Rainy Tuesday

It’s a rainy Tuesday here, and we really need it! I’ve had a fresh juicy home grown apple from our tree this week, bottle of water and a new artists sketch book magazine came in the mail for a special treat for me before my “me time” after lunch. Some inspiring music is on in the back ground getting some good in put to fill the well of my heart after giving a lot it’s time to recharge.

I made up some healthy home made trail mix with no nuts Great for a snacks is good. Made up some home made granola too. Part of my eating program to get back to the normal weight range and being over weight. and obese was no fun I'm glad to be at a new goal with this today great news here yea!

I’ve cleaned out the clipping from my 3x5 file and put them in the box for
dear grand kiddos to use for gluing and pasting on cards. They will love these new additions to the craft supplies.

Shopping Fun!

I was at the fabric store last Fri. it was busy, and the sound reminded me of buzzing like a hive of bees with all the gals in there shopping. It was very inspiring just to be around all that energy. I was looking for some thing did not find it in there. A mag. personal journaling I can no longer find I think they have stopped publishing it, I really enjoyed that one I’m sad to not be able to find it. =(

We painted wood craft last weekend, and next we are doing to glue paper and I tore up some scrap booking papers for the girls to colage with for the next crafting project, now I need to find a container for them to collage. We have some paper craft ideas to use for our next crafting session with granny.They love it we have snacks and tea or juice in mini tea cups if they want. The girls had fun and visited like hens at a hen party! LOL!

While shopping I did manage to find some new books:

The Power of A Positive Woman
by Karol Ladd

The Martha Rules
10 essential for achieving success as you start, build, or manage a business.

It's Time

It’s time to blog again sick grand kids here this week so
my focus has been on that, nothing like a sick child to get your priorities back on order!

House building job offer watching dear grand son while his folks work on this.
Retirement party / open house b.b.q. to attend and get a gift basket made up for it have the stuff for it so it won't take long.

Swimming lesson car pool, knitting on a baby blanket it’s ½ done now.
I made up 4 more gift bags it felt great to be sewing again.

I’ve been super excited about learning my way around the paint program on my pc and learning some new things I can do with it so that’s where my time is being invested. I'm going to be checking in to some stuff for the pc port plug in memeory adapter, and I still need a printer cord.

We walked around the block to see the fall lights that are up and saw 4 deer last night. Rugby season is in full swing for dear son. Dear sis is excited about a new grand child. These are few new things in our week.

Busy Week

I have been busy this week class,
car pool begins for swimming lessons,
web. design class,
learning how to make tags,
and do stationery features have been fun
for me this week.

New grand nephew made his appearance this week,
our family is growing again now.

Not much time for blogging or journaling.
I’m learning to edit photos in some of the programs I have on my pc.
This has been fun!
Last night I got the book idiots guide to windows XP book,
I was disappointed in this one,
the 98 version has more info. in it.
I will be looking in to the web page design one next.

Grape & Raisen Pie

I had a great time yesterday with dear grand daughter in the back yard we were playing tea party, and espresso drive through at the play house. And then we played soccer, picked some grapes for a pretend grape pie, and I told her about grape pie, and raisin pie, and raisin sauce granny used to make.

I did some gardening and got some pruning done, the weather was great,
sunny with clear sapphire blue skies. Today I took some great pics. on my walk with the cell phone camera. The fall flowers are lovely after the much needed rains we had last night and this morning.

Today I’m got done with granny duty for the week. I finished the pink baby blanket and I have started on the next one green white and blue.

My sis said she’s going to be a granny again any day now, the family is growing, the granny thing is not a temporary job!

Tools of the Trade

Party decorations are like my tools, a carpenter has a hammer and nails.
I have bows bells and silk flowers to decorate for weddings, parties and other
events. My tools are kept in boxes.

Ack! A couple of people have suggested tossing the bows, and table clothes
when done with the event. There is so much money that can be saved by
reusing these items. Another way to save is by getting them at yard sales
and or thrift shops. I get my things out that I need, after the event separate
out the colored things and set aside the white bows and bells from the colored ones
and see who needs them for upcoming weddings etc.

