Cat's Daily Purls

I Got the Music in Me

2011-12-01T21:46:00.000-08:00

You are a child whose parents insist that you take up a musical instrument for the next 3 years. Which would you chose? That was the last poll which ended last night. The choices were drums, flute, guitar, harp, piano, saxophone, and violin. By a whopping 55%, piano was the winner. Drums were second with 22%, and flute and violin were tied for third with 11%.

When I was a young child, my sisters and I all took piano lessons. In the beginning, I found it neat to learn how to play the piano. But as I progressed, the practicing and the theory homework became cumbersome to me. Like many things I had to learn back then, I failed to see what value any of it could have in my future life. Of course, fast forward to now, nearly everything I thought that would never find useful back then has proven to be the most useful knowledge that I learned.

They say, whoever they are, that hindsight is 20/20. I look back on my childhood piano lessons now with fondness and gratitude. I enjoy a wide variety of musical genres. When my children first came home with their tenor recorders from school, I was able to pull from my background in music theory to help them. And in this digital age, I am conscious of the effort it takes to master an actual musical instrument and play it in concert with others to create something pleasing to the ears. Sadly, I don't know how many of our youth can appreciate music that is not electronically generated or enhanced. It's my hope to pass the gift of appreciating music to my children.

When One Poll Ends, Another One Opens . . .

So now we have a new poll. While on vacation in New York City, a snowstorm knocks out power, trapping you in the elevator of the Empire State Building for the next 48 hours. Which of these icons would you most want to be trapped with? Voting ends December 15, 2011 at 11:59 p.m. PST.

Twas the Season Before Christmas

2011-11-30T23:01:00.000-08:00

Twas the season before Christmas and all through the house, three little creatures were stirring, and I am not talking about a mouse. I'm not talking about the retail season. I'm talking about the season of Advent.

For my non-Catholic friends, the Catholic Church celebrates seasons in during the liturgical calendar just as we celebrate seasons in our secular calendar. The season of Advent, which is Latin for "coming", kicks off the liturgical year. In the simplest of explanations, it is a season of preparation for the coming of our Savior, Jesus - preparing our hearts to deepen our relationship with Him in the beginning of the new liturgical year and in anticipation of celebrating his birth at Christmas time. Christmas is actually a separate season than Advent in the liturgical calendar. It's a short one at that, from Christmas through the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord which is usually around the second weekend in January (Western Rite - other rites have different liturgical calendars).

To set this Advent season apart, we are doing something a little different. Aside from the Advent Calendar, we are going to gradually decorate our tree each week until Christmas Eve, when we will put the star on top. On Monday night, Justina and Abby assembled our artificial tree. And here's the kicker - they did it without fighting! Perhaps it was an early birthday present to me. Or maybe the whole peace on earth and good will towards men business. Either way, I'll take it! Right now our tree has the lights only and the tree skirt. Next week, we'll add the glass ball ornaments.

By practicing some special Advent traditions, we can celebrate Advent by preparing our hearts for Christmas and making that season even more special. I hope that your family enjoys a happy and blessed Advent.

42

2011-11-29T23:44:00.000-08:00

Happy birfday to me. Happy birfday to me. Happy BIRFday to me. Happy birfday to me. Check out the pretty flowers that my mother and siblings sent me for today. They were at my front door when I pulled in this afternoon. And Abby and Justina made me a card. On the inside, Abby drew a picture of me when I was little. (And I looked magnificent!) The card is now proudly displayed on my desk. I am one blessed woman. Thanks guys! I love you all!

In Other News . . .

Tonight was Biggest Loser Night and it was Makeover Night. None of the players underwent too drastic of transformations. But I loved Becky's haircut. I was disappointed that Sunny was the last eliminated player and that arrogant jerk John made it into the final four. That guy is a mental case. What he has lost in weight, he has gained in ego. I'm rooting for Antone, Vinny, or Becky to win it all. Next week is the marathon where all the contestants come back to compete in a marathon. After that will be the finale. Stay tuned . . .

The voting on the latest poll ends tomorrow night, November 30th at 11:59 p.m. PST. Inquiring minds . . . ok, just me really . . . would like to know how you voted. You are a child whose parents insist that you take up a musical instrument for the next 3 years. Which would you choose? Vote today and ask a friend to as well.

Until the next time, take care and may God bless you. :)

You Make Me Smile

2011-11-28T23:28:00.000-08:00

For over two weeks, we have been anxiously awaiting the shedding of Abby's loose front tooth. She could wiggle it and twist it. But it was still "had tooth guts attached" to it. I was even expecting a visit from the Tooth Fairy after she stuffed her little self with Thanksgiving dinner. But no. The tooth guts were still holding on. Those are really strong tooth guts!

When I picked Abby up from school this afternoon, she proudly announced that her tooth finally fell out. She's excited that she will have her name on the tooth chart in her classroom for each month of school thus far. And something that excited her even more was that one of her kindergarten classmates told her that because it was a front tooth she would get $5.00 from the Tooth Fairy. Hmm. It was time for me to explain to Abby the cold, hard facts about the Tooth Fairy.

I explained to Abby that the economy was not doing very well, and that many households were on tighter budgets these days. Not every child receives that amount of money for each tooth. I continued to explain to her that the Tooth Fairy must look at each situation differently and factor in the cost of living index before depositing money under the pillow. She woke up to $1.50 sitting under her pillow. It didn't matter the amount. She squealed with delight and was happy with it.

Thanksgiving Week Wrap-Up

2011-11-27T22:50:00.000-08:00

Hello! It's been a week since I have posted anything. Well, I was busy gearing up for the Thanksgiving holiday. We all went out of town. So I was busy with packing and preparing the house before I left. I took the dog to the boarding facility, picked up the house, emptied all the trash, made sure there were no more dishes, and Justina took care of the rabbit cages and the dog bombs in the yard. Also, we have one of those re-useable heater filters, and I can't remember the last time it was rinsed. So I pulled it out and hosed it down really well and left it out on the counter to dry while I was away.

On Friday, my sister Cynthia and I managed to visit a local yarn store where we perused and purchased a couple balls of yarn for some family gift knits. After we threw down some cash to add to the stash, we headed over to Starbucks, grabbed a latte, and had a modern-day hen party that consisted of knitting and talking. It was wonderful to spend time with her. She is about eight years older than I am. So growing up, we didn't have much in common because of the age difference. But now that we are both adults and have families, we have found that we share some similar interests. I just really cherished the afternoon we spent together.

On Saturday, most all of the siblings had left. It was my sister Joan and myself left at my mother's house. Now lounging around and watching television throughout the entire day is not something that I get to do very often. Come to think of it, it's not something that I ever get to do. But I did exactly that. And it wasn't just any television. It was trashy reality television marathons - Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and Jerseylicious. Now I am not entirely opposed to reality TV. After all, Justina I watch The Biggest Loser religiously in addition to a couple of the Food Network's reality shows. Yet the latter is benign in comparison. Once, I heard someone refer to reality TV as a primer on the seven deadly sins. And honey, they weren't lying. I seriously need to go to confession. If not for the sloth and relishing in others misfortunes and drama, then definitely for enjoying the whole stinking experience.

Overall, it was wonderful to get away and spend time with family in Bakersfield this week. It was just what I needed to recharge my batteries. When we get together, we enjoy wine, good food, great conversation, and we share a healthy sense of humor. I just love my family. Strangely enough, it has only been recently that I realized that not every family likes to spend time with each other.

Every Thanksgiving, we hear the cliché platitudes of gratitude. You know, the I'm grateful for my family, my children, etc, etc. What I often wonder is what makes one grateful about anything. In science, we learn about the building blocks of matter. Whereas true gratitude is not a science, there are those small incidences that evolve into a chain reaction of other incidences that lead to us saying that we are grateful for lofty categories like family, home, work, friends, and so on. That phone call from a friend to see how I am doing. That sweet drawing from a six-year-old. That smile that just melts your from a two-year-old. That cup of coffee from a big sister. The humor shared between another sister as we indulge in vapid reality television. That hug from your mother that still feels good even at 41 years old. They are like receiving hundreds of little gifts each day. I guess big things do come in small packages.

In Other News . . .

Justina saw the orthopedic specialist on Tuesday. The diagnosis is that it is a very mild AC separation. She has full range of motion and has been cleared to resume soccer practice. However, she cannot play in any game situations until January. She also cannot go horseback riding. The concern is if she were to fall on her shoulder again. Fortunately, it is mild and does not require surgery.

Alyssa got another part-time job at Tilly's. Her first day was on Black Friday. Nothing like a little baptism by fire. Meanwhile, she is still working at Panera and school is keeping her busy too. She's working hard and I'm just so proud of her.

This week on the Biggest Loser, furry little Ramone got sent home. He finally cut off all that hair and shaved! He looked so much better not being buried under all that hair. Now I have to say, I am ready for John to go, especially after he tried to stick it to Sunny by giving her the one-pound disadvantage. And kudos to Antone for standing up to him and calling him on it during the elimination. I think everyone has his number. Last week was not Makeover Week, like I had thought, but this week is. I really want John to go. I would even be willing to bring Boohoo Bonnie back in his place. Well, we shall see in a couple days.

There's another poll question up. Voting ends on November 30th at 11:59 p.m. PST. Don't forget to vote. As always, feel free to comment on what you read. I hope that you enjoyed your Thanksgiving holiday like I did. Until the next time, take care and may God bless you. :)

Take Two Cookies And Call Me In the Morning

2011-11-20T23:27:00.000-08:00

The weather forecast today was 100% chance of rain. And I can say that with 100% certainty because all day long, it rained, and rained, and rained. Dreary weather can definitely derail a six-year-old's plans to have a picnic lunch at the park. And let's not forget that the harsh elements outside can expose people who are trapped inside to that dreaded Cabin Fever.

Symptoms of Cabin Fever present themselves differently in children than in adults. Children experience restlessness, mood swings, boredom, and a propensity for violence against their siblings. Adults can contract Cabin Fever from their children but the symptoms they experience include sensitivity to moody children, a splitting headache from listening to bickering, extreme mental anguish, and an intense craving for alcoholic beverages. There are treatment options to help alleviate these symptoms, such as building a blanket fort in the family room, baking chocolate chip cookies, and even having a picnic dinner on the living room floor. But research has proven that the only real cure is for the weather to clear long enough for the children to be able to go outside and play, and of course, a glass of wine, or in more serious cases, a few glasses, for Mom.

Some scenes from our rainy Sunday.

Pet Poll Results!

The results are in from the last poll. The question posed was: The animal rights activists have taken over! A new law has been passed requiring every household to own a pet. Which would you chose? The choices were bird, cat, dog, fish, pony, reptile, or other. There were 13 votes. The winner, by 6 votes (42%), was Dog! Cats were second with 4 votes (28%), Other was third with 3 votes (21%). And in fourth place was Pony by 1 vote (7%). Clearly someone is not giving up on that childhood dream. No one chose birds, fish, or reptiles. Thanks to all who voted!

And now it's time for another one! That's right, a new poll: You are a child whose parents insist that you take up a musical instrument for the next 3 years. Which would you choose? The voting on this one ends on Wednesday, November 30, 2011 at 11:59 p.m. PST. Vote today and share this blog link with a friend. As always, I welcome your comments on anything that you read here. Until the next time, take care and may God bless you. :)

A Sweet, Simple Saturday

2011-11-19T23:15:00.000-08:00

Soccer. Sleeping in. These two things I enjoy, but one I enjoyed immensely more than the other. And that is sleeping in. It's been a long time since I have enjoyed a good lie-in on the weekends and since there were no soccer games this weekend, I certainly did just that. What defines a good sleeping in morning varies as we age. Twenty years ago, sleeping in on the weekends was a successful endeavor if I didn't leave the comfy cozy of my bed until well past noon. These days, if I make it to 8:30, then that's pretty decent. This morning . . . 9:15 a.m.! Sleeptastic!

My brother Chris sent me a text message, asking if I would like to meet him for breakfast this morning. So we met him at Kay's Country Kitchen in Old Orcutt at 10:30. We enjoyed a delicious breakfast and a wonderful visit with Uncle Chris. It was just nice to catch up with him. I just love my brother. I love all of my siblings really. Chris' personality and his sense of humor just warmed my heart this morning.

After breakfast, we started to go home but somehow we got to talking about a friend's doe goat and how she kidded triplets yesterday. So we drove up to the friend's ranch in Nipomo to see the kids. It just always amazes me how small they are when they are born. They're just adorable. Of course, then they grow up to be ornery.

Justina had a 4-H Horse project meeting later on in the afternoon. So we went home and I put Abby down for a nap. The rest of us had some down time for about an hour and a half. I have been working on a knitting project that is going to be a Christmas present. As the project grows, it is becoming too bulky to carry around. So it's really important that I work on it every uninterrupted moment that I can.

Justina's meeting was a practice session for the Orcutt Christmas Parade. But she could only walk through it because of her shoulder. We see the orthopedic doctor on Tuesday. She says that it is not hurting and I have seen her rollover and sleep on it. So that is a hopeful sign. But in the meantime, she will just have to refrain from certain activities.

Nothing sexy or sensational really. It was just a sweet and simple little Saturday. Not every weekend has to be action-packed. I suppose some might think it's boring and dull. But if you never experience what dull is then you miss out on what shining has to offer.

Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

Woe de Toilette

2011-11-16T21:37:00.000-08:00

On Monday evening, someone used the downstairs bathroom and wasn't able to flush it. I was thinking that it wasn't a big deal. The chain probably slipped off and it just needed to be reattached. I've have that happen a few times before. So I took the top off the tank but when I looked inside the the ring on the flapper thing-a-ma-bob where the chain would be attached had snapped off and now I would need to replace the whole thing. Crap! That's not in my repertoire of handyman skills. And before you say anything, yes, "flapper thing-a-ma-bob" is a standard plumbing industry term.

So earlier today, I went into the Ace Hardware store -the place with the Helpful Hardware Man - to get a new flapper thing-a-ma-bob. I strolled down what looked like the plumbing aisle and saw several different flapper thing-a-ma-bobs. What? One size doesn't fit all? For crying out loud, it's just a toilet part!

The Helpful Hardware Man was walking an aisle nearby and asked if he could help me. Why yes, kind and helpful stranger. You can help me. I explained to him the problem and asked him which flapper thing-a-ma-bob I should buy. The rest of the conversation went a little like this . . .

Helpful Hardware Man: What kind of toilet do you have?

[Sound of crickets chirping]

Helpful Hardware Man: Well you can take the flapper off the toilet and bring it in. We can match it up to that.

[Sound of crickets chirping]

Helpful Hardware Man: Okay. This is how you do that . . .

Great. The Helpful Hardware Man thinks I must be an idiot. I am seriously that UN-handy.

Thankfully, I needed no tools. I was able to remove the flapper, go back to the store for the new part, and install it. It snapped right into place. Even Abby was impressed when I told her that Mommy fixed the toilet. [sigh] Yeah, I know what you're saying. It's the little things.

I'm still proud of myself though. :)

"C" Is for Cookies

2011-11-15T22:10:00.000-08:00

Tuesdays are usually the busiest days of the week for our family. Tonight was our 4-H club's Dollar-A-Dip potluck and monthly club meeting. Each family is assigned an item to bring to the potluck based on the first letter of their first name. You walk through the line to get your food. At the end, you pay a dollar per food item on the plate. It's one of our club's main fundraisers each year. Our family was assigned to bring a dessert.

I had everything in the house to make chocolate chip cookies. So we baked a batch prior to leaving for the meeting. Justina helped with small tasks that she could do one handed, like, for example, holding the measuring cups as Abby scooped in the ingredients. Now, what would have taken me 20 minutes from start to finish, took about 45 minutes with little Abby's assistance. The girls love to bake. And despite growing shorter and shorter on time in the process, I still enjoyed baking these cookies with them. I like showing them how to measure certain ingredients and talking about the ingredients and what their role in the recipe was. Honestly, I don't know how they turned out as I didn't eat any of them. They looked good. But we had the pride of knowing that we actually baked something rather than running to the store to buy something which is what we normally would do. Most importantly, we had fun doing it.

Bye-Bye Boohoo Bonnie!

Tuesdays in our house also mean that it's time for The Biggest Loser. And this week, they went to singles. They F-I-N-A-L-L-Y got rid of Boohoo Bonnie! Bonnie was a 63-year-old grandmother from Louisiana. She lost her husband to cancer five years ago and she lost her home in Hurricane Katrina. Now, before you get in a tizzy and wonder why I would be hatin' on granny, I just have to tell you that this woman could turn on the waterworks as easily I can flip on a light switch. And it didn't matter what it was, she was crying. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if her house was flooded from crying all the time rather than from Katrina. Seriously!

The other annoying thing that she did was constantly bring up how she was 63. She acted as if her age was a lot older than it really was, more like 85. She would shuffle her feet when she walked and moan and groan during the workouts. During a couple of the challenges, she would fall and just lay there hollering, like she broke a hip. Then everyone would stop what they were doing to see if she was okay. She was manipulative and an emotional power drain. And if she didn't leave the show this week and made the final six, then she was poised to be in the final four. No! This was the week that granny had to go!

Next week is Makeover Week and they are down to the final six. It's time for furry Ramone to get a haircut and shave. And I can't wait to see how they makeover Becky and Sunny. And just so you know our dream final four, Justina and I are rooting for Antone, Becky, Sunny, and Vinny. Personally, I think Antone will take it all. Tune in for next week. . .

Don't forget to vote in the latest poll. And please feel free to comment on what you have read. Until then, take care and may God bless you. :)

A Manic Mother's Manifesto

2011-11-14T22:57:00.000-08:00

I wish that I could take credit for this little ode to reality based housekeeping, but I can't. This is from one of my friends' status updates on Facebook. And it was just too good not to pass it along. I don't know who the original author was but I hope that you enjoy it too.

Dirty dishes prove I feed my family,

Full trash can means I clean up after their messes,

Messy floors mean I let my children have fun,

Piles of unfolded laundry means I keep my family in clean clothes,

Wet bathroom means I bathe my kids!

So the next time you walk into my house and see a "mess" think twice before you judge.

If you come over to see us, come on in...

If your coming over to see my house please make an appointment.

Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

The Cold Shoulder

2011-11-14T21:02:00.000-08:00

Over the weekend, during a soccer tournament, Justina took a fall during one of the game on Saturday and hurt her shoulder. Initially, we were concerned that she might have separated it. But after some ice and Advil, she said that it felt better and she had full range of motion with her arm. She played the next morning and then she hung out with her teammates later. Everything still seemed fine.

