rising temps

today i:

• dusted, cleaned and rearranged the built-in bookshelf in our living room
• listed thirteen books on paperbackswap.com
• cleaned windowsills and moved some house plants around
• cleaned the inside of the refrigerator
• washed dishes
• sewed a little cushion for a small doll bed I got for the nieces to play with when they're here (I had to do this twice because I didn't get the measurements right on the first try)
• rearranged a closet so I could store my sewing machine in it
• got distracted and looked through photo albums also stored in that closet
• decided to cut my hair short and highlight it again because I really like my hair in all the pictures circa 2007
• noticed the air conditioner is not working (uh oh.)
• made afternoon coffee to have with a few Famous Amos chocolate chip cookies but ended up eating the entire snack-size bag before the coffee was ready
• have not changed out of my pajamas

today Aaron:

• made my morning coffee
• picked up around the house
• helped me measure for the doll bed cushion because I'm measurably impaired
• got gas for the lawn mower but decided not to mow in the middle of the day
• confirmed the air conditioner is not working
• confirmed he likes my hair in all the pictures circa 2007
• ate a turkey sandwich
• took out the trash
• gave Sadie a belly rub

I love Saturdays like this. When you just leisurely do things around the house. Especially when it is so hot outside. We're thinking the AC was working overtime and froze up or something; so we're letting it rest for a while and will find out soon enough if it's truly broken.  Aaron is taking me to see Inception tonight at the IMAX! We're hoping the AC will be back in working order by the time we get home!

gathering

My three-year-old neighbor brought these flowers to me yesterday.

He picked them from his butterfly garden. He said he wanted to brighten my day.

It worked.

peeks

It snowed here a few weeks ago. These red berry bushes live in what I call "The Grove" in our backyard. I love it when they bloom berries, and I especially loved them against the backdrop of the snowy ground.

"Can I go play in the snow?"

When I went outside this morning, these three little hats were sitting directly in the center of the roof of my car. I couldn't resist taking their picture.

Then I turned around and couldn't resist taking a picture of Sadie doing her morning stretches.

THE CRAFTERMATH

Only four days until THE actual for-real Christmas Day!

Here's how I've been decking the halls.

first, gather supplies:

next, get a snack:

then, get warmed up by making this Jolly pillow:

after that, test your sewing skillz and patience by making this poinsettia pillow:

take a step back and think that poinsettia pillow turned out not half-bad

move on to making THESE:

THESE may be my favorite thing. They are so merry and bright. I couldn't stop making them (just ask Aaron) so I gave some to a few friends at work too. So fun to spread the Christmas Cheer!

Then move on to growing this little Christmas Tree forest for Santa:

I love that this little Santa statue is feeding an apple to a deer:

finally, ask ATB to hang the JOY plates Momma made for me:

Ummm, I might leave things looking like this until July.

PEPPERMINT SPARK!

So I was making Peppermint Bark this afternoon, and we had to call the fire department.

What?! Peppermint bark does not require fire!

I know, I know. It's the craziest thing! Let's just say it was a weed-eating mishap that caused the line on our propane tank to pop off and HISS propane into the air at an alarmingly loud decibel. Really loud. Like so loud our not-very-nearby neighbors could hear it. So loud I was pretty sure the air was going to explode or something.

And apparently, our propane company doesn't have an after-hours or emergency call number, so Aaron called 311, and they sent the fire department.

We heard the sirens headed our way... then they stopped...at the wrong house. So Aaron got in the car and backed down our driveway at approximately 50 miles per hour. If you didn't already know, Aaron really likes to drive in reverse. And our driveway is really long, so there's room to get up to top speeds. I didn't see the need to fetch the fire truck at that speed in reverse, but, whatever.

So the firemen finally arrive, check it out, show us where the shut-off valve is (good to know), and all is well. Except we can't use the oven or stove and won't have hot water or heat until tomorrow when we can get the tank repaired.

