crybaby

I  moved  my boy into college on Thursday.  I did really well, and I hardly cried at all.  I did a little bit when I was putting his stuff in the van, but only  Chris saw me, and he didn't tell.   Jeff was  so nervous, and when we took him to breakfast, he was pretty shook up.   When we got to school, he wanted me to go with him to fill out paperwork, while his dad waited for the golf cart to unload the stuff out of the van.

As we were about done, it was clear Jeff was feeling a little better, and he let us know we could go whenever we were ready! LOL.  I gave him a big hug, and still, I didn't cry.


Anyone who knows me,  this was a monumental feat for someone who cries at cartoons and commercials, who cries when she is sad, happy and angry, and everything in between.

I didn't cry Friday. Jeff was happy and having a great time.
I didn't cry Saturday. Jeff was making new friends, and staying out WAY too late.

Then today.  Well, so much for the not crying thing!  We got up early, got ready for Church. We  sat behind Sam and Courtney at Mass, (his friends) and Courtney's family.  That was cool. I said hi to the girls.
At some point after Mass started, my little Joshua  was snuggling up next to me, and he put his little face in my arm, and looked up at me  with a sad face and said, " I miss Jeff."  I  told him, I miss him too.

  TA DA!!   In front of a couple hundred people, my eyeballs decided it was a good time to leak.
I didn't even have a tissue. I had to go to the bathroom to get some toilet paper because my sniffles were getting on MY nerves!  (TWICE)

You might think it was just that cute little Josh, with his  watery eyes, that did me in.  You would be partially right. But really, Joshua just felt first what was missing from out picture.  Jeff hasn't really wanted to hang with us for a while. He is eighteen after all, and being with friends is much more fun, whether in person, or online.  But the one time a week when we are always together is on Sunday when we go to Church together.  There are very few times when we go without him.  Then the stupid  Music director for the church HAD to play America the Beautiful.

The last few times  the song has been accompanied by Jeff on the trumpet.  It is one of the reasons I stopped grumbling about playing a patriotic song at church instead of a song praising God.

No trumpet.
No Jeff.

It just did't feel  right today.  I am going to have to get over  the fact that Jeff is moving on with his life.

We will always be a family of five , but all five of us are not always going to be together~!

One more week

There is only one more week until school, give or take a few days depending on which  of the kids I am talking about.  Jessie has  an open house Monday when she will get her schedule and find all of the rooms for her classes.  I am SO glad that we only have to go through that stress once in our life. Well, you know what I mean anyway, she has several years of it.

    I  went to Catholic school, so it was a lot different for me than it is for the kids in public school. I went through K-8 with the same  30 kids.  We switched classes in 8th grade, and that meant all 30 of us went accross the hall to another room for math! I didn't go through  the type of adjustment she will  until ninth grade.  And let me tell you, I was THAT freshman.   The Highschool I went to freshman year had three levels, plus the basement where the cafeteria was, and my locker was down there too.  :(  I was the kid who was afraid to be late for the class on the third floor, so I carried  umpteen books around with me .
What was worse, I was desperate to be liked, so when a classmate asked me to carry their books, while they schmoozed with other friends, I likely did it. Yes, I was also the one who dropped said books while going up the stairs!

Josh starts school Thursday. Bless his heart, he is anxious about second grade because a kid  he know said he will have to add 3 digit numbers.  He will, that is true, but the kid is just good at math. he will do fine. 

Jeff has a little more time to relax. His  move in date is September 2.  THey have a whole weekend of activities planned, and I am sure  he will do fine. But I feel sort of like when  each of them started kindergarten.  Maybe worse.  He has already  "met" his roomate online, so that shouldn't be as awkward as I was worried about.  One thing that is helping me is that he is only going to be forty minutes away, so if we forget to pack something,  or he needs us, it is only a phone call away. Now I just have to keep from calling HIM and bugging him while he is away!  See, he should thank me that he doesnt have texting!!

Overall, I am kind of bummed that summer is almost over. We had alot of fun together , and there are alot of changes to come this school year, and I am not sure I am ready for them.  They are coming anyway.

Eyebrows and Kohls

I know it's a wierd  post title, but it was just that kind of day!

The plan was to take Jessie this morning to Kohls to find some "skinny" jeans and some shoes for Josh. Well , I slept through most of the morning,  but the kids were relaxing and not fighting so I didn't get my usual wake-up call.