But this morning was a different story. My little Jussie monster came downstairs holding her upper arm, complaining that her shoulder was hurting. So I called the doctor and got her in for an appointment later this afternoon. After a brief examination and some x-rays, the verdict is that she has a separated shoulder. She was fitted for a sling and told to not do anything. She needs to visit an orthopedic doctor later this week.

So now I have a mopey 12 year old. The next couple weeks, she can only go to her soccer practice and watch. No horseback riding. No working with her sheep and goats. No trampoline in the back yard. In her words, "THIS IS TORTURE!" Okay kiddo, I think Mom sees a teachable moment here. And that is that it's all about perspective.The bad news is that it is a minor sprain and she will more than likely have to lay off for a few weeks. The good news is that it is not more serious separation that would require surgery that could sideline her for a few months. For that, we are thankful.

Get well soon, my little Jussie monster. :)

Chelsea Lately

2011-11-13T20:30:00.000-08:00

This fall, Justina played in the Girls Under 14 Division of our local area's fall soccer league. All the teams in her division had English Premier League names. Much to our surprise, her team was Chelsea. We had to break the news to my Irish brother-in-law that his niece's soccer team is named after the EPL team that he despises the most. Fortunately, he was reasonable and charitable upon receiving the news.

Justina was very fortunate to have the two coaches who coached her on last year's all-star team. They are wonderful coaches who have the ability to bring out the best in the players, regardless of skill level,and really form a strong and drama-free cohesiveness among junior high aged girls. That's no easy feat for sure.

Not only did the girls enjoy themselves, they finished the season as the division winners and won the League Cup Tournament! Chelsea finished their 10 game season with 7 wins, 2 losses, and 1 tie. They scored 23 goals and had only 6 goals scored against them. Justina played goalkeeper, defender, and midfield, contributing 3 goals for her team. The 17 goal difference between goals for and against are attributed to her and her teammates great defensive efforts.

At the end of each season, the league hosts a tournament for all the teams. It is completely optional as to whether a team participates or not. This year, there were four teams in Justina's division. They played in a round robin format and the team with the most points would win. A win would earn a team 6 points. A shutout, 1 point. A tie, 3 points. And each team would earn a point per goal, up to a maximum of three. In the event of a tie, there is a list of criteria that used to break them. And because tournament games are shorter, a team that wins their division in league play does not always prevail in the League Cup.

In the first game on Saturday morning, Chelsea defeated Manchester City in a 2-0 shutout. Later that afternoon, they tied Newcastle 1-1. This morning, they played their strongest opponent, Sunderland, and tie 1-1. Each team scored on penalty kicks for hand calls in the box. There was one game left to be played in their division, Manchester City v. Newcastle. The outcome of that game would determine the winner of the tournament for their division. Fortunately, the outcome of that game was in Chelsea's favor!

So this weekend wrapped up Orcutt United Soccer League's fall season. But Justina was chosen for the All-Star team and they begin practicing later this week. They will play tournaments in December and January. Her All-Star teammates will include some of her Chelsea teammates as well as girls from the other teams in her division. And she will continue to play for the same wonderful coaches.

One of the wonderful things about living a smaller community like ours, is that the kids all tend to grow up together and form relationships through many avenues. Some go to school together. Some know each other from playing on other sports teams in the past. There's also church groups, 4-H clubs, scouting, you name it. The kids step on the pitch as competitors but walk off it as friends. When you can get to that place, it's all good.

Justina holds up the League Cup trophy

that her team won this weekend

Let's Get Out the Vote!

The Poll is back! A new law has been passed, requiring every household to own a pet! Which would you chose? Cast your vote and tell a friend to cast theirs. It's much more fun than any of those political polls, and no debates! The poll closes on November 19th.

Everyday Should Be Veterans Day

2011-11-11T21:25:00.000-08:00

After twenty years of serving in the military, ten in the Air Force and another ten in the Air National Guard, my husband James wore his uniform for the last time this past weekend. He has retired. His father served a full career in the Air Force, as did his older brother. Many friendships have been formed during our family's time in the military. Some have chosen not to reenlist or to retired. Some are still serving. A few friends paid the ultimate price. For all the veterans who have served, are still serving, and for the families of those who are no longer with us, I hope that you had a blessed Veterans Day. One day out of the year in your honor is inadequate. Your service is deeply appreciated. Thank you.

Little Giggles Equal Big Blessings

2011-11-10T21:56:00.001-08:00

It's been a long time since we have been at the Drive-In. Puss in Boots, a kids film, was playing as the first feature. Since tomorrow is Veteran's Day, the kids have no school the next morning. So I popped some popcorn on the stove, loaded up the back of my Suburban with blankets and bean bags, picked up Subway along the way, and went to the Drive-In. I pulled in with the back of the Suburban facing the screen. All three girls piled into the back and watched the movie while I sat in the front seat and worked on my current knitting project.

Throughout the movie, I heard giggles and squeals with some scattered squabbling, nothing major. It just made me smile. God truly knew what he was doing when he blessed us with girls. I struggled to think of what the night would have been like with three boys, ages 12, 6, and 2 in the back. Oy! I don't think I could handle that!

The giggling and melodrama from the back of my car reminded me of one very important thing. This season of my life will be over in a blink! Amanda is now 20 and Alyssa is 18. They are both living on their own now. There's only six more years until Justina turns 18. I still cannot fathom Abby going to kindergarten, even though she has been going for the past 3 months now. And little Chloe is "chabbling" like crazy and her speech is becoming more understandable everyday.. (For those that don't know, "chabbling" is a hybrid of chatting and babbling.) As cliche as it sounds, where has the time gone!

Often times, when we look for God's presence in our lives, we think big. We are looking for that big sign from Him - a rainbow, a dove at a circumstantial moment, or even for some, something obscure like a cinnamon roll that resembles Jesus. But do we look for God in the small things? For me, probably not nearly enough. But His blessings were abundant and clear to me this evening in the giggles, squeals, chabbling, the "Thanks for movie tonight!", and the "Good night Mom. I love you." I am one blessed mama.

Meh. Monday.

2011-11-07T23:23:00.000-08:00

Not a lot was happening today. Abby had her dance class and Justina had soccer practice. However, soccer practice has been bumped up an hour and a half early because of the time change this past weekend. And I have to say that was nice. We were able to eat dinner earlier and relax a bit before bedtime. I have a WIP (work in progress) that I am knitting, but since it's a Christmas present, I can't go into details just yet. After the younger two kids went to bed, I was able to work on some rows for it. Like I said. Not a lot happening today. So I can't really complain.

But wait! There's a NEW poll?!

Yep! I finally got a new poll posted. The poll closes Saturday, November 19th at 11:59 p.m. PST. Vote today and tell a friend.

Occupy Charity

2011-11-06T21:02:00.000-08:00

Today, Justina and Abby joined six fellow 4-H club members at the Albertsons grocery store in Orcutt to conduct a canned food drive. They held up posters and greeted shoppers as they went into the store, offering them a shopping list of items needed by the local food bank. Standing out there for an hour and half in some chilling wind, they smiled, laughed, and had a great time. Most shoppers were receptive to the kids. Others just ignored them. In the end, they collected two shopping carts filled with non-perishable food items. There are a couple more collection dates and then they will deliver the donated items to the Food Bank of Santa Barbara County's warehouse in Orcutt.

When I arrived home, I turned on the news. There was yet another story about the Occupy Wall Street ongoing protest which was initiated by a Canadian activist group. The movement claims to be opposed to the social and economic inequality fueled by corporate greed here in America. The Occupy Wall Street buffoons proselytize their slogan "We are the 99%", which is basically amounts to an outcry that we aren't taxed enough in this country. So how do a bunch of elitists from a country whose citizenry is heavily taxed at all levels of government speak up for the disadvantaged masses here in America? Why they stage a revival of a good old fashioned sit-in at the financial district of New York City of course! And this helps inequality how?

This afternoon, I watched a group of kids, ranging from 6 to 14, come out on a Sunday and cheerfully solicit donations from shoppers in the cold wind. I watched a mother who is co-owner of her family's landscaping business volunteer her time to chaperone them. I watched shoppers walk in to buy groceries with hard earned paycheck money distributed by some stingy employer. And I watched many of those shoppers walk out of the store and happily donate items to the drive - all in the span of 90 minutes. No one sat in a park, chanting vitriolic slogans and acting like a bunch of media whores.

Tonight's post is not suppose to be some scathing political commentary or about any economic equations. It's about common sense and about helping our fellow man. It's about a group of kids who got off their butts on a Sunday afternoon and put out the call to people in their community to help those who are not as well off as some - and - it's about those who answered the call and freely contributed. That was a demonstration that will effect change.

P.S. A special thanks to that greedy corporate store Albertsons in Orcutt for allowing these kids to occupy their store front to help those in need.

The Heat is On

2011-11-04T23:13:00.000-07:00

The scene from my front porch this afternoon.

The heat is on. No, literally. I just turned the heater on for the first time this fall. Yesterday, a brisk wind blew in a storm that continued into this morning. The sun came out for a few moments but that was it. Then it rained hard and even hailed. More rain is expected, and snow is even in the forecast for the foothills. For now the house is chilly. Time to blow the dust off the thermostat control and flip the switch on for the heater.

I love this time of the year. The rhythm of nature has a way of slowing things down a bit. Animals prepare to hibernate for the winter. Plants prepare to go dormant until spring. The days grow shorter. And the weather often postpones outdoor activities, forcing families to seek comfort and shelter from the elements indoors. The fireplace is lit, which warms the body. Children cuddled up on the couch nearby with blankets and hot chocolate, which warms the soul. The month of November brings a season of thankfulness with holidays like Veterans Day and Thanksgiving.

Two Sticks and Some String Are A Wonderful Thing

2011-11-03T23:14:00.000-07:00

Ever since I was a young girl, I had wanted to learn to knit or crochet. I didn't know what the difference was between knitting and crochet. All I knew was that I was just fascinated with the idea of creating something out of yarn. No one I knew did such crafts. It wasn't until later in my teens that I learned that my grandmother was an experienced and avid knitter. She was no longer with us by the time I was born. And my mother explained that my grandmother had lacked the patience to teach her. But I really wanted to learn.

When I was in my early twenties, I went to Cornet's in my hometown. It was a store like Wal-Mart, only more trashy. I looked at the yarn. The yarn itself was crappy, no-dyelot acrylic which back then was scratchy and gross, almost like shag carpet yarn from the 70's. But all the colors just called out to me. "That's it," I thought, "I'm going to learn how to do this!" So I grabbed a couple of colors that I liked, studied the yarn label for some direction as to what to do next and then grabbed a set of knitting needles, which later on I realized were way too small for the yarns I bought that day.

Later that week, I bought a book at Michael's, titled, "Teach Yourself How to Knit". However, I still just didn't get it. Eventually, I did learn how to knit when I looked it up in the World Book Encyclopedia at my parents' house. Later on I taught myself how to crochet. Absolutely none of my peers did anything crafty, at least not that. It wasn't until a decade later that there would be a huge resurgence in fiber arts. Like the Barbara Mandrell song, I was doing needlework when needlework wasn't cool.

Of course, I still enjoy it today. There is just something so calming about the repetitive rhythm of a pair of knitting needles or a crochet hook dancing in and around the yarn and your fingers. Watching a stitch pattern reveal itself as you work through a pattern is like a child unwrapping presents on Christmas morning. Of course, there's always that sense of accomplishment when you finish a project or overcome a difficult stitch pattern. It's like giving yourself a high five.

Last weekend, I began to teach Justina how to crochet. She learned how to make a chain stitch and a single crochet stitch. She actually took to it right away. Her tension is really good for a beginner. The past few nights, before bed, she has been joining me on the couch to practice on a swatch of 20 stitches. The difficulty has been in recognizing where her first and last stitches should be. Sometimes she would end up with 19 or even 18 stitches, wondering where she missed one. But this is a problem that is common for many beginners.

Since I knew that she had the single crochet stitch down pat, and because I did not want her to continue to be frustrated by working on her practice swatch, I decided that I would give her a small project to do. So I started a potholder for her. Now she will be able to practice her stitches without worrying about the first and last stitch. And she will also get to complete her first project, giving herself a little high five.

In my stash, I have a ball of self-striping yarn in some colors that she loves - white, lime green, and aqua. She wants to make a scarf out of that. I will probably use the scarf project to teach her the double crochet stitch. Look! She already has a "queue" of projects in waiting!

I remember showing Alyssa how to knit once. I don't know if she would be interested in taking it back up again. Maybe one of these days, she and I can just go away and have a "learn to knit" weekend get away. And someday, when I'm old, yet never grey, I will find myself surrounded by all my daughters with our sticks and string. And wouldn't that be a wonderful thing!

In Other News . . .

Last week, I mentioned that I was feeling under the weather. One of the concerns of getting a cold or an infection is that my asthma might rear its ugly head. And since this past weekend, that has been the case. I have just been exhausted. So I apologize for my blogging absence the past few days.

I hope to get the poll back up and running by this weekend. As always, I welcome comments on what you have read. The comments are moderated before they are posted to the blog. And because of the amount of spam that I receive in my inbox, most anonymous comments are deleted. You do not have to use your real name if you do not want to. You can always be creative in making up a name . . . Bubba Gump, Batman, Count De Money, Mom . . .

Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

The Eight Commandments of Trick-or-Treating

2011-10-31T23:56:00.000-07:00

When I was growing up, my family lived in a rural area five miles outside of town. We didn't get trick-or-treaters where we lived. However, we did go into town and trick-or-treat with our urban dwelling friends. Now mind you, this was about thirty years ago. These days, my family resides in a small town. So we do get a few trick-or-treaters each year.

I remember one time when my husband and I were discussing whether or not we were as rude as many children, especially teenagers, are now. Is our memory distorted by subjectivity? Or are many children these days, in fact, just rude? After this evening, I sadly concluded that it is the latter. The expectations on certain values has definitely been lowered over the years. But I am here to go on record in saying that good manners never go out of style!

I have compiled a list that I would like to share with you dear readers. I like to call it The Eight Commandments of Trick-or-Treating. There are only eight and not ten because I didn't want to get all fundamentalist on you. They are in no particular order. So let us begin.

Thou shalt teach your child to say thank you whilst at the door!

I realize that the majority of T-o-T'ers are children. (I will address the minority in one of the other commandments.) The younger children should be accompanied by their parents to the door and gently reminded. But it just doesn't cut it when a parent stands all the way down on the sidewalk and has the child shout it while they are running to make their next assault. The children who naturally said it got bonus candy from me.

Thou shalt ring the doorbell once -or- knock!

I heard you ring the doorbell the first time. And because I heard you ring the doorbell, not just once but multiple times, you don't have to knock on top of it. And when I say knocking on the door, I do not mean pounding on the door.

Thou shalt not complain about the treat or about how little of it you receive!

Nowhere is it written that you are entitled to your favorite candy. And since I am the one who shelled out the money for it and am giving it to you as a generous gesture, be gracious about receiving any at all. (Unless it's those Necco wafers. Those things are just plain nasty.)

Thou shalt not take your sole infant child trick-or-treating so that YOU can score some free candy!

That's right. I'm calling you out. It's one thing to take the baby to some friends' homes and show off the cute costume but to take them door-to-door when they can't walk or talk. Come on! We know the candy is for you. The jig is up.

Thou shalt use the walkways that rather then running through my yard!
This is a no-brainer that should require no further explanation.

Thou shalt wear something decent!

The sexy costumes on the tweenage Heidi Fleiss wannabes is not cute, especially when they are around younger children and are going to strangers' homes. What the hell is wrong with you parents?!

Thou shalt not ring the doorbell after 9:00 p.m.!

This applies to if the porch light is off too. People have work in the morning and most of the kids are in bed. I say most because the biggest offenders of this commandment are teenagers. Which segues into my last commandment . . .

Thou shalt not trick-or-treat after 15 years old!

I adopted the cutoff of 15 because most 16 year olds have driver's licenses. Dude, if you have a license and can drive, why would you go door-to-door, trolling for candy? Nothing looks more lame than a 17-year-old standing at the door begging for candy. These teenagers tend to have the lamest costumes. You have acne! You don't need candy!

Folks, the offenders of these commandments are the characters straight out of Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. Come on, it's just candy.

A Gentle Reminder . . .

For my Catholic readers, tomorrow is November 1st, All Saints Day, which is a holy day of obligation. Check out your local parishes for Mass times. May all the saints and angels in Heaven pray for us.

Put Some Bounce in Your Birthday

2011-10-30T18:09:00.001-07:00

We hosted a birthday party for Abby's 6th birthday at Ah Sir Bounce A Lot Indoor Bounce Center, located in the Albertsons Shopping Center in Orcutt. Unfamiliar with the concept of an indoor bounce center? Ah Sir Bounce A Lot is a locally owned business that rents bounce houses. Last spring, they leased the space that used to be a Hallmark store. In it they have three bounce houses, along with two party areas and a small toddler play area.

Oddly enough, Abby shares a birthday with another boy in her kindergarten class. In September, his mother and I briefly talked about any possible conflict with party plans. She said that she was only inviting the boys in the class. Perfect! We invited just the girls in the class. We also invited a friend of Justina's so that she could have someone closer to her own age to play with.

The cost was very reasonable and based on the number of guests. They provide small water bottles, paper plates and plastic cutlery, and small party favor bags for the guests. They provide the supervision of the bounce houses and they help serve the guests. Once the guests sit down to eat (in the last half hour of the time slot), they cannot go back on the bounce houses. And they need to wear socks, which they have available if a child arrives without them. I would recommend that your children wear shorts and a light t-shirt. The kids get pretty sweaty from all the jumping.

For parents here on the central coast, this place is like gold! It is far more affordable than a place like Boomers and can be a godsend during the inclement weather season, which in the Santa Maria Valley is pretty much year round. And I have to say that of all the birthday parties that we have hosted for our children over the years, this one was one of the most stress-free, affordable, and enjoyable. Heck! I wish I could have a girls night out there!

FO Report: Yet Another Potholder . . .

