149/366: It Has Come to This

I have had it. 

This Catch 22 has been consuming my patience of late.

I LOVE that my boys have neighborhood friends that spend time here, or come over to get them to play.  I really do love it.  I recall all the nights and after school talks with Big Boy and how he didn't seem to have those close friends that I had growing up.  The lack of friends and connections with others was heartbreaking.

I LOVE that all the kids enjoy being here.

What I don't care for is this:
1.  Bring your manners with you.  Please and Thank You are so important and would make me so much happier and less irritated with your presence. 
2.  If you are hungry, ask me.  Don't help yourself to snacks in the pantry and don't eat in the family room.  You may eat what I provide at the kitchen table.
3.  Don't ring the doorbell when we are eating.  Granted, we eat at all different times of the evening, so it may be hard to know, BUT if I send you home at 6:26 so we can eat, ringing the bell at 6:38 is not acceptable.  And sorry to the other boy that got the brunt of my frustration when I answered his ringy dingy at 6:42.

The sign goes up tonight.

148/366: Trailer Park Boys

Meet Bubbles.

Bubbles lives in a Trailer Park with his cats.

And with his buddies Julian and Ricky.

From Wikipedia:  Trailer Park Boys is a Canadian comedy mockumentary television series created and directed by Mike Clattenburg that focuses on the misadventures of a group of trailer park residents, some of whom are ex-convicts, living in the fictional Sunnyvale Trailer Park in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia.

It's really funny.  HOWEVER, if you are easily offended by swearing, do not watch this.  It is basically every other word.  Also, if you are offended by drunks, potheads, ex-convicts, and generally stupid people, don't watch this.

If you liked Office Space, Reno 911 or Sordid Lives, this would be good for you.  If you enjoy mockumentaries, this is a good one.

A young Ellen Page makes an appearance in Season 2.  Add it to your queue and avoid all the boring summer television programs.

I can't help but root for these idiots.

147/366: Christening

We had the honor of partaking in a beautiful christening this weekend. 

This was the most wonderful baptism, where all of us were invited to gather around the font and witness the baptism up close.

All the cousins got right up to the table to see the baptism.  It really was great.

146/366: Parade

Today, I had flashbacks.

I have been in many parades. With my Grandmother riding a float, holding the banner for the baton twirling corp, and even pulling the flower wagon (we used to water the flower planters in the village) dressed in matching shorts with my girlfriends, and today, for baseball.

We had to wait about an hour and a half until we started to line up. Little Man did his share of running around with the other boys, but then, went back to the Mad Libs.

That's my boy.

145/366: Ahhh

Just sitting down after a full day with friends and family and mostly with friends that feel like family.

Congratulations to my sweet GG! You are beautiful. I can't wait to see you grow.

144/366: Gentlemen

Great impromptu evening at Dunn Tire Park aka Lancaster Speedway.

They cousins loved it.

Especially since Lightning McQueen won every race!

144/366: {this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

143/366: The Best Mom

Yup.

I am the best. You know why?

This was dinner...outside!

Oh yeah.

142/366: Music

Oh yes.

There is something about a man holding a guitar that gets me weak in the knees.

Tom is new at this and yet could listen to him strum the same thing over and over.

I love guitar.

Tom and I were telling Little Man that if he played an instrument or sang in a band that he'd get girls fawning over him.

He is considering it.

141/366: Take Me Out

To the ball game.

Take me out with the crowd.

Buy me some peanuts and cracker jack,

I don't care if I never get back,

Let me root, root, root for the home team,

If they don't win it's a shame.

For it's one, two, three strikes, you're out,

At the old ball game.

(Except with T-Ball, there are no outs and everyone gets to Homeplate at least three times per game).

140/366: Birthday Buddies

A couple special Happy Birthday Wishes to Big Tom and Little D...



I hope your 40th and 2nd are some great years for you both!

139/366: Around the Yard

We are off to Make Strides this morning.  Hope you all have a beautiful day, don't forget the sunscreen!

My Lupine is looking divine!  I love these leaves.

138/366: Summer, Right?

Sprinklers, baseball, sunburn and water droplets on little noses.

137/366: {this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

136/366: Pharmacy Party Part 3

The table decorations.

I went back and forth on these, not really feeling like I needed anything, but wanting something.

This was my first idea way back.  I asked some friends to start collecting the pill bottles, not quite knowing how the execution would go.

Then, the Thursday night before the party, I decided to glue the bottles to a strip of wood and use medicinal herbs to play with the mortar and pestle theme I had going. 

A quick coat of acrylic paint on a couple strips of wood in a bright blue and green.  After soaking the bottles to get the labels off, I glued the bottles to the wooden strips.

I added some caps and other medicine bottles I had.

On Friday, I went to Mischler's Florist and Greenhouses and picked up a great selection of herbs.

My favorite was mint...it held it's shape in water and didn't wilt like the sage did.  I also cut a weed from the backyard and added that to the bottles.

I am really happy I went ahead with these. 

