New School New Friends

Yesterday I picked up middle granddaughter from her new school.

I got there a little early so I could meet her teacher and figure out the school's layout. She was out on the playground when I arrived. It took me awhile to find her, there were alot of little blonde kids running around and they all had ponytails. Except for one. She had long dark hair and was a little wisp of a girl. And she was firmly holding hands with another little girl, this one with a braid swinging wildly as she galloped across the schoolyard. Yup, that was my baby with the crazed braid.


Her teacher and I spoke for a few minutes before she blew the "the dead could even hear it" whistle. All the kids came running toward her and lined up perfectly chatting happily. It was great to see granddaughter so happy - last year she had a bad case of persistent hives that may have been stress induced from going to school. Not one little blemish on her face today. And this with a different school and a different district and not one child in her class that she knew before that day.


We went inside and she gathered her lunch box and book bag, said her goodbyes and we headed out. Once in the car buckled up and headed toward Starbucks (gotta get some iced tea!), she starting telling me about her day. She had so much fun! Her teacher told me she scored so well she was in the top reading group, where there were only 3 other kids. This means she can read books at her own pace and then take comprehension tests before she moves on. She liked also being asked to help the slow readers with their assignments.

We had stopped at a light when I asked her about the little brunette girl she was playing with on the playground. (Her teacher had mentioned she had just arrived here from Russia).

Granddaughter said " She's nice. But she doesn't talk like me."

"Really?" I replied. "I heard she was from Russia, she is probably more comfortable speaking Russian".

"Yeah, well I am helping her with English. Sometimes I tell her the word for things."

"That is very nice of you. That's what friends do, they help. And maybe she can teach you some Russian words."

"Yeah, I don't care how she sounds. I mean I care and I want to help her, but I really don't care. You know what I mean Nina?"

"Yes I do" I replied thinking wow---what a heart this kid has.....

"And there is this little boy there" she added

"Uh huh"

She continued, " And he has something growing on his fingertips. I like him..but I CARE about that.."


Okay -1 out of 2

lol

She's Here!

Youngest granddaughter has arrived!

7 pounds 15 ounces, born 8-20-08 at 7:33 AM....

What a beauty...

All I can say is that I have fallen in love with her.....

WELCOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Home on the Range

The range is in.

Had a little difficulty with the install - apparently the floor is a bigger issue than we knew. The range is tilted just a bit due to the floor being up so high and this range sitting forward farther than the old one.

Middle son tried everything he could think of to rectify the situation. He finally called me into the kitchen and asked " Just when are you getting the granite?" "Why?" I replied (knowing that hubby's granite timetable was further off in the distance than I hoped. "Well, it makes a big difference. You see the range is tilted. I can fix it by cutting the floor tile and it will sit level. Or, if you were going to get the granite soon, I would suggest you not cut the floor tile because it will bring the counter top up enough to level the range."

I am going to be cooking with tilted pans for awhile I thought.

"Let's ask your dad" I said. "He is the only one with the final answer".

So he calls hubby in and asks him the same question.

Hubby rolls his eyes.

Hubby huffs.

And he puffs.

He finally says "Why do you have to ask that in front of her? Are you guys in cahoots or something?"

"No" middle son replies " I just need to know if you want me to cut the tile. I'll do it, just give me the okay."

Hubby groans and says "You guys are working together. Your partners. I am outnumbered."

He looks at me, I stifle a smile.

"Don't cut the tile" he says and leaves the room. Quickly I might add.

I smile at middle son.

He smiles at me.

Now we know.

The granite guys are coming Wednesday with an estimate. I already have one from someplace else that was crazy high - let's hope this one is more reasonable.

I used the Easy Convect feature to cook lunch.

Holy smokes it was easy (hence the easy declaration by Kitchen Aid). You plug in what the regular cooking time and temp is and it converts it for you, it tells you when to check it and turns the oven off.

It worked perfectly.

The warming drawer warmed up the whole grain rolls and man I felt like I was cooking in a Dream Kitchen; tilt and all.

Here is a pic of the range as it is today. We still need the cabinet doors to cover the venting, and the tile backsplash will be removed and a new one installed with a potfiller.

And oh yeah, the granite.

Sooner rather than later I hear.

Vented!

Here is a kitchen update.

My very talented middle son has shortened the cabinet and installed the vent hood.

Much better - no more head clunking.

Next step, range installation.

Where Did That Fox Go?