I had purchased a skein of Lily® Sugar'n Cream Stripes in the Natural Stripes color. This worsted weight yarn is suppose to be "self-striping", a color variation that is popular with a lot of the sock yarns. Having never worked with one of these self-striping yarns before, I was excited to try it out. (And by excited, on an excitement scale of 1 to 10, I would rate it as a 0.5. I mean I do have a life people.) This is different from a variegated which creates a patch-like effect when worked. The self-striping yarn is suppose to do as the name implies - create stripes when worked. And it did just that. It was cool to see the stripes as I worked the pattern. There are some other stripe color varieties in this yarn that I would also like to try.

Abby Turns 6!

2011-10-28T23:05:00.000-07:00

America, by the time you wake up tomorrow, Abby will be 6 years old!

Six years ago, on October 27th, two days before my actual due date, I checked into the hospital to have labor induced. The hospital was an hour away and the obstetrician did not want to run the risk of me not making it to the hospital in the natural occurrence of labor. I was given some medicines that were suppose to get things going. During the next couple days, James and I spent those two days watching a marathon of the TV show Super Nanny and absolutely nothing happened physically.

On Saturday, October 29th, my actual due date, the nurse came in to check me. Again, nothing. She said that they were going to wait for the drugs to "clear my system" and then they would release me to go home. Frustration. Disappointment. No baby Abby.

Later that morning, around 11:30, the nurse came in to check on me, with the expectations of discharging me and sending us home. But much to our surprise, I wasn't going anywhere! A half hour later, Abby stormed into this world on her own terms.

And what a whirlwind she has been! As the Super Nanny marathon foreshadowed, she can be quite a handful. She can make me laugh, cry, scream, and beg for a stiff drink, all in the span of an hour, sometimes several times a day. But there is so much more that is wonderful and amazing about this little soul. She is overflowing with intelligence, curiosity, creativity, humor, caring, and love. Every day is a blessed adventure. Every day, I am given a new "creation" of her artwork. Every day, she says something crazy and outrageous, often times in public. Every day is a kick in the pants.

Happy birthday Abby! May God grant you many more!

Ya Sure Do Know How to Make a Momma Proud, Boo!

2011-10-27T19:45:00.000-07:00

A couple days ago, I was, to put it bluntly, feeling like crap. I woke up with an earache in each ear, a sore throat, congestion, horrid headache, and a mild fever. As the day wore on, I felt even worse.

Besides the physical discomforts, it was one of THOSE days. You know the ones where you have to abandon Plan A and seek refuge in Plan B. By the afternoon, I was on Plan Q. Or was it Plan R? Maybe it was Plan S? Whatever, it doesn't matter. I received a pick-me-up from Alyssa in the form of this text message . . .

. . . a picture of Alyssa holding up a Scantron sheet from her college math class. And what's that written on there? Why, I do believe it reads "100%"! She aced her test!

I am so over the moon proud of Alyssa. She struggled for many years in grammar school until she hit her stride in the eighth grade. She worked hard throughout high school, making good grades while playing sports. And now she's in college, living on her own, and holding down a job. I know that it hasn't been easy. Money is tight. Classes are hard work. She is in a city where she knows very few people. There's all the usual pressures of young adulthood.

When one steps out of their childhood home at the age of 18 and they face the world outside, they often find themselves under dressed for the weather. Circumstances are colder and people can be even more chilling. Warmth can be fleeting. My deepest concerns for my children is that they can keep their wits about them when they are away from home. My prayer is that they pack their knapsacks with enough common sense for their journey and that they don't leave their moral compass behind on the nightstand. I'm sure Alyssa will stumble and skin a figurative knee here and there but for now, I think she is doing very well. She definitely lifted my spirit.

You sure know how to make a momma proud, Boo!

An Ode to Monday

2011-10-24T22:40:00.000-07:00

Roses are RED.

Violets are BLUE.

I've got a case of the Mondays,

Or is it the flu?

A Little Something to Hold Your Pot

2011-10-23T20:34:00.000-07:00

How about a little something to hold your pot?

Wait! That's not what I meant!

I'm talking about a potholder. You know the thick piece of fabric that one uses to lift hot pots off the stove or out of the oven. Geez!

I decided that I would make some potholders. So far I have crocheted two designs. All are made with some worsted weight cotton from the stash. Lately, my goal is to use up the stash of yarn that I have. But with as crazy as things have been lately, I need to keep my queue limited to small and portable projects that will satisfy my urge to create something with my hands while on the go. :)

A Berry Good Day

2010-01-06T21:57:00.000-08:00

Abby was Mommy's special helper today

This morning, Abby and I prepared blackberries to make blackberry fruit leather in the food dehydrator. Actually, she did most of the work!

First, she emptied the containers of blackberries into a large colandar and gently rinsed them with cold water. Then she moved the clean berries to a 1-quart glass measuring pitcher. She measured out 1/4 cup sucanat (sugar) and added it to the berries. I held the immersion blender and swirled it around while she pressed the button. (She wanted to hold the blender while I pressed the button. But sorry, no, that wasn't going to happen.)

Abby enjoyed the pureeing part. We talked about the little seeds and, as she pointed out, how there was red, blue, and purple colors. Since the puree was pretty liquidy, I had her measure out and add a tablespoon of arrowroot to thicken it a bit. (Arrowroot acts like a thickener much like cornstarch, but it doesn't deplete the flavor like cornstarch does, in my opinion.)

Abby lined the dehydrator trays with the nonstick Teflex sheets. I poured the puree onto the trays while she "made it into a square" (as she put it). She did as much of that step as she could. I definitely helped her with this part. I went around the edges of each tray to wipe the excess so that "it wouldn't go out the door". That Abby has such a way with words!

By tomorrow, hopefully, we will have some sweet and chewy blackberry fruit leather. Stay tuned!

Ready for the dehydrator! I wiped the excess off the edges,

first with a dry towel, and then with a damp towel.

Farmers Market Fun

2010-01-05T22:05:00.000-08:00

The Santa Maria Valley produces strawberries practically year-round now

Here on the Central Coast, we are so fortunate to have a mecca of agriculture directly available to the consumer in the forms of u-pick farms and farmers markets. Be it San Luis Obispo county, about ten miles north of us, or our very own Santa Barbara county, there is a famers market within 30 minutes away, at least six days a week. For our town of Orcutt, the farmers market is every Tuesday morning, in the parking lot of the CVS/Oak Knolls Shopping Center, located at Clark Avenue and South Bradley Road. It is only a mile from our house.

Since Alyssa was still on Christmas break from school and Chloe takes a huge nap in the mornings, I recognized the need for that one-on-one time and took Abby down there. (She's normally in preschool on Tuesday mornings but she's also on Christmas break until next week.) There's not nearly the selection this time if the year as in the summer or fall. But it was still a pretty neat sight to see tables covered with all sorts of fruits, vegetables, nuts, flowers, honey, eggs, jams and jellies, all very colorful and so fresh you can smell them from several feet away.

We got some lemons, a flat of really nice strawberries (really nice for off-season), and a flat of blackberries. The blackberries were phenomenal! So fresh, no squished berries, and sweet too. I grabbed two cartons from the flat and brought them inside for the girls. I left the remainder of the berries in the back of the Suburban until I am ready to use them tomorrow. Those berries would never survive the night in our kitchen. Abby will help me make fruit leather from them tomorrow. I am leaning towards jamming the blackberries though. Hmmm . . .

Pristine best describes these blackberries

I wanted to make some Red Lentil Soup for Justina and Alyssa today. So I picked up some onions, carrots, and celery at the market. In addition to those three things, there is also olive oil, broth, red lentils, paprika, cayenne pepper (just a pinch - nothing volcanic), and some sea salt. I had hoped to put it in Justina's lunch for school but I cut it too close on time. So I used up the rest of the leftover lemon pappardelle with pesto, some green beans, crackers, and the blackberries. She can have the soup tomorrow. But not the green beans. Alyssa devoured those.

One item that was we picked up from a Nipomo area farmer was feijoas, or pineapple guavas, or guavasteens. We've never had them before. So I bought four for us to try. They are green and shaped like little watermelons. They are about three by four inches in size. There is a blossom end that you cut off. Then you slice the fruit in half (either lengthwise or crosswise) and scoop the fruit out with a spoon. These were interesting. The more soft they were, the more they tasted like a combination of strawberries and kiwis. The more firm they were, there was a pronounced note of pineapple. The texture was very much like a guava and a banana. Such a complex and delicious partnership of flavors. As for the kids, they just simply loved them! I'm thinking that these will definitely be a repeat purchase.

These were a couple the feijoas we bought

Our outing to the farmers market was a nice miniature adventure. I think Abby enjoyed it. And I hope it will spark an interest to try new vegetables too, and not just fruit. She is a little on the picky side. It is very difficult to take her to places like that. She is so high-energy and can be such a handful. But I was thinking about the fact that she is already four! Soon she will be in kindergarten and all these opportunities will be lost.

Fruit Leath-a

2010-01-04T21:19:00.000-08:00

In yesterday's blog post, I mentioned that I made fruit leather. Apple leather to be exact. To recap, I chopped about 8 cups of apples and cooked them over low heat with about 1 cup water. When they were soft, I pureed them and spread them on Teflex sheets and put them in our Excalibur dehydrator. (Fruit leather can also be made in an oven on the lowest setting or outside in the sun.) We have the Ronco dehydrator as well, but we do not have anything to line those trays. I suppose that I could use parchment paper or even microwave-safe plastic wrap. But that would be a pain to cut sheets to fit their circular shape. I like the Excalibur the best out of the two. My only regret is that I didn't get one with more than four trays. I didn't think I would need more than that. Yet once I used it, I wished I went with the larger model. Sometimes when we dry food, both dehydrators are filled! Oh well, enough of my review of food dehydrators. Let's talk about the finished product.

Overall, the leather turned out nice. At least, the kids thought so. They gave it thumbs up reviews in the midst of chews. Justina helped me peel the apple leather from the Teflex sheeting. Then I cut it into pieces that were about 2-by 3-inches and sealed them in a plastic bag. I didn't spread this mixture out as thick as I should have but it was still a good texture, soft and pliable.

Making fruit leather is a great way to use up fruit that is in the use-it or lose-it category. In fact, I hope to hit the farmers' market in Orcutt tomorrow to see what else I can whip up. This stuff didn't come out as fancy as the stuff you can buy in a box from the supermarket shelf. But the kids don't seem to care. And what's more, I can say with 100% certainty what is in it - just apples and cinnamon.

Justina peels the apple leather from the Teflex sheets in the dehydrator

Pumpkin Pancakes and Applesauce

2010-01-03T21:42:00.000-08:00

For some unknown reason, I woke up wanting to make pancakes this morning. I was going to whip up my mother's pancake batter recipe but then I remembered that I had picked up a box of Trader Joe's Pumpkin Pancake & Waffle Mix a couple months ago. My thinking behind the purchase was that I had just had a baby and where in the heck was I going to find time to whip up pancakes from scratch. It's silly when I think about it now because making pancake batter is one of the simplest things to make in the kitchen. But whatever, I had the mix so I just went with it.

For six to eight pancakes (about 5-inches), the directions called for 1 cup mix, 3/4 cup milk, 1/4 cup melted butter, and 1 egg. Well I doubled that and ended up with some extra which I refrigerated to use for breakfast and snacks later this week. They were good and had a really nice pumpkin flavor. From a mix eno less! Justina helped me with making the coffee and scrambled eggs. And Abby also got to help by making a few of the pancakes.

Later on in the afternoon, I got bit by another bug. I wanted to make some fruit leather. I peeled and chopped some apples, a little over 8 cups. Then I added them to a pot with a cup of water and heated them on low for about 15 minutes. After the apples were soft, I pureed them until they were really smooth. I added a little cinnamon to the mix also. Then I spread the mixture on lined trays and placed them in the dehydrator. By sometime tomorrow, we should have apple fruit leather.

Pureed apple mixture in Excalibur dehydrator (cell pic)

So What Do YOU Think?

I posted a new poll question - When do YOU think Christmas decorations should come down? The poll ends on Sunday, January 9, 2009 at 11:59 p.m. (PST). So vote, vote, vote! And if you have a comment about what you see here, those are welcomed also.

Greetings from the Back of the Burb

2010-01-02T21:37:00.000-08:00

I am often reminded by friends who live elsewhere as to how fortunate we are to still have a drive-in theater. For me, as a mother who has a toddler and is also nursing an infant, a drive-in theater is the only time I get to view a movie prior to its DVD or television release. It is even better if the movie is a family-friendly movie (which is apparently not "sophisticated" enough to produce more of nowadays - sigh). While running errands earlier this afternoon, I drove by the drive-in and looked up at the marquee - Alvin and the Chipmunks 2: The Squeakquel, rated PG, was playing.

Believe it or not, Abby, is now 4 years old, has never been to a movie theater, not even a drive-in. (Actually, for those who know her, I guess that is not much of a surprise.) She is not known for her ability to sit still for more than 3 minutes, or even keep quiet for 10 seconds. But the drive-in would be the perfect setting for my precocious little one. And, with this being the last night of Christmas vacation that Justina could stay up past bedtime, I decided to treat them to the movie. When I got home, I started a pot of water to boil on the stove. I went outside and emptied the cargo area of the Suburban. James folded down the third row seat while I finished making dinner. Justina loaded the back with two bean bags, a couple pillows, blankets, and of course, their favorite stuffed animals. After we ate dinner, I nursed Chloe while the girls got in their pajammies and slippers.

When we arrived at the drive-in, I parked the Suburban with the back facing the screen. The girls climbed into the back and snuggled under their blankets. I closed the back door but lifted up the back window so that they could see out to the screen. Fortunately, it was not too cold out tonight. I used a bungee cord to hang the speaker to the inside of the car. I took Chloe out of her car seat and moved her to the front seat with me. Since the front of the car was facing the opposite direction of the screen, I was not distracted by the picture. I nursed Chloe and read a magazine by flashlight. It was wonderful! Oh, yeah, and the girls like it too.

On the way home, we drove around to see the few remaining Christmas lights. (The season of Christmas doesn't end on the twenty-sixth of December people!) We returned home shortly after nine and managed to get the car emptied before the girls headed off to bed. All in all, a pleasant evening.

Justina & Abby in the back of the Burb at the Drive-in (Nice cell phone quality pic! NOT!)

As for Christmas Vacation . . .

Our family did a little traveling this Christmas vacation. James' brother, Dennis, and his family came out from Florida for a visit over the Christmas. Normally, we have a policy of staying at home for Christmas Day. But we rarely get to see Dennis and Angie and their two girls. So we decided to travel to Victorville to stay with his family. It was a great visit with James' parents, his sister and brother, and their families. On the way back, we stopped and stayed at my mother's. We had a nice dinner and visit with her and my brothers.

A funny thing, however, for as nice of a visit as it was, I think we needed a vacation from our vacation. We were wiped out. It took a few days to recover. The Christmas break flew by in the blink of an eye! The girls start back to school over the next week. And as much as I enjoy a break from the routine of the school week, I must say that I am anxiously awaiting its return.

May you merrily enjoy the remainder of this Christmas season, and may you have a blessed and prosperous new year!

Lost and Found

2009-12-24T08:17:00.000-08:00

Last night, I took Justina to Target so that she could buy some presents for her sisters. We first stopped in the girls' section to find a couple long-sleeve shirts for our trip over to James' family this Christmas. We decided on a couple of shirts that she liked, and then she asked if she could go over to the babies' section to find a gift for Chloe. I said that would be okay. So she headed over to the babies' section, which was the next section over.

Chloe was ready to eat. So I had to take her out of the car seat, put her in the sling, and take out the nursing bib from the diaper bag. Once I got Chloe latched on, I waited for Justina to return. And I waited and waited. I was standing in the main aisleway so that she could easily see me, but in my view of the babies' section, I could not see her. Okay, she's 10. I bet she went to the toy section, which was the next one over from the babies'. Again, I stood in the main aisleway of the section so that she could easily see me. But there was still no sign of her. Ten minutes had passed and I began to get an awful feeling.

We tell our children if they are lost to stay put, but was she lost? To me, she was! Target is a large store and I knew if I went to look for her, she could be eluding me at every turn. So I flagged down a store employee and asked them to page her. I explained that she was hard of hearing and had a cochlear implant. So please page her several times. I then added with a gulp of distress in my voice that I hadn't seen her in almost fifteen minutes.

My hat is off to the employees at the Santa Maria Target. They were very deliberate in their response. They knew exactly what to do and they immediately began to search for her.I could hear all of this on the walkie-talkies they were carrying. I could hear employees confirming that all the exits were covered, the bathrooms were being searched, and her description being repeated. I was taken to the fitting area which was centrally located in the store. I remained as calm as I could, praying for her safe return. Finally, over the walkie-talkie held by the fitting room attendant, I heard that she had been found. I was so relieved and instantly, tears of joy streamed down my face.

Thankfully, Target was prepared for such an occurrance. Regrettably, I was not. A couple weeks ago, I cleared all the pictures on my cell phone to create more memory space. I had no picture of Justina, or any of my kids. This will change. I even programmed in my phone to take an updated picture of the kids every couple months. I do not know of a cell phone today that doesn't have a camera on it. And if she is ever with someone else and gets lost, then at least I can send them a picture.

When we got into the car, I had a very frank discussion with Justina. I asked her what had happened and why she was not in the babies' section where she said she was going to be. She explained that went to look for a present for Alyssa after she found Chloe's gift. In this day and age, kids are feeling older than they really are at younger and younger ages. I told her that I understood that she was 10 and that there were a lot of things she could do for herself. I continued in saying that sadly,there are people are there whose intentions towards children are not admirable. In fact, they are evil. "I don't want you to live in fear but I do want you to understand that there are risks out there. I need to know where you are! I am not trying to treat you like a baby. I am just trying to keep you safe," I said. Hopefully, these words along with the massive hug that I gave her when I saw her in the fitting area and the tears on my face drove home the point that I was genuinely frightened.

There is a nagging little voice inside me that is saying now I overreacted . Well all I can say to that little voice is, "Shut up!" That was the most terrifying half hour of my life. In an instant, I was faced with the possibility of My Little Miss Sunshine being gone from my life. It was a wake up call to me as a mom. I had been a little too complacent about my children's security in this manner. And I need to keep current pictures of them with me. I am grateful to the employees of Target for their swift action and preparedness. But most of all, I am grateful for God in answering prayers. I am wanting for nothing this Christmas. My prayers were answered and that is all I need or want.

Merry Christmas!

Kidnapped! For Cookies?

