I am surrounded by laundry. On one side of the living room is the kids' stuff hanging up; on the other side is mine. Next to me is a pile of towels and unmentionables waiting to be folded, and hidden away in the dryer is more towels and socks. Hanging stuff up definitely saves on the electric bill, but it sure does make me miss my old clothes line.
My clothes line was a thing of beauty. Round flower beds surrounded the posts and three lines were hung between. About halfway down (the pole) was my kid-friendly line. It was one of those that you could pull out and hook on the other pole and was easily accessible by my ever-present kids. The best days were those beautiful, breezy days where I could carry a big basket out back, tie on my clothes-pin apron (yes, I really had one of those) and fill up all three lines. Usually my tag-along helper would have the duty of hanging dishtowels on the line they could reach. The afternoon would pass by and back out we would go, gathering in the clothes a whole faster than we put them out.
My favorite? Sheets dried in the sunshine.
And little pairs of boxer shorts swinging in the breeze.
I can't hang out clothes where we live now. The neighbor's burn barrel schedule across the street is too sporadic, plus I have no good place to put a line anyway. I still have my clothes-pin apron, only it's hanging in a lonely spot by the shovels and rakes. I just hate to get rid of it. You never know when the husband might cut down a few trees or the neighbors asphyxiate from the toxic plumes of smoke they produce on any given day.
And I'm just joking about the asphyxiation part. They really are nice people.
They just haven't caught on to the concept that plastic was not meant to burn.
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Roll Call
When the trumpet of the Lord shall sound, and time shall be no more,
And the morning breaks, eternal, bright and fair;
When the saved of earth shall gather over on the other shore,
And the roll is called up yonder, I’ll be there.
Call me an old-fashioned girl.
I definitely can't hang long with the contemporary group.
Guess I'll always be a traditionalist at heart.
On that bright and cloudless morning when the dead in Christ shall rise,
And the glory of His resurrection share;
When His chosen ones shall gather to their home beyond the skies,
And the roll is called up yonder, I’ll be there.
My grandma took me to church as a little girl.
I still sat by her as an adult (most of the time anyway).
Her voice singing is a permanent recording in my head.
Let us labor for the Master from the dawn till setting sun,
Let us talk of all His wondrous love and care;
Then when all of life is over, and our work on earth is done,
And the roll is called up yonder, I’ll be there.
Victory In Jesus.
In The Sweet By And By.
Leaning On The Everlasting Arms.
Sing me an old hymn and my eyes will start to water.
One of these days, I'll be sitting by her in church again.
When the roll is called up yonder, I'll be there.
And the morning breaks, eternal, bright and fair;
When the saved of earth shall gather over on the other shore,
And the roll is called up yonder, I’ll be there.
Call me an old-fashioned girl.
I definitely can't hang long with the contemporary group.
Guess I'll always be a traditionalist at heart.
On that bright and cloudless morning when the dead in Christ shall rise,
And the glory of His resurrection share;
When His chosen ones shall gather to their home beyond the skies,
And the roll is called up yonder, I’ll be there.
My grandma took me to church as a little girl.
I still sat by her as an adult (most of the time anyway).
Her voice singing is a permanent recording in my head.
Let us labor for the Master from the dawn till setting sun,
Let us talk of all His wondrous love and care;
Then when all of life is over, and our work on earth is done,
And the roll is called up yonder, I’ll be there.
Victory In Jesus.
In The Sweet By And By.
Leaning On The Everlasting Arms.
Sing me an old hymn and my eyes will start to water.
One of these days, I'll be sitting by her in church again.
When the roll is called up yonder, I'll be there.
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
One Hot Mama
For future reference, the combination of coca-cola, greasy onion rings, and hot temperatures do not make a classy combination. I've spent the morning helping the husband out and all was well until about twenty minutes after we ate a late lunch. Thank goodness he sees his role as taking care of the little woman and gave me an easy out by telling me he could handle the rest on his own. It's about time for school to be out anyway so that means it's about time to start thinking about what to feed the kids tonight. I'm much more comfortable in my role as the head chef.
Speaking of which, we are out of milk and (heaven forbid!) coffee creamer. I'm going to have to subject the good people of the grocery store to my paint-splattered, bandana-wearing look. The milk I could do without; the coffee creamer... not a chance. I always believe in the finer priorities of life. Of course, coffee creamer to me is Nesquick to my husband. What coffee does for me, chocolate milk does for him. I guess since he let me go early today, I can make sure he's set later for his favorite bedtime drink. Besides, my girl's been on a kick about making supper. I think I'll suggest the breakfast version to her tonight.
