Odd Times

Such an odd and perplexing day. I am thankful for our new puppy Layla, she is bringing some giggles and entertainment in a tense time. Here is what I did today:

Kept the dog and the music down low as Hubs was on the phone with 6 different people in offices asking him detailed questions about our work history, current expenses, life style and bank accounts. We are 2 months away from being out of savings to pay our house payment. He makes exactly $300 more a month than our house pmt. We've survived so far by slowly pulling from savings but it will be gone in March. Crazy times.

Here's the crazy part.....The agencies could help, but only when we have missed at least 2 house payments! Hubs has been an uber responsible and honest to a fault man all his life. Especially regarding money and never missing or being late on paying what he owes. To wait until we default on our house pmt simply does not fit in his brain or character.

But that does not count in his favor at all.

We are thankful that we have no debt or credit card bills. Like I said, we are careful, and living on ministry income makes you want to do the right thing with every penny. We have. But we also did not set up a retirement plan at all. Don't know what we were thinking. Naive and sure that we would be happily ministering to people for all of our days until death. But ministry does not equal $$. Like I said, we were not thinking.

One agency suggested we refinance our home. Another call was made, this time a conference call between agency man and house loan people. Ironically we do not qualify for a refi because we do not make enough $$.

Aargh!

Sorry for dumping this on you kind readers. There is nothing you can or should do, but you already have. You have been a place I could talk about my day. My very strange and perplexing day.

Thank you.

One Conversation

One conversation can bring healing to the hurting heart.
Speaking words aloud that have been swirling in our heads for months.
My stomach was turning flip-flops as we drove to the little Tai restaurant.
If it was going to be all small-talk I was determined to move it to big talk!
It is way overdue. No one's fault.
Everyone's fault.

One hour moved into more than two hours.
With eyes brimming they said that no harm was meant,
and told us of the behind-the-scenes happenings
that were happening.

With eyes equally full we said that we knew that.
We had never stopped 'believing the best' about them.
Underneath the surface junk, we knew the hearts and
we never doubted.

Well, yes, we did doubt and we did stick our
little toes into the tempting pool of
bitterness.
But we hated how it felt and quickly
stepped away.

But oh, the freedom to look across that little
shiny black table and smile into loving eyes.
To give forgiveness and accept forgiveness.
So sweet, take a deep breath and let the shoulders fall.

One talk, one conversation.
So powerful and so releasing.
Thank you Father.

Even the Photo Is Creeping Me Out!

We have an unwanted and uninvited guest in our home. And I am not happy about it! Mr. Mouse made his scurrying little appearance a week ago and had me run screaming from the living room couch back to Hubs in the bedroom with a book. He came to my rescue but could not find Mr. Mouse by the time he got there.

I saw the mouse go from under the stove (eeww!) just a couple of feet to the cupboard under the sink. Hubs hypothesized that there is a hole from the cupboard to the outside and the mouse ran back outside in fright from my screamings. I agreed with Hub's theory because it made me feel better. After all, I had to stand in that very spot several times every day at my kitchen sink!

As it happens, Mr. Mouse has not left the building. Again I am on the couch late at night alone and I saw Mr. Mouse run from stove to cupboard. After two more nights of this, the scary part is that I do not even scream! I jump a bit, that's it. That is just WRONG!

We set out some sticky paper traps. They did no good at all, he just goes around them I guess. So today we bought those awful and deadly classic mouse traps and placed them in the path that he takes. Now I am sitting here jumping at every sharp sound! Is that it? Do I want to look? No. 

It is MY kitchen, I feel violated by this ugly scurrying little creep! Makes me shudder just to think of it. I am suddenly realizing that dear old grouchy Tony the cat actually DID do something around here for us, may he rest in peace.

DOH! I posted this & totally left out the funny part that inspired me to write about it in the first place!.....


After Hubs had carefully (because there is no other way!) set the traps with tiny bits of cheese and a dab of peanut butter under the sink, I was cleaning up our dinner. Hubs watched as I wiped the counters and scraped a bunch of yucky shredded cheese into the garbage can and closed the cupboard door.

He then gently said, "Honey WHY in the world would a mouse try to get a teeny bit of cheese off a trap if there is an entire feast of it for free right next to it in the garbage can?"

Oops!

Ok, that's better. 

He Did What?

