Donuts, donuts, donuts...

Did you know that Krispy Kreme gives kids one doughnut for every A they earn on their report card?  Crazy...
Here's our haul this trimester:

Yep...that's 14 doughnuts...14 A's...pretty impressive.  Just don't ask who's A's they are...everyone shares (especially with mom and dad...just sayin...)
I did have a moment of, um, hmm, that's a lot of doughnuts...

Thanksgivings long past

When I was a kid my folks always hosted Thanksgiving at our house.  A lot of years my dad's parents and his younger sister and her husband would come.  My brother and I would watch for everyone to turn off the highway--one year we saw my grandparents drive by 3 times before they recognized the turn and came onto our street.  Ah, the days before GPS.  Other years we had a variety of friends who "needed somewhere to go" or just us (but not often just us, that I remember).

One memorable holiday my younger brother and our uncle decided to fill the "lake" of my brother's train table with water.  It wasn't water tight and blue water (they colored it with food coloring so it would look more realistic) leaked all over my brother's carpet.  My mother was thrilled.

Another year, my aunt and uncle brought my brother a flashlight with fiberoptic threads coming off it.  We were very excited (it was the 80's after all) and spent turns sitting in the hall closet watching the pretty lights. And cramming my 6 foot plus uncle into the closet with my brother to check out the lights. And prying him out. And locking each other in the closet.  And screaming that we were locked in.  Gee, we were well behaved.

There are lots of Thanksgiving stories, but I'm not going to tell them here or now to protect the innocent (or the not so innocent, perhaps)...but if you know me personally maybe I'll share some of them sometime.  Most probably are really only funny if "you were there".

In the meantime, here are some classic photos of Thanksgivings past.  Fortunately, I only have  two years easily accessible--1986--a family game of Scrabble after dinner

 From left to right--my mom, Grandad (Dad's dad), Aunt, Uncle, Grandma.  Probably that is the top of my head in the very front.

On right, my Grandad, Aunt, Uncle, and younger brother.  I'm guessing it is my rear end on the right, wearing my stylin red velour pants.  Nice.









The highlight of almost every year was the Family Band.  My dad came across the cassette tape recordings a couple years ago and copied them all to MP3 files...which I don't know how to post here, or I might ...
The 1984 band is actually pictured here, as well as my parent's rockin 1970's furniture.  I'd like to have that furniture now, actually...mine is all falling apart.
My aunt trying to teach my brother and I to play the violin

Grandma helping my uncle









A solo attempt





 Then my aunt's turn
















And my brother's attempt--My Boy looks a lot like my brother in this picture--maybe it is the haircut. Or do all 9 year old boys look alike?  Check out the rockin tv on the piano...that was our only tv until I was a junior in high school--we spent many fun filled evenings trying to tune in stations using that antenna. My brother and I used to take turns holding the rabbit ears in just the right place so the other could watch their favorite show, and then trade places for the other's favorite.  Good times.  Now my kids fight when they can't watch different shows on their Kindles at the same time.

 My brother, with his domino tower...

 Grandad and me, notice the red velour pants again...they most have been my turkey eatin pants (to quote Joey Tribianni).

 And here, finally, is the whole band in action--it looks like we shook things up a little--Grandad usually played the French horn, but is on the flute here.









 I, unfortunately, am playing the oboe, so my aunt can play the piano.  She could have played that flute, then I could have played piano, but maybe I was showing off.  On an oboe.  Seems unlikely, but who knows the mind of a 13 year old girl, right?  My uncle is on trumpet and Dad on trombone--their first choices, but not their only choices.  Ironically, my brother, who eventually could play all of these (well, not the oboe, perhaps, unless he was under duress) is not participating, as he is "only" a piano player at this point.  My mother is participating by supervising the tape player.

Hard to believe this was almost 30 years ago!

Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone!

Little Free Libraries

A few months ago, my sister-in-law posted some information on Facebook about how much she loves the idea of Little Free Libraries.  There was a long discussion among many different people.  We've been lots of places on vacations and such where there was a "take one, leave one" library, usually inside a building, but sometimes at campgrounds outside.  I didn't realize that this phenomenon has not only a name but also a website! Little Free Library is the "biggest" organization, but there are lots of others that I see, as well as all those that have always existed.  Yesterday afternoon we were picking up The Girl at a friends house and look what is across the street:

Cute, huh?  

Kind of make me want to make one in the hopes that people would borrow some of the books I no longer want...but with my luck, I suppose people would leave more than they took.  I do love books, though...

The joy of being a landlord, or not.

