Good Morning

Putter Rooster woke me up with the "Buddy Wake Up Game" this morning at 6:02. For those of you who are not familiar with that particular game, it goes like this:

The Peep wakes up and calls out, "Mommy, I'm still asleep. Come wake me up!"

Then I go into her messy messy messy room and find two stuffed animals, buddies, to play with to "wake her up."

The buddies say things like, "We can't get her to wake up," and "it's a school day today, I hope I get to be the sleeping time buddy!"

Eventually the Peep gets up and we start the day.

Putter's version involves rolling around on the bed on her back scratching off all of the shedding fur onto our white blanket and sneezing a lot.

Man kids are fun.

10 things...

Where is the cold coming from??? Yikes!!

10 things to be happy about:

1. the beach
2. a beach towel
3. coconut scented tanning lotion
4. Miami Vices by the pool
5. G & T by the pool
6. a warm pool
7. new shades
8. a convertible
9. lying on a hammock in the shade of a palm tree
10. birds of paradise in the flower beds

Whew. Where have I been?

So sorry for the LONG delay in posting. We have been having loads of fun in the Big City and I have not taken the time to let you know all about it.

Let me see... The Peep turned 5 as I mentioned and we have a wonderful party which was recorded for posterity by my wonderful friend Allie Cat after my camera died a horrible death during the first five minutes of the party. Here you see the Peep and a few friends with the stars of the party a couple three of the cheerleaders from the nearby college.

Here you see Allie Cat's two boys enjoying hot dogs.

I love those boys!

The very next week was Thanksgiving and in traditional crazy family style we went to the extended family celebration in Central Texas for an afternoon of delicious food and fun with the family. We returned home that evening to our crazy neighbors pyromania leading to a fire in the back yard for smores, hot chocolate and the telling of lies, jokes and stories. The Peep was in rare form by the fire improvising songs about the day, the fire and Christmas.

The Crazy Cat lady and her super nice husband took the Peep to the movies to see Bolt- which Slick and I understand is super funny. The Peep had a wonderful time being a princess for the day with them and it extended into the next day when the Crazy neighbors gave her their birthday gift make over princess style.

Then we hosted lunch for 20 of our most fun family and friends and Busia made 2 delicious turkeys for Thanksgiving Part 2.

The next week Slick whisked me away to Arizona for a few days of much needed R&R including facials and massages for both of us and new bright red toenails for me.

Here you see Slick enjoying dinner one of the nights Fred Flintstone style with what turned out to be the MOST MOST MOST delicious meat I have ever eaten. I would move to Arizona to eat this meat more often. It was that good. And funny.

Just a public service anouncement.

THANKS TO THE CRAZY CAT LADY FOR THE FOLLOWING IMPORTANT INFORMATION AND TO SLICK FOR ALWAYS HAVING THE RECIPE AT THE END ON THE SIDE OF THE REFRIGERATOR.


IMPORTANT HEALTH ADVICE FOR WOMEN
Do you have feelings of inadequacy?
Do you suffer from shyness?
Do you sometimes wish you were more assertive?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, ask your doctor or pharmacist about Margaritas.

Margaritas are the safe, natural way to feel better and more confident about yourself and your actions.

Margaritas can help ease you out of your shyness and let you tell the world that you're ready and willing to do just about anything.

You will notice the benefits of Margaritas almost immediately and with a regimen of regular doses you can overcome any obstacles that prevent you from living the life you want to live.

Shyness and awkwardness will be a thing of the past and you will discover many talents you never knew you had. Stop hiding and start living, with Margaritas.

**Margaritas may not be right for everyone. Women who are pregnant or nursing should not use Margaritas.

However, women who wouldn't mind nursing or becoming pregnant are encouraged to try it.

Side effects may include:
- Dizziness , nausea, vomiting, incarceration
- Erotic lustfulness
- Loss of motor control
- Loss of clothing
- Loss of money
- Loss of virginity
- Table dancing
- Headache
- Dehydration
- Dry mouth
- And a desire to sing Karaoke

WARNING: The consumption of Margaritas may make you think you are whispering when you are not.

WARNING: The consumption of Margaritas may cause you to think you can sing.

WARNING: The consumption of Margaritas may make you think you can logically converse with members of the opposite sex without spitting.

WARNING: The consumption of Margaritas may cause you to tell your friends over and over again that you love them.

Slick's Recipe for Delicious Margaritas:
64 oz limeade
6.5 oz tequila
3.25 oz cointreau

Mix all ingredients in a pretty pitcher. Pour into kosher salt rimmed glasses and repeat.

Have a great thanksgiving week.

Happy Monday!

Time for a Monday Happy List!!!

Peeper on born on day...

This week is the Peep's 5th Birthday so we are pretty birthday'd up here in the big city! She just sang "Happy Birthday to Me" to herself and we took the cupcakes for the class from the oven just a few minutes ago.



Happy List for the week:

1. Homemade cupcakes
2. Bakery cookies just for you
3. Pizza with the class
4. Paul Frank house shoes
5. A front yard birthday party
6. presents! presents! presents!

7. fancy dinner for your birthday

8. Birthday Cake for Breakfast!!
9. party store poppers
10. purple paper plates

Peeper the week of Halloween!

Roller Skating Queen!

The Peep went to Lego's birthday party and had a great time ROLLER SKATING!!

SASSY.

Happy Weekend!!

Happy List for the weekend!!!

1. Halloween Candy!

2. Figuring out the eliptical!

3. Creamy tomato soup!

4. Exclaimation points!

5. being too jazzed to sleep

6. Dairy Queen

7. a clean house

8. the lines a vacuum makes on thr carpet

9. fresh sheets

10. friends visiting

Happy Halloween!!!

Happy Halloween!!!

Error!

Busia called and let me know there were two errors in the Halloween post!!! Aunt Frances's husband's name was George, not Frank as reported.

And the mirror we have above the "bar" is really from Busia's parents house- not from Aunt Frances's house. Though she is pretty sure that all of the sisters: Stella, Frances and Josaphine had the mirrors... I love when all of the sisters have the same things!! Memaw and Big Auntie had several things that they both had- and I think Aunt Iris and Lucille had some of them too and possibly Aunt Velma and Cleo or Queen had some of the "good stuff" too...