Today I am going to continue on my theme of being real, but don't worry, it's not in a "What am I doing here anyway?" kind of  thing. I guess if I had to find a category for today's post it would fall under, "Dumb Stuff Hubs Does". 


I know, you thought he was perfect didn't you? Many of my posts may have inadvertently led you to that picture in your mind. This , this and especially this could definitely have created a picture of a husband so perfect that you wondered if we could set up a trade of some sort.

Well, my dear blog-friends, in the spirit of all honesty and forth-rightness (great word huh?) I am giving you a peek behind the curtain so to speak, and I am even including pictorial proof to go along with full disclosure.

Whenever someone writes or speaks about the little pet peeves that wives have about their husbands they always mention the two main items of frustration.

1 - Leaving sox on the floor.
2 - Leaving the toilet lid/ring up.

Often a close 3rd bug-a-boo is installing the toilet paper going the wrong way.

Hubs has taken this a few steps further, leading me into many grumbly moments in the bathroom which ought to be a place of rest and tranquility, right?

He hates replacing the toilet paper on the TP dispenser. So I used to find the new roll placed on top of the hanger as shown here....

That drove me crazy but not nearly as crazy as the newest version of "I'm not gonna do it..."! You are not going to believe this little trick........He has been reaching into the storage drawer and getting paper from the next roll and then putting the roll right back in the cupboard. All the while leaving the half finished roll on the hanger!!!

How sneaky can you get? I was amazed and tried to give him the benefit of the doubt by not confronting him about it at first. But he told on himself a few weeks ago. 

Believe it or not he felt bad about just placing the roll on top of the dispenser when it was mentioned in a joking way at church one Sunday morning. The speaker was talking about annoying habits that married people have to work through. So Hubs sheepishly apologized to me for it. My response?.....I said,

"Well, at least that was less creepy

and lazy than using a new roll out of the drawer

and replacing it back in the drawer!"

Talk about looking embarrassed! He really felt dumb then. And that is the goal of every wife isn't it? Sunday sermons are known for making people feel guilty, ours is usually not like that at all, but this one time, I was totally happy to see some TRANSFORMATION in my marriage! Ha!

Now, Hubs comes out of the bathroom and wants applause for replacing the toilet paper on the dispenser. OY!

As Real As I Know How to Be.....

Anyway, welcome to my observations on life.

 Somewhat witty, heartwarming 

&

 always as real as I know how to be.

The words you see above are from my sidebar, making you a promise that I intend to keep. You really are an anonymous unknown collection of people who I will most likely never see in "real life". That is not to say that I don't care about you and your lives, I do. I know some of your back stories and have even been known to stop and chat with God about your troubles and problems. But the majority of you are strangers so I should be able to be "as real as I know how to be" here on this blogspace of mine.

Even so, I hesitate to tell you about my recent struggles and I am asking myself why I hold that back from you. As a Christian I think there are still some ugly pieces of my old "cocoon" hanging on and causing me to hide my questions and doubts from you. There is an old mind set that I must PROTECT GOD'S REPUTATION. Ha! That's hilarious really! As if He needs me to help Him with His PR (Public Relations)!

I am going through a tough time. Normally I would wait until I came through the tough time to tell you about how I came out the other side and all is well with my soul, so to speak. We people of faith tend to shy away from admitting that we still have questions, worries and doubts. 

I know about and practice (and even teach) the gift of choosing our thoughts and keeping them positive. It is one of my main teachings in fact! It isn't just a christian "glad game". I believe that we are the masters of our minds and we can choose to wallow in the muck or get up and keep walking. But that does not mean I am willing to pretend to be happy when I am struggling. 

Ironically, the very reason I feel free to share my wonderings with you today is that I know that I know that I know, that my God is good. I do not doubt Him. I am not worried that tomorrow I will lose my salvation and decide to become a hooker to make some money for us. (Ha! Too many funny one liners popping up right now, must refocus! )  

But I am wondering why He is being so very quiet right now. Hubs and I shared a  ministry job for ten years and it ended unexpectedly about 11 months ago. We are now living on 1/3 of that salary. There are many complicated friendship intricacies involved, too much to go into here, but mainly we are in a place of "what now?" and IT IS NOT FUN!

God and I have been more than friends for over 40 years so I have no doubt that there will be an end to this yucky season and I will be able to look back and see what it was about. I can say that because we have a history together and I simply know it will be alright.

But dang it, I am not used to it taking this long!! I am asking Him if I am missing some important clue, is there a step that I missed or a turn I did not take? 

