What I Saw Today...part 4

I saw a thirty...something (hehe) year old man as giddy as a 4 year old on Christmas morning. A man happy to have a canine companion to love and care for. I saw a large 1 year old dog get nervous around new people and surroundings and scared by a nazi cat (that would be Squishy). I saw a nazi cat (Squishy again) get a kick out of scaring the large 1 year old dog, pouncing and stalking it as if he were her personal play-toy. I saw two children excited and happy to have a dog in the house that they can love on and play with. It will take a little adjustment for us all for a little while, but I am confident that all will turn out right in the end.

Eary Christmas Gift

Ok, so I caved. I figured I would sooner or later. I had a bad expierience with dogs in my house in the past, so I was dead set against having any dog until we had a fence up. I know this was not particularly fair to Kevin as it was not his fault that I had a bad expierience. I have been fooling around with the idea of allowing (wow that sounds domineering) him to get a dog since I know he really loves them. I was hesitant though, because I only have 2 floors that I have replaced since getting rid of the other dogs. I still have 3 that are in need of replacing. I did come to the conclusion, however, that I can not hold Kevin liable for the failings of others (myself included). It was not his doing that caused my house to be nearly destroyed by dogs, and I realize now, that he will be much more responsible than others were. So, I told Kevin that he could have a dog a few weeks ago and he has been searching ever since. Friday he found a site online for a local shelter and saw a 10mo old German Shepard. He asked me about it since the cost to get it from the shelter would be $150.00. That price covers all shots, spay or neutering, microchip, and a 30 day insurance of up to $750.00 in case anything goes wrong. They also check the animals for heartworms. I figured we could afford this and I had already mentioned that it would be one of his Christmas gifts. So Kevin and Amy took off to the shelter to get the dog. Apparently when they got there, they were bombarded with choices. To hear Kevin tell it, this place was no simple 'shelter' but more of a hotel of sorts. He swears in all the shelters he's ever been to in the past, this was the cleanest and best tended one he'd ever set foot in. The animals were all clean, healthy, and happy. He and Amy looked over the different dog choices available to them and narrowed it down to two choices. The German Shepard that he originally went for, and a 1 year old large mixed-breed. The deciding factor, or one of them, was the shelter's statement that the 1 year old was already housebroken. So, Kevin filled out the paperwork, paid the $150.00 and is the proud owner of a new dog. The shelter sent him to be neutered and microchipped and Kevin will be going to pick up his new dog today. Meathead (formerly known as Bruno) will be the newest member of our ever-growing family. I can't wait to meet him.

What I Saw Today...part3

Today was Thanksgiving, Kevin worked very hard to cook an awesome meal for us and it turned out excellent. I did not take a picture of the meal which is "What I Saw Today" so you are stuck seeing just my eye today. The turkey was seasoned with bacon and sage and numerous other spices. There was cornbread dressing with turkey sausage that has to be the best dressing I've ever eaten. I usually pass over the dressing on Thanksgiving, but very glad I did not do so this year. We also had creamy mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, and rolls. It was very traditional. And it was VERY delicious. I put in a little time in the kitchen by making the gravy, pasta salad, and deviled eggs. As you can see Kevin did all the hard work. He put a lot of effort into the meal and it showed...or tasted...however you want to look at it. Kevin also made some pecan pie with pecans from our yard that was absolutely delicious!! There was chocolate pudding pie as well. Unfortunately Kevin's younger brother was not able to join us so we are stuck with a massive amount of leftovers. I'm sure they'll be put to good use. I will try to save some for Ashe when he returns from visiting with his father.

Seeing how it's Thanksgiving, I feel the need to note the things that I am thankful for.

My kids

Kevin

I have a job (even though I'm not happy with it, I am still thankful to have it)

We have a car (that is even still running right now)

Second chances (and third, fourth and fifth...maybe someday I'll get my shit together)

The roof over my head

The food on our table

The friends who seem to always be there when we need it

The chance to spend time with loved ones

and many more things that are too numerous to mention here.

So, what did you see today? What is it that you are thankful for? Have you told someone "thank you" lately? Sometimes it's the little things that matter most or mean the most, knowing you are appreciated can be a great feeling. So, tell someone thank you, and mean it.

Do You See What I See?

Ok, I know the name is a bit cheesy, but I thought it fitting after my last blog title. So here's the thing. Can you see anything wrong with the picture below?

No? Well, I guess I am being a little unfair as it's not really anything wrong with the picture itself (except the name of the town is blurred for security reasons). What I see wrong is that here is this brand new 'memorial' of sorts displayed at the edge of town informing people of where they are entering, or perhaps where they are leaving. Our little town has been 'upgrading' some roads for going on 2 years now, putting in a new overpass leading out of town and now spending who knows how much time and money on the above pictured 'memorial'. Note the freshly laid sod, concrete/stone work, and landscaping. So, by now you may be wondering what I am getting at. Take a look at this picture now.

This area is only a few feet away from the nice new, pretty 'memorial' from the first picture. I know it's hard to see exactly what I'm trying to show you in this picture, so I took a close-up picture.

