Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Monday, June 20, 2011
The One Thing I Don't Like. . .
. . .about making fried chicken is the oil. Actually the disposal of the oil after the frying is done.
How exactly do y'all dispose of used cooking oil where you live Tadpoles? Please help me. :)
In other news - Father's Day was a 50/50 kind of day. You know the old expression "The best laid plans?" Well, yesterday turned out kinda' like that.
We had a wonderful morning before the gang left to pick up Pooldad's Dad so they could all go to a National's game. Unfortunately the van developed a flat tire and since the tire was too damaged to change himself, Pooldad called roadside assistance. They waited a half hour for them to show up [amazingly short time! yay for AAA!] but getting the tire replaced at Walmart took another hour and a half [again a very short time - so yay for Walmart!] Since so much time had passed they decided against to the baseball game and instead, Grandpa, Daddy and granddaughter went to a Knight's of Columbus picnic [church] which is where Grandma was helping serve. Yippee! There was a ton of food - but Wallene and Pooldad didn't eat too much because as Wallene said, [when she saw one of the offerings was fried chicken and beans] "We better not eat that Dad because you know what's for dinner." heehee
Yep! Dinner was so delicious - fried chicken, Pooldad's awesome beans and homemade coleslaw. Wallene made me laugh when she asked [after her second piece of chicken] "Mom, you know how you always say you don't care what we eat for breakfast, as long as we eat it? [I do.] Does fried chicken fall into that category?" Why, yes...yes it does. :D It's a good thing I only make this a couple of times a year otherwise I think we would all be in perpetual food comas. :D
Everyone went to bed tired and with full bellies. When I woke up this morning I was shocked to see it was 6:45 am and my husband was still sound asleep. [He has to be to work at 7 am] I nudged him and he told me he had already called work and wouldn't be going in today because he has a toothache. Guess a trip to the dentist is in the mix today. My poor baby.
Hope y'all have a spectacular Monday. See ya' on the flipside.
How exactly do y'all dispose of used cooking oil where you live Tadpoles? Please help me. :)
In other news - Father's Day was a 50/50 kind of day. You know the old expression "The best laid plans?" Well, yesterday turned out kinda' like that.
We had a wonderful morning before the gang left to pick up Pooldad's Dad so they could all go to a National's game. Unfortunately the van developed a flat tire and since the tire was too damaged to change himself, Pooldad called roadside assistance. They waited a half hour for them to show up [amazingly short time! yay for AAA!] but getting the tire replaced at Walmart took another hour and a half [again a very short time - so yay for Walmart!] Since so much time had passed they decided against to the baseball game and instead, Grandpa, Daddy and granddaughter went to a Knight's of Columbus picnic [church] which is where Grandma was helping serve. Yippee! There was a ton of food - but Wallene and Pooldad didn't eat too much because as Wallene said, [when she saw one of the offerings was fried chicken and beans] "We better not eat that Dad because you know what's for dinner." heehee
Yep! Dinner was so delicious - fried chicken, Pooldad's awesome beans and homemade coleslaw. Wallene made me laugh when she asked [after her second piece of chicken] "Mom, you know how you always say you don't care what we eat for breakfast, as long as we eat it? [I do.] Does fried chicken fall into that category?" Why, yes...yes it does. :D It's a good thing I only make this a couple of times a year otherwise I think we would all be in perpetual food comas. :D
Everyone went to bed tired and with full bellies. When I woke up this morning I was shocked to see it was 6:45 am and my husband was still sound asleep. [He has to be to work at 7 am] I nudged him and he told me he had already called work and wouldn't be going in today because he has a toothache. Guess a trip to the dentist is in the mix today. My poor baby.
Hope y'all have a spectacular Monday. See ya' on the flipside.
Saturday, June 18, 2011
I Guess Big Brother Doesn't Like Lemonade
This week the Washington DC metropolitan area is hosting the U.S. Open Golf tournament. It is being held at Congressional Country Club in Montgomery County, MD - it is smack dab in the middle of one the tonier neighborhoods around here.
This is the big time as the Open is one of THE major tournaments in the PGA. There are a lot of people, a lot of traffic and a LOT of money to be made.