All in all it was kind of fun. Our two-year-old neighbor Ethan had a blast walking around and around and around the firetruck. Then they came over after the hub-bub and Ethan helped me finish making the peppermint bark while we played his new favorite game.

Ethan: What's this?
Angela: Candy canes
Ethan:What's this?
Angela: Spatula
Ethan:What's this?
Angela: Light bulbs

I had grand plans tonight to make a lovely dinner, bake cookies and finish some gifts. Instead we made a fire in the fireplace, ordered a pizza and snuggled down on the couch under some warm blankets.

SMELLS LIKE CHRISTMAS

"Not now Arctic Puffin!" - Buddy the Elf

"If I woke up tomorrow with my head sewn to the carpet, I wouldn't be more surprised than I am now." - Clark Griswold

Aaron and I watched Elf and National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation last weekend. I think I could spend a whole day with my vocabulary consisting solely of lines from those movies. That would be one hilarious day!

I also watched an old Christmas movie from 1947 called It Happened on 5th Avenue. It was pretty great. One of the main characters is the actor Charles Ruggles. He played the grandfather in the original Parent Trap. It made me think of this scene.

Grandfather: My dear, what are you doing?
Susan: Making a memory.
Grandfather: Making a memory?
Susan: All my life, when I'm quite grown-up I will always remember my grandfather and how he smelled of tobacco and peppermint.
Grandfather: Smelled of tobacco and peppermint. [starts chuckling] Well, I'll tell you what. I take the peppermint for my indigestion and as for the tobacco [looks around] that's to make your grandmother mad.

{Grandfather knew from the moment he saw her that Susan wasn't Sharon.}
{Grandads always know.}

In other news...

I enjoyed lunch yesterday with two Lovelies at Magnolia and I had blueberry pancakes... You like sugar, huh? Is there sugar in syrup? Yes. Then YES!

We've been decorating the house... Lotta sap in here! Mmmm... Looks great! Little full, lotta sap.

Enjoying non-stop Christmas music... The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear.

A few Christmas parties...It's just like Santa's workshop! Except it smells like mushrooms.

Some Christmas shopping...And make sure you get yourself something real nice.

Some cooking... Save the neck for me, Clark.... Oh it's just a little dry, it's fine...Here's the heart. oh oh and and I have to eat! So I can take my back pill.

Hope you're enjoying the Holidays!

"I just like to smile! Smiling's my favorite." - Buddy

SOUPED UP

Aaron discovered this chili while on a camping trip a few weeks ago and liked it so much he asked for the recipe. He had a pot ready for dinner when I got home one day last week, so I have no idea what all goes in it, but the main ingredients are baked beans and ground meat of your choice (Aaron used venison), and some honey. It was delicious and made me want to go outside and sit in a folding chair in the woods behind our house while I ate. The baked bean and honey flavors were so subtly sweet and smokey and yummy. And the heavy spoonfuls filled my belly good. Also, can I just say Ritz crackers are the bomb. I had forgotten how delectable their buttery flakiness is. I had a second bowl of Camp Chili just so I could eat more Ritzs.



We brought a cooler of leftovers home from Thanksgiving in Longview. Turkey...sweet potatoes...corn casserole...green beans...dressing...and this Chicken Veggie soup. My mom packed it for us in case we got burned out on feast food. It's a simple soup, just chicken, broth and lots of earth grown goodness. I had a bowl for lunch two days in a row. It's been raining and cold here the past two days, so having this soup has been nice. Plus, my Momma made it, which is really the best part because it feels like getting a hug from her with every warm spoonful.

THANKS ALOT

Last night we went around the table and said what we were thankful for.

Aaron: I'm thankful for my job.

Angela: I'm thankful for warm soup.

Sadie: I'm thankful for the sandy spot next to the driveway. It is the perfect place to lay in the sun.

