Thematic Photographic- Angles

This week Carmi at Written Inc had the theme of angles for his Thematic Photographic. I was clueless until these horse chestnuts showed up in the mail. The uber-talented Janet of Fond of Snape sent them to me....they were even the star in her What Is It Wednesday? last week. So once I unwrapped the little brown box, I grabbed my camera and Livi. We headed outdoors in the afternoon sun. The ones of her holding them had too many shadows. But this one, sitting on the wood of the swing I liked. The ANGLE that this horse chestnut opened formed a perfect 90 degree angle. Inside this pokey little shell were little horse chestnut twins.

In my response to her "What is it Wednesday", I thought it was some kind of horny toad. I grew up in SW Oklahoma...horny toads were a dime a dozen. You could catch them by their tails and they would snap their little tails off to get free! Oh yeah, fond memories! LOL



Also, why is it I giggle every time I say horny toad......?? What am I like thirteen years old??

Manic Monday....and Will's favorite muffin

is hosted by Fleur de Lisa

What is the most useful gift you’ve ever been given? I have a great zippered organizer I got when I was planning our wedding. I think I might have to pull that back out again.

Name the most terrifying moment of your life so far. When Will was born his cord was wrapped around his neck. He was blue and it took them a bit to get him to breathe. I was on some serious meds to lower my blood pressure, I vaguely remember it. But that horrible feeling is still there.

One hot summer afternoon, while walking through a parking lot at a large shopping center, you notice a dog suffering badly from the heat inside a locked car. What would you do? I would call the police.

We had to welcome fall with Will's favorite muffins: Pumpkin Chocolate Chip muffins

3/4 c. white sugar

1/4 c. vegetable oil

2 eggs

3/4 c. canned pumpkin

1/4 c. water

1 1/2 c. all purpose flour (we use 1 c. whole wheat 1/2 c. all-purpose)

3/4 t. baking powder

1/2 t. baking soda

1/4 t. ground cloves

1/2 t. ground cinnamon

1/4 t. salt

1/4 t. ground nutmeg

1/2 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips (we use the mini chips for the mini muffins)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease and flour muffin pan.

Mix sugar, oil, eggs. Add pumpkin and water. In separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, spices and salt. Add wet mixture to dry ingredients. Stir in chocolate chops.

Fill muffin cups 2/3 full. Bake in mini muffin pan 11-12 minute. (Regular muffin pan:20-25 minutes)

Share with friends and enjoy.

What I need & crave.....from Janet

Got this from Janet of Fond of Snape :

1. needs…a good sleepin' day!

2. has a dog named…Josie...who was treated like a diva today at Pawsh Pet Salon

3. drives like…she is best friends with Safety! As much as those two might drive me batty some days, I don't know what I would do without them.

4. craves….cheese and crackers.

5. favorite TV Show is…trash reality shows....America's Next Top Model, etc.

6. alcoholic drink of choice is…wine....white wine.

7. NON alcoholic drink of choice is…diet Dr pepper or water

8. favorite musical artist is…Sarah McLachlan

9. hair is…in need of a trim and color.

10. celebrity crush is…always.....Matt Damon.

11. favorite book is…whatever paperback I find at a garage sale...other than that it is just magazines....Real Simple, Southern Living, Cooking Light....

12. favorite color is…all things autumn.....like this new tassel hanging on my hutch (photo from her Etsy site: The Tassel House : note if you search tassel on Etsy....you get a whole bunch of stuff I never would have imagined! LOL

13. wishes…wishes like "you won the lottery wishes" or just wishes??? I wish my kids would sleep though the night!! Lottery wishes: a pink Tag

Happy weekend y'all!

Photohunt: view

hosted by the wonderful TN chick ....Next week the theme is sad

This is my view from the soccer field sidelines. We had a late game last night. While the sun was setting, the sky was gorgeous!

Happy hunting......

Friday fill-in

1. Pumpkin spice latte, cooler evenings, and great candles are some of the things I'm most looking forward to in October. Pic of my cool votive hanger thingy....it hangs in my kitchen window. Love love love it!

2. Sometimes I go back to bed after the kids leave for preschool in the morning (Thanks Husband for taking them!!).

3. Two kids in two years (6/03 and 10/04) and that's why there is a saying, "never say never"!

4. When I'm down, I sleep.

5. Shuffling two kids to where they belong is where you'll find me most often.

6. A rainy day is good for taking a nap or popping popcorn (for the kids and Husband) and watching a movie.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to Will's soccer game, tomorrow my plans include taking Josie to the vet and another soccer gameand Sunday, I want to go to the balloon festival in Louisville (but the balloon launch is at 7AM....so it is not going to happen as that is my sleep in day! Why do they have to launch that early???