For the first time in my life, the idea of going away and living the life of a hermit sounds really good and comfy cosy. Today on our bike Hubs slowed down enough to say, "Hey how about we sell all we have and just travel for a couple years then come back and let the kids take care of us?"  I told him that I never thought I would agree to such a plan, but it sounds perfect right now! 

We are using up our savings and even the small income we do have will be ending in June. C'mon God, any time now would be great! I know You well enough to trust You, so the panic has not taken over, but it would be oh so lovely to hear a little something to hang on to right about now.......

TMI

I attended a delightful wine country wedding yesterday. Two of our former students tied the knot next to a wonderful shimmering pond. We laughed a lot with close friends during the reception and enjoyed some great Philippine food.

As always the wedding of former students became a fun and emotional school reunion! I just love seeing so many of our students together to celebrate the joy of finding a mate. Especially when the mate is also a former student! Hubs and I are cupids I guess! We take all the credit as long as the marriages work out great.

This event also answered a burning question I have had.

When you wear spanx, like you see pictured here....where does the fat go? If it pulls you in to make you look more slender, then where does the extra flesh go?

I found the answer.....it all becomes Back Fat! You basically just move the muffin top up to the bra line in back. It's a lovely feeling and even lovelier to see in the mirror when you are out with friends.

Probably Gonna Regret Writing This....(Updated)

I am at a loss.

See that lady up there? That is pretty much how my day began

and it has only gone down from there!

I know!

I am the Miss Pollyanna,

play the 'Glad Game' lady,

usually.

Today....

• I learned Hubs & I will be making a third of last years income.
• Sat in a meeting ABOUT another meeting.
• Asked a question at the meeting & was shocked it had not been figured out yet!
• I spoke sharply to the sweetest young man ever (my son's best friend!) as he tried to get my office computer to connect with the printer. (Been trying to get it fixed for three weeks!)
• Have company coming to my house tonight for the first time in years!(other than family. I know, it's a long story.)

• Got a call 5 minutes ago from co-worker. They want me to change up the forms they created for this new school.
• Deadline? Tuesday next!
• Just got an email from the eZine that I submitted a devotional to. They say no thanks but keep submitting.
• But they did not tell me what was wrong with the one I already sent them!

God, help me!

Seriously.

______________________________

Ok, my company just left and I wanted to add an update.

So I opened my Mac & here are your amazingly wonderful

and loving comments!!

Wow, you guys are the best!

Thank you so much. I feel very cared for!

AND the update is.....

We had the greatest evening!

Our company was the new Interns that have been assigned to us

in our new job.

One is a single girl and the other is married. So we had the married couple and

the single girl over for snacks.

All three of them are FORMER STUDENTS of ours!

Can you see where this is going?

Oh how wonderful to sit and laugh and share school stories,

hear their hearts and their desires and goals!

To now being working WITH them is a total joy

& a brand new experience for us.

They are so excited and happy to be able to spend time with us.

wow!

Ahem....Thanx God!

And thanx for my Bloggy friends!

AAACK!!

Only six weeks

till Writer Son's

wedding!!

I really, really do not

want to hate the wedding pictures

for the rest of my life!

Just realized as I look at what

I have written.....

My FOCUS

is very screwed up!!

OY!

ARGH! Dress Shopping!

Over 40 Friday Follow!

I thought that I would enjoy the

dress shopping process.

My normal uniform is jeans and nice tops

If we go out I dress up by wearing

better pants and higher heals.

As a Mother of the Groom in October

I don't think pants are going to work

I know that,

and I was looking forward to getting dressed up

for a change.

But I still don't know HOW dressy to get

for a casual outdoor wedding.

In the woods and trees kind of outdoor,

not a manicured lawn or garden.

Long dress or knee length dress?

I just found out he Mother of the Bride

is going with the short style.

So I will try to do that.

But I am overweight and the

dressingroom

mirrors are making me very unhappy!

And again I say

ARGH!

(Yes, I added "Menopause" as a subject label because my weight has nothing to do with eating junk and forgetting to exercise!)

OK, Next Day....Just did a full hour of yoga and high - low aerobics...take that, unsightly flab!!

Wishing I Hadn't Read That!

ROCKER SON'S FACEBOOK STATUS last night......

"I just got paid 100 dollars to jump in a pool butt naked. Unfortunately the wind picked up and threw my boxers in the pool."