A bunch of enterprising children decided that this would be the perfect opportunity to raise money for pediatric cancer research by opening a lemonade stand on one of the neighborhood streets leading up to the entrance of the golf course. Basically - they set up their stand in one of their own front yards.
Enter the Montgomery County inspector. With his handy dandy ticket book.
[You know this isn't going to be good don't you?]
Ding! Ding! Ding! The inspector shut down the kids' stand and wrote them a ticket for $500 because he said the children had broken the law by not having a permit to run the stand.
Really? Seriously? [I see you all shaking your heads at the sheer stupidity of this. Me too!]
One of my favorite quotes from the report is "How does a 10 year old actually get a permit by the way?"
One of my favorite quotes from the report is "How does a 10 year old actually get a permit by the way?"
The inspector's office said that they did not differentiate between businesses and children, that it was their duty to project the public. [For what it is worth the kids were selling bottles of water, cans of soda and lemonade that was prepackaged - something you and I could buy at the local 7-11. It wasn't homemade lemonade.]
After a bit of publicity and an enormous public outcry the fine was dropped and the kids were allowed to re open the stand - the only concession being that they had to move it to a side street and could not be on the road leading up to the front gates of the club.
I am glad common sense prevailed, honestly - but you have to wonder why it even happened in the first place.
It is over zealousness with a capital "Z".
Hope you all are having a great weekend. See ya' on the flipside Tadpoles. :D
Friday, June 17, 2011
Wow! My LAST High Schooler
Today is a great day!
Wallene is officially finished with Middle School and will be moving onto her last four years of High School in the fall. Although we are incredibly excited for her - it is hard to believe that our baby is now in High School. Wow.
Today starts summer break and I now have my "partner in crime" home with me for the next two months. :Skippyhappydance:
 |
| 2003 Kindergarten |
I know we all say "It seems like just yesterday...." but it really does!
I think it is terribly unfair. They should stay little forever. Dontcha' think?
It is a rainy, stormy morning and I have no idea why I am awake at 6 am when I can sleep in [no lunches to make, no one to get off to the bus - heck, Wallene won't be getting up for hours] but that is okay - it is still going to be a great day Tadpoles. :D
Hope it is for y'all too!
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Notes In Your Lunch
Thank goodness today is the last day of school.
Sigh.
For the second time in 4 days Wallene has forgotten her lunch. She has only done this one time all year, but twice THIS week. Jeesh kid. [Think someone is excited about summer and High School?]
On top of that she forgot her $3,000 French horn that has to be returned to the school. A school she won't be returning to next year as she is moving on to High School - so, yeah....that little puppy had to get back. I don't want to own the thing.
Double sigh.
On the bright side Pooldad had late shift so he was able to take her lunch in, along with the horn. [No such luck on her other forgotten lunch, Tuesday. That day she went hungry.]
Anyhoodle....this is the note that Wallene will find in her lunch today:
Sigh.
For the second time in 4 days Wallene has forgotten her lunch. She has only done this one time all year, but twice THIS week. Jeesh kid. [Think someone is excited about summer and High School?]
On top of that she forgot her $3,000 French horn that has to be returned to the school. A school she won't be returning to next year as she is moving on to High School - so, yeah....that little puppy had to get back. I don't want to own the thing.
Double sigh.
On the bright side Pooldad had late shift so he was able to take her lunch in, along with the horn. [No such luck on her other forgotten lunch, Tuesday. That day she went hungry.]
Anyhoodle....this is the note that Wallene will find in her lunch today:
Yes, it is a weird sense of humor, but it is OURS and we own it. giggle
Hope you all are having a great Thursday - 4 o'clock can't come soon enough for me.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
As Colenic Says.....
It's my smile for today.
It is hard to see, but it is actually a triple rainbow. What is amazing is we didn't even get a storm. This was taken from our front porch, but not a drop of rain to be seen. I think our neighbors got the rain.
How lucky can you be to have a beautiful day, without rain AND get a rainbow all at once?
Have a great one Tadpoles. See ya' on the flipside.
 |
| A Triple Rainbow |
Here is the view from our back porch, taken at the same time:
 |
| Blue skies, smiling at me, nothing but blue skies do I see. |
Have a great one Tadpoles. See ya' on the flipside.
Monday, June 13, 2011
They Made Me Do It!