   A while ago, Jessie asked me if I could take her to get her eyebrows  done, and I put it off for most of the summer. I have never had it done and I was kind of nervous about taking her.  After I had my coffee, I called the local salon to set up an appointment, and they set it for today at 2.  Memo to me, when they set an appointment, just count on sitting there for half an hour.  I  don't go to salons, and I assumed the service would be better than at Gret Clips ( who does NOT do brows).  One of these days I'll learn.

Anyway, I have never gotten an eyebrow wax, so I couldn't really tell Jessie what it would be like. All I told her is that I thought it probably hurt, but it would be better than me plucking all of the hairs myself. I still think that is true, and I am positive the results were better :D  Anyway, poor thing was in tears when she came out, and she looked like someone sat there smacking her in the brows instead of waxing!  OMG..Kohls definitely had to wait a few hours or someone might have thought I abused the poor kid.  I will definitely NOT be going for a brow wax. Besides , I have wonderfully perfect eyebrows naturally (heehee).  After her face returned to normal, she was really happy with the way it looked. They  only got rid of the extra hair below and between her brows. I shudder to think what she would have looked like if we wanted to make her brows thin. OUCH

I did  make it up to her by supplying her with a healthy binge of chocolate, which just makes everything better. Even  Josh got to indulge , since he sat there like a champ the whole time we were waiting!
I got some rolos,  just because I can!


We did end up going to Kohls after dinner. We had a greast trip. Jessie found two pairs of Jeans she likes, plus a tank and a cami.  I found a couple shirts on clearance that rock, and  found some shoes  that   fit   the little guy with the wide feet. ( Thanks to his momma).

And Jeff, well , he is at the Kohls Warehouse working 8-6 in the first of potentially four  night shifts.  His friend Krystal (like the burger)  told him her employer needed extra help, and away he went.  The nice thing, its a temp agency, and he can check the listings for shifts available in the future.  He originally thought he would be working Friday, Sat, and Sunday, but they wanted him to go in tonight to train. Its a bummer that he only got four hours sleep last night, and that instead of coming home and sleeping this afternoon, he went to kings Island, but hey, he is 18. He will recover by tomorrow night!!!

School Days

It has been a busy summer, and so it has flown by. I can't believe the kids are going to school soon. I have had a blast, and believe it or not, this year I am not as ready for school as before :(  I think they actually fought less, probably because I tried to keep them a little busier.  I  finally got my school list together this morning.

 Today I took Jessie and Joshua school shopping to buy their  school supplies and some school clothes.

 

Several years ago, I would have it made when they were out of formula and diapers and baby clothes..etc.  It couldnt be more expensive than that, right?  Wrong.  Now I have kids who STILL grow out of their clothes (some every season) and the clothes are no longer the three dollar Garanimals I got at Walmart. Heck, with inflation, even the garanimals went up!

     I  have now got  a just-about-teenage girl who  is starting to give a hoot about what clothes she can wear. Thank the LORD she is still a down to earth kid,  happy with graphic tees from anywhere as long as they fit.
But  she has changed sizes and has ZERO jeans that are long enough.  ( I thought only boys shot up  6 inches a year!?)  Jessie also is starting to LOOK more like a teen , something her dad will be shocked to see when she wears her new girl tee shirts instead of the boy shaped ones. Good grief,  we are going to be beating the boys off this one. On the other hand, she may  kick their butts herself!    The way she looks now, I told her she can wear make-up when she graduates high school!!! ( Go ahead, you can laugh at me. But I can at least scare her out of it for another year or two!)  She wants to buy "skinny" jeans.. and I don't know what to do if she wants "jeggings".. No I didnt' make that up. Its some cross between  Jeans and leggings,  and if you are my age, just think REAL stretch jeans like we used to wear ...gag..gag...

Joshua , bless his heart , he is cheaper to buy for , but he needed everything. The kid has got his momma's feet,  meaning  he needs a wide width, and I am having a time of finding shoes for him.  Everything he tried on today felt uncomfortable.  I shudder to think I may have to walk into a stride rite.  ( The scrooge in me does NOT want to pay 40 dollars for shoes lasting 6 months or less!)
I think he was a bit disgruntled because the tee shirts I bought were a little big, but I dont want to buy new ones next month for crying out loud!  At least the jeans fit him , and they all have that neat elastic adjuster. That will work until he grows another inch by  Christmas.


Jeff is the  the last one we still  have to shop for. He may be the easiest , because he is DONE with the growing. Most of what he has still fits, and the kids in college won't know he wore those clothes LAST year, lol. But, he needs some jeans and socks and all that. Plus the things for his dorm.  Its not really like he will be cheaper though, (ahem...laptop) ...


In the end, I shouldn't complain at all.  I seem to change sizes every year myself!!