Scoop: I'm thankful for grass squirrels treats blankets rawhide bugs lunch naps running morning bedtime trees birds porch couch neighbors car-rides walks leash smelling frogs licking moths jumping dogs deer rabbits baths (wait, not baths) vet ear-rubs mud creek chair garage ocean vacation sun windows noises barking back-door outside inside street field rock stick toy rope ball stories music stretching wagging yawning hugs {this is where I stopped listening. she went on for another five minutes, but I was busy enjoying my soup.}

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

JULIA AND ANGELA, OUI!

Yes, that bowl has a nose.

This week's soup was French Onion. Oh la la and très délicieux and savoureux beaucoup!
Did you know I took French in high school and college?

In the spirit de cuisine français, I listened to Nouvelle Vague while I cooked. Except during the onion preparation, I paused the iPod and instead sang the song the French cook sings in The Little Mermaid, only I changed it to onions instead of fish - Les oignons, les oignons, Hee-hee-hee, HAW-HAW-HAW!

Englishly speaking, this has been the easiest soup to make so far.

I started out using a recipe I found online, but it called for five pounds of onions and I got tired of slicing onions after about two pounds worth. And I started to get anxious that I was losing my concentration and I DID NOT want a repeat of the onion-fainting incident. Hee-hee-hee, HAW-HAW-HAW!

So I went to my trusty Joy Of Cooking cookbook and found the recipe there that thankfully called for only two pounds of onions. Fantastique!

The recipes were very similar, so I incorporated ingredients and instructions from the online recipe into the book recipe, for instance adding a bit of brown sugar to the onions as they caramelized. I like it because my cook book now has notes written in the margin. I hope to some day have a cook book full of handwritten notes.

That's pretty much all you do for this soup. Slice onions, put in pot with butter. Watch as they magically produce sugars and colors and smells from deep within. Add a pinch of this and that, plus chicken stock. Simmer. Top with toasted bread and gruyère. Melt, et voilà!

At the last minute, Aaron suggested we invite our neighbors over to share the soup with us. I was a tad nervous because I had no idea how the soup was going to taste, so when I called to ask them to dinner I added that we might all end up eating chicken nuggets and green beans off their two-year-old's plate.

Ah, mais oui, ca c'est toujours delish!

JOUR DU SOUP

Last weekend we spent a very lazy Sunday drizzling around the house.
Scratch that. We spent a very drizzly Sunday lazing around the house.

Aaron cleaned and shined his boots and kept the laundry piles moving.

I worked on a few sewing projects and wiped mud off the dogs' paws approximately 182 times.

We also put a big pot of Minestrone soup on to simmer.

It was so nice. We had the windows open, and there was a stretch of time where the only sounds were the quiet rain pattering outside in harmony with the knife chopping down through hearty root vegetables (no fingers this time!) and the soft sizzling of sausage and garlic and onions sautéing on the stove.

It was the perfect soup day.

Dinner was ready just in time for one of our favorite t.v. shows - America's Funniest Videos - so we ate our soup on the couch, giggling between bites at the antics of America's zaniest pets, clumsiest adults and adorablest children.

AFV is always the beginning of the end of Sunday for us. It kind of signifies the wind-down of the day and weekend. (Mad Men signifies the end, in case you were wondering.) In the Bussey house, whatever you're doing on Sunday, you better be done by 6:30 and ready for dinner and some hilarity.

The Minestrone soup turned out quite tasty. The author of the recipe notes that the soup is really better the second time around, after it's been chilled and reheated. Aaron and I concur after having leftovers on Monday. Next time, I might make it a day ahead just so we can have it reheated the first time around. And we'll invite the neighbors over for a bowl of Day Old Soup.

I DREAM OF GENIE IN A BOTTLE

Before and After. dingdingdongdoong I would totally win on Wheel-of-Fortune.

I know, it's I Dream of Jeannie, so that would never really be a puzzle on WoF, but this would: Not The Point Break!

("Take my hand!" - that's mostly for Renee', and if you get it too - hooray!)

Now on to the real matter of this post a.k.a. something that makes sense...supposedly.

I made these granola bars to take on our camping trip a few weeks ago.

Actually, they are not so much bars as hunks. I've figured out that the things I make at home don't generally present as well as commercially made foods. But they sure do taste good!