Tossing them unless they are totally ruined is just not acceptable,
we have used some of these items in like eight events! I have cleaned them
up to reused again and if we can't use them then I'd at least like to donate
them to a place that will recycle them for the next party or other event.
My challenge has been to get others to understand this.

Seasonal Workout Changes:

Fall swimming lessons are starting up this month.

Swimming and working out at a gym, fall makes us think about things to do to increase our indoor exercise activity level. Considering renewing or getting a gym membership?
Getting out the pedal bike or indoor stationery bike? These are a few things that might be worth considering. I need to remember that Washing walls, windows, moving boxes.
and other cleaning, for holiday prep. counts for exercise too!

As well as fall yard clean up, fall gardening mowing and yard work count too.
raking leaves, hauling wood and or branches off, we have that to do here this fall.
Hubby mowed yesterday it was his turn this time of year I don’t have to worry about him mowing over any of my plants they are done for the season now! LOL!

I’ve been know to just do some Walking in place in front of our favorite TV shows. It’s a great to get the blood moving also. So is doing some shopping.

This past week I got some rubber tubing at the pharmacy it’s good to use on my walks for resistance exercises, and this fits in a pocket, purse, brief case or book bag, for a portable work out on the go when traveling, or on a break. I have a ped-o-meter and that is a one way we have used to gauge our amount of exercise.

Well that link did not work!

What is Fall?

What is fall?
We went for another walk my granddaughter and I she’s five now earlier this week she was asking, “What is fall?”

We gathered nuts and she started collecting leaves that had fallen, yellow and green ones. It was such a delight to share in her experience of “discovering fall.” I realize that fall is something you can’t explain it has to be experienced! Like the festival with hay rides, pumpkin picking, and corn maze they went to last weekend complete with cider and freshly picked apples at a local orchard.

So what is fall to you?

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Note: I wrote this last year it's from my peelsplanner yahoo group.

Sat.~ File Tweaking

Note: I wrote this on sat. As a draft but could not get in to the site because they were doing updates & tweaking of their own.

File tweaking I have been moving some files and clearing out excess ones from one of my groups that was over loaded with them and moved them into the other one today. I decided journaling is a hobby I moved journaling prompts files to my craft / hobby group. While I was doing that I was able to update one of my programs (Adobee) for the XP version and the PC is working so much better now! Yea!

I got a letter off to mom this week, and the girls got some pictures drawn for the next one.
Fri. I went to a yard sale and got some more netting and tulle in four inch wide rolls for decorating the wedding reception for dear son. Hubby said there was snow up north Fri.
Sat. morning I got seven boxes of wedding decorations loaded in the truck to take up to dear daughters; but she was not home, so I was not able to accomplish my mission not yet any way. After I got that stuff out of the sewing / craft room kitchen/dining area. I was able to put the yarn I'm working with for baby blankets in containers I empties out and it's nice to have some room to put stuff again now. I get it out of the main living areas upstairs.

Well the guy did not buy the boat I have mixed feelings about that.

For fun I have been drawing some sketches in my journal and using colored pens on them!

Dear grand daughters are here more this weekend their mom is out of town.
She is going to try go get a flower girl dress dear grand daughter will be a flower girl in two weddings in the next eight months, the first one is in a few weeks their back up sitter who is sixteen is expecting and getting married. She will be getting the first baby blankets I've been knitting on.

Looks like the neighbors are moving out they have split up and she said they are getting a divorce.

Interesting Web. Page Design Class

Web design class was interesting, I learned some stuff and was glad I went. Learning to build web pages in a program I have on my pc has been consuming a lot of my time. I'm glad I can focus on this now that school is back in session. It's good to have something for me. The church's praise band pratice session was going on in the back ground I thrived on it! =D This was not the case for other class members.

One brought up a change and strongly urged it, not me & I expressed my view. I like meeting at the church, I have thought of some other things I consider and it feels safe and there is lots of lighting, and parking! Other classes meeting there too it's a busy place makes it feel safer too.