I love family names!!!!

Thursday Crazy Thursday

Ten Happy Things- besides it being Halloween Eve- my actual favorite day of the year- because the house is spooky and filled with candy...

1. treating everyone with respect- regardless of who they vote for
2. voting
3. almond tea
4. believing in yourself
5. bake at home pizza
6. dog beds
7. sharp knives
8. the Harry Potter series
9. picnics
10. using the good dishes on non-holidays

Happy Hallowwweeennnn

The Peep and I LOVE LOVE LOVE Halloween! We have been decorating for a couple of weeks; but watching "Martha Stewart's Halloween Special" which aired in 2007 on Fine Living Network for a year. It is sponsored by Krobel. And birth control pills. And the "talk to your kids about sex" campaign. And a winery in California that was giving away a trip for 2 to be winemakers for a day.

Last year.

At any rate- my crazy neighbor loves my mantle and I do too so I thought I'd share a picture.

You can see that it is already a lovely shade of Halloween black so it really needed little adorning.

But you know well enough to know that that did not stop me; I adorned away. And then I took it off and started over and decided to stick with the spooky black understated candles on several footed cake plates and silver and clear glass candlesticks with jet black tapers. I don't think you can see it well, but there is a black garland on the top of the mantle too- you know- like Christmas garland- but in spooky black...

Hope it gets you in the Halloween mood!

The last picture is the top of Slick's bar. It is a lovely piece of black furniture that we keep all of the non-refrigerated adult beverages stored inside. Hanging above it is a 190's mirror that was Slick's Aunt Frances and Uncle Frank's.

I love that mirror.

And in the reflection of the mirror you can catch a glimpse of one of Aunt Frances and Uncle Frank's crystal lamps. They have giant crystals (think Pollyanna) that hang from them but we don't have them on right now... they make the lamp's so heavy I am not sure there is a piece of furniture in the house that could support them!

And by the way- if you live anywhere remotely close to us and can get here by car, this week would be a good one to stop by because Lulu and I are hosting a luncheon on Tuesday and the house looks as good as it ever has... and smells pretty dang good too!

Rain, Rain.

When I was sitting in the carpool line today waiting for the Peep, light rain started falling and I was taken by the fact that I could not remember the last time I had just sat and listened to the rain.

It is a lovely sound falling through the leaves where birds and squirrels are snuggled up together against the dots of cool water. It made a nice pattern on my windshield and was cool and refreshing coming through the air vents.

I hope it comes and goes quickly today so that the tailgate party tomorrow will go off well... in the meantime, let us all take a minute to relax and let the rain fall on us.

Flash

Who in the world can help me regain my Flash Player ability.

I am willing to pay.

Big.

Ten Things

My poker friends just left for the month and while I am still up I thought I'd throw out a 10 things to be happy about list since it was so fun to be with them here at the house in the Big City.

1. Drinking from Waterford glasses for no reason at all
2. friends cooking
3. knowing the rules, and following them
4. loving your friends
5. reunions
6. volunteering for a good cause
7. for fun necklaces
8. warm brownies
9. Tito's
10. the babysitters

Cowgirl Peeper

The Peep and Slick went together to the boot store to get a new pair for the Peep. She still has the fancy boots from last fall, but they are far beyond fitting though she still insists on wearing them around the house from time to time. The last time she got a couple of blisters and the next day she and Slick hit the local boot store together.



They found her a sassy pair of boots and she has taken them off only to sleep since, and even then, she sits them right next to the bed so she can put them on immediately when she wakes up with her gown! And for Zoo school since you have to wear kicks there- and so she has Shocks for those days...



Here she is going to school 2 weeks ago-



and here she is showing off the shoes she was wearing with that dress :)

Memaw's Chicken Spaghetti

I made this last week for a committee meeting of about 45 people and it was well recieved. Slick and Chief don't like it so we don't have it too often... and with all of that cheese... better not to have it all of the time!

Enjoy!

4 Chicken Breasts
1 onion
¾ c butter (I did not use any the last time I made this and it was plenty tasty)
1 ½ to 2 lbs Velveeta
1 can Rotel tomatoes with chilies
Large can mushroom slices drained
Large can English peas drained
2 TBSP Worcestershire sauce
1 pound of spaghetti


Boil chicken breasts with ½ of an onion, a couple stalks of celery and salt, pepper and garlic until done. Remove chicken. Discard vegetables. Reserve the broth for cooking the spaghetti.

Let chicken cool to touch and then remove from bone and chop into bite size pieces.

Chop other ½ onion and sauté in butter if desired.

Cook spaghetti in chicken broth with enough water added to make a big pot!

Reserve about 3 cups of broth after pasta cooks.

Chop Velveeta into smallish pieces, stir into hot drained spaghetti. Add Worcestershire, peas, mushrooms and un-drained Rotel tomatoes. Add chicken. If the spaghetti is too thick, add reserved broth ½ cup at a time to loosen it.

Bake entire concoction for 30 to 40 minutes at 350 in a greased casserole dish.

Tastes even better the second day…

MMMMM... FALL COOKING

This is a beloved recipe that we have been making since 1989 when a neighbor made it for us in a Christmas set of cookies and goodies. I LOVE LOVE LOVE it. We have slightly decreased the amounts of spices over the years and it is now perfect.

Pumpkin Bread

3 C sugar
1 C Crisco oil
4 eggs

Beat until creamy

Add:
2 tsp salt
½ tsp nutmeg
½ tsp cloves
¾ tsp cinnamon
2 tsp baking soda
1 15 oz can of pumpkin puree
2/3 C hot water
2 tsp lemon extract

Slowly add 3 1/3 C all purpose flour

Bake in 2 or 3 loaves for about an hour or in one large bundt about 65 minutes at 325 degrees.

Careful or you might eat the whole thing...

From Chief:

Now that he's 60 Chief has started giving advise. He has been giving advise for years, but we don't always listen. This is what he sent to me today. I thought it was worth sharing.