Computer smackdown

Okay, I know I shouldn't brag. But sometimes when you have a little victory you just feel like celebrating!!

We got  Jeff a laptop for Graduation  to use at school.  I wanted  to make sure he had a little time to get used to it before he moved.  Well, he just kept taking the laptop into the  basement  to use.  Finally  I asked him if the rest of us had body odor. I mean, I understand the XBOX is set up down there so  he  has to be down there when he plays that.  But the laptop he can  sit right on the couch or at the kitchen table.

Well, his wireless apparently sucked old socks.  Chris checked it  and it was terrible. So we took it back to best buy and they checked it, and agreed and gave us a new laptop.  We got that one home tonight and it was exactly the same. The connection said excellent, but we could not get anything to download, and when we ran a  speed test it was as slow as molasses.  Chris fooled with it for a good part of the night before giving up and going to bed.  We figured we would need a different model of lap top.

I  am a stubborn woman.  I cannot stand to be defeated by a computer , ask anyone.

So I got busy , looking on the internet about what different settings mean, and fooling with his wireless adapter .  Finally, I figured out the problem and now  his internet connection kicks ass,  even beats my connection .  I dont even know how I managed to find the one tiny setting, other than comparing my settings to his.

Needless to say I am here  late at night by myself doing my own little victory dance!  I only look slightly better than that  man in the photo, but that is just how I feel.


Also, we found a neat little gadget at Best buy that we can dock our old hard drive into and transfer any data we want to save . It is AWESOME>>  but I have to say I am glad we have a backup drive that we bought a while ago, because there were so many pictures and videos on my old Hard drive  that they wont even fit on my laptop.  Go figure!   Tomorrow I am going to work on transferring more files to the backup drive, and then I am going to back up my lap top files.


Better safe than sorry!!

Vacation at the beach

Well, it is Thursday night, and I think I am finally caught up with  putting  all of our vacation clothes and stuff away. Even though we kept up with the laundry, I still seemed to have some when we got home.

We left for Fort Lauderdale last Thursday, and stopped to see my grandpap on the way.  I wish he wasn't so darned far from here. I would have liked to seen him more than that.  But we had a nice visit and dinner with him and his sister.

Fort Lauderdale was great. The weather was perfect,  and we spent alot of time swimming with the kids. 
The beach was gorgeous, even though the water was a little too rough. We saw  many spots on the beach that were marked  for Sea Turtle Nests. The awesome thing about that, we went to the beach  very early  one morning to see the sunrise, and we saw the patrols checking the nests.  They stopped at one, so when they left we went over to check it out, and amazingly, we could see the baby sea turtle tracks . Thanks to my neice for wanting to go early, because we would have missed that  wonderful experience.  The baby turtle tracks are so tiny, and when you see how far the tracks go before they disappear in the sand near the water , you realize what an epic journey the little critters are really making at the very beginning of their lives.
Now THAT is a critter that does not bother me in the least.

My mom and neice and I went to the Butterfly World.  I have never seen so many butterflies in one place. They were so beautiful. And while we were there for the butterflies, my favorite part of the exhibit was seeing all of the  hummingbirds that were there too.  The birds were so close you could touch them. I have a hummingbird feeder, but the birds never stay still long enough to observe them that closely.


Another super experience we had was to  go on an airboat ride, like they use in the everglades.  Those boats are so loud that they provide you with earplugs. On our ride we sw two gators, and they seemes completely comfortable with the boat  and came up almost curiously, ( or looking for food , Lol). Josh seemed a little nervous, and he leaned over and  old me that the gator was looking at him. 

We had a great time,  drank lots of beer, ate a lot of great food,  did some shopping and met some interesting people. ( Hello Ladies!) 

Family Reunion and Backup Blues

  Wow!  What a great weekend I had!  We went to Pittsburgh for a family reunion, and I got to see family I haven't seen in a few years.    I can't believe I am now the one  walking around in shock at how big everyone's kids are getting! Pretty soon, some of us cousins are going to be sharing pictures of grandbabies!
Hopefully that will  a   few reunions away for me!

Jessie got sick, so she stayed at my moms with Chris, and the rest of us ended up leaving the reunion early.  I was disappointed, but I hate to be away from the kids when I know they are not feeling well. Plus I wanted everyone to meet Jessie. She is such a beautiful and awesome girl.

It was not a wasted trip though, because  both nights we were there I stayed up late shooting the bull with my mom and dad, and I kept my dad up past three each night. Sorry dad! LOL  It might take him until vacation to recover! It was alot like what my dad and his mom used to do, and  we woke my mom up at least once with our loud voices and laughing.