See! I had to write my own ransom note:
At least I got to watch television [notice the remote] while I cut and pasted.
But, whew - it was a close call. hee
Thank you so much for your support and offers of coupons and a $1.25. Pooldad slipped me a bitty screwdriver on his way out this morning and I was able to fiddle with the "A" key on my laptop and it seemed to fix the "N" and the "B" keys while I was at it. Oh, and threats from afar seemed to work too. giggle
Before I was allowed to resume blogging and leave real comments for y'all [sorry Tessa and This] I had to make dinner.
I think I may have a future at Disney. YAY! [This is my first Mickey Mouse.]
Thanks for the fun comments on the last post.
But, whew - it was a close call. hee
Thank you so much for your support and offers of coupons and a $1.25. Pooldad slipped me a bitty screwdriver on his way out this morning and I was able to fiddle with the "A" key on my laptop and it seemed to fix the "N" and the "B" keys while I was at it. Oh, and threats from afar seemed to work too. giggle
Before I was allowed to resume blogging and leave real comments for y'all [sorry Tessa and This] I had to make dinner.
I think I may have a future at Disney. YAY! [This is my first Mickey Mouse.]
 |
| Breakfast for dinner. Yum! |
See ya on the flipside. Have a good one Tadpoles. :D.
Friday, June 10, 2011
Remember When...
Pooldad's blog buddies have a thread going on over at their site called "Remember when...." and it was a lot of fun to participate.
I thought I would post here what I wrote this morning because it was neat to walk down memory lane.
Join me, please.
I remember when the drinking age was 18.
Gas was under a buck a gallon and waiting in gas lines as a kid with my folks because it was "our" day to purchase gas.
Bread was .45 cents and you could get a soda out a machine for a quarter.
I remember when all kids had manners and if you got out of line your neighbor was allowed to reprimand you. (No kidding - did your neighbors do this way back when? Mine sure did. And we listened!)
I remember when the punishment you got when you arrived home from school (if you acted up) was a whole lot worse then anything the school could do. Wait. That one still holds true here. Scratch.
I remember when we paid .03 cents for a carton of milk to go with our lunch and if we bought a school lunch is was .25 cents, served on real plates with real silverware and was homecooked by the wonderful lunch ladies.
I remember learning to type on a manual typewriter in high school and being excited to take an electric typewriter to college with me. The thrill!
I remember being able to buy a cheeseburger, small fry and a small coke at McDonald's for under a $1.00. Or a burrito and a pepsi for .99 cents at our local Taco Laredo. Heck, I remember when fast food was a treat for a special occasion. Oooh....and I remember soft serve ice cream came out at McDonald's and it was .25. That was a treat.
I remember when all kids had manners and if you got out of line your neighbor was allowed to reprimand you. (No kidding - did your neighbors do this way back when? Mine sure did. And we listened!)
I remember when the punishment you got when you arrived home from school (if you acted up) was a whole lot worse then anything the school could do. Wait. That one still holds true here. Scratch.
I remember when we paid .03 cents for a carton of milk to go with our lunch and if we bought a school lunch is was .25 cents, served on real plates with real silverware and was homecooked by the wonderful lunch ladies.
I remember learning to type on a manual typewriter in high school and being excited to take an electric typewriter to college with me. The thrill!
I remember being able to buy a cheeseburger, small fry and a small coke at McDonald's for under a $1.00. Or a burrito and a pepsi for .99 cents at our local Taco Laredo. Heck, I remember when fast food was a treat for a special occasion. Oooh....and I remember soft serve ice cream came out at McDonald's and it was .25. That was a treat.
I remember returning our glass soda bottles for the deposit. .10 cents a bottle and we would scour the neighborhood and local business park for hours and end up with a couple of dollars for "mad money."
I remember tree forts, fishing and swimming in the creek were free things to do and kept us entertained for hours, days, weeks.
I remember when everything - EVERYTHING - was closed on Sundays. Including 7-11s. Blue laws.
I remember leaving my house on a summer's morning, at 6 years old and not returning until dinner time and my parents not worrying.
I remember when everything - EVERYTHING - was closed on Sundays. Including 7-11s. Blue laws.
I remember leaving my house on a summer's morning, at 6 years old and not returning until dinner time and my parents not worrying.
