I've blogged before about how much I love my neighborhood. It's perfect, really. Just a quick example. On Sunday afternoon, several of us neighbors were sitting on Mike and Leanne's front porch while various children zoomed around the park out front. It was a lovely sunny day and we were all taking a break from some random projects to enjoy the great weather.

"Let's have dinner together," I suggested. The crowd said yes, definitely, and one by one we picked ourselves up and head off to finish our various tasks. Gaylan went in to organize Leanne's closet (that sentence tells almost everything you need to know about each of their personalities). Several of the menfolk headed up to our attic to help Bud engineer a ventilation solution for his construction project. Jeff headed home to take care of 3 of the 4 of his kids and whip up some mean garlic bread, because his wife was in the desert with their fourth after a particularly bad asthma attack. I went to the kitchen and made a huge pot of spaghetti with meat sauce and a giant Caesar salad.

So Sunday afternoon around five o'clock we had 21 various neighbors enjoying an impromptu spaghetti dinner followed by giant ice cream sundaes. The screen door slammed a hundred times while the kids ran in and out playing their various games. The grownups shared a nice glass of wine and wonderful fellowship. It was a great afternoon.

So what's the trouble in Stepford? I miss it when it's not working like that. Our new ladies' book club was supposed to meet today but a feverish child, a husband's business, and an ailing grandparent all required immediate attention and we had to postpone our club. We've been itching to talk about The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, because we all finished it a week or two ago, and we see eachother frequently. But we've exercised great restraint so that our Book Club will be the real thing and not just a gab session. It is great punishment to 1) miss out on a meeting with these dear friends and 2)have to wait longer to discuss our book!

I'm still in withdrawal tonight from missing out on our meeting. These neighbors have become my extended family and I treasure our time with them. We'll try the meeting again on Thursday, and tonight I'll go to sleep and say thanks to God for putting us here with this group of loving neighbors, and I'll pray for Sam's fever, Mike's business, and Leslie's grandmother. That's what you do in Stepford.

Kathy Jo and Jill have blogged about their husbands' abilities to, erm, multitask, shall we say, while in the shower. This is quite impressive since we know that men are not generally known for multitasking. I mean, how many men do you know who talk on the phone and clean up a potty-training accident while breastfeeding a newborn and making a grocery list? They are few and far between. They do one thing at a time, they do it right, then they move on to the next thing on the list.

Well, back in the early days of our marriage, I noticed that when Bud went into the bathroom first thing in the morning, I never heard the toilet flush. I'm thinking this guy is some kind of biological freak because I've gotta go about two seconds after I roll out of bed.

So, of course I had to ask. He looked at me like it was the most obvious thing on the planet and informed me that he just goes in the shower. Also brushes his teeth and shaves in there. What!?

As I was pondering the meaning of this, he went on to say, "If I could just remove that drain cover, I'd have it made."

If you don't want to hear the answer, don't ask the question.

Discalimer: If I don't add that Bud is really a tidy guy, the tidiest member of this family actually, and the statement was made for shock value only, then he will be upset with me for portraying him as a boorish male.

Bud is the tidiest member of our family and his statement was made for shock value only. There.

I'm speaking of Bud. The man was there. I walked past him on my way to the bathroom many times. Yet, two hours after our arrival at home he sends me an email about another cruise. But this is not just any cruise (although it happens to be the exact same ship we just got off of, going to two of the three ports we just visited), it is a BANJO cruise. That's right, he would like to relive this experience to the sound of hundreds of plinking banjos. Just tie me to an anthill and pour honey on me, would ya?

__________________

Anyway, 37 loads of laundry later, a better rundown on the cruise.

Day One, we left Galveston in the afternoon and got settled in to our ship. Met the kids' club folks who were really great.

Day Two, at sea. Rock climbing, miniature golf, lots of food. Lots. of. food. Lots. Windy, cool, but sunny.

Day Three, Cozumel. Missed our excursion. Chose a snorkel/beach trip. Bud was the only one who could snorkel because there was so much wind the kids could not manage themselves in the rough water. The beach was nice - all two hours we were there.