Oh Lord! Wise mothers do NOT Friend their adult (?) sons on Facebook.

Ah, The Sound Of Jackhammers in the Morning.....

It's a gorgeous Saturday, about 8:40 in the morning and my wake-up call ten minutes ago brought back memories of a sound I never thought I would ever hear again so close to my house and so very early on a Saturday morning!

The horrendous sound is still vibrating though my house as I sit here in the living room with my coffee and wishing I lived way out in the country or the beachside or the desert. The sound is JACKHAMMERS pounding into cement! Yah, nice way to wake up isn't it?

Remember the post I did recently about the noisy neighbor kids screaming in their swimming pool? Well, the weather lady on the news last night said that we will be entering the triple digits in the next few days, but I guess my next door people did not see that report because they are removing their pool!

How do you remove a "cement pond"? You tear it up into small pieces, haul those pieces away and fill in the huge hole with dirt. That fill-in dirt is what I am looking at outside my living room window right now. It is in 2 large dump trucks, all ready to go into the neighbors yard. But first..........

they have to JACKHAMMER the thing to tiny movable pieces! O man, that sound!!

Who would have thought I would be enduring such a crazy sound so very close to my bed, more than once? How many people are lucky enough to be awakened by men destroying cement, which by the way, was designed to last forever and stay exactly where it was put....forever!

My flashback is taking me back to the days when we lived in a tiny house (parsonage, for those who know what that is) right next to the tiny church we were pastoring. The backyard fence was simply large sections of chicken wire and wobbly wood posts. On the other side of the fence was a large cement company and up against the rickety fence was the spot where the cement trucks were cleaned out.

What could be so bad about the place where they washed their trucks, you ask? I will answer with another question? Have you ever wondered what would happen if a cement truck got delayed or the turning cement barrel stopped turning on the back of the truck? Yah....the cement hardens inside the truck. How in the world do you get hardened cement out of a cement truck?...........

Some poor guy has to go inside the huge barrel of the truck and JACKHAMMER it out........early in the morning!! Right next to my bedroom window! Good times.

So here I am, 15 years later, listening to my dishes vibrate in the cupboard. Actually my dishes are just sitting there peacefully, just sounded more dramatic that way.

It really is sad actually. I have wanted a swimming pool my whole life. I am not sure why my neighbors are removing theirs. I know that a built-in swimming pool is a lot of work and it may have been damaged or not cared for in the past. My neighbors are new here so I have no idea how the pool looked when they arrived, but they have been using it as I complained about in a previous post. Now I feel sad for the kids and the hot, hot days ahead here in the Sacramento area of California.

But 8 0'clock in the morning?

Not Good!!!

Oh man oh man......

today I caught myself resting

my coffee cup

on my belly...

and I was sitting up!!

If I were lying down

that would be fine.

I WAS SITTING UP!

Clearly it is time for...

and...

Confused

Want to hear something that's "really messed up" as my students would say?

Rocker Son is the only employed person in our family right now!

Yah, the son I told you about here, who lives in a nearly condemned house with 5 other guys!

That one.

That's just messed up.

Weighing In.....

I have heard that looking at pictures of yourself at your ideal weight

can inspire you to get here again.

I don't know....just kinda depresses me actually!

Of course I was only a teenager in that photo.

But still......wow!

And I had absolutely no idea!

But I found another picture online that helps a bit......

Will Power vs Won't Power

By the way people, my wonderful and oh-so-cocky declaration a while ago is NOT happening at all! I boldly made the declaration that I would always "Move First, Then Blog" in preparation for being the Mother of the Groom for the first time in a FEW (VERY FEW!) months.

For some reason, my WILL power is strongly showing itself more prominently in the ability to stay seated as long a possible each evening. I think I may be about to break some records! Does this sound familiar?.....

"Really, really need to pee. I'll just check one more blog first."

"Oh man, my legs are so stiff, it's hard to stand up!"

"My coffee is cold, maybe I could rig up a way to set the coffee pot up next to my writing chair?"

"The oven timer is buzzing....maybe Hubs will get it?"

"My cell is ringing.......it's just my Mom, I'll call her later."

"Just. One. More. Site."

I even took a "Before" photo of myself so I could show you how much I transformed myself in time for the wedding in October. Well, I HAVE changed.....I am bigger!!! Oh Lord!!

