Remember This?

That can of cat food whose pop top popped WITHOUT opening the can? I tried lots of things to get it open - - - INCLUDING a can opener (for all you skeptics) without much luck until - - -


I went a little crazy with this very high tech tool. WHAT A MESS!!! Took me a while to clean THAT up.


Gomer did NOT understand the delay. He stood mewing at my feet.


Finally.

One happy cat.

One happy me - - - didn't have to waste a whole $.25 on that can of cat food, nor leave it sitting on my counter for one hundred years!!!

Mackinley's Two!!!

Yesterday we celebrated Mackinley's second birthday at Crazy Pinz in Fort Wayne. Take a peek at the fun - - -

Birthday cake with cars.


Let's just walk all over this place and explore. COME ON!!! Let's GO!


Oh goody!!! Kiddie bowling. First I THROW the ball, then I CHASE it, except Daddy won't let me!!!


Daddy says, "Look Mackinley, watch the pins go down." But all Mackinley cares about is getting his hands on the next bowling ball and throwing it.

Party People

Eatin' cake - - -

Just look at Macky's blue icing lips!!!


Korie, you gonna let Chris have some cake?


Ornery Kelly and - - -


Angel Cathy!!!

A Day With Kamma and Papoo

While mommy went to Indy to see Korie and get a new hair-do, Macky came to spend the day with Kamma and Papoo. Kamma was lovely and nice to him, but Papoo had other ideas as you will soon see.


Papoo's running the vacuum, so Macky's watching carefully to make sure that scary, noisy Dyson doesn't get too close!!!

Installing a New Car Seat

We needed a seat in our car for Mackinley. Papoo went and got one, but had some trouble figuring out how to make it operational. He refused to read the instructions.


Of course Papoo MADE Mackinley help. Mackinley didn't need the instructions - - - he just rolled up his sleeves and got to it!!!


Papoo, I already SHOWED you how to do that.

Fun on a Stool

Mackinley made EVERYTHING an adventure today.

Even Kamma's little wooden stool,



Became a pommel horse and then - - -


A balance beam!!!

What a great day we had.

Blogativity

That's what we blog for - - - blogativity. We WANT people coming to our blogs, reading, chuckling, relating to our posts - blogativity.

Many of us even install site counters (check the bottom of this page for mine) to keep track of all that blogativity.

I've noticed something - - - when I make a new post, I get more blogativity. (Now if I could ONLY figure out a way to generate more commentativity - - - but I guess that's for another post.)

So - - - this FORCES one to be constantly searching for new post topics.

Today's topic: Snowmen


Yep, I really did. I went around my house taking pictures of snowmen in various shapes, sizes, and mediums. These three welcome you to my heart, my home, and my blog.


I drank my morning latte with this one.


You may notice there is a distinctly Christmas theme to most of these - - - YES, that IS because I still have my Christmas things up.


It's all OK - - -they're coming down today and even though I'm a good two weeks behind all of you in taking them down - - -


I was ALSO a good two weeks behind all of you in putting them up - - - so it all comes out in the wash.


You may be thinking to yourself: "What a silly little goose she is to make such a post."

True, true, true - - - but it got you here, didn't it?

Happy blogging.

Got Spoons?

Under your pillow?


I kid you not!

Apparently students in the northeast believe that when a snow storm is being predicted if they will but sleep with a spoon under their pillow and wearing their pajamas inside out they will get a snow day the next day.

This according to a high school English teacher from Connecticut.

I heard it on NPR.

I for one had never previously heard this urban legend nor tried it. How about you? Sleep on any spoons lately? Or do you have ANOTHER ritual to bring on snow days?

In Heaven

This is Greg's cousin Donny, 57, with his wife Sylvia in the background. (picture taken in April '07)

Wednesday Donny suffered a massive heart attack, and this morning while many of us were worshiping our Lord in church, Donny went to meet him in person.

We will miss you, Donny.

Changing My Skin

Since my beloved Colts bit the playoff dust last weekend, one of my students loaned me this, said I MUST wear it for the game, and he expected me to BLOG about it.

Happy to oblige. I'm pulling for my home state team AND wearing their colors. This is REALLY deja vu for me as I was a Packer fan all through high school.

TRIVIA QUESTION: Whose jersey am I wearing?

GO PACKERS!!!!

For the Birds

We like to feed the birds in our back yard. However, for the past couple of years we didn't put out any suet or seed, and the birds forgot about us.