Happy Friday, y'all!

Photostory Friday: Fall is here!

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

It is no lie, I love fall. The cooler weather, a Pumpkin Spice latte, and cinnamon flavored candles. Last night, we had a late dinner because of soccer practice. After dinner they kids were out bouncing on the "bounce". Normally I don't hesitate to join them, but after a belly full of food. Well, I just couldn't do it! Of course, I could grab my camera. The sun was just starting to lower onto the horizon. The weather was absolutely perfect. (Granted my allergies are killing me...I thought I had a cold, but after two weeks of this.....I am thinking it is allergies!) These trees line the end of the neighborhood. Every time a leaf falls to the ground, one of the kids will holler out, "It's fall.....fall is here."

When we found out we were leaving TX, I told Husband I didn't care where we went. I just wanted seasons. Well, I got seasons.....and fall is here. Now I need to enjoy my cup of coffee with pumpkin pie spice creamer....yummy!

Why I got up at 5AM

Why I got up at 5AM, originally uploaded by tommiea1.

It's no lie, I love my car. This was my dream car .....Back when I was a college student I would babysit for all these moms. Most of them drove a black Volvo wagon with the tan brown leather interior.

So when Husband was to deploy, we happen to drive into Austin just to look at the cars.......yeah right. With the deal they offered us, we drove away with a new car. When we lived in TX, Austin was about 45 minutes away. Here the closest dealer is about an hour away. I can honestly say it is the ONLY thing I don't like about my car. To do something as simple as my 30,000 mile check up, I have to get up way before the a$$ crack of dawn. I would even go so far as to say way HONKIN' before.....yes, that is 5:47 AM! On my way for "TIME FOR REGULAR MAINTENANCE" .

Yes, I can honestly say it is the only thing I don't like about my car. 5:47AM means I got up at 5AM. I don't even like typing 5AM, much less getting up that early. Then tying to navigate in the dark was just crazy. I assumed there would be no traffic at that time of day. Who was I kidding, it was a zoo! I was going the speed limit and people were passing me like I was granny on her way to church.

While there, I was able to use their free wi-fi....I uploaded the 5:47AM pic. I found a bunch of the kids' camera.

Apparently these are a few of Livi's favorite things: Polly Pockets, shopping at babyGap, herself, the playroom, the Wordwhammer, a bag, her room, her ceiling fan, and me! It is so fun to see the things they find worthy of taking pics of......

Happy Wednesday, y'all!

Manic Monday and a funky dream

Pick out the most important item you have in your purse/wallet and tell me why it's important to you. I would have to say my entire wallet. It has my driver's license, military ID, hidden "mad money", pics of the kids., debit card. Without those things, I would have a hard time doing the day to day things I do.

What would you take from your house if you knew it would be flooded tomorrow? I have a expandable folder that has all our important papers. Also the kids' baby books, (yes, the one that I am not caught up on for Livi!) , my laptop, camera, and Josie.

If you were stuck in a room for an hour with a chalk board, what would you draw on it? From the old teaching days, chalk tickles my nose. But if it were a dry erase board....I would be making a list of all the things I need to do when I get out of that room!

Last night I had the weirdest dream. I decided to go back to college. While I absolutely loved my time at the University of Oklahoma, I don't know that I would go back. The dorm was in a building that underground tunnels to a shopping area. I kept getting lost in the shopping area so I never made it to class.

The dorm room was like a long room with several beds in it. I had my roomies picked out and someone kept trying to take one of their beds. It made me think of a picture my OU roomies took. I wonder if we coordinated our outfits?? This one was taken in the fall of 1990. What kind of haircut is that anyway?

While I don't recall what I looked like in the dream...I wonder if I had the frizzy permed hair. This one was taken in the spring of 1989. Yeah, with a good hairspray I could be two inches taller!

Happy fall, y'all!

The theme is ROAD: Poopdeck Ave.....aren't you glad this isn't your address?

Poopdeck Ave.....aren't you glad this isn't your address?, originally uploaded by tommiea1.

hosted by the wonderful TN chick ....This week the theme is wild.

While I can't imagine living at Poopdeck and anything, this is a true blue living sign we saw in Homer, Alaska.

So I could have had any one of these shots:

Looking down our road/or street.....when will I ever be ready to let TX go? Juliette, forward this to A....I miss you guys so much......dang I can hardly type this.....when am I going to start making new friends???

Packed for a major road trip!

Friday fill-in

sunset, originally uploaded by tommiea1.