One of the things I talked to my dad about was backing up the computer. I have an external drive for  just that thing, though I haven't copied any files to it for a few months. So when we got home from our trip to Pittsburgh, you can imagine my expression  ( and hopefully not the vocabulary) when we went to turn on the computer and nothing showed  up on the monitor.    I was hoping the thing was asleep. The computer was on, I could hear it running and the lights were a flashing, but  no signal was going to the computer. Ruh Roh Rooby.

I hoped it was just a video card that we could replace.   Chris  took the PC to Best Buy  in search of a video card replacement.  The Geek Squad ran a quick diagnostic, and the motherboard is toast.  I mean that literally. The Geek  looked at it, and there were bulging something or others ( not including my eyeballs) .
 A while back we had a nasty storm that we thought blew out the power supply.  We replaced the power cord and everything seemed fine, but  he said that surge was the likely cause of the problem, it was just a matter of time before we had this failure.

He said he personally wouldn't replace anything, let alone  the motherboard on  a five year old computer. The motherboard  would be three  or four hundred dollars. The only good news is that the hard drive seems to be fine and we should be able to recover anything on it we want to save. ( Only Jeff's graduation pictures, itunes, etc ..ugh!)  We can do that ourselves for about 30 dollars for the part needed to transfer the information, or , Best Buy can do it for 100.

So , if you are reading this and you haven't saved your important pictures or information lately,  yesterday would be a great day to do it. ( And every time you add a precious photo from your camera).
I did have a lot saved, but it does not help me  with the last three months  worth of stuff.

 

I have my lap top, which is  one comfort, but the kids are already missing the PC and  Joshua misses the TV tuner  that let him watch Spongebob on the computer ( for those times that I can't stand another yellow minute of  it.)
My nickname may be Pineapple, but I get tired of  " Who lives in a Pineapple under the sea?"
All of my software is for Windows, so  that means another PC for me at some point.  I will get to experience first hand the  joys or lack of in Windows 7.   It shouldn't be too bad  , I am one of ten who don't mind Windows Vista .

Computers Suck Animation A great animated spoof of the Mac VS PC commercials. The animation was very well done in the style of South Park.

Foster Fishies

  

We are getting ready to go for a visit to my mom and dad's house .  We never really need a reason to visit, and its been a while since we went there. This time we have a few reasons.  The first, is to see the folks , of course.  Pretty soon they will be moving, and it will take a bit longer to go visit, though not all that much longer!  We are also going to hop over to a family reunion while we are there.  The kids are happy  about that as well.  I think they know every time we go to a family reunion there is a cool playground.

( They forgot the fact that people they hardly remember keep wanting to kiss and hug, and tell them how much they look like their mom! or dad, lol. And how many times will they hear " You probably don't even remember me!"   Yes, I went to my share of family reunions LOL)

The third reason we are going to visit is to pick up some foster fishies.  Yep, I am going to be foster mom of half  a dozen fish.  Really, I will be more of a babysitter, LOL.  My mom has a bunch of fish that she  can't take with her right away when she moves. So I offered to keep some and my brother is going to keep some.

 I set up the tank today so it has a few days to do whatever fish tanks do . I don't know , the pet  store people always say to do that. I ususally don't follow their advice, and I usually lose the first few  fish .
Since these are foster fishies, I figure I better follow the instructions this time.

I am wondering how the cats are going to be with the fish tank.   The little one, Cocoa, was fascinated with  the tank before I even had it filled. She would come and sit  on the edge of the couch and look at it, then run when we came in with more water. When it was filled she looked at it as if to say, " Is that all?" OR maybe it was, "IS that my new water bowl?"  She is also the one who was the most curious about  my  Jessie's
little fish tank, not that she got to see much of it. Jessie keeps her door shut to keep  Cocoa out. Cocoa and Knex don't go well together.

I think Alfie, the white cat, may love  watching the fish swim. He is the goofy cat who sits on the coffee table in the morning and watches Animal Funny Videos.  Just so long as he doesnt think it is a Wii or something, and try to get interactive with it!!

If all else fails, I will be sure to duct tape the lid  so the  cats don't  do any fishing when I am out.

Birth pangs at Forty

Ecclesiastes 1:9
" What has been will be again,
what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun."


I thought this Bible quote would be a good beginning for my blog today. At forty, I am learning new things everyday, things that my mother told me, things she would tell me if she thought I would listen to her, and things she learned from her mother as well.