I remember being able to close down a local street [that was actually a hill] when it snowed so the kids could sled safely. It was called "The Big Hill" - so original - and none of the neighbors complained, they just went a different way.
I remember 6 television channels, 3 National, 1 local and 2 PBS, and the signal going off at midnight while the national anthem played and a picture of the flag was shown. I also remember Saturday morning cartoons - when Saturday was the ONLY day you could see cartoons.
I remember walking 5 miles, uphill, in the snow......Nah! Just kidding. giggle
I remember 6 television channels, 3 National, 1 local and 2 PBS, and the signal going off at midnight while the national anthem played and a picture of the flag was shown. I also remember Saturday morning cartoons - when Saturday was the ONLY day you could see cartoons.
I remember walking 5 miles, uphill, in the snow......Nah! Just kidding. giggle
Not to shabby for being 44 years old, I think.
What do y'all remember?
What do y'all remember?
Thursday, June 9, 2011
That Wasn't Too Bright Skippy
Actually it was pretty stupid.
But, I only have myself to blame. heehee
Seems that if you haven't done something in over a year you might not want to forget that you are not supposed to do it and if you do do it there may be side effects.
I was blogging around this morning and while reading our good friend Kathy over at kathy's kampground kapers she mentioned that she was going to have a nice glass of iced tea. Mmmm, that sounded really good to me - so I decided "Me too!" and set about to brewing up a big ol' glass of tea. 24 oz of icy cold goodness on an especially hot day. YAY!
Or not. I accidently grabbed the wrong type of tea bags. Since I gave up caffeine a year ago I had to also give up my favorite tea in it's caffeinated form. No biggie - I got used to decaffeinated tea, but didn't drink as much of it as usual. So, yes I took the caffeinated tea bags out instead and proceeded to make a honker glass of the stuff.
I think I now know how someone on speed feels like. It ain't so good. I feel completely wired. I am surprised I can type this post and the previous one just now my hands are shaking so much. Weird.
Yep! I think maybe I need to put those teabags in a place not near my teabags.
On a happier note - I imagine my heart is beating at it's old speed again. heehee
But, I only have myself to blame. heehee
Seems that if you haven't done something in over a year you might not want to forget that you are not supposed to do it and if you do do it there may be side effects.
I was blogging around this morning and while reading our good friend Kathy over at kathy's kampground kapers she mentioned that she was going to have a nice glass of iced tea. Mmmm, that sounded really good to me - so I decided "Me too!" and set about to brewing up a big ol' glass of tea. 24 oz of icy cold goodness on an especially hot day. YAY!
Or not. I accidently grabbed the wrong type of tea bags. Since I gave up caffeine a year ago I had to also give up my favorite tea in it's caffeinated form. No biggie - I got used to decaffeinated tea, but didn't drink as much of it as usual. So, yes I took the caffeinated tea bags out instead and proceeded to make a honker glass of the stuff.
I think I now know how someone on speed feels like. It ain't so good. I feel completely wired. I am surprised I can type this post and the previous one just now my hands are shaking so much. Weird.
Yep! I think maybe I need to put those teabags in a place not near my teabags.
On a happier note - I imagine my heart is beating at it's old speed again. heehee
I Don't Know If It Is 400 Miles Worth of Good
My wonderful husband has his own group of blogging buddies. They are a group of guys that met up [online] a few years ago to talk about their love of everything football, but mostly their love of all things Dallas Cowboys ["America's Team"].
They are a great group of guys and a lot of fun to chat with on the phone and hang out with in the virtual world. Every year they even have a summit in Dallas where some of them meet up, tailgate and go to a Cowboy's game. We have yet to make one but hopefully we will be there one day.
Pooldad and the honorary President of the group, Nader, were talking on the phone this weekend when Nader mentioned that he was being abandoned by his family on Father's Day. Poor Nader. Actually, it was entirely unintentional on his family's part, but nonetheless he will be home alone.
So what's Pooldad go and do? He invites Nader to spend the weekend with us! YAY! It wasn't until I got on the phone to talk to Nader that he said that he was excited to come but he would only visit on one condition - the condition being that I make my "world famous" [his words, not mine] fried chicken. He said all the guys had heard about the chicken from Pooldad and he wanted to be the first to taste it so he could report back how good it was.