And with that, time to go wow the people of my good town with my amazing look.
The kids are gonna love me forever (or possible deny our relationship).
The things that make me laugh. =)
Speaking of which, we are out of milk and (heaven forbid!) coffee creamer. I'm going to have to subject the good people of the grocery store to my paint-splattered, bandana-wearing look. The milk I could do without; the coffee creamer... not a chance. I always believe in the finer priorities of life. Of course, coffee creamer to me is Nesquick to my husband. What coffee does for me, chocolate milk does for him. I guess since he let me go early today, I can make sure he's set later for his favorite bedtime drink. Besides, my girl's been on a kick about making supper. I think I'll suggest the breakfast version to her tonight.
And with that, time to go wow the people of my good town with my amazing look.
The kids are gonna love me forever (or possible deny our relationship).
The things that make me laugh. =)
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Back To Tony: Volume 9
Nothing like logging on facebook to see you brother smiling back at you. Well, for him anyway, this is a smile. You can see it in his eyes. Check out these remarks and pictures.
August 19, 2011
Pretty neat, huh? And if you're interested in the whole wearing red to grandma's funeral thing, well... my grandma loved red. I thought I had written something about that, but can't seem to find it. I'll write about that someday... how she was laid to rest in a red dress she had made just for that occasion. It's quite the story how well prepared that little lady was for her going-away day.
But this one is all about my brother. And if you haven't read any of his stuff, just choose the gastric sleeve bypass link found somewhere on the left and go back to the beginning. You can't get more inspired than getting lost in all that.
August 19, 2011
Pretty neat, huh? And if you're interested in the whole wearing red to grandma's funeral thing, well... my grandma loved red. I thought I had written something about that, but can't seem to find it. I'll write about that someday... how she was laid to rest in a red dress she had made just for that occasion. It's quite the story how well prepared that little lady was for her going-away day.
But this one is all about my brother. And if you haven't read any of his stuff, just choose the gastric sleeve bypass link found somewhere on the left and go back to the beginning. You can't get more inspired than getting lost in all that.
Monday, August 22, 2011
Hanging On
I've got one cat at my feet and another one sitting on my leg. I'm starting to feel a little bit weird... it's like I sit down and they all start to gather. For the sake of my reputation, we will not be getting another cat.
I typically like Mondays, but I gotta say this one was no good. Yesterday went downhill after church and today was spent recovering emotionally. Yeah. It was that bad. Some days are just lousy.
Now we sit here watching some Japanese game show. Monday night entertainment at its finest. I would prefer something chocolate to add to the mix, but settled for marshmallow cereal instead.
The youngest cooked supper (very good).
The middle is playing guitar (not bad).
And the oldest is washing his truck (in the dark).
Meanwhile, the husband and I are just trying to hang on. Remember I said a month or so ago that September would be an interesting month? Well, things are shaping up for that to be the case.
You all pray for our job situation, would ya?
I really, really like our house. =)
I typically like Mondays, but I gotta say this one was no good. Yesterday went downhill after church and today was spent recovering emotionally. Yeah. It was that bad. Some days are just lousy.
Now we sit here watching some Japanese game show. Monday night entertainment at its finest. I would prefer something chocolate to add to the mix, but settled for marshmallow cereal instead.
The youngest cooked supper (very good).
The middle is playing guitar (not bad).
And the oldest is washing his truck (in the dark).
Meanwhile, the husband and I are just trying to hang on. Remember I said a month or so ago that September would be an interesting month? Well, things are shaping up for that to be the case.
You all pray for our job situation, would ya?
I really, really like our house. =)
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Junk Yard Bonding
What makes a seventeen-year old boy happy? Well, besides his girlfriend or computer games or having gas money to cruise around on... but what seriously makes the boy happy? The answer is simple.
Spending time with his dad.
And spending that time at a junk yard.
You would think it was Christmas around here. The husband took the oldest to the mecca of car-fixer-uppers enthusiasts. A place where you take your own tools, pay a buck to get through the gates, and stroll row after row of perfectly organized junk cars. Three hours later they showed up both grinning ear-to-ear.
A grown man had found headlights and door handles and other replacement parts.
A young man had found a front grill and a glove box and something else I can't remember.
Now they are both perfectly content working away on their individual projects. They periodically stop what they're doing to locate missing tools and grumble about how things are never where they should be. It all reminds me of the day I sat and watched them work on a bike. It's something I never grow tired of doing.