Today we were in the Publix parking lot and this little kid was staring at our car. Transfixed.

It brought back memories of a night not so long ago...

If you get squeamish, skip this post.


We had went to a restaurant way out in Edgefield, South Carolina. It was late by the time we got in the car to head back home.

We are driving down a country two lane road when all of a sudden we see yellow eyes and hear "THWAP"! It was enough to send fear through your heart.

"We hit something!" I yelled.

"Yeah, but I don't know exactly" grimaces hubby.

"Was it a dog?"

"No" he replied. "I think it was a coyote or maybe a fox."

We continue down the road in silence when all of a sudden we hear thump, thump, thump.

OH GEE..... IS IT STILL THERE?

Visions of some poor thing runs through my mind, I think I am going to be sick.

Then we hear funny fumbling noises, and slapping, and things dropping off the car.

"Should we get out?" I wonder aloud.

"No. If something is alive it will sure as Hell bite me if I try to help it. We just need to get home."

We turn at the lake, taking a quick left, and something falls off our car.

Yuck.

Hubby slowly turns his head and looks at me. "Maybe we better stop at the car wash."

I vigorously nod my head.

We get into town and pull into the car wash. You know, one of those 24 hour gas stations with a car wash tunnel attached? As we pull into the car wash, we read where it's two dollars to run though the cycle. Oh and it only takes quarters.

We dig around and come up with a buck fifty. We are going to have to go inside to get more change.

Hubby backs out of the wash and turns the car around and parks in front of the store.

People stare. People stop. A woman is horrified and covers her eyes and runs into the store.

Not good.

We slowly get out.

I refuse to look.

I come back with quarters. I don't see anything on the grill.

I ask hubby " What were they staring at?"

He said "Oh there was something there alright. A fox. I had to get a plastic bag from the trunk and use it to cover my hand to pull it off of there. It was wedged pretty tight."

Thank God I am not a guy. I would have fainted if asked to do that.

We go through the wash cycle. It's silent in the car.

What was a great evening with friends turned into Roadkill Hell.

Days go by.

We forget the "incident".

Then hubby has a near collision and has to honk his horn.

It doesn't honk.

It doesn't toot.

It doesn't beep.

It warbles like a baby bird.

He takes the car in to get the grill fixed and have the horn looked at while it's there.

Seems that the fox took out quite a bit of stuff under there. Our air conditioning was pretty much gone, (it was winter and we hadn't noticed), and some other pretty important stuff was history.

So over a thousand dollars later we end the fox saga.

Until today. When the little boy looked at our car like there was a fox stuck in the grill.

I couldn't look.

Warning Signs for My Daughter

My youngest grand daughter, who is soon to be my middle grand-daughter, is said by her mother, my oldest daughter, to be just like me.

How wonderful. For me.

For her I am sure she is thinking what did she possibly do to deserve this?

It's karma baby, what goes around comes around.

At first I didn't get what oldest daughter was saying, so I started looking for signs.

I get it now.

Signs that my grand daughter has been unduly influenced by me;


1. She tells her mom she likes "good chocolate". That means the $35.99 per pound chocolate that comes from the little store run by two German ladies that dote on her.

2. She likes shoes. She comes over and wears my heels around the house. The other day I picked her up from school and asked her about her teacher.. did she like her? " Oh yeah" she replied. "She's nice. And she wears cute shoes." "And she keeps her feet pedicured" I replied.(pretty scary that we notice these things, and a little wierd too)

3. She likes scrambled eggs. Her mom thinks eggs are gross. I love soft scrambled eggs and so does she. (we both eat them in front of her mom to gross her out)

4. She thinks Sephora is da bomb. We call it Nirvana around here. Nothing better than to go shopping there for some lotion or spray and carry that bag around the mall.

5. She worries about other people. (that can be very stressful for me - hope she doesn't take it to the extreme like I do at times)

6. She likes Starbucks, Well she does get the hot chocolate or the organic chocolate milk so I haven't been her coffee supplier. But I am sure I will one day.

7. The hummus at Mellow Mushroom could be our whole dinner. And we have to share it? Why I ask???

8. Earth Fare is our favorite grocery store. The lighting is pleasant, it calms us down.

9. She gets her feelings easily hurt.

10. She doesn't understand why everyone can't be friends. Why does their have to be "best" friends?

Maybe she won't do some of the stuff I did as a teenager, oldest daughter was alot calmer than I was...

For that let's hope she takes after her mom.

