Dirt Bath

Kind of a contradiction in terms.

But it's the girls FAVORITE thing.

They mush around in the sand in CJ's stall every evening until either I kick them out, or he does.

They roll around, kick up the dirt with their feet, fluff and preen.

And then when they are done, they give a BIG SHAKE and about 90 pounds of dirt flies out.

They LOVE it!

(And it keeps their feathers clean and bright and no bugs...)



Time Warp

I was reading on Facebook during one of my breaks this weekend.

(We take a 10 minute break every hour... love Florida laws!)

Anyhow.

I swiped this from "someone".  No earthly idea who.

My students could TOTALLY relate!

(And they enjoyed a good laugh...  We do lots of that in my class...)

Have you ever noticed how in the morning you wake up and look at the clock - it's 6:30.

Close your eyes for 5 minutes.

Open your eyes, and it's 7:45.

Then when you are at school, look at the clock and it's 1:30.

Close your eyes for 5 minutes.

Open your eyes, and it's 1:31.

It was a LONG class.

(Smaller classes tend to be harder - we ranged from 10 students down to 5 at times...)

Anyhow.

It's FALL!

And fall has THE MOST GLORIOUS SUNSETS!

How's this for coincidence.

My boss sent me a picture she took from her house last night.

Cool, eh?  If you look closely, it's the same cloud formation.

We took our pictures at almost the same time!

(But obviously I was near the woods and she was by the river...)

Since the weather has been so lovely this week,

Kyle and I got up and took the horses for a ride.

No bugs!!!

Yippeeeee!

The neighbor has a new little white donkey in their pasture with their cows.

It has a fancy name.

Something like Diablo something or other.

Kyle renamed it Snickers.

VERY friendly little guy!

When we rode by it was over in the middle of the pasture with the cows.

But as soon as he saw us, he came galloping over to say Good Morning.

We've gotten lots of mileage out of our latest joke.

Yup, there's a Jack Ass next door again.

LOL

Worlds Largest Buffalo

When I stay at my hotel, there is a picture of this guy on the inside door of the elevator.

It's called

Bye-Son.

Punny, eh?

You can’t pass Jamestown without posing for a photo op with this gigantic piece of Americana!

Constructed of steel beams, wire mesh, stucco and cement, the World’s Largest Buffalo is 26 feet tall, 46 feet long and cost nearly $8,500 to build in 1959.  At 60 tons, this colossal beast was created to give passersby a reason to stop in Jamestown, but its not the only curious attraction the city offers its visitors. 

The Buffalo stands over the National Buffalo Museum, where a collection of art and artifacts portray the cultural and natural history of bison and the Great Plains; and Frontier Village, a western town that features an active trading post, saloon, souvenir shop, sheriff’s office, jail and more (open to the public from Memorial Day to Labor Day). In addition, Frontier Village is the home to North America’s only female albino buffalo, named White Cloud. Every July, Frontier Village and the World’s Largest Buffalo celebrate White Cloud’s birthday.  You can find out about other compelling summer events by calling the Buffalo City Tourism Foundation at (701) 251-9145.

On June 20, 2007, nearly 15 Hampton “Save-A-Landmark” program volunteers worked closely with the Buffalo’s original artist and sculptor, Elmer P. Peterson, to refurbish this giant.  During an estimated 100 hours, volunteers scaled ladders and balanced high on a mechanical lift to refresh and make cosmetic changes to the 26-foot-tall beast.  The Buffalo’s mane was enhanced, its horns were lengthened and its paint job was upgraded – incorporating professional shading techniques and giving texture to the Buffalo’s furry coat.

http://hamptonlandmarks.com/RefurbishedDetail.aspx?landmarkId=1977&page=6

Maybe someday we'll take a trip and visit this guy.

In the meantime, I'll just be happy with these guys.

O A E

O A E

Stands for

Odds and Ends

I'm not feeling it today.

I had a great little video of the girls taking a dirt bath in CJ's stall.

But it's too dark to see.

Darn Red.

She is my Rhode Island Red chicken.

The one who thinks she is a rooster.

She doesn't lay eggs.

And she is ALWAYS first in bed at night.

Except last night.

All the girls headed back to the coop after their bath.

But when I counted, I was missing Red!

Back to barn.

Hunted all around.

Found her snuggled up behind the garbage can in the hay room.

She had made herself a nice little nest in the loose hay.

It took Kyle and I nearly 15 minutes to get her out!

She ran into Buddy's stall.

Then back into the hay room.