Recently Greg replenished our bird food supply.


So far this seems to be our only visitor of the feathered variety.

One lonely little Downy Woodpecker. But isn't he pretty?

I've Got Nothin' Kids!!!

Nothing of any excitement to post on my blog. And yet blogs are most fun when they are frequently updated, so I NEED to update to keep my loyal readers (I guess that's YOU if you are reading) coming back.

Still, in the way of EXCITEMENT in my life right now I've got:

Nada. Zilch. Zed. Zero. THE BIG VOID!!!!!

(As you will soon find out if you continue to read this blog and see the LOWS to which I've been forced in order to come up with a post.)

Cat food. Yep, this is a can of cat food that I tried to open for Gomer, as he was pawing at my legs, mewing, and basically DEMANDING to be fed the other morning.

Can you see the PROBLEM in this photo?


How about from THIS angle?

Yep - - - that's right. The pop-top-thingy came off right in my hand WITHOUT popping the top.

If you look closely you will see dents where I tried to force that silly lid open with other probing instruments - - - namely my fingernail followed by a pair of scissors - - - and yet was unsuccessful.

I must figure out a way to get that ding dong can open as the "Scotch" in me will not allow perfectly good cat food to be thrown away.

If I can't get it open, and you come to visit me in, oh say 100 years, it will STILL be sitting on my counter WAITING to be opened.

Moving right along to OTHER things of extreme importance and interest - - -


My morning dose of latte.

Folger's USED to have an instant flavor of latte called "Caramel Groove" which was oh so tasty. Then they discontinued it and I've been forced to come up with my OWN version which involves instant coffee, Coffee Mate, Caramel ice cream syrup, and Irish Cream International Delight.

Today is fairly cold - - - we're on our way to a low of Zero (very appropriate to this topic I might add) tonight - - - so this latte was really welcome this morning.

Especially after I opened the doors and took ONE step outside to take these:


We got a little powder sugar dusting during the night.

Several of the blogs I read whose writers hail from such southern states as Mississippi and Alabama are quite excited right now as snow is in their forecast.


Dear blogging friends all who hope and wish for snow - - - I DO SO HOPE you get it, but if not, here is a tiny sample for your eyes.

Actually, having lived in the Carolinas for 12 years, I COMPLETELY understand your excitement when crystallized precipitation is in your forecast. It is SUCH a rare thing and is SO holiday-ish.

I too love the white stuff, as I was born a December snow bunny in the north woods and have loved it ever since. This is not nearly enough, by the way.

Look What I Stole - - -

Right off of Daughter Number One's blog.

I just don't have anything new or exciting of my OWN to post - - - so I raided Keri's blog and copied these cute photos.

Mackinley James wearing Great Grandpa John's chef apron and calling China on someone's cell phone.


Enjoying the train set Papoo picked out for him for Christmas.


Macky and Kaeleigh all snuggled up in their hoodie blankie's Kamma got them for Christmas.

I Feel Sick

Quite literally ill.

28 -24 Chargers.

So ends OUR season, Brian. The Fat Linebacker Sang.

Out With The Old - - -

But NOT in with the new!

Now that we are empty-nested, we are DOWNSIZING when it comes to the number of vehicles parked in our driveway. I'm more than happy to lessen our monthly car insurance bill!!!

Greg ordered this Camaro in the fall of 1994 to allay his midlife crisis. He drove it exclusively for years. Then when Kyle began to drive, it was his car. Now Kyle has moved on to bigger and better things (interpretation: unicycle) and left the Camaro behind.

So, after almost 14 years, nearly flawless performance (I believe it's only had one or two brake changes and precious little other work besides routine maintenance - - - no lemon she), and 220,000+ miles we are telling her "good-bye."


And our first-born son is telling her "hello!"

Kelly was 14 when we got the Camaro and just itching at the bit to be at the wheel. It was NOT the Camaro which he was allowed to drive - - - rather my minivan. However, he WANTED to drive it, and truth be told, he had some excursions in it when mom and dad weren't home. Just look at the GRIN on his face as he picked her up yesterday.


And this, Kelly's Taurus, is going to his sister, Keri. Kelly's girlfriend, Cathy, is driving it away. However, that isn't really a grin on her face - - - it's a grimace. She did NOT want to drive that thing at all!!!

It's "All in the Family."

(Editor's Note: Sorry about the picture quality - - - sun was at the wrong angle)

I Did It - - -

All by myself!!!!