Twelve Year Old Adults

This post is dedicated to and inspired by Diva over at Bipolar Diva. Diva was recently departing from her usual upbeat style postings to rant a bit, OK a lot, about dealing with her twenty-something kid and how hard it is to parent an "adult". As I commented her I did that annoying thing where the commenter tells you about their own bad experience rather than really helping you in any way!

Anyway, those of you with adorable little boys and girls that do and say the darndest things; you may want to avert your eyes and go to the next intriguing blog because what I am about to share will be a real bubble burster! You have been warned!

I have two wonderful sons. I love them more than words can say, really. My youngest is Rocker Son and he is 23 years old. (Physically). I remember a conversation many years ago as I was driving him to school one morning. He was maybe 5th or 6th grade. As I look back on the question now, I realize that it was a grim pre-curser of things to come. (Young Moms, as I said, you've been warned. If you continue reading you will listen with a bit more fear to your young one's questions from now on!)

We must have had a tough morning with the ongoing battle of getting one's self clean. With all sincerity he asked,

"But why do we have to be clean?"

Me- "Because everyone knows we are supposed to be clean. It's called being civilized. Even animals clean themselves."

Rocker Son - "But who decided that? Why do we all have to do something just because everyone else is doing it? (Isn't that supposed to be my line?) Can't we all be free to decide for ourselves?"

Okay, I dismissed such revolutionary talk and attributed it to being a 12 year old boy. I figured it was a phase that would go away as he grew older and matured into young manhood. I'm still waiting.

He moved out during Christmas week. I was glad to get into his extremely dirty room and reclaim it. Now I would no longer need to lock his door when my mother or company came over. Rocker Son moved into a very old house on the other side of our small town, sharing it with 4 friends his age. I have not been inside and most likely never will. When he moved out I bought him new sheets, towels, kitchen stuff etc, thinking it would be nice for them to start out with good things. Ha!

The stories I am now hearing about their house are literal horror stories! Apparently the landlord was this really cool, easy-going guy who didn't even ask for a deposit or references! Their stove has never worked, there are broken windows and serious plumbing problems. The heat & air conditioning do not work. The bathtub recently backed up with waste water and his direction to the guys was to redirect the sewage out to the backyard!!!

They did!! And thought it was funny! In case you are thinking that the roommates are complaining or ticked off about any of this.....they are not. They think it is hilarious and that it makes it a great place to live. No worries or nagging Moms to make them put garbage IN a garbage can. No one bugging them to mow the yard...it's full of 'you know what' anyway!!

Freedom! Freedom to be a slob. To get your stuff ruined by guests or chewed up by the bulldog they got two weeks ago! Why doesn't the heater work?, I asked. The answer? "One day we were playing baseball in the living room and the ball hit the thermostat on the wall." ???????

I think they are all still 12 years old!!

Yesterday on Facebook I read that a neighbor has reported them and the house may be condemned. I feel so proud.

Mixed Emotions

How do you deal with totally conflicting emotions that absolutely must be expressed at the same time? These two pictures express my thoughts today.....except for one thing....

the thumbs down photo should be as large as the thumbs up....or even larger!

I have hinted at a job situation in the works and all will be revealed this next week so here goes. The ministry school that Hubs & I founded 9 years ago & love with all our hearts is ending this year. The last week of May we will graduate our last group of students. The doors are closing.

We could never get it to grow beyond about 40 students. Most years it was more like 25 students with us 4 days a week for 9 months. We know God loves the school & has made Himself evident in it day after day. But it is time to let go of what is in our hands in order to make room for something even better. At least that is how I am able to wrap my mind around ending the school.

We are not numbers people. One year we still ran the school even though we only had 8 students! But economically it does not make sense to continue to use our church's building & resources without bigger numbers. And we do need an income to live!

Okay, so that's the thumbs down side of things. This week we will announce to the school and its alumni that this is the last year. I am & have been seriously grieving this ending of our dream job. I am realizing that I have been allowing my job to be my identity. A huge no-no, but c'mon....when you totally love what you do & give your all to it....it becomes a part of who you are! Because the job came out of who you are!! So this will be a tough few months ahead.

So, our church is starting a brand new ministry school with a different style & more variety of curriculum, run by our very good friends. They have asked us to come on board & help them on a daily basis. We will be paid if they can get a large number of students. I have been asked to oversee their Facebook page & other online websites, besides being a small group leader who will mentor & advise students. (Just like I did in our school.) For this, I am supposed to be expressing loud & enthusiastic thumbs up.