Friday fill in courtesy of the talented Janet

1. There is no need to be rude to people.

2. Where in the heck did the icky sick sick bug come from. (The kids normally get sick within the first month of school.....this time it is not them, but me...what??)

3. Lay on the couch with kids cuddled up next to me is all I managed to do.

4. Prospects for new patio furniture is bleak. (The movers disassembled our table when they put it in storage. When they delivered it, we only got three of the legs! ALL the cute summer furniture is gone. Well, except for the $1000 teak set at Smith and Hawken!)

5. Just wait until next summer for furniture is the message.

6. Simplicity and tranquility are necessary for me to remain sane.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to watching "What Not to Wear", tomorrow my plans include a run to the commissary and the furniture store on the way and Sunday, I want to take a guess: sleep in! With that, I'll leave you with a peaceful sunset.

Photostory Friday: Hurt finger

hurt finger, originally uploaded by tommiea1.

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

Last week while playing with Einstein: the wild-eyed cat, Will got his finger scratched. Or as he likes to say, "Einstein put his toes in my skin." The kids were laying leaves and mums on him and in front of him. Poor cat was just trying to take a little nap in the sunshine. Enter two kids under five and it just wasn't happening! He went to go hide under the rusty flower cart. But then he wanted to play. He would stick his paw out and try to bat the flowers. He was rolling over on his back, sticking his paws out still for the kids. Will must have gotten just a wee bit too close.

Happy Friday. y'all!

The theme is Nature

Beach house, originally uploaded by tommiea1.

Will and Liv had so much fun lining up shells .

The summer before, the kids and I went with just friends.

We were able to go back with Husband over Memorial Day .

So when Carmi at Written Inc had the theme of Nature, I had no clue. I have some awesome pics of the redwoods when we live in the east bay of California ......But then I realized after Ike hit our little beach, I knew I wanted to remember some of those memories.

I do hope these houses are still there. But being on the water....I wonder what Mother Nature did to it?

Fall is in the air

new scoots, originally uploaded by tommiea1.

These mustard yellow ballet flats were calling to me. I was looking for a jacket for Will.....but there they were.

shoes: Tommie....tommie, come here little chickie.

Me: Who is that?

shoes: Don't you think I will look oh so cute peeking out of a pair of jeans?

Me: uuhhmm, yeah, kinda. I have been looking for a yellow bag. May as well get the shoes first.

Shoes: I'll hook you up. So, am I coming home with you.

Me: Of course, let's go find a bag.

Still haven't found one. Okay, I did find one,

but I am not sure I absolutely love it enough to welcome it into the fold!

So have you started fall shopping....?

Manic Monday.....and a little girl

What's worse, physical or mental cheating? Mental.....

Why? giving them part of your heart and soul is definitely worse.

Do you think men and women can be just friends? Why or why not? Totally reminds me of Harry in When Harry Met Sally....one of my top three all time favorite movies. I think you can be friends with guys. But I do have to admit the only reason I am friends with them is I am friends with the wife. So maybe not.

How do you feel about dating co-workers? When I worked outside our home, I was a teacher at the junior high level. So the only males were coaches or principals. Coaches and principals are NOT my type! So, can't say that I ever dated a coach...though there was a student teacher I went out with once. ONCE....

by the way, it was so manic that we didn't get around to muffins again. Three weeks in a row....Yesterday I was clipping coupons and Livi saw me. She wanted to practice her cutting skills.

So, I put that little girl to work. Make her earn her keep around here! Note the chocolate milk mustache. Keepin' it real around here!

Weekend update

This weekend was quite eventful. We did have soccer Saturday morning. I think for the next month and a half this will be my Saturdays! Poor kids were dominated by the ofter team. They play three on three. Each team has six kids (mixed boys and girls in the under six teams). Our coach is very good about playing three, then completely rotating to the other three. He is very good about keeping his kid out even if he is throwing a fit (the kid not the dad! ). This team we played had two EXCEPTIONAL players. They played the entire time and only rotated the other four kids into the last spot. It was kind of frustrating to see the kids kick the ball off, only to have those other two boys get it and score withing seconds. But a trip to the snack shack for Chex Mix made it all better. Yes, Will picks Chex Mix and a Gaterade for his after game snack! Silly boy

These blue skies didn't last all weekend. Sitting by these sidelines in our little collapsible chairs was pretty much the last blue skies we saw.

This morning I did get to sleep in....whew hoo! Thanks Husband. I woke up after hearing the wind chimes in the back yard. They sounded like they were coming through the window. The wind was blowing so hard our little trees were bending over. I sat down at the table to have my token bowl of granola cereal with a banana cut up in it. Just as I sit down, I notice our trampoline blowing across the backyard. We were able to get the net off and tether it against the swing set and the fence post.