HOW TO INSTALL A HOME SECURITY SYSTEM IN THE SOUTH
1. Go to a second-hand store and buy a pair of men's, used, size 14-16 work boots.
2. Place them on your front porch, on top of a copy of Guns & Ammo Magazine.
3. Put a few giant dog dishes next to the boots and magazines.
4. Leave a note on your door that reads:

Bubba, Big Jim, Duke, Slim, & me went for more ammunition. Back in an hour. Don't mess with the pit bulls - they went after the mailman this morning and messed him up real bad. I don't think Killer took part in it but it was hard to tell from all the blood. Anyway, I locked all four of 'em in the house. Better wait outside.
Cooter

The Dark Side of the Fridge

Several days ago Slick was getting healthy and decided to make tea.

In a Wal-Mart glass jug with a pink plastic spigot on the front.

And then he had to run out of town to Minnesota for a couple of days.

And the tea sat unnoticed by me in the fridge.

And drained from the jug. Into the fridge. Where it froze to the water reservoir in the back of the fridge behind the crisper that we did not know even existed but which might explain why our water dispenser had stopped working after internally freezing.

So Slick was playing golf all afternoon and I was defrosting his literally iced tea from the refrigerator. What do you get after melting iced tea? That's right. Cold liquid tea that runs into the cheese drawer requiring over an hour of dis-assembly of the three crispers and countless wiping out with a formerly blue now "tea stained" brown sponge.

And during all of this, the fridge kept beeping at me to let me know that the doors were open longer then the fridge thought necessary.

Man I hate tea.

Time capsule

This week we have had a lot of stuff!

It was the Peep's first day ever of dance at the studio recommended to us by the crazy neighbor.

Then we had Chief's 60th birthday.

Then we had Slick and my's 10th wedding anniversary.

Then the Peep was at a college concert with Pat Green.

Then we had over 40 people in the front yard for the 'wurst tailgate ever.

Then the Peep had a stunt done especially for her by the collegiate cheerleaders. The guy holding up the super cute Tiffany yelled to the Peep during the stunt, "Hey Peep... this stunt is for you!!"

Then Slick and I "did calendars" like we try to do every Sunday morning and I realized this is going to be another crazy week!

Here are Chief and the Peep from last weekend in San Antonio. Happy Birthday Chiefie. We love you.

Time in a bottle

What a beautiful wedding! We were in San Antonio this weekend for my cousin CL's wedding to the beautiful SL. While I will get into the details of the wedding soon, I thought you might like to see the evolution of the Peep over the last couple of months.

Here she is the first time she wore this dress at Miss Mariam's wedding in March.

And here she is this weekend, the last time she will wear the dress which was precariously short...













Man how time flies!!

A super funny e-mail I got from the crazy cat lady...

Dear Tech Support,

Last year I upgraded from Boyfriend 5.0 to Husband 1.0 and noticed a distinct slow down in overall system performance, particularly in the flower and jewelry applications, which operated flawlessly under Boyfriend 5.0. In addition, Husband 1.0 uninstalled many other valuable programs, such as Romance 9.5 and Personal Attention 6.5 and then installed undesirable programs such as NBA 5.0, NFL 3.0 and Golf Clubs 4.1.

Conversation 8.0 no longer runs, and Housecleaning 2.6 simply crashes the system. I've tried running Nagging 5.3 to fix these problems, but to no avail.

What can I do?

Signed,Desperate.

DEAR DESPERATE,

First keep in mind, Boyfriend 5.0 is an Entertainment Package, while Husband 1.0 is an operating system.

Please enter command: ithoughtyoulovedme.html and try to download Tears 6.2 and don't forget to install the Guilt 3.0 update. If that application works as designed, Husband 1.0 should then automatically run the applications Jewelry 2.0 and Flowers 3.5. But remember, overuse of the above application can cause Husband 1.0 to default to Grumpy Silence 2.5, Happy Hour 7.0 or Beer 6.1. Please note that Beer 6.1 is a very bad program that will download the Snoring Loudly Beta.

Whatever you do, DO NOT install Mother-In-Law 1.0 (it runs a virus in the background that will eventually seize control of all your system resources.) Also do not attempt to reinstall Boyfriend 5.0 program. These are unsupported applications and will crash Husband 1.0.

In summary, Husband 1.0 is a great program, but it does have limited memory and cannot learn new applications quickly. You might consider buying additional software to improve memory and performance. We recommend Cooking 3.0 and Hot Lingerie 7.7.

Good Luck,
Tech Support.

Rocking Peeper

The Peep has been carrying around Slick's shuffle all day calling it her i-pod. Then this afternoon she remembered she has a Fisher Price Kid Tough MP3 player. She went on a scavenger hunt looking for it and found it with a dead battery in my night stand- stashed after some vacation suitcase unpack pre-party throw around, I am sure.

So she has been rocking to the tunes all evening in the car and at home and just a few minutes ago I went upstairs to see if she was indeed in her pajamas as I had requested no less than four times... to find her in her zebra gown from Christmas in Cowtown- her favorite- with her fisher price pink kid safe headphones on jamming with her Barbie guitar by the light of her artificial aquarium.

Rock out Peep!

Hppy Late Birthday

Last week was a special birthday around here- but I was so consumed with my own business I did not take the time to mention it- and I feel terrible!

Happy Birthday, Busia!!

We had a lovely dinner Sunday evening of cold cucumber soup with shrimp and avocado, hatch chili chips- if you have a Central Market within 100 miles of you, get some, NOW!

We had requested popovers, grilled flank steak with chipotle butter, grilled corn on the cob and green chili mac and cheese.

For desert we feasted on creme caramel and fresh peach pie with a side of homemade fudge.

All washed down with a vintage Pahlmeyer red and a tasty white.

Happy Birthday!!

Monday. Happy Monday!

My friend the crazy neighbor and I went to lunch today at the fancy luncheon place here in the Big City and since it is a Monday, the Peep was along too. The lunch experience caused her to ask for chicken juice for lunch... Consommé!!!

Happy List:
1. Kids who go fancy places
2. Kids who order the special desert of the day with changes
3. Chocolate Chip cookies
4. Kids who start back to school
5. Chef's Salmon Special
6. Popovers
7. Great parking
8. Football starting
9. blooming crepe myrtles
10. big birthdays

Monday... Rainy Monday!