Day Four, Belize City. It was rainy and the kids were too young for most of the excursions, so we hired a man named Philip to take us to see the ruins at Kohunlich and on a tour of Belize City. After a death-defying thrill ride to the ruins, we were treated to a tour of a terribly poverty-stricken city. I almost had Philip take us shopping and to the orphanage with some gifts, but Bud didn't want to take the kids to do that. All I know is that these people need help. It was sad and we talked about the situation for hours that evening. I've seen severe poverty before - in SE Asia and other places in the Caribbean - but this seemed different somehow and I'm not sure how to put my finger on it.

Anyhow, the ruins were spectacular.




Peyton got her hair braided that day.




Day 5, Costa Maya. Torrential downpour, from the moment we arrived till the moment we left. This was upsetting, because it was the port we were most excited about. And from what little we could see it would have been wonderful. This is the day Montezuma came to call on both Luke and me. We were awakened early in the morning and spent the first few hours of the day in the bathroom, but seemed to be better by midday.

Day 6, at sea. Luke and I both woke up with durchfall once again. After about three hours I was better, but Luke had a fever and never quit with the biegunka the entire day. We didn't leave the room, except when the cabin steward came in to clean. While out, the urge hit Luke. We scrambled from bathroom to bathroom, only to find one clogged toilet after another. Turns out the plumbing system on our section of the ship was backed up. We found one on the other end of the ship before the poor kid lost it, and the plumbing problem was fixed in about 20 minutes. But twenty minutes is a lifetime when you've got diarreia.

Luke must have gone 25 times at the very least that day. I finally took him to the ship's doctor that evening and after a quick lookover he decided it was okay to give Luke some lomotil (and antibiotics, and hydrocortisone cream for his sore hiney, and Gatorade.) Luke finally went to sleep and didn't wake up until the morning of

Day 7, back in Galveston. Luke didn't have anymore Diarre, but I was not done yet. With thanks to God above, the pattern of previous days stuck and I was only sick in the morning, so we were able to make the drive home without needing to stop every 10 minutes for a bathroom break.

I'm still feeling the effects a bit, but Luke seems to be better. It's so good to be home!

There were a few really nice things on the trip. The service in the main dining room on the ship was amazing, and the food was excellent there. Our cabin steward, Jerry, was terrific and made the best bathtowel-animals for us. The kids' club staff was great and both Luke and Peyton enjoyed the little bit of time they spent there. Bud and I had a lot of nice quiet time on our balcony to just sit and visit. We've come home with a renewed appreciation of all our blessings and a desire to do more to help those in poverty. We've always done what we can, but our perspective was changed by this experience.

So, the trip wasn't all bad.

You get extra points for correctly naming all the languages used for the word "diarrhea" in this post. Good luck!

We just returned from a vacation, which is why I've been absent. We went on a six day cruise to Cozumel, Costa Maya and Belize. I could go into a long description of the whole thing but sometimes, one can communicate more clearly by being brief. So, I will sum up the trip in two words:

Rain. Diarrhea.

I'm glad to be home with my own bed and an unlimited supply of Charmin. More later when we get settled in.

The Perfect Husband

He tells you when you've got on
too much lipstick
And helps you with your girdle
when your hips stick.
-Ogden Nash

Good Monday, everyone! I've got a little story to tell you.

Bud, my dear husband, has been working during every spare moment building a new closet in our attic. Our closet is tiny, so it will be a place to move our out-of-season clothes, and add some household storage. To make room for the new closet, we had to move everything out of the attic. So it went to the garage. Which meant Bud's car went into the driveway.

Now, I know that may not be such a big deal to most folks, but Bud intends to drive this car until it's last sputtering breath. It's got eight years on it now and he's nowhere near ready to trade it in. So he likes to take Very Good Care of it. This includes keeping it in the garage. However, Bud is too much of a gentleman to make his wife and children brave the 70 degree Texas winter to go in and out of the house, so he moved his beloved car to the driveway. Plus my car is newer, and we will also drive the wheels off of it. But I choose to believe it's chivalry that causes his car to live in the elements while mine basks in the relative luxury of the garage.

Well, you know how it goes. Stuff seems to reproduce by budding or something, because what was once a relatively manageable temporary pile soon resembled Everest in magnitude and it's sheer ability to make you short of breath every time you glance at it.

