Susan Fobes' Family Formula

Succinctly Yours for Christmas

2011-12-26T21:51:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone! Yes, it has been a while-two months in fact, but I just had too much on my plate with the start of school and a project I'm still toiling over. I had some time between packing to go visit family, so I thought I would head to Grandma Goulash's meme. So about that meme. I'm a bit rusty, but here goes:

Mom ran herself ragged every Christmas-we knew the stress might affect her, but never thought she'd refuse to come out from under the tree! (139 characters-phew!)

Did anyone else picture themselves beneath that tree or was it just me? Lol! Well, back to packing. I hope to stop by and see what everyone else came up with later. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

The boat trip and pre-teen angst (and Succintly Yours!)

2011-09-19T22:15:00.000-04:00

This is the boat my husband learned to sail

Well, if you came by at the end of last week, you would know that my husband spent the weekend taking an introductory sailboating lesson, and his reaction to sailing for the first time? He loved it! I definitely have some misgivings-I mean, I wanted him to have fun, but now there is talk of a boat purchase in the near future (um, we are way past due on a house renovation so this "near future" needs to get in line), and the possibility that all of us will become sailors with him.

Hmm...I am not too crazy about boats. You know there's all that wind and water and rocking back and forth stuff that gets in the way of a really cool ride. We've been on boats before-motor boats, and we had fun, but a sailboat needs to be controlled, and even my husband said it's a ton of work. The kids are also iffy about the sailing talk, especially after they heard the word work, so I don't know if we land lubbers will ever take to the sea.

I do know one thing for sure-I told my husband that I need to stay in a hotel all alone next time. The rosy colored weekend that I pictured with my kids was not a happy one. I spent almost the entire time at odds with both my children. My daughter's pre-teen attitude and mouth were working over time so much that she was asked to leave the kitchen until my son and I were finished with our dinner. (I just wanted to eat in peace! She had been arguing with me all day about everything.) She got the last word though-she and I were to bunk together Saturday night because I can't sleep too well when my husband isn't there, but when she returned to the kitchen, she promptly told me that she would be sleeping in her room that night. I was cool and collected, telling her that was fine, and reminding her that you can never take back words and actions, but inside I was heartbroken. Where did my sweet little girl go?

And my son? He talked almost non-stop the entire weekend, more so since my daughter and I were not talking much after Saturday. I love him dearly, and I know that soon he won't want to talk to me, but I could honestly feel my brain stop functioning at one point, and semi-paralysis of the thought processes setting in... After that weekend and a very full day with my kids at school, I'm mentally exhausted.

So thankfully it's time for Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog.

Grandma Goulash posts a picture and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. This week's word is beneficial. Here this week's picture and my take this week:

"This shopping's wiped me out," thought Evan. "I need an excuse...I know, I'll tell her I have a headache. Works every time for her." (135 characters)

I hope you chuckled a bit at this-I am desperately in need of both chocolate and some humor therapy. I hope you all saw something amusing in today's picture too.

I also wanted to say that even though I have reduced my posting to only twice a week, I may be stepping away from my blog for a little while. I'm trying to finish a very lengthy project I started in April, and now that the summer is over and I'm back in the classroom, I don't have as much time in the evening for family, school work, blog, and my other writing. You know as well as I do, that posting and reading other posts takes time-lots of time, and I have been on my blog for over an hour tonight. Now I used the word may for a reason-I don't know if I can stay away, but I'm a natural born procrastinator, and this blog and the Internet are just too tempting. So, you will either see me or...

My husband's gift (and Book Blurb Friday)

2011-09-16T19:28:00.005-04:00

As you know, my husband's birthday was last week, and the inevitable question was, "What do I get him?" He deperately needed a new cell phone, so when I found a free Droid Global with a package upgrade, I jumped. This was to be the perfect gift because I knew he had been looking at this phone, and I planned to unveil it on his birthday. There was just one problem-as soon as the phone arrived, he immediately lost service in his old phone. I mean he couldn't call out or receive calls, and although I hadn't activated his new cell phone yet, Verizon was acting as if I had.

So...my husband got his new phone three weeks before his birthday, and I had a new question, "Should I get him something else?" My husband hinted that since the phone was "free" I should get him another gift, and he knew just what I should get-a Wii fighter pilot game he had seen in Gamestop. Off I went to get this game, (although I told him he had his present already). So, my question was anwered, right? Wrong!

My new question went something like this, "What kind of surprise is a gift you are told to get, and one that really didn't cost much money?" I was stuck again-what could I get him? I can't remember when the idea popped into my head, but a few days later I was scouring the Internet and calling to set up his very special present-one I knew he would either love or hate...

See, my husband has always said that when we retire, he wants to sell our home (note: I never said I agreed with any of this), buy a Catamaran Sailboat, and we will sail the world. The thing is, he has never been on a sailboat, and doesn't know how to sail, so I thought I would get him started. This weekend he will be on the bay learning some of the basics-I enrolled him in an introductory sailing class, and after some initial hesitation, he is really starting to get excited. (He got his gloves to protect his hands from the ropes, and although he wanted a captain's hat, if all of us call him captain he said that would suffice...) I really hope he enjoys himself.

And now it's time for:

Book Blurb Friday! This is where Lisa Ricard Claro, from Writing in the Buff, posts a picture meant to serve as a fictional book cover. It's your job to write a blurb about the book in 150 words or less to entice a prospective reader. Are you up to the challenge? Here is this week's picture and my story:

Before It's Too Late

Dr. Elana Stark was a pioneer in her field, studying the effects of the environment on the body’s cells and primary organs. Her lab developed a drug to stop the progression of Alzheimer’s disease, but any attempts at reversing the damage came up short, and investors want to pull the plug on this new project.

Just as things looked their worst, Elana receives a strange letter from a witch doctor in far off Tristan Da Cunha. He has the answers she is looking for, and he will share them….for a price. He claims that the leaves of a well-known plant, known to locales as the Chimgum, could turn back time, and he had data to prove it.

Intrigued despite some initial misgivings, Elana flies to the island to meet the man, and soon she will know if this is a fountain of youth, or a horror in disguise. (148 words)

Well, I'm surprised by what I came up with, and the hardest part was coming up with a title-nothing new for me... I can't wait to see what everyone else wrote!
*Note: By the way, the island I mentioned is a real place and is somewhere far off the African coast. I learned a little geography this evening :)

The cake revealed! (and Succinctly Yours)

2011-09-11T22:30:00.000-04:00

First, thanks for all your kind comments concerning the flooding a few days ago. I don't know how we did it (we often have Charlie Brown luck), but we didn't take in any water in our basement, had no damage to the house, and flood waters for the most part have receded. Unfortunately, many of our friends and neighbors do have water damage, and now they're on waiting lists for insurance claims...

In other news, my husband's birthday was this past Friday, and as he proclaimed to everyone at home (and I proclaimed to everyone within earshot online) he made his pudding cake. Here are some pictures of the results:

Now the cake didn't look all that attractive, but the taste wasn't half bad. It was very moist, and instead of icing, it had pudding on the top and in the middle. I wouldn't say it would be a favorite of mine-I personally think the sugary icing is the best thing about cake, but I would eat it again.

I told my kids on Friday that we all were going to have a piece of this cake regardless of what it looked or tasted like, and that we were to all say something positive even if we didn't like it. (I told them it would hurt Daddy's feelings otherwise...) And if it wasn't good, I told the kids to eat some and then say that they were pretty full from dinner-I had it all planned. But as my husband was cutting us each a piece, my son (I told you everything in his head comes right back out!) informed my husband how they were to tell him it was good even if it was bad! Thankfully my husband has a good sense of humor and we all laughed a lot over this.

Now time for Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog.

Grandma Goulash posts a picture and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. This week's word is methodical. Here this week's picture and my take this week:

The gnomes often took the kids trikes for a spin, making sure to leave them like they found them, but Barney left the tailgate down again! (138 characters)

I was going to do poetry, but I just didn't have it in me today. The subject matter of this week's picture is liable to inspire in so many different ways. See you soon!

More rain than the plain in Spain (and Book Blurb Friday!)

2011-09-08T23:01:00.003-04:00

It's funny, but I really can't remember when it first started raining, but I can tell you that it's raining still, although not the buckets of water we were getting the last few days! Now it's more of a "too little to put an umbrella up but too much not to drag one along" kind of rain, but the damage around our community was almost unbelievable. Buses couldn't get through on certain roads because of the flooding, so the kids and I were sent home early from school Tuesday, and today most schools closed due to rising waters and lack of streets-yes, no streets! I have lived here for 20 years, and I can honestly say I never saw anything like it! Here are some images from one street over from us:

You know, you never question the power of nature after seeing scenes like this. Thankfully the weather forecast is isn't as bleak and rain isn't part of the picture! I'm so glad it's:

Carlos was new to the neighborhood-he didn’t know the Young Lords’ turf covered the areas between La Masada and La Salle Streets. He didn’t know people in his neighborhood went out of their way to avoid these streets because entering this gang’s territory meant trouble. He didn’t know until he innocently crossed the street and came face to face with the gang’s leader, a day he will regret for the rest of his life.

Carlos doesn’t walk but runs in the streets of Miami now, always looking over his shoulder, always worried about another fight. The gang wants him to pay dearly for his carelessness, but there seems no end in sight. That is until a piece of angel graffiti starts showing up in the oddest places, always where Carlos chooses to hide from his attackers, and always offering advice. And when Carlos follows that advice, things begin to happen… (150 on the dot!)

Well, I hope you are all well (and dry!), and I can't wait to read your blurbs. (I had a hard time with mine at first.)

My birthday boys (and Succinctly Yours!)

2011-09-04T23:12:00.000-04:00

This week we will celebrate not one, but two birthdays-those of my husband and son. We usually do just one cake since they're only two days apart (too much cake lying around is not a good thing), but my son wins out on the cake type because his day comes first. Now my husband has always been a good sport about the whole thing because he's not much of a cake eater anyway, but I have always felt a small stab of guilt. In year's past, I made his favorite pie, but this year he says he is making his own cake-a pudding cake?

Okay, first of all, my husband is not the cook or baker around here, it's me. I usually make my own cake because the cakes he has made in the past didn't quite turn out. (I do remember one cake who's top layer slid right off, but there were a few that turned out well-LOL!) And this pudding cake? He tried to make it several years ago-the kids don't remember but I do-and no one would touch it...

My son keeps asking me if I am going to do his cake, and there is genuine fear in his eyes. So what do we do about dad? He has brought it up a couple times but I am taking a "wait and see" approach to it all, and if the man wants to make himself a pudding cake, then I'm going to step back and let him do it. (I'm just hoping it all turns out for the best...) Who is the designated baker in your families?

Now time for Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog.

Grandma Goulash posts a picture and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. This week's word is practice. Here this week's picture and my take this week:

It was more than a few decades before Emma could revisit places from her past, but like her old school, she had withstood the test of time.(138 characters)

It's getting late, so I will come by your blogs tomorrow!

A little bit of this and that (and Book Blurb Friday!)

2011-09-02T01:11:00.000-04:00

My mind and life is so jumbled lately, but I thought I would reveal a couple highlights, and they revolve around my son.

My son has developed a habit I am desperately hoping to break him of-everything that pops into his head comes out his mouth, and I mean everything! I admit that some of what he says is downright funny, and my husband and I have shared moments where we laughed like crazy at something he said (when he is not within earshot of course.) But no amount of, "Listen to what you say in your head before letting it come out your mouth," seems to be working. The other morning I did a quick blow dry prior to my usual straightening when my son walked into the bathroom. Our conversation is as follows:

My son: Woa, mom! What's with your hair?
Me: I haven't straightened it yet. He stood there very quietly for a couple minutes watching me brush my hair before I tackled the unruly mess with the straightener.
My son: You know something mom?
Me: No, what?
My son: If your nose was a little more pointy, and you were wearing a pointy black hat...
My son was comparing me to a witch for crying out loud! I wouldn't let him utter the rest and once again reminded him about thinking things through first. Now I admit, my hair was sort of witchy-looking, and it is kind of funny now, but he has said very blunt and hurtful things to his sister lately, so the sooner he gets a handle on this, the happier everyone will be.

My son decided at the end of last Spring that he didn't like soccer much anymore and really who could blame him-all that endless running up and down the field in games where goals were made, but no one officially kept score. His latest passion? Baseball. Something clicked in the boy after my husband bought him his first aluminum bat, and now all he wants to do in the evenings is batting practice. The problem with this is that he wants the most non-athletic person in our family-yours truly-to pitch to him when his dad works late.

Well, since hubby has been working a lot of evenings lately, little old me has been trying my best to pitch to my budding baseball star. We started using tennis balls for practice because I have lobbed the poor kid more times than I care to admit, and I've blamed it on everything from the sun's in my eyes to it's getting too dark to see, but the fact is, I don't know where the ball is going once it leaves my hand! You would think my son would wise up and just wait until daddy can practice with him, but he doesn't.

Sometimes we're in stitches over one of my wild throws, but I do see some improvement to my form-he is hitting more and more of what I throw him. And even though I still have that moment of dread when he asks me to play, when I'm old and gray I know I will look back on this and smile-I'm hoping he does too...

I'm so glad it's time for:

Alana Anderson had always been ordinary. She came from a working class family in a poorer section of town, worked her way through school only to land a mediocre job in finance, but she was just hours from marrying His Royal Highness, the Prince of Dunbar.

Things started out simple enough-a case of mistaken identity brought Alana face to face with the Prince on a daily basis, but slowly things started spiraling out of control. As time went by, it became harder and harder for her to break free from what had once been an innocent charade, but she decided she didn’t want to live a lie anymore.

But someone else knew Alana’s secret, and he threatened that if she ever revealed her true identity, her prince would pay with his life. (132 words)

This is way under my usual word counts, but I'm out of practice-I really regret missing last Friday, but I was just so tired... Hope to stop by and read all of yours tomorrow!

Back to School (and Succinctly Yours!)

2011-08-28T21:45:00.001-04:00

Well it's back to school for everybody around here, including me, and I have to readjust to both the early morning wake up routine and the early bedtime. I was so exhausted Thursday and Friday that I missed a Book Blurb Friday over at Lisa Ricard Claro's blog (this is the first one I missed since Lisa started it!), but I just couldn't bring myself to get on the computer any more. I am hoping to get back into my school rythym soon.

I tried to get some extra sleep this weekend, but was kept up by the terrible wind and rains that we got as a result of the hurricane. In fact, I know exactly when our electric went out because I picked up the clock to check how long I had been awake. So, at 2:05 this morning our electric went out, and at 12:00 pm it came back on. We are counting ourselves lucky because we have no real damage except some broken tree limbs, but my brother-in-law and his family still don't have power, and they are saying it could be a couple days until they finally get it back on. In the meantime they are living in their camper (it has a generator) for what may be an extreme camping trip... Were any of you affected by the storm? At one point I thought maybe our basement would have been safer!

Now it's time for Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog.

Grandma Goulash posts a picture and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. This week's word is sagacious. Here this week's picture and my take this week:

Nora wanted to live life to the fullest after a cancer scare, so despite seasickness worries and fears of the ocean, Mary packed her bags. (140 characters)

I hope to try to swing by your blogs soon!

More opinions on D.C. (and Succinctly Yours!)

2011-08-22T00:35:00.006-04:00

View outside Natural History Museum

I wanted to finish up the posts concerning the attractions in Washington D.C. with a couple more reviews of museums we visited. The last two museums we visited were the National Air and Space Museum and the National Museum of American History. Everything we read online ranked the Air and Space Museum as the second or third most popular for families with kids, so we planned on spending a great deal of time there on our last full day in Washington. Well, you know the old adage, Don't believe everything you read? Here is a primary example, because we were more than a little disappointed by this museum. I guess we were all expecting a lot of interactive space themed displays, and maybe a moon rock or two, but this just wasn't the case.


View of some planes on the ceiling

As the name of the museum implies, it's Air and Space, so the majority of the displays dealt with airplanes, but we have been to more interesting places where you could climb inside planes like WWI and WWII bombers, and Vietnam air rescue helicopters, and these were all in Cape May, NJ! Sure there were planes, but they were either behind glass or hanging from the ceiling, there were only two floors, and there was only one plane(the first commercial airplane) that you could walk through, and only a couple items about space. My daughter was pretty upset about it, and if it wasn't for the "rides" offered, it would have been a total loss.

2nd level, 2nd of two cool space set ups

Now about the rides...there are several "simulations" offered on the lower level of the musueum which of course cost,those you can ride in and those you control. The controlled ride lets you and a partner(pilot and gunner)control a fighter jet. You play a video type game to get used to the controls and you try to shoot down the enemy. When the game is done, you enter a capsule where you are strapped in a three point harness and then additional head and shoulder padding are lowered down and you're off-you do 360's, banking turns etc. just like a real fighter jet.

Let me tell you, this thing is extreme! My daughter and I spent the majority of the time in the capsule upside down because I couldn't figure out the controls, and we never engaged the enemy-heck, I was just trying to survive the ride! But both of us couldn't stop laughing, so I'm thinking it was money well spent. (The cost is $7 for both adults and kids.)

Most planes were behind glass or barricades

The other "ride" let you sit down while it sent you through imaginary twists and turns of a space roller coaster-money well spent? No. This was beyond lame, with no real 3D aspect to the picture so you never truly felt like you were on a coaster. ($7 per adult, $5 for kids-I was telling people while I was in line for the figter jet not to do the coaster ride...) And the amount of time spent in this museum? About 20 minutes-the length of time my daughter and I were in line for the rides (my son and husband walked through it then). Maybe we were expecting too much...

Now we hadn't planned on going to the Museum of American History because it was ranked pretty low, and there were monuments to see, but there was more than a couple passing rain showers, so we ducked into this museum to kill some time. We were pleasantly surprised by the amount of exhibits housed there (three floors and several wings), and the exhibits themselves. But you really had to pick and choose because there were so many, and we started to get "museumed out" pretty quick.

You could choose a speech to superimpose yourself into

My son the politician-you can barely see him!

My daughter and I enjoyed the wings dedicated to all the first ladies-there are dresses and other items worn by each one, but the inaugral gowns of the first ladies from the 80's on up (including Michelle Obama's) were all there. My husband and son passed on this, but we joined up with them in the presidential artifacts area where there is Lincoln's top hat, and other items from all our presidents.

Plus, the most magical display was the first American flag (you know, the one that inspired Francis Scott Key)preserved under low light in all it's glory! The flag is huge-about 40 to 50 feet wide, and everyone was pretty quiet as we filed in to look at it. (Sorry, you couldn't take pictures...)

There are other oddities housed in this building like Julia Child's kitchen, life then and now, and other areas we just didn't have the time or patience to see. And as for our final ranking, the zoo and Natural History tied for first place, a not too distant second would be the American History, and sadly the Air and Space wouldn't make the cut. We do plan on visiting sometime in the near future, so I am hoping to go through at least one of the art museums (most notably the portrait museum), and I would like to catch a play in Ford's theatre where Lincoln was shot (still in operation today!)

