Baby Girl's Turn

My baby girl had an assignment in English tonight to write a poem. The poem was to follow a certain style of a certain author (forgive me, I'm not exactly sure of the author but will update later.) I thought she did a wonderful job so I'm sharing it here with you...it is titled

WHERE I'M FROM

I am from Barney,
from sharing and caring.
I am from picking four leaf clovers
(short and green, they tasted like the earth).
I am from fearless feats,
jumping out of a tree
arms flailing, legs bent
into the water like glass.

I'm from crayons and Play Doh,
from carousels and ponies.
I'm from goody-two-shoes and cross my hearts,
from stove top baby and brown eyed girl.
I'm from whispered reprimands
in hard wood pews
and giggling through sermons.

I'm from David and Darla's branch,
lasagna and chicken nuggets.
From the pilot wings my grandfather left us,
the reassuring hug from a favorite cousin.
In the closet a plastic box
Filled with achievements grade one through ten,
the true tale of time passing.

I am from those moments,
a mere speck of pollen in a single rose,
waiting for my honey bee to find me.

Good job Jacque D, my little brown eyed girl!

So, you may be wondering, what in the world is a "stove top baby"? Well, let me explain. When Jacque was an infant August was very attentive to her. He liked to straddle her and rip her socks off while she slept peacefully in her bassinet. He loved her so much he would pinch her little cheeks and hug her just a little too hard. In an effort to keep her out of his reach I would strap her into her car seat and sometimes put her on top of the stove while getting the others ready to go somewhere or while preparing lunch. We started calling her the "stove top baby" and used to joke that the vent hood fan was her mobile. Poor little Jacque...she turned out pretty great in spite of it all!

Until next time...

Just one more day...

and our summer vacation is over! I really hate for school to start. i will miss my babies being here with me during the day! Even though sometimes they drive me straight up the wall it is always sad for me when we start a new school year. We went shopping today to pick up a few last minute things...one of which was a pair of shoes for Leighton. He was in desperate need since his foot has grown yet again. He picked out a pair of black Puma's after shopping at several stores. When we were on the way home Jacque pulled them out of the box to look at them and to lace them up and she told Leighton, "now, I told you Leighton, you can't be running around acting crazy in these shoes." I asked her why and she said, "well, these are nice shoes!" She then commented on the shoe laces and how she thought the shoes would look better with another pair to which Leighton countered, "huh, I can just wear them without shoelaces." "No you can't!" she replied, "these are not Etnies!" Etnies are a brand of skater style tennis shoes and Leighton has owned a couple different styles. In fact, he had stuffed his size 9 feet into an old standby pair that were his favorites. He has worn the heck out of these shoes (sans shoelaces) and they are old, ugly and stinky. Don't ask me why i haven't thrown them out...I have no idea why. They do come in handy to wear to the barn I suppose. I told Leighton, "you know, maybe you should have gotten another pair of Etnies. Those have certainly held up well." He turned to Jacque and they gave each other that "ewwwwww" look and he said, "no, I kind of don't like Etnies anymore. They're too fat." Big sister Jacque put her two cents in as well, saying, "yeah, mom, Etnies are ugly and besides, Leighton needs some grown up tennis shoes now. It's time for him to grow up." We had a good laugh about that.

Later when we got home, I shared the conversation with August and he started laughing and said, "Jacquelyn is the one who needs shoes without shoes laces. Remember those curly ones you used to make her wear?" Now that really got us to laughing! Remember these?



Jacque was terrible about taking the time to tie her shoes and when she grew out of the Velcro shoes it was a constant battle between us. When I found the curly laces it solved our problem...they didn't need to be tied! I remember at one open house at school the teacher told me, "I have no problems at all with Jacquelyn. She's a wonderful student and such a sweet little girl. If I could just get her to tie her shoes!" I couldn't have agreed more. I could just hear the other kids at school whispering to one another about my baby girl..."see that girl over there, she NEVER ties her shoes!" as they rolled their eyes to the back of their head. Jacque has always marched to the beat of a different drummer when it came to clothing. Perhaps she was just making a fashion statement! When she was little she changed clothes all day long and it was usually something straight out of her brother's closet or drawer. Yep, she liked his clothes better than hers and if it was winter she wore tank tops and shorts. Summertime? Expect to find her in a sweat shirt, blue jeans and cowboy boots. I did more laundry in those days than I care to remember. She had another odd trait too. She hated the bed sheets. Well, maybe she didn't hate them, but, she did love taking them off the bed. Everyone's bed! It drove me crazy! She even took other people's sheets off their bed. I remember one day I picked her up at a friend's house after a play date and the mom asked me, "Why does she take the sheets off the bed every time she comes over?" I had no idea then and I have no idea now. Maybe I should google it one day. There might just be some hidden meaning. Who knows!?

In any event, all of them will be starting school on Monday. Two in college and two in high school so I guess it is appropriate that Leighton will start school in his new grown up shoes and thankfully, Jacque has learned to keep her shoes tied, lol!

