even though I know it was very hot because I made it and know how much chili powder I put in it, I still could hardly taste the heat. Which sometimes happens, my taste buds not working right when I have cold/allergy symptoms.

Froggy - you asked me why I was blaming you for Otter getting after me to blog daily. You have told me more than once that you like to read my blogs daily and that I need to post that often! So there. :)

My same prayer requests are still being requested. I was wrong about the date of Sarah's death, I thought it was the 15th but it's the 16th. Either way, prayers for her family (as well as the others I mentioned) will still be welcomed.

I hear the chocolate I put in the freezer earlier. It's calling my name. And it's getting louder. So I'm going to go answer it.

Some Miscellaneous Tuesday Stuff

It's Tuesday. Boring day, Wednesday at least can say it's half way between Monday and Friday. Thursday is still called Baby Friday. But Tuesday, Tuesday doesn't have anything going for it.

Maggie's latest rawhide chip adventures include hiding her chip on Otter's bed, pulling Otter's quilt over it so it's totally hidden from view and then pulling her own blanket on top of that! I guess she's taking no chances, and with her big brother Frasier roaming around looking for it I have to say I agree with her. Frasier took his chip outside, then he came in looking for hers. She was carrying it around for a while, she gave it to Otter and to me at one point, then she took it into Otter's room and hid it on the bed. Of course, both dogs were haunting the kitchen while I was fixing dinner. They were pretending to be starved, but they didn't fool us. Otter gave them each a tiny bite of rice and a little bit of chicken fat. But they could have done without it and not been any worse off. Spoiled piggies! :)

Winter might be back. At least winter temperatures. It's supposed to be in the 50's tomorrow, then mid- to late afternoon it is supposed to start getting colder. Really cold. Possibly with snow, although not much is expected. So I went to the grocery store today, which means that I'm prepared for bad weather so we will of course have good weather. Well, if that happens then at least I won't have to deal with the grocery store later in the week because it will already be done.

Think good thoughts for Otter tomorrow and Thursday. Play tryouts at school are after school both days, and the students that are trying out have to be there the entire time and on both days. The drama teacher has already warned them that there are very few roles for girls in this play, but Otter is still going to try out. Even if she doesn't get a role, she will have to do something with the play as part of the drama class requirements.

Otter was complaining because I hadn't blogged tonight, I guess Froggy's influence is showing up. There, I've blogged. Now I'm going to go play on the internet for a while.

My Turn Monday

Maggie can wait until next Monday to blog! She's probably more interested in a nap anyway, the last time I saw her she was curled up in the middle of Otter's bed having a snooze. Which is pretty much her normal position anyway! :) The reason Otter was yelling at her yesterday evening is because the dog was trying to drag stuff out from under Otter's bed. She'd already eaten her rawhide chip, so there is no telling what she was after. Otter doesn't have a lot of stuff under her bed, but it's big things like her typewriter and not really anything the silly dog would have any interest in. Unless we have another mouse, which is always a possibility. I don't think so, I have not seen any signs of one but you never know.

I checked with the school office today, the Spring Formal is in February. Which seems way early to me, but apparently they normally have it around Valentine's Day and last year's end of March was just later than normal. So we are going to go dress shopping pretty quick. Maybe Wednesday or Thursday after work/school, or we might wait until Sunday afternoon because we would have more time and not have to be rushed. We are hoping that we will be able to find a dress at a "regular" store, since the consignment didn't have much to choose from in Otter's size. It's still early for prom season, but I'm thinking we will be able to find something.

It was a typical Monday at work. I got very little done, because both of my bosses were in early and they kept having emergencies for me to deal with. None were really emergencies, but they were like a couple of kids that needed Mom to come straighten things out! I was very glad to see 2:30 roll around today so I could leave. Bill and I were able to meet for lunch today, we had Schlotzky's, so it wasn't all wild and crazy today.