Now time for Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog.

Grandma Goulash posts a picture and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. This week's word is tepid. Here this week's picture and my take this week:

Joe's brother warned him about the house, saying it was haunted by old Johnson himself, but his honor was at stake, so he didn't turn back. (139 characters)

Hope to be by later tonight to see what everyone else wrote!

Smithsonian Museum Reviews (and Book Blurb Friday!)

2011-08-19T00:31:00.003-04:00

In my last post I talked about recently visiting Washington D.C. with my family, but what is there to do when you get there? All 19 Smithsonian museums and all the monuments are free to the public, so some should be on your "must see" list. Now we weren't able to see the entire spread (some we didn't have an interest in, and there is no way I would even try to tackle the lot of them in three days anyway), but I thought I would give you my oppionion of what we did see anyway. One good thing is that most of the Smithsonian Museums are located in one long strip called the National Mall, so you could do two at different times (which we did) in the same day if you wanted...

Now I did search online for the best museums to visit if you have kids, but I have to disagree with some of these web site's recommendations. First and foremost on our list was the National Zoo. Our kids love the zoo, as do I, and we decided that since it was only 4 1/2 miles away from our hotel (the National Zoo is located outside of D.C.), it was the perfect spot for day one of our visit. The plan was to visit the zoo and then check into our hotel when we were through. Unfortuately, the zoo is a popular place during the summer, and getting there an hour and a half after it opened wasn't quite early enough. There were no more parking spots available, and the only thing we could do was head straight for the hotel.

We were able to check in early, and after a good lunch, we got our feet wet using the metro to get to the zoo. (That 4 1/2 miles took us over half an hour by car in very heavy traffic, but only 5 minutes by rail. Plus, we found out that the "free" zoo charges $15 for three hour parking, and $20 for more than three hours. It only cost us almost $15 to take the metro-round trip during the peak period for all four of us, so even though we had a hike uphill a couple blocks to the main entrance, we sort of came out even...)

The good: it's relatively shady and that's good for some of the hot, humid weather D.C. is known for (and speaking of heat, there are several water sprayers to cool you down, and my kids certainly took advantage of this); many animals are in outdoor habitats; and the number one reason is to see the pandas.

The bad: If you are going by metro, it's a hike all uphill, so if you don't think your legs can take this and a walk around the zoo, go for the parking but get there early; the indoor (meaning air conditioned exhibits)get crowded-this is where you will notice just how many people are there the same time you are; eating in and around the zoo, just like everywhere else in D.C. is not cheap; now while I thought the zoo was big, I don't think it can compare to the likes of places like the Pittsburgh Zoo which covers a lot more ground. Was it worth it? We thought so, and you should give yourself at least 3 hours to see all the animals.

Next on our list was the Natural History Museum, and for the most part it didn't disappoint. There are two levels with various wings showcasing the likes of dinosaurs, prehistoric man and animals, rocks and minerals (showcasing the famous Hope Diamond necklace worn originally by Marie Antoinette), and many other displays. There are areas where you can sit and watch an informational movie about the specific area you are in (hint: a chance to sit down!), you can watch as archaeologists chip away at fossils, and there are various interactive exhibits.

One of our favorites was the Meanderthall Man where you sat, lined up your face with an image on a screen, took a picture, then combined your face with a face of a prehistoric man or woman from different periods. You can then e-mail that picture to yourself. (If you have a scan app on your smart phone, you scan the app into your phone, change your face with a picture you then take with your phone, and keep or rejet the results. We did both!)
The good: So much to see that you really need to be selective; interactive exhibits; large enough spaces for groups of people to move around; the interactive butterfly lab where you can go into a room and be surrounded by different species of butterflies (this was good and bad-the bad was that it cost extra: I think it was $5 per kid and $7 per adult, but you could stay in the room as long as you liked, and they were beautiful...);and of course there was that "coolness" factor for the place.

The bad: The museum offers many imax movies on different topics at an extra cost (we decided against them); the "natural" is the focus (mainly prehistoric, so nothing related to times of kings and queens-somewhat disappointing for me); the interactive areas did get crowded, so don't plan on hurrying through this museum; we could never find the escalator or elevators even after following signs pointing the way-we hiked up the stairs instead; and their was just one small mummy in an incomplete exhibit marked for Egypt (it doesn't open until November.) Was it worth it? You bet, and I believe it tied with the zoo for favorite sight seeing spot.

I will highlight the National Air and Space Museum, the Museum of American History, and the monuments we saw later in the week. Right now it's time for

Anna hated the cold, and she was sick of Deadwood, South Dakota, and all the snow locals ramble through on a daily basis without complaint. It was the end of March for crying out loud-she should be wearing cute little outfits, enjoying spring flowers, and suffering through allergies like everybody else back home, but according to the FBI, this was her new home.

Anna’s parents died in a horrific car accident that still has law enforcement shaking their heads. They were the prosecutor’s star witnesses in the trial of the Big Tuna himself, notorious mob boss Tony Accardo, and though Anna’s parents never told her about the case, the mob didn’t know that, and the FBI decided relocation would keep her safe.

But would it? An unknown car nearly missed her as she went for the mail. A coincidence, or is someone making sure Anna’s never heard from again? (149 words, and Deadwood is a real place, and The Big Tuna, Tony Accado, was an actual mob boss in Chicago... I got lazy-LOL!)

I can't wait to see what everyone else wrote!

A capital trip (and Succinctly Yours!)

2011-08-14T23:33:00.000-04:00

We have lived close to Washington, D.C. for 20 years, and never once ventured down there. I am not much of a history buff, and I remembered a not-so-interesting trip there with my family when I was small, so this spot has not been on my "must see" list at all. I am more of a beach bum when it comes to ideal vacation destinations, but with the work needed on the house and the price of gas, we decided to do short trips close to home this year. We designed a vacation around my daughters state meet at the end of May (Cape May and Wild Wood NJ), and my husband took the kids camping, but I thought it would be nice to get away one last time before school started.

I researched area attractions that would interest kids and Washington, D.C. popped up. All of the Smithsonian Museums are free, and then there are the monuments, the White House, the Capitol Building, etc. and the kids really seemed interested. There was one problem-the cost of staying in D.C. was ridiculous, with fees to park per day that ranged from $12 to $35 a day! But the more I researched, the more I learned. There is a metro system running from Maryland to Virginia suburbs that is supposed to be the cleanest and safest in the country, and it runs regularly to and from D.C. My chosen suburb was Bethesda, Maryland, only a couple hours drive from home and a fifteen minute trip via the metro into D.C.

We stayed there from Thursday through Sunday, and we learned an awful lot about how to maneuver around. Some things we did right, and some we did wrong and kicked ourselves later for, and I will be posting about different aspects of our trip for those who might be interested in going there as well.

What I did Right: our hotel choice.
Like I said, I chose Bethesda, Maryland because it was close enough to Washington without the bigger price tag, at least for the hotel. When I started my search, I pulled up all the sites that promise you the best deals on rooms, but Expedia beat them all not only for price of rooms, but additional "perks." We didn't want to spend a fortune on this little trip, so I was looking for a nice hotel at a budget rate-quite a hard thing to do at the end of summer around Washington. Like I said, most of the hotels were more than $200 a night for even a Holiday Inn, and all charged to park your car each day.

Expedia brought up some suburbs in my search, and Hilton Garden Inn, Bethesda, Maryland popped up. Their guests can park in their adjacent parking garage (*this was a positive and negative-I didn't read anything about a charge on Expedia for this, but we were charged $15 per day to park and we could have used the public parking over the weekend for free! But, we were able to check in at noon instead of the normal 3:00 pm...); I could get two queen size beds (instead of the usual doubles)in a room; they were 1 1/2 blocks from the Metro station; they were near several small diners and some fast food; they offered an indoor pool and work out facility (and computer center); and the biggest perk? We got their huge breakfast buffet for four each morning and it was included in the room rate. And the rate? Hold on to your hats...$94 a night (but with parking it ended up being $109 a night, still good...) The same hotel in other discount deal web sites was around $12 more without breakfast, and when I went to Hilton's own web site, the price quoted (still queen beds but no breakfast offer) was almost $250 a night!

When we usually stay in a hotel, I look for Hampton Inns and Ramada because they often offer a free breakfast buffet, and when you are trying to keep costs down (and meals are one big cost factor)this really goes a long way-especially with small kids. But you have to get to breakfast early, because the trade off is limited space and a whole bunch of other people wanting breakfast too! And though the food is decent enough, you basically eat it to tide you over until lunch.

Hilton's buffet was more than expected: a dedicated room with many tables (you waited to be seated instead of swarming the place), everything you could ever want for breakfast and the instructions to ask the cook if you wanted pancakes or a made to order omelet. There were scrambled eggs, many different kinds of sausages and bacon, every fresh fruit you can think of and that included fresh strawberries, blueberries, etc. to put on cereal or your waffle, many types of bagels and muffins, specialty breads and doughnuts, any juice you wanted, coffee, and tea, and a variety of yogurt flavors and cereals. And we learned that food in and around Washington D.C. is very expensive, so filling up here was a good start. (After this breakfast we downed so much water with all the walking that my husband and I were not hungry for lunch, and the kids just wanted something small.) We still got a check after we were done eating, but we just put our vouchers in the billfold. The cost of this meal without the vouchers would have been over $30. One negative, the wait staff hovered around you while you ate, and we felt kind of pressured to leave a tip each day.

The room: there was more than enough space and included a refrigerator and microwave; I heard nothing and no one our whole stay and we were only on the 4th floor; the bed and furniture were also some of the most comfortable I have ever had in a hotel (the chairs are supposed to be both ergonomic and the beds adjustable, but I thought they were fine as is); the room was also extremely clean (and I am very picky).

Three minor flaws. First, the sound of the air conditioner wasn't noticed too much until it was time for bed, and it went on and off throughout the night. Second, there were some missing tiles in an otherwise spotless bathroom and I can't help wondering why we were put there when the hotel was obviously not full to capacity. Another problem was with the bathroom sink drain. The water let out of it pretty slow when we arrived, but by the third night, it was worse, and didn't smell too pleasant. There was an obvious clog issue that I can't believe the cleaning staff didn't notice, but since we left this morning, we just reported it to the front desk at check out.

The pool: Okay, I am glad I found a hotel with a pool and hot tub. When you have tired, hot kids at the end of the day, the pool is a nice way to wind down, and we used it two nights. The negative: the pool was extremely small and shallow-only getting up to 3 1/2 feet (while this was good for my son, adults might not like it); there was a life guard on duty the entire time for this very small, shallow pool (this hotel caters more to business travelers, so I'm guessing something must have happened to have a need for it to be watched); the bottom of the pool had some type of non-slip surface that was rough to the touch. Both my kids and husband all have "boo boos" from the pool!

Location, location, location (and security): Not only were we close to the metro, but we were on a side street that only got hotel traffic. And just in case you still felt uneasy, the police station was on the next corner... Plus, you needed your room key to go up to your room in the elevator, and down to floors other than the main floor, otherwise the elevator didn't move. (Just an added piece of security I liked!)

If I was grading the Hilton, it would earn a solid "B," and my husband says 8 out of 10 would be a fair assessment-nobody is perfect, and I have never stayed in a "10" hotel... The place was clean, comfortable, and the staff were friendly. But do check the hotel deal sites and compare them to Hilton's (they are running specials for the fall now) main site for reduced rates and other possible perks!

Now time for Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog.

Grandma Goulash posts a picture and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. This week's word is frantic. Here this week's picture and my take this week:

Dejected, Woody collapsed in a nearby chair to contemplate life. His boy didn't play with wooden toys anymore-he was replaced by G.I.Joe. (139 characters)

Hope to be by later tonight to see what everyone else wrote!

Camping pictures (and Book Blurb Friday!)

2011-08-11T21:00:00.001-04:00

As promised, here are a few pictures of the family camping trip (minus one of course...)

Here is night number one-notice how differently my son and daughter sleep!

A picturesque setting...

Daddy does the cooking (and the kids said he did great.) Hmm...

The last day there it poured off and on all day, but no leaks!

Does this get you yearning for the great outdoors? For some of you (like me) probably not-LOL!

Well, at least I have:

Madison had been married to Asher less than a year when she began to see signs that something wasn’t right. Instead of growing closer, they were growing apart-her husband stayed late at the office, took strange phone calls at all hours, and when she questioned him, he accused her of not trusting him anymore.

Madison felt like she was living with a stranger, and she was ready to call it quits when Asher convinced her to wait. After his business trip in Rome, he would explain everything, but that day never came, and it was if he never existed-his coworkers acted like they never knew him, the airline had no record of his getting on or off the plane, and his parents they said he died years ago.

Madison would now study the past year, searching for clues, anything that might help her find the man they all forgot… (149 words-cutting it close!)

I thought I would have a hard time with this week's picture, but the words just flew on the page. I had to do some major cutting to get it under the 150 word limit though. I can't wait to see what everyone else did!

Survival if the fittest (and Succinctly Yours!)

2011-08-08T00:25:00.000-04:00

Don't worry. No bears visited my family this past weekend

As some of you may know, I was very much on my own since Thursday evening when my husband took the kids camping-sans me. Even though I knew I would miss the "family time," I just couldn't get past the whole idea of camping. I hate camping (especially roughing it in a tent), always have and always will, and I knew they would all have a better time without all my neuroses’about the dirt and bugs. As it turned out, my husband and daughter had a wonderful time despite it raining all day long on Saturday, and my son? He has mixed feelings, but he may be more like his mother than he cares to admit...

But I am so glad I survived as well. At first it was so quiet and a bit unnerving, particularly at night. Let's just say that I haven't had a decent night's sleep since they left. I was so tired, but as soon as I went to bed I was wide awake...listening. This house makes some strange noises and with my over active imagination it was always after 3 AM before I finally slept. (On the first morning I even watched the sun come up-not by choice of course.)

My husband took lots of pictures but I will share some later in the week. Thank goodness for Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog.

Grandma Goulash posts a picture and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. This week's word is oblivious. Here this week's picture and my take this week:

Recent changes in the Queen's dating choices were experimental, but she didn't know a night out with Bozo involved his wearing the makeup. (138 characters)

I don't know why I'm still up, but I am (hopefull) heading off to slumberville now. Hope to stop by soon!

Camping dropout (and Book Blurb Friday!)

2011-08-04T23:53:00.014-04:00

The kids went camping-I did not. In fact, half of my husband's family is camping alongside them-I am not. Let's just say I am not a big fan for many reasons, one of them being that I've been there, done that. My childhood vacations were spent cooped up in tents, then in campers and trailers of various sizes with my mother, father, and three sisters (and sometimes a cat or dog!) You don't really know your family until you've spent a week with them in such a small space, and it isn't pretty... My dad often asks if I remember that time we went to Yellow Stone National Park, or Rehobeth Beach, and all I remember is a hot truck ride (no air conditioning my friends) and fighting with my sisters for SPACE.

And my other reasons? No escape from the heat, the bugs, the dirt, and then there's all the work to set up camp, and the lack of SPACE (yes, I know I said it already, but it needs repeating.) So here I sit, more than a little teary eyed after wishing my family goodnight via a cell phone call (my daughter texted me half the day!), and I keep reminding myself of all the negative so that I can pull through this okay. Are any of you campers?

So I am doubly glad for:

Darby watched the rain just as she did the day they forgot her, but they were coming back-she could feel it, and the bizarre weather patterns were her proof. Not only was the little town of Bridgewater, Main, the only town getting rain, it was getting close to the yearly rainfall for the entire state.

She remembered how the ships hover out of sight, heating nearby oceans so that massive amounts of precipitation falls, water they desperately need on their dying planet. They are Humanoid in nature, resembling Earthlings the most as children, easily adoptable, at least that’s what they thought…. So the young serve as water takers, in case something goes wrong.

And things went terribly wrong years ago, and Darby now lives with an alien species, in a government scientist’s home. But this isn’t her home, and she needs to make it back somehow. (146 words not including the title.)

This is sort of funny. I was reading Lisa's previous post about allowing her muse to lead her, and the direction this took is way off the deep end for me. I looked at this picture earlier today and couldn't get an idea, and when I started writing this evening I thought I was heading to the horror realm (another first for me) but thankfully sci-fi extreme took hold. I can't wait to see what you all wrote!

Movies Worth a Look (and Succinctly Yours)

2011-08-02T00:20:00.001-04:00

Summer is a time to sit back and relax, and escaping the heat at the movie theater is always on the agenda around here, especially when the movie is animated and a much anticipated sequel. We saw a total of four movies this summer (three are still in theaters) you may want to check out if you get the chance.

The first was an animated sequel Kung Fu Panda II. I always hesitate about seeing a sequel but I have to say that I enjoyed this movie almost as much. Jack Black is back as Po the Panda (as are all the old characters), and though I am not a fan of Black's work in other movies, his tongue-in-cheek type of humor is a perfect fit for animation. Here's a run down: Po, along with the fabulous five, must save China from a villian who has discovered gun powder and who plans to use it to become all powerful. The bad: while I still enjoy seeeing these characters again, I felt the movie was a bit more violent than the first. Yes, I know both movies deal with Kung Fu and fighting is a part of that, but the first movie was "lighter" than the second with more humorous moments involving Po. Both my kids enjoyed the movie but they are 12 and 8, and I might reconsider letting a very young child see this. My grade: B/B+

The second movie was also animated and another sequel-Cars II. Lightning MacQueen is invited to race a four part road race in Europe using a new all natural fuel instead of gasoline, and he uses his old friends as his pit crew. Unfortunately, someone is out to damage the fuel's reputation by trying to wreck the cars in the races. British spies are working on finding out who before it's too late, and Mador, mistaken for an American spy, must help. I enjoyed the first Cars movie a lot better because there was more emotional scenes-MacQueen learning some hard lessons and making friends along the way. Although I still marvel at how they design whole worlds around cars and not people (the first few scenes were really great!)this movie was mostly action packed without a lot of feeling. My kids had mixed reactions. For the most part they enjoyed the movie, but my daughter felt a bit let down just as I did. My son said he liked it almost as much as the first Cars. My grade: a B-/C+.

The last two movies weren't sequels or animations, but were based on some old comic book heroes-The Green Lantern and Captain America-the First Avenger. Now I don't usually like superhero movies (notably the Spiderman series) because they are usually all action and no substance, but I saw two of the three this summer and I enjoyed both. The Green Lantern is about a risky jet pilot who discovers a dying alien (a member of the Green Lantern Peace Keepers-beings from other planets and galaxies who keep evil at bay in their assigned quadrons) and is chosen by the lantern as his replacement. First, let's just say the special effects are out of this world-computer animation at its best-and the story itself wasn't half bad. But the evil force attempting to anhilate Earth is pretty scary (a black cloud wih a face who can suck the "fear" out of people) and I had more than a few concerns about my son. Both kids enjoyed the movie, but this one is definitely not for the younger crowd. My grade: B+ for fantastic effects.

