Wednesday, April 27, 2011

So Long April

Another month ends, and still waiting for the nice weather...
The one new plant I've placed in the yard so far has been flattened by the chill.
So much for getting an early start.

Working a little more now - but just barely.

There's been a lot of Royal Wedding hype the last couple of weeks.
My daughter wants to stay up all night and watch it live.

As for me - I have my reservations...

After the Charles/Diana fiasco - I've kind of lost faith in the "Cinderella - Prince Charming scenario." In fact, I haven't seen a successful royal marriage this century.
I'm sure it will be a grand spectacle though - and a historical one to boot. I guess it might be worth seeing from that standpoint, but still...

As it turns out, I'll be away so they'll have to watch without me.

I saw this clip on facebook and laughed my head off - if only it could be this entertaining!



I've put my time in this week, and now it's time to play. Going away for the weekend to spend time with my sisters.

Good times, good times!

Hoping for a better May!
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Thursday, April 21, 2011

Drab.

What a depressing week.

The sky has been overcast and gloomy for what feels like forever.
The longer it goes on, the harder it is to get out of bed in the morning.
The last couple of days have been especially difficult...

Yesterday I decided that rather than succumb to it, I would attack it - and I went out and did some yard work.

With the snow gone, I couldn't help but notice how tall the grass has been getting - so I drug the mower out of storage and cut it down.
I was afraid if I waited any longer, I would have to rent a baler (or a goat) to get it under control! I applied some weed & feed and moved some perennials around in my garden too.

It was threatening rain all morning, and with all that humidity in the air,
I could feel my hair expanding as I worked.
When I finished and came inside, I looked like Gabe Kaplan.



It feels good to have that done - now I'm wondering how soon it will be safe to plant some flowers? The place needs color...

It's going to be a quiet Easter here - the grans are at the other grandparent's place this weekend, and baby isn't coming home.
She made plans with a friend a couple of weeks ago for a Star Wars marathon. When she made those plans, I don't think she realized it was Easter weekend...

Such is life - next week is finals, then she'll be moving home for the summer.

I'm going to have to put my new CD away for a while. V.V
I can't listen to it without singing along... and singing hurts.
I played it all the way back from Ephraim last weekend, and it took all week for the swelling to go down. I guess I'm just not ready for that yet.

Other than that, I've just been spending a lot of time looking at other blogs trying to remember what my personal style is.
...Not that it matters - the only decorating I've done in the last umpteen years, is in my little imaginary houses on yoville.com.

Exhibit A:

It's just that, I used to be absolutely clear on what I liked and didn't like - but I have no clue anymore.

I love looking at the shabby chic stuff, but hubby would never in a million years allow any of that in the house. (Too girly, looks beat up, etc.)
...And the white on white rooms - fun to look at, but not for me. I need COLOR!
(And so impractical for grandmas!)

I've added a bunch of new sites to my favorites column - check them out sometime!

Gotta go - I need a haircut in the worst way, and have miles to go before I sleep...

Happy Easter!
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Sunday, April 17, 2011

Glum Sunday

I'm so tired of overcast skies - but they do sort of fit the mood around here.

We had a trip planned for our oldest daughters' birthday - down to where the sun shines and the desert colors warm the heart.

All of us asked for it off, and got it.... except for hubby.

Wally-world scheduled him a 9 hour shift on Saturday.

He tried hard to get someone to cover for him, but it's Spring Break for all the schools up here, and everybody had plans.

So - Melissa went. By herself. Happy Birthday.

We're both getting pretty tired of this - every time we plan something, this is the way it goes. Maybe it's time to lose that second job...

Jenny had a busy weekend. She went to the temple with friends Saturday morning, then we went shopping when she got home. (We both needed cheering up.) Book stores and dinner at the AC was just what the doctor ordered.

Speaking of books - the one I'm reading this week is about an Arizona grandma who tells her visiting granddaughter wild sounding fairy tales, and passes them off as family history.

The stories are pretty crazy, but the parts about the visit to the grandma brings back so many memories...

My grandma was also from Arizona. I remember those HOT summer visits.
(You do NOT walk barefoot on the sidewalks in AZ!)
I can picture her in her little house in Mesa as I read. Nice.

Hopefully, Melissa will be home in time for the party we're having for her today.

...What a dumb weekend. :-(
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Monday, April 11, 2011

Season of Discontent

I believe in God, and that God rules the universe with logic and order.

However...

Something went wrong when He set the timing for Springtime in the West.
Spring is a season of chaos and upheaval here. There is no norm for Spring, because no two years are ever alike. It can be anything from HOT and dry, to freezing cold... and there are times that it does all of that within the same week!