So Poor Bud's got a construction project with a huge hiccup (another post), his beloved car in the driveway, and a pile of stuff in the garage. This is a man who spends hours organizing his desk, so the situation was weighing pretty heavily on him.

On Friday, Bud had some meetings and a lunch appointment, so that gave us about 4 hours without him here. Having a work-from-home husband is wonderful, but he is always underfoot! The kids and I read our Bible and called it school, then headed to the garage where we cleaned and organized every corner. Lots of stuff got broken down for recycling or loaded into the back of my van for donation. We swept all the leaves that have blown in during our prolonged fall from every cranny and crevice. It was beautiful.

When Bud drove up and opened that garage door, it was like a huge weight was visibly lifted from him. He hugged us all and just looked at how everything was arranged. It was a beautiful moment - sniff, sniff. Just kidding.

We had a really great weekend, and I think it was partly due to the fact that Bud got a really nice, tangible taste of how much we love and appreciate him. And we gave it to him in his language - I mean notes and time alone mean a lot to me, but to this man a clean garage is love.

So my Challenge of the Week is to do something for your dear husband, something special and meaningful to him, something that you don't normally do, to show him how much you love and appreciate him. When you do it, blog on it or comment on it here so we can all benefit from it.

(Dy, what you're doing today definitely counts as doing something that shows Zorak that you love and appreciate him. So you don't have to sheetrock or run plumbing or any such thing as a result of this challenge - just in case you were getting any big ideas in that hormone-happy head of yours.)

AKA, Gena Guacamole Jelly Bean (I'm like an elephant, I never forget.)

Everyone say hello to my friend, Gena. Gena and I were pretty much inseperable in college and she was maid of honor in my wedding. She even let me spend a month with her when I had to do a med school rotation away from home. She rocks.

Gena is very funny and VERY smart. You'll definitely enjoy her comments, so please make her feel welcome. That means say hello and leave your link to your blog so she can come visit you, too.

I love Sponge Bob. It's just a funny show, and Sponge Bob is a really nice guy. This evening I watched one of my favorite episodes (Peyton was with me, I wasn't watching all alone, I promise!). In this episode Squidward got a call from an old high school band rival, Squilliam. It's just really funny, and it makes you feel good that things go right for Squidward for a change.

As Squidward assembles his band-in-name-only he asks, "Has anyone here ever played an instrument?"
Plankton replies, "Do instruments of torture count?"
"No"
"Is mayonnaise an instrument?" Patrick queries.
"No....Horseradish isn't and instrument either."
See, that's funny stuff! (You really need to hear the voices to get the full effect.)

Anyway, there is a lot of wisdom to be found in this show. Jill has even used the show to assist in her writing instruction, and I've tucked her little nugget away for the future.

At another point in tonight's episode, Squidward decides to get his band to just blast it in an attempt to cover up their bad music. "People talk loud when they want to act smart, right?"
"Correct!!" bellows Mr. Crab in response.

Well, isn't that the truth. I've noticed it's true in life, and I've also noticed it's true in the blogosphere. People speak loudly - and unkindly - about things that really have nothing to do with them just to bolster their own intellectual/hip/righteous/you-fill-in-the-blank image. It's not nice and it really doesn't achieve the desired result.

Play nice in the sandbox - there's room for all kinds in here. That's all I have to say.

I saw that someone was here from your town, and let's face it, there aren't that many people from there that it could be. If it is you, you better leave a comment, girl! I really mean it. And say hi to your mom and dad for me.

Everyone else may return to their regularly scheduled programming.

I started thinking about yesterday's post and realized that it might be all the invitation a state agency needs to take a tour through our house. Let me assure you, my dear State Employee, that my house is not like that anywhere else. We have food in the pantry, clean clothes to wear (usually) and a general state of tidiness.

To show you I mean it, take a gander at the homeschool area before and after school, when it functions as the breakfast area:


And during school:


The above desk/cabinet used to be my computer desk/home office in our previous house. But our current house was a model home about 3 owners back, which explains the copious built-ins. I am usually not a big fan of built-ins because they 1)lack flexibility and 2)typically assume that life revolves around a television. But I do love this one:



This is my home office, perfectly located in a hallway between our bedroom, the laundry room, and the kitchen. At first every little cubby had papers hanging out of it. Now those papers are concealed in the boxes that I covered with pretty paper. Since I sold both businesses, pretty much everything in here will be cleared out and put in a box in the attic once taxes are done. Then this will be my lovely Home and Garden Planning Center! My Precioussssss! My big want these days is a flat screen monitor and a keyboard that will actually fit in the keyboard tray. Wouldn't that be fancy? Shoulda put that on the 2 meme for what I really want right now.