Ooookay then. No pressure, right?
I have made it a lot for a lot of different people but I have never made it for someone that is driving 400 miles for it! Yeah. No pressure indeed.
I don't guess the family will be too disappointed if I have to practice a few times between now and Father's Day, do you? heehee
Hope you are all having a great Wednesday. I am off to shake, shake, shake - shake my chicken!
See ya' on the [floury] flipside gang!
They are a great group of guys and a lot of fun to chat with on the phone and hang out with in the virtual world. Every year they even have a summit in Dallas where some of them meet up, tailgate and go to a Cowboy's game. We have yet to make one but hopefully we will be there one day.
Pooldad and the honorary President of the group, Nader, were talking on the phone this weekend when Nader mentioned that he was being abandoned by his family on Father's Day. Poor Nader. Actually, it was entirely unintentional on his family's part, but nonetheless he will be home alone.
So what's Pooldad go and do? He invites Nader to spend the weekend with us! YAY! It wasn't until I got on the phone to talk to Nader that he said that he was excited to come but he would only visit on one condition - the condition being that I make my "world famous" [his words, not mine] fried chicken. He said all the guys had heard about the chicken from Pooldad and he wanted to be the first to taste it so he could report back how good it was.
Ooookay then. No pressure, right?
I have made it a lot for a lot of different people but I have never made it for someone that is driving 400 miles for it! Yeah. No pressure indeed.
Hope you are all having a great Wednesday. I am off to shake, shake, shake - shake my chicken!
See ya' on the [floury] flipside gang!
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
These Are The Things That Are Going To Make Me Smile Today
I keep this picture right next to me, on my bulletin board:
Yep. Wallene! She is 5 years old and it still makes me smile.
This was a gift to me.
It is a beautiful rendition of Spot the Dot.
I don't know how to explain what I am feeling today, but yesterday sucked. Big Air. It sucked the air out of the room. It was just bad. And for once it wasn't my health - I have been on a high since Sunday and our outing in D.C. I have done things I haven't done in forever...and I appreciated the effort. My family did too.
But...yesterday? Yesterday was weird. It was like the universe converged and decided I was the person that needed to suddenly be. . . . . . .The person that kept her mouth shut. The person that spoke her mind. The person that was asked for advice, the person that lost her patience with the doctor's office and her own daughter. The person that walked around mumbling expletives under her breath. The person that had to keep secrets from her husband because a friend asked [and although not my style, I did do it] There are so many people I became [that I didn't want to be] yesterday that I melted down and just gave in and went to bed.
I like me and I don't want to not be me, but I had to abandon my husband and my daughter at 7 pm and go to bed. There was no use.
I want to help, I want to do, but I have no idea what everyone wants.
My family, my friends. I really have no idea.
You ask and I answer - you question and I give my best response. But I have to ask - why do you continue to argue or give me a scenario that didn't exist before? I don't have your answers if you don't have the appropriate question. If I don't know or understand the problem then I will say so, but stop changing the parameters to work around what I answered to your questions.
One of the quotes I try to live by is "If you can't be nice then be vague." I try to be nice but sometimes it becomes impossible. Can you imagine having the same scenario with several friends over and over in one day?
None of this makes much sense, but can everyone do their friends and parents a favor - don't ask the question if you don't want to hear the answer. You know what the truth is, we know what it is and as much as we want to be your friend we don't know what to say anymore.
I won't tell you what you want to hear just because you want to hear it, because that is wrong. I understand my advice was too much to hear but, I have no middle ground.
I want to help, truly I do, but when it ceases to make sense based on your flip and flop there is no point in the conversation anymore.
I won't lie, but I won't hide the truth [as I see it] either.
And if that doesn't work for you then I can't change that.
I am me. I can't apologize for that.
I wish you a quieter Wednesday.
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
How To Make a S'More or "Taking One For the Blog"
Since some of my belovely Tadpoles do not know what a s'more is I thought that I would do a quick tutorial on the wonderfulness of this dessert treat.
It is historically made while camping, over an open fire, but can easily be made if you have a hot charcoal grill and the ingredients necessary.
Wallene gladly offered herself up to "take one for the blog" by helping me make [and consume] this yummy treat.