That there is a hunk (2 hunks to be exact) of cranberry-almond-honey-oats-and-some-other-stuff goodness.

Very nutritious and delicious... and most importantly Fast and Easy.

They ended up being great for the camping weekend...and we had some to bring home and enjoy with coffee at breakfast...as an after-school snack...and at bedtime with Sleepytime tea...

I've been dreaming about granola hunks. Maybe it's time to whip up another batch.

HUNG UP

Behold the November mobiles -- Fall(ing?) leaves and some fly(ing!) geese. By the way, I'm not going to call these 'mobiles' anymore, unless they are bats because then I can call them bat-mobiles. I henceforth dub thee Hangers.

To be honest, I'm not very razzle-dazzled by these Hangers. I wish I would have picked different paper in bolder colors. Oh well, now I know. It's kind of funny, though. I spent no less than 45 minutes in the scrap-booking store agonizing over the color, pattern, thickness, smell, taste, musical preferences and carpentry skills of each paper. Because, you know, this is a VIP (Very. Important. Project.) and I would NOT want to make the wrong choice in Hanger paper.

At one point, I was sitting on the floor surrounded by approximately eleven different sheets, trying to make a decision. I kept having to say "oh excuse me, am I in your way?"

Luckily, anyone who is in a store dedicated solely to scrap-booking totally gets why one would be sprawled on the floor seriously contemplating paper, and sweetly replies with something along the lines of "Oh honey, no, you're fine" as they politely step over me.



(Aaron wanted to be in this picture.)
(And please don't be alarmed by the flame-precariously-near-paper-obvious-fire-hazard. That paper is fire-retardant. Duh, like that wouldn't be a criteria for my VIP.)

By the way, sorry these pictures are so lame. I will attempt to do better with the December Hangers.

PIECE DE RESISTANCE

Sometimes I forget how much fun it is to create. I may have mentioned before that I have an issue with wanting to get to the end result of things and forget to pay attention or enjoy the process of getting there. Whether it be baking bread, drilling holes for cabinet hardware, sewing, my spiritual journey, a road trip....

Sometimes this desire to just see the finished product deters me from even starting. I think it's going to take too long, or be too hard, or I don't quite even know how I'm going to do it. But it always happens, that once I get going on a project I love the process, even when I mess it up. And seeing the end result, even when it's not what I imagined, is so much more rewarding for having been through the process.

Being crafty is one area where I'm learning to just jump on it, and enjoy the process. Plus, I figured out that I can satisfy my obsession with patterns and colors with seasonal crafts instead of painting my walls a different color or recovering chairs every few months. And crafting is my favorite way to feather my nest. It feels good to be surrounded by things made by Aaron or me or someone we know.

Earlier this month I crafted up these little bat-mobiles out of scrap-booking paper. Once I discovered how quick and easy it was to cut out each bat and string them up, there was a flurry of tracing-scissors-paper-fishingline-scissors-tracing-paper-fishingline and I ended up with several mobiles to give to friends!

Today, I finally started (and finished!) these framed dog silhouettes, which I've been wanting to do for a few months. I've had all the supplies for several weeks, but it was finding suitable pictures of the dogs from which to make silhouettes that was hanging me up. As it turns out, Scoop was easy. I easily found a picture of a German Shorthair Pointer online, print, cut-out, trace, and voilà.

Sadie was a bit more tricky since her breed is Brown Dog. So I sifted through all the pictures I have of her looking for one that would work. After two failed attempts using photos of her lying down ('cause she's our relaxed doggie) (but lying down didn't work because the silhouette always ended up looking like a cat or a big bat-lion) I found the perfect photo of her standing that shows off her curly-cue tail. She's standing elbow-deep in the ocean in the picture, so I had to fake the bottom part of her legs. I think they look kind of funky, but oh well. It doesn't have to be perfect.

You might also notice that Sadie's silhouette is kind of huge compared to Scoopie's. Oh well, it doesn't have to be perfect.