Husband didn't walk in the door five minutes and we noticed it was getting hot in the house. A quick glance at the thermostat, it was hot...not just me being hot from wrangling a trampoline! The unit outside was running, but no air was coming out of the vents. Husband went down to the basement to look at some thing-a-ma-jigger. The coils were covered in ice! Being the resourceful Husband that he is, he got it all fixed.

Everything is back to normal in our cushy cool home, the trampoline is still in our yard, ...and the winds have finally settled down. What we thought was going to be a laid back day was anything but. Who knew that a hurricane on the coast would bring the wind this far north?

Happy Sunday, y'all!

Photohunt: Wild

hosted by the wonderful TN chick ....This week the theme is wild.

Meet Einstein....no, he is not a wild cat, just the neighbor's cat. But he likes to lie in the shade of the tree in our front yard. Notice the little mums in front of him....Livi was giving them to him to make his happy. Still not that wild....but take a look at him from the front:

Isn't that "wild"? This cat has two colors of eyes. The blue one reminds me of Will...he has that color in his eyes. But the amber one reminds me of Livi....she has streaks of that color in her eyes. Einstein: the wild eye cat.

Happy hunting......next week's theme: road

Friday fill-in

Friday fill in courtesy of the talented Janet

1. I enjoy the quiet of the house when the kids leave for preschool in the morning.

2. When will Will sleep though the night in his own bed is something I wonder about often lately. But how can one resist when he comes in and says, "Mommy, can I get one more snuggle?"

3. In your heart, you knew the house will be done eventually.

4. Take dry stuff: flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, add a little wet stuff: eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla and you end up with muffins.

5. Life has gifted me with an ability to make any house a home in a very short amount of time.

6. A glass of wine is an instant vacation.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to "an instant vacation", tomorrow my plans include soccer and a trip to the commissary and Sunday, I want to sleep in!

Happy weekend, y'all!

Photostory Friday......a path of shoes

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

Will has always lined things up.....random things: Mr and Mrs Clause Little People,

cars, shells, and stuffed animals. But can I blame him? I like things nice and neat as well. Everything has a place and a place for everything. So yesterday during quiet time he asked me if he could build a path......Build a path I thought? Sure why not.

I was in the basement getting our cooler weather clothes out. Whew hoo fall is in the air! I love those cool evenings.

Oh yeah back to the "path"....I haul up Livi's winter stuff and notice shoes ALL the way up the stairs. Some are Will's, some are Livi's, and even my pair that I wore that morning. At the top of the stairs, the shoes wind into Will's room. He had every SINGLE pair of his shoes and Livi's shoes lined up. He was so proud of his path. He had to go to the bottom and sing it. I don't know if you remember this, but on another PSF Livi lined up shells and sang a song about them.

You can even tell he lined them up according to how I had them on his shoe shelf in his closet: flip flops, tennis shoes, cold weather boots, water sandals, slippers, boots-cowboy and rain. This is the path my little "liner-upper" made. A path, a path right to his closet where all shoes live!

PS, please ignore the leaves on his floor, just keeping it real here.

the red, white and blue

the red, white and blue, originally uploaded by tommiea1.

Thinking of all those who lived, loved and lost someone on this day seven years ago.

Up Close with Fall

seed pod, originally uploaded by tommiea1.

I have read Carmi's blog Written Inc for a little more than a year. He frequently makes me pause and rethink how I shoot certain things. His challenge this week is Close Up.

Last week the kids and I found a chrysalis. We had so much fun with the butterflies this past spring. We carefully lifted the chrysalis off the cardboard (it was stuck on the bottom of a pile of broken down boxes in the garage). Finally after just two or three days, Will comes busting out of his room saying the butterfly had come out. Turns out it was a black and yellow moth. That poor moth came out fighting and was beating against the mesh of the butterfly net. We had to let it go immediately.

Thinking I would get a great shot of the moth.....we took it outside near some flowering bushes. But it wasn't to be....

Though we did find Up Close with some cool seed pods that had fallen off the trees. Fall is definitely in the air here in KY.

Some Bloggy Bling and a cute little mug

My lovely friend CrackerJack over at Izzy N' Emmy has given me the BrainyBlog Award. Now if that isn't cool, I don't know what is! Thanks so much Alisha for thinking of me at Tuesday Update!

I proudly accept this award, so I must . . .

1) Think of at least 5 bloggers that you believe to be “Brainy Bloggers”

2) Post it on your blog for all to see! Let them know you’ve awarded them by email, twitter, etc or via a comment on their blog!