I'm talking about making a links list in my blog sidebar.

I've WANTED to do this for simply AGES, but my template didn't COME with a sidebar links heading and I LIKE my template and I DON'T like change - - - so I had a quandary.

Several people have TRIED to tell me what do do, but they were speaking GEEK so I smiled and nodded and pretended that they made perfect sense to me when in actuality I was as lost as the Poor Babes in the Woods. Any attempts I made to follow their instructions turned out to be futile.

This morning Headless sent me an e-mail complete with instructions which were in clear and simple ENGLISH and I thought to myself, "self, you can do this." So I attempted to follow her simple steps.

Immediately I had a problem, I couldn't find the "layout" or "page elements" buttons she recommended. I was about to give up in despair yet once again when "it" happened.

I don't know HOW "it" happened, nor could I make "it" happen again nor could I direct anyone else to "it."

I found a "help" button with a list of sample links and really pitiful instructions (at least for an html illiterate like myself - - - sorry dear Mentor Prof, I KNOW you tried to computer-cate me) about how to CREATE a links list where none existed in your template.

And after some trial and error - - - I am a scientist of sorts you know - - - I SUCCEEDED and EUREKA - - - LOOK IN MY SIDEBAR!!!!!!

I had fun giving all of you, my dear bloggy friends, a moniker. I HOPE you can: 1) find yourself and 2) recognize the linky path my mind took when I monikered you.

You may let me know if you do or don't like your new moniker, but don't expect me to change it. :-)

A few "side" notes (pun intended):

Anon and Headless - - - I think you will enjoy each other as you are both trying to have fun with blogging while remaining in some anonymity and doing it in entirely different ways. Both of you deserve the "Bloggers Anonymous Creativity Award."

Kari and Kim - - - don't ask me HOW my memory was suddenly jogged to bring back THAT old thing, but once jogged, it was just tooooo fun to pass up, and I made Kari number one since I see her more often.

Deven and Dustin (my favorite nephew) I COULDN'T resist your puns even though one of the meanings doesn't fit in each of your cases.

And last but certainly not least, DEB - - - I realize a blog is basically a monologue, but there's just no alliteration in that!!! (Later addendum - - - NEVERMIND!!! I found the perfect "D" word and took out "Dialogue")

My Friend Betsy - - -

Who now lives in Bolivia is here for a visit. This was the first time I'd seen her in at least two years, and the first time we got to meet her husband, Gerson.


We had such a good time eating, talking, and laughing that this is the ONLY picture I remembered to take!!!

Gerson wanted a sample of American shopping so we went to the mall - - - never mind that our mall is a pretty pitiful example.

While in the mall, we met a twenty-something-year-old who, when we told him Betsy and Gerson were from Bolivia, said he had NEVER HEARD OF BOLIVIA!!!! Had no clue Bolivia was in South America. PEOPLE - - - what is WRONG with our Geography education in America???? I told him he should have gone to LCS as OUR Geography teacher would have made sure he knew ALL his countries AND their capitols.

Anyway, it was absolutely fabulous to be with Betsy again, even for only a few hours. We really enjoyed getting to know Gerson. Greg is not easily impressed by new people, but he was by Gerson,

Baby Bear Heads Out Into the Great Wide World - - -

To seek his fortune.

The Durango is loaded for bear. Well, actually I guess it's really loaded for CARDINAL - - -Ball State Cardinals that is.


Somewhere in this giant complex is Kyle's new Ball State home.


Load One going in! (So nice they had this cart hanging around just waiting for us to use it!)



Load Two. Notice the unicycle - - - Kyle's vehicle of choice for campus travels.

Movin' On Up - - -

To the big time, to a deluxe apartment in the sky.


HARDLY!!! How about squeezing into a 12 X 12 square with two beds,


two dressers, two desks, two inhabitants and ALL their periphery!!!


Kyle begining to settle into his portion of the cube. The roommate (unknown quantity) didn't appear while I was there, though there was plenty of evidence of his existence.

This Little Piggy Went - - -

Waah, waah, waah all the way home.

I didn't see it coming. I THOUGHT I was more than ready for the last baby bird to fledge out of the nest.

I thought wrong.

This is all I brought home - - - empty luggage.


Kyle was happy to stay - - - I told him three times that choices matter, then I cried and prayed all the way home in that empty Durango.

"We're not in Kansas anymore, Toto."