Oh, and did you see that the silhouettes are framed on top of the mat instead of fitting nicely in the 4x6 area? Oops. Oh well... it doesn't have to be perfect.

If you look really really close, you'll see that I even detailed Sadie's fluffy tail. Maybe no one else will ever see it, but I know it's there.

Anyway, I really love the way they turned out. Mostly because I think they are kind of funny and make me giggle a little bit.

I have a Thanksgiving mobile planned that I'm about to get started on. I don't have all the details worked out yet, but I'm excited to see where the process takes me!

I'm really liking this way of crafting. Just figuring it out as I go. And knowing that it doesn't have to be perfect to love it.

TERRORIFIC

Aaron and I decided to have a scary movie night each week this month to celebrate Halloween.

My idea of scary movie night: rent a scary movie (Jaws is scary, right?), turn off all the lights and snuggle on the couch and toss Monster Munch in the air at all the scary parts.

Tonight, we decided to spice it up and go to a movie at the theater. So we went to see Paranormal Activity. Ummmmm, it was so scary I seriously thought I was going to throw up at one point.

The funny thing is, we thought we were going to see The Fourth Kind. We saw the preview for it a few months ago, and both agreed we wanted to see it when it came out. You know how it goes, you lean over in between previews when the theater is really quiet for two seconds and fake whisper that looks good. And the other person fake whispers back yeah.

Obviously, we had the movie names mixed up. So we went into Paranormal Activity expecting something different... not knowing anything of the horror on which we were about to embark.

The scary movie experience can be like the difference between having blood drawn and being cut, for me. I can handle it if I can prepare and LOOK AWAY. But throw me into something I'm not expecting, and I. AM. TERRIFIED.

I buried my face in Aaron's arm a lot (LOOK AWAY), mostly through long agonizing moments of "something's about to happen." I will say this. I did not see the last 60 seconds of the movie. And when the screen finally went blank, I had to ask Aaron Is it over? Is it really over? Is it going to come back on? THAT'S HOW SCARY IT WAS. Up to the very. last. second.

Aaron did not think it was scary at all. I take that back. He said there was one freaky second. Pppffftttt.

As we were leaving I was even more scared because I was already getting anxious thinking about the ways Aaron would try to scare me in the next few minutes days. I'm trying to act like I am so over that movie, so he will stop thinking it would be funny to spook me.

Do you think he'll notice if I sleep with the lamp on?

SPOOKCAKES

I made these cupcakes last night to celebrate a few October birthdays at work.

And in case you're wondering, Aaron is my taste tester, so he does benefit from my baking of late.

This picture is from the Real Simple website, but I assure you, mine looked just as perty. I even got a little crazy and swapped out the candy corn for Halloween colored M&Ms on some of them, because, ya know, HALLOWEEN COLORED M&Ms! Which, by the way, are electric orange, green and purple. They will electrify you!

It went like this: As I was topping the c-cakes, I turned my head slightly to the left and saw the bowl of Halloween M&Ms that I keep on the counter, and my eyes got wide and before I even knew what was happening my hand had reached over, plucked three little guys from the bowl and tucked them neatly into the frosting on top of a cupcake. It's like my hand had a mind of it's own. SpOooOo0Ky.

Strange thing, though. The candy corn and M&Ms bled their colored candy coatings into the icing overnight. I put them in the refrigerator, but when I took them out this morning there were orange, green and purple streaks all over the tops. (and no, the cupcakes were not hot or even warm when I placed the candies on top)

My bet is some serious sugar-on-sugar action, errr, I mean a chemical reaction of C(6)H(12)O(6). Or a goblin. SpOooOo0Ky.

What a weird word, spooky. spookyspookyspookyspooky. Like elbow. elbowelbowelbowelbow

I may have just eaten 2 pumpkin cupcakes in a row... which may explain this entry.

I WANTED TO WEAR MY APRON

So I made a cake.

I really made it to celebrate a couple of friends' birthdays at work. Chocolate cake with chocolate cream cheese icing. And y'all, it was good!