So you see, the Arts and Crafts Hall of Shame is just one untamed jungle in an otherwise civilized and organized land.

By the way, my neighbors are coming over Saturday for a Free Sale of arts and crafts supplies.

Jess - email me about the hat knitting things and I'll send them your way!

Have a lovely evening everyone!

I've blogged before about my uncraftiness, but tonight I'm having a reality check. I've been decluttering the hobby/giftwrapping/exercise/whatever room and folks, it's a grim reality. So many false starts and pretty much nothing to show for it.

So, in an attempt to entertain you, and thus feel that all this was not a total waste, I thought I'd put on a little dog and pony show of unfinished crafts. Just for you.

First, the graveyard. This is where it all gets shoved put away when I can't look at it any longer.


Now a rundown of a few lost crafts. Proceeding chronologically, we'll look first at some beautiful quiltwork, acquired by me in 1988 in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The plan was to beautifully matte and frame these to hang in my home.


Next, we have a stack of art books and prints, waiting to be matted and framed. This includes a 1999 calendar that has lovely prints that I was planning on preserving.


Here we have a variety of floral arranging materials that sit, unused. I did cover three of the styrofoam balls with beads and they sit in a bowl on my breakfast bar. But other than that the floral arranging materials sit, forgotten, in a dark storage closet.


Along come kids. I was going to have the kids make handprint turkeys on these t-shirts for Thanksgiving one year.


My mom and my brother always did such beautiful needlepoint. I thought I'd try. I found that "Happiness is hiding the needlepoint in a closet and forgetting that it exists."


I couldn't call myself a failure at crafting if I didn't try scrapbooking now could I? Well, I tried it and it didn't take. I even did a "letter" book for Peyton when she was 3, which ends at "E", and a Kindergarten scrapbook/calendar for Luke...


...that ends in October.


You know the cute capri jeans with the pretty trim around the hem?

I don't have any.

I was going to make these very cute skirts out of men's t-shirts for the girls on my gym staff. Yeah, I'm out of business now.


Peyton needed new pajamas...and she still does.


I wouldn't be a good homeschooling blogger (blogging homeschooler?) if I didn't knit, now would I? I am and I don't so there.


And, you knew it was coming, the rag rug. It was going very well until I saw the same rug at the Crate and Barrel out let for $19. That works out to about 50 cents an hour. The stack is of all the fabric I bought to supply my New Hobby. They were remnants and cost a total of about $30, but with compounding interest, that would be about $440 at retirement if invested wisely.


Well, that's the end of the Parade of Lost Crafts. I hope you've gotten a laugh at my expense today. Now, if you have any suggestions on what I should do with this stuff, please let me know. If one of these things is your particular cuppa and you want the stuff, that can probably be arranged (I plan to keep the scrapbooking stuff and the Thai quilted pieces, but otherwise I'm not too attached to any of it).

Have a great day!

"Moreover, it is quite possible that the Genoese was one of those shrewd persons who know nothing but what they should know, and believe nothing but what they should believe."
From The Count of Monte Cristo


When I read this line about the captain of the Young Amelia in The Count it struck me as particularly meaningful and I've been saving it for a blog entry. Today seems like the perfect day to trot it out.

May we all be so shrewd.

I've been tagged by Needleroozer, and it's a good thing, too. I haven't had a lot to say of late, so it's nice to have something to write about.