Among other things we discussed at lunch, we are planning a Texas trip this summer. We are thinking the last week in June which leads up to July 4, but it's not written in stone yet - Bill still has to get the vacation days approved at work. My vacation is already approved, but I can also be a lot more flexible than he can. However, that is the plan for now.

I have several prayer requests. 1) My friend Virginia - the 1st anniversary of her daughter Sara's death is this Thursday, January 15. They are having a very hard time dealing with the loss of their daughter, they have legal custody of their grandchildren now but their son-in-law has still basically abandoned the kids, and now the first anniversary is coming up. 2) My friend Jan also needs prayers as her father is very ill and is hospitalized. 3) Froggy has a prayer concern which I might address later but I forgot to ask her about putting it on here, so for right now it's a general concern but a very important one.

I think that's all for today!

Sunday Randomness

Is Randomness even a word? I don't know, but it works. So there! :)

Maggie Beagle managed to hide her rawhide chip from Frasier. I don't know where she hid it, but she brought it out of Otter's room this afternoon. Then she carried it around for a while. When Frasier came in, he circled her like the way a buzzard circles food on the ground. The whole time, Maggie was turning away from him so that he could not get her chip. He went outside finally, and she promptly parked her furry little behind down in the sun and ate the rawhide. She was very happy with herself, but Frasier is still coming in and going right back outside. Although since Otter opened their gate and they can get into the rest of the yard, he might stay outside for a while.

It's nice today, sunny and cool. It was very cold this morning, we went to BRAUM'S in case you are interested Froggy. Then we went over to Grandpa's rent house and pulled carpet tacks up out of the floor so that the new carpet can be installed in the next few days. As Otter says, OH JOY! But it wasn't nearly as bad as our rent house, and it was just one room and the hallway.

Otter and I decided to go to Goodwill, but we didn't find anything. We did try, however. I tried on two blouses that are the size I've been wearing for a while. But I didn't buy either one of them. They didn't fit. In a good way, they were both TOO BIG!!!! Happy, Happy. We also decided to go do a little dress shopping for Otter, as the Prom (oh excuse me, the Formal) is at the end of February. The problem with the dance being so early is that most formal dresses are not really on sale or even in the stores until a little later on. We went back to the consignment store where we found her dress last year and she tried on 3 or 4. There was one that she would have bought but it was a size too small. It was a very pretty shade of blue, what I would call sapphire. Strapless & long, just a beautiful dress. That is probably what she will be looking for, the next time we go. There was another one she really liked but it was red and was a major clash with the hair - however, it was one of those very expensive "gotta try on" dresses. Strapless, very VERY full skirt with a train and it was a nice dress, once we got past the color. But it was not her size, either. We looked at another consignment store, but they didn't have too many. I'm thinking that possibly one day this week I'll pick her up after school and we'll go look, and maybe next Sunday as well. One of her friends wants to go with us, we'll see if we can arrange that.

We've been cleaning this afternoon. Otter wasn't particularly pleased, but it still needed to be done. We also made cookies, so it wasn't all work this afternoon. At the moment, my second load of laundry is in the washer. It's the dog blankets, so Frasier will probably be unhappy with me for a while - I don't think he likes the fact that his blanket gets washed, it probably doesn't smell right to him for a few days.

I just heard Otter yell "MARGARET!" I wonder what Maggie's up to now? There is no telling, with that fat little sausage we call a beagle. And on that note, I'd better go check on Frasier. They were digging up a storm yesterday and he's been outside for a very long time!

Saturday Update

I was going to blog yesterday (Friday) afternoon, but there wasn't enough time before sunset. Froggy emailed me wanting to know how the kid is doing, and Otter is much better. She went back to school yesterday.

