Off To The Mountains

He-man and I are going to Wyoming to see our three little chickadees... oh and their mom and dad too.  We will be gone ten days.  I am going to try to post while we are away....... ..... ..... but sometimes I get distracted by fashion shows, art displays, card games, ballerinas shoes and cowboy boots.

Pleasure is willing to help me out with a few guest posts.  One of the several things I enjoy about Pleasure is her lack of pretense.  What you see is what you get.  She is pure sweet,  pure adorable and pure country.  It will be fun.

Before I go I want to leave you with a selection from Mark Neop's book, The Book of Awakening.  As I was reading this a couple of days back, I realized that I really needed to listen to it's message.  I am timid about putting myself out there (where ever there may be).  I feel insecure and incapable of sharing what I really want to share with the world.  Silly, I know.  But we all do it from time to time.  We all doubt that we are enough.  Mr. Nepo is reminding us that we are.....

Consider or Enter

If you try to comprehend air

before breathing it, 

you will die.

We can only consider things so long.  After a while, all the information--all the options and opinions-- will begin to weigh us down.  After our deeper eyes have seen the situation, all the well-meaning voices telling us what we should or should not do will start to feel like strings we can't cut through.

This was poor Hamlet's fate.  He over thought his life away.  He over-considered which way to go until he felt stalled and oppressed by just being in the world.  It is natural enough to be cautious and thoughtful, especially when faced with important decisions, but often the only way to know what awaits us is to live it.

Center yourself holding a glass of water and an empty cup

Consider the choice that awaits you while pouring the water from the glass to the cup 

When you tire of pouring, breathe deeply and drink the water

Now enter your life.

I hope that whatever you have been thinking of doing you do.  I hope you step out today and live exactly how you desire.  I hope you might trust that you are enough.

GRATITUDE

 

gratitude, like faith, is a muscle.

the more you use it,

 the stronger it grows,

 and the more power you have to use it on your behalf.

if you do not practice gratefulness,

its benefaction will go unnoticed,

and your capacity to draw on its gifts will be diminished.

to be grateful is to find blessings in everything,

this is the most powerful attitude to adopt,

 for there are blessings in everything.
Alan Cohen

Mobile Merry

JD has a mobile tire service that he operates from his big red truck.  Drivers who find themselves on the highway or dirt road or gravel parking lot or wherever with a flat tire and no spare or means to change it, give JD a call and he comes rolling.  I even called him once to change my tire.  Only my car was parked in my garage.  It did have a flat tire and I did have a spare but I didn't know how to make any of it work on my behalf.  Son's are a mother's greatest blessing... well other than their daughters that is.

He-man loves to ride along when JD gets a call to help a needy driver.  I just happen to have my camera on my hip the other afternoon when JD rolled up in our driveway to pick up his dad.

He-man always wear the appropriate T-shirt for the occasion.  His every day attire for 30 plus years has been a pocket T-shirt and Levis. It has morphed a bit through the years from a t-shirt to a flannel shirt or Levis to wranglers but the basic ensemble remains the same. 

 
The day of the ride along he wore his Tire Changing shirt.

It makes me very happy that JD likes to have his father with him for an important tire call as well as a fun party with the guys.  JD asked He-man to be his best man when he was married two years ago.  One of JD's dreams is to buy acreage, build a home, raise a garden, chicken and pigs and... a little adobe for mom and dad so JD and He-man can erect a huge shop and play together day after day. 

I think that is one of the best tributes a father can be paid.... a son who enjoys sharing his life with his dad. I am grateful for their relationship and for the ease in which they participate in each other's lives.  Neither expects or demands anything from the other.... instead they respect their differences, honor each other's opinions and laugh often. Wish congress could roll the way my boys do.   Easy and open.

Speaking of rolling... that's just what JD's Mobile Tire Service has got to do.  I must put down my camera and get out of the way or else they will have more than a flat tire to inflate.




I hope there is someone in your life whose company you enjoy.  I hope you feel free to laugh and talk openly.  I hope your day is a good, easy, open ride.

Look Alikes

Okay, I guess it's official.  Tasha is gone.  No more Tasha Tuesdays.  Boo hoo.