2009-12-19T22:51:00.000-08:00

Justina being "kidnapped" by Keone (Notice James

in the background, casually sipping a mocha)

For a couple months, Char, a family friend of ours had been talking about having Justina over to bake cookies. So today, she sent her son, Keone, over to our house to "kidnap" Justina so that she could help with some holiday baking. (She called ahead of time to let James know.) When Keone arrived, Justina greeted him as usual. But then he picked her up and threw her over his shoulders, put her in his car, and whisked her over to their house. Justina loves cooking and baking. She spent the early afternoon helping Char and had a great time.

Keone putting Justina in his truck

The Voice of a Little Angel

2009-12-17T21:57:00.000-08:00

Abby singing at her Christmas program

"I hope I have my singing voice!" said Abby this morning. Well I had hoped so too because today was Abby's Christmas program at her preschool. The program began with a slide show production. Next, we were treated to such Christmas hits as Jingle Bells, I'm a Little Snowman (sang to the tune of I'm a Little Teapot), Santa Claus is Coming to Town, and Twinkle, Twinkle Little Lights (sang to the tune of Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star). For the finale, the children sang We Wish You a Merry Christmas. The choreography was stunning (hand gestures mostly). And Abby added a little of her own by hopping throughout the majority of it. After the program, we went to the hall for punch and cookies. And the children opened gifts from their teachers. Abby received a book, Inside a Barn in the Country by Alyssa Satin Capucilli (Sacholastic, Inc. &copy 1995). Before we left, Abby ran around the church grounds and gathered leaves. It was sweet and wonderful morning.

Abby unwraps a Christmas gift from her teachers

Abby played outside after the program

Dinner with the Clauses

2009-12-16T20:54:00.000-08:00

Justina and Abby with Santa and Mrs. Claus

Tonight, James and I took Alyssa, Justina, Abby, and Chloe to the Santa Maria Elks Lodge to enjoy a family Christmas party. The Elks served dinner and there was a deejay who led some party games for the kids, such as a hula hoop contest and musical chairs with a twist; instead of walking around the chairs until the music stopped, the children were sent out to gather specific items from crowd members and return to their seats before the music stopped. Of course, no children's Christmas party is complete with a visit from Santa Claus. And we were also graced with a visit from the Mrs. too!

Sidebar . . .

I have a little rant. I find it unbelievable that in this day and age, people still might find the idea of breastfeeding to be a little offensive. Seriously? Tonight I was told that I might want to go into the women's' lounge (that's a euphemism for the women's' bathroom) because some people might get offended. Now I am discreet about covering up when I nurse. I am not bare-breasted for all the world to see. But rather than make this an issue, I just went in there. There are some chaise chairs in there. But that is not the point. As I sat in there, a thought came to mind.

The bathroom is for people to take a pee and a dump in. There I said it. No, it didn't come out nicely. Nor was it meant to. That is the main purpose of that room. It would be totally inappropriate for me to do bathroom-related activities in public. Heck, when I was growing up, I was taught that ladies should excuse themselves to the ladies' room to re-apply lipstick. Likewise, no adult would appreciate being asked to eat their meal in the bathroom. So why, is it acceptable for someone to expect an innocent baby to have eat there? It's not!

The scientific name for the breast is mammary gland. These are what make us mammals, a animal class of vertebrates that nurses their young. So after much deliberation, no more Mrs. Nice Guy. The next time someone takes offense and asks if I could "do that somewhere else", my response will tactfully be, "If she has to go somewhere else to eat, then so should you."

This concludes my little rant. I am going to go calm down by nursing Chloe to sleep. Peace out.

Mish Mash

2009-12-14T21:10:00.000-08:00

Today was pretty uneventful. James had a committee meeting to attend at the Elks Lodge. So we went to Family Dinner Night there. I watched bits and pieces of the football game between the 49ers and the Cardinals. Let's hear it for a 24-9 victory. Go Niners! (Kurt Warner had a bad day.) After dinner, the kids and I looked at some Christmas lights in a nearby neighborhood before heading home. That's about it. Like I said, pretty uneventful.

In Other News . . .

James' cousin Amber Boicourt and her fellow soldiers will be travelling back to the States from Iraq over the next couple days. Please say a prayer for their safe return, as well as all the men and women who are serving our country. And let's not forget to pray for those who have given the ultimate sacrifice and their loved ones during this holiday season.

Spread Thin

2009-12-13T20:00:00.000-08:00

Since having Chloe, I would be lying if I said that there's plenty of me to go around lately, at least as the other children are concerned. When a new baby arrives in any household, everyone in the family struggles to adjust. Alyssa and Justina are old enough to understand the amount of time that an infant takes. However, Abby, who is only 4, has had to re-adjust the most.

Something that we have tried to do to help Abby adjust to being a big sister is to have more one-on-one outings with either James or myself. Of course, this applies to all the kids. It could be something more planned out, like a meal out, or something as simple as running an errand. It would be more preferable if Chloe was not part of the equation. Whatever the excursion might be, it needs to be as much about Abby as possible. Abby calls this "special time".

Today, I surprised Abby by taking her to lunch at Kay's. I did have to take Chloe with us. However, she enjoyed the surprise. We colored and played a children's game on my iPod. And we toasted our lunch out several times with our drinks. Cheers! She even liked taking my credit card to the counter to pay for lunch. I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised when it was time for us to leave because our server gave me cash in the amount of our meal back. Apparently, someone wanted to pay for our lunch! I do not know who you are, but thank you!

Abby, playing in my jacket, at Kay's

After I returned home, I decided to walk off the meal from Kay's. As I was taking the stroller out of the back of my car, Justina asked if she could go along. So she and I went for a walk around the neighborhood. We admired Christmas decorations and yards. But the thing we loved to look at the most was the sunlight piercing through the clouds on the horizon. It was beautiful.

A picture of the sunlight through the clouds that we took with my cell phone.

So Alyssa and I hung out yesterday. Abby and I had lunch together today. And later, Justina and I took a walk. I would say that I was spread thin this weekend but in a nice way. There was plenty of me to go around.

12 of 12 for December 2009

2009-12-12T20:54:00.001-08:00

It's hard to believe that I have not posted a 12 of 12 since March 2009. With this being December, what better time to post one than the last month of the year. The idea of the 12 of 12 is to take 12 pictures of your day on the 12th day of the month. It's fun to do this and share your set of 12 with others. Today's weather was a little on the cruddy side. Actually, it was a lot on the cruddy side. And with the combination of yucky weather and having to tend to an infant, the picture quality was probably not the greatest. Poor picture quality aside, it was a pretty neat day. Enjoy!

The day started out with Chloe, Alyssa, and me leaving the house at 7:00 a.m. We picked up her boyfriend, Stephen, and drove to her water polo tournament in Paso Robles. Did I mention that the weather was cruddy?

Alyssa's high school water polo team played San Luis Obispo High School this morning. Unfortunately, they lost 3-6. But I was very proud of Alyssa. She played very hard and strong. Water polo is a very physically demanding sport and she played nearly the entire game in the cold rain.

When we got back to Orcutt, we ate lunch at Kay's Orcutt Country Kitchen. Outside, in the street in front of the restaurant, was the Old Orcutt Christmas Parade. Because of the bad weather, it was pretty short this year. In fact, it was pouring just before. Our 4-H club was suppose to walk in it but the advisor decided to scratch our entry because of the weather conditions. I think it was a very good call. No one wants their kids sick just before Christmas.

Something else I did throughout the day was nurse Chloe. Rather than subject you to a picture of me doing that, here's a cute picture of her. She is 11 weeks old today.

Alyssa's boyfriend hung out with us most of the day. He had gone to the water polo tournament, lunch at Kay's, and also to Justina's basketball game.

The whole family went to Justina's basketball game this afternoon. Unfortunately, her team did not prevail. But Justina is a very fierce player. She shut down one of the more aggressive players on the opposing team. Perhaps that comes from being from a big family.

After the game, we went home and relaxed a bit. The weather was still cruddy. As I sat down to nurse Chloe, I also cuddled with Abby and read books with her. Abby loves reading!

We went to dinner at Cielito Lindo, a Mexican restaurant in Orcutt.

On the way home from the restaurant, we drove through some neighborhoods and looked at Christmas lights. This is one of my favorite things to do this time of the year.

So concludes our family's 12 of 12 for December 2009. Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

Marco! Water Polo!

2009-12-10T18:38:00.000-08:00

Today, the St. Joe's girls water polo team played Paso Robles High School in Paso Robles. And today was my turn to drive. So after Abby got out of preschool, we went over to St. Joes's and loaded up five of the junior varsity players in my car. And away we went. Oh, did I mention that it was pouring rain? Yeah, well it was pouring rain.

I dropped off the girls and went to fill my car up with gas for the trip home. Back at the pool, I unloaded Chloe and put her car seat in the stroller, got Abby in her jacket, and sloshed through the puddles to the gate of the pool only to find out that Paso Robles High School charges $5.00 to get in. Not realizing that there would be a fee to get in, I explained to the woman at the gate that I didn't have any cash on me and that I had just come back from getting gas. Had I known, I would have withdrawn some cash but I didn't. She said in a not so nice tone that we had to pay the entrance fee. So I schlepped the kids back to the car. By now the blanket over Chloe's car seat is soaked and so is Abby's jacket. I was parked just outside the fence of the pool. So I turned on a movie in the car for Abby to watch, and walked up to the fence to watch the game.

St. Joe's junior varsity prevailed over Paso Robles 12-7. And Alyssa scored three goals! I have to say that these girls are pretty tough. I don't know that I could stand in the cold and wet weather in a swimsuit, let alone get into the pool. The girls play in a tournament - again in Paso Robles - tomorrow and Saturday. I have driving duties on Saturday. So I hope to get some pictures and possibly post them.

My Take on The Biggest Loser, Season 8

2009-12-09T22:35:00.000-08:00

Last night was the Season 8 Finale of The Biggest Loser. I normally do not watch too many reality TV shows, at least not season-long series. But I am totally hooked on this one. I mean, to live vicariously through these contestants is like eating the most fattening comfort food imagineable. In fact, who among us has not indulged in a little sumpthin-sumpthin' during the weigh-ins atthe end of each episode? You know you do it. Come on!

I really liked the final six - Amanda, Rebecca, Danny, Allen, Rudy, and Liz. So I would have been happy if any of them won. I was a little bummed that Daniel didn't make the final four(but he looked awesome last night). Although I am rooting for Shay to continue her weight loss, I was getting a little tired of her victim mentality. It was really draining to listen to. It was cool that Subway extended a $1,000 per pound challenge to her and I hope that will encourage her to continue. And the marriage proposal between Antoine and Alexandra was sweet. But seriously, who didn't see that one coming. Right.

Thankfully, Rebecca beat out that nutball Tracy to win the At-Home Challenge. Although I think Rebecca was a little too thin. And that hair? Yikes! Tracy looked a little too thin also but she appeared to be more toned (even though she is nuttier than a gallon jar of crunchy peanut butter). I was thrilled that Danny won the top prize. That dude just killed it. He didn't even look remotely like the guy that started the show.

Well that's my take on Season 8, for whatever it's worth (probably a hill of high fiber, low fat beans).

Got School?

2009-12-07T22:29:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, Justina and I (with little Chloe in tow) attended the Got School? Conference at John Tracy Clinic in Los Angeles. The focus of this event for oral deaf students (grades 5 through 12) and their parents was to address the unique needs for our oral deaf children as they enter middle school, high school, and even vocational training or college. The speakers included Melinda Gillinger, a special education advocate, and Robyn Tenensap from the Department of Rehabilitation/Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services. There were also representatives from both Cochlear Corporation and Advanced Bionics (manufacturers of the Nucleus and Clarion brand cochlear implants), Phonak (hearing aids and FM systems), and Weitbrecht Communications, Inc. (distributor of technological devices that benefit the deaf ad hard of hearing) available to discuss various technologies that could benefit the deaf and hard of hearing. The conference ended with a college-age deaf students panel and a pizza social.

Now our hometown is not exacting teeming with deaf peers for Justina, let alone ones who are oral. And, admittedly, I have not been very diligent about providing opportunities for her to interact with other deaf children as it usually involves travelling. When I received the information for the conference in the mail, I realized that it was on the weekend that James had his drill for the guard, and Alyssa had a water polo tournament. So I would have to arrange for a sitter for Abby for the day. It would also mean taking a two-month-old nursing infant on a six-hour round trip drive. And I didn't see the need for me to go. Afterall, we had not had an IEP with our school district in nearly six years since Justina attended a private scool and it was a unilateral placement. But, when would the next opportunity for her to mingle with other deaf students present itself? After some thought, I decided to go.

Well, I am glad that we did. It turned out that we both got a lot out of it. She went into a session with the kids while the parents listened to the speakers. Even though we have a year and a half before Justina enters middle school, Melinda Gillinger's presentation gave me some food for thought on what we could do to prepare, even in the private school setting. And Robyn Tenesap's presentation stressed for me the importance of more meticulous college planning for Justina versus any of our other children. After the speakers, we got to see some of the technological devices that were available for our kids. Justina was really excited about two particular devices. First, there was the neatest captioning telephone. And then there was this sensor that you can hang on the door knob so that when someone knocks, a flashing light comes on. That will come in handy when she is in the shower or in her room with her implant off.

And speaking of technology, this was the first time Justina had ever used CART (Communication Access Realtime Translation). Basically, there is a screen at the front of the room where a transcriptionist types (captions) everything that is being said in the room. Captioning is not foreign to her. The closed captioning has been on the televiosions in our house since she was diagnosed over 8 years ago. But this was the first time that she had seen or used this service. It gave her realtime access to everything in the room. And she absolutely loved it!

The last event was the college-age deaf panel. There were about seven oral deaf young adults, some who were still in college and a couple who had just graduated. There's that old adage about walking a mile in another man's shoes. As a parent, you think you know somewhat how your child is feeling. I mean, at least you know the shoe size. Right? It still is not the same. These panelists actually wear the same shoes! So it was a real treat for Justina to listen to them share their experiences as they went through school and see them accomplish some of their goals in life.

About 4 years ago, Justina's cochlear implant device began to extrude through her skin behind her ear. It was some fluke the way her head grew and shifted the device up to the surface. A surgery was done initially to adjust the device. Unfortunately, we caught it later rather than sooner. By then, the tissues underneath had become immflamed. So the device had to be removed for a period of time so that it could heal. She was without her cochlear implant for three months. That experience stirred up some negative feelings about her deafness. Up until that point, she never considered herself deaf. She would question why she why deaf and didn't want to be deaf anymore. It is so painful for a parent to see their child hurt emotionally. It would be better that they break their arm. At least, it would be more concrete and easy to fix. Of course, you can go on forever to them about how you love them the way they are. But children are egocentric creatures, and that is the plane on which they operate. So we have had to reshape her perception of her reality into something positive, and I think yesterday was very helpful.

Justina walked away yesterday with not just a greater understanding of what her hearing loss really is, but with a renewed spirit to explain it to other people, especially her hearing peers at school. Now. we have talked about how it is that she is deaf. It certainly is easier to answer than the impossible question of why. Over time, the knowledge of how has overshadowed the self-loathing question of why. Something clicked yesterday and she became eager for the opportunity to explain her deafness. She printed out a couple pictures from Google to take to her class and explain it to them. And her teacher graciously let her. That is H-U-G-E in my book!

From the time of her diagnosis at 14 months old until she was 5, we had driven that six-hour round trip for preschool, parent education classes, and auditory-verbal therapy. (We still do for audiology appointments but those are not as frequent.) It was a lot of sacrifice. And quite honestly, at times, it was a pain in the butt. But it has been so worth it. If God came down tomorrow and said, "I am giving you a second chance at Justina. Would you like the same Justina who is deaf? Or would you like a Justina who is hearing?" The answer would emphatically be the Justina who is deaf. It was wonderful to see her former classmates who have grown so much. (Holy cow! Have they grown!) And it was great to see their parents and her former teachers too. I don't think we would have done things too differently. All of these things I reflected on during our drive home. And if I had not gone to the conference, then I would've missed that chance for reflection. Reflection is a great reality check.

These are a couple images that Justina printed out to show her class. The one on the top shows the hair cells in the cochlea of the human ear. We do not actually hear sound until these hair cells transmit the signal to the adjacent auditory nerve. For whatever reason, Justina either had damaged or missing hair cells. The picture below it shows what the internal device looks like. The electrodes that are inserted in the cochlea act like prosthetic hair cells, transmitting sound to the auditory nerve via an electric stimulus rather than the naturally-occurring one.

Welcome Chloe Grace

2009-09-27T19:10:00.001-07:00

Chloe Grace with Daddy a few hours after her birth

On Saturday, September 26, 2009 at 2:55 p.m. PDT, our family joyously welcomed the newest addition to our family, Chloe Grace Moses. She weighed 8 pounds, 7 ounces and measured 20 inches long. The labor and delivery went wonderfully.

Long Time, No Blog

2009-09-24T21:15:00.000-07:00

It has been ages since I have gotten on here and blogged. The truth is that I have let other things get in the way. But I am hoping to make my way back. A lot has gone on in our family since I last posted. So I couldn't even begin to catch up on the latest and greatest, and even the not-so-greatest. I won't even try!

However, tonight, James and I will be driving down to Santa Barbara, where I will be induced into labor to deliver our fifth girl. Stay tuned!

Introducing Nibbles

2009-03-16T08:18:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, Justina visited White Rail Ranch in Porterville, California to pick out a goat for her 4-H project. She will raise it and show it at the Santa Barbara County Fair. We stayed the night at my mother's house in Bakersfield on Friday. Then on Saturday, Justina and I, along with my mother, drove up the 65 to Porterville. When we arrived, we were greeted by owner, Judy Kaye.

Judy led us over to a pen of about ten wethers, born in November. (A wether is a castrated male goat or lamb.) She had pretty much picked one out for Justina, Ear tag 501, but I looked at all of them anyway. And the one she picked was the best one of the group. Of course, my goat experience isn't worth a hill of beans. For the Santa Barbara Fair, they need to be born after October 1st.

November Wethers

This is Justina's first year showing large livestock at the Fair. Up until this year, she had only shown rabbits and cavies. The wether she got seemed to bond to her instantly. And he was extremely calm which is great for a young person like Justina. She eventually named him Nibbles for the way he liked to nibble on her sweatshirt sleeve.

After we decided on the wether, Judy went to get her mule cart with a trailer to take Justina and Nibbles over to the scale to weigh.