18 years ago, I had my first child, and there were alot of things as a mother that I wish I knew then that I do now. Many of those things I learned either from my parents, or by trial, and my second and especially my third child, will, and have, reaped the benefits.  Unfortunately for the eldest, I am eternally a pioneer on a voyage to unchartered territory.

When you have a child, there are numerous books and videos that purport to help you along the way. You can read and listen to all the advice on what to feed them, when to potty train, what vaccines they need, and more, half of which you actually may follow,  the other half you don't, you just wing it. In the end, your firstborn survives your inexperience. What the books dont't tell you is, that after 18 years, you get to go through labor again.

No, I haven't lost my mind, and I haven't had too many cooking beers.

"There is nothing new under the sun". However for me it IS new, and something I have no book, no manual for. I am, for the most part, winging it.

Yep, you go through labor again. My parents know this, maybe they even thought of it in the same terms. They tried to warn me. They've try to guide me. And, just like so many life lessons, you just have to learn by doing.

     Part of me is thrilled that the baby I had many years ago is becoming a man. On the other hand, it is every bit as painful and messy as his birth was 18 years ago. He is kicking ,struggling, fighting his way to separate from the safety that is (the womb) his family. And I seem to be hanging on for dear life, thinking of all the challenges that await him. If only they were as simple as walking and potty training.

I feel every "contraction", wondering how much longer this can last?  Everything is done but the cutting of the unbilical cord. That cut is coming soon. Unfortuantely, through this process, you don't get an epidural for the pain. You are, however, allowed to drink a beer or two.

My son is an awesome person, with most of what he needs to go out and begin  his life as an adult. Sure, there are things he still needs to learn, and like me, there are things his parents will try to tell him and he won't listen to, and things they WON'T try to tell him, because they  be taught (or won't be listened to).
Ready or not, whether he lives at home or moves out, that train is about  to leave station.

In a couple months, he will go off to school, and he won't be calling to see if he can do this, or go there. He will be making decisions without the interference of mom. He will spend months reveling in his new freedom, and I will spend them wondering how he is.
I hope he will know that I'll be here when he needs me, but that I know he is going to be just fine.

And though I may know what to expect, there will still be pain when the other two become adults as well.

Worse, I have caught hints from my parents that these types of changes, these "births", extend beyond the 18 year mark, that what I see as an ending of his dependence on me, does not equal an ending to the labors I will feel as a parent.

The only thing I can hope for, is that as I get older , I will listen more when my parents tell me what to expect and when they give me advice. I appreciate their experience more than ever. Someday he will too.

Fireworks and Baby Bandits on Independance Day

First, to everyone, Happy Independance Day!


We had a wonderful day today, with mimimum drama and lots of fun. We started the day
going to Church, where Father Jack gave another amazing sermon. Jeff was with the Choir, and played his trumpet to "America the Beautiful" at the end of Mass. While I love the song, I do find it sad that of all the beautiful hymns that are sung during the year, it is this one honoring America that gets the most participation. Don't get me wrong, honoring America is a GOOD thing, especially in these politically correct times, but I'd like to hear songs praising God get as much enthusiasm. Jeff's trumpet playing was beautiful enough to distract me from my normal thoughts about the appropriateness of patriotic song at Church.

Later we went swimming at the YMCA, and Jeff, who didn't want to come, decided to join us after all. :) That means he's not TOO mad at me! When we finished swimming, we came home and Chris grilled some burgers while I fixed the potato salad. We had a great dinner, ate some Peach ice cream, and then watched Grease. I know it is bass ackward, but Chris loves Grease, and I, well, don't. But after seeing the high school perform the musical, I enjoyed watching the movie for the first time since I can't remember. Jessie even asked me to tape it for her.

At 9:30, we packed the kids into the car and drove to Kings Island and watched a beautiful fireworks show from the parking lot. They really do go all out for the holiday. The only down side was that it took an hour to get home instead of the normal 15 minutes.
But hey, they were playing great tunes on the radio, and Chris was entertaining the cars around us with his mad car grooving skills, not to mention his wicked vocals!
"She's a bad mamma jamma..." When is the last time YOU heard that song??
Oh, and memo to me, don't even act embarrassed, or Chris will shake his groove thing even more just to see if I will slither under the seat!! I have to delete some stuff off my phone so that next time I can get him on video. Not that it would deter him any!

This all leads up to the title of todays post..baby bandits

When we arrived home from the fireworks show, we saw the cat, Cocoa, having a fit by the back door. She was making futile attempts at catching a big fat moth on the wrong side of the glass door. When Chris went to check on her , he saw a raccoon on the porch.
Then another. And another..In all , there were five baby raccoons in the corner of the deck by the door.