It Must Look Bad First to Look Good Last

So I'm crazy.

Yes, I started remodeling the kitchen.

LOCK ME UP!

When we moved in here three years ago, I said "That all-white kitchen has got to go!" And I meant it. Then the opportunity came to do a major re-haul and we chose to add a pool and a pool house, who wouldn't? And we have certainly enjoyed it and it has been a great place for the family to all come together.

And the kitchen remained white. White ceramic tile, white appliances, white back splash, and white cabinets, and add the white plantation shutters, well that's alot of white.

I didn't like white before I moved here, it showed too much dirt and every little ketchup squirt or coffee dribble. But now I do appreciate it for it shows every little ketchup squirt and coffee dribble. When you have kids that are younger, who has time to clean? If I don't see it, it is easier to pretend it's not there.

Besides the chipped, ceramic tile, ( I did mention it was chipped didn't I?), I want to refinish the cabinets. Then there is the appliances. The vent hood over the range is so low you bonk your head if you try to look into a pot on a back burner. Lots of little stuff like that --- oh and that awful rectangular box light in the kitchen and the green wrought iron chandelier, you get the picture.

We are very lucky that our middle son remodels and renovates on the side. Hubby can be pretty handy but he has no patience. And if he doesn't want to do something he hurries up and does it which sometimes can create a bigger problem, aka "a mess".


Hubby gave me some money to put away for the remodel. His plan was to save it until we had enough to do the whole remodel. Like I said, that was "his" plan.

My plan is LETS GET THIS PARTY STARTED!!!!

I went out and bought a range, vent hood, and a dishwasher. Middle son is going to be the contractor. ( I think I am his boss---hee hee)

So last weekend he came and removed the old appliances. Youngest daughter got our dishwasher and Habitat for Humanity our range and vent hood. We had several days of "no cooking unless it's nuked". Gotta say I enjoyed those days since we went out to eat all of them.

Last night he installed the dishwasher. For the first time ever I had to read a dishwasher manual. There's alot of racks in there. Lots of options. I think I could wash a poodle in there.


He shortened my cabinets and is getting new doors for them made. When I arrived home from a meeting last night, I went into the kitchen to unwind and check my email. I had noticed the dishwasher and tinkered with it. Hubby called out to me about what I thought about the cabinets. I had not even noticed them. He doesn't get why that is a big compliment to middle son. If I can walk into my kitchen and pass right by a cabinet that has been shortened a good half a foot and not notice it, then it looks good! Nothing drew my attention to it and made my breath catch and my heart to flutter.

Tonight he is coming back to install the range.

We're going out to eat.

Hmmm ---maybe I should have said the range was on back order?

Tinkerbell's in the House

Has this ever happened to you; someone is sitting in the bathroom and yells out, "We're out of paper in here?"



It does?



Well that never happens in our house.



For we have fairies.



We have toilet paper fairies that not only replenish rolls, but makes sure that there is a back-up roll on the lid.



The other day I asked hubby if he would get some more toilet paper for the bathroom.



He asked, "Where do we keep it?"



Huh? We have lived in this house for over three years and he doesn't know where the toilet paper is stored?



I asked him that question, more or less, in the same way.



"I've never had to get toilet paper, the fairy always brings it. So how would I know where it is?"



"What fairy?"



"You know, the toilet paper fairy?"



"The toilet paper fairy?"



"Yes, she's friends with the clean laundry fairy, the always made Crystal Light fairy, the hang up my pants fairy and my snacks for the office fairy."



"You got a helpful little fairy posse there for you Mister."



"Yes, except I really need to talk to that picks up the glass as soon as I set it down fairy. She's an overachiever."





Okay - it's cute.... I shake my head and keep on truckin'





Saturday night we are at a friends house and I walk inside to refresh my drink. The guys are all sitting in the kitchen. Was it cooler in there? Maybe. But the next round of home made pizzas were about to come out of the oven... I think they were there to get first dibs.

They are talking abut something that leads me to believe that they too have fairies roaming their abodes.

So I ask...

Yes I did...

And there were three of them, and just one of me, and hubby was on their side of the bar.. I knew I was outnumbered, but yet I ventured forward unaware of the potential danger ahead.

I asked friend number one "Do you know where the toilet paper is kept in your house?"

"He said "Why would I know that?"

Friend number two added in quickly , they stick together, " I don't know where it is either. It just appears."

"So if there was an emergency you wouldn't know where to go to get some more toilet paper?"

"Nope" they both replied.