I called the doctor's office on Friday to ask about discontinuing the claritan, since it doesn't seem to be doing anything at all. Which is when I found out that she's on cingular, I was calling it the wrong name. I explained to the nurse that she wasn't any better but that she wasn't any worse, either. We just don't see any improvement at all and since it isn't changing, we were wondering if she still needed to take the medication. The nurse was nice and chatty, she said she'd get back with me after she spoke with the doctor. I don't know what happened in the meantime, but she got back with me all right. And she was snippy! She said that the doctor ok'd discontinuing the medication, and that he wants to see her next week for another exam and pulmonary function test - neither of which are necessary at this point as a) she just had it in December, b) she is scheduled for another in March and c) she's not worse - just not better. I was polite. Then the nurse got even snippier. At which time, I put my horns out and got snippy back with her. It was way too reminiscent of when we had the original diagnoses of asthma when Otter was 2 1/2 and the (different) doctor treated me like I was making it up. At any rate, I don't think it's necessary for her to go back in at this point. But she's off the cingular and we'll keep doing what we have been doing. One thing that did concern me - the nurse said the doctor wants her to start using her daily inhaler twice a day - once in the morning and once at night. Which he told us in December. But he apparently didn't write it down, and the nurse pretty obviously did not believe me when I told her that the doctor had already told me that. It makes me wonder - what else did he not put in her file? Because the nurse didn't seem to think that we had been in there just over a month ago. I guess we'll see what happens in March.

I think I must be getting old. We watched a Cheech & Chong movie today, their first one. And it wasn't even funny. I was actually pretty bored. Bill, however, laughed his head off. So maybe it's just me? They used to be so funny, but now...

Otter gave the dogs some of their rawhide chips. She put a handful in the basket that their toys are in. Magginator found one, dropped it and then got another one out. Then she chewed on it for a while. After that, she decided she needed to hide it. I was sitting on the couch with a blanket, Magginator put the chip on the edge of the blanket and then she tried to dig her way through it. I stopped her, she pushed the chip further up on the blanket and then proceeded to push the edges of the blanket over the chip. Then she apparently decided that it wasn't covered enough, because she reached the part of the blanket that was over my feet and yanked it back over the chip. Then when she was satisfied, she looked at me and wagged her tail before wandering off. I left it covered up, she worked so hard on it. I got up and went to the kitchen to start making pizza and Otter reported that the dog was trying to take the chip to another place, possibly she was going to put it back in their basket - she was trying to carry the entire blanket in her mouth! Talk about silly. While all this was going on, Frasier had already taken the other rawhide chips out of their basket and they are now outside.

Do we have silly dogs, or what?

Otter's Playing the Game

She didn't want to and we didn't want her to, but it's time for the next round of the Asthma Game. She woke up with lung tightness and a sore throat, so I sent her back to bed. Maggie went back to bed, too, after eating. Lazy dog! Otter will probably sleep for a while and I'm going to let her. I checked on her a few minutes ago, Maggie is snuggled up as close to her Otter as she can get!

Since I'm home today, I'm cleaning. I clean frequently anyway, but when I'm home like this I try to get the big things done. I have cleaned the stove and the dishwasher should be through, I'm going to vacuum the living room again - we had peanuts last night and there are shell pieces that refuse to get into the trash can! I'm also going to do laundry and see what I can do with the kitchen floor. It's not bad, mostly it needs to be swept because the dogs refuse to wipe their feet before they come inside. :)

I told Bill that the Redecorating Bug wanted to see what it could do in our bedroom. He told me to go take a cold shower! I am trying very hard to fight off the urge, I really am. I don't know how sucessful I'll be, I thought I had the urge pretty well chased off but now it's back. It's stubborn, that's for sure.

Bill took the El Camino to work today. He's going to a small town about 45 minutes away to look at a camper-type shell. There aren't too many shells available, we could have one custom-made but that would be very pricey. This one was on Craigslist, and it looks pretty good for a used one. Bill's thinking that a shell would protect the bed of the truck part, and I have to say I agree with him. The red El Camino bed was rusting out pretty bad in places before he sold it, so we think it's a good idea to keep this one covered. The problem with classic cars is that there are not a lot of places to get parts when things break. Tires & batteries, those kind of things are easy. But the working parts can be very hard to find. Hence the parts car, the Redneck car in the back yard!