Justina rode in the trailer on the back of the Mule cart, as Judy showed us around the ranch and took us to the scale. The goat was weighed, wormed, and dusted for lice. She also changed his herd tag for a scrapie tag. On the way home, Justina said she loved the ride because she felt like she was in a parade.

During our ride around the ranch, we got to see Nibbles' dam, Mo Special, and his sire, Jack Knife. He weighed 70 pounds. The minimum weight for the Fair is 75 pounds. One year, Amanda's lamb barely made weight. That was a nerve racking experience and one that I would like to avoid. With being only 5 pounds under the minimum and four months until Fair, there will be no weight worries with this guy. While on the scale, Judy changed out his ear tag for a scrapie tag, wormed him, and dusted him for lice and mites.

Judy Kaye, owner of White Rail Ranch and Justina, my mother in background

As a project leader for sheep, I try to encourage kids to go with a breeder that has the mindset to teach and guide them, not just sell them an animal. All sorts of things can happen with livestock. Years ago, we were an agrarian society. If you had a question, you could trip over experienced livestock people. Now, at least on the Central Coast, not so much. Connecting with someone who not only has that knowledge but want to pass it along is crucial to a positive outcome with that project animal. I really feel like we did that with Judy Kaye at White Rail Ranch. She was very encouraging with Justina. And even by the time we got home to Orcutt, Justina had more confidence in handling him.

We got home around 5 pm, which worked out perfectly because that is the approximate evening feeding time, we were hoping for. Justina took a brush and brushed off any shavings and mud. Then she put a blanket on him as it was still getting pretty cold here at night. She fed him and then spread out some pine shavings for him in his shelter. It will take him a few days to get settled into his new home.

Nibbles was sad to see Justina go home.

12 of 12 for March 2009

2009-03-12T21:52:00.000-07:00

Today is March 12th and that means 12 of 12 time. My 12 started out a little late as I had a hard time getting motivated this morning. I was still wiped out from yesterday's goat pen renovation. But fortunately, tonight, we pretty much finished it. Tomorrow, I will spread the sand in the pen.

So on with our countdown . . .

I took lunch up to Alyssa (left) and Amanada (right) at school this afternoon.

Abby and I went to Farm Supply in Santa Maria. She loves the baby chicks.

While at Farm Supply, I picked up the Five-high galvanized panel to finish the pen.

The rabbits got run around time on the lawn. This is Pink-Eye, the New Zealnad buck. He will be a father times three by the end of April.

I picked up some all-purpose sand at Hell Depot . . . I mean Home Depot . . . to help with the drainage situation in the pen.

Here is that rotten piece of plywood I ripped out and the wire mesh that was coming apart. Most of the wood disintegrated when I pulled it off. And after pulling off the wire mesh, James and I found all sorts of nails sticking out. Believe me, I am grateful that we have place to keep the animals. But I have nicknamed our temporary little 4-H farm "Tetanus Acres".

Abby asked if she could play in the "little house", referring to the shelter we built. I told her that it was going to be the goat's bedroom. So here are Justina and she playing in the goat's room.

Abby wanted to help. So she has claimed this hoe as her own.

James tacked down an old tarp across the plywood roof of the shelter. We get lots of misty mornings and evenings here on the coast. So this will keep water from pooling on the topside of the plywood. And the tarp is old. So if it doesn't survive until next year, then no biggie.

As I mentioned before, the back fence was pretty unstable. James is reinforcing the rails by screwing them into the posts. They were nailed before and now the nails have come out.

Unfortunately, Justina got a late start on her homework this evening. She is working on a math paper. Math is actually one of her strongest subjects.

Keone is a family friend who was a trememndous help in repairing the pen. He came by for a refreshing , ice cold beverage after they finished tonight (and a little Rubik's Cube action).

Gimme Shelter

2009-03-11T21:28:00.000-07:00

This afternoon, James, Justina, and I worked on her goat pen. And we also got some help from a family friend, Keone. The first order of business was to fix the gate. The post the gate had been hung from was leaning, which made opening the gate difficult. James went in from the fencing and drilled some screws through to the post. And viola! The gate now swings freely, which made getting in and out of there easier. He also removed part of some aluminum siding that was used as a shelter by the previous occupant. This was not going to be enough, and I had concerns about Justina gashing her head on the sharp corners and edges. So James removed it. This also opened up some room to work.

The next order of business was actually the most important task we had to get done this evening, and that was to address the drainage issue and built a shelter. For disease prevention and good hoof care, the pen should have good drainage. This pen unfortunately does not. It has been two weeks since we have had any significant rain, and one half of the pen is still goopy and slimy. Fortunately, the other half which is on the gate end of the pen is higher and not as bad. We decided to built the shelter over the bad drainage area.

This area was our biggest concern. You can see the
water where it is still pooling.

We lined up some old pallets across the bad end of the pen. Then we took a sheet of plywood and laid it on the pallets. This worked out so nicely because the area in question happened to be 4 feet by 8 feet. What do you know? A sheet of plywood measures 4 feet by 8 feet! Justina ripped apart a pallet for spare wood pieces. We used those and some 2-by-4's to build the frame for the shelter. And on top of that we nailed a plywood sheet to it.

Pallet flooring, the latest in goat home decor!

One last thing we did was screwed part of an old pallet to the back wall. One of our feed buckets has hooks on it. So she will be able to hang the feeder onto the pallet. The whole thing took us about 2 hours. And we finished right as the sun set. The shelter will be finished tomorrow when we stretch an old tarp across the top and down the back side of the fence to close it in. But the number one goal tonight was to get the flooring and roof of the shelter finished. Mission accomplished!

The pallet on the back wall is where Justina can hang the feeding dish.

Tomorrow, we will finish up the tarp and use some galvanized steel mesh panels to build up the back wall and reinforce the side wall. A couple of the rails are completely rotted through and the wire mesh is coming apart from the fencing. It is also a little on the short side and needs to be taller. Next to the gate, there is a plywood panel that is completely rotted. If I wanted to, I could easily kick my foot through it. We have some leftover plywood panels from various projects here at the house. So we will replace that as well. That will be the corner that the water bucket will be, secured by a bungee cord. Lastly, since the edge of the shelter's floor is right where the ground starts to slope downward, I will pour out a 50-pound bag of concrete sand along the edge to help with the drainage situation.

Justina did a great job helping. She hammered down any sharp nails that were sticking out, pried apart an old pallet for James and Keone to use the spare pieces of wood, and nailed down the plywood flooring onto the pallets. And the refreshing thing is that she wanted to help. There was no moaning and groaning if she was asked to do something. She was eager to take an active role is getting ready for her 4-H animal. She has a natural work ethic at 9 years old. How cool is that!

Justina was quite the worker bee this afternoon!

Today's Scavenger Hunt

2009-03-10T21:37:00.000-07:00

This Saturday, Justina will be getting her goat for the Fair. And that means we need to get ready for it. The pen it will be kept in needs some work. There are drainage issues and there is currently no shelter. And the walls need to be strengthened and built higher. (A goat can clear a 4 foot fence with ease and they are amazing climbers. So today, I went on a little shopping trip combined with a scavenger hunt. I got a galvanized mesh panel, some plywood, two-by-fours, and some pallets. I got the pallets from businesses that were throwing them out. So tomorrow afternoon, when James gets off work, we will go down to the pen and work on it. A friend of his will also be helping us out.

Unfortunately, we cannot keep the goat or lamb in our backyard due to an obnoxious neighbor who found a loophole in our deed. Last year, they turned us in one week before Fair, not because of flies, smell, or anything like that, but because it just irked them to see the animals in our back yard. (We are not the only neighbors they pick on.) The county code for our particular neighborhood states that we need to have at least 10,000 square foot to keep one hooved animal for a junior livestock Fair project (e.g. 4-H, FFA, Junior Grange). Our deed says that we have .22 acre (that's twenty-two hundredths of an acre), which calculates out to be 9,583.2 square feet. That means we are 416.8 square feet short to keep the one animal here. A friend of mine in real estate has pulled our parcel map and the measurements are not stated on there. And our mortgage paperwork says that it is "10,000 square feet or .22 acre."

So at some point we need to get a survey of our lot to determine the actual square footage. The county inspector even suggested that we have it done because the acreage on the deed may be an assessor's figure. And we should, not just because of the 4-H animal project situation, but because we really should have a definitive measurement of the lot and know our actual square footage, especially given the adversarial situation with the people next door. (I would use the word neighbors but I don't want to turn it into a four-letter word.) But that will cost several hundred dollars and will just have to wait.

A Delightful Dinner

2009-03-07T21:48:00.000-08:00

Last week, Justina checked out Rachael Ray's 30 Minute Meals for Kids from the school library. And she was dying to cook something from the book. So tonight she planned and prepared a wonderful meal. She made Grilled T-Bone Steaks with Chipolte-Chili Rub and Cilantro-Lime Compound Butter, corn on the cob, Stacked Fruit Sticks (fruit kebabs), and for dessert, Cookie and Ice cream Fill-Your-Hadwiches (ice cream sandwiches). And all of it, she made using recipes in the cookook.

I helped her with some of it, like mincing the cilantro, and chopping the oranges for the fruit kebobs. Otherwise, she made the ice cream sandwiches, zested a lime and made the compound butter, mixed the seasoning for the steak and grilled them, cleaned and steamed the corn, hulled the strawberries, and skewered the kebabs. She did an incredible job and everything was delicious.

In Other News . . .

Alyssa went to Santa Ana's Mater Dei High School today to watch the St. Joe's girls play Junipero Serra for the CIF Division 5-AA Championship in basketball. She left on a rooter's bus at 8 a.m. this morning for a 12:30 game. I got to watch the game online as our local newspaper streamed it live. After three years of losing in the quarterfinals, the girls finally did it. They won! Congratulations to all the players and coaches. Go Knights!

Happy Birthday Sweet Pea!

2009-03-03T22:05:00.000-08:00

Today is my husband, James' birthday. He is 18 years old. (Wink, wink.) Abby and I are still recovering from our creeping crud and the birthday boy is still re-acclimating from his business trip. So our family had a modest little dinner at Shaw's Steak House in Santa Maria to celebrate his day and show him that we appreciate all that he does to provide for our family. I included this little video as it is now an inside joke for the tow of us. Happy birthday Sweet Pea! May God grant you many years.

Happy Birthday!

Jeers, Cheers, and Tears

2009-03-02T21:28:00.000-08:00

Normally, I do not write about news stories. I usually like to write about our family life, which is what I am most passionate about. However, these three news stories really struck a chord with me today. So I felt compelled to comment.

JEERS

Jeers going out to the Obama Administration. Apparently, Barack Obama has proposed some cockamamie ideas to fix our country's economic woes, but this one is so terrible, I am livid. Obama wants to do away with the tax deduction for charitable contributions for the wealthy. I would ask if the President was smoking crack, but I think the more appropriate question is does he think, we are smoking crack. How in the hell is this suppose to stimulate the economy? And how can anyone propose this with a straight face? Charities are already reeling under the weight of this economic crisis which grows worse each day with the news a yet another bailout plan. The Dow is a very crafty translator of government double-speak and its plummeting numbers reflect the daily messages put out by this administration, shrouding its socialist agenda under the cloak of a modern day New Deal. Puh-leeeez! Obama, you are no Roosevelt!

CHEERS

Cheers to the Los Angeles Dodgers for ixnaying their the offer to Manny Ramirez for $45 million over two years, and their even latest offer this week for 25 million for one year. While it is questionable how many Dodger fans would actually be able to squeeze tickets to a game in their tightening budgets, could Manny Ramirez look these very fans in the eye and say with absolute conviction that he is indeed worth it. Seriously, Manny, 25 mil would've been enough to buy a larger helmet for your ego. Dodgers' owner, Frank McCourt said that negotiations would have to start from the beginning. Believe me, it is not every day that I would sing the praises of the Dodgers. So I seriously hope that they stay firm on this.

TEARS

Tears for the death of radio legend Paul Harvey. I was a child who listened to talk radio while riding int he car with her parents. And I remember hearing the Rest of the Story. Of course, back then I thought about how corny so many of his segments were but loved them nonetheless. I especially liked when he would talk about the childhood of some famous person, not revealing their name until the last line. I can't even imagine the influence he had on so many. That unforgettable voice will be missed. Good day Mr. Harvey.

In Other News . . .

Abby has fully recovered from her bout with roseola. She did need the inhaler a couple times last night. But today, she was just fine. James came home from his business trip and hung out with us during the day. It was just an overall nice day. Tonight, Alyssa had her Winter Sports Banquet at St. Joe's. James, Amanda, and Abby went to that. Justina had a 4-H meeting to go to. So I went there with her.

And speaking of Amanda . . . there are not enough words to express how proud James and I are of her lately. Amanda has five A's and one B at this time! Many tears have been shed, many hairs pulled, and many prayers said. Truly, this is an answer to our many prayers for our Amanda Panda. She didn't even realize it until James showed it to her online. We are just as proud as can be! Way to go Mo-mo!

Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

Roseola Blues

2009-03-01T20:09:00.001-08:00

Abby felt as miserable as she looked in this picture.

Yesterday, our little Abba Zabba woke up with puffy red eyes and was extremely congested. In fact, I seriously couldn't remember a time when any of our kids were as congested as she was yesterday. Normally, I try not to give our kids any cough medicines or decongestants during the day, maybe at night. Afterall, there is a reason for all that sneezing and coughing; the body is trying to expel it out. But Abby was one miserable kid. So I went to the store to try to get something for her and I struck out.

The last time we had a sick toddler that needed any cold medicines was Justina, who is now 9 years old. Apparently, I missed the memo because now cold medicines are no longer recommended for children under 4. So I bought some saline spray for her nose which I used throughout the day. It helped somewhat. But I wish it came with someone else who could pin her down and spray it up her nose besides me. (I felt like such a monster!)

As the day progressed, the redness surrounding her eyes spread to other areas of her face. She complained of headaches and had a fever. By the time she woke up from her nap, the rash was way worse. And she was beginning to cough. So I took her in to be seen. The diagnosis was roseola.

Now roseola sounds like it should be something happy, a word filled with gaity and good cheer. Perhaps, it could mean "I had a roseola of a time." Or maybe it could be the name of a dance at a cotillon ball, "We danced the roseola after the waltz." Well it means none of those things. Instead, it is a nasty little virus that makes little children feel miserable, and spreads its misery to their parents and siblings. The doctor said to use Tylenol and Motrin to control the fever and headaches, continue with the saline spray, give her lots of fluids, and prescribed an albuterol inhaler for cough.

This morning, she woke up happy as a clam and the rash was nearly gone. And her appetite, which was absent yesterday, has returned. Infact, she made up for lost time. The resiliency of young children is just amazing.

The Infirmary

2009-02-27T23:13:00.000-08:00

It's Friday and I am still sick with this cold. And to top it off, so is Abby. Justina is still a little bit congested. It was a prety boring and non-productive day. I took a little nap when Abby napped. And this is the first Friday of Lent, which means no meat. (That is not a worry because I don't have much of an appetite for anything really.) One of my favorite things to do on Lent Fridays is to go to Stations of the Cross. But I didn't go tonight. I am still feeling too lousy.

Talking Turkeys in 2009

2009-02-26T22:12:00.000-08:00

Alyssa holding one of the chicks on the way home.

Every year, the City of San Juan Capistrano celebrates the returning of the swallows to their community. Today a different bird has returned to our house. Turkeys! (Albeit not the same ones as last year.) Our 4-H Turkey Project met at Farm Supply in Santa Maria to pick up their turkey chicks. Alyssa ordered three and now they are brooding in a 4 x 4-foot enclosure in our garage.

The 4x4 foot brooding pen in our garage. This is where the chicks will live the

next six to eight weeks before moving to a coop outside.

Now this is really a fun project. These things literally grow before your eyes. What Alyssa feeds and says good-bye to in the morning, will have noticeably grown by the time she returns from school in the afternoon. In about 6 to 8 weeks, they will get their feathers and move to an outside coop. And in about 10 weeks, we will begin to see if they are toms or hens. Our club tried to ordered them sexed, meaning a specific gender, but Farm Supply was only ordering straight runs. With a straight run, you just get what you get.

Turkey trifecta!

These are not the brightest of the bird world. They are not a heartier heritage breed like you see in Thanksgiving decor. They will grow into plain white birds, which is what the Fair requires. They are stupid and hellbent on dying. So the kids raise at least 2 or 3, in the hopes that there is one decent bird in the bunch that survives and makes weight for the Fair. Already, we are keeping an eye on one in particular. It is not as active as the others and the other two dominate it. So we will see what happens.

I wanted to include a picture and update on Nasty Nelly, one of the New Zealand rabbits we are caring for. Nelly has calmed down a great deal. She is still skittish but she no longer leaps out at me when I go to take her out of her cage. As I mentioned earlier, I feed her hay with the cage door opened. And the food dish for the pelleted feed is actually on the cage door which she can still reach when its opened. She is now actually eating out of it as I am filling the dish up. I take her out about two to three times a day and just pet her, especially around her ears and face to get her used to my hands. When the time comes for the kids to breed the does to the buck, I will still use caution and have one of the older and more experienced kids in the group put her in Pink Eye's cage.

Justina with Nasty Nelly, one of the New Zealand does we will use for the 4-H Market Rabbit Project

In Other News . . .

It is a joke in our house that when James is travelling on business, the kids usually get sick. Well Abby had a fever throughout Tuesday night. She was very clingy and cuddly and slept in my bed. Needless to say, I was up for most of the night with her. Yesterday morning was Ash Wednesday. Amanda, Alyssa, and Justina were going to Mass through their schools and would receive ashes there. Since Abby was sick though, I figured I would go to the 5:30 pm Mass at our local parish.

Oddly enough though , by 9 or 10 o'clock though, she was happy as a clam and feeling allright. However, by 4 p.m., I was not feeling all that hot. Or actually I was, but feverish hot. And I was getting really congested and achey allover. I ended up not going to Mass. I handed Alyssa my credit card and told her to order meatless pizza. Then I took a three hour nap. Later that night, a good family friend came by to help us set up the brooding pen in the garage. I watched The Biggest Loser (blue team, what were you thinking?!) and went to bed, unable to sleep because I felt miserable. If only I could bounce back like Abby, if only.

After Alyssa's 4-H meeting this afternoon, we ran home and got the chicks moved into their new digs. I loaded up Abby and Justina and we headed down to Santa Barbara to Alyssa's soccer practice. This was the first practice Alyssa has attended with her team since the late summer. She was happy to be back.

Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

P.S. I hope to return to polling this weekend. If you have any poll suggestions, then feel free to e-mail them to catsdailypurls@gmail.com. In the meantime, feel free to register as a follower of the blog.

Lost in the Storm

2009-02-24T22:39:00.001-08:00

For about a month, maybe a little bit longer, my cell phone has been on a downward trajectory towards death. I had a Palm Treo 700wp. When I made or received calls about 75% of the time, I could hear the person on the other line but they couldn't hear me. I kept getting a running out of memory error message even though most of my files were on a storage card. And then I could no longer send or receive text messages. So clearly, I needed a new phone. Well, I had to wait until today when I was finally eligible for an upgrade. I went with the Blackberry Storm. And boy howdy, am I ever lost!

Seriously! I have only had the stupid thing for five hours now and I have a migraine case of buyer's remorse. I used the heck out of my Treo. I used it for all sorts of reminders, appointments and dates, contacts, and internet. With all that I have to keep track of, a smartphone is definitely something that I need. But this phone is going to take some work trying to get it to that user friendly status. And at this point, I do not even know if I can do that. But I have 30 days to try it out. So we will see, I guess.

In Other News . . .

It is that time again. Time to start getting all the animals for Fair. This Sunday, I went to a rabbit show in Santa Maria and picked up a breeding trio of white New Zealand rabbits for the 4-h club's Market Rabbit Project. We have 7 kids who are taking meat pens to Fair this year. That is far more than we have had in the past. A rabbit meat pen is made up of three rabbits, same breed and color. They do not need to be from the same litter or be the same sex. The maximum weight is 5 pounds each, but they must weight within a certain ounce range of each other. This requires the member to monitor their feeding carefully, especially those last few days before judging.

Since we have at least 7 kids doing meat rabbits alone, I broke the Rabbit Project up into two separate projects - Market Rabbits (for production of meat pens for their Fair projects), and Rabbits (for pet keeping and showing). And with 7 kids (maybe 8 - I haven't heard confirmation yet from one kid), that would mean that we need 21 to 24 rabbits to make like pens of three. That's a lot of rabbits! And meat pen breeders are not supplying as much as in the past. One girl in the group has a breeding pair of Californians (another popular meat rabbit breed). The teen leader for the group has a white New Zealand doe. And I have the breeding trio in our garage right now. A trio is one buck (male) and two does (females). All the does will be bred on or around April 1st to ensure that the kits (baby rabbits) will be ready for Fair.

The buck's name is Pink Eye, since white New Zealands have pink eyes. And the does names are Val and Nelly. Justina named Val because she just liked the name. I named Nelly after she attacked me and bit me. She didn't break the skin (maybe a little scratch) but I have a nasty little welt and bruise on the side of my hand. Mean and nasty just like Nelly Olson in Little House on the Prairie. She has begun to calm down a bit. I leave the cage door open when I feed her hay. And she is eating by the opened door now as opposed to dragging the hay to the back of her cage. I think the surroundings are new and is just very defensive of her new abode. But I am not taking any chances. I have a special pair of leather gloves, just for her.

The meat pens will be judged for meat type, condition, and fur. The fur part probably sounds wierd since they are suppose to be meat rabbits. But traditionally, the hide had its own value as well. The judge will look at all the meat pens, weigh them, and place them. The kids auction their meat pens a few days later in the Small Stock Auction at the Fair. The buyer may chose to take them, usually as breeding stock for themselves, or they may just give them back to the exhibitor.

Thursday? Already?!

2009-02-19T21:29:00.000-08:00

I cannot believe that it's Thursday already. We had a pretty big weekend that I wanted to write about. Well tomorrow is Friday and a new weekend is about to start again.

For starters, Justina had her last basketball game of the season this past Saturday. Although her team started out very slow in the beginning of the season, they just meshed beautifully in the last four games, which they won. It wasn't so much the fact that they won their last four games, as it was the dramatic improvement they made. And the last game was amazing. They dominated against one of the toughest teams in the 3rd Grade Division. In the last quarter, their opponents had many free throw opportunities and tied up the game. In the last two minutes, Justina shot the winning basket. (Insert thunping my chest with overwhleming pride here.) After the game, they celebrated the end of a great seaon at Giavanni's Pizza.

Sunday morning, a family friend, Justina, and I went to the Paso Robles Event Center in Paso Robles to see the Cal Poly's Western Bonanza Junior Livestock Show. Western Bonanza is one of the largest junior livestock shows in the west. Kids show swine, lambs, goats, steers, and heifers. Since Justina will be showing a lamb and a goat, I wanted her to watch some of the classes. And for me, it was a great opportunity to learn as well. Unfortunately, it was freezing cold. And by that afternoon, we were ready to go home. But while, Justina and I were checking out the show, Alyssa was having a little livestock adventure of her own.

That Sunday afternoon, Alyssa went with some of the kids in her 4-H Swine Project to Pork Palace in Gaviota. (Seriously. That is the name of the place.) The owner and breeder, Randy Jones, showed the kids the baby pigs and taught them how to castrate, notched the ears, give injections, and cut the tails. It wasn't much fun for the baby pigs. But the kids had a good time and learned a lot, especially Alyssa. I have been informed by some that she was a lean, mean, castrating machine. And I have the excited text message from her relaying her feats.

Since Justina had no school on Monday, I had arranged to go to Porterville to White Rail Ranch to look at some goats. Justina and I left around 7 a.m. It was pouring rain out. Since the weather was so cruddy starting out, I already didn't have a good feeling about the trip. I got all the way to Kettleman City where I had to stop and use the little bloggers' room. Now Justina had pretty much slept from our house to Kettleman, and that isn't quite like her. So I woke her up. She looked at me with red, glassy eyes. (Hmm . . . not too promising here.) I said that I didn't think she was feeling good. She just mumbled that she was very tired. Okay. . . So I called the breeder and told her that Justina wasn't feeling too great and we would have to meet another time. And back home we went.

Pretty much the rest of the day, Justina curled up with a blanket and pillow. And around 6 p.m., she fell asleep on the family room floor. By that evening, I wasn't feeling good either. And I thought for certain that Justina would miss school the next day. But she didn't. She is on a mission for Perfect Attendance for the School Year. She woke up at 6:30 a.m. and got ready. And we had our 4-H meeting that evening also. As quickly as she caught this bug, it left her. I wasn't so lucky though. It stayed with me for another day. And James even got stuck with it also.

Well that is pretty much the update. Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

Feeling Blah

2009-02-16T20:48:00.000-08:00

Justina and I are feeling kind of blah tonight. I'll catch you up later.

Image from www.smileys.on-my-web.com.

12 of 12 for February 2009

2009-02-12T21:14:00.001-08:00

My alarm goes off at 5:00 a.m. Now this doesn't mean that I spring out of bed at 5:00. There might be a few hits of the snooze alarm. But I get up to take my thyroid medication about this time. Since I am suppose to take it on an empty stomach, taking it early in the morning means that when I do finally get up and around an hour or so later, I can eat breakfast with no worries.

Justina overslept this morning, which is very uncharacteristic of her. She really dislikes being late for school, and for her that means anytime within fifteen minutes before school starts. Actually, she prefers being there a half hour before school starts. She got up and got dressed and got there with fifteen minutes to spare.

Speaking of thyroid medication, I had to get my prescription of synthroid refilled. So after Abby and I dropped Justina off, we went to Walgreens.

Abby's blankie was pretty gross, in my opinion, and it really needed to be washed. It's actually white in color, not a dark ecru. So she put it in the washer to "give it a bath", poured in the detergent, and pushed the buttons. Of course, what happened while magic blankie was in the wash. She stubbed her toe, bumped her head, slipped on the kitchen floor, and cried for the blankie the whole time. Naturally, I had ran it on the longest cycle.

See this countertop. It is the most unusable space in my kitchen. It is not near the sink or refrigerator. So it is totally useless in food preparation. What it's function has been is to serve as the dumping ground for everyone's crap, junk mail, Gameboy, school papers, etc. I started to clean it last night and ran out of momentum. So I finished it off today.

What do I hate about tax time every year? Getting all thes necessary documents in to our accountant, that's what! And for some reason he expects them on time. I got all the papers except for the pick-up registration. It needs to be smogged this Saturday before we can get that from the Department of Motor Vehicles.

Here's Abby waking up from her nap with her clean blankie. Notice the magical transformation from ecru to white.

Alyssa wanted to go see the St. Joe's boys varsity soccer team play Santa Ynez this evening. She invited Justina to tag along with her. She also wanted to drive. Here she is with Suburban keys and learner's permit in hand. And Justina is taking no chances as she clutches a bottle of holy water. Don't be surprised if you see a lot of Missing Cat signs in our neighborhood tomorrow. (Just kidding! She did fine.)

I left Alyssa and Justina at St. Joe's and went to Walgreens to get my prescription. I headed back for the second half of the game. SJHS' boys soccer team is not as strong as the girls'. And that is due in large part to the fact that club programs in this area are greater for girls than boys. Also, I don't think building the boys program has been focused on as much as on building the school's girls program. Santa Ynez beat the St. Joe's Knights 2-0.

Alyssa's friend, Tamara, took a picture of the three of us. The school principal's daughter is in Justina's class at school. He happened to be there with his children. So Justina got to hang out with them as Alyssa hung out with her friends.

When we got home, I slaved over dinner. James and I had planned on going out to the Santa Maria Gun Club to go shooting. Since this would be a pseudo date night, that meant pizza for the kids.In thirty minutes or less, dinner would be served.

That's me, or the back of my head rather. We were there for an hour, give or take. And we had a great time together.

BONUS PICTURE

This actually was taken last week. When it is bedtime for these two, Abby fails to realize that Justina actually wants to go to sleep. And Abby also doesn't realize that Justina cannot hear anything when she doesn't have her implant on. No matter how much she calls out her name, Justina just doesn't seem to answer her. So Abby's solution is to throw stuff at Justina. In an effort to escape from these projectile objects, Justina went into our room and went to sleep in my glider chair. Not to be left behind, Abby eventually went in to join her.

Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

SPAM, the Scourge of the Internet

2009-02-11T22:26:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago, James installed a wireless modem from Verizon. Unfortunately, it just never seemed to work right. The connections were extremely slow and the browser would freeze constantly. Eventually, after a couple days, we couldn't connect at all. Of course, Alyssa had a homework assignment to do that required research on the internet and James was working out of town. So I called tech support. Three hours later of what seemed like forever, the person on the other line basically said that it must be our computer. Really? It worked fine before we hooked up the modem! Besides, all the other programs were working allright. Eventually, he agreed to send out a new modem, which meant we were without internet access for about a week. Well, lo and behold, James installed the new modem when it arrived, and viola!

Honestly, I don't know what is worse - being without the internet or having become so dependent upon the internet. It has become as essential as having a toilet or refrigerator in the house, of which I am a little ashamed to say. Fortunately, Alyssa's assignment was not due the next day after it completely stopped, which bought her a little time. But there was 4-H enrollment work that I had to finish online by a certain date. (And praise the Lord and pass the peas, that is all done.) My history and cookies got wiped out. So that was inconvenient. But the worse was checking my e-mail accounts.

One e-mail account had 2,000 messages in it, most of it SPAM. And then there is the e-mail connected to this blog. I am lucky to get a comment or two a month. But when I opened up my inbox, there were fifteen? The next day, five more. And the next days, there was more. That can't be right. Of course not, because the comments left were SPAM! And I am not talking about a salty canned meat product with an exorbitantly long shelf life. I finally just deleted everything. So if anyone who is not pushing something has sent me an e-mail, chances are it was destroyed in a scorched earth assault on the scourge of the internet, SPAM.

Poll Results

I would like to post the results from the New Year's Resolution Poll. Unfortunately, the Favorite Things About Winter Poll just didn't pan out. That was when the modem hibernated on us. There were 20 votes in the New Year's Resolutions Poll.

Well until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

Modem Woes on the Verizon

2009-01-24T22:19:00.000-08:00

James installed a new wireless modem from Verizon earlier this week. However, we have had nthing but problems with it. And Verizon has not been much help. Well tonight he finally got the internet up and running on each of our laptops. Yay! So I hope to get back into blogging again tomorrow. Until then.

The Penance of Potty Training

2009-01-16T21:49:00.000-08:00

I Said I Would Do What?!

2009-01-14T21:11:00.000-08:00

Have you ever woken up in the morning like business as usual, only to suddenly remember something that you had said or done the night before? Well that is exactly what happened to me yesterday morning when I woke up. (Usually in your twenties, it is the realization of something you don't remember doing or saying the night before.)

Monday night, I was talking to my sister Joan who lives in Carlsbad. She was talking about a half marathon on April 26th in La Jolla that she was going to start training for. She also added that our other two sisters, Jill and Cynthia, were also going to do the race. Afterwards, they would go to La Costa Spa. Okay, now that sounds like a plan! So I inquired if the race could be walked, and if so, I might be interested. Joan said, "Really?" I said, "Sure!" We talked about training schedules, and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.

So fast forward to Tuesday morning. I woke up, and hobbled to the bathroom. I got to the bathroom door and it hit me. I said I would do what?! . . . Oh no! What did I do? (Now mind you, this hasn't happened to me since my twenties.)

For those who know me, it is no secret that I am not in the greatest of shape. So it would atually be a good thing but defiitely would be work on my part. I realized that I would definitely need some support. Well, I mentioned to James at dinner last night. "Honey, I opened my big, fat mouth." You would think that my poor husband would be used to this statement by now. I went on to tell him about my conversation with Joan. To my pleasant surprise, he said that he also might be interested. I began to think that this would be pretty fun.

This morning, Joan and I exchanged some e-mails. She sent me the link to her training schedule. But, they do not have a half marathon walk. They do have a 5K walk though. Five kilometers is only 3.11 miles. This prompted me to ask Alyssa and Amanda if they would like to do the 5K. And they said yes! James doesn't think his work schedule would allow him to train for a half marathon. So he decided on the 5K as well.

So James, Amanda, Alyssa,and I will do the La Jolla Shores 5K on Sunday, April 26th. I filled out the entry forms and will mail the payment tomorrow. Now how cool is that!

In Other News . . .

Alyssa had a water polo game against Lompoc today. They won 15-0. Alyssa had 3 assists. I guess assists are not recorded in the stats for water polo. Justina had choir practice after school. They are practicing to go sing for the Marian retirement home during Catholic Schools Week. And Amanda went trap shooting tonight with her friend out at the Santa Maria Gun Club.

The New Year's Resolution poll ends at 11:59 p.m. P.S.T. on Friday, January 16th. Now about the poll. It was set up where voters could write in what their "other" choice was. However, some jack ass started hijacking the poll and writing in sophomoric comments. So I removed that ability to write the other choice there. But you can still use the Comment feature for the poll. After you vote, look at the bottom of the poll box and click on "Comments". By the way, all comments are moderated.

That's all for now. Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

Oh Yeah! It's a Date!

2009-01-13T22:25:00.000-08:00

Tonight, James and I went out for dinner and a movie. Yes, a date! We ordered pizza, and Amanda and Alyssa watched Justina and Abby. Why on Tuesday though? Why not on the weekend? Well, we are usually too busy on the weekend. And why not Tuesday!

We first stopped by Edwards Cinema and picked up our tickets for the 7:50 show. Then we walked to Applebee's for dinner. The dinner was good. We didn't have to rush through it or cut up any one's meat or nag anyone about table manners. Although James did get on me about eating with my toes, but that's a whole new blog post entirely.

After dinner, we walked back over to the theater and sat through a marathon of trailers and commercials, including three consecutive video reminders to turn off our cell phones. Jeez! We saw the Clint Eastwood flick Gran Torino. Now James and I really like Clint Eastwood movies, with the exception of Million Dollar Baby. (I cannot in good conscience support it's pro-euthanasia message.) Truthfully, I am hard pressed though to remember the last movie that I've seen in a theater that was rated anything above PG. Actually, I take that back. It was a year ago in December - The Pursuit of Happyness.

As rough and tough as his character is in this film, you become endeared to him immediately. The movie is rated R for language and violence. Unlike many of Eastwood's movies, the violence is not as prevalent throughout the movie. The language though is, but personally, I wasn't offended by it because it truly was in context with the whole movie. In other words, there were no gratuitous four letter bombs; all the salty language totally fit the main character in the film. Despite it's R rating, James and I both said that we would have no qualms about our 17- and 15-year-old daughters seeing the film.

I really can't recommend the movie enough. We truly enjoyed it. And we truly enjoyed each other's company. And I think I heard somewhere that sort of thing was important in a marriage . . . was it Oprah? Dr. Phil? Wait, it'll come to me . . .

Ringing in 2009 with the 12 of 12

2009-01-12T20:43:00.000-08:00

A few years back, when they still did their Rosary Army podcast, Greg and Jennifer Willits introduced their audience to the "12 of 12". Greg had a roommate in college who started this idea of taking 12 pictures of your day on the 12th day of the month. The idea caught on among a segment of their following. Now I have never done a full twelve pictures, maybe five at the most. I usually get sidetracked, forget my camera, don't remember that it is the twelfth of the month, or I have to keep Abby from maiming one of her siblings.

This morning, Rob Williams of the Tupelo Geek Blog reminded me through Facebook that it was the twelfth of the month. I thought. "Hey! That's material for my blog." Gee, thanks Rob! Check out Rob's January's 12 of 12 .

So without further adieu, here is my 12 of 12:

Abby woke up . . .

And then she got dressed.

Today is Monday and that means the sheets get washed. Abby helped me strip my bed, and then jumped on it to even out any lumps in the mattress. Yes, it is wholly inappropriate for her to be jumping on the bed. But I can't ever get enough of Abby's giggles.

I made Justina's lunch - PB&J on whole-grain, soup, peas, pistachios, and a water bottle. Sometimes, I get it made in the morning before school. But a lot of times, I just make it and then take it up there.

Abby walked her sissy's lunch up to the school office.

Then we took the truck in to get smogged at Orcutt 76 in Old Town Orcutt. It didn't pass. Apparently, after replacing the O2 sensor, we were suppose to drive it for about 40 miles before the smog test. So I guess we will drive it around and create some more emissions before the next smog test. While the truck was being smogged, Abby and I walked across the street to Kay's Ocutt Country Kitchen and had lunch.

While Abby took a nap, I prepared some fleece for my Primary 4-H Project meeting. They made no-sew fleece blankets with fringe that is knotted. I've gotten a lot of mileage out of that activity. I think it's time to set that idea aside for awhile.