But my heart is still grieving. And my pride is seriously injured. My thumb is really wanting to be pointing downward but in public & online it must be up up up! ( So very thankful, once again, that this blog is unknown to all the people in my life!) I do know that my God is very good & very generous with me, so there will be a good side to all of this. There always is! I am 55 & have been close friends with God for most of those years. we have a history together.

In the past, when situations came up that devastated me/us, we were always able months later to look back & say, "Wow, if that had not happened then we would not be in this amazing spot right now!" Some of those biggies had to do with job changes too! So my deep down truth is that this will all be okay.....but today it hurts....and God does not expect me to ignore that it hurts. He cares & He is calming me right now as I type these words out to you.

In the months ahead you will most likely be reading about our new adventures in the new school. And I will be thankful for the change. I will be rejoicing in the disruption of my safe path. Because safe is not always the very best is it?

Thanx, I feel better now.

Exercise Is Good, Exercise Is Good, Exercise Is Good.......

Oh Boat Posture, how I

love/hate you!!

&

¡ʎʞɔıɹʇ ƃuıƃƃoןq sǝʞɐɯ ʎןןɐǝɹ ƃop pɹɐʍuʍop

Good-Bye Oinker

This morning I did not allow myself to open my Mac until I had done some yoga stretches for 20 minutes. That's right, I am bribing myself with laptop time to get myself to exercise. It is seriously time to get rid of my extra poundage that makes me feel like a flying piggie rather than a flying butterfly!

An important deadline is usually a good motivation for me and I have a doozy coming up in a few months. Writer Son is getting married on 10/10/10 !! (Fun wedding date huh?) Wedding photos that last forever! Pictures that are passed around and sent sailing through the internet to who knows how many people! Meeting my son's new inlaws.....and photos, photos, photos!!

Can you hear the panic in my voice? Not so long ago I was a faithful exerciser, but this Mac, (yes, I am blaming an inanimate object!) has really thrown me off course. My free time after work used to be full of a variety of things.....cleaning, reading, walking, yoga & exercise bike. But now, it's all about the Mac & Face Book & you ,my bloggy friends. (Ok, now I am actually blaming you! Pretty low right?)

So yes, I am going to try to move this body around a bit after work each day before coming to visit you all. Getting up earlier does not make sense because I am already getting up at 6am in order to be at work by 7:30 and I am often home by 3 in the afternoon, so there is time after work. I just don't usually feel like doing anything but sitting after a busy work day full of people. Unfortunately, when I sit down to visit the internet I often stay there for hours! It is often work stuff on my laptop at first, letters to interested students etc. But then it is so dang easy to slip on over to FB or blogger and tada...it is 3 hours later!

Today I began getting back into shape by just doing a bunch of stretches so I won't hurt myself. Tomorrow I'll get back to the basic moves and push myself more everyday, including getting back on my exercise bike. I do not have a scale but my jeans & the mirror do a great job of condemning me into realizing that I'm in trouble.

Does my confessing this all to you help me? We will see........

ps ......I googled "Fat people" while looking for a picture for this post........Do not ever do that ok? Not good....very bad images are now in my head!!

They are Baaaaack!!

It is holiday yard decorating time again. No, not cute little christmas wreaths & fake snowmen. In my neighborhood it's all about how creepy you can get for Halloween. And to make it even awfull-er looking they are using a bunch of plastic inflatables this year!!!

I so hate those things! Way back last December I wrote about the "Santa Graveyard". My rant was regarding all those blow-up Santas, elves, cartoon people etc in so many yards around me. Not only are they ugly when blown-up, but every single morning they are flat & it looked like I was driving past huge Santa Cemeteries every morning!

This week my neighbors erected about 6 huge monsters & creatures all over their yard. Then we had a crazy wild wind storm & they got shredded & I thought that would be the end of it, but today they are back again! I guess I am a Halloween Grinch if there is such a thing, I wouldn't want to be the parent of small kiddies now when you never know what scary thing is around the corner for the month of October.

Ok I think I am done with my grumbling for now. I doubt if I have an appropriate picture to post because I am on MY NEW MACBOOK!! Yep, I am loving it & do not regret changing one bit! I haven't uploaded many pics but I'll go take a look now before I post this amazing piece of literature................Oh! There you go, I found that adorable little dancing skeleton, I'm surprised the neighbors don't have him in their yard too!