After class I got a devo. hand-out they print out for Oct. that would not have happened had we not been there, I punched holes in it and it's in my planner now! And last week I was able to get a bulletin. I suggested we get hand outs and we can be thinking about setting up a note book. They liked my suggetions! Looking forward to the hand outs and c.d.'s

Grats:
I have the next color on the pink baby blanket I'm doing, I am enjoying this project.
I saw a couple of deer on my walk the other day.
Dear daughter and dear grand son came by and we enjoyed the swing that was when it was still nice weather mid. week.
I got current on my journaling and quiet time readings, and updated my planners, got a letter to mom ready to mail.
The sketches I did to decorate my journal pages have been inspiring me this week I have been enjoying them.

Liquid Gold II

Ways to save on fuel

1. Ride a bike the kind you pedal.
2. Use the vehicle that burns the least amount of fuel to drive the furtherest distance.
ie hubby takes my car to work.
3. Drive motor cycle.
4. Budget outings like camping boating ect. less often.
5. Shop for groceries closer to home mail bills plan errands by distance with as little back tracking as possible.

Writing blogging posting on message boards errands web page designing = messy house! {Guess what I’m doing today. LOL!}

Liquid Gold

The coffee is on I love mornings java junkies unite!

We are having a bit more lovely fall weather up to 82* & 83* today and tomorrow before fall rains come this weekend and through the week. Yesterday was warm with bright blue skies and leaves turning colors were very eye catching as we drove around town. I came home the long way and enjoyed the scenic drive by the river and I’m counting it for my artists date, because we got books!

I got a review written up on one and learned how to use the new web site, kind of scary, but each time I do it I seem to learn something.

The new to me book idiots guide to windows 98 I got at the thrift shop yesterday already has me learning. I learned some stuff just by leafing through it! So I’ll need to take this one it to class I can tell! I made a tag so I’m going to see how to integrate that with graphs. Learning to run the paint program is fun! I’m be getting some stuff I need out of it already.

I read some in the new books gleaned out the info. needed and
some of the things in the other book was interesting The Notebook had review on the cover that gave away the ending, this makes me not even want to read it or see the movie! Talk about a spoiler! Their ought to be a law against this or something.

The book 17 Essentual Qualities of a Team Player by John Maxwell, I really like the format of this book and the white paper in this book is great too! I read a chapter yesterday.

Hubby called and said “I got some of the liquid gold” referring to fuel in the truck. Gas is the new liquid gold.

Blissful Days of Fall

I’ve been thinking of having biscotti with my mocha to go, but they all seem to have nuts so I had to forgo that today. I was processing info. about the news of the boat back in the shop again, for break work on the trailer the wheel bearing needed replaced on one side. Hubby sighed knowing it was a bill we did not need right now not be happy about this newest development, with the boat on the market and for sale he took it promptly in for the repairs in case some one wants a test drive on the weekend.

Other than that I’m having a blissful day, got my morning stuff done an hour before my goal, and was able to get some errands done, found some books at the thrift shop. Dear granddaughter found another “Froggy” book we all love reading those. I found some for me and one for hubby to learn the pc with.

Younger dear grand daughter said "lets go see the cows I’m tired of the other place we walk",
so we have been going to see the cows and horses down the road a-ways. We did the earlier right after the bus came to pick up her older sister in the first grade this year.

After our errands and car pool duty and granny duty was finished I put out the extra effort and did another walk, counting that and vacuuming as my exercise. I have great news today I was able to wear a smaller shirt in a size I’ve not seen for a while. I’ve dropped two sizes after getting on this weight program. I’m excited at the family gathering I was among the ones that were not “fat” yea!

Over the weekend hubby and I talked about an approach for the holidays and we are going to cut out desserts for the most part and I’m not going to be doing baking. Last year I "caved" and did some baking and the 10 lbs we put back on has taken nearly 3/4ths of the year to take back off again.

I’m and excited about the new show coming on with the woman pres. Comander and Chief is the title I believe.

I did up a blip on a book for another blog, the web site was down so I was not able to get it mailed to be posted. At least I got it typed up and saved.

New to me books I got today were:

The Notebook By: Nicholas Sparks

The 17 Essential Qualities of a Team Player
By John C. Maxwell

Complete Idiots Guide to Windows 98

Camping Weekend!