Captain America: The First Avenger had a much better story. It takes place during WWII, and Steve Rogers is a puny little man who wants to fight in the war but his size and health problems prevent it. He gets the attention of a scientist who wants to use him as the guinea pig for his new serum-it would turn a person into a super soldier. And those familiar with the comic book story will like the fact that this movie stays pretty close to the story. Once again, good special effects, though not as over the top as the Green Lantern, but the story was great. Now the movie is PG-13, but even though it takes place during the war, there is not blood and gore, only Hydra's super ray gun that disintegrates people. Hydra's face alone will scare the squeemish, but both my kids enjoyed this movie. My grade: A.

My son and husband also saw Thor and both enjoyed the story as well as the effects, but they rate it below the other two because there was too much story and not enough fighting. A unique male viewpoint-LOL! Have you seen any of these movies?

Now it's time for Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog.

Grandma Goulash posts a picture and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. This week's word is proliferate. Here this week's picture and my take this week:

Harry inched closer to the parchment and saw his mistake immediately-nuvo lacerta changed him into a lizard, but how would he change back? (139 characters)

Yes, I have Harry Potter on my mind, but I know this movie would be much too scary for my kids, so I will have to wait for the DVD release... Sorry I am so late with my post, but I was too tuckered out yesterday. I look forward to reading others!

Photos were used soley for the purpose of reviewing the movie. All opinions stated are my own and I was not compensated in any way.

20 years and still going (and Book Blurb Friday!)

2011-07-29T00:23:00.000-04:00

I know I said I was going to post reviews of some good summer flicks, but yesterday my husband and I celebrated 20 years of marriage, and I thought that cancelled everything else out. In fact, if you want to get technical, I have known my husband 24 years now-we were friends for two years in college, then dated, got engaged, and were married two years after that. My husband remarked at dinner that soon we will have lived with each other longer than we did with our families. Interesting...

Anyway, we both decided that since we were doing a lot of work on the house (replaced a patio door, about to tear out and replace our living room carpet and remove wallpaper to paint), and since we have two small trips planned(my husband is taking the kids camping, and we are all going to Washington DC)presents this year weren't necessary. We were just going to go out to dinner.

Well I, also now known as super idiot, at least went along with the "no-gift" plan-my husband didn't. He has heard me talk off and on about maybe getting a plain gold wedding band to wear when I don't want to wear my engagement ring/wedding band wrap combination. I have started taking them off when I'm at home because I don't want to lose a stone. (My wedding band wrap has two rubies and I have already had it to the jeweler to reinsert one of the stones-I'm afraid I won't know one has fallen out next time...)We were enjoying dinner when my husband asked for the time and when I turned back, a ring box was sitting in front of me-I now have my wedding band!

I'm also glad it's

The three-alarm blaze totaled the charismatic cottage, and the all-American image of the Lawrence family went up in smoke. Neighbors were stunned to learn the blaze was no accident, and firefighters claimed a member of the Lawrence family, daughter Tara, was the likely culprit.

Police found Tara huddled in a blanket in the families’ backyard, but when they questioned her, she spoke not a word. Neighbors described the girl as an underachiever compared to her family –the mother, a former Rhodes Scholar and lawyer, her father a neurologist, and her brothers both honor students and great athletes.

Authorities say Tara finally cracked under pressure and killed her family, but social worker Monica Perry believes differently. She feels the pain of what really happened in that house has led to the girl’s silence, and she hopes to reveal just what Tara saw. (141 words)

This is a little dark even for me, and at first I was leaning towards the super natural side, but I never got there. I am very curious to see (lol, couldn't resist) what everyone else did!

Just one of those days (and Succinctly Yours!)

2011-07-25T00:32:00.002-04:00

I am a not feeling very well, and the heat made everything worse. I put off doing laundry until today because of spotty rain showers the past couple days, and I wanted to hang the clothes outside to be a little more power conscious. But while I saved electrical consumption, I put out a great deal of physical energy consumption, and each trip oustide left me drenched in sweat. What was I thinking? I was going to review some movies in this post, but I needed to whine more...

Thank goodness for Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog.

Grandma Goulash posts a picture and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. This week's word is arbitrary. Here is the picture and two takes this week (one poetry and one prose):

Dad went for a Coke and I glanced at all the old tools. He was like his tools in a way-a bit worn, but still a force to be reckoned with. (138 characters)

I ran my hand along the bench,
Wood shavings cascade to the floor,
This room's a silent tribute,
To the man who is no more. (132 characters)

I sort of fell into the poem while trying to cut down another piece, but I still didn't get everything I wanted out of it so I tried again and it took me longer than it should have to do two. I will come around soon!

HOT! (And Book Blurb Friday!)

2011-07-21T22:53:00.054-04:00

Most of you probably don't need to be told how hot it is where I am, and that's probably because it is just as hot where you are, but I'm going to tell you any way. Today it was 93 at 11:00 AM, and 100 by 1:30 PM, and that was in the shade and on grass! (Do you feel hotter already? My mother always said that she grew hotter if she knew the actual temperature, and I think she's right!)

So, even though I detest the whole process (lathering the kids down with sunscreen, packing all the necessities for the pool, piling in the car, arriving at the pool, getting abused by kids in said pool, coming back home, then dealing with all the wet necessities and showers), this is exactly what we have been doing almost five days straight. We took only one day off to do grocery shopping and errands... Are things as hot your way?

Oh well-summer goes by quickly so I better not complain. I'm just glad it's

What the Statue Told Her
Aubrey began working on her family tree when she was in grade school, but after her parent’s sudden disappearance when she was 12, her once passing interest became a serious pursuit. Some thought it a bit strange for a young girl to be digging about in the past, trying to locate estranged family members. Authorities believed her parents were dead, but Aubrey believed differently, thinking that somebody knew something.

The largest piece of the puzzle came to Aubrey in the form of a note that read, “The girl will tell you,” and it lead straight to Shady Oaks Cemetery. Friends warned it was a cruel joke, but Aubrey went looking for the “girl” anyway.

She now stood facing a statue resembling her in every way, and as she stared, a tear slowly rolled down the marble face, and a voice in Aubrey's head started to speak… (146 words)

As usual, I don't like my title very much. Do the rest of you struggle with your titles too? I can't wait to see what everyone wrote!

What I got last week (and Succinctly Yours!)

2011-07-18T00:46:00.001-04:00

I needed (okay, maybe wanted really badly!) another fast computer in the house. We have our dinosaur computer (painfully slow)used just for word processing in our redone basement, but let's face it-it's still the basement...

I needed the portability of a smart phone (I love my phone but typing on it for long periods of time isn't fun.)
I needed the processing power of a desktop (I love our main computer but I am stuck in one locale and everyone else loves it too!)
I needed the convenience of a laptop(but I didn't want a huge machine to lug around).
And let's face it-who wouldn't want the fun of a tablet pc?
I wanted a combination of all of these all rolled into one...

What I got was: my new HP TouchSmart tablet laptop. It is only four pounds so very easy to move around. It has an i3 processor, and although not the fastest out there (they have i5 and now i7), it's quick enough for me. And I can toggle between entirely touch screen like a tablet (the screen flips 180 and lies flat on the keyboard), or use my included stylus or keyboard at any time while the laptop is upright. It came loaded with Windows 7 which I am slowly getting used to, but a very bare Microsoft Office that I may or may not upgrade. And you may not be able to tell but the case is pretty snazzy-no excess fingerprint problems! But the bottom line is I'm loving this new machine. (I haven't let anyone else touch it although both my kids are quite interested-LOL!)

Can I hear a collective "ooh"? But it's also time for Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog.

It was our place, a place we had been to a thousand times before. But I never knew him until that day-when he slowly tore my heart in two. (139 characters)

It's way too late to come around your blogs now, but I can't wait to check what you all wrote tomorrow!

A little R & R today (and Book Blurb Friday!)

2011-07-14T23:40:00.001-04:00

We spent the entire day yesterday at Hershey Park (getting there 20 minutes before it opened and leaving about 2 hours before it closed), and when I say we are tired I mean it! I did some "light" housework today, my daughter was either on or in her bed, and my son (who never sleeps in) didn't get up until 8:30. Unfortunately, my husband was up and out the door by 7:45, so he is feeling a whole lot worse than the rest of us. I actually sat and read a few magazine articles outside this afternoon because the weather was just right, and since energy to do anything else was next to null, dinner consisted of spaghetti and a side salad. (Yes, I was LAZY today...)

As far as crowds, we couldn't have picked a better day. The weatherman was calling for a passing shower at 2 pm that we never got (although there were a few annoying spitty type raindrops that fell earlier in the day for 5-10 minutes), and since it was overcast until around noon, I think it kept some people away. The most we had to wait in line was about 15 minutes, and that was for a very popular roller coaster-otherwise it was almost walk on type status for many rides (except for some coasters)all day.

We did think that my son would ride the coasters since he is tall enough now, but he has a small fear of heights so no go. I hope he gets over this when he's older, but you never know. Anyway, we had a good time but I have no pictures to share. I don't know why we didn't take any...

Oh well-I'm glad it's

Bridging the Past
Amber has a lot on her mind this lazy Louisiana morning. Divorced after 25 years of marriage, she decided to use the Internet to track down old classmates who could help her remember the girl she used to be. But as e-mail responses trickled in, a name caught her eye-Michael Stanton, the boy she first loved then hated.

Amber dated Michael in her senior year, but after a three-year relationship he broke things off in a simple letter, and she never heard from him again-until six months ago. At first she didn’t respond-that was a painful time and she didn’t see the sense in reopening mended wounds. But after a casual first reply, it didn’t take long for all those old feelings to come back.

So Amber stands wondering, will this old wooden bridge join her past life to the one she hopes will be her future? (147 words)

I just loved this photo and wouldn't have minded spending some time on it myself... Can't wait to read all your stories!
PS. I did get a delivery today that I am loving and will share later this weekend!

Weekend wrap up (and Succinctly Yours!)

2011-07-10T22:43:00.000-04:00

Silly 'ole bear!

We were quite busy this weekend; it seems somebody (it must have been me)mentioned to my son that we could redo his bedroom this summer-he still had Winnie the Pooh, Piglet, and Eeyore painted on the walls from when he was a baby (not to mention clouds on the ceiling and balloons)and he was so embarrassed by it that he covered up my masterpieces with super hero posters. (Yes, I was the crazy one who at five months pregnant decided to draw the three characters free-hand, paint them, and then get up on a ladder to do clouds on the ceiling-I did the step ladder thing when my husband was at work, and probably not the smartest thing...) Needless to say, it was a lot of work, and although I know he wanted a more grown up room, I hated to see the "nursery" go...

I will miss Piglet too! He was over the changing table...

It was pouring down rain when we did this Friday, so our timing couldn't have been better. My son and I worked on just one wall Friday, and they we enlisted the help of my husband and daughter Saturday. It took all day Saturday -we moved out most of the furniture and toys, tarped the floor, my husband did the ceiling, and then we all did the walls. It took two coats, and I think it turned out pretty good. We are doing a Star Wars theme-I ordered a couple Star Wars giant posters, a 3 foot tall peel and stick Yoda, and then he wants glow in the dark "dot" stars on the ceiling. He wanted the ceiling blue as well, and we did it to try it out, but I think it's way to dark in his room now, so I'm hoping to convince him to go with a traditional white to match his trim...(A request was also put in for a life sized Darth Vader that I would paint, but I'm trying to push him away from this-mucho work and I don't think Lord Vader would show up well with the dark blue background.) I'll put up more pictures when we do the posters. Have any of you done themes for your kids' rooms?

I made my son to the lower areas-now I need to touch up the trim, LOL!

Now it's time for a lighter note and Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog.

Grandma Goulash posts a picture and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. This week's word is renegade. Here is the picture and my story:

With their small boat broken by rocks near the shoreline, the kids could only wait, but help did come-in the form of another small boat! (136 characters)

I can't wait to stop by and see what everyone else did. (I had a hard time with this week's photo.)

Nothing better than chocolate (and Book Blurb Friday!)

2011-07-08T00:43:00.003-04:00

Tonight has been a trying evening-first we were made to sit and wait for someone from Lowes to come out and measure for a replacement sliding glass door (I just don't get the 2 hour window that repairmen give when they make an appointment to come out to the house), and since I gave my son a "trim" back before school let out, the plan was to do another tonight. Let's just say that I will pay any amount of money to have someone else do this next time! I still don't know why he was making such a fuss, but the end result was an angry mom and dad, a pouting kid, an early bed time, and a dose of chocolate for me! (Chocolate always cures, but just for the record, I think I did even better than I did the last time, but still, never again...)

I'm glad it's

So the Story Goes
The dilapidated old house was left to Deborah in the will, and though Deborah’s husband had been in the attic earlier declaring it unfit for man or beast, she had to see for herself.

Deborah’s husband was right in some aspects-the thick layer of dust and cobwebs indicated years of neglect, and trash was scattered amid the boxes on the rotted wooden floorboards. But as she started rummaging through the bits and pieces of her grandmother’s life, she came across a rusted typewriter and a box filled with what looked like the makings of a novel.

Curiosity more than anything made Deborah sit down to read-she never knew her grandmother could write. But as the words began flowing into Deborah’s head, the story about kings and queens seemed to come to life, and Deborah soon found that she too was a part of the story… (145 words)

This picture was really interesting so I can't wait to see what everyone wrote-unfortunately it's almost 12:30 AM so I will stop by tomorrow!

So the Story Goes

Fourth of July (and Succinctly Yours!)

2011-07-03T23:32:00.000-04:00

If you ever stopped to think of all the freedoms you enjoy throughout the day, it would really make your head spin, especially when you think that what we take for granted isn’t found everywhere, that what I have people fought and died for. I don’t know…just something with a little more meaning to think about this Fourth of July.

Now it's time for a lighter note and Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog. Grandma Goulash posts a picture and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. This week's word is expedient. Here is the picture and my story:

Kay rubbed her legs together to think. When asked to make her fly, the genie turned her into one-the lamp had caused some loss of hearing. (139 characters)

Okay, this is my feeble attempt at some humor instead of my usual serious responses to this writing meme. I am looking forward to stopping by and reading yours, and I'm hoping all of you have a wonderful July 4th!

Full time mom for the summer (and Book Blurb Friday!)

2011-06-30T22:51:00.003-04:00

The kids and I have been out of school for three weeks now and I wonder how full time mothers do it. I mean I love my kids, and I love spending time with them, and my house is much cleaner now than during the school season, but jeeper leepers there are a lot of hours to the day. By 9 PM I don't want to play another game of Uno (especially since I always lose and this is hard to take by someone who is both a type A and B personality!) And if I don't have a "real" activity planned for the day look out. The kids get tired of doing their own thing and then the arguing starts.

I never thought about it before, but getting dinner ready has become my escape. "Sorry, I can't do_____ (fill in the blank) now because I have to get dinner ready." This is one of the only times I can take a "physical" break from the kids (playing outside doesn't last long-it's too hot or too cold or too windy-I don't want them sitting in front of the TV, and my shower or bathroom trips are only sacred to me.) But just when I think I will lose my mind (I mean I'm either loved or hated by one of my kids on any given day) there are the quiet moments with one or both kids that cancel everything else out. Have the rest of you felt this way? How do you get through without feeling like such a bad mommy...sigh.
Boy, I'm glad it's

The Cinderella Switch
Yawning, Meredith stretched her slender arms and squinted at her dresser-she could barely make out the time without her glasses, but the sun streaming into the room told her she had overslept. She didn’t care-last night had been wonderful, just like something out of an old fairy tale, and she was Cinderella… She grabbed up her pillow and putting it over her face she squealed with delight, kicking her feet against the stiff mattress.

The old tower clock chimed reality, and Meredith tumbled out of bed and into her work clothes. She still had to clean the latrines and help with breakfast before the headmaster made her rounds and before students clamored into the dining hall. She put her glasses on and caught sight of her reflection-if she could pull this switch off, then maybe, just maybe, her life could be different. (142 words)

I don't know why I thought of Cinderella with this photo, but it had such a wistful quality to it that I couldn't help but think of a young girl dreaming. What did you think? I'm coming by to check it out!

Trying not to tip the scales...(and Succinctly Yours!)

2011-06-26T23:31:00.000-04:00

The title of my post today is supposed to have more than one meaning. With the long winter and virtually no spring it seems that my eating habits are not what they should be. Colder weather always gives me the munchies-I guess it's Mother Nature's way of helping us stay warmer (you know, by giving us a little more meat on our bones...) Unfortunately, my "meat" settled in two areas where I didn't want any more "meat," and I'll leave it at that. So, instead of being ready to bear at least some in a bathing suit, I'm not ready at all-my jeans and capris pants don't lie, and I need to hit the gym now (ugh!)

I am also working on a very grand scale project that has taken away from my blogging time, and I am still trying to spend time with my kids and husband, and it's getting pretty hard. (The last two nights I didn't get to bed before 1 am, and it's taking its toll on my energy level the next day, so bear with me while I try to balance everything out.)

Now it's time for Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog. Grandma Goulash posts a picture and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. This week's word is tribute. Here is the picture and my story:

Mary drove as fast as she could, but with the rain and brake lights up ahead, it was only a matter of time before they caught her. (130 characters)

Well, it's almost 11:30, and I'm beat, so I'll come by to read everyone's stories tomorrow. Oh, and before I forget, my dog thanks you for your kind words about his haircut-LOL!

My dog revealed (and Book Blurb Friday!)

2011-06-24T17:00:00.001-04:00

This is Uno

Well, as promised, here is what my dog looks like now-notice the rather large shaggy head and small shaved body? When he runs the hair is in his eyes and he reminds me of animal from the Muppets (minus the red hair and chains, but still somewhat wild...)I'd like to say that I'm getting used to it, but I do miss his scruffy look. They say if you massage a baby's bald head it stimulates the hair follicles and their hair grows faster-I wonder if this is the same for dogs? Hmm... I would like to even up the hair on his head a touch, but every time I go for the clippers the dog runs and hides, so I'll just leave it.

This is Uno all fuzzy...

Boy, I'm glad it's

Book Blurb Friday! This is where Lisa Ricard Claro, from Writing in the Buff, posts a picture meant to serve as a fictional book cover.

It's your job to write a blurb about the book in 150 words or less to entice a prospective reader. Are you up to the challenge?
Here is this week's picture and my story:

When the World Ended...

Lana never took much interest in her classes, or school in general, preferring instead to daydream about life after her prison term, more commonly known as high school. And when a class lecture turned into speculation about how the world would end, she vaguely remembers hearing her teacher drone on about how everything would end in fire, with nations battling it out over land and personal beliefs-just one man, pushing a button to send nuclear warheads into another country’s backyard. At least she thinks that’s what she heard, before the lights went out…

There were no rockets, or battling nations, only man’s disregard that brought about the end. The sun simply burned itself out, and the planet was entering into a second ice age. Lana and her classmates now face an uncertain future-stay on a dying planet or leave, and this decision will alter their lives forever. (147 words)

I usually get this posted Thursday night, but my husband is trying to teach me how to play chess and it took him a lot longer than he thought it would to take my king. (We decided to end in a draw, although if he hadn't shaken his head on some of my moves, the game would have been over a lot sooner...) I will stop on by to see what everyone else did later tonight.