Simple, easy and cute.

135/366: Pharmacy Party Part 2

The favors.

I know I didn't NEED favors, but who doesn't love a cute little favor?

Three years ago, yes, three years ago, I found PorkChopShow on Etsy.  I wanted these.  We needed these to be part of the celebration. 

Easy, simple, cute. 

WAIT!  I can't do easy.  I can't do simple.  So I kindly asked Scott at PorkChopShow if I could Photoshop the file with personalization.  Of course, he said, and I went about my business.

I will say, I am not well versed in Photoshop.  I am more of a Picasa and Microsoft Publisher and Paint girl.  My first attempt, took me four hours to get one bottle personalized to where it looked good.  So, a quick email to my very talented sister-in-law and she did two bottles in a matter of minutes (or so it seemed to me).  I did my best, mostly in Picasa to finish up the other 12 bottles.  They weren't perfect, but it was fun.

Scott got these to me in a matter of 3 days!  They looked so cool.  With the help of my girlfriend, we glued magnets to the back and we had cute favors.

The week before the party, my dad and I (and Big Boy) went to the flea market and scored the old mortar and pestles that housed the bottles.

Love!



134/366: Pharmacy Party Part 1

Today, I'm going to show you the invitations I made for Tom's party.

I am very proud of these...

I made 10 sheet prescription pads.  Now, before you get your panties in a bunch, I know that Tom will NOT be writing scripts, but he will look at a whole bunch of them on a daily basis.

I worked this up in Microsoft Publisher.  It was fairly easy, once I figured out the layout.  I'm a font geek.  I love a good font.  Every document deserves a special font.  Despite my general two font type rule, I broke that and used three different fonts.  The header with his name was Edwardian Script ITC; the general type font for specifics (date, time, place, RSVP) was Courier New; and the loose font in the center to represent the handwritten notes, was Maxine Script.  The Rx was free clip art.

Since I was going to have multiple pages to make a pad, I couldn't just have blank pages, right?  Right.  So, I researched health facts, trivia and useless info to use for the additional pages.  I had 20 different pages and mixed them up for each pad of 10 pages.

When I printed these, each page had four sheets and I had them cut at Kinko's.  It saved me a ton of time and most of the sheets were uniform in size.  Kinko's charges by the cut, I had 3 cuts and it cost me under $5.00...so, totally worth it.  I picked a heavier stock paper for the back page for stiffness.  Kinko's also used a heavy stock cardboard to ensure all the cuts were crisp, and included those pieces in my order.  I placed a thick piece on top and bottom sheets of the pad, approximately 1/4 inch from top and clamped them with chip clips.  They worked the best, really!

The final step, was a bit laborious, but Tom and I sat at the table and watched Miracle on Ice while I glued some pads up.  Dropping a bead of the glue on the top, then running my finger along the top and bottom pages helped smooth it out and remove some of the excess globs.

I made sure these weren't too heavy for a regular first class stamp, and sent them off! 

Tomorrow, I'll show you the favors I made with my sister in law and Scott from Etsy.

       

133/366: It's a Celebration

This week I'll be showing clips and the invitations, table decorations and favors from Tom's Graduation Party.  Firstly, since I've been a bit remiss in my posting, the top Karoake performance of the night:  my little beat poet.

The sound isn't all that great, but you'll get the idea.

I love this boy.

132/366: Proof

Happy Mother's Day to all of you!  I've been having the most excellent of weekends...See you tomorrow!

131/366: He Did It!

Today is the day I've dreamed about.

Today is the day that I thought would never come.

More than six years ago, Tom and I made the choice that he would go back to college to be a Pharmacist. Not many of his English Education classes transferred, so it was going to be a long road. A really long road with many tough classes ahead, like the always enjoyable Organic Chemistry.

Today my husband will walk across the stage at the University of Buffalo and become a Doctor of Pharmacy. And I will cry tears of pride and joy.

I am so proud of Tom for coping with all the stress and pressure that a college student deals with, while still being a wonderful Father and Husband. The idea of studying for a test at my age, makes me sick to my stomach. But Tom did it. He conquered exams for classes I had a hard time pronouncing. He guided our boys through Cub scouts and baseball and riding a bike without training wheels.

We did this together, Tom had the short end of the stick, but we did it and our family has come out the other side stronger and more determined to scale any hurdle we may face in the years to come.

I am so proud of you, Tom. I love you. Happy Graduation!

130/366: 'Twas the Night before Graduation

And all through the house, not a creature was stirring, 'cept for mother mouse.

The gown was steamed and hung by the oven with care,

With Tom and boys in bed, I cleaned and created, and wondered.

After six years endured, I smiled and rejoiced for how far we've come.

And the goodness that is yet to be.

129/366: Dear Wegmans

This morning, I stumbled upon a new store brand pasta at Wegmans. A GLUTEN FREE pasta. It is a corn pasta and I'm looking forward to trying it.