Tasha had to renew her nursing license and experienced a few problems along the way.  While she is working out the kinks another nurse is taking her place at Clarehouse.  Tasha we wish you the best and send you good thoughts for smooth sailing.

Even though we will miss Tasha's fun flair, we can enjoy the flair that flies about us daily. 

It has been said that people begin to look alike after spending years together.  I want you to look for that today.  Look at the couples whom you know have been together a long time and see if you can notice any physical similarities.  It could be fun and it may even be one of those exercises that improves brain function.  Who knows?

Today I am posting pictures of look alikes, but they are not couples... well not in the traditional sense anyway.  Let's take a peek.

What do you think... have they had the same nose job?

It's nice to go to the hair salon with a friend.

You stuck my knitting needle in the outlet again, didn't you?

They say blondes have more fun

But these red-heads are proof that you can't believe everything you hear about blondes

The little girl looks happier than the little dog

Only Between Friends

They are hugging each other, right?

You know what they say about elderly drivers!

Except for the black nose, they really do look alike

But nobody looks more like their dog than this little duo!!!  Don't you want to pet them both?

I hope flair is displayed before you today.  I hope you find one reason to look closely into another.  I hope you share a treat, a ride or a hug with someone special to your heart.

Ready For Some Action

Before her morning coffee last Saturday, Pleasure hopped in her van, drove to my house, parked out front and skipped up the sidewalk.  In her usual cheerful manner she hugged me hello and we began loading furniture, fixtures, and fun things into the back of her van for our first playroom design installation.

After a week's worth of inhaling over spray, burning my fingers on hot glue, tearing apart disappointing projects and singing the alphabet song 247 times, I was eager to see a pile of projects actually become a real room.

When we first talked with our client about possibly turning her dining room into a playroom I did not think she going to hire us for the job.  So I didn't measure her dining room or take any before pictures.  When she finally did give us the go ahead, Pleasure and I had to go by memory and intuition.



The day of the install we could immediately see that we had lucked out in choosing smaller furniture and a large art display.  One by one Pleasure began placing letters of the alphabet on the wall. 

   

I stood in the doorway and directed her with, "jigg it a bit over to the right.  now rotate it left... no, no too high, lower."  Miss Boo watched from her chair redirecting with, "oooh."  "burp." and "raspberry."


Now I am going to back track a bit....

 

A picture of our twenty dollar second hand furniture find before it was painted.

After a couple of coats of Kyrlon Glossy Blue spray paint.

 
After a few swipes of green to accent the details and color the original hardware.

And to wrap it all up, I wrapped the inside with a fun striped contact paper in our chosen accent colors.

Pleasure donated a shelf that was not being used in her home.  It had once been hot pink, until I spray painted it pumpkin orange.  We bought the picnic basket and small bushel baskets at a garage sale for a couple of dollars.  The large blocks on the top of the shelf were once........

..the old wooden canisters you see here.  I painted them white, stenciled on different letters and then washed them with a water base stain.

Here's a shot of the shelf in the playroom, loaded with toys.  The canisters turned blocks provide storage for legos, crayons and small cars.

Pleasure and I also scored a round wooden accent table for eight dollars.  He-man cut down the legs and constructed stools out of lumber he had lying around his garage.  I guess you could say that was our most profitable garage sale find of the day!








 
I painted a peace sign on the top and stripes on the stools in the accent colors of our design.

With Pleasure's steady hand, a few revived letters we'd picked up at garage sales, a gleaning of Hobby Lobby's 50% off aisle, he-man's handy work and some of our own creations the large alphabet wall spelled out a fun place to play.

We moved toys from the living room to the playroom where every nook and cranny became filled.  It was a good thing we incorporated storage in the green wicker cubes (also spray painted), the blue cabinet, the picnic basket and the bushel buckets.  Not only did the room look fun it served our client's need.

Yup, even the house cat seemed pleased. 


I hope your day spells out fun.  I hope you have a need fulfilled.  I hope your hands serve you, your heart leads you and your passion pulls you deeper and deeper into joy.

Progress Report

Little Miss Boo is three months and one week old.  She is changing every day, like all babies do.  She used to sleep all the time.  Now she stays awake more and more.  She smiles and coos and blows bubbles.  She is easy going and cries only when hungry or wet and she seems to be hungry often.  Boo is getting so round that it is hard to find her neck.  Her mom tells me that it takes her several minutes to clean all her creases and folds where Boo stores left-over formula and runaway tears.