See, this small section of road has pot holes so bad you could lose an entire car in them. Hell, I think someone has already. I do know of one person who, after driving in this area, busted open their transmission. People have quit using this 'road' because of how horrible it is. So I find myself wondering, if there is plenty of time and money for a brand new overpass, and a brand new landscaped 'memorial' then why has this road not been fixed? Doesn't it seem more helpful and economic to fix the road rather than spend all that money on lanscaping by an oversized roadsign?

Do You Hear What I Hear?

I am sitting on the bench outside of the store I manage and I am bombarded by foreign sounds that are loud and annoying. The sound of a car driving by that squeals for some reason I don't know. Eighteen wheelers and their rumbling engines, construction workers driving and using all manner ofequiptment. Even the bells and whistles of a train that is passing through. The clicks of a car just turned off and the neverending beeps of a convinent store. Inside is no better, I hear the hum of the ice machine making ice, the clatter when a customer dispenses ice to their cups. The register beeps and blips. And of course the constant stream of babble from people who think I must know all that's going on in this town and in the world.

I long for peace and quiet, the sounds of animals roaming a forest and growing trees. The music of a stream as it makes its way to wherever it's going. The sky rumbling with a coming storm, the wind rattling fall leaves, or a gentle rain pattering the ground. I long for a simpler life, with less running around like a chicken with my head cut off. Where working hard actually means something more than a paycheck that might get me and my family through the next two weeks. I don't want to be rich, just comfortable. Comfortable with myself, my life, and happy with all that God has given me. This is not to say that I am unhappy now. I guess I am just frustrated. There is a saying that I have heard on more than one occasion. "God never gives us more than we can handle. I just wish he didn't trust me so much." I find this very fitting right now. At some point in my life, I would like the peace of mind to know that all will be well. That I don't have to stress about who is going to call in sick, or who needs a raise, or vacation. Or whether I can get my kids the new shoes they need and the things they want for their birthday or Christmas. Along with all of that, I just want to be surrounded by quiet. No traffic, no beeps, or hums, and most definitely no constant babble from mostly idiots who think they are the first person to ever crack a joke about my name.

What I Saw Today...part 2

I'm not sure how well you can see what is in the picture, but it is the most recent shed of Kevin's snake, Slither. He is growing by leaps and bounds, not surprising the way he eats. I can't even remember how may times he has shed since he has been here, at least twice for every once my pythons have shed. I am struck by the fact that reptiles will have an outward show of growth beyond just growing. They are basically saying "I have outgrown myself and here is the proof". I wonder what it would be like if we shed like reptiles did. What would people think when they saw the bright shiny and soft new us after a shed? Would it cause us to realize just how much we've changed since the last time? Would we be more likely to look at ourselves and see if there is any inner 'skin' that we've outgrown and need to shed? Or would we just continue as usual going about our daily business not changing a thing about ourselves because "it's worked well enough so far".
If only it was that easy to shed our bad habits, habits that we've outgrown like a snake sheds the skin it outgrew.

Happy Birthday!

We celebrated Ashe's birthday yesterday and it was a great day! Keving got up early to bake a cake for Ashe. It turned out so cute, he started with triple chocolate cake, made two layers. It was frosted with cream cheese icing. Then a 'grave' was dug out of the center and a small inexpensive action figure was 'buried' into the cake. And of course there was a headstone, to mark the grave of the fallen. That may sound sick and demented to some, but if you are a gamer (D&D) you would understand a little better.

There were lots of friends to enjoy the BBQ with us, plenty of food to eat, presents, cake and of course ice cream. Ashe enjoyed himself very much, which is all that matters. And he only had to open one duct-taped gift this year. He also had a prank gift which is always fun. The look on his face was absolutely awesome!!

All in all it was an excellent day finished off with some gaming time. Good friends and good times, can't beat it.

What I 'Saw' Today...

The picture you see above is of a moth that decided to rest on the outside wall of my store. I saw it this morning and sent a picture of it to Kevin. I am reminded of what he wrote in his blog, that we should stop and really look at something. I would love to take more time to observe this moth on my wall, unfortunately, my job requires that I actually do some work to get paid. However, I did take a few seconds anyway, to take a photo of this resting creature to share with the world. So I guess, the point here is to take any chance you can to observe the wondrous world around you!

'Tis the Season

Well, it's getting to be that time. Christmas is right around the corner, and for most people it is stressful, for me it is more so. Not only do I have Thanksgiving followed closely by Christmas, I have my son's birthday November 19th, then my daughter's birthday December 9th. So I get slammed with two birthday's worth of presents as well as Christmas. My budget is tight at best, and this time of year it is downright non-existant. This coming weekend will be our "Backyard Barbeque Birthday Bash" for my son. He is turning a whopping 13 years of age, a true teenager this year. We have managed to get him some nice gifts that we hope he will thouroghly enjoy. Kevin will be baking the birthday cake and he and I will work to come up with some off the wall crazy way to decorate it. Here is a picture of him taken not too long ago. He made this face and while it's not suitable for hanging on the wall it suits him well if you know him.