My poor dog got a haircut (and Succinctly Yours!)

2011-06-19T22:20:00.000-04:00

This guy actually has more hair than ours right now...

My poor dog-let's just say that he may be the funniest looking dog in the neighborhood. He's a Havanese, and if you are familiar with the breed it's a cute, silky, long haired dog of about 14 lbs. I should emphasize that silky refers to his hair and not fur, because it is so fine, you need to brush the dog at least 3 times a week to stay after any knots that develop. (Unlike other dog breeds, knots don't break off when you brush-I often have to separate them with my fingers because hitting them with a comb hurts him...)

Now his hair is perfect for cording because it is always knotting up anyways, but to cord a Havanese you need to completely let their entire coat knot up (and you give them weekly baths without combing afterward to speed up the process.) The thing is, the dog will look really, really bad until he is finally done and you separate these little braids, and I'm afraid everyone will think were abusing him. The only way to go back from cords is to cut them all off, and I'm not real big on the look...

Anyway, I am the only one with the patience to brush him-he doesn't like it and believe it or not he is worse on a grooming table that the Siberian Husky we used to have! My husband and I really went to town on him before we went away Memorial Day weekend because I knew that he would get some tangles at the boarders-well, the some that he did get I couldn't get out because they were just too close to the skin, although I have been trying each week to tackle a little at a time. So, we had no other choice but to shave him down.

We left his hair and beard long (I just trimmed a couple inches off the length), and now he looks like a cross between a lion and a small dog. Plus, to top everything off, he got a bath, and now he is staying as far away from me as he can. (He still likes my husband, and he's the one that did the shaving! LOL!) I'll post a couple pictures of him after I ~~stop laughing~~ get used to it. He had this done once before when it got bad, and in about 6 months time it will be long again.

Now it's time for Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog. Grandma Goulash posts a picture and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. This week's word is fabricate. Here is the picture and my story:

Sir Reginald grinned. "The mirror says my chiseled chin and aquiline nose mean I'm destined for greatness, and I couldn't agree more!" (an amusing 138 characters)

I am betting that many of you saw the humor in this picture, but I am curious if anyone went for the "fairest of them all" (I almost did-LOL!)I can't wait to come by.

A little rest (and Book Blurb Friday!)

2011-06-16T22:50:00.002-04:00

Now this isn't quite me-I have been doing laundry and "hanging" around with the kids-also no TV, but plenty of computer and book time...

It seemed that time nearly stood still when the school year ended, and the kids and I (or maybe just me) have enjoyed a much needed moment of slothdom. For once I didn't have to get up early or race anywhere, and I must say it was nice. (I realize that if left to my own defenses, I would make a great hermit-LOL!) But the kids are now bored with my lack of activity, and truthfully so am I, so I'm off to join the world once more tomorrow. (I'm ferrying my daughter and a team member back and forth to practice at noon, and then there's that trip I've been putting of to Walmart, and the store...sigh!)

What are you all up to now that summer is upon us? We had record low temps the past couple days (so no pool) and then it rained all day today (still no pool), so I'm glad it's

Book Blurb Friday! This is where Lisa Ricard Claro, from Writing in the Buff, posts a picture meant to serve as a fictional book cover.

It's your job to write a blurb about the book in 150 words or less to entice a prospective reader. Are you up to the challenge?
Here is this week's picture and my story:

Lights Out in Vegas
Robert and Kate, recent empty nesters, decided to head to sunny Nevada for a much needed winter break. They planned to visit Las Vegas first, staying at the elegant La Casino to do a little gambling, and then move on to Lake Tahoe to relax.

The couple found the glamour and excitement that is sin city hard to resist, and won nearly a million dollars-most of it from La Casino. However, Robert and Kate grew uneasy on their last night. There were looks from managers who doled out their winnings, and as they headed back to their room, all eyes were on them, watching, waiting…

The couple thought they were imagining things, especially after reading a card with well wishes from the owners, and seeing the gift of La Casino’s mints. But when they each took a piece, everything became fuzzy, and soon they were not alone. (147 words)

Well, it's getting late, and I promised myself to go to bed at a decent hour, so I hope to make the rounds to your blogs tomorrow. Can't wait!

A pile of pictures (and Succinctly Yours!)

2011-06-12T23:41:00.001-04:00

For some reason I didn't remember to take pictures until after the party was over. Here is my hard working husband tearing things down in the yard.

Well, I would call my son's end of the year party a success, although there were a few bumps along the way. Out of 24 invites (he had announced the party to the whole class, so we then invited everybody!)we had only 11 respond back-4 "no's" and 7 "yes's." Now I was more than a little overjoyed at having a smaller number, but I was also amazed that 13 didn't respond one way or the other. I can't help but think what if it was them? Would they be upset at the lack of manners? Hmm, I wonder... My son was also disappointed, and maybe that's why I'm upset about it too.

We also had one of the kids (a very good friend of my son's this year)RSVP that he was coming and I called the dad to make sure he knew how to get to our house, but on the day of the party he was a no-show. My son wanted me to call him, but I didn't want to pry. I'm just hoping that everything is all right.

This is the spider man bounce house we rented. It was a hit despite the soaring temperatures.

My daughter decided to get in some solitary bouncing while all the boys were elsewhere!

Here are my three monkeys jumping around before we let the air out of the house.

Here are the last of the party goers winding things down with a game of beach bingo-we needed to cool off in the air condition after being outside all day.

We did a little more water balloon games than we had originally planned to keep the kids cool (and the water balloon toss turned into an all out war of boys against the only two girls), but all in all I thought things went well. I asked my son to rate the party on a scale of 1-10 and he gave it a 9 (where I lost that one point I don't know-LOL!)

Now it's time for Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog. Grandma Goulash posts a picture and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. Once again it's late, but I wanted to quickly get this one in...

This week's word is lavender. Here is the picture and my poem (yes, poem-I couldn't think of a story this week.)

Two geese by a pond

Pensive and still

One jumps in

The other never will

Alone on the bank

Time slips by

One still sits

But now asks why

(138 characters with a lot of chopping and no punctuation, but what the heck, right? Poetic license...)

This picture made me think of taking chances in life-I don't want to be that goose left on the bank (and I hope you don't either!) Can't wait to see what everyone else wrote-I'll come by tomorrow.

End of the school year madness, a party to plan, and Book Blurb Friday!

2011-06-10T21:30:00.002-04:00

My last day of school was yesterday but instead of taking a much needed break, I have been running around all day picking things up for my son's end of the year party tomorrow, and cleaning my house. To say I'm sick of cleaning would be a definite understatement.

Yesterday I was scheduled to leave school at 11:30 (I was taking my half day compensatory time for four hours spent at back to school night in September) but I didn't leave until 1:30. I had my kids with me because I thought I could tear my room down and clean it for the summer in four hours, but there were trips to the bathroom, and then snacks from the snack machine, and then my daughter wanted to help me-I finally let her use my three hole puncher to update my class binders and things picked up from there.

After being together for 6 hours, my kids were bored and tired of each other, so naturally they began to argue-about where we were going to eat lunch, what we were going to do at the party, what we were going to have for dinner, etc. My son had a mini-meltdown because he wasn't happy about where we picked to eat at for lunch, and he sulked most of the time we were there, almost to the point of refusing to eat until ice cream was mentioned as an after meal treat.

Today I promised fast food after we ran around getting our party things, and my daughter nearly gave me heart failure-she discovered 15 minutes after we left that she forgot her purse, and inside that purse was her new cell phone, and $20 in her wallet... I turned the car around and called my husband to see if he could quickly look up the restaurant's phone number for me and then call me back with it while I raced to get back there. My saintly husband called the restaurant and found out the purse had been turned in with the cell phone and the $20, and I really can't believe it. There are still good people out there!

Now on to Book Blurb Friday. This is where Lisa Ricard Claro, from Writing in the Buff, posts a picture meant to serve as a fictional book cover.

It's your job to write a blurb about the book in 150 words or less to entice a prospective reader. Are you up to the challenge?
Here is this week's picture and my story:

A Race Back in Time
Jake’s capsule landed with a thud, and he was barley able to crawl out onto the rocky pavement. Where he was remained a mystery because the controls on his craft had been badly damaged by the landing, but one thing he did know- he had achieved his life’s goal and successfully traveled back in time. Now he could search for the prized compound his people needed to fight off fighters from Omega Centauri.

The time sweeper on his wrist read the year 2011, but there was something odd about this town. Jake kicked at a can lying on the ground and noticed metalloid pieces of what seemed to be some type of explosive device everywhere.

Jake picked up one of the shards and turning it over in his hand he saw a now familiar mark and his blood ran cold-could they have gotten here before he did? (147 words)

Once again I'm not too happy with the title, but it's growing on me... Sorry about posting so late-I can't wait to check out the other stories. (I am sure they lean more to the dark side-sorry, we've been watching the Star Wars movies, LOL!)

Succinctly Yours Today!

2011-06-05T23:41:00.000-04:00

It's time for Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog. Grandma Goulash posts a picture and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. I wanted to quickly get this one out before I went to bed...

This week's word is ponder. Here is the picture and my story:

Charles watched nervously as Sheila drew the company's projected earnings downward, but his worry was whether he had a future with her. (135 characters)

Sorry everyone, but it's pretty late (again!) so I will be by tomorrow.

A New Outlook (and Book Blurb Friday!)

2011-06-03T00:09:00.002-04:00

Well I had wanted to post a few pictures of our weekend, but time sort of got away from me this week. Let's just say that the positives are now outweighing the negatives, and I thought I would list them quickly:

1. My daughter recovered from her stomach bug in 24 hours, which leads me to believe that it might have been a case of food poisoning. (My sister-in-law's a nurse, and she said that food poisoning comes on fast-about 1 to 2 hours after eating-and usually clears up in less than 24 hours. Stomach viruses do not.) We had stopped at a McDonald's on the way home (oh, how I hate fast food!) and there might be a link.

2. I never did get sick which also has me thinking it was the reason I mentioned above.

3. My son had his face looked at yesterday, and the lab showed that it was indeed a ruptured cyst. He was also given the okay to go swimming, and this was on our agenda for this weekend!

4. Finals are drawing to a close, and I have a good start on getting the grading finished. (Now cleaning my room for over the summer is another story...)

5. My daughter hasn't quit gymnastics, at least not yet, and seems to have a renewed sense of spirit after practice today-she has super coaches, so I'm guessing they have something to do with it.

Well, that's it for now, so on to Book Blurb Friday. This is where Lisa Ricard Claro, from Writing in the Buff, posts a picture meant to serve as a fictional book cover.

It's your job to write a blurb about the book in 150 words or less to entice a prospective reader. Are you up to the challenge?
Here is this week's picture and my story:

Windows Never Lie

A woman disappears without a trace, and does so from an apartment directly across from police? The girl’s parents call on the force’s best man, Detective Gerard Boucher, but even he is baffled.

Camille was a young starlet capturing everyone’s heart in her first major picture, “Cry Before Dawn”, and she was enjoying all the benefits of being associated with a widely acclaimed film. Her agent, Hampshire Smith, recently helped her acquire a flat in Paris, chosen because it was near popular nightspots and security.

Hampshire reported Camille missing when she didn’t show up for an interview. When he investigated, he found her flat unlocked and no sign of her anywhere.

Detective Boucher didn’t know why, but the apartment’s balcony and Camille’s neglected geraniums fascinated him-was there a connection? But as he was staring at the flower yet again, he saw someone watching from the window across the street… (149 on the dot-hard tonight!)

Well, I've been having so much fun that I've lost track of time. I'll be by tomorrow to see what you see!

An exhausting weekend (and a little Succinctly Yours!)

2011-05-30T22:12:00.003-04:00

We headed to Wildwood, New Jersey Saturday for my daughter's regional gymnastics meet. We decided to make a weekend out of it, spending time in Wildwood, Cape May, and Cape May Point, and with all this activity and not a lot of sleep, we are all pretty exhausted.

It would have been nice for my daughter to have finished well at the end of the season, but after scratching her last home meet in April due to a very lengthy flu bug, it was touch or go on whether she would even attempt regionals this year. She just wasn't strong enough to do her dismount off the beam or her back handsprings without a spotter-her body needed to rest. She finally went back to practice this month, and since she was able to do her routines, we decided to book our room.

I'm just glad we were able to spend some quality family time this weekend because regionals were pretty disappointing for her-she worked so hard this past month, and as a parent all you want to do is make everything better, but nothing you say seems good enough-in my eyes, my daughter is a hero!
Unfortunately things seem to be going from bad to worse-it looks like my daughter has caught another stomach virus, because she started getting sick this evening! (Keep your fingers crossed that we all get throught this because I'm feeling a little queasy myself, and I can't miss tomorrow or this week-it's finals week for seniors, and senior awards night is tomorrow...)

I'll write a little more about this weekend later in the week, but right now it's time for Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog. Grandma Goulash posts a picture and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. This week's word is glisten. Here is the picture and my story:

The thief grabbed the old woman’s purse but crime wouldn't pay today-Petrobras nabbed the bad guy, returned the purse, and became a hero. (137 characters)

I was still thinking about heros when I saw tonight's picture so I went with it. I can't wait to come around and see what everyone else saw!

Almost worry free (and Book Blurb Friday)

2011-05-26T23:18:00.000-04:00

Our house is back to normal again, or at least I'm not worrying as much as I was about my son. I didn't mention it but a small white mark on my son's face that appeared a year ago (the doctor wasn't sure what it was but said just to watch it) became enlarged almost overnight.

My husband and I thought that it looked bigger, then we were sure it was, and then my son was complaining that it hurt. The pediatrician said that it needed to be looked at by a plastic surgeon, but the practice she recommended said they couldn't see us until the end of June! Meanwhile, this thing got bigger and now redder and another visit to the doctor finally got us seen by a plastic surgeon a couple weeks ago.

The surgeon was sure it was a cyst that got infected, but he couldn't operate until the infection was taken care of first, so my son walked around with a giant bandaid on his face for another ten days until the swelling and redness subsided, and he was operated on Wednesday morning. (They had to put him to sleep and I was worried sick, but all went well and his face, even with the small bandage and stitches, looks so much better!) Did I mention that we are heading to New Jersey for my daughter's state meet this weekend? What timing, huh?

But I come into tonight's Book Blurb Friday feeling pretty good. This is where Lisa Ricard Claro, from Writing in the Buff, posts a picture meant to serve as a fictional book cover.

It's your job to write a blurb about the book in 150 words or less to entice a prospective reader. Are you up to the challenge?
Here is this week's picture and my story:

Mystery Man at Boulder Lodge

The weather reports promised plenty of snow for Kathy’s ski vacation, but the trip was for singles, and Kathy’s sister had made the reservation-without asking. Still, a weeklong stay at a luxurious ski lodge didn’t seem like such a sacrifice, so she agreed to go.

An avid skier, Kathy checked into Boulder Lodge and lost no time hitting the slopes…or another skier. She hadn’t seen Paul pick himself up from a nasty fall until it was too late, and he would end up back in the snow again.

The pair hit it off immediately, (almost literally) and spent the rest of the day together, but Paul said he had an important appointment elsewhere that evening, and subsequent evenings, and he always returned at daybreak.

Was Paul married? Kathy decides to find out before things get serious, but maybe knowing everything isn’t always a good thing… (146 words without the title.)

I was first thinking I would take this story to the dark side, but I mentioned it to my husband and he wondered why I couldn't do a "nice" story. So, I thought about it, started writing, and I ended up with a story that could go either way. But, it's after 11 and morning comes quickly, so I'll stop by your blogs tomorrow!

Rush! (And Succinctly Yours)

2011-05-22T21:15:00.002-04:00

I hope everyone had a nice weekend. I wish I could hold onto mine just a little longer because I don't think I got to really relax at all-I was running non-stop on Saturday from 11-4 (my van and I are now one), and today we were part of a carpool to a birthday party, and then it was catch-up time for chores around the house.

The next couple of weeks are going to be worse with a flurry of activities and deadlines at home and work, and I'm going to be a basket-case! We will be in Wildwood, NJ Saturday through Monday for gymnastics regionals, the students in my classes are finishing up final projects and then we start preparing for written finals, and for some reason my husband and I got conned into an end of the school year party for my son the first weekend in June!

It's going to be crazy around here...But am I the only one feeling like this? What's going on at your house as you head into summer?

Thankfully writing relaxes me, body and soul, and it's time for Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog. Grandma Goulash posts a picture and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. This week's word is kink. Here it the picture and my story:

Mary’s internal struggle was intense-she was attracted to the Duke, but the man was a known philanderer, and her heart was worth protecting. (140 on the dot!)

Well, I have a load of wash to finish up before bed, but I can't wait to see your takes on the picture!

A sad goodbye (and Book Blurb Friday)

2011-05-19T22:45:00.004-04:00

This has been a pretty miserable week what with the almost continual rain and the death of a much-loved colleague. This particular teacher had taught for nearly 50 years, passing up retirement to continue to do what loved best, teach.

His students adored him and his avant-garde approach to teaching biology. Teachers gravitated toward him because of his positive outlook and sense of humor. Ever the performer, he could always make light of a situation and get you laughing before dealing with anything serious-I will miss our talks.

He was everybody’s grandfather, a lover of Kerry Blue terriers, an ever-fixed mark, and the halls of our school will never be the same. Goodbye Mr. Kistler.

Sorry to be such a downer this evening-the only good thing is that it's time for Book Blurb Friday This is where Lisa Ricard Claro, from Writing in the Buff, posts a picture meant to serve as a fictional book cover. It's your job to write a blurb about the book in 150 words or less to entice a prospective reader. Are you up to the challenge?
Here is this week's picture and my story:

The Gilded Mirror

Nola hadn’t been to the old house since the funeral, but there were some personal things of her mother’s she didn’t want strangers handling, and there wasn’t much time before the movers arrived.

She quickly headed upstairs to her mother’s bedroom, and walking over to the dresser, she lightly fingered the intricate carvings of her mother’s hairbrush. An uncontrollable urge came over her and she began to brush her hair.

Memories came flooding back along with the tears, but Nora continued to brush, mesmerized by her image in the gilded mirror before her. And with every brush stroke, the mirror began to glow.

Shaking, Nora reached out and all at once found herself in a room surrounded by what looked like very detailed statues. A golden horn lay glowing at her feet, and picking it up she placed it against her lips and blew-slowly the statues began to move… (149 words, not including the title)

I hope you enjoyed the little fantasy twist to tonight's blurb. I can tell you that I reworked it several times trying to get it under that 150 word limit-I just had so much I wanted to say with this one.
The weatherman says it will dry out this weekend, and I am looking forward to a little sun and reading your stories over the next couple days!

What a weekend...(and Succinctly Yours)

2011-05-15T22:07:00.000-04:00

The weekend is gone and I sit here amazed. All week we were getting ready for my son's first communion, then Friday came and with it guests, then there were room arrangements, beds to be made, and meal planning… Then Saturday we all headed to church for the ceremony and then back home for a luncheon and dinner, and by Sunday morning everyone cleared out and we were all left exhausted.