Time for a happy list since I am not HOT HOT HOT...
1. white nectarines
2. headlights on the vacuum
3. hummingbird eggs
4. reclaiming ones self
5. strawberry cake
6. birthdays as adults
7. football season anticipation
8. believing in yourself
9. afternoon pick-me-ups
10. new pens and pencils

Was it a sign?

So this summer the Peeper's zoo school has been off on Wednesdays so that she can have a relaxing summer with her family and friends. Don't tell her- she has still been going to the regular preschool that she always goes to three days a week. She loves it and I hated to have her sit with me all the time getting all out of whack so she got to keep going all June and July and August. This week there is in service on Thursday and Friday- two days I need most for her to be in school- but thus is the life of a busy mom...??

Anyway- all of that to say that on Wednesdays this summer she has had the opportunity to have some different breakfasts than during the school year- things like chocolate chip waffles. Last week she asked for blueberry muffins. Always ready with a Betty Crocker Duncan Heinz whatever twice the blueberries mix and a teaspoon of almond extract, I made a batch. They were super tasty.

Thursday I was going to spend all day working on one of my volunteer jobs. I dropped the Peep at school and hit it back home, grabbed two of the day-old muffins and sat at the computer. Just as I sat down, someone called my cell phone I had forgotten in my purse in the kitchen and while I went to catch it, Putter ate one of the muffins.

I walked in to the office and she was licking the paper towel...

So I was wondering... is that a sign that I was supposed to only eat one muffin??

Sunny and not (quite) as hot

What a lovely week- it is sunny and warm- but only in the 90's... while I am certain it will get back to the 100's sooner than later, it has been nice to go outside and not be stifled by the heat immediately. The peep has ridden her bike this week "all the way to the gates of the college up the street" and last week all the way to Hill-Dog's 4 blocks over! Very fun!

It's almost back to school time so I must send you to HillDog Teaches- I am sure she will be back up and running with wonderful stories about her kiddos. She was in her classroom yesterday for the first time since summer started to discover that the whole school had been painted... un-planned and unorganized. The painters tore off all of the bulletin boards and dropped them in the middle of the rooms of every teacher. Everyone is scrambling to remake and rehang EVERYTHING. The Peep and I are going up to help this morning...

Time for happiness:

1. Opportunity knocking

2. fields of corn

3. fresh pencils

4. comfy chairs

5. clean floors

6. running a corporation

7. neighbors

8. gravy

9. sweet tea

10. old friends

P.S. Hi Theresa :)

Happy List

Been missing the happiness. Glad to take the time to add it back to life...

1. Mild Wisconsin Cheddar
2. product for your hair
3. cheeseburgers and wavy fries
4. movie popcorn
5. poppy seed dressing
6. parasol tables
7. stamps from a machine at the post office
8. dates with your spouse
9. spelling sherbet correctly
10. warm peach crisp

So Slick made Peach Crisp this week and it was SOOOOO good. I love hot peaches with vanilla ice cream. Here's the recipe form Food and Wine July 2008

ACTIVE TIME: 30 MIN TOTAL TIME: 1 HR 40 MIN SERVES: 12
ingredients
TOPPING
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
1/2 cup rolled oats
7 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1/4 teaspoon salt
FILLING
3 pounds peaches
1/4 cup cornstarch
Ice cream, for serving (optional)
directions
make the topping: In a food processor, combine the flour, sugars, oats, butter and salt and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal.

make the filling: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the peaches and blanch for 1 minute to loosen their skins. Transfer the peaches to a large rimmed baking sheet. When cool enough to handle, peel off the skins and cut the peaches into 1/2-inch dice.

Transfer the peaches to a large bowl and sprinkle with the cornstarch. Toss well to coat and let stand for a few minutes.

Preheat the oven to 325°.

Butter and sugar twelve 5-ounce ramekins and arrange them on a large, rimmed baking sheet. Spoon the peaches into the ramekins and sprinkle with the topping.

Bake the crisps for about 1 hour, until the filling is bubbling. Remove the ramekins from the oven and increase the temperature to 400°. Bake the crisps on the upper rack for about 8 minutes, until the topping is browned. Serve warm or at room temperature with ice cream, if desired.

Right- like you won't add ice cream if given the option... seriously...

SUMMER FUN!

Swim lessons from the cute college students near our house were FUN. The peeper had a great time and has aquired a little bit of a tan line!

Here is our bathing beauty-

Waiting to see...

Slick is still here in the Big City.

He canceled his flight arrangements per the “instructions” this morning after being up much of the night worrying about it.

He still could be called at any time to go to the northeast until the contract is signed between the Big Bad Broadband Company and the Union… now we will be in a wait to see mode for who knows how long.

Thought you’d like to know…

CRAZY DOG!

Putter Rooskey likes Dwayne the Mailman.

Maybe a little too much.

We have a walking mailman and a slot in our front door for the mail. We used to have a tacky gold colored rusty mailbox on the wall beside of our front door but I did not like it and finally took it down after we lived here about a year.

EVERY DAY Putter waits for Dwayne. She gets up form one of her 25 naps of the day to sit in the front window waiting for him to appear. She runs to the door and "helps bring in the mail" by grabbing it, barking and running into the game room next door to the front door because the windows look out onto the front yard and she can show Dwayne how helpful she is.

Or something like that.

One day I was in the front yard when Dwayne happened by and just took the mail from him. I mentioned how excited Putter gets when he comes and that she likes to run around with the mail in her mouth all over the downstairs spreading it like Easter eggs for us to find. He said, "Yeah, I have five or six aggressive dogs on my route." AGGRESSIVE?

My sweet tri-colored-slightly overweight-though-not-as-much-as-she-was-since-we have-been-feeding-her-diet-dog-food-for-three-years-beagle??

OK, there was about 18 months when she did not like the crazy neighbors much- but I think she is mostly over that now that the Cooking Momma knows where the treat jar is in the pantry...

Welcome Back!

I almost forgot my password!

It has been TOO LONG since I logged on and let you know how things are going.