3) Share some linky love and link back to both the person who awarded you. Izzy N' Emmy

4) Come back to the Brainy Blog Headquarters to sign our Mr. Linky and then pass it on!

I would like to pass this award onto the following brainy blogs:

• Corey at Living and Loving Every Minute of It : Her photog skills are awesome, she also does some tutorials every once in awhile. I never fail to learn something!




• Claudia at On-A-Limb - bring peace to the world one tomato at a time




• Libby at From Robinson Road for bringing the other side of the world so much closer




• Mary Alice from From the Front Lines - Another fellow military wife going through this thing called life.




• Laski Gal from From the Cheap Seats -Her writing inspires me to the put more thought into my random posts!
  
  

So go on and visit some new brainy bloggers.

Guess what came today??

My dining room furniture! Will wanted his big mug in it...and it had to be the crazy face. What you can't see is the long bench on the side Will is on. It can slide in between the table legs completely if we need. I am not sure I am happy with the placement of the dishes in there, but for now it works! The new light looks great. I am very happy with the way it all came together. Thanks Husband, for all your hard work, it looks wonderful!

Manic Monday and a Salad nicoise sandwich

Salad nicoise sandwich, originally uploaded by tommiea1.

Manic Monday brought to us by the talented Fleur-de-Lisa.

If you could choose only two movies to watch ever again, what would they be? When Harry Met Sally and Princess Bride....love love love both of those

What have you found to be the best way to relieve tension? Since I try to keep this blog G rated..............a good massage.

If you went to a beach and it turned out to be a nude beach, would you stay and go swimming? Would you swim nude? ooohh good question. I would have to say who's there? Friends? Is there alcohol involved? Is is secluded? Way too many questions for this one to just be yes or no.

Well, as for Muffin Monday, it just didn't happen today. But since my dear friend Claudia of On A Limb had mercy on my non-vegetable garden soul.....sending me a package of a variety of tomatoes, I did get to have this for lunch. Isn't it pretty? A little salad nicoise sandwich

I pulled the recipe out to type it up...but misplaced it! I'll add it when I find it. It is basically tuna, green beans, the baby tomatoes, lemon juice and a slash of olive oil, with butter lettuce on a ciabatta bread.

Here is a link to the recipe : It is from Real Simple.

Friday Fill in

Friday fill in courtesy of the talented Janet

This week Janet is going to use rather obscure song lyrics; you can fill them in with the correct words if you know 'em...but wouldn't it be more fun to do it a bit differently? And...here we go!

1. If I was to walk into your life, we would go for a drink, wine for me, beer for you. Then we would laugh all night long, drag our a-wee-bit-tipsy-selves back home and crash!

2. Catch a bright star and place it in a jar. (I keep an old mason jar with a sting of lights in it in my bathroom...it has always reminded me of catching lightning bugs as a child!)

3. And you can send me a cleaning lady and add a personal trainer while you are at it.

4. I might put a smile on my face, but I'm dealing with a memory that never forgets.

5. I'm the innocent bystander / Somehow I got stuck being blamed for whistling in 8th grade math class....the teacher was an idiot. A girl named Moriah and I taught most of it....he blamed me for the whistling. I was so not taking the blame for it. I took off across the street to my mom's office at the high school....bawling the entire way.

6. What's keeping us apart isn't selfishness, but a wee little thing called miles.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to Will's FIRST soccer game, tomorrow my plans include Will's second soccer game and Sunday, I want to sleep in!

This shot was right after his first goal. It was so exciting to see him high five his teammates. He had a grin from ear to ear. It's official, I am a soccer mom.

PhotoStory Friday

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

This was taken this past spring in TX. We got home from preschool and there was no quiet during quiet time. We decided to take a little walk down the street in our neighborhood to a patch of bluebonnets. Last year we had gotten some great shots. This year I was determined to get even more. Due to all the excess rain we had in 2007, there was an over abundance of blue bonnets. This year, there was only a patch or two....but in hazardous places, like the median of the main highway in town! The previous Saturday the kids and I drove around for an hour looking for some in the country. I was armed with M&Ms for their bribe....oops reward!

During a crazy day, (where you go the opposite way to get out of the neighborhood), I saw a patch of decent size, literally down the block from our house! So, we kicked quiet time to the curb and walked down there.

The kids just wanted to do silly shots! It had become tradition to do silly crazy ones for Husband while he was deployed. Bunny had to make the trip as well.

There is little to NO place that Livi goes that bunny doesn't. We are working on this, because the only time she sucks her thumb is when she has bunny!

You know I had to include the token tootsies in the flowers. After all, I had just had a fresh pedi! About this time, we all realize right smack in the middle of this patch is also an ant hill!