Let's All Think Good Thoughts, Please!

Because I seriously suspect that Otter is about to start playing the Asthma Game. She's had a stuffy nose off and on the last couple of days, but it's only been her nose and not her lungs. We took the poochies for a walk this afternoon, as we came in the door she said her lungs were feeling tickly which is never a good sign. She also said she needed her inhaler, so she used it and that promptly gave her the shakes. Which is a frequent side effect. It also made her feel a little dizzy, but that could also be part of the asthma symptoms. It's not windy and there is nothing blooming, so the walk probably didn't cause anything.

I ran the vacuum in the living room, then I sent her to her room so I could take the thing apart and unclog it. It's a new to me but used vacuum, I got it today for $10.00 and it is a pretty pricey Bissel bagless model. My younger boss had a tenant move out a few months ago that left all sorts of things behind, now he's disposing of all the stuff. So he sold me the vacuum. It was pretty clogged, so I sent Otter out of the living room while I created a dust cloud! There was a lot of hair, general dust, just crud that I pulled out of the new one. But I don't think it bothered her, she was already in her room by that point. She stayed in her room for a long time, then she decided to take a warm shower. The warm steam usually helps her; I'm the opposite - warm steam makes my asthma worse.

I'll have to watch how she does this evening. Her symptoms this afternoon are not severe, but she has all the indications of a flare coming on and if it worsens, it could really worsen. I think I'll strongly suggest chicken noodle soup tonight, Mom always told me it could cure just about anything. :)

I am also thinking that I'm going to call her allergist tomorrow. She's been on the claritan for a few weeks now, and it doesn't seem to be making a difference. She is back to her excercise program and still getting out of breath and wheezy. It costs us a little over $80.00 for a 30 day supply of the medication, which is about 50 % of what it would cost if we didn't have a prescription discount with our health insurance. Since it doesn't seem to be working, I'd prefer not to have to spend that much - if it worked, it would be a different story. I know that some drugs can take time to build up in the body and this may be one of them. But it's been several weeks and I'm not seeing any improvement at all. So I think it's worth a call to the allergist. She sees him again in March, anyway. It's possible he'll tell me to keep her on it until then.

I think I'm going to be very happy with the new vacuum, the old one was about 14 years old and had been used a lot - A LOT. Because of the dust allergy Otter has, I have to vacuum pretty often. Everywhere! And having a long-haired fluffy fuzzball (also known as Frasier) in the house, the vacuum generally would get clogged up within just a couple of days so it's been taken apart and roto-rootered many times. But it's been acting up lately, Bill looked at it and the Official Engineer's Opinion is that it is on it's last legs. I'd been looking at Dyson vacuums, they are not cheap but they are very good and a good vacuum is a must for us. The one I got today isn't quite a Dyson, but it is a very good model and I think it will work out just perfectly. Besides, it was only $10.00!

I'm not sure, but I think the redecorating Bug has agreed to stay away from my bedroom. At least for now! Besides, the Bug is still busy with the kitchen. It will be busy for a while. We are possibly going back to the flea market Sunday - Froggy, we'll start with the booth that the older lady has with the funny discounts. I'm thinking that I might find a few things there for my vintage kitchen decor, there were several things I liked last time but I wasn't sure if they would fit or if I had too much already. Turns out, I don't have enough! So I'm going to see what I can do about fixing that situation. Come on Yard Sale Season!

I've Caught a Bug

It's a bad bug. It's called the Redecorating Bug. And I don't think it's going to be content to just stay in the kitchen. I think it wants to go see what it can do in my bedroom. It's been here since the summer. I know I just redid the bathroom, and it matches the palm trees in the bedroom. I like palm trees. But it's been at least 6 years and I don't know how long I can fight it off! Help! It's got me!