Until next time...

Lost in Translation

I should start this post by explaining the title. It is an attempt to explain what happened at our home in the wee hours of the morning today and also my hope that in the telling of this story that it will not lose it's eventual hilarity.

Around 5:00 this morning there was a very frantic knock on our front door. No, let me correct myself...it was frantic banging and yelling. I woke up and asked David what it was and he said, "someone is at the door." Duh! I don't think too clearly when I first wake up! Anyway, as we both made our way to the door Cameron had already answered it. It was still dark outside and all I remember is a lady yelling and I heard the words "fire" and "old man". As I looked out I could see a blaze across the street and I quickly turned around to grab the phone to call 911. As I turned around, the rest of the family was behind me as we were all now wide awake. I didn't realize the lady at our door was a neighbor from down the street. I don't know what I was thinking at the time...I actually don't do so well in times of crisis. I kind of have a tendency to pant and hyper ventilate! I guess I thought that someone was driving by, saw a fire and was looking for someone to call the fire department...which I did. The 911 operator informed me that it had already been called in and that she had just seen the fire truck pass by on their way.

Now, here is where I have some explaining to do. I should explain that we are not a 1950's type of family who slumber peacefully every night in our pajamas. So here we have AT the door and tumbling OUT of the door people in their t-shirts and underwear, tighty whities and totally nude! You see, some of my children are not very modest and upon hearing the screaming and panic this morning one among us had actually stepped out on the front porch wearing only his birthday suit and that SOMEONE was none other than our very own Bubba! and like me, he had heard the words "old man" and "fire". Knowing that we have a very dear neighbor across the street I guess he was racing out the door to save him. In the confusion, I thought she was saying that there was a truck on fire and there was an old man inside. In any event it took Bubba a couple of minutes to realize he didn't have any clothes on! As I put the phone back on the charger and turned to face outside I saw his very bare bum! He must have realized it at that moment too because he turned around and said, "Oh, crap, I need to get some clothes on!" Meanwhile, Cameron was standing at the corner on her cell phone with a 911 operator in her t-shirt and underwear! Sheesh!!

Eventually we figured out what Norma (the knocking neighbor) was saying. She had heard the fire when it started and called it in, but 20 minutes later still no fire truck. She had been trying to wake our other neighbor who lives in the house next door to where the fire was because she was afraid his house was going to catch on fire. The bedroom where he and his wife sleep was very close to where the fire was. I am sure she was having a difficult time getting him to the door because he wears hearing aids which I doubt he sleeps in. In defense of the fire department, they are a volunteer force and most of the time when a fire occurs they are called from home and that is why the response time is a little longer than usual. David did manage to wake our neighbor and his wife to alert them, the fire department arrived and quickly doused the flames but it was pretty scary! No one was hurt but our neighbor did lose one of his trucks and possibly a second truck parked next to it. His carport has some damage too, but thankfully no one was hurt.

When we got back inside everyone decided they were going back to bed (except David). That was easier said than done...we were just a little hyper. Leighton came in my room and got in bed with me and he said, "man, Mom, I could just see Bubba on the front page of the newspaper with no clothes on holding an old man in his arms. The headline would read "ELDERLY MAN SAVED FROM FLAMES BY NUDE BOY!" Bubba's take on this? "Man, I'm mad...I thought I was going to get the key to the city!" Uh, I don't think so!

All is well and thank goodness for alert neighbors. I just hope everyone was as distracted to Bubba's nudity as we were but somehow I doubt it!

Until next time...

Congratulations Stacey Shay!

Houston Rockets Power Dancer,
3 years in a row!
We knew you would do it!

What would you do?

I was grocery shopping today at Kroger. As I walked down the chip/soda aisle I passed a woman who was trying to get the lid off of a can of Pringles. I thought to myself "hmmmm, wonder why she is doing that. Is she trying to see if they are sealed?" As I walked over to the dairy section I continued to watch her as she took out a chip and ate it? WTH?! I thought. She stood there a little while, holding the can, as if she was trying to decide if she liked that particular flavor. I suppose she decided they were worth the dollar as she placed the can in her basket. But, wait...she wasn't finished. I guess she decided she didn't actually want to purchase the can that already had a chip missing, so she put it back on the shelf and got another (leaving this one intact.) Can you imagine? I wanted to say something sooooo bad. The only reason I didn't is because she was an elderly woman. I suppose I should have told someone in the store but I was so stunned!

Last week when I was in Walgreens shopping one of the other customers struck up a conversation with me. She told me that when she was shopping at Sellers Brothers (another grocery store) that there were customers in the store that were swapping the large or extra large eggs out with the medium eggs that were on sale that week. She said, "Now I nose how other people are keeping ahead!" Geez, who knew the groceries we buy were so manhandled! I really can only imagine how difficult things must be for those who are surviving on social security alone. Makes my heart break!