Fall camping season has begun here! We had a great time camping one of the highlights for me was sitting by the river and getting a chance to read while I was fishing. The weather was perfect! I saw a mama cat and her three kittens. A flock of geese flew over head in the V formation honking as they went, not an unusual site as geese winter over here but it always amazes me how they line up like that just to fly a few miles! I worked on some sketching and journaling too, I got some knitting done too.

I enjoyed it. Our dear daughter called needing some table clothes and the kiddie size card table and lawn chairs for adults and kids. Hubby helped me load these and I made the salad, and got the stuff loaded. I caught the news on hurricane Rita to see if mom’s county in Ark. was going to be under a deluge but they weren’t. When I was home doing that hubby ran over town for an errand I went for a walk and found a yard sale! I got a some fabric, craft supplies, and books!

The birthday party was great we had a family event on Saturday, dear grandson’s birthday party with family there kids cousins, grandpas grandmas aunts and uncles were there in force! Kind of like thanksgiving a big crowd only with summer foods, grilled burgers, and freshly caught salmon by the other grandpa on the coast.

We made a few changes in the camper when we got home and took the T.V. out we never use it when we are camping no reception and we are too busy fishing! We took it out to make room for the microwave I took out of the kitchen to make room for the new white one I got for my birthday from dear daughter this was a blessing!

The camp ground was full in the loop we were in, it was quiet and peaceful, not as many babies there this time. We got home and unloaded the truck and camper, I washed up the dishes, and wiped the counters down. Hubby took laundry to the basement. We both unpacked our bags. I think it’s going smoother with the post camping clean up this time!

I was able to rest read a book, and get some fabric cut for gift bags. We finished up having dinner when we got home, I cooked the beans on the stove and we had salad.

Hubby cooked the hot dogs at the camp ground he offered to take me out but I opted to stay because we were both enjoying it so much, we forgot to take the salad dressing so decided to have it at home ! So we sat on the swing and had the side dishes when we got the truck and camper unloaded. We got unpacked and the helped and took the laundry we rounded up to the basement. I go it going this evening.

This camp out was good for me I notice I’m a lot less interested in the hurricane Rita’s aftermath news which is a plus for me. I have been enjoying playing with the fabric and looking at my new to me Christmas books and reading them. One is by ME (Mary Englebrit) and talk about inspiring! It was also fair weekend be we did not make it.

Stoked!

My evening improved I went for another walk 1 mi. and collected walnuts in the shell to take with when dear grand daughter and I go on our walk tomorrow! I saw four deer! that was great. Some times you just know you are in the right place at the right time.

I had a blast at the web design class tonight, it's a life group at our church. They want people to be on the web design team; this just means using the message board they are going to put on the church web site from what I can understand! LOL!

I'm on it pretty much already because I've been blogging on the I.T.F. site. A guy has a site I blog on about faith topic, life lessons stuff like that, and one other guy that graduated from I.T.T. tech. from the Devry Institute is one of the teachers too.

They wanted to know why we were there I just went to talk to other adults and get out of the house! There were nine of us in class, gals were the students close to my age and guys were the teachers about my kids age. Thirty-something They were talking about ugly web sites, I joked that even that would be an improvement because I don't even have that! LOL! I have to take my notebook p/c next week. We will have assignments. Now all I need is a techie shirt.

Dear son wanted to take this class but has collage work to do. {Hubby called me on the cell while I was in class, I guess he did not get the voice mail message}. Note to self turn off cell next week.

I got home in a stoked mood! Hubby had the camper all loaded and I've packed clothes, toiletries I keep packed and some are in the camper! I'm excited to go. Gotta remember to load the worms and fishing poles!

Triumph over Tragedy

I have the news on this was a quote or quip from one of the anchors on Katrina. "Triumph over tragedy". I have the news on as I type this. Listening to the news on Rita the latest hurricane.

We are trying to experience some triumph of own here too. Getting the peace back was a process getting enough sleep last night was a great help. Getting up and having a pain free day is some thing to celebrate! Finding better things to focus on today instead of the rough spots we have been through helps too.