I've just refilled all my bird feeders and put up another one, outside the kitchen window. It's really cold outside and my fingers are frozen. It's very difficult to type with frozen fingers! But the dogs are happy, they are hoovering up any seed that is on the ground. Which is a lot, since I deliberately tossed quite a bit of it to the ground since we have so many birds that prefer to eat off of the ground. I discovered something when I picked up my new bag of birdseed. It had a hole in it. A hole that was just about mouse tall! And there was quite a bit of seed that was strewn around the bag where it was sitting - before I picked it up. We did have a mouse in the house after all last week. Notice I said did as in past tense, it had a meeting with a trap. Which was baited with peanut butter and bird seed. Maybe the hole in the birdseed bag was payback?

Well, Otter is complaining that she's hungry. So I guess I'd better go feed her. I'm making creamed chicken which will be served over rice. Hmmm, I think I'm getting hungry, too! :)

It's Maggie Monday!

Woof!

Mommmmm's home! She was gone all day today, and weee were locked out of the house. That's not verrry fair. But Mommmmmm's home from wherever that big yellow carr takes her. I think my Mommmm likes me, she said she does. She said I have a warmmm belly. So I let her give me a belly rubbbb, I think she likes that. I want my Mommmm to beee happy! I always stand at the door I can see through and wait for her, when I hear the big yellow carr go by I know that she is going to come to the door. Sometimes I waggg my tail so harddd that I can't stand up and I fall over.

Big brrrotherr Frasierrr is being stupiddd again. He keeps taking all the toys and chew stuff outside. I don't know why heee keeps doing that, but I have to go out and get it all. Then he takes it all back out again. I wish he'd stoppp!

My Mommmm says I'm a mooovie starrr. I don't know what that means, but I think it might be something gooooood. Do you think it means that I'll get more treats? I hope so, because that would be verrry goooood.

A Few Thoughts on a Cold Sunday

I'm surprised it's cold. We have a cord of firewood, so it should be unseasonably warm. But it seems to be back to winter, at least temperature wise. The trees are a little confused, some of them are budding. It's sunny and looks warm. But it's actually very cold. No wind, but the air is still at that temperature that my asthmatic lungs do not like. So I try not to stay out too long. It's in the 30's, but not very high. Maybe 35, but that's not saying a lot.

Although I did venture out to the back yard just now. There were a few holes I wanted to try to fill in, holes that weren't there yesterday morning but just suddenly appeared. One big one was the one Otter informed me about that was by the rock garden. It's as filled in as I could get it, but there is still a sunken area. The mole activity has been really strong lately, the dogs are tracking them. I understand that it is their instinct. I just wish that they would give in to their instinct elsewhere!

Froggy, we enjoyed Braum's. This will probably be the last time we'll eat there for a while. We've been helping Grandpa at one of his rent houses, and Braum's opens at 6:00 so we've been having breakfast there about once a week for the last few weeks. It's been a fun break and the food is always good. But it's back to being good for me now, well tomorrow anyway. We still have a dozen tamales in the freezer that we'll eat tonight and I think I'll open a can of chili to go with it. But then tomorrow I will probably be back to my rabbit food.

Rabbit food with my necessary adjustments, that is. Some people without gallbladders can eat just about anything. However, I'm not one of them. I have to be very careful with fat, obviously. But I also can't eat broccoli or mushrooms, both of which I absolutely love. I can have very small amounts of mushrooms if I don't eat them too often. Broccoli is one that I have to really watch out for.

While I was out in the yard, Otter was attempting to get some excercise. She has been taking a break from excercising so we could give her body time to adjust to the claritan. She got out of breath pretty fast, but she didn't wheeze. However, it was very cold and that might have been part of the problem she had. She came back inside and did a few more moves, but she had a beagle that was helping her so she didn't get too much done! She's going to start working out again on a daily basis, and we'll see what happens. But the cold has not been one of her triggers, so the fact that she got out of breath so quickly today might have been the problem she's been having. But she didn't wheeze, so maybe the claritan is helping - or maybe she didn't wheeze because she didn't work out very long. We'll be able to tell fairly quickly, once she starts her daily excercise - which will be tomorrow.