We may never have the money for satellite tv or other extras to entertain us.
But I've got a front porch swing and two fine looking men working in front of me.
You can't beat that for a Saturday night.
Spending time with his dad.
And spending that time at a junk yard.
You would think it was Christmas around here. The husband took the oldest to the mecca of car-fixer-uppers enthusiasts. A place where you take your own tools, pay a buck to get through the gates, and stroll row after row of perfectly organized junk cars. Three hours later they showed up both grinning ear-to-ear.
A grown man had found headlights and door handles and other replacement parts.
A young man had found a front grill and a glove box and something else I can't remember.
Now they are both perfectly content working away on their individual projects. They periodically stop what they're doing to locate missing tools and grumble about how things are never where they should be. It all reminds me of the day I sat and watched them work on a bike. It's something I never grow tired of doing.
We may never have the money for satellite tv or other extras to entertain us.
But I've got a front porch swing and two fine looking men working in front of me.
You can't beat that for a Saturday night.
Friday, August 19, 2011
Do Cat Ladies Have Fun?
Week One has come to an end and it's almost as if summer vacation never happened. We've had tired kids, hungry kids, and sometimes grumpy kids. I gotta hand it to them, though. If I were not here, they would carry on just fine. Up every day on their own and ready to go. I remember back when they were in first and second grades and I had them fixing their own school lunches. They had it down to a science: sandwich, chips, apple, and cookies (or something along those lines). I also remember teaching the oldest how to make my coffee when he was in the fourth grade. That boy could run a coffee pot! His coffee duties went by the wayside when I bought a machine with a fancy grinder and nowadays with my Keurig, well... even the cat could probably be trained to push the flashing blue button. Anyway, I never cease to be amazed by them all.
I remember times when they were younger and how tired I was all the time. Bath times, the brushing of the teeth, and the elusive art of keep one kid in particular in bed practically wore me out. When I think of how many times that child got up and down, up and down: I need a drink, Mom. I gotta go to the bathroom, Mom. I might be sick, Mom. Oh my, there were nights I thought I might lose my mind! And before that we suffered through those hard times known as colic (one kid) and chicken pox (two kids) and middle-of-the-night bad dreams (all three kids). Nothing unusual, I know, but I think every mom thinks she is the one that will literally crack before the first child ever heads off to kindergarten. Sleep becomes a sacred event.
We've had cystic fibrosis scares and talk of brain tumors and the reality of alopecia areata. We've been through countless dogs, numerous stray cats, and one episode of having chickens. We're on our third set of braces (two kids), have been through one back-type brace (one kid), and have made trips to the emergency room (all three kids). We've had bunk beds and mini vans and swing sets.
After this year it will be two kids in high school and one in college. One kid is preparing to move out while another anticipates having his own room for the very first time. Of course, we wiser people understand that those two who have been inseparable will have a hard time being separated. Already best friends and they don't quite realize it yet. Yes, indeed, it is quite the pleasure watching these kids grow.
And now here I sit with two sleeping cats on either side of me.
It's a good thing my kids are doing well.
I may be the one having issues in a few years.
I remember times when they were younger and how tired I was all the time. Bath times, the brushing of the teeth, and the elusive art of keep one kid in particular in bed practically wore me out. When I think of how many times that child got up and down, up and down: I need a drink, Mom. I gotta go to the bathroom, Mom. I might be sick, Mom. Oh my, there were nights I thought I might lose my mind! And before that we suffered through those hard times known as colic (one kid) and chicken pox (two kids) and middle-of-the-night bad dreams (all three kids). Nothing unusual, I know, but I think every mom thinks she is the one that will literally crack before the first child ever heads off to kindergarten. Sleep becomes a sacred event.
We've had cystic fibrosis scares and talk of brain tumors and the reality of alopecia areata. We've been through countless dogs, numerous stray cats, and one episode of having chickens. We're on our third set of braces (two kids), have been through one back-type brace (one kid), and have made trips to the emergency room (all three kids). We've had bunk beds and mini vans and swing sets.
After this year it will be two kids in high school and one in college. One kid is preparing to move out while another anticipates having his own room for the very first time. Of course, we wiser people understand that those two who have been inseparable will have a hard time being separated. Already best friends and they don't quite realize it yet. Yes, indeed, it is quite the pleasure watching these kids grow.
And now here I sit with two sleeping cats on either side of me.
It's a good thing my kids are doing well.
I may be the one having issues in a few years.
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