Mr. Ranch and I bought a cute little townhouse in 1999.  We moved in, with our two kitties, in the spring. We intended to stay in it for a couple years, sell it, and get something with a yard, garage, etc.  In 2007, after adding two kids and and a dog, we moved into our current house but didn't have any luck selling the townhouse.  We somewhat reluctantly rented it out. We've had some great tenants and some not so great tenants, folks who took care of the property like it was their own and folks who, well, didn't.  Our most recent tenants moved out a couple weeks ago and the property is for sale again.  So far it has been a frustrating process for me--people who see it give us feedback like "it backs up to a street".  Well, yes, that is true.  There is also nothing we can do about it, so maybe some feedback about things we can change would be nice.  We've also had quite a few say things like, "well, I'm not interested in a property like this, but if you put in all new appliances, new flooring, new paint, and lowered the price by 1/3...I'd think about it."  I'm just hoping that sometime in the near future there is a young couple who stumble on it and think "ah, we'll just live here a couple years and then..."

The Boy speaks again

November 19

So tonight Mr. Ranch was home early and took The Girl to her drum lesson.  The Boy and I went to the library (to return the very overdue, but not yet watched "Lincoln") and then we walked to the music store.  As we walked by the local cell phone store, The Boy put his hands up and actually pressed his hands and face to the store window.  When I asked what he was doing, he said, "You should get me a phone".  I think I said, "um, humm".  His reply?  "They're recycled! So it would be good for the environment and for me!". 

The Life of a Nomad

One of my college housemates, who I also worked with at summer camp for two years, and her family are traveling the country in an RV this fall.  In the spring they plan to travel around Europe.  For the past week they've been in Colorado seeing lots of our mutual friends.  We were lucky enough that they were able to stay at our house for two nights.  The Nomads have 4 children, the oldest at college, a high school freshman, and two younger children who are the same gender and age (within months) as the Ranch children.  Everyone had a great visit--lots of wii competitions, a couple movies,  and not much sleep!

We think we made a good case for moving to Colorado, since "everybody else is" and listened to a good case of why we should sell our worldly goods and travel.

October 2013 reading....

I was a slacker in October, but I did read a couple of good books...here is the full selection with comments and (hopefully) a link to the book on Amazon.  There were only 9 books this month and 4 of them were on CD in the car...hmm.

1.  43 Old Cemetery Road: Hollywood Dead Ahead by Kate Klise.  Written for pre-teens, took about an hour to read.  It is number 4 (5?) in a series that The Girl started a couple years ago and never finished, but I became fascinated with...so I read each new one each October.  Worth the read, especially if you've read the others.

2, 3, 4, 5....  The 39 Clues, by various authors.  So the link here will actually take you to the 39 Clues website.  Whoever came up with this series was a genius--several young adult authors write the series and have managed to make it flow despite their different writing styles.  The reader for the audio addition is actually quite good--not as good as Jim Dale, mind you, but who is?  Follows two children on an international "clue hunt" as they try to figure out how to beat all their (crazy?) relatives to a treasure. A good "read" for in the car with the kids!

6.  United We Spy by Ally Carter  The long awaited 6th book in the Gallagher Girls series.  These are young adult novels about a group of girls who attend a boarding school and have a secret.  No, they're not vampires.  I loved books 1-3, 4 was ok, 5 made me seriously wonder what was up...this one was great--a satisfactory ending to the series, left it open in case she ever wants to write more, but tied things up well enough if she doesn't.  The Girl owns books 1-5, probably will receive this one for Christmas, if I remember to order it.  Then I just have to get her to read them.  Sigh. There is also allegedly a Disney movie deal in the works...we'll see if they can get it done and do the books justice.

7.  Al Capone Does My Homework by Jennifer Choldenko  I think this is the 3rd book in this series--again written as a middle school age novel--are you sensing a theme to my reading lately?  If you know the other books, this one is much the same--the children of the Alcatraz staff find a mystery and try to solve it with the "help" of the convicts, all set in 1930's Alcatraz.

8.  The Whole Enchilada by Diane Mott Davidson You may (or may not) remember my night out to hear Mrs. Davidson speak (you can read it here if you missed it).  This is the millionth (ok, maybe only 10th?  15th?) book in a series about a caterer in a fictional Colorado town who solves mysteries.  Always reminds me of the old tv show "Murder She Wrote"...I mean, every time this caterer does an event someone dies..um, I wouldn't hire her, would you?  It does make fun reading though.  This book didn't disappoint.  I was worried that I would feel like I was lost, since I haven't read the middle 5 (10?) books, but I was able to pick up and understand.  The ending was a bit odd, but not disappointing, just wondering where she is going to go next or if this is meant to be the last book.  I guess we'll see.

9.  In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez  A fictionalized account of the lives of the Mirabel sisters, who fought against the 1950's dictator in the Dominican Republic.A link to the museum honoring the real sisters can be found here.  I'm looking for more about this family, maybe biography vs. fiction, but this was a very good read, I enjoyed it as much as one can enjoy a book about a revolution.