Hubby joins in and says "See? They have fairies at their house too that does things."

"I wish I had a fairy" I grumble.

"You do," one replied. "It's called a paycheck fairy."

HA

HA

HA

Gotta love 'em.

(Does this happen in your house too? Let me know if there is a larger fairy population than I originally estimated)

Turn the Light on Will Ya'

Three years ago we delved into the world of salt water fish'ism.

We bought a 60 gallon tank and set it up in our front room. When we bought it, we didn't have available to us all the newer fangled models with the filters and skimmers stowed under the tank, ours was hanging off the back of the tank in plain view. (think small town thus not many aquariums stores; as in one.)

During the time we've had the tank, we've only had two occasions of fish mortality. One, was when we went to Italy and there was a power failure, and the other time was a few months ago when two fish died mysteriously in the dead of the night days just days apart.

That left us with a tang, a big fat ole tomato clownfish named Ernie (for Ernest Borgnine), a scooter blenny and some other fish that hides in the crevices of the live rock. It was time to get a couple of replacements.

Off we go to the relatively new aquarium shop. WOW! What selections! What pretty fish! Hey, wait! Do you see these tanks? All the stuff sits UNDER here????

We go in for a fish and come out lots of dollar$ later with a new tank to be installed that night.

I would say they saw us coming but this purchase was way too overdue for us to be "marks".

The old tank, and hubby would disagree with me, looked like something you would see in a college dorm room or in some teenager's room.

We thought it was easy to clean; once a month we would crank up the music and for an hour both get cracking, I scrubbed down filters and pumps even using toothbrushes to get out every speck of algae or waste.

Cleaning this new tank?

Pulling out two sponges and rinsing them and rinsing a plastic cup. That's it for me. Hubby still has water to change and algae to scrape off the sides but I can do my part in about 5 minutes and sit back and watch him. (probably won't happen but a girl can dream). But he doesn't have to disconnect everything from the tank so I can clean it so it should save him at least half the time he would've spent.

So the guy comes over to install the new tank.

About a couple of hours before I had asked hubby to go ahead and find the spotlight that we would need in the front room, more of an office, since the lighting in there isn't the most illuminating. He pooh poohed me.

Okay.

The guy and hubby starts working and more light is definitely needed. Hubby goes to get the spotlight.

He can't find it.

Deja vue I tell ya'.

"Where did you move the spotlight?" he asks me.

"I didn't touch it" I replied.

"You must have, it's not in the garage."

"Did you look on the shelf?"

"Yes, oh wait a minute, maybe it is in the pool house." Off he goes to search in there.

Our youngest daughter had come over and she was watching and hearing this with a look of amusement on her face. "Dad can't find the spotlight?" she asks.

"Nope, he says I moved it."

"Why would you want a spotlight?"

" I have no clue. But apparently there is some reason he thinks I would."

He comes back in the house and says " Okay, where is it? You told me to look for it before he got here. Is this some sort of joke?"

"No" I replied, "It is not a joke. I knew you probably didn't know where it was. Did you look on the shelf by the garage fridge?"

"Yes, I looked there. I looked everywhere. It's not there. I bet oldest daughter has it!"

'Why would she have it?"

"She might have needed it and took it and forgot to bring it back. Remember the shop vac?"

I looked at him strangely and said " All of our girls have used the shop vac."

"Yes, but she kept it the longest."

"No, youngest daughter did but that has nothing to do with a spotlight."

"Give me her cell phone number, I'm calling her."

"She's going to think you are nuts and it's 9 o'clock at night".

"Just give me the number."

The conversation goes like this;

"Hello.. do you have my spotlight?" he asks her.

"Well I don"t know, maybe to paint at night. I don't know what for, you just take stuff, remember the shop vac? "

The conversation ends there - no at night spotlight painting being done by her.

Youngest daughter says "Dad, you want me to look for it?"

He sighs and says "You won't find it. I looked everywhere. Either your mother moved it and can't remember where it is or worse yet, can't remember that she even moved it, or one of you kids has it."

"I'll just have a look anyway" she calmly replied.

Not a minute later we hear from the garage, "What will you give me if I find it?"

"WHERE WAS IT?" he jumps up and yells.

In she comes holding the spotlight.

"Dad, it was right on the shelf in the garage."

"Did you put it back?" he looks straight at me.

"No honey." I say as he is plugging it in.

Youngest daughter and I look at each other and smile.

He thinks he can hear too.