My daughter bunked with me because I thought we had similar sleeping patterns-let's just say that there's usually not a lot of movement from either of us and we don’t snore (as far as I can tell.) Well, I don’t know what got into my daughter, but every time she turned my way her legs and arms were flailing about, and I got kicked and smacked in the head several times! I spent the whole night fighting her off but gave up around 3 am, and both Saturday and Sunday morning I woke up with a leg on my back, so I AM TIRED!

I can finally relax with the Sunday night meme Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog. Grandma Goulash posts a picture and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. This week's word is tempt. What a hard picture this week! Here it is and my story:

Jim could see the world through the lens of his camera but he was blind to the problems in his life with Mary-until it was too late. (And a meager 132 characters!)

I'm curious about how everyone else saw this photo because it took me a while to compose tonight's story. See you soon!

Just a little more time (and Book Blurb Friday)

2011-05-13T23:18:00.000-04:00

As you may or may not know, time and I are not friends. I struggle daily with what my husband constantly refers to as "time management," never having enough time to do what I want or what I have to do, constantly rushing out the door to wherever, and always looking back at moments in time that I wish would last forever, and this is one of those times.

My son celebrates his first communion Saturday, and I sit here wondering just where the time has gone. I can still picture him as a baby (man was he cute, bald as a cue ball, chubby little face), and all those firsts. Like when he finally said the word yes and when he took his first steps (he was in no hurry since his sister did most of his talking and retrieving for him). I still remember the doctor saying not to be in a rush with the potty training, hinting that my son was going to take his sweet time with this-and he was right!

Now as I ready his blue suit, shine his black dress shoes, and find where I put his new tie, I’m nervous-I’m not exactly ready for the new stages coming up with my son just as I’m unsure of my future with a soon to be teen daughter. I’m also sad tonight as I look at my son’s face and still see my little baby boy looking back at me. He still has that little boy look, and I wish time would just slow down, even if it’s just a little bit, then maybe I could get ready…

Speaking of time, it’s Book Blurb Friday. Lisa Ricard Claro, from Writing in the Buff, posts a picture meant to serve as a fictional book cover. It's your job to write a blurb about the book in 150 words or less to entice a prospective reader. Are you up to the challenge?

Blogger was down almost all day yesterday and I didn't know what to do with myself, but I was glad to see that Lisa was able to post for tonight. Here is this week's picture and my story:

Her Time to Run

Dana lived a life others envied-a chauffer to drive her anywhere, maids to pick up after her, and an expense account that knew no limits. She got what she wanted when she wanted it, and her future plans revolved around nothing more than what nightclub she would head to that evening, or that new pair of shoes she wanted to purchase.

So when her friend Lizbeth suggested they hop on a plane and head to Australia there was no hesitation. And when a man touting a weeklong 4WD tour of Simpson Desert approached Dana in a Queensland nightclub, a little beer and a little brawn were all it took to win her over.

But Dana’s wealth speaks volumes to those in need-there’s no telling what someone might do if a prize like her comes rolling into town, and that quick trip to the desert may be her last. (148 words without the title)

Can't wait to get some "time" to swing by your blogs and read your stories!

Mother's Day Greatness (and Succinctly Yours)

2011-05-08T11:55:00.000-04:00

It's Mother's Day and here I sit still in my pajamas-I have been given breakfast (I didn't eat the hash browns my husband had made from scratch because that little voice inside me told me not to-my daughter said I should listen to that voice...), I was given cards and gifts, and now my husband and kids (more my husband although the kids are "there") are cleaning their rooms. Things are going out of this house in garbage bags-ah...

I have to laugh at one of my daughter's gifts. She made me coupons, complete with "rules" governing their use, and five of the ten I can use as many times as I want. (Woo hoo!) I looked over the list and there are things like hugs(that's a repeater, although I had to stipulate that this meant hugs when I want them-my son has been throwing himself at me since I chose this!), sending the kids outside (definite repeater coupon), silent time, computer time, being able to pick the movie title, dinner out, etc. I must say that I love how this girl thinks!

Gifts, cleaning without begging, and the thought that I had something to do with these two wonderful people... What could be better? Maybe a beach vacation and temperatures in the eighties, but I'm not complaining. What did all of you do for Mother's Day?

Now it's time for Succinctly Yours, another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog. Grandma Goulash posts a picture each Monday and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. This week's word is aquatic. Here's this week's picture and my story:

When I was little I watched cows grazing in that field. Now the field is home to piles of limestone, and bulldozers are doing the grazing.(138 characters)

Just a little depressing for such a nice day I know, but this picture hits close to home. Can't wait to head over to your blogs too!

A little late night swim for Book Blurb Friday

2011-05-05T21:57:00.006-04:00

What do you think of when you look at a picture? Have you ever thought about of putting those thoughts down on paper and maybe taking it one step further? Well, you're in luck because it's Book Blurb Friday once again!

Lisa Ricard Claro, from Writing in the Buff, posts a picture meant to serve as a fictional book cover. It's your job to write a blurb about the book in 150 words or less to entice a prospective reader. Are you up to the challenge?

For some reason my thoughts went to magic and curses when I looked at this week's photo, so instead of fighting it I went for it. Here is this week's photo and my blurb:

Land by Day, Water by Night

Laura dove into the magic waters and all at once she could feel her legs withering away and her tail taking their place. With her fingers now webbed she propelled herself forward, gliding effortlessly among the reeds, loving how the coolness pulsated through her as she swam.

Every seven days Laura must enter the water at midnight and swim until dawn-the morning sun would break the curse and she would return back to her human form, that is until another seven days passed, and then the cycle would repeat all over again. She had gambled with a sorcerer to save the life of her sister, and now she was paying the price.

Laura didn't think she could ever be free. If anyone knew her plight, or saw her during her nightly swim, the curse would engulf her, making her a permanent resident at the bottom of the lake. (149 words, phew!)

Well, I need to do some work for tomorrow so I better stop stalling. Can't wait to see what everyone else wrote!

A little rain and a little writing

2011-05-01T21:37:00.000-04:00

Now I know the rhyme about April coming in like a lion or lamb, and the one about April showers bringing May flowers, but what happens when it's May, and the forecast is predicting rain every day this week? Has Mother Nature lost her mind? I mean we even had tornado warnings Friday morning, and I woke up around 3 AM feeling like we were entering the monsoon season.

Things were so bad on the roadways Friday that several teachers and students couldn't make it into school on time-roadways were flooded and impassible, and we were even preparing for an emergency drill just in case conditions got worse. Thankfully they didn't, and things dried up Friday and into Saturday, but temperatures dropped back down and rain headed our way again today. I'm pretty disappointed because I enjoy spring, but when the weather is like this, I just want to curl up and stay in. Unfortunately, the kids don't feel the same, and there is quite a bit of arguing when you have bored kids... Has it been this way everywhere, or is Pennsylvania the only state turning into a big pile of mud?

Thankfully I can occupy my time with some memes like Succinctly Yours. This is another writing meme that piggy backs on the idea of Susan of the Stony River Blog. Grandma Goulash posts a picture Sunday night and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. And as an additional challenge, you can use the word of the day in your post. This week's word is invade. Here's this week's picture and my story:

Henry pushed at the two-headed mural, watching the receding wall expose the narrow passage leading to the gang's hideout. He moved forward. (Right on with 140 characters)

So what do you think-about the story and the rain? I think I'll hum a bit of "Rain, rain, go away...," and hopefully swim on by your blogs tomorrow...

The alternate universe on Book Blurb Friday!

2011-04-28T19:06:00.003-04:00

It's time to write that best selling novel again, or at least what would go on the book jacket. If you are new to my blog, Lisa Ricard Claro, from Writing in the Buff, posts a picture meant to serve as a fictional book cover. It's your job to write a blurb about the book in 150 words or less to entice a prospective reader. Are you up to the challenge?

Most pictures are taken by Lisa's equally talented daughter, and this week's picture is more than a little interesting. My first thought was murder, but I am in too good a mood to go there, so here is the picture and my story:

And Another Looked Back....

The ocean always soothed Sarah’s soul, no matter what kind of day she was having, and today she needed mega amounts of soothing. Her parents’ divorce was getting ugly and Sarah felt betrayed by both sides-her father had found the love of his life only it wasn’t Sarah’s mother, and Sarah felt her mother’s constant chiding is what finally drove her father away.

Sarah’s parents started fighting early so she headed for refuge. It was an ordinary beach day, catching some rays, flirting with the boys, searching for seashells (or at least pretending to while the boys looked on).

But when all the regulars had gone home, Sarah saw a pair of sunglasses wash up on shore. She picked them up and stared, open mouthed-the lenses reflected another world, and another pair of eyes were staring right back! (Not bad-138 words, but I'm not too crazy about the title....)

So what's your story? I can't wait to come by!

Play the day away (and Succinctly Yours!)

2011-04-24T22:20:00.001-04:00

I hope everyone had a nice Easter! There were some slight disagreements with my kids over the break, but overall the holiday was a wonderful way to reconnect with my family. The weather even cooperated for the last part of the weekend and we spent the majority of our time outside. Nice...

The kids are still off tomorrow, but it's back to school for me (my school district lost spring break and most of our Easter due to the snow storms this winter, but at least I will go back with a smile on my face!)

Bessie stared hard, daring me to come closer while the others looked on, and I knew what she was thinking-one false move and you’re mine! (137 characters)

I'm in such a good mood today that I couldn't resist some humor of my own this evening. I can't wait to read what everyone else came up with!

Still as a statue in Book Blurb Friday!

2011-04-22T00:35:00.002-04:00

Ah, my new favorite time of the week-Book Blurb Friday! If you are new to my blog, Lisa Ricard Claro, from Writing in the Buff, posts a picture meant to serve as a fictional book cover. It's your job to write a blurb about the book in 150 words or less to entice a prospective reader. Who knows? It could be the start of something great!

I went with a mythical approach tonight, back in the time of wizards and evil kings. Here is this week's picture and my story:

The Prophecy Reborn

It had been ages since Neila felt the warm of the sun, but she could feel it now, the heat slowly bringing feeling back to her aching limbs. Suddenly her eyes twitched, and blinking for the first time in years, the scene gradually coming into focus was that of her bedroom.

Dust cloths strewn haphazardly about covered remnants of the past, Neila’s past. She remembered the resistance, how her people were preparing for war with the evil King Nathrach, and how the king sought her capture and hand in marriage to end the uprising, and dispute a prophesy.

Neila had ardently refused the union, but the King’s reaction had been puzzling-instead of raging at her insolence, he simply touched Neila’s sleeve and everything went black, like the snuffing of a candle.

But who or what was waking Neila, and how had life in her kingdom changed? (147 words-just made it!)

Wow, I wish I could stay in this alter reality for a bit longer, but it's way past my bed time. I look forward to visiting you all tomorrow!

Succinctly Yours #4

2011-04-18T21:29:00.001-04:00

Why not join me in another writing meme that piggybacks on the idea started by Susan of the Stony River blog. The meme is called Succinctly Yours and you can click her very stylish header above or right here at Grandma Goulash. Grandma posts a picture each Monday and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. This week's word: request, and this week's picture with my take:

There they sat, comparing their lives, each one impressed by the other, and each wishing he had a little more time to try something new. (136 characters)

I know a lot of you went with humor, but I just wasn't up to it-it was a long day... I do wonder what these gentleman might have been talking about. Well, I'm off to take a look at your stories-I certainly could use some laughter this evening.

Just a little gold among friends

2011-04-16T14:00:00.260-04:00

Lisa Ricard Claro is a recent writer blogger friend that I found doing the Stony River writing meme. (Lisa now hosts her own meme, Writing in the Buff on Fridays.) Like me, Lisa's blog revolves around a variety of topics-I connect and laugh with her over family posts, then marvel at her word usage and creativity in her writing memes. She is definitely a word master, and I am in awe... Thank you Lisa for your kindness and friendship!

The Lucky recipient of the award must do the following:

1. Thank the person who gave you the award.

2. Write a post and include the image of the award, a link to the person's blog who gave it to you, and a link to Write Wild. (Christie Wright is the original creator of this award. Copy and paste the rules in your post.)

3. Award four bloggers this award and tell why each is a Pot-O-Gold! (If you receive this award more than once, you only have to forward it the first time.)

4. Share four simple things about yourself: 1-a time you had to exercise FAITH, 2-something you HOPE for, 3-something (or someone) you LOVE, and 4-a time when you felt LUCK.

Narrowing my favorite bloggers down to just four seemed pretty daunting, so I thought I would tackle the questions first.

Faith: The moment where I needed the most faith was right after finishing my senior year of college. (I was a transfer student-on the 4 1/2 year plan-and needed to finish my student teaching in the fall.) I took a job as a camp counselor at a summer camp up in the Pocono Mountains, but I only finished three weeks before I was involved in a horrendous car accident.

We all had the night off and were heading to a local eatery-I was in a car with three other counselors instead of taking the camp bus, and we were hit head on by a van driving on the wrong side of the road. It totaled the little Chevette we were riding in, killing Andie, our driver. I was the front passenger and I broke my nose, severed an ear, severed my liver (from the seat belt Andie made me wear!), broke my left wrist in two places, broke my right ankle in two places, broke my right fibula, and my right tibia. One girl in the back was thrown from the car and sustained head, arm, and leg injuries, and the other girl in the back just about crushed her right arm and sustained massive facial lacerations.

The doctor's told my parents that if I had broken my leg like this just five years earlier, I never would have walked again. With a lot of faith and sheer stubbornness, my father’s, and mine, I walked without support in 9 months! (He would wheel me down our road and then strap me in my walker-it was fitted with a sling to cradle my arm-and make me walk.) I may be wired together like a bionic woman, but I walk and run (okay, maybe I don’t run, but that’s just because I don’t like to run-sorry Molly!)

Hope and Love: I'm going to do both of these as a "two-fer" since they revolve around my kids.

I hope to give my kids the best childhood I can.
I hope that they never give in, never give up, stay true to themselves, and create success in their lives.
I love them dearly, and they will always be my "best thing."

Luck: I see luck in different ways :

It was lucky that I found my other brown sock Friday morning
It's lucky when I don't get behind a certain bus on the way to school-I did on Friday :(
It's lucky that my husband and I still like one another (loving is the easy part, but liking can sometimes be tough!) after 20 years of marriage.
It's lucky that I broke my nose in the accident. It looks better now.

Now for the tough part-awarding other bloggers. I used these blogger's last posts as the deciding point. Here are my selections:

Kelly, from My Voice My View and Write With Pictures. Kelly is both writer and mom blogger whose main blog is filled with color, both visually and emotionally-her postings consist of hysterical day-to-day musings as well as thought provoking poetry and prose. In her second blog she provides pictures and prompts to inspire creative writing in others.

Mom of the Perpetually Grounded I know MOTPG's real identity because we've shared an endless streaming of e-mails when one of us hits on a topic that makes the other laugh. I love going to MOTPG's site because her writing can make me laugh or make me cry quicker than anyone!

Shelly at Tropical Mum is the blogger I follow from down under, and who is always confusing me on Twitter when she tweets about getting ready to go for a swim and I'm tweeting about going to bed! I love her candor and wit, and reading her blog is like reading Erma Bombeck, a woman who truly knew how to find the humor in anything!

And Amy, from Where A Woman Shakes Her Tablecloth. Her blog is about the trials of raising two boys only a couple years apart, but so very different. I have laughed out loud on some occasions and wished I could make her a cup of coffee on others-she definitely knows how to pull at the old heart strings!

Well, I'd better go to bed before I erase my faith section-I don't often reveal information about that accident unless I'm asked, and since not too many know, I don't get asked... Goodnight all!

Fight the good fight-it's Book Blurb Friday!

2011-04-14T22:44:00.000-04:00

If you are new to my blog, it's Book Blurb Friday! Lisa Ricard Claro, from Writing in the Buff, posts a picture meant to serve as a fictional book cover. It's your job to write a blurb about the book in 150 words or less to entice a prospective reader.

I had several directions to go with this week's picture, but unfortunately my mind had a hard time picking just one. I finally settled decided to focus on the unpredictability of nature, and I like what I came up with (I hope you do too.) Here is this week's photo and my story:

Little Fight Left

Fed up with the city, Cassie and Sam boarded the next plane for southern California, and quickly made over their lives. Gone were the noise and traffic, the lunches in front of a computer, and no time for exercise-now there were lunches in the park, morning jogs, and hikes in the mountains. And if the stresses at work got too much, there was always the ocean…

But sometimes when people become too comfortable, they fail to see warning signs, to listen to that inner voice saying something isn’t right-they take risks.

Cassie and Sam would become this comfortable. After several fires in the San Bernardino Mountains, and a mudslide advisory, the couple continued plans for a hike. But when that predicted mudslide does come, it washes the couple and their vehicle down the mountainside, and it will take everything they have to make it out alive. (A little windy tonight at 146 words...)

What about you? Do you see a story when you look at pictures? Just post an entry and join us at Lisa's! I hope to see you there.

Math Blaster Review and Giveaway!

2011-04-12T23:03:00.100-04:00

My kids and I have been associated with Jump Start for a year now, and it's the only online educational site that they don’t get tired of and it's a site that I encourage, so I was pretty excited when Jump Start asked me to review a new educational game site-Math Blaster! First developed in 1987, Math Blaster allows kids to have fun while still practicing math skills. Skill levels start at kindergarten and go all the way up to 8th grade, and kids can practice a variety of problems ranging from basic math facts to fractions and conversions.

I noticed my son hesitating with subtraction problems in his homework, especially when the problems involved two-digits. Flash cards are frustrating for both of us, so I couldn’t wait for him to try out Math Blaster.

We had a rough start at first because my son forgot his password to log into the site, but thankfully the site sent me a temporary password that I then changed, and I had the site remember it so he wouldn’t have to keep typing it when he went to log in. We also noticed that Firefox seemed to run the program a little better than MSN, and since the games are pretty graphics intensive, you really do need either a cable modem or DSL line so the games load quickly. (There still is some wait as games load, but there's graphics and music so it's not too bad. I also didn't quite know how to move around with my character, but leave it to kids-my 8 year old son helped me out!)

I wanted to do this review last month, but things got hectic around here, and then there were some illnesses to get through. But I’m glad we had a bit more time to really see what this site has to offer.

If you are familiar with the Jumpstart site, you will see some similarities in Math Blaster. You still have a character that you move from place to place, and each is completely customizable, and for some reason, this is one of the things my kids absolutely love about the game. My son showed me how to customize the skin of your character, even to the point of turning it into an alien too! Graphics are out of this world (no pun intended), and the space-like music really has you feeling like an explorer.

When Math Blaster first loads, you decide to either start right into the games or do a little exploring. My son usually starts right in because all practice involves some type of gaming aspect, sort of like an arcade. From here you pick what skill you want to practice, and the level of difficulty, and at the start of every game there are visual as well as verbal instructions on how to answer the math questions and maneuver your character. (Click on any of the pictures to view them larger.)