On a happier note...I got carded today! Isn't that so cool! Well, it turns out that they card at Kroger if they think you are not over 40, but still...I told the cashier he could be my new best friend!

Until next time...

Tagged for a MeMe!

I was tagged by Carri at Sixteen Sisters to do a meme as follows:

The Rules:
1. Link to the person who tagged you. (See above.)
2. Mention the rules on your blog. (Here they are.)
3. Tell about six unspectacular quirks of yours.
4. Tag six fellow bloggers by linking them.
5. Leave a comment on each of the six blogger’s blogs letting them know they’ve been tagged.

Fellow bloggers I am tagging: (hope they play along!)

Laura
Tedra
Cassi
Lianna
Jill

Let's see what quirky, unspectacular things we can uncover!

1. I carry (in my purse) a list of the winners of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. I would really like to read all of them but haven't gotten very far along on reaching that goal. Unfortunately, our library has very few of them. In fact, on a library visit I could find not one on the shelves. Isn't that pathetic! I suppose if I ever get serious about this endeavor I will have to break down and buy them or find a better library.

2. I hate public restrooms! If you ever see me in one don't be surprised if I have my shirt over my face. I can't stand the smell!

3. I have a serious pen fetish. This one goes way back. I'm kind of picky about pens I use. I guess it stems from the days of copying things down. When I was in middle school I spent my lunch hour in the library feverishly copying quotes out of Bartlett's. I collected them! I also liked to transcribe albums. Even going as far as copying down the words from the Nixon/Kennedy debates from an album I checked out at the downtown Houston library (now that's a library!) It's all about the way the ink flows baby!

4. I (like Carri) have the problem with leaving my house for a trip without cleaning every nook and cranny. The refrigerator, polishing furniture, hell, once I even organized my recipe book. I'm getting better though...really, I am!

5. I have a little bit of a problem with throwing towels out. Seriously, I have some towels that are about 25-30 years old! We use them as hair towels but honestly you could watch TV through them.

6. And finally...oh, yes, I could go on...but I won't bore you any longer. Last unspectacular quirk of mine...I would love to own and operate a petting zoo. It just keeps getting weirder, right?

I'm voting for her!

I told you this election was going to get interesting...and funnier too! I saw this over on Becker's blog. Watch it...it's too funny!

See more Paris Hilton videos at Funny or Die

And, just in case you are wondering...no, Becker is not a personal friend of mine. I just stalk him. Well...I'm not the only one! Other people do too! I stalk him because he is amazingly talented, funny, cool, hip, likes baseball and poker, loves his nephew and he's cute too...so there! Plus, he found this hilarious video and I think you should watch it now! :-P

On another note, why are they talking about John Edwards affair on Nightline? Seriously...Nightline!?! Oh, Ted Koppel, where are you?

There's a new kid in town...

It's that time of year again! David and Leighton picked up a goat today north of Brenham. Isn't he a cute little guy! His name is BAAAAA-B (that's pronounced Bob). heehee!





Well, actually, he's not a kid...he's a wether. Do you know what a wether is? It's a castrated male goat. Now, see, you learned something new today!



Ever wonder what the inside of a goat's mouth looks like?



Well, now you don't have to wonder anymore!



I don't know why he settled right down once David took over. Maybe he heard about the afternoon massage sessions!

There are lots of new animals in the barn as we gear up for our fall show. These cute little kittens live at our barn too. Aren't they just the cutest things ever? If you would like to have one, let me know. They will be ready to leave their mother soon. You do want one, don't you?!????





Momma kitty...





Stick around...some day I am going to tell this little guy's story.

Stirring the pot...

Today, because I was terribly bored of all the talk of Edouard, I switched over to a news channel and caught a little bit of political news. Pretty damn funny if you ask me. I caught a couple of clips of John McCain and Barack Obama bashing one another. Oh, this one is going to get interesting. Points scored by McCain today as he took jabs at Obama regarding his comments at a St. Louis town hall meeting. Obama suggested that steps such as inflating tires to the correct levels could make a difference. Now, I'm sorry but while, yes, it may be true...you have to admit it's pretty damn funny! I do know that posting something political here I run the risk of being bashed myself but I usually do have an opinion about EVERYTHING! So, in the spirit of "who's blog is this anyway?" I'm going out on a limb. I kind of can't get past this anyway:



Response from the Obama camp on this one was that sometimes he puts his hand over his heart when the national anthem is playing and sometimes he doesn't. Hello! When you are running for the Democratic nomination or for president you might want to try to remember to do it ALL of the time! Being a Photoshop user myself I checked out the validity of the e-mail that the above photo was a part of at snopes.com and yep...it was true. Not necessarily that he REFUSED to put his hand over his heart but, yeah, well...he forgot. Oops! Check this out though (pause the playlist over there on the right and listen to this):



Have mercy...who the hell is that singing?!