Just follow the pictures and you will get the idea. For all my American Tadpoles that know the goodness that is a s'more, I apologize - but grab a napkin now. :)
Enjoy.
It is historically made while camping, over an open fire, but can easily be made if you have a hot charcoal grill and the ingredients necessary.
Wallene gladly offered herself up to "take one for the blog" by helping me make [and consume] this yummy treat.
Just follow the pictures and you will get the idea. For all my American Tadpoles that know the goodness that is a s'more, I apologize - but grab a napkin now. :)
Enjoy.
You need one graham cracker, a mini bar or piece of chocolate, two marshmallows and a skewer:
Skewer your marshmallows:
Hold over your coals or wood fire:
Until lightly golden and melty:
Break your graham cracker in half:
Apply the chocolate:
Place the hot marshmallows onto the chocolate:
Then top it off with the other piece of graham cracker:
SMOOSH!
See the melty, smooshy, goodness?
Enjoy!
They are really simple but oh, ho, ho, so good!
Hope everyone is having a fabulous evening or a wonderful morning but an especially all around good time regardless of your time zone [you guys are hard to keep up with!.]
PS - I have been known to mail graham crackers to far flung places on the earth so if you are craving a s'more and the grahams aren't available - just email me. :D Everyone should enjoy these at least once in a lifetime. They are smile worthy.
Thank you Wallene. And your pink nails. :)
Monday, June 6, 2011
This Is How Good They Were
I am getting another cheeseburger tonight - yippee for me! :) It is rare that we repeat dinners two days in a row, but DANG those were good.
Pooldad and Wallene are at school for the end of the year awards ceremony so it may be 10 pm before we eat, but really? The wait is worth it:
Yes - please note that Wallene did paint her finger nails and toenails to match our team shirts from yesterday. Red, white and blue Tadpoles. The girl has style. :) [It is not genetic from her Mom, I assure you.]
Pooldad and Wallene are at school for the end of the year awards ceremony so it may be 10 pm before we eat, but really? The wait is worth it:
 |
| Last night's cheeseburger |
Thank you for all the fun comments from yesterday's post. We really did have a good time and I wish I could get all of your here to have fun and enjoy our beautiful city.
Oh, and for dessert we are having smores. [Again! 3rd day in a row]
See ya on the flipside!
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Team Wallene Went 1 For 5 Today!
Yep! Today at the Washington Post Hunt we managed to solve 1 of the 5 clues. Giggle.
I think next year we will be called "Team Clueless" or "Team Doofus".
But...it was SO much fun! Who cares if we solved 1, 2 or all of them? Not us - because, really, it isn't the point of the excursion for us. It is about hanging out, seeing the sites of D.C. and trying the challenge. Wallene is actually the best at the clues but we just could not figure them out. They are HARD. [Or Mom & Dad are just stoopid. heehee]
Anyhoodle - without further ado here are the pics' from today:
The requisite Wallene shots from the car of monuments and such -
 |
| United States Institute of Peace Such a pretty building |
 |
| I think this is the IRS |
Here are our shirts -
 |
| At the first clue |
And how we identified ourselves as "Team Wallene" and each of our names -
 |
| Pooldad insisted we put it on his arms instead Eating hotdogs. :) |
And I never make it home without a picture of a duck [always taken by Wallene] -
This statue makes me wonder everytime I see it -
The reason is because it is the "Boy Scouts of America" memorial statue. Why is the grown man [behind the boy scout] naked? Is it just me or would you wonder the same thing?
This is in front of the Newseum - they have the front page of every state's major paper posted everyday. So cool:
 |
| I could have stayed here all day. Fascinating! |
MY hotdog! Yes - I got one. Yummy!
 |
| I only ate 2/3 of it - it was really good tho' |
I think she had a good time:
I know her Dad and I sure did.
Thank you to both Pooldad and Wallene for pushing me all over NW D.C. [Sidenote: It is very bumpy let me just say. :D But, better then having to walk.]
Hope everyone's Sunday was beautiful and full of smiles too. :)
Hugs and love.
ETA: One more pic' for the perfect end to the perfect day - Pooldad grilled out and we had cheeseburgers, chips, pickles, watermelon and iced tea - one of the best cheeseburgers I have ever had.
Enjoy your night. :D
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)