Then into Buddy's stall.

Then back into the hay room.

We finally cornered her in Buddy's stall and I picked her up and carried her to bed.

Sheesh!

Stinker!

Saw these this morning on Facebook.

I am SO doing this!

It's a deviled egg with half a black olive and the legs made of olive strips.

So disgusting they are cute!

And here is my nod to eating healthy.

I'm heading out of town again tonight - be back Tuesday.

I'll be dining on Ruby Tuesday's spaghetti squash every night.

YUM!

(It's not on the list, but I'm sure it does SOMETHING good for my body...)

BIG Mistake

Who knew.

I've been brushing my teeth daily with a combination of magnesium oil and wintergreen essential oil.

90% Mag Oil to 10% Wintergreen

My teeth are whiter.

My gums are at about 25% sensitivity instead of 95%.

My teeth feel smooth and clean, like I just left the dentist.

Wintergreen is my favorite flavor.

I like wintergreen gum.

Wintergreen Lifesavers.

Love the smell.

Love the taste.

But yesterday I learned (from crunchybetty.com) that it could damage my liver.

Yikes!

It is for aromatherapy only.

I FINALLY found a tiny note on the bottle.

Luckily I NEVER swallow my tooth "paste" stuff.

And after brushing, I rinse THOROUGHLY.

(And I take milk thistle for my liver daily as well...)

However, this morning I stopped at the Health Food Store.

And tonight I will be making new tooth stuff.

With cinnamon.

YUM.

And this one is GOOD for you.

Oops.....

I've Got Gas...

Ok, not gas.

Fuel.

Gas is gas.

Diesel is fuel.

Now that we are clear on that...

Rod regained consciousness long enough this morning to tell me to fill up.

It's hard to read, but the green sign says $4.09.

For Diesel.

Which is one step above asphalt.

That's Sabrina's old station.

They are usually the low price holdout in town.

But over night they jumped TEN CENTS.

The "other" diesel guys also jumped.

But one little old station was slow changing.

And I got lucky.

This might be the last time we see diesel at under $4.00

For a long, long time.

Darn it.

I Raised You BETTER Than That!

My Mom and Dad served a couple of missions for our church.

One of them was a year and a half in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

During their mission they didn't watch any TV.

I know...

Near the end of their mission, I was on the phone with my Mom.

She mentioned that since they hadn't seen TV in quite awhile, she was wondering

if there was anything I would recommend checking out.

I suggested West Wing.

There was a pregnant pause.

Then she said, indignantly, "I raised you BETTER than that!"

...

What?

...

"Mom.  It's a show about the President of the United States.  You know, The West Wing? 

Of the White House?"

(We're Canadian, but sheesh!)

...

Oh.  (She says)  I thought you said Wrestling!

I can see where she might be confused.

It's still one of my family's favorite stories!

Brush with Fame

So, I was emailing all my students from last week and received back a really sweet email from one.

She is a darling lady named Talin.

She is an artist.

She paints, creates fabrics, plays and teaches classical piano, and has an adorable dog.

Buttons.

Buttons was our class mascot.

She comes to class in a little pink dog carrier.

You wouldn't know she was there unless Talin told you.

Now, I'm not a "doggie" person.

I have dogs.

Lots of them.

But they live outside.

Got that, Duke?

OUTSIDE!

(grin)

But you have to admit.

This is CUTE!

(This little YouTube was attached to Talin's sweet email...

Buttons is the model at the end.  Cute puppy!)

Who knew they were famous???

(And I SO see this in Shelle's house...)

Best Laid Plans

It is a quiet day here.

I was hoping to go on a horseback ride with Rod and Kyle this morning.

It has been BEAUTIFUL in the mornings lately.

And raining each evening.

Typical Florida summer weather.

(Yes, it is still summer here...)

So this morning I got up.

Went outside to take the trash to the street.

Let the dogs out.

Fed the horses.

Fed the chickens.

Decided it was WAY too beautiful to go back inside.

Got a yoga mat and did my workout on the patio.

Amazing what you see when you are laying on your back,

trying to ignore the intense burn in your body.

Did you know butterflies fly WAY high?

And just when you wish you really were inside with the ceiling fan on,

God takes care of it for you.

Lovely breeze!

Thank you!

By the time I was done,

there was a storm blowing in from the ocean.

(I guess the breeze was more than just a breeze.)

Still needed to run to the store for some essentials.

(Couldn't go last night - conference call about a great new incentive program for work.)

By the time we were walking out of the store, it was raining.