In a word: Busy. I know we all lead busy lives and I hate to say that I am busy when so many of my three readers do more in their days than I, (two boys, working full time outside the home, three kids) so I will say:if you have a scheduling or organization tip that you love, please SHARE! So far I have been using Outlook Calendar and it gets me where I need to be on time- I just seem to run out of day before I run out of "to dos."

Last week Slick, the Peep and I made an unscheduled trip to the Land of Lincoln for Papa's brother's funeral. It was wonderful to see so many of "The Family" there, though the circumstances were sad. Brother lived a long and full life leaving a wife of I think 55 years and a lovely daughter as well as many many nieces nephews and cousins.

The Peep was a dream to travel with watching her "little TV" portable DVD player on the plane both ways and sleeping in the other double bed in the hotel room like a princess. She especially loved the door that connected us to Busia and Papa's room! I think they had as much fun with it as she did!

Missed you all!

Great Day!

Summer Fun! The Peep and I are having a fun day... Slick called and invited up to his office at the Big Bad Broadband Company and out to lunch!!! This is not not not what the Peep is wearing... Have a great day!

Smarts

I can't get the Adobe Flash player to work on my vistafied computer. I have been trying for about 45 minutes. I have downloaded and installed and downloaded and installed and rebooted and downloaded and installed.

Uber frustrating for a girl who is just trying to see the Kevin Costner trailer for the new movie coming out in August and then to see the web page of the restaurant Slick and I are trying to go to tonight. Seriously. How can I know what to wear to dinner if I can't see the restaurant and the menu?? Comfy pants? Sassy jeans? Sassy shorts?

I have announced that someone smarter than I will have to figure it out.

The Peep just made the following announcement: "I can help, I am smarter than you."

And Slick said: "And so it begins..."

Indeed.

Paint Maker

Hill Dog and I just picked the Peep up from school. She was sitting in the back of the play ground with two other girls playing with sidewalk chalk. They were "making paint."

The Peep told us all about it in the car. "You know,"- she said matter of factly. "You make chalk dust and put it in a shovel or bucket or clam shell or something and then add water and then you have paint." The Peep had it on her hands because she was the one mixing the paint. Hope was the one who gave out the recipe, but she had already been picked up when we got there. Mean girl was painting her war stripes on her face when I was driving away and the whiner was asking if we were going the Chuckie Cheese for dinner. Uh- NO.

So there you have it. The Peep is a chemist. Or an artist. Or a mess maker. I am not sure which- but man, she sure is cute!

Rested and Ready to Make 'em

Thank you everyone for the well wishes and thoughts last week while HillDog, Lulu and I were at Market. Thank you to Chief and Slick for the relief in the booth from time to time! There were only several thousand attendees and only 1,500 of them that we talked to... we handed out samples and information sheets until we were blue in the face... to match our shirts.

Man- to see us we looked pretty good.

There were hundreds of people- you know I am an exaggerator- but this time I am serious- hundreds of people told us they love the Knotty Knotes. We are hoping that from the hundreds of the samples and order forms we have distributed that we will start getting orders...

There were a few orders at market- but "fewer than twenty."

That said- HillDog and I are counting paper right now and have had to reorder paper to make the the orders!!! Yeah!!!

Here you see that sorority sisters are as wonderful as real sisters and that they are there for you whenever you need them!!

Thank you friends and thank you family. I still think we are on a great path, we just need to keep plugging...

I love you all!

We're ready!!

It has been a long two weeks of going to the warehouse in Dallas and then this week going to the World Trade Center to set up... but I think we are ready!!
We practiced taking an order today and are ready for the real thing tomorrow!!

So you feel like you are here...

this is everything in my car last week.

this is the shelves in the garage getting ready for the trip.

Here are the shelves in Lulu's truck.

Here is part of the booth.


Another part of the booth.

The cute sales people...

Friends

So I have this friend.

I have known her since freshman year of undergrad. She is a lovely tall blond academic with a heart of gold and red lipstick. She is quick with a prayer and quicker with a hug. She knows I have been crazy busy with life- really who isn't- and she sent me the most lovely expression of friendship last week.

She knew that I would be insane with paper this week so she sent flowers last week so I would be able to enjoy them!

Thank you, friend.

Its Crazy!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Slick last Saturday. We had a lovely day of trying to get a few things at the Nordstrom Men's Sale- and the Peep and I were successful in getting a gown for her and shoes for me. Thanks Slick.

Happy Father's Day to Chief, Papa and Slick. Each of you is a wonderful dad and we are blessed to have you in our family.

WARNING: this may be my only post for the week. I am letting you know in advance because I know it is going to be crazy. I have a client tomorrow and setting up THE booth at the WTC Wednesday and Thursday and MARKET STARTS FRIDAY!! We could use a few prayers for people to like the knotes enough to want to sell them in their sores and place orders...

For now:

This Week's List:

1. fancy pizza
2. raspberry jelly
3. birthday blueberry pie
4. playing cards
5. the US Open on Father's Day
6. gardenias
7. foot prints
8. a new box of staples
9. filing everything
10. Barnes and Noble

Lucky 13 Happy List

It's been crazy. I am sorry for the long delay in getting back to you but I have been trying to get Knotty Knotes launched.

Market is next week and there is literally paper all over our house. I feel badly for Slick- he went out of town last week for 4 days and came home to the devastating effects of Hurricane Knotty Knote all over our living room, dining room, kitchen and guest room. Thankfully Market is next week in Dallas so the devastation will be partially cleared out then when I take the "show on the road" as they say.

I don't know who they are, but I think that they say show on the road.

Anyway. I would like to take this moment to thank all five of my loyal readers for their patience and help through this launch. In the form of the Happy List- this week with Lucky 13 items...