I picked up Justina from school. When she saw the camera, she instantly posed. But she was a little confused because I never took her picture when picking her up from school before.

Justina has this one guinea pig who loves to play with his water bottle until the shavings in the pan is mush. Unfortunately, it means additional cage cleaning. (That is rust on the pan. Honestly.)

I held my Primary 4-H Project meeting at Giavanni's Pasta & Pizza, a few blocks from our house in Orcutt. It worked out better because we can use their meeting room and there are enough tables to spread out the fleece for the blankets. So the family ate dinner there tonight. There's Alyssa in the green t-shirt, Amanda next to her, James, and then Abby. Justina was helping one of the 4-H members at another table with their blanket.

When I got home, James and I made the beds. Nothing says I love you more than clean sheets! Okay, maybe that's stretching just a bit. But I consider it a small act of love nonetheless.

Each night before they go to bed, Abby and Justina pile into ours and we say bedtime prayers.

Well there it is. My 12 of 12. This took a little planning on my part. I had to coordinate it with my to-do list and normal routine. It was a lot of fun. And with the twelfth day being sort of in the middle of the month, it is a great little way to break up the monotony of everyday life. Or better yet, maybe the monotony is broken up by finding simple little joys in everyday things.

Simple Little Saturday

2009-01-10T21:35:00.000-08:00

Today was very simple, with very little going on. Amanda left with friends. And Alyssa was still at her Confirmation retreat. Justina did have a basketball game this morning. So James, Abby, and I went. It is interesting to watch a group of third grade girls play basketball. Their quarters are five minutes long. And the baskets a lowered (to what height I don't know for certain) and the free throw line is moved closer. Now, I have to say, objectively of course, that Justina is actually a good, little, scrappy player. And she has a couple othe girls that are also pretty good. As a team though they have yet to win a game. The final score today was 13-4. But they do improve every week, and that's what makes children's sports fun.

About the New Poll Widget . . .

You may have noticed a different poll widget than I have used in the past. I am pretty excited about this. When you click on Other as an option, you can actually write in what your other response is. You can also comment on the poll itself. There is a link to post your comment at the bottom of the poll box, after you have voted. (All comments are moderated before posted.) After the poll closes, I can post the results in the form of a geeky pie chart. And I know a couple accountants in the family who maight get extra excited over that. Eh!

That's all for now. Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

Back from Hiatus

2009-01-09T23:51:00.000-08:00

Well I am back from hiatus, vacation, sabbatical, whatever you want to call it. I mentioned in a post a few days ago that Cat's Daily Purls may be moving to a new site. Why, you might ask if you cared? Because I need a change. I need to spice things up a bit. The possibility is still there. However, escrow may be a little bit longer than I thought. First, I need to see what changes I can make here. So I am building my own blog template.

Building my own template has proven to be far more challenging than I thought. I certainly didn't think it would be an easy button task. But it is much more involved than I imagined, thanks to HTML - Hyper Text Markup Language (or as I affectionately call it, Hell To My Life). On several occasions I have mentioned that I am computer illiterate. Well imagine being knocked out with a tranquilizing dart and relocated from California to a remote area of Greenland, where no one speaks a spit of English. HTML is the Greenlandic I must learn in order to survive. How does one say, "What do you mean this isn't whale blubber I'm eating? "

NEW POLL!!!

In the meantime, there is a new poll, What is your New Year resolution in 2009? I am now using Poll Daddy to create my polls. The neat thing about this change is that voters can write in their own comments when voting other. And unlike with the Blogger polls, I can save them instead of deleting them when they close. I would love to hear what you think about the new poll setup. This poll will close Friday, January 16, 2009 at 11:59 p.m. P.S.T.

In Other News . . .

Justina returned to school from Christmas break this Monday. Amanda and Alyssa returned on Tuesday. Today, James had the day off. So this morning, we dropped the truck off at the Dodge dealership to have the O2 sensor replaced in order to get it smogged. We registered Abby for preschool for next fall and then went to Kay's for breakfast. After that, James and Abby went home. I went out to do errands. A whole list of errands! A list that I wouldn't have accomplished so efficiently with a three-year-old in tow. I'm talking the UPS Store, the dry cleaners (to pick up and have my pants marked for alterations), Babies R Us for training pants, the bank, Walgreens, gas, and pick up kids from school. WOW! And yes, I am easily excited.

Alyssa went on an overnight Confirmation retreat. She will be back tomorrow evening. And James and Justina had a 4-H Shooting Sports project meeting tonight at the Santa Maria Gun Club. It was trap tonight, but Justina didn't get to shoot because she forgot to pack the shells. Oh well, hopefully it's a lesson learned.

Well that's all for now. Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

In Blogger Escrow

2009-01-07T13:46:00.000-08:00

This blog may be moving to a new home. Stay tuned.

Must Take a Hiatus

2008-12-08T22:16:00.000-08:00

I have over ninety 4-H enrollment forms to enter into the state's online system. Each form takes a turtle's pace to be entered as the online system is slow. So I have taken a hiatus to finish this task. i need to finish it by December 19th. Actually, I have until the end of December. However, I really don't want to deal with this over Christmas Vacation. So I imposed an earlier deadline for myself.

In the meantime, Happy Advent! Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

Aiming for Freedom

2008-11-18T21:24:00.000-08:00

In honor of Veterans Day this November 11th, readers were asked which of the following rights do you hold most dear? There were six possible choices pulled from the Bill of Rights. You know those first 10 amendments from the Constitution of the United States? Yeah, those. Of the 20 votes cast No cruel or unusual punishment, Right to a fair and speedy trial, Right to Due Process, and No unlawful search and seizure received no votes. It was the First and the Second Amendments which received all the votes. And as well they should have.

The First Amendment which guarantees citizens the right to free speech, assembly, religion, and free press won with 14 votes (70%) and the Second Amendment which guarantees citizens the right to bare arms received 6 votes (30%). The results are not surprising. In fact, it illustrates the genius behind the framing of the Constitution. Freedom of speech is the cornerstone of religious freedom, the right to assemble, and freedom of the press. Aim with words first. They're free. But when talk is cheap, that's where Smith & Wesson comes in. The bullet will cost a little extra.

New poll is up: Which decade sported the worst hairstyles of the 20th century?

Trick-or-Treat . . . NOW!

2008-11-13T22:22:00.000-08:00

So what is your biggest trick-or-treating pet peeve? Well out of 14 votes cast, the one that was voted the most irritating was Unappreaciative or Demanding with 5 votes. The second biggest pet peeve was No Costumes with 3 votes, follwed by Too Old for Trick-or-Treating with 2. With one vote each were Not Saying Trick-or-Treat, Inappropriate Costumes, Pet Peeve Not Listed, and Don't Have Trick-or-Treaters.

In my humble opinion, I believe that trick-or-treating as my older kids know it will be a thing of the past. I think it will fade away during Abby's childhood. Many churches are now hosting "trunk-or-treat" events where members line up the parking lot and kids can trick-or-treat from the cars and have a party on site. More schools in our area are having Halloween Carnivals. The local fire station has a haunted house. And fewer and fewer houses pass out candy it seems.

Alyssa stayed home on Halloween and passed out candy while James and I took Justina and Abby out. She said that she had very fewer people come by and that the majority of the ones who did were rude and obnoxious. There aren't many kids left in our neighborhood. For me, my pet peeve is that the kids that do come to our neighborhood are from the far north end of town. Perhaps next year, we will become one of the many houses in our neighborhood that will stop passing out candy. So I guess now our cars will get egged and our pumpkins smashed.

It seems that people thrive on being rude these days. Etiquette has been deemed as antiquated. Just think of all the litigation alone that could be avoided if we all practiced a little thing called common courtesy. The truth of the matter is good manners will never go out of style.

New Poll is Up . . .

I posted a new poll in honor of Veterans Day. It ends Sunday, November 16th at 11:59 p.m. What constitutional right so you hold the most dear? Vote today!

Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

For the Love of Country

2008-11-12T21:59:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, November 11th was Veterans Day. And even though, I am a day late in posting this, I believe that for every American citizen, everyday should be Veterans Day.
Every Monday, American children can still start a new week at a school of their parents' choosing. Every work day, Americans can still go to work and achieve a host of dreams. Every weekend, Americans can still attend any church they wish or not wish and practice any religion or not. Every election cycle, Americans can still go to the polls and vote for the candidate or position of their chosing without fear or risk of injury or death. On any given day, at any given hour, Americans can still turn on a television or radio, surf the internet, or open any printed publication and enjoy the content.

On any given day, a homemaker from the Central Coast of California, can open up Blogger and write her thoughts for all the world to read. On any given day, Americans are still afforded these opportunities by a veteran. For every American, everyday is Veterans Day.

To all the veterans, especially to the ones in my life, my husband James, my father, my father-in-law Ray Moses, my brother-in-law Dennis Moses, my sister-in-law Angie Moses, our many friends who have served and continue to serve, no language is adequate enough to express my gratitude.

Justina, Justina, How Does Your Garden Grow

2008-11-09T21:55:00.000-08:00

Justina shows off her section of the 4-H garden (10/17/08)

This year Justina decided to do the Horticulture Project in 4-H. The project leader actually is a salesman for Kellogg Gardening Products and an experienced gardener himself, which is very fortunate for Justina because she most certainly will not learn how to grow plants from her mother. You see my father was a farmer and my mother was an ornamental horticulture major. However, the dominant green thumb gene was not passed on to me. Instead, I inherited the recessive black thumb of plant death gene.

She began her project with her first meeting on October 5th at the Growing Grounds Farms in Orcutt. The Growing Grounds is operated by the Transitional Mental Health Association. The farm produces a wide variety of plants that are available for sale to the public. They had a 6-x-9-foot section of land that they allowed the 4-H club to use. There are six kids in the project, and each one has a 3-x-3-foot section, divided by a row of kale which they planted. There is also a trellis that runs lengthwise through the middle of the plot. In each section, they planted a few sweet peas, strawberries, lettuces, parsley, Icelandic poppies, alyssums, carrots, Swiss chard, and nasturtiums. (Justina did not plant the chard or alyssums.) About once or twice a week, Justina goes and waters. It has been really neat to see the progress.

One of the Icelandic poppy plants from the 4-H garden (10/17/08)

Justina's kale after two weeks (10/17/08)

Also at the first meeting began with the kids planting cyclamen in pots. Justina's pot is shaped like a cute pig. And even though this shade plant get about 90 minutes of full sun around sunset, it is still going strong. The plant gets a little wilty when it needs some water. Normally, it only needs water once a week. But on windy days, which is more the norm here this time of year, it may need it two or three times. But the neat thing about the cyclamen is watching them perk up about ten minutes after watering. It's like magic!

Justina's cyclamen that she had planted an hour earlier (10/5/08)

Today, James took her to her second meeting. She harvested about six heads of lettuce. So now we have some Romaine and red and green leaf varieties in our fridge. I had to return a Tupperware container to someone and Justina took two heads along to give to them. She planted some red and white onions and an aloe vera plant. And in a pot she planted some narcissus, and in a quart-size Mason jar filled with water, she set an amaryllis apple blossom bulb over the mouth of it.

Lettuce be thankful for Justina's bounty of lettuce (11/9/08)

A red leaf variety of lettuce that Justina grew (11/9/08)

Amaryllis apple blossom bulb over the top of the jar.

She planted some other bulbs in the terra cotta pot. (11/9/08)

Justina is having a blast. And I love her little sense of responsibility. The project leader's daughter and she are good friends. And he does such a great job at keeping the kids engaged and on task. And her mom and dad are learning a thing or too. Maybe my black thumb gene might mutate into a grayish-green. Stranger things have been known to happen.

Justina watering her 4-H garden. (10/17/08)

In Other News . . .

James and I went out to breakfast with some friends this morning. And it rained. Not a lot, but still. Abby has officially outgrown the majority of her 2T clothes. And I had been on the hunt for a winter jacket for her for a while now. It would seem that the jacket-vest is the in thing. Sleeves are apparently so last year. The Pismo Beach Outlet stores were having a huge sale weekend. By huge, I am talking 50 to 70% off. So I headed up there to the Carters and Osh Kosh stores. And I managed to finally find a jacket - with sleeves - at Osh Kosh for 50% off. And it had removeable sleeves. So little Abba Zabba can still stay fashionable by gosh, if the weather permits.

Until the next time. take care and God bless. :)

Here Comes Peter Cottontail

2008-11-08T18:36:00.000-08:00

James was going through some boxes in the garage today and found a little something from my childhood. It is an Easter bunny that I received many years ago. I was at least 5 or 6 years old. You used to be able to wind it up and it would play Here comes Peter Cottontail, hoppin' down the bunny trail while its tail would go around in a circle. But the spring broke years ago and it no longer plays. It's still as cute as ever though.

In Other News . . .

Nothing new happened today. Justina and I cleaned guinea pig cages. James cleaned out the garage and ran some things to the thrift store. (Excellent job honey!) I bought a couple bags of apples the other day and plan to dehydrate them. As I said, nothing new happened today.

Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

Something to Think About

2008-11-06T21:38:00.000-08:00

I really do not have much to blog about tonight. Yes, I suppose I could join countless others and blog about how I feel about the recent election. But I am not as crafty a wordsmith to deliver any brilliant or witty commentary. The morning after the election, I wrote the following on my Facebook wall, "Cathleen woke up to find that America had shaved her head and drunk the Kool-Aid." That's the height of my eloquence regarding the whole affair.

For those who feel defeated about the election, and even for those who feel elated about the election, I would like to share the words of St. Pius X, whose papal reign began at the beginning of the twentieth century.

In our time more than ever before,

the greatest asset of the evil-disposed

is the cowardice and weakness of good men,

and all the vigour of Satan's reign

is due to the easy-going weakness of Catholics.

In the beginning of the twenty-first century, these words are as timely today as they were then. The Constitution guarantees us freedoms for which many had died. Learn it, understand it, and do not take it for granted ever. Whether your candidate won or lost, stay involved in the political process. And inform yourselves with a whole of information. To do anything less is to just sit back and watch it all slip away. And I can't express my thoughts any better than that.

I Like Candy!

2008-11-03T23:00:00.000-08:00

Trick or treat, smell my feet, give me . . . . MilkyWay to eat! Yes, Milky Way won the Halloween Candy Poll from last week with 4 out of 19 votes (21%). In a six-way tie for second place were Candy Corn, Snickers, Kit Kat, Tootsie Rolls, SweeTarts, and My Fave Isn't Listed, each with 2 votes a piece. Smarties, Lollipops, and Nerds came in third with one vote each. Thanks to all who voted. For those whose favorites were not listed, leave a comment on this post and let others know which on is your favorite. As for me, candy corn rocks!

In Other News . . .

I would like to wish my sister Jill and her husband, Brian, a very happy second wedding anniversary. And thank you to Keone from Orcutt and Chris from Bakersfield for sticking pins in Le Frappr Map. As for Anonymous from Grover Beach, your pin has been deleted. Sorry, no anonymous pins. Show thyself!

The new poll is up. Tell a friend and send them over to read, vote, and Frap.

Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

What America Needs Is Penny for President!

2008-11-02T22:50:00.000-08:00

America faces more challenges than she ever has in her history. People are concerned about national security, the economy, health care, and so much more. America needs hope. America needs leadership. America needs Penny for President.

So where does Penny stand on the issues?

Security . . .

"I believe that patrolling the perimeter is vital to our security. With my border collie-American heritage, I can make this a reality."

Crime . . .

"Redundant question! See security."

Health Care . . .

"No one should ever be subjected to such degradation! Not even cats!"

Bipartinsanship . . .

"I believe flexibility is in order for both political parties. I am extremely flexible. I can bite my own tail!"

The Economy . . .

"I believe in trickle-down economics. A lesser tax burden on the humans would lead to more disposible income to spend on pet treats and toys thus stimulating economic growth."

The Plight of Joe the Plumber . . .

"I readily admit that I do not know anything about the plight of this Joe the Plumber. But allow me to tell you about my human, Joan the Accountant . . . "

Security, Flexibility, and Tummy Rubs for All

This November 4th, Walk the Vote, and Vote for Penny for President!

PENNY POWER!

I am Penny and I approve this message.

Paid for by Penny for President 2008, in partnership with Dogpark Moms for Penny, Pound Puppies International, and Penny's Human Auntie Cathleen.

Happy All Saints Day (A Simpleton's Explanation of the Saints)

2008-11-01T15:38:00.000-07:00

November 1st marks the Feast Day of All Saints in the Catholic Church's calendar. All Saints Day is a Holy Day of Obligation for all Catholics. In some dioceses, when the feast day falls on a Saturday or Monday, they move the obligation to the nearest Sunday. (Check your local parishes.) The point of the feast day is to honor all the saints, known and unknown, whose lives have served as examples of constantly striving to imitate Christ in mind, body, and soul.

Many people often question the hype surrounding the saints, sort of the Catholic Church's own papparazzi storm. Some are confused by what makes these individuals worthy of such honor or distinction. Many accuse Catholics of worshipping the saints, taking away from that glory which belongs solely to God. The reality is that Catholics do not worship saints. We do honor them. They have led their lives in exemplary service to God. And therefore, their lives serve as a source of inspiration for an ideal to aspire to. Their lives are also a source to learn from their insights and experiences. In fact, in the Book of Romans 1 (1:5-6 more specifically, yet the whole chapter applies), all Christians are called to be saints: Through him we have received the grace of apostleship, to bring about the obedience of faith, for the sake of his name, among all the Gentiles, among whom are you also, who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.

Okay, so what exactly did they do that made their lives so exemplary? The answer to that question is not simple. One should read some of the life stories to learn more what they exactly did. The examples include living their lives in constant prayer and service all the way to dying for Christ. But it is very important to understand that the Church does not just canonize anybody. The cause for canonization is a long and exhaustive investigative process, with some cases open for several decades.

As for the worshipping misconception, this is often linked to the use of artwork, medals, etc. that display the saint's image, and the use of prayers that invoke a saint's name. Throughout the world, people use artwork, jewelry, statues, all sorts of objects really, to remind them of some great person in history, sports figures, favorite musicians, etc. If I were to have an autographed jersey of Joe Montana hanging in a frame on my wall, it would be an example of the 49ers being my favorite football team, Joe Montana being my favorite player, or maybe both. But I am not submitting myself to that image and living my life based on whether they have a good year.