Flying on the way to the alien!

The alien with all the questions...

My son’s two favorite games are HyperBlast and Alien Wrangler, and just watching him play was fun (and playing it myself was even better-LOL!) With HyperBlast, you maneuver your space ship past obstacles and bombs, (you shoot them away using the keyboard) until you reach the alien who asks math questions. But it’s not that easy-the alien dangles the answers on about 8 different arms, and you have to click on the right one. (My screen shot on the right shows easy problems)

Alien Wrangler

Alien Wrangler has you sitting atop of a blob-like alien. Math questions are given at the top of the screen, and you only have a small amount of time to answer before the Alien starts working a little harder to throw you-pause too long, and you may end up on the ground.

Bolt Crusher

I also tried Bolt Cruncher and did some conversion practice. Decimal values start turning around a conveyor belt and you have to match the fraction values before the time is up.

Easier level with Bolt Crusher

(I also did an easier match-up with shapes-see left)

My son hasn’t dealt with conversions, but as he watched me play, he started to understand, and this is the key to what these games do-they help kids master what might have been a mystery to them earlier. Teachers in the elementary levels already know this and use games often to help kids bridge the gap. And take my son and subtraction problems-he doesn’t whine so much now about math, especially if I let him practice with Math Blaster.

Would you like to win a six-month free membership to the Math Blaster game site? Your first mandatory entry: tell me who you would like to win this for. Be sure to leave your email address in the comment if it’s not in your profile. (You need to complete this entry before you can qualify for any additional entries.)Please keep in mind that I have comment approval turned on and comments made will not appear to the site immediately...

Earn "Extra Entries(Woo hoo!) with the following but be sure to leave a comment per entry (IE. if it says you get two entries, put two comments :)

-Follow me via Google friend connect (or tell me you're already a follower)- 2 entries

-Follow me on Twitter(Twitter link is on my sidebar)-1 entry

-Tweet this giveaway(you can tweet once a day.)- 1 entry

Help your kids play and practice math with Math Blaster. Win Six-month membership #giveaway @FamilyFormula http://bit.ly/fbhgRt (Ends 5/7)

-Add my blog button to your site and provide a link-2 entries

-Add my blog to your blog roll and provide a link- 2 entries

-Make a blog post about this giveaway and link back here (leave a link in your comment)- 5 entries

The giveaway ends at midnight (EST) on May 7, 2011 and is open to U.S. residents. I will pick the winner with random.org and notify by e-mail. (The winner will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen.) Good luck!

And please note: I was provided a six-month membership of Math Blaster at no cost by Knowledge Adventure to help facilitate my review. The opinions I have given are mine and may differ from others but were not influenced by the company or the free product provided. My family thoroughly enjoys Math Blaster and JumpStart-thank you again JumpStart!

Succinctly Yours #3

2011-04-11T13:57:00.002-04:00

I joined another writing meme that piggybacks on the idea started by Susan of the Stony River blog. The meme is called Succinctly Yours and you can click her very stylish header above or right here at Grandma Goulash.Grandma posts a picture each Monday and you are to write a 140 character or word story about it. You can also use the word of the day in your post if you wish. This week's word is procrastinate.

The 140 character limit is really good writing practice because every word counts. I got out of the habit of posting on Sunday, but hopefully I'll be able to get back into it even though I'm feeling a little guilty about carrying on without Susan...

Here's this week's picture and my story

Amy anxiously looked around, hoping her disguise would help her blend in. No police, no guards-she was just minutes away from freedom. (Exactly 135 characters-cutting it close but I'm a little out of practice...)

I'm really looking forward to coming around to all your blogs. You might also be interested in the meme by Lisa Ricard Claro called Book Blurb Friday. Here you look at a picture and then compose a 150 word blurb that might appear on the book jacket. Every story is completely different, and I have really enjoyed taking part. Why not check it out this Friday? Lisa usually puts the post up Thursday night-I hope to see you there as well!

It's sheer danger on this Book Blurb Friday!

2011-04-07T22:58:00.000-04:00

If you are new to my blog, it's Book Blurb Friday! Lisa Ricard Claro, from Writing in the Buff, posts a picture meant to serve as a fictional book cover. It's your job to write a blurb about the book in 150 words or less to entice a prospective reader.

I almost couldn't wait to write tonight's post-as soon as I looked at the picture, my mind headed down the cobble stone alleyway and landed in the mysterious world of secret agents and undercover activities. What a way to end a week! Well, here is this week's picture and my story:

The Road Ends in Rome

Stacy pushed past all the shoppers and tourists and headed quickly to an alleyway to meet her informant. It might be nice to actually tour Rome, she thought wryly to herself, instead of chasing down another lead concerning her missing partner.

The buildings seemed to close in around her, making Stacy feel somewhat claustrophobic, but swallowing hard she quickened her step, her heals eerily echoing off the flagstone street. She strained to see the shadowy figure against a back wall. The man was lean, with a definite stockiness about him, and she could see glimpses of his baldhead beneath his comb-over-yes, she was sure this was Italian spy Rodolfo Siviero.

But as Stacy made her way into the shadows, a second man she hadn’t noticed stopped in front of her and turned around. Their eyes met, and before he signaled the others, Stacy knew it was a set-up. (148 words)

What do you think? This was another close one at 148 words, but I actually had to add more to get the count up-hmm... I'm usually more wordy. I can't wait to see your stories!

Blockbuster Express-YES! Redbox-NO!

2011-04-03T21:40:00.002-04:00

I’m a little worried. We rent movies exclusively through Blockbuster Express, but with many of Blockbuster’s brick and mortar stores closing and the video giant filing for bankruptcy, who will take over their kiosk rental business? I read somewhere that their kiosk business is the only part of the company making any money, and I can believe that.

Those of you familiar with my blog will remember me writing about my love/hate relationship with the other video rental kiosk company Redbox. Here’s why:

·I hate how I could find the latest movies in stores, but never in Redbox, and when Redbox finally did get the movie, it was usually another two or three weeks before I could rent it. (Everyone and his brother wanted that movie too!)

·I found out that I could reserve a movie online, but the Redbox website is less than ideal. Even with a cable modem, the site continually locks up, and on one occasion I somehow reserved the same movie twice! (I checked to see what the site looks like now, and I can't believe it, but it's even more confusing to use!)

·Redbox kiosks are either down or in "limbo" constantly. A drive back to the same kiosk the next day would be a waste of time because it was out of service. Movies wouldn’t come out of the machines, and that’s at least a 20 minute call to customer service to fix-they used to give promo codes for free movies to make you happy-although they don’t know what it’s like to drive home with your kid screaming in the backseat!

·I hate having to wait in line 15 minutes, often in the rain, just to return a movie, longer when people are having trouble with the machines!

·What about all those promo codes I received? Nobody said you couldn’t use your promo code when you reserve online- I found that out when I went to pick up my "free" movie. What good is a promo-code if the movie you want isn’t in the machine? The only way to check is online…

·And remember I said customer service USED to give promo codes? I think the company realized it was losing money from all the "free" offers, and the last few times I called I was offered nothing.

·Then there are the late fees-don’t miss your 9:00 PM deadline, or that $1 movie rental quickly turns into $3!

·And this might sound petty, but there is only one way to put the movie back into the Redbox kiosk. The last time I returned a movie, I put it in wrong, I saw the guy behind me put his in wrong, and as I was driving away, the woman returning her movie was doing it wrong!

But when things went from bad to worse with old Redbox and me, the blue and gold machine with the familiar logo showed up. I won’t say it was love-at-first-sight-I only tried Redbox because Blockbuster continually raised prices and reduced inventory. But when a fellow blogger suggested I try Blockbuster Express, I gave old blue another chance, and I’m glad I did.

·Blockbuster kiosks are always in working order, and when I did have trouble with the touch screen of the kiosk closest to our home, I was offered a promo code, and the kiosk was fixed within a week-I haven’t had a problem with that machine since.

·Those promo codes can be used online when reserving a movie, and the website is easy to use and navigate. Plus, Blockbuster Express continually offers promo codes throughout the year, at least once a month-I always do a search online for updated promo codes before I reserve my movie.

·Blockbuster Express has all the latest movies almost the same time they are available in stores, and I can usually find the movie I want when I want it.

·Now I don’t know about your town, but there seems to be far more Blockbuster Express kiosks around me then Redbox-while Redbox is with Walgreens, Blockbuter Express is with all the mini-marts all over town.

·If you should forget about the 9:00 PM return time, the late fee is only another buck, and I never put the DVD into the kiosk wrong! (This is a pretty big deal when it’s cold outside!)

So I don’t know what I’m going to do if my night and shining armor (at least of the movie rental world) packs up shop, but I can say one thing for sure-Redbox and me will never get back together… What about you-if you like one movie rental chain over another, do tell…

Love in the air on Book Blurb Friday!

2011-03-31T22:29:00.000-04:00

I've managed to make it through a week with two sick kids and the end of the third marking period unscathed thanks to a Harry Potter meme (over at Michael Di Gesu's In Time ), and tonight's Book Blurb Friday #5. If you are new, this is where Lisa Ricard Claro, from Writing in the Buff, posts a picture meant to serve as a fictional book cover, and asks us to compose a 150 word summary that might appear on the book jacket.

I loved tonight's picture and was tempted to enter the horror realm, but with all the pressures mentioned above, I needed some "happy" tonight, so a lighthearted romance is what you're going to get. Here is the picture and my story:

The Hudson River Rose

To family, Casey lived a glamorous life. She recently made partner in the prestigious Cadwalader, Wickersham and Taft in New York City, she was on a first name basis with some very rich clients, and she lived in a nice one-bedroom apartment on the upper West Side.

But most nights Casey ate alone; she was so wrapped up in her career there wasn’t much time to date, besides, who would she date anyway? The other partners were either married or in serious relationships, and dating "beneath your position" was taboo. And the firm’s social functions and holiday parties hadn’t provided many prospects.

Desperate to meet people, Casey joined The New York Road Walkers, and it was during one of their usual jaunts around the Hudson that she spied it-a single red rose and her name on a card. But several more roses later, Casey still didn't know her mystery man…(exactly 150, and I was slashing away to get this one down!)

I took some liberty with the flower in this picture-my husband said it was an invasive plant choking the tree, but how am I going to get romance out of that? I thought a nice red rose would do much better… I can't wait to read what everyone else wrote-who was brave enough to attempt a little terror tonight?

Harry Potter Blogfest: Who would be your mates?

2011-03-29T16:49:00.033-04:00

Having just finished year seven of JK Rowlings Harry Potter series, most of her characters are still fresh in my mind. I’m a little sad that I’ve reached the end, and I put it off as long as I could since I knew there would come a time when I wouldn’t be mulling over the latest atrocities during the quiet times of my day. So when I happened upon Michael Di Gesu's meme In Time asking me to pick my two best friends from Harry Potter’s world, and write about our relationship, I couldn’t resist. All you have to do is give your reasons in 300-350 words, then link up at Michael's site. After struggling with my decision a bit, I finally decided on Hermione and Harry, and I hope my reasons for my choices will satisfy.

Since most things in my life don’t come easily, I am certain that I would be a muggle born witch and quite out of my element at Hogwarts. Naturally I would gravitate to some of the other muggle borns in my year, and since I value learning and proving my self-worth through hard work, Hermione and I would be inseparable. We would race to see who would be number one and number two in each of our classes, but as long as it was one of us, we didn’t really care. And the library would be our second home as we attempted to gain knowledge above our years in order to help Harry.

Now I didn’t understand everyone’s fascination with Harry when we first started at Hogwarts-we grew close because of our mutual friendship with Hermione, our muggle past, and because he was genuinely nice. Eleven-year-old girls usually don’t like boys, but when I learned about his connection to the-one-who-must-not-be-named, the boy who lived mesmerized me. (I like the strong, silent type, so Ginny was in for some stiff competition in the coming years!) Like Harry, I didn’t understand the categories for people and creatures in the wizarding world, and why some believed they should rule over others; I would gladly fight alongside Harry in the end.

It's your turn-who would you pick to be your friends at Hogwarts? Maybe Lupin and Sirius? What about the Weasley twins? I first thought about these two, but since they were a year older than me, I didn't think we would get much of a chance to hang out...Post about your new friends by March 30, the official start of the Harry Potter Blogfest, then link up at Michael's site. Hope to see you there!

Going back-Book Blurb Friday!

2011-03-24T22:23:00.002-04:00

It's time for Book Blurb Friday #4! This is where Lisa Ricard Claro, from Writing in the Buff, posts a picture meant to serve as a fictional book cover, and asks us to compose a 150 word summary that might appear on the book jacket.

I was able to conjure up a story pretty quickly the last couple weeks, but although I knew where I wanted tonight's story to go, it took me a while to get there (I'll blame it on end of the week exhaustion.) But no matter how difficult it is for the words to come, there is no better feeling (it's almost euphoric!) than when you read that final copy!

Here is this week's picture and my story:

Where the Corridor Ends

Pepper packed up her office because she couldn’t handle the stress of running a magazine-then she abandoned her friends, living each day without thinking about tomorrow, feeling more and more like an outsider looking in. And when the memories came flooding back, and they always did, her only source of comfort came from a bottle, her new best friend.

Then when a freelance paycheck couldn’t cover the rent of her high-rise apartment, Pepper found respite in a studio tucked inside a centuries old building, and from the offer of an equally old caretaker.

A note scrawled at the bottom of her rental agreement read, "I’ve been where you are now. Go to the end of the corridor if you wish to right the wrongs of the past." And it was here that Pepper stood, remembering the crash and her sister, and wondering if she could really go back… (148 words)

Why don't you give it a try? If you do, don't forget to link up at Lisa's site and read all the other entries!

A New Perspective

2011-03-22T22:51:00.002-04:00

I’m feeling a bit wishy-washy these days because I want things that are totally opposite. Since my kids are getting older I’m trying to carve a little time in the day just for me-I’m not asking for hours here, just minutes where I can pursue activities that interest just me. I sometimes think about all the things I do for them now that I won’t have to do when their older, like make their breakfast and lunch, do their laundry, supervise all bathing/teeth brushing/hair combing, and help them clean their rooms (this one always stumps me-if they can mess it up, why does it take mom or dad’s assistance to clean things up?) I am rarely ALONE!

Then, if by chance I do get a few precious minutes, I start to feel like I’m missing something-that if I don’t stop what I’m doing and connect with my kids their childhood years will just fly by and I will have missed them. I’m already experiencing the twangs of separation with some of my kids changing habits. A year ago, my son would always give me a hug and a kiss at bedtime, and we would go through the same ritual every night:

"Goodnight Mom."
"Goodnight Buster Brown."
"I love you."
"I love you too."
"See you in the morning."
"I’ll see you in the morning."

Now that little ritual is gone, and although I still give him a kiss, I guess I have cooties, because there are cries of “Yuck!” as he tries to wipe his cheek. I still get a hug, and he always hugs me before I leave in the morning, but how long will this last?

My daughter is physically connected to her electronic devices, and spending more and more time in her room. I’ve had to establish times when devices are off and although I can usually coax her to help me make dinner or bake, gone are the days when she followed me around telling me about her day. (The girl is a virtual vault these days, and I only know something is bothering her when that mouth of hers starts working over time…)

I’m constantly stretched in different directions-grow up, don’t grow up, please grow up, please don't grow up-but now I know what alone feels like. My husband’s grandmother died Saturday night, and since I don’t get bereavement unless it’s someone in my immediate family, my husband took the kids and headed five hours away to my in-laws house. I got what I’ve always wanted-plenty of kid free me time, and I hate it! I didn’t make dinner since it was just me (I had an egg sandwich and fruit), and I can’t seem to be able to sit in one spot (I finally managed to plant myself in front of the computer to type this, and even then I didn’t feel like doing too much.)I've texted my daughter all evening (the most we've talked in a while) and both my kids sounded so small when I talked to them on the phone tonight...

I’m so worried about their drive back tomorrow and about how the kids are handling their first funeral that I can hardly keep my eyes open-and after dealing with teenagers all day, I'm emotionally drained. So that being said, I’m heading to bed knowing I better be careful what I wish for…

Focusing on Book Blurb Friday

2011-03-17T21:53:00.002-04:00

I am now looking forward to Book Blurb Friday as I once looked forward to Microfiction Monday. If your new, Lisa Ricard Claro over at Writing in the Buff posts a picture and asks that you write a 150 word (or less) book blurb. It's tremendously challenging and great fun. Just head over there to link up, and then stay awhile to read some of the other entries.

I had a hard time with the 150 word limit tonight-I just had so much to say, so I started hacking away at some of the needless adjectives until I got it down to 150 exactly. Here is this week's picture and my story:

Out of Focus

Andie spent her whole life trying to please. An only child, she struggled to be everything her parents hoped she would be, but never quite lived up to their expectations-until she married Bill Peterson, a promising young politician. Andie’s parents loved Bill, and with their urging, and Bill’s perseverance, Andie decided she loved him too.

But after their much-publicized wedding and his election to the senate, Bill was no longer the gentle soul his adoring public witnessed; he became obsessed, convinced that his wife would leave him and end his political career.

He began to monitor Andie’s calls, track her whereabouts, and soon prohibited anyone from visiting the house without his approval.

Andie wanted out and finally broke the news to Bill during an anniversary dinner, but after she took a few bites, things became fuzzy, out of focus, and she heard a quiet voice saying, "You’ll never leave me." (150 words)

Everyone saw something different with last week's picture, so I can't wait to read the other entries!

A bike, a cell phone, and vermin: what every girl wants

2011-03-13T22:52:00.003-04:00

I apologize for being around just long enough to post for my favorite writing memes, but since Monday was my daughter’s 12th birthday, I was running around on my "free time" trying to decide what to get her. 12 is hard-she isn’t a little girl any more and yet she still is (so many opposites to deal with at this age!)

My husband and I were really at a loss about what we should get, and my daughter didn’t make it any easier-we kept pumping her for information, but all we got was "I dunno,"-enough said. (I started developing a little twitch after hearing this phrase repeated, so for my sanity’s sake…)

My husband and I happened on gift idea number one by accident-it had been an abnormally warm day back in February, and we all decided to go for a bike ride. We soon discovered that my daughter's current bike was much too small for her current height (gift #1 a bike, check!)

We also tossed around the idea of getting her a laptop, but we already have two computers, and she got an iPod for Christmas, so this seemed a little like overkill to me. Then the talk of a cell phone came up-I thought my daughter was too young for a cell phone but my husband did not. But since she’ll be in 7th grade next year and her involvement in gymnastics will continue, I thought I would look to see if there were any good deals. I was able to get her a pretty nice texting phone (don’t worry-our family plan has unlimited texts) without having to pay for a data plan-she doesn’t need the Internet because she has the iPod. (Gift #2 a cell phone, check!)