1. My Webmaster has been a dream. His lovely assistant wonderful to work with in producing more professional looking photos than I make.
2. The Peep helping with stamping SAMPLE onto the... samples.
3. Hill Dog for helping everywhere- especially in Office Depot yesterday with my $400 purchase.
4. Thank you to Lulu for counting and tying knots and agreeing to be the Boss to my Owner status.
5. Thank you Chief for the sales training- we need to refresh...
6. Thank you to the investors for their money.
7. Thank you to Busia and Papa for the moral support and ribbon cutting.
8. Thank you Gran Gran for coming to help with the sample assembly.
9. Thank you Mayhem friends for the talking through during Mexican Train and Quick books advise.
10. Thank you Duke for the phone calls and e-mails of encouragement.
11. Thank you Cooking Momma for the hugs and Diet Coke breaks.
12. Thank you Big Daddy for the phone installation.
13. Thank you Slick for picking up the slack around the house and coking lots of dinners.

Dog Tired

You might have heard the phrase Dog Tired. I can tell you Putter-Rooskey is DOG TIRED today.

I went outside to look for duct tape- which I can not find- to repair the soaker hose my parents so graciously gave me for free. I now know the adage "you get what you pay for" in real terms. Three holes... if you think three holes in a soaker hose is nothing... let me tell you- all of the water squirts out of the holes at an alarming rate and the end of the hose never even gets wet. I digress...

Anyway- Putter Dog followed me to the back and sprawled on the driveway. Before I could get back out with my camera, she had relocated to the grass. And upon approach with the camera... she turned over for a tummy scratch. Man she is worn slap out form laying on her bed all morning.

It's Happy List Time!

Ten things to be happy about this week...

1. Knotty Knotes
2. chicken salad from scratch
3. summer peaches preferably from Edgefield, SC
4. grilled hot dogs
5. Capistrano
6. knowing where you stand
7. pedometers
8. worn in hats
9. bulbs growing
10. brilliance

Working to get Knotty Knotes ready for the World Trade Center "Market" in June. I hate to brag and everything- but if you check out the Press release from the WTC yo might find mention of Knotty Knotes making their debut at Market. Just a little something else to be happy about...

Hello New Jersey!

We're back.

Lulu and I were gone a couple of days. To the Big Apple.

We HAD HAD HAD to go to the National Stationery Show to check things in the business out. We were scouting to see if we needed to exhibit there next year. We were stealing ideas from other wholesalers about their booth design and construction. We walked and walked through row after beautiful row of paper goods and stationery and cards and invitations.

It took two days.

We were there for three.

On the third day... Lulu tried some new things.

We went to the top of the Empire State Building. Lulu doesn't do heights. She did on day three. Then we had to rush rush rush back to the hotel to check out by our late time of 1:00 because the dang line was just SO long that we were not able to leisurely look out along the sides of the city- but we were up long enough to snap this shot of ourselves. That is not a fake backdrop in the background! That is the REAL New York sky with the puffy clouds and everything! We even said Hello to New Jersey from up there!

Then we walked forever trying to find Lulu some cheap t-shirt souvenirs. She thought she had seen them a block up from our hotel at Grand Central Terminal.

She was wrong. Long wrong. We walked to Times Square.

Carrying our carry on bags.

Mine containing a computer... then got a t-shirt, lunch (Lulu suggested a place called Subway- I said- that is the REAL subway...) and then it started raining! We had to make a quick decision. Get soaked before our flight since there was nary a cab to be had or take the subway back to GCT.

You're right. We took the subway!

At the airport Lulu and I were interviewed by the New York Post on a story about AMR deciding to charge for all checked bags for poor souls in coach. We were of course against it.

See Lulu's inclusion in the story here. I know, they spelled her name wrong. Not to worry. I e-mailed the author and told him that it was an error! He replied that he was terribly sorry and he must have gotten bad information form the reporter to whom we spoke. I am thinking he should print a correction. Odds are probably against it, though...

Happy Birthday Kitty!

Today is our good friend's birthday. Happy Birthday Kitty Girl!

Love you!!

DeDe

You know what I'm saying?

Vernacular. Dictionary.com calls it "the language or vocabulary peculiar to a class or profession." I am thinking it is also a particular language or vocabulary for a family.

I know we have words that we have made up and/or use differently than the rest of the civilized people in the big city. Today Lulu said we could put the "quiatus" on something. She was saying we could put a hiatus on it- and stop talking about it- be quiet- put the "quiatus" on it.

The holiday in February with hearts and flowers: Vollentimes. Memaw was the perfect vernacular speaker. Happy Vollentimes Day to us all.

Tored. Being worn slap out. Lulu and I are TORED TORED TORED from working in the flower beds all afternoon. They look goooood.

What kinds of vernacular do you have?

Mayfest? FUUUUN!

Mayfest has come and gone but I have just downloaded (uploaded?) the pictures. Here you see the Premier Big City Family Festival in full Peep fun! It was a couple of years ago that the Central Committee came up with the cute idea to have the photo opportunities in the park to mark your progress from Peep to grownup.

The Peep loved getting her picture taken!

Almost as much as she loved getting her face painted on her leg. Thanks to Miss Becky the wonderful face painter who is willing to paint a shin.

And if you ask the Peep what her FAVORITE part of Mayfest is... she says the ice cream from the ice cream stand. The stand looks like the cones they serve. Here she is with a funny smile showing off her ice cream. Already she, and the rest of us, are looking forward to Mayfest 2009!

Love the Zoo

Today is the Peep's last day of Zoo School for this school year. Slick and I are going up at the designated parent time to see all of the kids in the classroom, share snack and hear a song. Or something like that.

She is really excited to go back in the fall- which is apparently cool with them- as there is a three year revolving curriculum. I thought Museum School would be a good choice- until I found out it is only 2 hours long.

I mean, what can I get into in only 2 hours a week?? Hello??

And there is not currently a museum as it has been demolished to make way for the new and improved museum. So last summer when we went to the zoo and looked around and said hey do you think this would be fun to do every week for 3 hours Peep was like YES!

Well when we drive by the construction zone of the museum... it is a little harder to sell.

We have loved the zoo time- learning about the animals, meeting new friends, going into the zoo almost every week and having animal visitors in the class room! A penguin the first week! And snakes, a porcupine, an alligator, a macaw... the list goes on!

Thank you to the zoo genius who thought getting edZOOcated was a good idea. It has been great for all of us!

Baby it's really cold inside!

Dare I say that on Saturday after the AC brainiacs left that the downstairs was... cold?! They claim that all of the ducts are now (again) connected and even on the hot hot hot Saturday, we were shivering!