Today we did an early morning appointment and signed closing papers on the lot and had time for a walk by the river it was great. We saw the squirrels looking for a hand outs, the leaves are starting to turn on the trees and the promise of more fall color to come was in the air. I’m enjoying these cooler days.

The walk helped us to process all the changes going on and the fresh air was exhilarating, water lapping on the bank was up, this past weekend the water level was up less going over the dam as temps cool off less demand for power no heat at night needed yet air conditioning use is way down for us too. 73* is the predicted high temp today.

I sat out on the swing and did my quiet time and journaling, hearing the birds sing, and squirrels go up and down the trees. A wood pecker's shrill call sounds above the tree in the front yard. The skies are clear and blue and you can see the mountians in the distance with trees on them and there is no smoke.

I'll be continuing to trying to focus on the positives here today. Humming the song Rita Mae in my mind as I continue with the rest of my day!

Sniff Sniff….

We have to put our big boat up for sale this was not good news
when I found out I was rather in shock!
It's to get out of debt ~
hubbys getting ready to retire
in ten yrs.

We are trying simplify and down size
lot has closing papers to sign next week too

I’m not having a good time at the moment!
Some one told me there is life after boating.
I'm using that as my motto now.

Feeling Inspired

I am feeling inspired these days, I had fun on my artist date yesterday. Got some ideas for new music, had fun jewelry shopping, got a new ring, I'm hard on my rings in the summer when I garden so I've had fun swapping out to different faux diamonds every season now and I'm having a blast with it! I got some healthy snacks too unsalted peanuts what a concept peanuts with out salt. LOL!

I'm trying a new floor plan out in my mind, for the new-to-me drawing table with a top that adjusts. I got last weekend at a yard sale and I’m wondering where I can put this so I will use it, and the light will be the best. I'm not going to move any furnature until I have a plan, and I'll get the guys to help so I don't hurt my back on the bigger pieces if I decide I want to move them.

A garden show is inspiring me today, now that it's cooler it's much more fun thinking about gardening and yard improvements making patio area with bricks I got for just hauling them off!

I want to camouflage the neighbors junk pile. This is my on going goal! I can prune back the old fashioned roses for a thicker screen and shorten them a bit. Before I begin I need to think about a plan, and where to put some things I’m considering like a portable studio rent-to-own former espresso stand, seems like the front side yard might be the only place for this but there is a boat there! Hum… I”ll have to get some measurements.

Coffee Sugar Molasses and Salt Mills

I’ve been watching the history channel about the history of coffee, and a show on sugar. I’m learning a lot and the molasses reminds me of stories mom used to tell about the sorghum cane they used to grow in the south and took to the sorghum mill. It was is interesting how they make rum, I just figured out why I can’t find sorghum a milder from of molasses the rum demand is up around the world these days! I want some for my rolls in the morning!

They had a segment on sugar beats I’ve seen the sugar beets growing in the field, and the sugar beet roots on trucks in Southern Idaho and Utah when we were team driving long haul trucking at a pretty close view. We never hauled them but saw these at the scales and on the road. We did haul salt from salt lake and I got to see the salt being milled, and lots of grain.

Recharged and Ready to Go!

A really good way to get weaned off of excess news watching senate hearings happening on most of the news channels that I like; for most of the day ~boring! Turning the tube off or for the kids channel for dear grand daughter to watch.

Our son had a shoulder in a sling, he hurt it at the Rugby tournament in Seattle over the weekend they, the tied two games and lost two.

Monday I took some down time to recharge my batteries and it was just what I needed. I got current on some reading.

I am happy to report that the grand kids are fine, I left my cell in hubby’s truck, and was glad that I found it. at dear son’s suggestion I called my cell phone and hubby found it on the way home, then we went to the store and I told the dear granddaughters we were going on a date, they one of them said “A DATE”!!! I said. “Yes, old people have dates too”,
when I told hubby he said “I do not consider myself old yet.”
LOL!

Today I have been working on some weekly cleaning, and watering out side and the inside. I’ve been reading to the granddaughters in their children’s Bible in the morning this seems to be making our mornings flow a lot smoother.