Planting gardens here is a bit like playing Russian roulette.
Seedling survival rate is very low. The only thing that's certain here, is that come the end of May, *BAM!* It's HOT and miserable until the end of September.

I've been contemplating work in the garden - I have some perennials that I have grown tired of, and want to dig them out and change things up.
I wanted to do it before they started greening up so I would feel less like a murderer - but it has been snowing non stop this whole month, and now it's too late for that.

We're all experiencing a little spring madness too - tempers are short and patience is low. We all need to get out and find some sunshine before somebody gets hurt!

This weekend is my daughter's birthday, and all she wants is a trip to the desert.
I want that too, but I'm not sure the budget will allow it.
(We're saving for a trip to Seattle next month.) ...If we survive that long!
We'll just have to see...

Speaking of herbicide - some friends of hubby's came and chopped down that huge ugly tree in our back yard on Saturday. Old Mr. Willow has been an eyesore for years, not to mention one of the dirtiest trees on the lot.
It's dropping something all year long - leaves, crooked twigs, and every time the wind blows, it looses a branch or two.

Before: (Believe it or not, this was just last week!)



After: (They'll be back for the rest of it later - it burned up both of their chain saws!)

We've had the trampoline under it for years, and the shade is nice, but the tramp is always so full of so much debris, that it takes half the day to clean it out before it can be used.

All that's gone now, and it has really opened up the view from the back yard.
We'll be able to watch the sunsets from the window again, and as hubby's friend said; we can also spy on the neighbors. (As if we wanted to...)

That goes both ways, however - no more putting the dog out in my nightie!

And speaking of the dog...

He's been causing a lot of drama around here again.
He must have fallen off the couch or something while I was at work one day, (or maybe his arthritis is just acting up from all this lovely weather we've been having,) but he has been limping and whining to beat the band all week.

The girls have coddled, medicated and babied him mercilessly all weekend.
I'm afraid there will be no living with him when the week starts again.
I'm a little suspicious that he's been milking it and playing them for all he's worth.
I'm not going to do that - he's just going to have to deal with it. (ha ha)

I had a fun day with the gran-girlies last Sunday making paper projects... But yesterday I found that there is a down side to teaching the girls to use my tools.
They were over again last night, and when I went down to my craft room, I found that one of them had slipped in there (form the evidence left behind, I'm suspecting Tornado T'Ellie) and chopped up a bunch of cards that I had been working on.

Exhibit A:


...I was almost finished with that one, but, oh well.

She's the youngest, and a bit ADD - she got bored and left within minutes while the other girls and I worked last week. Who knew that she was even paying attention to how things like the cutter worked? The cards were cut so cleanly down the middle fold - if I weren't so bugged at her, I would say nice job! LOL

It's a new week, and the sun is actually shining today.
I would venture out in the garden, but I've got to make that 2 hour drive to get baby back to school again.

*Sigh*

Two more weeks and she's done until Summer is over...
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Thursday, April 07, 2011

Scrapped...

It's official - the insurance adjuster inspected grandma's car, and it is TOTALED.

Hubby feels so bad that it was grandma's car that we wrecked.
He paid a visit to the cemetery and had a chat with grandpa about it.
Grandpa was always so attached to his cars.

They offered grandma a settlement, which she received gladly.
She can no longer drive the car, so she really had no use for it.
Now she can afford to make some needed repairs to her house.

I wouldn't call that a happy ending, but I guess that's as close as you can get under the circumstances.

Meanwhile, hubby and I are experiencing a few residual effects - nothing major, just little aches & pains, anxiety, and hubby has been waking up with panic attacks.
Poor man, I am just so thankful that we both walked away from the thing.
I swear the spelling lobe of my brain was damaged though - it doesn't work anymore! Ha ha.

Anyway, life goes on here (knock wood.)

I got out of the house today, and went to my favorite bookstore.
It's my escape of choice these days. I wander around and gather a stack of magazines, find a comfy chair in a quiet corner, and just enjoy.

Today's search was for something that would inspire my creative side.
The thing has laid dormant for so long, I fear it is in permanent recession,
but I keep hoping that if I nurture and coddle it a bit, it may just return from the dead. ...One can hope, anyway. If I can't revive it, I can at least feed it a bit.

I came home with a couple of good ones; International Artists, WAAAAAAAY beyond my skills, but so amazing to look at!




...And Somerset's Artists' Cafe. This one is a little more funky and different, but interesting and ...fun!