Which leads to Sunday. A lovely Mother's Day by any standard. Made even more lovely this year because the Peep and Slick did all of the dishes. Heaven. I really don't mind doing dishes but it was wonderful to sit and visit and know that they were being handled by a 4 year old and her daddy!

So things to be happy about today- along with tons of clean dishes:
1. French silk pie
2. Pioneer Woman's Cinnamon Rolls
3. Hash brown quiche
4. Cards signed in many colors
5. Sisters agreeing to share the spotlight
6. Vacation Drinks
7. Champagne with lunch
8. fresh pineapple
9. all of the family at one table
10. pink polka dot plants

Baby It's Cold Outside

Someday our AC will be fixed.

Not today, like I thought when I made the appointment yesterday with the AC company.

Not last week when they came out and spent about 4 hours here tuning up the two units.

Not the last 6 times they have been here over the course of the 22 months we have lived here- not to mention the bi-annual trips to tune the units.

Not the time they installed a package unit the size of a Volkswagen beetle in the back yard. Not the time they came over and replaced the heat exchanger in the attic.

Man they have been here lots of times. And yet, we are still providing a nice climate controlled environment for the wildlife in and around the big city.

And now I look bad about it- and have for quite some time- as anyone who knows me will attest to the fact that I am more than accommodating for service people.

When they called today to let me know that their smallest technician was assigned to the case because our crawl hole is only 24 inches square- but that he is no longer available today because of the trouble he is having with some other unit... all I said was "Great, when can he come back?" When last week's technician said "Wow, I am overwhelmed by the amount of service you need," I said talk to your boss and send someone else. When the bozo who tuned our heater in November said we needed a new heat exchanger and that he was going to turn off the gas to the house 24 hours before the first cold spell of the winter: "How much or the new heater?" When the install team said the duct work was sealed and secure but the plumbers the next day said AC was blowing under the house- I called and said "Send someone out, please."

Everyone who knows me has said we need to fire the AC people and get someone else. But from what I can tell everyone else is a schiester too unless you hassle them and man this sure has been a hassle... I'll let you know if we are really truly fixed on Saturday. I have little faith that we will be...

Organized?

Feng shui. The ancient art of having an organized and energized life. It starts with eliminating clutter in your life. Things like piles of mail. Piles of stuff. Piles of crapola. Today I took a box from Busia and Papa's house home with me. It had been there since June 2006. I'm pretty confident that there is nothing in the box Slick or I need. Nevertheless I will be going through it just in case and proudly tossing the rest.

We are Feng shuing a few things- keeping the toilet seats down. Keeping the closet doors closed. Having fresh flowers in the house- thenk you Papa for today's additions.

I have been getting the About.com Feng shui info sheet for a few weeks. Anyone have anything to add that we can do without moving walls?? I'm thinking of moving the office downstairs and clustering the sleeping rooms up stairs- but I need a working phone jack to run the fax machine and the one in the guest room doesn't work right now. No worries- I have hit the big super center with a hardware section and purchased 100 feet of round phone wire. I have looked up how to install a phone jack. All I am waiting for now is the courage brought on by having an accomplice...

Takers??

10 things for the week!

1. ramekins
2. Beer Men
3. lunch served poolside
4. rhinestone covered shirts

5. fresh movie popcorn

6. instant mashed potatoes with gravy

7. open air stadiums

8. money bands

9. Bounce fabric sheets

10. sinking into a comfortable chair, see right...

Happy Birthday HillDog!

My sister. I remember the day- 29 years ago that she was born. I was at Memaw and Peepaws farm in Sulphur Springs and we got the call when they said after months of waiting she was born.
Then a few days later Memaw and I drove home to see her. We got to our house before my parents and we did not have a key so we played in the front yard for what seemed like HOURS waiting.

I am pretty sure that when Chief and Lulu got to our house, HillDog was in the front seat in Lulu's arms- not in the now required by law car seat in the back seat facing the back window. She was wearing a white dress- I think with pink rosebude on it- but they might have been yellow.

Then we went inside ans sat on the gold fabric sofa and I got to give her a bottle- and that was the beginning... Now she's an elementary school special ed teacher, an aunt, a sister, a daughter, a friend, a domino player, a canasta partner. Wow what can change.

Get Happy

Good Day! Mayfest starts today- the 4 day family festival in Fort Worth along the banks of the Trinity River at University and I-30. HillDog and I have been on the committee in the past- but are not this year- but we will all, Slick, Peep, Hilldog and I be there over the weekend. There are bands, food vendors, games and an are area.

Here is the Peep last year getting her face painted on her leg! WOW how much she has changed in a year!

As if Mayfest is not enough to be excited about... Kenny Chesney comes to town on Saturday... enough said there...

For the rest of you who could care less about Mayfest and Kenny- Here are 10 Things to be Happy About

1. fresh hair color

2. short socks

3. short order talk

4. popcorn at the movies

5. firm handshakes

6. candy making

7. paper-white gardenias

8. car washing

9. not skulking

10. ambrosia

For the love of her daughter and the love of paper

It’s here! It’s here!

I feel like Steve Martin in the Jerk- the Phone Books are here! The phone books are here!

The paper drill is here!

Many of you have been in on this from the get go and know exactly why a grown woman with an MPA from a top 10 program in the country would leave her job with the potential of catapulting her into immortality as an assistant city manager in 15 years or so… for the rest of you… The Paul Harvey version…

For the love of her daughter and the love of paper.

I love paper. All kinds; all colors. I love it so much that when I decided to stay home with our then 4 week old Peep, I told Slick that I wanted to open a stationery store. Peeper and I even went so far as to drive around scouting locations-(two of which were later inhabited by paper stores.)

Slick suggested wisely that perhaps selling invitations from home might be a more prudent move for a woman unwilling to leave her precious cargo in the hands of anyone for more than 2 hours at a stretch.

Where would I put the Peep while I was working??

So I started working from home.

Slowly.

Then I had a grand epiphany last fall, FOUR years later, and decided to branch out.

WAY out.