2 names you go by:
1. Amy
2. Mom

2 parts of your heritage:
1. A Good Dutch blend (this actually refers to tobacco that has a bit of everything in it, +/- Dutch, my dad used it to refer to our heritage and he was probably quite accurate in this observation)


2 things that scare you:
1. mirrors - I don't mean looking at myself, they just creep me out
2. seeing a big pick-up coming fast in the rearview mirror - after our wreck, I panic every time I see that

2 of your everyday essentials:
1. read my Bible first thing
2. Diet Coke

2 things you are wearing right now:
1. my favorite, oh-so-soft Garnet Hill pajamas

2. underwear

2 favorite bands or musical artists (at the moment):
1. Jack Johnson
2. The South Austin Jug Band

2 favorite songs at the moment:
1. Blessed Be Your Name by Tree 63
2. Hill Country Nights by the South Austing Jug Band

2 things you want in a relationship (other than real love):
1. lots of laughs
2. good conversation

2 truths:
1. I don't miss medicine, and I have no desire to go back to it
2. I kind of wish I did

2 physical things that appeal to you (in the opposite sex):
1. tall stature
2. athletic build
(I've always had a bit of a crush on Tom Selleck ;) )

2 of your favorite hobbies:
1. reading
2. decorating

2 things you want really badly:
1. I really don't want anything too badly right now


2 places you want to go on vacation:
1. The Villa di Collina in Tuscany
2. Jerusalem


2 things you want to do before you die:
1. Mission work on a regular basis, probably medical
2. Live close to my children so I can play with my grandchildren

2 ways that you are stereotypically a chick:
1. PMS
2. I cry at the drop of a hat


2 things you are thinking about now:
1. what I will read after I finish this blog entry
2. if I will go to Home Depot or Barnes and Noble tomorrow

2 stores you shop at:
1. Market Street (grocery store)
2. Urban Allye (even though it makes me crazy every time I see the name spelled that way)

2 people I would like to see take this quiz:
Hmmmm. How 'bout
1. Sparrow
2. Laura

That was fun!

Happy 2006 everyone! A little late, but homeschoolers are never behind, right?

We had a fabulous New Year's Eve. Two sisters, two brothers, spouses, children, children's love interests, etc., all landed on our doorstep for 24 hours of eating, laughing, games and just plain fun.


Here are six of the seven of us with my parents. Novie, Gary, Mom, Dad, Alex (shadowed) in the back. Sharon, me, Terry in front. Steve wasn't there. This was actually 13 years ago. We all look the same except older and heavier. Sigh.

On the menu: crabcakes; sausage, peppers & onions; shrimp tamales; bacon wrapped chicken with provolone; raw oysters; pepper jelly cheesecake; sushi; fudge; cheesecake; white cake; beer; wine; cokes; and coffee.

For so many years, our gatherings were overshadowed by the health needs of our parents. Often we planned visits to our parents' home at different times, so someone would be with our parents a greater proportion of the time. Our sibling-time was definitely lacking. And as much as I miss my mom and dad, I sure do enjoy the relaxed gatherings we are now able to enjoy.

It amazes me that one set of parents, who were frankly quite overwhelmed with the task, were able to raise seven such fun and interesting people (I'm including myself here, more to make a point than to reflect reality!).

We've decided to form a family book club. We make a point to get together about every three months, so we thought it would be fun to have a book to discuss when we gather. Our first selection is The Plot Against America by Philip Roth. I enjoyed American Pastoral, but that's the only other book of his I've read. Combined with the neighborhood book club reading The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, and the neverending ongoing pursuit of the end of The Count of Monte Cristo, I've got my reading list pretty well settled for the first of the year.

BTW, I'm actually enjoying The Count of Monte Cristo very, very much. I'm to a point now that I don't really want to put it down, but it took a while to get here. It's a good book and you should read it!

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It was 82 degrees here today. I am in heaven. It is such beautiful weather. The kids played outside, I jogged outside, I read on the front porch. It doesn't get much better.

Now isn't this crazy? The oak tree in our front yard still has its leaves - they haven't fallen yet. But the Bradford Pears are all budding already! We've got some confused vegetation around here, and I'm concerned that we're going to have a full blown spring followed by a long, hard freeze which will really freak out the greenery. But I'll sure be happy to enjoy it now!

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BFL update

What day is it? I'm not sure. I'm hanging in there, doing the exercise, but the eating is just a really pain in the hiney. I am really struggling to force myself to eat six times a day. Left to my own devices I usually consume all of my calories for a 24 hour period between 2 and 9 pm. That's not healthy and I've got to workon the eating. But the workouts are great. My weight is hanging out in the same spot, as I pretty much took Christmas through New Year off. Back on track now. And it feels fabulous to exercise in the beautiful weather. Woo hoo!