Monday we took the little grilies to see the movie Hop.
It was a little cheesey for me, but the girls loved it (and so did grandpa.)
I really like James Marsden, but this movie kind of ruined that for me. :-(

Another weekend coming up.
The in-laws have a camping trip planned, but it is supposed to rain and snow all weekend. Granny doesn't want to play.
I would just as soon stay snug in my little bungalow and curl up with a book, thank you very much.

Hubby isn't too thrilled either, for once.
For one thing, our truck has to have some major repairs to even be able to pull the trailer, (a major expense,) so we'll have to see how that goes.

Not much else going on - got a sister's weekend coming up at the end of the month. Those are always so much fun!
Looking forward to it!

Hoping the weather's a little better by then...
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Monday, April 04, 2011

April's Fool

Where do I begin?

Had a most eventful weekend, but not entirely in a good way.

Thursday night, hubby flew home - after pretty much the whole month without him being here, I was SO glad to see him!
He had the day off on Friday, so we went out to breakfast to our favorite little place in the tiny neighboring town, then we came home and he fixed a few things around the house that have been giving me trouble.

About then, we decided it was time for a Pepsi, so we climbed back in the car to go for a drive. We got our drinks at the Chevron down the street, then drove past his parents house, and where his aunt and uncle live.
Neither of them are doing well, and he was contemplating visits (none of them were home.) So, we came full circle and headed home.

Two blocks from house, we went through the intersection and were broadsided by a big pickup truck!

The scary thing is that I saw him bearing down on us, but it never occurred to me that he wouldn't stop. By the time I could tell that impact was inevitable, it was too late to react.
This town is so crazy, there are so few street signs. Unless you're from here, you don't know which streets are through streets and which are not - but then, the guy was from here. He should have known better.

Anyway, he hit us so hard that he spun us 90% so that we were headed back the direction that we came from.
It took a while for the police to arrive, long enough for us to get out and assess the damage to the car and to ourselves.
We were both wearing our seat-belts, so just a few minor bumps and bruises... but I got the full impact of the two 32 ounce drinks!

The police finally arrived and checked us out - (the truck driver was cited for failure to yield on the through street.) Hubby had bonked his head, and was a little dizzy. The first cop on the scene came over and asked if we were ok, and we assured him that we were - then he told us an ambulance had been dispatched.
We both protested, but he basically said; too bad, it's coming anyway.

Neither of us had our cell phones with us, so we had to borrow one from some passers by. Wayland called his brother to come give us a ride home. It's always great to have him there in an emergency, because he knows every cop EMT and fireman in town.

The ambulance arrived, and they checked Wayland's vitals and looked for signs of concussion (which I was glad of, I was worried,) and wouldn't you know it - the fire truck came right behind them.
(Small town, not many opportunities for them to play?)

One of the firemen came over and checked underneath the car to make sure the axle hadn't been broken, so it could be towed. (The rear driver's side tire took the main impact.)
He was a jolly fellow, who then made sure we were all OK. After assessing the situation, he asked if there was anything else he could do for us. I was standing there drenched in Pepsi - so I told him he could hose me off if he wanted to...

He laughed and said he could, but it would blow me down the street.

Saturday, we both stayed pretty close to home. In a somber mood this morning, because I finally realized how close I came to losing it all. The truck missed hubby by only a few feet.

He had to call his mother and break the news to her that it was her car that got smashed. (She's legally blind and isn't supposed to drive, so he's been keeping it here to remove the temptation.)
It's Conference weekend here, so we listened to both sessions, then Wayland had to go to work.

Sunday, we woke up to 6 inches of SNOW!


What a nasty surprise. We didn't totally let it ruin our day though - Jeff, Jennie and the girls came over after the first session of conference, and we barbecued (indoors) and watched the second session together.
I enjoy conference weekend. Not just for the break from the usual Sunday routine, but for the thoughts and messages that so gently urge and remind us to be a little better - try a little harder... Who doesn't need that?

I had the two older girls doing crafts while we listened. We made squash books, and some little necklaces. The girls both did well, but it was a lot more work than I anticipated.

Granny's tired.

I retired early tonight, but wakened after disturbing dreams.
(A combination of the book I just read, and my current state in life.)
In the dream, I escaped from a nursing home and went looking for all the friends listed in my computer's address book.

What I found instead that all those 'friends' were just myself using different user names, and that there really wasn't anyone else out there.

What a strange feeling.

It's 3:30 now and I'm not so much sleepy as I am COLD, so I guess I'll try the bed thing again...

More running around tomorrow - must be alert.
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