I picked up a few smaller gifts to round things off and really thought we were done-I was wrong! Now I might not have been entirely truthful when I said my daughter wasn’t telling us what she wanted for her birthday. The fact is, the one and only thing she asked for she was absolutely, without a shadow of a doubt, not going to get, over my dead body.

You see, after visit to my brother-in-laws in December all my daughter could talk about was their pet rat, and wouldn’t it be nice if…? Everyone likes this thing except for me-I mean the big ears are one thing, but that long, hairless tail just gives me the creeps! I listened to all the talk about how smart it is (almost as smart as a dog-not seeing it) and how sweet it is (it curls up and sleeps along my nephews neck-um, yuck!), and it actually comes when it’s called (my brother-in-law just yells, "Here kitty, kitty," and it comes running!) but it’s a RAT!

I had pet guinea pigs when I was younger and a parakeet when I fist got married, and the nastiness of cleaning out their cages every week kept me from pursuing any other tiny creature in a cage. I thought my husband was behind me on this, until I heard he and my daughter were stopping by pet shops on the way home from her practices "just to look" (turncoat!)

Well, I persevered up until my daughter’s last meet-the day before her birthday. She was doing fantastic on floor and beam but faltered on the vault-for some reason she earned only a 7.0 on what my daughter’s coaches thought was a clean routine. She was pretty devastated-you are pretty much out of medal contention in the all-around with a score like that, and we all knew it.

She had only one routine left-the bars-and after some of the high scores she received on two previous meets, we all felt pretty confident. Well, my daughter didn’t and she faltered, slipping off the low bar on the way to the high bar-a tremendous deduction and a final score of 7.6. But everyone has a bad meet every now and then so you just chalk it up to that and move on.

Hairy is the top and Mouch below

My daughter did manage to get on the podium twice, and I was proud of her, but I soon found out how upset she was when we went to lunch afterward. She actually broke into tears when we pointed out how she medaled in two events, and I did everything I could to console her, including going to the pet shop nearby (gift #3, oh brother!)

I didn’t say anything to her, but in my mind I decided that if she wanted some vermin (no rat, but maybe a couple gerbils so that my son could have one too) I would bend. So here I sit, the mother of two humans and now mother to Hairy and (Dominique)Moceanu (can you guess which one is my daughters?), two members of the rodent persuasion. They (the rodents that is) have a three-story condo, complete with a wheel, bedding area, and a couple toys to keep them occupied, and they are currently residing in my son’s bedroom. I wrinkle up my nose every time I walk in there, but I am trying, even after they (aka the rodents) both decided to see if I was edible or not!

I'm still alive even after the over my dead body comment, and I am still wondering how a little girl’s tears can have such power. I mean what about my convictions? Oh well, I can’t wait to clean out the cage (wimper...)

"Naturally" it's Book Blurb Friday!

2011-03-10T21:35:00.004-05:00

It's time for another go at Book Blurb Friday , where Lisa Ricard Claro, from Writing in the Buff challenges you to take those first few steps toward writing that novel you've always dreamed about-in book blurb form that is. But there's a catch-you have a 150 word limit! So take a look at this week's picture, write your entry, then link up over at Lisa's site where you can enjoy other talented entries.

I don't know if the this week's picture was more inspiring than the first, or if it was my mood, but I was able to crank a blurb out in record time-at least for me. So what did I see when I looked at the beautiful trees? Love... Here's this week's picture and my entry:

Crossing Sycamore Park

Spring means change -when Mother Nature throws aside her drab winter wardrobe in favor of something a little more flattering, at least that’s what Sam always thought. Born Samantha Jean Smith, family and close friends always addressed her with the more masculine moniker, but although her athletic build and tough girl attitude made the name stick, Sam never liked it much. Unfortunately, the nickname wasn’t the only thing she disliked these days.

Sam truly disliked her ex-husband Rick, a tall, dark and handsome type who could make every girl go weak in the knees, and did so often. Then there was her ex-best friend Laura, the latest in Rick’s history of weak-kneed girls, her dead end job, and her war torn appearance…

But a chance encounter soon blossoms into something much more, and Sam’s personal metamorphosis begins to take shape.

(Okay, I used Word for my word count and it came out to 140-not including the title. I then tried about five different word counters online and got word counts from 138 to 147-hence the reason for going to five different word counter sites! I finally found some counter links on Freelance Writing Jobs website. If you're interested, here they are: Word Counter Tool, WiseGary, and All World Phone. By the way, all these are just copy and paste reporting, and all came out to140... What is everyone else using?)

There have been a lot of changes in my household lately too, and this is the reason for my blogging absence. Stay tuned for an upcoming explanation, and my newest review/giveaway.

I can't wait to read everyone's entries!

Time moves on...

2011-03-06T23:13:00.001-05:00

Time is once again the subject of Microfiction Monday #73. Susan, over at Stony River, delivers a challenge once a week-we are to write a story about a picture she posts in 140 characters or less (including punctuation and spacing)and then link up back at her site.

I loved this week's picture because it conjured up all kinds of images relating to past loves, lives torn apart... Yes, it's my usual deep stuff again, but I go with whatever pops into my head. Here is this week's picture and my first entry:

Anna inhaled sharply when she saw it-closing her eyes she caressed the gilded frame, willing the photo to come alive, to go back in time. (138 characters)

Now for an attempt at some poetry

Life, so grave,
To women and men.
Never a smile,
In photos back then.
Icy stares,
Looking so bold,
What are the secrets,
They never told?
(140 right on the dot...)

The poetry for this one was hard, mainly because the words I chose had quite a few syllables, and the character counter had me in the 160 range until I made things much simpler. (I think I like my prose better this week.) Since the subject looks a little on the angry side, I'm expecting great things from the humorous among us-I'll be by your blogs as soon as I can!

Book Blurb Friday #1

2011-03-03T23:09:00.002-05:00

Did you every fantasize about that next great novel? Well, here might be your chance. Lisa Ricard Claro, from Writing in the Buff is starting a new writing meme called Book Blurb Friday. All you have to do is look at a picture she posts on her site like it is that next big novel, and write a book jacket blurb in 150 words or less. Then just link your post to her site, and sit back and enjoy some of the other participant stories.

I was really excited about Lisa's idea, but it proved harder that I thought. (In fact, I hate to admit it but it took over an hour to get my words just right, and another 20 minutes for a title-maybe you can do better!)

Anyway, here is the book cover picture

And here is my entry.

They Only Call at Night...

Everyone is dying to get into The Vue HarborEast condominiums. Who wouldn’t want to live in a quiet, majestic tower residence with views of the harbor? And Dana Parker, an up and coming reporter at WBALTV, is no exception.

Dana breezes in and out of her new condo residence always looking for that break out story to get her noticed. She partners up with Tom Clancy and Melanie Ambridge, her co-workers, on her time off, and likes that her neighbors keep to themselves.

But Dana’s desire for fame might come at a price; her once ideal home and silent neighbors become the subject of an investigation, and as the death toll mounts, Dana’s professional and personal life will now be inextricably linked.

Strange horrors are happening at night, but will the culprits be caught, or will Dana become the morning news?
(146 words with the title-but you don't have to count it)

So what do you think? I can't wait to read your stories too! (*I came back and reworked my next to the last paragraph a little bit, increasing my word count by five, but I like it better...)

Monday Magic

2011-02-27T22:04:00.000-05:00

There is magic in the air as we all get ready for Microfiction Monday #72. If your new, Susan, over at Stony River, delivers a challenge once a week-we are to write a story about a picture she posts in 140 characters or less (including punctuation and spacing)and then link up back at her site.

I loved this week's picture, and let my mind wander about it for a while before trying to formulate my entry. For some reason the poetry flowed much easier than the prose, although I'm pretty happy with both (I can't wait to hear what you think.) Here is the picture:

And here is my first entry:
The fairy floated down, resting her staff inside the little boy's shoe-one silver coin for one small tooth, and she would be on her way. (135 characters)

And here is my poem

Pixie dust, fairy wings,
Knights, castles, noble kings,
Pretty pink polish,
And plastic rings,
My little girl's world,
Is my everything. (138 characters)

I am looking back tonight, so this is probably why the poem came much more easily. My little girl is not so little anymore-she turns 12 next week, but I still remember those early days like they were yesterday. Sigh... I see the link isn't up yet, so I will come by your blogs tomorrow!

A little bit of this and a little bit of that

2011-02-24T23:04:00.002-05:00

I haven’t been feeling well lately, and since I’ve been spending a lot of time at work and home on the computer (doing work related things), I haven’t felt like jumping on for fun. I also haven’t been sleeping very well (at least for the past two weeks), but I’m not entirely sure why. I always seem to rewind a lot, just like a tape recorder-thinking about something, then something else, then going back to the start of my thoughts again. I think this might be a woman thing, but I’m not sure-I do know that I've been trying to read the most tedious stuff right before I close my eyes so I can fool my mind into turning off.

This lack of sleep is affecting me during the day, although this week hasn’t been as bad as last week. For instance, I have always had a problem with keys, where I would put them down while in the middle of doing something, and then not know where they were. This literally would drive me crazy, until I found ways to minimize the problem-I have one key chain now with all car, house, and work keys, because the more key chains I had, the more I was prone to leave one somewhere. And I got into the habit of putting them back in my purse as soon as I got home from work and keeping them with me at all times when I was at work.

For the most part this key habit has worked fairly well, with the exception of this week. After my first period class I could not find my keys (no keys meant I couldn’t unlock my desk drawer), and I had spent the morning going back and forth between my studio and my classroom- the only thing I could think of was that I might have left them in the studio door. Did I mention that every key that I own is on one key chain? Three sets of eyes looked for my keys-the front desk secretary, one of my students, and me-and we all came up empty handed.

I was starting to panic and thought the worst, so I sent out an e-mail asking all my co-workers to be on the lookout. I then tried to retrace my steps once again during my free period, and not finding anything, considered myself lucky to at least be able to get into my large cabinet. I needed a cable from in there, so I opened a drawer in this cabinet, and there were my keys! I must have had this same thought about the cable earlier that day and got distracted!

Now this isn’t the only weird event attributed to my lack of sleep. I instinctively pick up my kids clothes that don’t make it down the laundry shoot in our bathroom (okay, some battles I just don’t feel like fighting at the end of the day), but for some reason, I walk over to the garbage can instead. I've tried to throw away just about every item of clothing that I get in my hands, and I don’t realize my mistake until at least something drops in!

I can’t drink coffee because of how it affects my stomach, and I swore off caffeine a year ago, so trying to pep up in the morning has been hard. I’ve been trying to chug down a cup of decaf tea with loads of sugar to try to get a jump-start, but I’m only fooling myself. My mouth was on some sort of autopilot today getting the same message from my head three times-I actually repeated an explanation three consecutive times, until the students started snickering and so did I-you have to laugh at stuff like this!

And apparently I have to be careful with nighttime routines. Last night I reached for my face cream when I should have been reaching for the toothpaste (I am so glad I didn’t get a mouthful!), and when I sat down to take off my socks, I noticed that one was blue and the other black. Now I could tell you that I mistakenly grabbed the socks early in the morning, but the fact is I lay out all my clothes the night before…

My conversations with my husband in the morning have been reduced to just grunts, (as well as my conversations with him right before bed), so he is now grunting back at me whenever I do actually try to talk to him, just to get a rise out of me-um, it hasn’t worked though because I’m just too tired. Goodnight every…ZZZZZZ………………

Ok, I couldn't help myself-I decided that I had to have a little pick me up, so here's a link to a little Santana and Michelle Branch with The Game of Love-just a little bit of this to help you out this evening. Enjoy!

Past and Present

2011-02-20T21:36:00.002-05:00

It's that time again, Mircrofiction Monday #71-this is where Susan, from Stony River challenges us to write a 140 character story (or less, including spacing and punctuation) based on the photo she posts. I should be doing work on the computer, but I took a short break to post my entry. This picture was haunting, but I didn't know it was a building still being used until I read Susan's description on her blog-somewhat unnerving, to say the least!

Anyway, I did both prose and poetry again, but my poem is sort of "out there"-I didn't want to do just a rhyming version of my first take... So here is this week's picture and my first story:

Our feet echoed in the grimy hallway-this had been our school, once teeming with life and promise, but now a hull holding only memories. (138 characters)

And here's my poem:

I look for you,
Knowing you're not there.
I call for you,
Refusing to care
That you are only,
In my mind,
Just a memory,
Love left behind. (138 characters)

I want to thank all of you for your lovely comments, especially those encouraging me in the poetry realm. This was a challenge I gave myself, and I really enjoy it! I look forward to reading your takes this week too-would anyone see any humor in this? I wonder...

The "tween" years: the good, the bad, the ugly

2011-02-19T17:44:00.001-05:00

I’m getting an education in how to deal with my "tween" daughter, but it’s happening at a snails pace, one day at a time-isn’t that a song title? And as the countdown is slowing to just a few weeks before my daughter turns the ripe old age of 12, and the battles of "who's the boss" continue, I can’t help but remember some of the battles I had with my own mother at this age, and I hope time won’t repeat itself.

Do all mothers and daughters disagree when the teen years start, or are my control issues driving a wedge between us? I‘m coming off a real low point right now, in part because of an argument I had with my daughter before school on Friday. It had been a trying week for me, mainly because I hadn’t been feeling too well, and I hadn’t been getting much sleep at night-my body was dead tired, but I just couldn’t shut my brain down.

Anyway, I was off on Friday, but my kids still had school, so I was the one who would have get them on the bus (my husband usually drives the kids to school because the bus gets to our house pretty late.) Things weren’t going too well with my daughter, and speed was the issue-there seems to be one speed for getting things done anymore, "slow!" I was watching the clock and trying to get her to finish getting ready, but she was still in front of the mirror fooling with her outfit-no shoes on, and hair and teeth not brushed, so I was a basket case! They had a teachers vs. students basketball game that day, and all of her friends had decided that they would dress a certain way…

The bus would be here in ten minutes so I shouted my last warning, and headed outside with my son. With five minutes left to spare, she meanders outside carrying her winter coat, and decides that she needs her light coat instead. Back in the house she goes, and comes out with a very thin hoodie-now I know the temperatures were to get into the 60’s later in the day, but it was still in the 30’s, and with the wind blowing it felt like 20’s!

So I headed back in the house in search of a light but a bit heavier jacket, but when I came out I knew by my daughter’s face that I was in for an argument. You see the shirt she was wearing was pretty long, and it didn’t look right hanging out from under her jacket. Back into the house I went in search of another jacket, coming out with one that I bought her last spring. She refused to try it on to see if it would fit. I had my doubts too, but I mean she actually flat out refused and that brought out the control freak in me-I gave her an ultimatum-either try on the jacket, or lose her iPod for a week! She tried on the jacket but even though it still fit her in the sleeves, it was now much too short, so back into the house I went for the winter jacket again!

That’s three trips into the house and back, and I was livid-my daughter wanted to go back into the house to retrieve her jacket, but like I said before, the only speed she knows is slow, and the bus was due any minute.

Now a smarter person would have just let the matter drop with only two minutes before the bus, but since my education in tween isn’t complete, I did not stop. My daughter’s hair (or more like the lack of a hairstyle) has been a point of contention between her, her father, and me for some time now-I had wanted her to browse the web until she found a style she liked, and then we would go the beauty shop this weekend. She hadn’t done this yet; I told her that I was taking her this weekend and the style I wanted her to have would be the one she would come home with. This didn’t go over very well, and there were some tears and some angry retorts-apparently I have ruined her life, and she was going to make sure I never saw her grandchildren.

Okay, I was so hurt by the "ruining her life" comment that I didn’t laugh at the grandchild comment (um, I would be dead so I wouldn’t see her grandchildren)-she must mean "children" but I didn’t correct her. And I got no wave or acknowledgment (although I rarely do anymore) when she walked on the bus.

I called my husband up when I got back inside, and he promptly welcomed me to his world-he has daily altercations with my daughter about the speed issue (I believe the "I hate you!" is uttered by her to him quite frequently), but he says he tries to back off before things get too intense, sort of signifying that once again I had a lot to learn about tweendom.

Things are better between my daughter and I since Friday morning-we talked, and I listened, and I started to remember how hard school and life is at this age. Everything is changing for her-more responsibilities at home, harder work at school, and friends and their opinions taking a bigger role. I’m not saying that we’re not going to have any more battles (she lost her iPod today after I asked her three times to get into the shower), but I’m going to work on listening a little more and talking a little less, that and looking for a book on this stuff-I hate being the slowest kid in the class!

Two's company and threes a crowd...

2011-02-13T21:21:00.000-05:00

Happy Valentine's Day everybody! It's time again for Microfiction Monday #70 where Susan, over at Stony River, challenges us to write a story in 140 characters or less (including punctuation and spaces) based on a picture she posts. Susan was right-on with this week's picture because of its "love" theme. For some reason, I didn't have much trouble doing verse or prose, and I'm attributing this to the anticipation and excitement that goes along with this holiday. Now I know I said that I could live without Valentine's Day, but my kid’s excitement is rubbing off on me, and my husband is acting very strangely… Anyway, here is this week's picture and my first story:

Cedric kept his eyes on the countryside, trying hard to ignore his friends-if he had known it was a lover’s picnic he never would have come. (140 characters)

And here is my poem:

As I sit beneath this tree,
A thought doth occur to me,
Wherever I go,
Or aspire to be,
I am but a tiny speck,
In a world of uncertainty. (140 characters)

Hmm...the poem maybe a little on the depressing side, but I kept thinking that if I was that fifth person, I wouldn't be the happiest of people. I look forward to reading all of your entries, especially since I know a lot of you may address the fact that some of the boys look a bit like girls-I'm hoping for some good laughs! Take care!

Great Tech Valentine's Day Gifts

2011-02-10T21:10:00.000-05:00

Well after my down-on-Valentine’s-Day post, I thought I needed to redeem myself a little. I decided to put a little more effort into making this day special, and I thought I would pass on some interesting gift ideas to you.

Now what to get a man on Valentine’s Day is always puzzling, but I recently read some statistics that were a real eye opener. IOGEAR did a poll where they asked men what their preferred gift on Valentine’s Day would be. 61% said that they would like a tech gift, but only 19% said they ever received this. Since IOGEAR is an audio/video manufacturer, their clientele are going to be men and women who like technology gadgets (my polite term for geeks), and this might slant their survey just a bit, but speaking from experience, men do like toys, so maybe, just maybe, you should consider a tech gift when it comes time to pick out your gifts.

VH1 on Chumby1

Penguin cam that the kids like to watch

First on my list is a Chumby1 (check out my review here) because of the cool factor, and because they're running a special for Valentine’s Day. The device normally sells for $129.95, but if you use the promo code VDAY11 when you check out, the price drops down to only $69.95! My husband has his sitting on his nightstand, and it’s the last thing he looks at before he goes to bed, and it was his favorite gift this Christmas.