Wegmans, thank you. Thank you for all the options you offer the Celiac community. I only wish you had a store in Connecticut and Maryland, it'd make some people very happy.

128/366: Not Mulch Matters

This was my front yard last week.

This is my front yard today.

I was busy all day Sunday, pulling, poking, grabbing and swearing.  Grass isn't easy to get out once it's formed a thick turf.  The scary part, is that the area behind where I was standing to take these photos was in the worst condition.

My fingertips are finally feeling back to normal.

And mulch does matter.  Very mulch.

127/366: Yes

Source: data.whicdn.com via Hannah on Pinterest

126/366: 3rd Generation Picker

This morning, at 6:20, I was waking up the Big Boy to join me in my favorite summer pastime with my Dad. Flea Market: speed style.

The first Sunday of each month, the flea market features Garage Sale tables. Dad works Sundays at 10:00 am, so we arrive early and don't dilly dally. We spend less time at a dealers table than we would a person just selling personal items.

After Big Boy finally woke up and came downstairs, he sat for a bit, then "I think I am going back to bed. I'll go another time."

I was saddened, until not a minute late, "Okay, I want to go."

We reminded each other of what we were looking for and walked. For my Dad: decoys, bottle stoppers with hand carved moving people on them, granite ware, Indian stuff and old guns. For me: something medicinal for inspiration in preparation for Tom's Graduation. And for Big Boy: metal- anything metal, nothing plastic.

BB was getting bored, until we spied a box of old nuts and bolts and screws and hinges. He asked the seller how much for a couple pieces, 25 cents. BB broke the ice! And he was ready for the next table.

It was a great morning, we had fun and we were all successful. Dad found two decoys at $5 each (unheard of), a shorebird to use in a still life for his students and a bottle stopper. I purchased an old wooden mortar and pestle.

As for Big Boy, he got three bolts (one of which is "golden"), four washers, two keys, three door pulls, one token and one small rusty C clamp.

It was a great day, Big Boy is our good luck charm and he better beware, I'll be dragging him out of bed next month.

125/366: Good Time

There are times when I go to the fabric shop and find a fabric that pulls at me.  There are many times, when I stare at bolt after bolt of fabric, never finding the 'right' one.

This fabric had a vibrancy and delight-fullness that I couldn't avoid.  The problem with this one...the lining.  It was tough.  The yellow background is slightly green.  The orange wasn't coordinating with anything.  I found a stripe that was close, but it seemed too pink-lollipop-look-at-me-I'm-a-bright-stripe.  So, I went askew on the color wheel.  

I love how it came out.  And the title of this post?  Good Time...I made this (after cutting out the pieces the day prior) in 3 hours, 10 minutes.  I'd love to be able to get this under 3 hours.  I'll train for that.  Like marathoners train...I'll work my pedal foot.

124/366: {this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.


If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

123/366: Feeling Sick

Source: mirdinara.blogspot.com via Iliyana on Pinterest

Hoping tomorrow is a little better.

122/366: One Third

We are one third through this year 2012.  I have written 122 posts including this one.

It's a good time to look back and re-evaluate things.  Is this working?  Does anyone care?  Is it helping me?  Is it causing unwanted commitment?

1. Well, working, not so much.  I haven't gotten any new readers, but have kept my consistent 12 readers per day.  I kind of like that.

2. Only 12 people care that I have a new post every day.  And me, I care.

3.  Is it helping me?  I like that I have used my camera consistently, I've learned new tricks on my camera that I may not have learned had I not done the Micro March. 

4.  Unwanted commitment, not really.  Admittedly, there are days that I have nothing to say.  But then days like today, that I was going to write about the grass in my garden beds that has been taunting me (luckily, you'll get to see that tomorrow..ha!), that the feel of my fingertips on this keyboard seems to flow through my fingers to my head and heart.  I could type forever.

Well, perhaps not forever, because that would be gibberish and I'd tell you about tulips and how we carried them at Lisa and Joe's wedding and they were yellow and our dresses were yellow and the ceremony was beautiful and tulips are nice.  See, not that interesting.

Tom and I had a conversation about our electronics usage, (mostly mine) and perhaps this blog is one way to decrease the usage.

But I can't.  I'll give up Scrabble and Hanging with Friends and Bubble Town before I give up this blog.

This is where I can sort my thoughts and practice my photography.  And where I can be me.

You may get short posts or posts with pictures only, but you will get a touch of me in everything.

So, two more thirds to go.  Stick with me?

121/366: The Game Game



For Christmas, the boys each got a big box of Bare Books items.  Included with the blank comic books and blank books, was this blank game board.

Last week, Little Man decided to make "The Game Game".  He filled out all the cards with number for the amount of spaces you can move and some other cards such as:

The "Control People" card allows you to make another player lose the game.  There are many bombs on the board.  If you land on one, you lose.  End of the Road space, makes you move back to home.  The object is to circle the board twice.

No one has ever circled the board twice.  The win is by default.

But, you know what?  It is the fastest game on the planet.

And my favorite game on the planet.