The use of Saint Prayers is for intercession by the saintly soul to God on our behalf. We are not praying to adore and worship that saint. It would be no different than me asking for Bill Walsh to say a prayer that the 49ers have a great season or asking my next door neighbor to say a few prayers for my family to help during a difficult time. Saintly intercession leads us to God, not away from it. It is another beacon of light we carry as we struggle to make our way to Heaven. The saints have run the good race. So we are somewhat certain that they are in heaven. They are praying for us to get there as well. And for a far-from-perfect average joe like me, it's good to know "the network" is there to help me along my way.

Abby Turns Three

2008-10-29T20:27:00.000-07:00

This morning at about a quarter to six, a little gremlich, clutching her magic blankie, came into my bedroom and climbed up into my bed and stuffed herself into the big white fluffy blankie on my bed (my duvet). I looked over at her and said, "Good morning Abby. Do you know what today is?"

She looked up at me with her still sleepy but smiling eyes and said, "mmMMmmMMmmMM".

So after I took her thumb out of her mouth, I asked her again. She giggled and said, "It's my birthday."

"Yes it is. And how old are you today?" I asked.

"I'm twee!" she squealed.

Yes, that's right. Pistol Britches is three years old today. We put up the Happy Birthday flag on the flagpole out front. And all morning long, I sang improvised songs about her being the birthday girl today. We decided to do something simple here at home. Amanda, Alyssa, and Justina all helped put together a modest little birthday party.

This afternoon, after dropping off Alyssa at phsical therapy, I picked up a small bouquet of balloons from the Hallmark store here in Orcutt. Amanda kept her occupied as I snuck the balloons into the house and in the front closet. After I picked Alyssa up, and then Justina from soccer practice, we ran to Albertsons for a number 3 birthday candle. We gave Amanda a call as we were leaving the store to give her heads up that we were leaving. Amanda then put Abby in the bathtub. (Abby loves water and could literally be distracted by bathtime for hours.)

When we arrived home, we began our mission. We tossed the pizzas in the oven, got the plates ready, set out the balloons, party hats, and presents on the front porch. And then we wheeled her high chair out there. The weather was very pleasant and we thought it would be more special to eat out on the front porch on such an occasion.

When the pizzas were done, that was Amanda and Justina's cue to get her out of the bathtub and ready. Alyssa helped unwrap the party plates and napkins. Then Abby came down the stairs with Amanda and Justina. They led her into the kitchen and we told her that we were having a little party for her. She started jumping up and down. What better time than any for us to then introduce her to the age-old tradition of birthday spankings!

I have to admit, I didn't think she would go for the party hats. But she surprised me and demanded that I put mine on. Before we said grace, we dialed up James, put him on speaker, and set him in the middle of the table. He hung out the whole time.

After we ate, Abby opened up her presents. She loved her cards from James' brother and his family and my mom. They were singing cards and she thought that was hysterical. She also got some clothes and a tea set. She played with part of the tea set while Alyssa and I got the cake ready. Amanda carried it out and we sang Happy Birthday.

The sissies were a tremendous help with getting everything ready. I still don't think she realizes that it was her birthday because she is still wishing everyone a happy birthday. When it was all said and done, all she wanted to play with were her balloons.

It wasn't a blowout party. It was a sweet and simple celebration. Simple is good. In fact, simple is beautiful.

Norman?!

2008-10-28T19:37:00.000-07:00

The latest poll was a spookable shortie, What is your favorite Halloween movie? I wanted to do a short poll in honor of Halloween and to kind of get the poll momentum going after a blog drought. The winner was Psycho with 3 votes. In second place, with 2 votes each, were The Rocky Horror Picture Show and The Thing. There was a three-way tie for third among It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, The Shining, and My movie pick isn't listed. I didn't vote in this poll. However, if I had, I would have picked It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. It is just a sweet and happy movie, and it makes me want to do the Snoopy Dance!

Scarecrow and Miss Green Thing

2008-10-27T10:27:00.000-07:00

Alyssa and Justina are not too sure of their new friend.

Every year, for our 4-H club's October meeting, we have a small Halloween party. It consists of a pumpkin decorating contest and a costume contest. The pumpkins are donated after the meeting. So they cannot be cut or punctured in any way. After the meeting, the kids have a costume contest. Here are a few of my favorite pumpkins.

During meetings, different projects stand up before the club and give project reports. We have a new project this year called Wildlife. The project leader is licensed through the county to do wildlife rescue. As part of their report, he brought a great horned owl that had been hit by a car. The week before the meeting, the Santa Maria Times covered the kids releasing another great horned owl that had been rehabilitated. (Be sure to visit the S.M. Times link and read all about it.)

It was a fun evening. In my opinion, social gatherings like these beat walking door-to-door in the cold and getting a bunch of candy. I think the kids had a great time. Afterall, that was what it was all about.

In Other News . . .

This day has been exhausting. Alyssa did some volunteer work at the Good Samaritan Shelter, followed by a physical therapy appointment. Justina had a field trip to a farm where she got some pumpkins and of all things, quinces (those puppies are so going in some jelly). Her school dismissed early and she had a 4-H project meeting and soccer practice. And I had a County 4-H Council meeting tonight in Buellton. It was just a God awfully hectic day and poor little Abby went along for the ride. Days like this are so hard when James is not home. (Sigh!)

So I am dead tired. And I could write on and on about how I feel right now. However, a picture is worth a thousand words. So . . .

How Cathleen feels right about now.

Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

Garbage Disposal In, Garbage Disposal Out

2008-10-26T16:36:00.000-07:00

For the past couple weeks, James has been out of town for work. Sometimes his trips are out of state or they involve long hours and weird shifts. But sometimes, he works close enough and has the weekends off, and he can come home for a quick visit. And yesterday, he called and said that he was coming down for a quick visit.

A few years ago, I had purchased a Welcome Home banner for another occasion when he returned from a business trip. I resurrected it from the front closet and used some zip ties to baluster railing of the front porch. We tidied up a it. Then, shortly before he arrived, I came downstairs to find the kitchen floor flooded. Isn't that a great thing to come home to? Welcome home, honey! Now fix this please.

After we ate lunch and watched Justina's late afternoon soccer game, we came home and James pulled everything out from under the sink and looked around. It turned out to be the garbage disposal. It was leaking water. And the wood in the cabinet was still completely soaked despite leaving the windows opened and having the fan blowing on it all day.

We left the kids with Alyssa and headed to Home Depot. We picked out the same model garbage disposal we had before (Insinkerator® Badger 5). The old one was 8 years old. And we really had no clue how long these things are suppose to last. But the price was right, around 65 dollars. (Some units were nearly $400! Come one, we aren't grinding skulls for crying out loud!) After Home Depot, James surprised me with Starbucks. And not just the drive-through. We actually went in the store, sat in chairs, and enjoyed our coffee . . . together! (My Sweet Pea is so romantic.)

When we got home, James took out the old unit. And I (yes, the UN-technical one) got to install the new one, including the wiring. Of course, James was over my shoulder giving me some direction . . . and there was no need for anyone to hold a flashlight.

It was a nice short visit. James had to go back to work. But he comes home the following weekend for a while until the next trip. I am still beaming about my DIY venture. And it was great to have him home even for a little bit.

Paper, Rock, Scissors

2008-10-23T11:24:00.000-07:00

This was suppose to be posted on Friday, October 17, 2008. However, I couldn't get the HTML right on the craptop. I have no idea why really. A friend helped me trouble shoot it and I changed one of my settings. And viola! It worked! Now the three readers of my blog (me, my husband, and my mother) won't be deprived of my powerful insights any longer. Thanks Shari for your help!

Well, this was probably not the best poll I ever posted. There were only 7 votes cast. The carpet bombing approach of throwing rocks was preferred over the hand-to-hand combat strategy of using scissors with rock receiving 4 votes and scissors getting only 3 votes. Paper received zero votes. Well, I guess no one likes paperwork.

My sister Joan and I were on the phone one night discussing the origins of paper, rock, scissors. She had sugeested that the game was representative of the checks and balance system of the three branches of government. I thought it was a pretty clever observation and it peaked my curiosity of the history of the whole game. So I went to Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia and read what they had to say about Rock-Paper-Scissors. If you are looking some pretty good bathroom reading material, I highly suggest you print it out and include it in your bathroom library. It is pretty hysterical and shows that either we all have a little too much time on our hands or we take ourselves way too seriously. Of course, there is also a third possibility - a combination of both.

In Other News . . .

Life has been absolutely crazy! James has been travelling a lot for work, we have had a lot of appointments in Los Angeles for Alyssa's back pain, and Justina managed to get scratched by a dog on the nose, requiring 11 stitches. And while all that was going on, I have been busy with 4-H enrollment and planning a Livestock BBQ Fundraiser for the livestock projects in our club. As a transplant to the Santa Maria Valley, home of the Santa Maria Style Barbecue, I was a little scared of planning such an event. It is a religious ritual and I got baptized by fire. It was a huge success though, largely because of all the support from many people. And fortunately, I will have an entre year to rest before planning the next one.

Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

Slacker Alert!

2008-10-16T12:33:00.000-07:00

Okay, I know I have not posted lately. Life has been crazy lately. And I am on my laptop, which was exceptionally slow and made the whole HTML prospect too frightening to attempt. I'll post tonight or tomorrow. Promise!

And the Gold Medal Goes To . . .

2008-09-02T21:29:00.000-07:00

The 2008 Olympics have come to an end and so has the latest Daily Purls poll. The question was What sports in the Olympics are you watching? Voters were asked to check all that applied. So on to the closing ceremonies!

Of the 16 people who voted, Swimming received 9 votes, followed by 8 for Gymnastics, 7 for Diving, 6 for Track & Field, 5 for Beach Volleyball, 4 votes each for Rowing, Others Not Mention, and All of Them/Can't Get Enough, 3 each for Equestrian, Soccer, and Volleyball, and 2 each for Water Polo and Wrestling. There was 1 vote a piece for Basketball, Boxing, and Softball. Of course there is one in every family, one Olympic Scrooge voted that they Could Care Less About Them. Well bah humbug to you Ebenezer and God bless us everyone, even you Michael Phelps.

Since it is back to school season, the newest poll is designed to challenge you, make you ponder and pontificate. When going into battle, what would you arm yourself with? Paper, rock, or scissors?

In Other News . . .

Justina started the third grade last Wednesday. Of course, this meant that she would bring home the mandatory Innisbrook Wrap fundraising packet on Thursday. Sigh! Have you ever tried to sell wrapping paper and other Christmas chotkies in August? We need to sell $175 worth of this stuff or pay $100 to opt out. You just got to love that parochial school fundraising spirit. Although, I am fairly certain that shaking down parents is on a list of sins somewhere.

James went to visit his family in Victorville this Labor Day weekend, and he took the girls with him. I stayed behind and fed the guinea pigs and rabbit. I also worked on preparing for our 4-H club's enrollment, did laundry, and cleaned. I got a lot of things done but it was so quiet without everyone here.

Also on Wednesday, August 27th was my sister Cynthia and her husband Dave's twentieth wedding anniversary. According to About.com, the traditional wedding gift is china, the modern wedding gift is platinum, and there is even a travel anniversary gift recommendation of San Francisco or China. So you could use a platinum card to book a trip from San Francisco International Airport, fly to China, and bring back some china as a souvenir. Nah, too much. At any rate, happy anniversary sissy del norte and Dave!

Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

Splish Splash

2008-08-22T19:28:00.000-07:00

For the past few days, errands have been all about back to school for Justina. We have gotten new white uniform shirts, a new uniform skort, some socks, and school supplies. We also managed to get a trip in to the recycling center. And that meant washing the bins out. Justina and Abby volunteered to do the job.

Justina and Abby really dove into washing the bins out. They started at 2:30 and continued until 5:30. They really must have had some fun!

In Other News . . .

We are all still smarting from the loss of Marshall. Fifteen is a longtime to have a dog. There will defintely be a lengthy time of grieving. We know it was the right thing to do. But if doing the right thing were easy, then everyone would be doing it more often I guess.

Amanda and Alyssa have just finished their first week of school. Justina starts next Wednesday. Tomorrow will be a soccer Saturday. Alyssa has a tournament this weekend in Santa Barbara and Justina has her first game tomorrow. Last night, Alyssa and I watched the dismal performance by both the U.S. men's and women's track team in their 4x100 relay heats. They really shanked it big time.

Don't forget the Olympic poll! Until the next time, take care and God bless. :)

Goodbye Good Friend

2008-08-19T19:51:00.000-07:00

Today was not a happy day in our household. Our beloved family dog of 15 years, Marshall, has passed away. Several months ago, we noticed some tumors growing allover his body. He was 15 years old and we knew that it would only be a matter of time. That time was today.

James got Marshall as a puppy at only a few days old. The litter had been hit with the parvo virus. He nursed him back to health and got to keep him. Marshall was a very hyper young dog. As he aged he became a wonderful family dog. He loved the kids (his girls). He loved to sleep in their room at night. If they were spending the night at a friend's house then things just weren't right in his world. And woe to the person who came between him and his girls.

The last few years of his life were rough. He had ingested some medicated lamb feed that nearly killed him. He had spent a few nights in the emergency vet hospital being administered activated charcoal. Miraculously, he survived. And then there was a dog bite that he never fully recovered from. He was definitely stiff in his hind leg after that. Eventually, his hearing would go. And then we noticed some lumps on him when petting him. At 15, we knew he didn't have any fight in him to survive cancer. And to whose benefit would it have been anyway?

In the past month, he slept most of the time. He began to have difficulty going up and down the stairs. Gradually, he lost weight. And last week, he stopped eating. James and I knew it was time. I called the vet this morning and made an appointment for when I knew he was off work and Amanda and Alyssa would be home from school. Tina, a family friend, came over and watched Justina and Abby. James carried him to the car and we drove to the vet's office.

Our final moments with him were bittersweet. In the vet's office, he seemed somewhat at peace. We pet him for several minutes and said our tearful good-byes. He was still thinking of his girls as he reached his head up and licked the tears from Amanda's cheek. A gentle and humble creature and yet so noble in his duty to his family. He was loyal to the very end.

Goodbye Marshall. You were such a wonderful dog and we miss you terribly. Goodbye good friend.

We would like to extend our appreciation to Dr. Porte and the staff at Animal Clinic of Santa Maria for the compassion they extended to our family, and especially Marshall.

1124 Timber Lane

2008-08-18T00:41:00.000-07:00

About a year ago, my husband came home and informed us that the Air Force was closing the East Base housing on Vandenberg Air Force Base. All the houses were scheduled for demolition and the land would be returned to natural habitat. Why do I bring this up? Nearly eight years ago, we lived at 1124 Timber Lane in East Base Housing on Vandenberg Air Force Base.

Periodically, on trips to Lompoc, we would stop and see what progress was being made. Appliances, windows, cabinetry, etc. were salvaged for Habit for Humanity. Then there was the asbestos removal. This process had been going on, month after month, block by block. We would drive down empty, house-less streets where co-workers, neighbors, and dear friends once lived. "What squadron were they in?" "I miss them. They were such a neat family." "Remember that barbecue we went to?" The whole housing development is a ghost town now. Brush growing over front yards, dunes of sand where lawns once grew, and even a young deer carcass (probably a coyote kill) . . .

One afternoon, we stopped by the light blue house with the dark blue trim. We walked around the yard. Many a battle was waged with gophers there. They had clearly won the war. Most of the fence around the nearly quarter acre back yard was missing. The door from the laundry room to the outside was open and some of the windows had been broken. Looking in, it had become a rodent's paradise. The parquet wood flooring was buckled and coming up. But it was nice to know that the Air Force left the refrigerators running in all these houses the whole time. Oh, they had also replaced the hot water heater . . .

We lived three blocks from Los Padres Elementary School where Amanda and Alyssa went to school. Amanda and Alyssa both learned how to ride their bikes without training wheels. It was Justina's first home. It was home to one of my fondest memories of Justina as a baby - a one-year-old running around on the front lawn in just a cloth diaper watering it with a hose. It was where the kids would just walk down the sidewalk along the backyard fence to the park. There was Amanda's eighth birthday party in record heat when I was eight months pregnant. Justina learned to walk in that house . . .

That was our house with the curved driveway. There is a keyhole-shaped patch of ground behind it.

That was the park. As you can see many of the houses have been demolished already,

including the ones just west of ours.

As for the actual building itself, . . . well? The acoustics were terrible. The pipes were rusting. There was an earwig infestation of Armageddon proportions that had taken over the closet of Justina's bedroom. It was a constant battle with the gophers. The driveway sloped into the garage, causing it to flood during a heavy rain. Then there was the termite damage. Of course, there was no accounting for the tonnage in lead that was in the paint alone. It was so flipping small - 1,000 square feet! Yet somehow I managed to host Amanda's and Alyssa's baptism celebration for 50 guests in that house . . .

Soon, a construction fence went around the house. The asbestos removal process began and we knew the time was near. And then that time had arrived. The house at 1124 Timber Lane was no more. Our side of the block had been obliterated. Still there are many houses left to be torn down.

All that is left is the foundation. The sidewalk to the left of the curved driveway leads to the park.

There is the old adage that a house does not make home. After driving down Timber Lane, I believe this to be true. For everything I hated about that house, there are plenty more memories that make me miss it.

In Other News . . .

Day four of the Spider bite treatment and the red streak is finally beginning to fade. The blister has shrunk. Today, she returned to soccer practice and had a friend over for a couple hours.

Alyssa's soccer team finished pool play in second place in the Anaheim tournament this weekend. They played a semi-final game on Sunday at 8 a.m. and lost 1-0. James said she did pretty well and had some wonderful saves. (I hate missing her games.) She had soccer practice this evening in Santa Barbara.

I didn't watch any Olympics yesterday. I spent all Sunday working on our 4-H club's newsletter. Praise the Lord and pass the peas, that is finally finished and I got it in the mail this afternoon. My lack of computer skills greatly impeded the task. But on Saturday, I did watch Michael Phelps win his eighth gold and Dara Torres swim to a silver in the 50 meter freestyle, missing gold by a hundredth of a second. This woman is 41 and I'm 38. She could probably swim 500 laps before I could dog paddle 50 meters. Incredible!

Today is the anniversary of Amanda and Alyssa receiving their First Holy Communion six years ago at Saint Louis de Montfort Church in Orcutt. It was at 11:30 Mass and the priest was Father Mark Newman.

Don't forget the new poll! Until the next time, take care and God bless.:)