From now on, when I make this cake, I'm going to call it the Serendipity Cake, because serendipity was definitely at work with this cake.

Exhibit A:
Yesterday I was walking by a friend's desk and noticed she had one of those cake-carrier things sitting on her desk. It made me think "Hmmm, I wonder how I'm going to successfully get that cake from my house to my office?" This is pretty typical for me, that I would not have thought ahead to that part. That in making the cake, I would have merrily hummed along singing my song frosting my cake and would not have thought about the issue of transport until it was a complicated mess. Then I would have cried to Aaron that I messed everything up and he would have figured out a solution while I sat in the corner blind with tears licking a spatula.

But! Instead! I was quick to ask my friend if I could borrow her cake-carrier. It was perfect! She even loaned me the pretty cake plate that fit perfectly and kept the cake from sliding around inside the carrier and messing up that spectacular frosting.

Exhibit B:
I was planning to bring the cake on Thursday to share at a meeting. However, when my boss saw the cake-carrier sitting on my desk, he mentioned something about the cake and the meeting and tomorrow - which would be today - which is not Thursday. And my brain went beep beep bope beep bope boop and recalibrated to realize that, yes, in fact, that meeting is on Wednesday, not Thursday. Wednesday. Just like it is every two weeks. Our regular Wednesday meeting. Thus I was saved and came prepared with cake in hand on the correct day!

Exhibit C:
As I was looking for a cake recipe, I just happened to read some "helpful tips" in one of my cookbooks. And among all those helpful tips was this: To avoid making a mess of your cake plate when frosting a cake, place strips of wax paper around the edge of the plate under the cake while frosting. When done, slide the wax paper out from under the cake, and voila! No messy cake plate! Seeing as I've never really frosted a cake, at least not the sides of a cake (is that weird?), it hadn't occurred to me that this might be a problem. But looky there, how clean and pretty the plate is on my first try!

Exhibit D:
I was very pleased with the finished cake, only wishing it was a tad more festive for the birthday girls. But I decided not to dwell on it. I was just happy I would actually have the cake on the right day! This morning when I got to work I was putting together a birthday flower bouquet (from the group), and realized I could use a couple of the flowers as cake toppers! Ohhh, ahhhh, how nice.

So that's it. The A, B, C & D of why this is forever the Serendipity Cake. And I must admit I felt very fun and fancy baking in my cute apron (thanks Momma!).

I would be remiss if I didn't mention how sweet Aaron was to drive me to work today and help me carry in the cake and all the flowers and vase for the group bouquet. It was so nice to spend my morning commute with him. Thank you ATB! I love you.

This is one of Aaron's favorite quotes. We say it a lot. Pretty much anytime we see chocolate cake.

"Dad is great! He gives us chocolate cake!" (around the 7:10 mark)

HOW AN ONION MADE ME FAINT

If you had walked in my kitchen Wednesday evening around 6:30, you might have noticed me lying on the floor clinging to a paper towel and consciousness.

You see, I had this wonderful idea to serve veggie sandwiches for book club, a build-your-own boofay, if you will. We had every color of the rainbow: red and yellow peppers, pink tomatoes, green lettuce, orange hummus, whit-ish cucumbers, avocado avocados, sprouty sprouts (it's the latest in the 196 crayons box of Crayola), black beans, brown bread, blue….. blue plates! And purple. Purple Onion. dun dun duuuunnnnn.

Really, I shouldn't blame the onion. It's not the onion's fault. I was the one with the knife. I was the one talking instead of chanting concentrate, coooonceeennntrate, don't cut your finger, focus.

So I sliced my thumbed open. I shrieked, Aaron came running. But I wouldn't let him see it because PRESSURE, I have to apply PRESSURE! He went to fetch the first aid supplies while I made my way to a chair applying PRESSURE, oh stop the bleeding please, just STOP the BLEEDING and I'll be okay.

