Winter won't leave

Sometimes, winter is nice.

Where there is snow you can go out and play in until Scotch wears out!



Where twenty year old young men love to pelt anyone in sight with snowballs!



Where eleven year old boys play until they are soaking wet!



Then? This happens...



Winter thumbs its nose at you.



And branches start plummeting out of trees.



Not nice, winter. Not nice.

Actual Conversation with My Husband

Just now...

Him - You know what I would do if I get that job?

Me - Buy me something nice?

Him - (Nods) A new computer.

Me - (Eyes light up) A REAL computer? Or one of (gestures at PC in my lap) these?

Actual Conversation with My Husband

This morning -

Me - If I'd have known Jesse James was so easy, when we saw him at the fair last year, we could have invited him back to our house. Nudge, nudge. Wink, wink.

Him - Then we could have been in the tabloids.

Me - Yeah! Then we could have been rich!

Wallpaper

kmkat wants to see my computer's wallpaper.

Here it is.



This is probably in the top three of my favorite photos. The main reason being that my husband never smiles in photos. (Most of the photos of him also include closed eyes.)

Love you Pumpkin!

Birds of a feather

The Commander went to the store last night to stock up for Snowmageddon '09.

Today, while he was in class, I decided to stop by the store and get a few more things. Just in case.

He called me on his way home and, surprise!, he had stopped at the store as well.

Here's where it gets creepy.

I bought a gallon of milk. He bought a gallon of milk.

I bought two bags of chips. He bought two bags of chips.

I bought spiral mac and cheese (we never buy spiral). He bought spiral mac and cheese.

I bought Pepperoni Pizza Lunchables. He bought Pepperoni Pizza Lunchables.

Weird.

First day of school

They grow up so fast.

What's up, chicken butt?

The Commander is in Kansas tonight so it is just me and The Boy holding down the fort.

When he called from Oklahoma earlier today, he said, "IT'S HOT HERE!"

It hasn't gotten very warm here in Iowa yet. It did get into the 90s for a couple of days and The Commander thought it was necessary to turn the AC on. (I called him a wimp.) It hasn't gotten that hot again. Right now it is in the mid 60s. An hour or so ago, I was sitting out on the deck reading a book and watching them bale hay in the pasture behind us. I was thinking about how cool the weather was and how I needed to go make some coffee. (I had some White Chocolate Raspberry ground at the coffee shop today.) Then I said to myself, "Woman. That is all you need. Up all night peeing." Then I thought how maybe I could make some tomorrow morning and sit out on the deck enjoying the weather, but I remembered I'm not a morning person and maybe mid-afternoon coffee might be better.

Then I watched the weather forecast. High in the low 60s tomorrow. Good. 70% chance of rain. Not so good for sitting on the deck. I may just open all of the windows and pretend to be outside.

__________

Speaking of chilly. The city pool is open for the summer and evidently, the water is a titch cold. Doesn't stop The Boy. I dropped him off about 4pm today and told him I was headed to the library* and would be back around 5pm. I went back to pick him up and decided to let him stay a while longer. All of the other kids had gone home for supper and he was the only person at the pool besides the five life guards. They were taking turns throwing diving rings and things for him into the pool. I opened the windows in the car to catch the breeze, picked one of the books I checked out at the library and read for an hour. It was nice.

__________

We are quickly filling up our calendar for the summer. I'm hoping to make it to Oklahoma sometime, but I don't know when. The Boy is taking golf lessons this month and swimming lessons next month. He is signed up for the library's program for this month too. Later this month he has Cub Scout Camp and then Church Camp. Luckily, both are over at the lakes and we will be able to camp over there while these are going on. We are going to spend a few days before Church Camp starts at the RV resort too. Then in August, the four of us are headed to The Black Hills, South Dakota for a real, genuine, honest-to-goodness, family vacation!!! It has been forever since we had one of those.

__________

*It is possible that I will be a part-time librarian come July! Two part-time jobs around things I love - food and books.

Sweet.

Sharing some time.

Us old farts bought a time share in a resort.

We went over today to get our photo IDs and our parking stickers and to show The Boy the lay of the land.

We are really looking forward to parking the RV there this summer. They have paddle boats, miniature golf, horseshoes, shuffle board, basketball courts, tennis courts, an indoor pool, a HOT TUB, board games, an arcade and all around good times. They have kids' nights with crafts, movies and the ilk. It is going to be so much fun!

Here are some photos of the big play ground.

They have HUGE tires stacked up for the kids to crawl around on. Since there is still snow, The Commander had to be his 12 year old self and throw snowballs at people.



I got hit by the shrapnel on this one.







__________

Now I have to go look up the Spanish word for butter because the waiter at the Mexican restaurant where we had supper knew just enough English not to know what I was asking for.

__________

P.S. The Spanish word for butter is mantequilla.

Military Ball 2009

(The lighting in this place left a lot to be desired.)

How well does my husband know me?

He was reading the questions off of my blog and wouldn't let me have the computer to record his answers as he gave them. So here are the answers to the best of my recollection. There may be some embellishment, but not much.

1. Sitting in front of the TV, what's on the screen?
Some stupid sitcom. Probably The Big Bang Theory. (CORRECT! But it's not stupid.)