There you have it...October's reading.  Stay tuned ..in November I'll fill you in on the long awaited "Revealed"....

Indy, the uncooperative dog

For several years, Indy Dog has slept in an arm chair in our bedroom at night.  No, we didn't set out to "let" her sleep on the furniture, but it happened and she is old, (14 next spring), so we just let it go.  A couple weeks ago we noticed that she was struggling to get into her chair each night, so we decided that maybe replacing the chair with a dog bed of similar size and shape would be nice for her.  I was on fall break a couple weeks ago and was wandering through Walmart and came across a dog bed that not only seemed the right size, but wasn't ridiculously expensive...Ironically ,Walmart is where we bought a cat bed for MJ the cat several years ago.  That bed now lives at my parents house for Nicci the dog...anyway, back to Indy.
I bought the bed and brought it home.  I dropped it in the family room while I did other things--figuring I'd take it upstairs later.  Indy was not impressed so I picked her up and tucked her into it...

 She looks comfy here, right?

 Ok, not so much here...she is getting up to leave..

















So I left the bed and went in the other room...when I came back I found Liberty "in" the bed...um, no, this isn't really working....

 I chased Lib out of the bed...and, hello, here comes Tigger...Are you kidding me?














And finally, my favorite...The Boy trying to show Indy how to use the bed--it caused flashbacks to when my brother tried to teach his dog to jump through a hula hoop..




The dog bed is in our bedroom now and a couple nights Indy has humored us by lying near or half in it...we'll see what she thinks when it gets colder.  Or maybe we'll just let The Boy use it.  Whatever.

A little home decorating chaos

When I was a kid we always thought it was somewhat ironic that my dad knocked a wall out between the kitchen and the living room and because of "life" it stayed that way for weeks (months?).

Mr. Ranch and I have been discussing buying a new tv for months, but I keep procrastinating because it will require new furniture in the living room and, well, not only do I like my furniture, I don't want to move it.  It is really heavy.

So last Saturday, with Life Group scheduled for Sunday afternoon and a college roommate and her family scheduled to arrive later in the week...we decided to start this project.  I took The Girl to a babysitting class at 8:00, and when I got home, this was the scene in the living room.  Hmm...guess we're really doing this.

With my inept "help", Mr. Ranch was able to get the old entertainment center upstairs to the bonus room, where The Boy and I filled it with games and other stuff (leaving room for the "old" tv and the components).  We also hauled up the side cabinets and were able to do some sorting and cleaning--this room even looks bigger!

After all that hauling, we went to IKEA...an event worthy of it's own blog post...but not happening today....and picked up the new furniture.  And had lunch.  Mmmm...meatballs.  Meanwhile, downstairs...all 10,000 DVD's were on the dining room table

and Alice the Cat enjoyed rummaging through the boxes.

Now the really good news is that I was able to move all the games from the downstairs hall closet to either the "Goodwill box" or to the cabinets upstairs... so our hall closet is now company worthy. 

And the really good news, according to Mr. Ranch, is that the furniture assembled really easily...here it is half done....

And finished!  According to Mr. Ranch's dad, it really opens up the room...I'm warming up to it...there is a lot of glass and a dog with a crazy tail..so far, so good though.  The old tv looks tiny..the new one allegedly will be here sometime in the next week or so.

In other news, the upstairs now has a "reading nook" as the children call it--with that adorable chair from the Halloween post.  You know, that chair that The Boy still wedges himself into, despite it being made for infants..Yep, that chair..

The good news is that everything was put together and put away before Life Group, although our group members said, "We wouldn't have minded" (My answer?  "We'd have to meet on the front porch...")

Stay tuned for our next project..The Christmas tree (but not until after The Boy's birthday!)

Veteran's Day

I really want to write a post about Veteran's Day but I'm not quite sure where I'm going to go with it...so I guess we'll see..

I did a quick google search for inspiration and came across this post Freedom is not Free by Robert Longley on Ask.com.  He begins the article with a quote attributed to George W. Bush:

"We must remember that many who served in our military never lived to be called veterans. We must remember many had their lives changed forever by experiences or the injuries of combat. All veterans are examples of service and citizenship for every American to remember and to follow." 

I like the idea that Veteran's Day can be to not only to honor our living Veterans, but also a day to remember those who didn't have the opportunity to be called a veteran.

This is my Uncle John, my Mother's younger brother.  I never had the chance to meet him, but he was "the favorite uncle" of my cousins' childhood stories.  The adults didn't talk about him much, but a copy of this photo hung in my grandparents' living room and now hangs at my aunt's house.