They discovered that the hummingbird feeder had leaked its nectar onto the deck boards. Imagine five little black masked bandits, not stealing tomatos, not rummaging in the garbage can, but furiously licking the deck for all they were worth. I mean, didn't their mother tell them they could get SPLINTERS that way??

They were incredibly cute, but, since I know that deck boards lead to bird feeders, then to tomato plants, and so on, I decided to flip on the lights to scatter the little stinkers.

Instead of fleeing, one of the raccoons came over to the window, sat up, and kept touching the window , as if to say, "Can I have some more, please?". Cocoa, the curious, and apparently not the ferocious, put her nose to the window, and baby bandit returned the gesture. It looked like some sort of rated G Disney Romance.

Our next move was to open the door. The sound soon scattered the five, who ran over the side of the deck and under the shrubs. We had no sooner closed the door, when we saw their little masked faces peering over the side, in between the railing posts, looking like a little row of prisoners behind bars. Luckily, we didn't encounter Mamma Raccoon, who was probably busy hanging from my Critter proof Bird Feeder. Go ahead, you can laugh at that.
I dont think they have invented a bird feeder that a raccoon cannot vanquish! I know she goes out there, because I have opened the door at night , only to hear the sound of her falling from the feeder. I never see her, I just see the feeder swaying back and forth, or the resulting damage to the cat whisker plants that surround the feeder.

Did you know that raccons will occupy the empty nests of groundhogs? At least the raccons won't eat my petunias!


I did promise to post my recipe, and pictures of my pitiful adopted garden, but I enjoyed the day too much to take time for either. Hopefully I will get to those tomorrow!

Good with the bad

Well, today was a half good and half bad kind of day.

We woke up to the sound of Chris's cell phone. It was work calling with some emergency. (BAD)

Chris wondered aloud how she got his home cell number , since the person who called wasn't supposed to have it. I reminded him that on his WORK cell, the voicemail message clearly says, "If this is an emergency call xyz..." ie. the home cell number!
It was not an emergency to Chris, LOL.

Later we went to lunch at Taco Bell ( Good! Yum!)
It was the one way to convince the 18 year old that spending time with family might be more fun than sitting in his cave with Xbox. Taco BEll almost didn't work. He did know that we were going to Pet Smart, and then to Lowes. He knows that any trip to Lowes can end up being a half day event, with dad looking at tools and mom looking at every plant, container, bird feeder and water fountain in stock. And while I did look, I didn't buy any new flowers. I did get a new cool garden tool, (GOOD) that wont do diddly for what I actually wanted it for! (BAD)

Later, I went up to the Primary school to check out the garden spot that I "adopted" last year. (Bad)

Over the last several months, I worked so hard to clear all the clover and dandelions, and let me tell you, that was a huge effort. The garden bed I was assigned is larger than my flower beds at home. I thought no one could have touched that area in years. I pulled and plucked for hours over many days. Finally, on Mother's day, Chris helped me take some flowers I dug from my garden, and plant them in my garden spot. I was so pleased with myself. It looked beautiful! (Very GOOD)

Well, today we went back there to see if we could use the new tool to dig up the weeds that had begun to sprout before school ended. There is no mulch in this very large garden bed, so the weeds grow pretty quickly. I didn't want to wait too long.

I think that the guys who cut the grass for the school secretly sprinkled wild grass seed all over the beds, because when we got there, I nearly cried. Really. Hiding all of the plants I put in just a few weeks ago was this crazy grass, and it was nearly chest high. (VERY VERY BAD) For a second, I thought they grew some corn or something! If you look real hard you can see the Irises, the Daylilies, the liriope, coneflowes and liatris I donated. I mean look REAL HARD. With no exaggeration, it looked WORSE than when I first started to weed it months ago. This crazy grass just replaced all the clover and dandilions. At least those were only inches high.
The lawn was recently cut, so I'm suprised they didn't just take the lawnmower right over the whole mess.

Tomorrow I think I will take a picture so you can see how horrible it looks.
Bless his heart, Chris felt so bad for me, that he said he would rent a tiller so I dont have to break my back or ruin my lovely manicured hands (ROFL) with dirt and blisters.

I may need to weed again, but not tomorrow. Tomorrow will be a day full of cornhole and beer, hamburgers and potato salad.