So now I am the proud owner of a new Martin Yale 101 Paper Drill which I will use to create super cute note pads bound with a knot of color coordinated ribbon- Knotty Knotes.

Just look at those holes.

It operates virtually without noise. So no worries that I might miss an episode of "Murder She Wrote" while working. I’ll be able to watch and drill and tie and box.

Wow am I excited.

I’ve already made 40 holes. I’ve read the instructions three times.

That was before I turned it on.

It is a piece of machinery, dude. I wanted to make sure I was not going to drill through the breakfast room table. I mean we can take appropriate amounts of the house off of our taxes since I work from here, but a new table on the business because I might have put a hole in the old one was definitely not an option.

So unlike Slick, I read the directions.

Come over. I might let you try it.

The Bathroom

Thank you for asking about things in the bathroom. The progress on the bathroom: You can see from the photos that the bathroom was a Mess. The Peep and I took some lovely photos that I may submit for awards of her potty "pulled" to use our plumber's words. In case you wonder, it costs $125 to "Pull a Potty."

I don't think he said potty, but I don't think I can bring myself to say toilet.

So anyway you can see here that we had a mess. Now we just have part of a mess as Mr. John the Wallman came over last Saturday to replace part of the ceiling and mud it in and then came back Sunday to texture it to match the rest of the bathroom. You might wonder to yourself if the texture will match.

It sure darn will. Mr John the Wallman was the one who put that same texture on the walls and ceiling of that bathroom just 20 short months ago when we had all of the walls and ceiling replaced after we purchased the house.

I'll get it painted soon and show you how everything looks in a perfect world...

Happy Wednesday!

Its been so long since I logged in that I almost forgot my password!

I have been missing myself and I am SURE you have been missing me too!

Let us start off with a 10 things to be happy about list- just to get the ball rolling!

1. saying something nice
2. tropical fish
3. wearing a man sized watch
4. chocolate chip cookies
5. twirling a baton
6. aerosol hairspray
7. fresh brown bread
8. Glenn plaid
9. golden retrievers
10. fresh plums

Have you ever?

Have you ever gone on vacation to come home to a mess? I remember in high school my friend and her family went away to her grandmothers for Christmas to come home to burst pipes, ripped out carpet and ruined furniture. While our mess was not quite to that scale, we did return from the beach to a hole cut in the ceiling of our guest bathroom.

Apparently the Peep's potty- which is rarely used except if we have company- has a leak in the pipe that drains away form the potty and into the nether land of pipes and water. While we were on the beach lounging in the sun and frolicking in the waves, the pipe was drip drip dripping.


Into the bathroom downstairs.


You might think to your self- self, how can two bathrooms connect like that? The sad answer is that they aren't supposed to. According to the HillDog who came over to feed Jack and Box, she heard dripping and wondered why we would have dripping when we were gone gone gone. She looked for the source and legend has it found the paint and previous layer of kiltz from another leak in the same spot- hanging from the ceiling like a giant bubble.


Being the strong independent woman she is, she called Chief, our dad. Being smart in the ways of home-care, Chief told HillDog how to turn off the water so that the drip drip dripping would hopefully stop and he rushed right over to check on the damage, 16 hours later after a good sleep and breakfast and a couple of cups of coffee.


We had our cell phones programmed for the internationalness of our trip by the fine young people at the Verizon Wireless store and I had told my parents, who were Putter-Sitting, if there are any problems, don't hesitate to call, we have turned our phones on.


Apparently everyone but me and my parents and HillDog knows this, but to call an internationally programmed cellphone with US numbers, you have to not only dial the 10 digit number you would normally dial, but you have to add the 1 to the beginning. Since this was news to me upon our return from the beach, I had not shared this little tidbit of information and we got none of the many messages about the water drip drip dripping.

So now this week we have had a visit from the plumbers and are looking forward to a visit from Mr. John the drywall man.

Man this is fun.

Monday! Monday! Monday!

What a weekend of unpacking and doing laundry. If people knew how much work a trip would be upon return, would we ever go anywhere in the first place? Definitely. Then I am reminded of people like Slick who travel often for their jobs and I wonder if their return trips are all like this vacation return... I will have to investigate. If you know, please, do tell.

Now that we are home, though there is no beach or graduated heated pool in the backyard, we have many things about which to be happy. How about a list of ten?

1. popcorn at the movies
2. facing the truth
3. marshmallows for dessert
4. bolonaise
5. budding trees
6. starfish
7. waves that crash
8. an open window
9. an epiphany
10. toenail polish at the beach

We're BAAACK

Welcome back to us. We had a lovely trip to the Bahamas where Slick was born and is an official citizen- and where the Peep is also an official citizen by virtue of birth and where I am a visitor who burns easily in the hot hot sun.

I will have pictures shortly but just wanted to quickly let everyone know we are back. A little more tan and with lots of laundry...

Have a wonderful rest of the weekend!!

Shiny and Clean

Clean hair. There's nothing like the feeling of being fresh and clean and ready for the day. I remember the Breck girls from the commercials- Clean hair you will love- tell two friends and they'll tell two friends and so on. All of that shiny blond hair on the 21 inch TV. Shiny clean ready for anything hair. We have been talking lately about who washes their hair how often. I think I have had this conversation with three different groups of friends in the last few weeks. It ranges from once a week to daily- with me falling into daily and the Peep falling into every other day- if we are lucky.

Hair has been a big deal in our family since I was a wee tot and got my first stinky painful permanent wave when I was in second grade. Man that was bad Orphan Annie hair.

The Peep has been getting her hair cut into cute little girl styles by my wonderful stylist for about a year. The last time was the first one with the shampooing at the big girl sink instead of the spray bottle. She loved it and is ready to go back.

Easter Again!

Have I told you how cute the kids were here at Easter?? Let me show you!

OTC is generally ready for ANYTHING!

The Peep is always a princess, Easter being no exception.

This is our Crazy Neighbor's Kid Paymobil wishing his basket were bigger.

Here is Lego on the lookout for more eggs.

Adorable Singing Sensation sporting her new Spring Fashion.

MCC with the cutest smile in the land.

Slick at the bottom of the dog pile with the Peep asking him if he is OK.