(Rod got up and went with me.)

"Man Plans / God Laughs"

I REALLY need to make a new bumper sticker.

09-11-12

I started the day with a workout.

And then I did the rest of my chores.

And then I took a shower.

And then I left for work.

And then I turned on the radio.

And then I cried all the way to work.



Aloe flowers in the yard this morning



We are so blessed to live in this day.

To have the freedoms we do.

To have family.

To have friends.

To have homes.

To have jobs.

Take a moment today to reflect.

And be thankful.

Bad Luck

My poor Sister had to go to the hospital over the weekend.

The E.R.

That, in and of itself, is amazing.

We are a pretty healthy family

and don't often end up in the hospital.

Even if the E.R. isn't really "in the hospital".

She fell off her bike when she ran over a root sticking up out of a trail in beautiful Park City.

OUCH!

Sounds like she has a pretty sore clavical.

Which is why she looks like she is doing her best to not reach out and smack the camera out of somebody's hand.  LOL

Notice the bruises on her leg.

That wound would be enough for me.

Case in point.

My ORIGINAL post for today was to document my OWN hospital trip this weekend.

I needed 40 stitches.

See?????

I got a paper cut!

In the most painful spot possible!

(Ok, getting 40 stitches for a papercut is a standing joke with Rod and I.)

But now I feel kinda bad.

But it still hurts.

Feel better Soni!

Good Morning South Florida!

Its nice and green outside my hotel window.  

Looks like a beautiful day.

But I'm staying inside to workout and color my hair.

Rod is at the house doing really fun stuff.

Cleaning out the kitchen drain.

Weed wacking the property.

Don't we live glamorous lives?

After searching in Boynton one weekend,

and then all over Melbourne with Rod last weekend,

I accidentally ran into a Dollar Tree on Thursday.

On the way to the new Aldi's over by my office.

WAY nicer than my old Ald'is, by the way...

They carry all kinds of stuff mine doesn't.

So this is going to be MY Aldi from now on.

But back to the eggs.

Check out the darling basket!!!

It's plastic coated wire.

Just the right size for 2+ dozen eggs.

And it was only a dollar!!!

(So I bought 3...  LOL)

Holds 2 dozen eggs

Or a bag of Clementines

Or whatever else you want!

(I use the spare one to carry out to the coop to collect the day's eggs.)

SUPER cute!

Just My Luck

It's Wednesday.

My work system is down.

I have opened all my mail.

I have read all my favorite blogs.

I have made a grocery list.

I think I'll go home.

Oh wait, the system just came up.



Happy September!

I read on another blog that September is the new January.

LOL

But I'm feeling it...

I've got several goals I'm working on this month.

I'll tell you about it some time.

But first, I decided to go back to batch cooking.

At least for Rod's lunches.

So Saturday we went to Aldi's and I bought 10 pounds of chicken breasts.

And then I cooked them.

I used my good ol' George Foreman.

It is a pain in the neck to clean.

But makes mass cooking chicken so much quicker and easier.

Once it was cooked, cooled and cut into bite-sized peices,

I weighed it and bagged it all in 4 oz packs.

We ended up with 24 bags of chicken, in two gallon sized bags in the freezer.

So now all he needs to do is grab one and stick it in his lunch box.

It felt so good to have that all done!

And to have my darling husband supplied with healthy protein.

Monday morning found us out on Turkey Creek.

This is us, all piled up around a log in the middle of the creek.

Waiting for this guy to get out of the way.

As Kyle went over the log he yelled

Manatee!

And stopped.

Parked basically ON the manatee's back.

If you look closely, you can see his/her nostrils peeking through the water just in front and to the left

of it's back.  (Head was turned...)

We sat and watched for awhile, until it swam under the log, under all of our boats, and

vanished.  So we decided to continue forward.

We later ran into a Mom and her calf.  The calf is much bigger than when Kyle and I saw them

last month.  Those are BIG animals!

Then we decided to "do the loop" again.

And there was the big guy again.

Since they "delight" in coming up under your kayak and rolling you,

we decided to go back the way we came

and enjoy the fabulous current brought on by the higher water levels.

(Thank you Hurricane Isaac!)

Being Labor Day, there were a BUNCH of people out enjoying the creek.

So we were surprised to see any manatee at all!

It was a wonderful morning.

And then Rod went to work.

Oh, and yesterday I got EIGHT eggs! 

(but one got broken/eaten - the shell was pretty thin...)

That's a first!

(And I sold 2 dozen on Friday...  Yippeee!)