We went to a thrift store this afternoon. Froggy, the one where you got the bag of stuff you bought for Otter and I also think it's the one where she got her Batman shirt when you were here, it's the one where you found me the stuffed Bevo. We didn't find any thing today, but it was fun to go look. We decided against the flea market today. It was so cold that the outside stuff probably wouldn't have been set up, and since we were just there last Sunday we decided to give our favorite vendors time to get new stuff in. Maybe next Sunday. So my kitchen will probably have to wait a while before I find anything new/old to put in it.

But now it's time to get back to my laundry. I don't mind most housework chores, but I really do not like laundry!

It's Curtains!

I got my kitchen curtains made today. They turned out pretty well. They were very easy to make and I think they look great.

This is a close-up of the pattern.

The pattern from a little further away. There is a line down the fabric in one spot, but it's older fabric and I think it's in very good shape. I think it looks good with the existing wallpaper in the kitchen, also.

The kitchen window with the curtains. You can see some of my sun catchers and the Venus Flytraps, as well as assorted stuff I have in my window such as my pie bird and some small things Otter gave me/made for me when she was younger. Also visible to the sides are two of my vintage decorations - tongs on the wallpaper side and if you look hard enough, I have a vintage potato masher on the cabinet side. The tong is probably in it's final place, but the potato masher might move. I have a few things that I've put up as part of my vintage decorations, but not very many yet. They are just stuck up wherever there was a nail already, but I'm not anywhere near finished so no other pictures of the kitchen walls yet. I have some stuff to do tomorrow, but if I have time I am going to a thrift store I haven't been to in a while and maybe back to the flea market.

It was 75 degrees today. In January. In NE Oklahoma. I could understand if it was south TEXAS. But NE OK? I know what happened. We had firewood delivered yesterday. We were out of wood, and the forecast was for winter weather early next week. We got wood delivered and now the forecast is much better. I guess we shouldn't be surprised! Anyway, we got a cord of wood (2 ricks) so we should be set for quite a while. We usually just get one rick, but the guy made us a very good deal even including his delivery charge so we bought 2 ricks.

Otter had been thinking of buying one of two things: She wanted a Wii (game) or a video camera. She's talked about them both for a long time. She's been working for her grandpa and saving her allowance. With her Christmas cash & gift cards added to what she already had, she had enough and we went on a pricing trip. She decided on the video camera, which we think was the better choice. After Incredible Pizza on Thursday, Bill went to Wallyworld with her and they picked out the best one she could afford. She got it Friday and she's been playing with it ever since. We attempted to upload a Maggie video, but it didn't work. We are going to read Blogger's instructions and see what we have to do to add a video. So check back, eventually we'll figure it out and have a Maggie Cam.

I experimented today. I made chocolate bread. Actually, carob bread since we don't use chocolate chips due to Otter's allergy. It baked ok, but I'm not impressed. It is the right color, but the flavor is so weak that it almost tastes like plain white bread. My bread maker has different recipes, the carrot bread is good and Bill likes the banana bread - although I don't. The pizza dough is good, white bread, honey whole wheat, raisin bread are all good. We'll eat the carob bread, but I don't think I'll make it again. I don't think it was because we used carob instead of chocolate.

Froggy, in case you are interested - we are going to BRAUM'S for breakfast tomorrow. Then we probably won't go for a very long time, it's the last day before we go back to work so it's back to the "real world" for us after tomorrow.

It's Fabulous Fraiser Friday!

I'm Frasier and I'm fabulous. Friday is ok, too.

Somebody please go tell Maggie's mommmm that she's got the wrong idea. Mommmm and Maggie's mommm came home from somewhere, wherever they go when they get bags and bags of stuff and then don't let us get into the bags. Maggie's mommm has a new toy she brought home, I don't know exactly what it is but she keeps saying that Maggie will be a mooovie starrr. But Maggie's not the starrr of the family. I am. The sooner she figurres that out, the betterrr. Maggie's an ok little sister, but I'm Frasier after all. I mean, really.