Many times Boo lays on the sofa watching the comings and goings of the five other creatures living in her home.

Sometimes she can't believe her baby blue eyes.



 








Sometimes the creatures make her laugh out loud.

And sometimes all she can do is smack her licks in disbelief.

She likes to sit on her mom's lap and listen to the adults talk.

Boo is taken with he-man's stories.  When he is talking she pays attention to his every sound and watches him as if he were telling her that the formula company might be going on strike.

Whatever Boo is learning it is apparent that she is on the fast track.  When I have not seen her for only a few days, I notice how she has changed.

She is beginning to know my voice and she smiles when I talk to her.  Of course I use my best baby ooy, gooy, voice that I can deliver.  Sometimes I wonder if Boo is not smiling at me but laughing at the silly sounds coming out of my mouth.  Do you think adult baby talk is the same language as authentic baby talk?   For all I know I could be cursing when I think I'm cooing.

Oh well, Boo is very forgiving.  All I need do is serve her up a warmed six ounces of formula and we are tighter than tight.


I hope you have little reason to fuss today.  I hope you are comfortable, dry and filled with nourishment.  I hope you have someone in your life who you can speak freely with no matter how you sound or what you say.

After School Pick Me Up

It's not often that I pick the grand children up from school.  But when I do we have all kinds of fun.

For some reason it has become a tradition to go to Old MacDonalds.  That's the name Sci-Guy dubbed McDonalds when he was a toddler and it has been what we've called Ronald's Fast Food Joint ever since.

The boys like to go there for the toys.  Bluebird likes the Dr. Pepper.  Me, well I  like to gather them around a table, loosen them up with a few carbonated beverages, and listen to unsolicited information spilling forth from frothy lips. 

Bluebird told me about a girl who wanted to be her BFF.  She was having a problem because she didn't think she really wanted a BFF.  She wondered if her other friends would feel left out.  Or if they might not want to play with her if her BFF was rude.  "Cause she is rude to me sometimes, Yaya," she said while twirling her hair through her fingers.


 



Sci-Guy wondered if he was going to be bullied or maybe break his leg? 

His demeanor didn't seem to match his questions.  He was dipping fries in ketchup between words, or running off from time to time to team up with a boy he'd just met on the jungle gym.

Clone didn't spend time at the table spilling his guts.  He had ladders to climb, children to meet and slides to slip.

Every kid knows that your play time will be much more beneficial if you take time to stretch out the hamstrings before you hit the equipment. Right?

And we could all take a cue from these fellows.... knowing the boundaries of indoor play promotes safety for all Old MacDonald little visitors.

While those guys were reading the rules Clone had already scaled the first level of the M Tower.

He quickly passed the second where he successfully planted himself on the top floor hollering down to us wee people on the ground below.

Clone also found a few new friends to play with.  A blond headed boy hidden behind the blue column listened intently as Clone told him how many times he had conquered the monstrous swirling snake slide.

Of course no modern day playground excursion would be complete without a couple of visits to the video station.  But the main attraction is always the jungle gym and the other children running about.  I'm happy to witness the joy of natural physical play.

With every inch of the tower explored, new friends discovered, toys assembled and happy meals devoured, we waved our good byes to Old MacDonald's and headed home.



Now when I was raising my own children I would never have taken them to McDonalds after school.  It might spoil their appetites for dinner, for heaven's sake!  I most definitely would not have bought them a happy meal.  Those plastic cheap concoctions they called toys would probably have broken before we packed them off to the car.  And I sure as heck would not have loaded them up on sugary carbonated beverages!

I guess motherhood and grandmotherhood are two different animals.  I loved raising a family, taking care of my children and making a cozy home for us all.  But I have got to say that this grand mother thing is a real blast.  I don't have to be concerned about my grand children the way I was with my own children.  Their parents are doing a superb job at parenting.  They don't need me to interfere.  This time around I am here to supply the fun.  And the side effect is that I get to have some too!

I hope your day ends with something fun.  I hope you meet new people, tell a few stories, and stretch out your hamstrings.  Mostly I hope you enjoy the life you are living.  If you're not, drink a Dr. Pepper (or two)