After a minute or two, Aaron guided me back to the sink to assess the damage. He gently coaxed me to release my death grip of pressure, poured the tiniest bit of hydrogen peroxide on the mammoth slice of bloody searing pain cut which doesn't even hurt, yo, but it was still bleeding and oh my I'm about to pass out again just typing this.

It's been a while since I've actually passed out. And not for lack of opportunities. In the last year, I had blood drawn no less than ten times; but when having blood drawn, I can PREPARE myself and LOOK AWAY and put a huge bandage over the tiny spot that isn't even bleeding anymore (except for that one time I moved my arm too soon and bled all over my shirt and my bag and the doctor's office and I didn't even notice because, LOOK AWAY, until someone said "ummm, you have blood running all over your body" and I had to rush to the bathroom to clean it up and brace myself against the handicap bars while I cried because poor me I hate this place and you made me bleeeeeeed). Where was I? Oh yes. So it's been a while.

That familiar woozy feeling came over me and the tunnel vision of no return closed in as I started to sweat. My knees went totally weak and Aaron, sweet Aaron, catches me and is all Are you okay, Ang, Ang, what's going on? and the best I could muster was, Just need to lie doooowwnnnn. On the tiiiile. It's so cooooold. Feels goooood.

Aaron is really cute when I'm in distress. He starts running around like a maniac trying to make it better. Whatever It happens to be. After he safely maneuvered me to the kitchen floor, he grabbed for something out of the freezer to put on the back of my neck. It was an eye-mask. Like an eye-mask to relieve puffy eyes eye-mask. I think that's the first time we've used that eye-mask. All I could think was, Huh, that kind of looks like a lime flavored freezer pop in the shape of the Hamburglar's mask.

I don't think I ever fully lost consciousness. I just laid on the floor for about five minutes gripping my thumb and thinking about the Hamburglar's mask on my neck while Aaron fanned me with a paper plate.

Once I regained my strength and got my wits about me (heh heh, kind of sounds like I was recovering from being kicked by a horse) Aaron helped me up and finished bandaging my gaping flesh of pain and sorrow wound.

Then he made me wear a latex glove. Kind of like Michael Jackson, only less shiny. R.I.P.

The glove was not so that I wouldn't get blood (which was still seeping out… a little… okay maybe not really but OH MAH GAH STOP BLEEDING) on the food I was preparing for book club, but so that I would not, heaven forbid, get onion juice in the cut, because, ya know, THAT would be REALLY bad.

BIRDS OF A FEATHER

This lovely little bird has been visiting our bird feeder almost every day for about three weeks. This picture doesn't do it justice; it's colors are so vivid, especially in the bright sun. I call it Jim.



Jim is in good company at the feeder. We have a family of red cardinals, a few blue jays (*not to be confused with blue birds), lots of big white-winged doves (*which, when I first heard them cooing, I thought it was owls whoing and wondered why owls were out during the day; also, yes please sing Fleetwood Mac along with me), finches, and hummingbirds at their own feeder nearby. The squirrels also eat from the bird feeder, and even a young doe occasionally sneaks a snack.

I think Sadie and Scoop have a secret alliance with the birds. They don't bother their winged friends, but they diligently protect the feeder from squirrels and deer.

Since it's been so hot, Scoop has taken up her guard post on the porch, and Sadie pretty much keeps watch from the couch.

*Luckily I live with a walking talking nature encyclopedia, so I don't go around confusing bird species

YOU MIGHT NEED A JACKET

It's snowing! Big, beautiful, fluffy snowflakes!

GET OUTTA HERE

I'm sorry the grossest post ever has been the top post for so long. I truly did not intend to leave that as tops. We've been busy...

hanging with our neighbors and their cute son Ethan...


having dinner with friends...


cheering for the Longhorns...


hearing live music during lunch...


loving on the puppies...



What else? Add in ripped boots, a speeding ticket, a parade, a hero of chicken broth, a pan of chicken spaghetti, a giant stuffed bunny, several nights of wine where there is usually not wine, lounge music at the Belmont, a CPR class, sushi, public transportation workers on strike, and two bookclub meetings.