I ended the day on a high note though. I came home and made a new chicken recipe that was SO awesome. I will post it tomorrow too, with the grass-from-hell pictures. After we stuffed ourselves, Chris and I played some cornhole (He beat me for the two millionth time). We drank alot of bud light, and watched the community fireworks from the back yard with some neighbors. (100 % AWESOME)

OH, the back yard has a slight odor of dead groundhog, so you know which neighbors did NOT come over for the fireworks!


Since it is 1 in the morning, Happy Independance Day!

Groundhog Adventures

I posted about the groundhog on Facebook, and while it generated some funny responses, as Paul Harvey used to say, now for the rest of the story...

When we lived in Cuyahoga Falls, I had a running battle going with the local squirrel. Did I say squirrel? I meant the ARMY of furry evil long tailed rodents.. er.. squirrels. They chewed through every bird feeder, tossed up every annual I tried to plant, and sunned themselves on the garage next to the house..looking at me with their evil rodent beady eyes, as if to say, "what are YOU going to do about it?". The neighbor was sympathetic, so much so that she fed the cretans with peanuts that they happily buried where I tried to plant some marigolds.

THe squirrels were not even deterred by the red hot pepper I added to the bird seeds, though they did provide a laugh, rubbing their furry snouts on the deck in wonderful squirrel pain.

So I thought, when we moved to our new house in SW Ohio, that I might have some peace from the squirrels, since we had only baby Maple Trees and a farm behind our house. And I was right. There were no squirrels (yet) to torment me, just some rabbits and chipmunks, who were kind of cute, and didn't destroy my feeder or annuals.

The garden was underwhelming when we moved in, and over the last couple years I have added plants and created a lovely flower garden, or at least one that I love to look at.
The trouble soon after, though neighbors told stories about my new enemy before our first encounter . First, I noticed that the coneflowers I planted next to the holly bushes would sprout in the spring, and then... bam... stubble. Then the flowers in the garden bed under the Maple trees.
The Liatris by the decks were ugly amputated stumps. What the hell?? My mom has deer, and they wreak havok like this , but I very rarely see deer. I just didn't have a clue.

I learned that it was the neighborhood groundhog. I can't recall her name right now because I have had too many cooking beverages. Why the hell would you name such an evil vermin anyway?? My neighbors are the guilty party. I have a name for her, but I cant say on a public blog :D.

Well I spent all of last year spraying this god aweful garlic -egg.-you -name- it gross stuff, protecting my plants from " its" ravenous appetite. But let me tell you, while it deterred the groundhog, if the weather was nice and I wanted to open the window, it smelled like , well, rotten eggs! right through the window!

One website said to put a bowl of ammonia near where they enter their burrow. I saw them run in under a beat up section of our deck ( THEY beat it up). SO, when I saw Fatty out in the field I tried to sneak out there to put the bowl of ammonia by the deck. She saw me and ran STRAIGHT AT ME. I screamed and the bowl of ammonia went flying in the air. I accomplished killing a 2x2 section of grass. I didn't even come close to the groundhog.

The neighbor borrowed one of those "Have a Heart" traps and made an attempt at trapping the groundhog. After all, it did decide that home is under their deck. The only thing they caught was a little baby raccoon, which my sister and law got to hear the first night the trap was out. Neighbor decided to drown the raccoon in the garbage can instead of releasing it. I thought it was cruel and unusual punishment for a critter that was not event the target of our angst! and made it very clear to the neighbor that putting a baited trap out at NIGHT in the middle of their yard would yield many raccoons and few groundhogs.

This year , I decided that I would only spray the garden bed, not the plants by the holly bush (Under the window). I figured those flowers were a lost cause , not worth the stench. I also bought these sonic repeller things that make noise and vibrations, and seem to work great for my mom.
A few dozen coneflowers later, I determined that my groundhog thinks that repeller has a groovy beat, and she loves the mood music with her dinner!
I finally resigned myself to the fact that if you live next to farmland, you might get hungry critters.
Plus, Coneflowers spread like swine flu .. and I seemed to had enough to share with her.


Uh OH...Big fat groundhog had babies. Now mamma groundhog and three or four cute little pups enjoy the slaughter family buffet that is my flower garden. And while I was tempted to buy a Kill trap to put near the beds, I worried I might kill one of my other BFFs, the neighborhood cats. ( The cats kill the birds at the feeder, a story I will kindly spare you). I'd like to see the cats gone, but I dont want to be the one that breaks their necks. Plus, there are toddlers to the left and toddlers to the right, and I can't risk hurting one of them.
Not ever.