The people locked us inside the house again today. I could hear them outside, and there was somebody else I don't know. They wouldn't let me out to protect them from this other person. But when they did let me out, there was a big pile of chewing stuff. They called it wooooodd. It's blocking the hole in the fence that the next door dog came through, so I guess it's ok. But I liked it better when they had it in another part of the big yard because I could climb over the fence that way. That was before the fence started biting me.

But Maggie's mommm said that Maggie is going to be in trouble, there are more holes near the tree that my mommm and daddd planted in the big yard. My mommm was not happy. Of course, it's all Maggie's fault. All the really bad stuff that happens always is. I'm a gooood boy and I never do anything baddd.

A Few Thoughts for the New Year

It's 2009! I guess I should be excited about that. But honestly, 2008 was such a good year for us after a series of not-so-good years that we were not in a hurry to see it end. There were no major illnesses, nobody was hospitalized, no injuries (this means Bill mostly), the bills were paid and we had plenty of food on the table as well as a roof over our heads. We added three (yes, three) vehicles - I'm counting the parts car. Nobody got fired from their job. We had very few things to complain about last year.

I am about as un-superstitious as a person can be. My mom, on the other hand, was fairly superstitious. I have lots of memories of her tossing salt over her shoulder after she'd spilled it. Once, I opened an umbrella inside the house and she was pretty alarmed. I learned pretty early on that I could get her going very easily - generally by walking under a ladder. Maybe that's why I'm not superstitious at all. That extends to making resolutions for the New Year. Mom actually used to call them reVolutions, I don't think she ever realized that she had the wrong word but it was part of her charm. She also believed that how you ended one year is how you started the next year. So I generally clean house on Dec. 31st, I like to start the year with a clean house. :)

So I don't make resolutions. I have a few general goals for the year, like I always do. But they are not written in stone and are subject to change. Although I'd really like to schedule one for Bill - clean out the garage! At least enough to a) put the El Camino inside and b) keep my craft area and Otter's craft area clean continually. I'm working on him, but I'm not holding my breath! :)

Also, he thinks he's finally decided on a name for the El Camino. We don't really name cars, but when we had the red El Camino and Otter was pretty young, we bought him a decorative license plate for it. "Wild Bill" was what the plate said, but in Otter's then very young mind the car was actually named Wild Bill. So it's more of a joke than serious.

We had a boat for a while (there is a point to this, so keep reading). The boat was named Cool Baby, after Otter learning the thumb's up sign and saying "Cool Baby" back to her daddy when he called her that for doing something funny. We didn't have the boat for very long, but it did get named - did you ever hear of a boat that wasn't named? It was called, what else, Cool Baby.

But instead of a decorative license plate, although we might still get him one, he's thinking of something else.

I'm about to derail again, but it's still part of the same story so keep reading. Bill is a big history buff (we all are), WWII is his main area of interest. He's long been fascinated with the planes of that era and he has a collection of photographs - most of which he's taken, of assorted planes and the wonderful nose art they have. While we had the boat, he was toying of getting it painted with it's own version of nose art. Remember the picture of (I think) Betty Grable, where she's standing with her back to the camera and is looking over her shoulder smiling? Picture a girl sitting on an ice cube instead of standing, looking over her shoulder with a mysterious smile. That is what he wanted. And that is what he's seriously considering doing to the El Camino. The girl on the ice cube is the Cool Baby (ice = cool), although in Bill's version she's not exactly dressed. I'm not sure if he would have her in a swimsuit or not, a naked lady painted on the front side of his car might just be a tempting target for somebody with a spray can or to scratch!

So the car is probably going to be called:

Cool Baby!

See, there was a point to all that! Aren't you glad you kept reading?

January 1, 2009

Ottermom says Happy New Year to Everyone!