There are also a number of smaller gift ideas (some under $10) that are both geeky and funny, and who doesn’t want to laugh and save money? Some of my students at school turned me on to a very unique site called ThinkGeek-some of the stuff is a little out there, but there are others worth a look. I found these in their section for Valentine’s gifts: give him your heart and a little extra heat with this heart hand warmer ($5.99), or tell him how much you care with an I Love You bean plant ($4.99). Maybe the two of you could dabble in the ancient art of chocolate making with the Mayan Magic Chocolate Making Kit ($24.99)? Or if your sweetie has a hard time staying awake, why not supercharge him with Shower Shock Caffeinated Bubble Bath ($14.99)?

I also have some gift ideas for those willing to spend a little more. If your guy likes to read, why not take a look at the Sony Pocket reader (about $120) or the newly reduced Kindle ($139) book reader. I was at the beach a few years ago when I saw the Kindle for the first time-I kept trying to keep the pages of my book from fluttering in the wind and I happened to glance at a man near me holding a Kindle. I decided to look into purchasing one for my husband that Christmas because my husband is also a big book reader, and we don’t have any more places to store our books. When I started reading about the Kindle’s problems and saw how much they cost ($500), I started looking elsewhere. Sony came out with their edition, and the one in my price range was their Pocket Reader ($120)-plus, most reviews raved about this new toy, mainly because it accepted all downloadable book formats, including the .epub that the libraries use (you can "check" out books through library systems). You can also buy books from the Sony site for around $9, and get newspaper and some magazine subscriptions. My husband loves his, and it still works great after a year. So far we haven’t downloaded anything from our local library, but that’s because they are just adopting the system now. You can buy books and subscriptions for about the same price from the Amazon site for the Kindle, but you can only download from Amazon.

I also have a no-to-low cost tech option that you may want to keep in mind since time is limited and getting a gift to arrive by Monday will cost some hefty shipping and handling fees… Why not purchase a 2-4Gb jump drive and load it up with his favorite tunes? He can take it to work with him, plug it in his computer, and think how lucky he is to have such a thoughtful, loving wife like you. (It could happen-LOL!) Enjoy your Valentine’s Day!

It's that time!

2011-02-06T22:22:00.001-05:00

I thought I would kill a little time and do number 69, Microfiction Monday that is. Once again Susan, over at Stony River has posted a picture and dared us to write a story in 140 characters (including spaces and punctuation)or less. I was able to put together a prose piece pretty easily, but my mind was resisting any attempts at poetry as long as the game was still on. Alas, the Steelers lost, and I was able to come back and write one. Here is this week's picture and my first story:

Ann was shaking as she looked at the old clock-he was to meet her in 15 minutes, but could he give up everything so they could be together?(140 characters)

And here is my poem:
The stately building covered in grime
Sighed as the old, iron clock chimed
I was rather grand in my prime
If only I knew a way to stop time (140 characters)

I know at least one Steeler player who probably wishes he could turn back time when his team was only down by three! I think I need some Rolaids... (I'll hop by everyone's blogs tomorrow.)

Valentine's Day revisited

2011-02-03T23:06:00.004-05:00

I am not a big Valentine’s Day fan, and I guess this dislike stems from the many times I was not in a relationship but had to endure those around me who were (I know you know what I mean...), but it goes further back than this. In grade school, even though you were supposed to give Valentines to the whole class, the "cliques" decided that only their friends should get cards, so I didn’t really need a giant Valentine’s mailbox to carry cards home. (Okay, here is where you're supposed to say, "Aw..." )

In high school it was worse-student council sold carnations that you could send your sweetie, and they only knew it was you if they forked over another buck. The colors were red for "I love you", pink for "I have a crush on you," and white for "I like you as a friend." You can probably guess that I didn’t get many flowers from boys (I was a late bloomer of sorts), so my friends and I did what other girls did and sent flowers to each other-white of course, and maybe the occasional pink-just so we wouldn’t feel left out. College was better, but there were many times when a serious boyfriend was not in the picture.

Flash forward quite a few years-even though I have my sweetie, Valentine’s Day still comes back to bite me in the butt. The problem isn’t who my Valentine is, but what the heck do I get him? I used to buy all the gimmicky gifts, like kissing bears and other love themed items that Hallmark is famous for, but what do you do with the stuff after Valentine’s Day? I have several stuffed animals like a very cute gorilla hanging on a bar saying, "Let’s hang out!" but most are covering the top of our armoire in the bedroom. (My husband owns a pair of Valentine’s Day socks-yes I bought them for him-that play, "Let me be your sweetheart" every time he flexed his calf muscles-I know he still has them but they’re hidden deep in his sock drawer.)

Then I bought "sensible" gifts that my husband needed or wanted, like shirts, pants, and small power tools, but even though those gifts were nice, they weren’t what you would call romantic. So now it’s sort of a toss up for me (mostly sensible, sometimes not, and sometimes a little of both), and my husband has fallen back on flowers and possibly dinner out, and that’s all right with me. Is this what Valentine's Day is all about? Maybe I’m still jaded by the past, and after 20 years of marriage maybe I'm less of a romantic, but I don't understand why we need a reason to do nice things for each other on just this one day. Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy the day and love flowers, but it just seems like a lot of needless pressure, and I like the "just because" types of gifts that come on an ordinary day the best.

Okay, I’m dying to know if you’re with me on this one, or am I totally not getting the whole "Valentine’s Day is for lovers" thing? Do you still give gifts on Valentine's Day, and if so, what do you get?

The seas are angry my friend! (# 68)

2011-01-30T19:38:00.001-05:00

Ahoy there everybody-it's my favorite time of the week-Microfiction Monday. Susan over at Stony River challenges us to write a story based on pictures she posts, but there is a catch-they can only be 140 characters or less (including spacing and punctuation.) This week we have an "ocean themed" picture, so since the subject matter was a little silly, I tried to match it with a little humor of my own. (Now those of you who come by here often know that I usually leave the humorous posts up to other members, but I just couldn't come up with anything serious!) Here is this week's picture and my first post

Fin was taking it hard but Seamus was ecstatic. "It’s a sign Fin! We're gonna live, and we're gonna smell awfully sweet while we wait!" (137 characters)

And this week, since we are leaning more on the funny side of things, I thought I would try my hand at a limerick (I haven't done one of these in quite a while, so bear with me...)

Two sailors alone on the shore,
Were stranded so sailors no more
They had hope,
When up washed some soap,
But a meal of suds is quite poor!
(140 characters)

What did you think-did I get you to chuckle? I can't wait to see what the rest of you wrote, and if you are new here, why not join us? Just be sure to link up to the Stony River website.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Review)

2011-01-29T22:50:00.069-05:00

My son wanted to start reading the Harry Potter series, and even though I knew he could handle the reading, I was a little concerned about the subject matter. I talked with his second grade teacher about it (she read the whole series) and she said that years 1-5 weren’t too bad, but that years 6-7 were a little intense, so I decided that we would read each volume together. I also thought I would give an overview of each year in my blog just in case you might be curious about the Harry Potter books.

First let me start out by saying that I’m now a J. K. Rowling fan, and I never really liked fantasy or sci-fi themed stories-the books are that good. I read ahead when my son goes to bed and at first I did it as a precaution, but now I can’t put the books down (I am four chapters ahead of my son.!) My son is also hooked, and we are constantly discussing events of the story-sometimes it can be a bit much so I’ve had to tell him when I’m Harry Pottered out and need to talk about something else.

The first book in the series is Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, and it’s in this first book that we first learn about Harry’s peculiar abilities and his sad past. The story begins with the delivery of Harry to his only blood relatives after the untimely deaths of his parents. Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts (the local wizarding school), along with Professor McGonagle (a witch at the school) and Hagrid (the school’s gamekeeper) check out and deliver Harry on the doorstop of the Dursleys. There is one major problem with this-the Dursleys are not magical. They are "normal" humans that magical folk refer to as "muggles," and Harry will have to live in their world and not the world of his parents-it will be safer...

Harry has it hard with the Dursleys-his Aunt Petunia (his mother’s sister) and Uncle Vernon have not told him about his magical parents or how they died, and they treat him like he is some sort of poor relation who they have been forced to raise. The Dursley’s only son Dudley is very fat and given anything that he desires, while poor Harry is made to live in the cupboard below the stairs, becomes a human punching bag for Dudley, is forced to wear Dudley’s overly large hand-me-downs, and is never shown even the slightest bit of kindness. Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia abhor anything that is out-of-the-ordinary, and there is nothing ordinary about Harry.

But Harry’s life is about to change. He turns eleven, and though he doesn’t get even a happy birthday wish from his relatives, there are wizards every where who know about Harry and they soon will do everything in their power to wish him a happy birthday and welcome him back into their world, even if they have to go against the wishes of Harry’s muggle family.

The rest of the story revolves around Harry’s first year at Hogwarts, the school for witches and wizards, as he struggles with new-found fame in the wizarding world. However, some disturbing events force Harry to deal with both a painful past and uncertain future, as he unravels the real reasons why he is so famous.
Now even thought I love the books, there are a few alarming elements in each story that younger kids might find frightening. In year one, someone or something has been attacking the unicorns in the woods that surround the school (students are forbidden to go there because of the menagerie of dangerous creatures who live there). Harry and a classmate serve a detention where they accompany Hagrid into the woods and they not only find the hurt unicorn, they come across a shadowy figure doing the attacks!

Since my son and I were taking turns reading back and forth, I "glossed" over this particular area during the reading, and we talked about what was going on with Harry in the story. And, after we read a book, we rented the movie, but the movies were kind of a let down-someone else’s vision can’t quite take the place of the pictures our own minds can create…

Here are my ratings for Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone:

Language/Vocabulary: One of the things I found most interesting is Rowling’s ability to create this world with all the terms and lingo associated with it. You can’t help but believe this world exists. (For example: Harry plays the wizard game of Quidich, a sort of a basketball game played in the air on broomsticks.) Keep in mind that the characters are English, so they speak a little differently that our kids, but there is no need to worry about foul language. My rating: 5/5

Lesson: There are plenty of positive messages given throughout the book: the importance of friendships, how your past does not decide your future, acceptance of people who are different from you, and the power of love.
My rating 5/5

Violence: Here’s where things get touchy. As I said before, there is the attacker in the woods, but there is also a brush with a three-headed dog, and danger for Harry and his friends Ron and Hermione at the end of the story.
My rating 3.5/5

I highly recommend the series, but keep what I've said in mind when considering these books for your child. The official age rating for at least the first book is 8 and up, but many teachers say that fifth graders can better handle the subject matter. Regardless, the books are quite large and the vocabulary is unique, so it may be best to read it with your child, especially if they struggle over unfamiliar words. Happy reading!

The picture of the book was used for the sole purpose of review and is connected to it's source-Amazon.com. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and were done without any form of compensation.

Aging and Oddities: A losing battle?

2011-01-27T22:36:00.000-05:00

It’s been ages since I did a truly personal post and that’s because I’m struggling with the direction I want my blog to take. I started a blog to get back into writing, share common experiences, and give helpful feedback concerning goods and services that you as a mother might be interested in.

At first things started slowly, and I kept things strictly business-like with reviews of my favorite vacation destination-Cape May, New Jersey. Then I bounced between day-to-day issues about being a mom and an occasional review. Then when we all headed back to school (me included) I didn’t have the time to be posting every night, and my interest in blogging waned.

Then something sparked my interest again, and that was a writing meme, and I was so excited that my posts became this and nothing more, so I decided to step back and think about what purpose I want my blog to serve. I decided on this plan of action-Sundays/Mondays I am reserving for the writing meme (writing the post and reading other member entries), Wednesday I will try to hop over to read updates on all of your blogs, Thursday will be my "personal" entry (anything from my life could end up here), and Saturday I will set aside for a review post (technology, books, etc.)

So that’s the plan, and since it’s Thursday I thought I would catch you up to speed with what’s been going round my head lately. Some of you may remember that I celebrated my birthday in December and it was a milestone birthday- one where you feel both excitement and dread at the same time, especially when you glance at all the candles covering your birthday cake! After blowing those candles out, I have come to realize something about aging. I am convinced that aging and personal oddities go hand in hand!

Let me explain. Everyone has their own sets of likes and dislikes and idiosyncrasies ("quirks"), and as I get older, I notice that mine have doubled, maybe even tripled in number. I’ve listed some of my old habits along with my new habits-see if you can identify with any of these (and I am really hoping you do!):

Then: I never liked getting my hands dirty.
Now: Hand washing has become a compulsion, and having kids hasn’t helped-something yucky was always coming out of them, at the top or the bottom!
Now: I can’t stand for my hands to be sticky or wet either, and I have to drop everything and wash them off. And speaking of wet, I literally can’t stand if my sleeves get wet. It’s like I get this sickening feeling in my gut when water drips down my sleeves and down my arm…

Then: I always wear socks on my feet because when my feet are cold, my whole body gets cold.
Now: I rarely walk around anywhere, even on the beach, without something on my feet. In fact, while my kids and husband run around the house in bare feet, I sit here with both shoes and socks on!

Then: I reach for the magazine at the back of the rack because it’s crisper and less smudgy.
Now: I don’t take the first of anything in a rack or shelf-books, cards, clothing, etc, and I can’t stand for someone to wrinkle up the newspaper before I have read it. And don’t let me go on about reading my magazine before I do either! (I think this one might be genetic because I remember my father having a fit if we went through his paper before he did.)

Now: I disagree that this is a bizarre habit, but my husband says that I just started doing this a couple months ago and it’s weird (in his opinion of course.) If we use a regular plate as a serving dish, I put these in the sink to wash instead of putting it in the dishwasher, although I don’t see anything wrong with this…

Well, I know there are others, but I'm getting tired and I don't want you to think I'm a total crack pot. Tell me, am I alone, or do you see yourself doing odd things too? Well, I have to go wash my hands and head to bed, so goodnight everybody!

It's raining, it's pouring...

2011-01-23T22:12:00.003-05:00

Well I'm back for another installment of Microfiction Monday. It's #67 in fact, and Susan, over at Stony River challenges us every week to write a story in 140 characters or less (including spaces and puntuation)based on a picture she posts on her site.

I'm feeling a little under the weather (no pun intended) this evening, so I wasn't sure I would be able to post anything tonight. But when I'm in this chair, typing away, I perk up a little. Here is this week's picture:

And here is my attempt:

We shared some good times my brother and me, on that old bridge after a cold winter rain, watching the fog tuck the river in for the night. (140 characters-cutting it close I know...)

I really wanted to do a poem with this one, but I need to get some sleep. Maybe I'll try tomorrow. Anyway, I look forward to reading all of your thoughts but I'm going to wait until I'm feeling a little better.

PS: I didn't sleep to well last night (almost not at all in fact), but I feel loads better so I came back and did some poetry-I just couldn't stop myself because this picture just evoked such powerful feelings in me-did you feel it too? Anyway, here is my poem:

I like sun, but I also like rain,
It calms my soul and eases my brain.
The gentle hum on my windowpane,
Helps bring him back to me again. (138 characters)

Thanks for your well wishes, and I am off to read more of your entries!

Move over Ipod-meet Chumby I (Review)

2011-01-19T20:01:00.003-05:00

As a self appointed geek, I am always on the lookout for the new and upcoming tech toy either for members of my family or myself, and I am pretty taken with one of our latest additions, the Chumby I. I can almost hear you muttering, "What’s a Chumby?" because that’s exactly what I said when I read about it in November, but it’s been only a few weeks and we are enamored with this little device.

You see, every Christmas I give my husband some things that he needs, and some that he doesn’t-in other words "toys"-and I was on the look out for something tech to fill "that need." I think I did a search on Google for "best cheap tech gifts" and one of my favorite tech sites, PC World, popped up with the article, "Terrific Tech Gifts for $200 or Less", and let's just say I was aiming for less...

Anyhow, the site had a slide show of 14 tech gadgets that were worthy of purchase, and I was on slide number 12 when I saw the Chumby One for the first time. Now the price was still a little too high for me, but when I did a search for information that was only Chumby related, I found out that the Chumby website was offering the device for $79 with I think free shipping and handling-this was down from the normal price of $129.95!

I read more reviews at another favorite technology website-CNET.com-to get their take and they gave it high marks. Yes, I still haven't told you just what this thing is... It’s a small, wireless device that you can keep on your bedside table to wirelessly connect to the Internet. It’s 3.5 inch touch screen allows you to view comments on Facebook, check the latest weather forecasts for your area, connect to Pandora radio, check e-mail, play games, and the list goes on and on.

There are several “channels”in the Chumby that you can program with around 1000 apps downloaded from the Chumby.com site (all gloriously free I might add). My husband has a channel that’s just weather related, another for news and sports from sites like ESPN and CBS, and he has a gaming/web cam/ "fun" channel. He picks the channel and the apps loop continuously (with a time for each site determined by him). If he wants to look at the site more closely, he hits the screen and the looping stops, and if he doesn’t want an app anymore, he simply logs into his account on the Chumby site from a computer, and deletes it.

This thing can also be a clock, so the old, outdated alarm clock that used to grace his nightstand is now gone. He can set an alarm with the Chumby One and wake up to music from Pandora, or other various alarms he can choose. Right now it’s a taps alarm with the bugle sound getting louder and louder the longer it plays-thank goodness I’m up before it goes off, but I can sometimes hear it from the bathroom… There is also a night mode that keeps the Chumby from looping, lowers the lighting on the screen, and shows only the time.

The Chumby One is the second of two models that came out in 2009. Unlike the original Chumby that has soft leather sides, and is slightly larger (and more costly) with some impressive features, the Chumby One can use a rechargeable lithium ion battery(the older model has to be plugged in), has one USB 2.0 high speed port, 2W mono speakers, an FM tuner, 454 MHz ARM processor (larger than the older model), 64 MB DDR SDRAM, and Internal microSD card firmware.

This device is like an iPod, Wipad, alarm clock, DS, radio, and digital photo frame (you can loop your Facebook pictures as well) all rolled into one. I can’t tell you how many times the kids have jumped on our bed to check out the Chumby screen. In fact, my husband just added an app that counts down the days to each of our birthdays, and the cake image on the screen continually changes the closer the date gets. (My daughter’s birthday is in March, and she now has a three-layer cake with icing…)

The thing is so cute that my daughter and I both want one, so I’m going to keep on the lookout for any discounts and sales. If you want to read more about the Chumby One, a good place to go is the CNET site or to the Chumby site (it will help you get a good idea about all the apps available and give you information about each model.)

I did want to point out that Sony came out with a competing device this year called the Sony Dash-it has a 7-inch touch screen that sells for $199. But I found out the Dash is just a Chumby in disguise because it was made in collaboration with Chumby (it runs with the Chumby operating system and uses all of the Chumby site apps) but it comes in a fancier package with a fancier price tag. So, based on price, (cuteness), portability, and good reviews for Chumby, I went in that direction, but I anxiously await the next new tech toy that combines the best of both…

*I just noticed that the Chumby site is actively advertising the Sony Dash as well, so it is a true partnership.

This review was done without any compensation from Chumby, CNET, or PCWorld. I bought a Chumby this Christmas, and all opinions I have given are mine and may differ from others but were not influenced by any of the companies mentioned. All pictures in this post were taken by me to show some of the apps available.