What do you do?? I thought, " This is it. Groundhogs and Flower stumps for life". Now the little baby critters come up on the porch and eat the potted petunias, the black pearl peppers, and everything that is not a geranium. Momma groundhog isn't satisfied with the abundance of coneflowers , so she climbs the little antique desk full of lovely striped petunias and sits on the chair and buries her face in its lovely blooms and leaves little green reminders of what used to be a beautiful display.

I did some research on ground hogs. Did you know they are the largest of the squirrel family~?? Aghhhh!!

The last straw was two weeks ago. I lifted the deck board, where I access the hose to water my garden. There , in a stinking heap, right next to the hose nozzle, is a pile of steaming groundhog POOP.. Thats right, the vermin pooped right there , the only spot under the deck I have access too.
She gave me the big "na na na na naaaaa naa"

So I did what any royally pissed garden loving woman would do. I bought the poison peanuts.


I admit, when we bought them, I never really thought they would eat them. Nothing else had worked. Hell, the package said it was for moles and pocket gophers, and moles eat grubs. Contrary to instructions, we put some of the poison pellets right by the hose nozzle ,where one of them dumped. We can't access their burrow entrance, we weren't sure where it was. ( They run under all of our decks).

A week passed, and while I didn't forget about it, I figured nothing would change. My parents came up for a visit and we were enjoying the beautiful weather.


The neighbor next door, the one with the Doctorate, who's job involves smelling fragrances for P&G, the one with the most sensitive of noses, marches accross the yard and says,


" You didn't poison the groundhog did you??" His wife stands behind him with hands on hips.


"uuuhhhh.. weelll... um... yeah.. actually>>"

" They died. Under my house. "


One or few of the groundhogs ate the poison, went back home , and died.

Under my neighbors deck.

Now, I did consider the possibility that the groundhog might die under one of our decks.
And I thought the pain of smelling that for a couple weeks would be worth wreaking my revenge.
BUT the neighnor's dryer vent was right above the entrance to the little *&%&#(%$ 's tunnels.
So instead of having a horrid flesh decaying smell out on their deck, the smell was entering Mr. "Oh so sensitive nose"'s HOME.

I know that they could have taken care of the burrow under their home long ago ( They did know about it) , and I know they chuckled ( to my face) about its humongous flower garden appetite, I never thought the putrid smell would actually enter their home. I can be a cold hearted bird at times, but not that cold.

My dad and Chris helped the neighbor remove some deck planks and cover the holes to try to help cover the smell.

Alas, there is a survivor . The little guy hides under a cement slab in same neighbor's yard.
They called a critter removal pro, who has set some traps, and asked, with some awe and admiration, what the heck I used to poison the groundhog.

I noticed yesterday the neighbor , using his hundred thousand dollar nose, was smelling his porch again.
He didn't even get a chance to get in the door, or change clothes before his Missus was after him to DO SOMETHING.


Little survivor is digging up the original residence, and the smell returned. Hopefully, for the sake of their nose and also neighborhood harmony, the traps work, and SOON, but knowing we live near a farm, I anticipate that even if all of the groundhog clan is removed there will be new tenants in the vacant apartments under our decks by next spring. I did promise to never use poison again. When the kids get bigger, I may rethink those kill traps!!

And I thought I hated squirrels.

By the way, this morning, I looked out at my bird feeder, nestled next to the butterfly bush and the cat whiskers, and there, under the feeder eating what the birds had dropped, was a furry little squirrel.

Back to square one!

Flowers in the Garden

I thought I'd post some pictures from my garden.
I have to figure out a better way to do that, because it only let me put on a few pictures at once.


THe picture here on the left is my "Roswitha" daylily.









Below is the "Sunrise" Daylily and some Coneflowers





















This is my "gooseneck" loosestrife.
Its a bit of a fast grower.

I think the daylily on the left is "Cardinal Rule"

but I have to check my flower notebook.

The flowers are so big on this plant, the picture doesnt do it justice.

The Cactus below I grew from a piece that Chris' grandma gave me.

This is the most beautifully it has bloomed.

So.. I love being able to talk to my friends and family on Facebook. But there is one thing that drives me batty. Letter limits.. I will have a nice status update and I go to post and ... BAM.. too long, my post is rejected. It tells me how many words I have and how many I am permitted to have. I go to cut out some words, and it is STILL too long. Apparently, I am as long winded in print as I am verbally. Taking a cue from my brilliant blogging cousin, I decided to start a blog where I may type as many words as I like. Unfortunately, that doesn't mean I will have any more of an audience than I do on Facebook. Unlike my cousin, my friend list is short and sweet.
No matter, I have three kids and a wonderful husband who probably all will be happier if I am blogging rather than talking!