We also had to take our poor Drizzt to the vet yesterday. He had been acting a little 'off' for a few days and yesterday his entire lower jaw was swollen up. Kevin and I rushed the poor baby to see what was wrong. The vet couldn't tell me for sure what it was (he wanted to do x-rays but I didn't have an extra $70 to shell out for them). It is possible it is just a really bad bruise, he could have fallen, ran into something really hard, or been hit. The likelyhood of him falling or hitting something is very small, which leads me to think he was hit. Now I am trying not to speculate, but I'm half afraid some hooligan has decided to use my loveable cat as a soccer ball. The idea of that has me decidedly worried. Kevin and I are on the hunt for a guard dog now. We would like to start with a young puppy to train him properly, but at this point, anything is better than nothing. See Drizzt below, he may look innocent in the picture, but he's after my food!

I seem to be having some difficulty with my daughter of late, I am not sure what her deal is, but she pouts about everthing, and has started getting an attitude with me of late. I assure you this will not last! I do not put up with moody children and she will be made aware of this fact once again (yes, she has tried the 'attitude' bit with me in the past) and she will behave like a...hmm...well behaved child. Sounded odd saying it that way. Most of the time I can count on Amy to be loveable, crafty and fun. For the most part she is very easy to get along with and always willing to help out with things. It has just been recently that she has tried to start attitude with me, perhaps part of her 'growing up' is to blame for that. I am sure it's just a phase and she will (hopefully) go back to being the sweet helpful child I know. Here she is in a recent picture.

I think I will have to close for now. Be sure to check out the blog of my love Kevin, and also that of the Crazed Mind. I'm sure they have something much more interesting or inspiring to say, me, I just whine a lot.

So Here It Is, My Little Corner

I have a friend who does a lot of blogging and seems to enjoy it. She has met quite a few people and learned new things, tested new and interesting products, and just had a good time. I figured, well I'll give it a shot. My love started his today earlier. See his at http://www.terzula.blogspot.com/ and be sure to visit my friend who got us started at http://www.theysayimnuts.blogspot.com/ . I'm sure they would both enjoy a visit to their blog, not to mention they are probably both much more interesting and have better stuff on theirs.

So, being that this is my first post, I guess I'll give a little info about myself. I am 32 years old with two beautiful children ages 13 and 12. I just recently divorced my husband of 7 years for the plain and simple fact that we didn't agree on anything and wanted different things out of life. It just seemed unreasonable to stay together when we were both unhappy. I have since started dating a dear friend of mine. I have known him since I was pregnant with my son, and he and I have been very good friends since. Our house is also home to two cats, a mostly black cat named Drizzt (after R.A. Salvatore's character), a white with black cat Squishy which belongs to my daughter, three ball pythons, Madmartigan, Razelle, and Sorscha (yes those are all names from Willow), a water dragon, Obad-Hai; and my love's Mexican Black Kingsnake, The Slithering Darkness (Slither for short or the Slithering Pig if you've seen him eat!). We in this household are quite fond of animals, if that wasn't obvious, and we are actually looking for a puppy to join our happy family.

My son, the oldest at 13, well not til next week actualy, is a loveable, intelligent, imaginative child that keeps me on my toes. He played football this year for the first time and really enjoyed it, he said he plans to play next year as well. He also plays the Alto Saxophone for the band. He loves to play World of Warcraft and Dungeons & Dragons.

My daughter, only 12 and technically not til next month, is an energetic, friendly, artistic girl. She loves almost everyone she meets instantly and people can't help but love her in return. She loves to learn new arts and craft things with me, she recently did her first wood-burning and it turned out very well. She plays flute for band and is doing excellent at it.

Then there is my love, the oldest of the household, and I won't say by how much. He keeps us all on hopping with his charming self, witty remarks and general lines of bullshit. I don't know anyone else that can spew forth BS the way he does in such a believeable manner. He absolutely loves the outdoors, repltiles of all kinds, learning anything any everything he can, and his greastest love is the love for his children. He hates cats (and shows it often by feeding Drizzt directly from his own plate and spoiling him utterly rotten), but loves dogs. He has been wanting a dog of his own for quite some time, but I was hesitant due to previous bad expieriences with canines in the house. I have pretty much caved, as I do actually like dogs, mostly, and I trust Kevin to make sure the dogs respect the house and the people who live here, meaning they will do their 'business' outside and be taught early on not to eat/chew everything they can get their teeth into.

I love arts of all sorts, photography, trees, animals, and many other things. I paint, wood-burn, sew, create all sorts of completely useless things that are interesting to look at, take pictures as often as I can find time, and numerous other projects that fall my way. I currently manage a convinient store here in town. I must say that I am truly frustrated with my job, at least the waking up at 4am part, and would love nothing more than to quit and stay at home for a while. I don't think I could stand to do it for too long, I've worked or gone to school most of my life and I don't know that I could stay sane at home all the time. I would love to find a more flexible job but keep the same or better paycheck that I have now. I'm not asking for much huh?

Well, I think I've managed to give out the basics here, so I'll end this post for the time being. I promise I will not remember to post here every day, but will do my best to keep it updated and perhaps put some slightly more interesting information up for future reading enjoyment. Take care all!

Jayde