In 1994, my mom called me to say that a building at Fort Gordon was being dedicated and named after my Uncle.  This was the first time I heard stories about his "Army life". The information at the building dedication included this excerpt:

 John Darling received his commission as a 2nd Lt. in the U.S Army Signal Corps upon graduation from West Point, USMA in 1968. He was assigned to service in Vietnam in 1969 and was present during a combat assault on an abandoned Fire Support Base Ripcord. The firebase came under intense hostile mortar fire and his Battalion's Tactical Operations Center received a direct hit, wounding the Executive Officer and several other men. Lt. Darling immediately assumed command then administered first aid to the casualties. Braving the impacting rounds, he carried a wounded man to the medical evac helocopter, then returned to the command post to direct armed helicopter support of the Extraction Operation. For his gallatry, he was awarded the Silver Star. Less than two months later, on 18 May 1970, 1st Lt. Darling was killed in action. He died a hero's death when, on the eve of his rest and relaxation leave, his helicopter was shot down as he voluntarily returned to a Fire Support Base that was under attack. 1st Lt. Darlings numerous awards include the Silver Star, Bronze Star, Purple Heart, Army commendation Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, Vietnam Campaign Medal, Parachutist Badge, and the Ranger Tab.

The family legend continues that the officer in charge of naming the building at Fort Gordon was one of the men rescued in the first incident mentioned.  The officer essentially ended his own military career by choosing my Uncle instead of a more well known hero to name the building after.  It was only when I read the story of his "Army history", that I really understood what kind of person Uncle John was.  He was more than my cousin's favorite uncle, he was an example of everything an American soldier is supposed to be. An ordinary man who chose to go beyond the expected, to make a difference, to ultimately lose his own life trying to help someone else. On The Virtual Wall website, as well as other "wall" sites, there are some lovely tributes from friends of his if you'd like to read more about him.

Many years Veteran's Day slips by--just another "almost holiday" between Halloween and Thanksgiving. Let's change that this year--at least in whatever small ways we can. Join me today in thanking the veterans who are with us and remembering those who are never had the opportunity to be called a veteran.

A present for myself!

When we registered for wedding gifts a million years ago, Mr. Ranch tried to talk me into registering for a stand mixer.  I said, "no, no...I have hand mixer, it was my mom's, it's fine, works fine...we can always get a stand mixer in a couple years when we have counter space."
Well, almost 19 years later, the hand mixer needed a lot of attention to work correctly--I actually had to hold the cord in place at exactly the right angle or it wouldn't work.  After using for several projects the week of The Girl's confirmation, I gave in...and replaced my hand mixer

 (Good-bye, circa 1975 hand mixer).....

And hello new hand mixer!!!!

Some how I don't think that this $5.99 lightweight replacement will be passed down to The Girl when she goes to college, like my old friend above, but at least I probably won't electrocute myself using it!

Oh, and I still don't have a stand mixer...no counter space, you know...

Cross Country

Cross country  9/13, 9/24\

So as I write this, Cross Country season for The Girl is long over (and will be even more over by the time this post goes live), but I didn't get to it, so here we go...

One of the only fall sports for middle school girls is cross country, at least at school-The Girl isn't necessarily a fan of running, but her dad is, so she gave it a try last year.  Last year went well, so she gave it another try.  Again this year, most of the meets were sunny and seasonably warm--a fun afternoon for everyone to hang out and enjoy fall.

 Although The Boy isn't always thrilled...oh well...

 The Girl is in there somewhere...getting ready to run!

 There they go!

 There she goes!

 The Boy and I enjoy some fall weather...












The Girl's times became progressively better as the season went on--ending the season at between 8 and 8:30 miles..not bad for a child who is bitsy :)

Potatoes in a bucket, potatoes in a bucket...

Our last harvest was actually a month ago, right after the first frost.  The last things to come in were some small green tomatoes (which have slowly turned red and been eaten by the boy 1 at a time), some jalapenos (kind of frost bitten, so they were frozen whole), carrots, and the (in)famous potatoes in a bucket.  (link to youtube video...enjoy).

 The two buckets on the right are the potato buckets, the tops are wilted because of the first frost--so it is time to harvest!!!

 Here is one of the buckets, dumped out and ready to get all my potatoes!

 Hmm...this is all we got from both buckets.  Potatoes in a bucket?  Fail...but the ones we got were tasty :)

 Poor little jalapenos...they do have a future in chili, though...

Check out all those carrots, though!  Surely we'll have a lot of  carrots!

Well, yes, we do have a lot of short, fat carrots...which are now in an open bag in the bottom of the fridge...waiting for me to make lots of meals that use carrots.


Good-bye outdoor garden...I'll be over-caring for the pot of basil, the ivy, the cacti, and the aloe plant inside until spring....