2. You're out to eat; what kind of dressing does she get on her salad?
Blue cheese. (CORRECT!)

3. What's one food she doesn't like?
Any good vegetables like peas, green beans or lima beans. Me - I like green beans. Him - I mean green peas. (CORRECT!)


4. You go out to a bar. What does she order?
Bloody Mary or a Slippery Nipple. A Buttery Nipple. (INCORRECT! A margarita. If I go to the Biting Sow, I would get a Buttery Nipple.)

5. Where did she go to high school?
Coweta High School. Go Tigers! (CORRECT!)

6. What size shoe does she wear?
I don't know what size shoe you wear. (CORRECT! He doesn't know what size anything I wear.)

7. If she was to collect anything, what would it be?
I don't know what you would collect. (CORRECT! I don't either.)

8. What is his favorite type of sandwich?
Chicken Salad with grapes, raisins, and pomegranates. (ALMOST CORRECT!) Me - Chicken Salad with Fruit Salad in it? Him - Yeah. (Chuckles) And nuts. Chicken Salad that has been tampered with. (VERY CORRECT! And he can't stand it.)

9. What would this person eat everyday if she could?
Your mom's Banana Pudding. (CORRECT! Also, donuts.)

10. What is her favorite cereal?
You've got 17 boxes in there! Probably honey cluster crunch. Me - Honey Bunches of Oats with almonds? Him - Yeah. (CORRECT!)

11. What would she never wear?
A dress. (CORRECT! I will if needed, but I even wear jeans to church.)

12. What is her favorite sports team?
I don't think you have a favorite sports team. (CORRECT!)

13. Who will she vote for?
We have the same answer. (CORRECT! Or will we?)

14. Who is her best friend?
Lynette (CORRECT!)

15. What is something you do that she wishes you wouldn't do?
Spend so much time on the History Channel. (CORRECT! Oh how correct.)

16. How many states has she lived in?
Three - California, Oklahoma, and Iowa. (CORRECT! And evidently, he is counting his time in Texas (two years) as living there. I think of it more as a temporary thing.)

17.What is her heritage?
French. (OUI!)

18. You bake her a cake for his birthday, what kind of cake?
Any. (CORRECT!)

19. Did she play sports in high school?
Softball, track, and basketball. (CORRECT! 4th place in State in Discus my Freshman year!)

20. What could she spend hours doing?
Sitting on the internet. (CORRECT! Or reading.)

21. Does she belong to any women's organizations?
You don't belong to any women's organizations. Wait. Your book club. Me - And...? Him - Oh, Presbyterian Women. Me - And my bowling team. Him - I don't think that counts.

How well do you know your husband?

Judy did it so I thought I would too!

1. Sitting in front of the TV, what's on the screen? History Channel, History International, The Military Channel, or The Beverly Hillbillies. If he's watching a movie - Phantom of the Opera. According to my friend Craig, that's how we know he's gay.

2. You're out to eat; what kind of dressing does he get on his salad? Blue cheese

3. What's one food he doesn't like? Tomatoes

4. You go out to a bar. What does he order? Corona with a lime or a Bloody Mary

5. Where did he go to high school? Armstrong High School. Go Tigers!

6. What size shoe does he wear? 12 wide

7. If he was to collect anything, what would it be? Anything with Harley Davidson on it. Oh wait, he already does that.

8. What is his favorite type of sandwich? Reuben

9. What would this person eat everyday if he could? Pizza

10. What is his favorite cereal? Grape Nuts with half and half. (blech)

11. What would he never wear? Sandals

12. What is his favorite sports team? Iowa State Cyclone football

13. Who will he vote for? That's between him and the vote counting machine. (I know (boy how I know), but I'm not saying.

14. Who is his best friend? Outside of this house, Richard.

15. What is something you do that he wishes you wouldn't do? I spend too much time on the computer. (Oh yeah?! Well, he won't replace the damn toilet paper!)

16. How many states has he lived in? Three - Iowa, Colorado, and Oklahoma

17.What is his heritage? Scottish, English, and German.

18. You bake him a cake for his birthday, what kind of cake? Yellow cake with chocolate frosting

19. Did he play sports in high school? Football

20. What could he spend hours doing? See question #1. He also likes to be outside puttering around in the yard, but he really loves to be on his Harley.

21. Does he belong to any men's organizations? Veterans of Foreign Wars

I thought it was funny...

The other day I looked out of the front window to see The Commander with the garden hose spraying weed killer.

Me - How's it going?
Him - I need a longer hose.
Me - THAT'S WHAT I SAID! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

'Cause I'm funny that way.

Dear Husband,

When you call me at work and ask if the pants on top of the dryer (folded) are clean and if the sweatshirt (not folded) in the dirty clothes basket is dirty, I'm guessing you are bored.

Love,
Your Wife

P.S. Thanks for doing the laundry. Please use dryer sheets.

Greetings People of Sao Paulo, Brazil!

I have had visitors from Brazil! How they got here, I don't know, but welcome!

__________

They come in threes...

1. Carpel Tunnel

2. Broke a crown

3. ?????

I had my thyroid tested and it is okay. So, I guess the question would be, why am I so tired, gained so much weight, and all that?

__________

The Commander has to get his deviated septum repaired next week. He also gets to have his tonsils out the same day! Poor fella. I'll take good care of him.

__________



__________

God heals, and the doctor takes the fee. - Benjamin Franklin (1706 - 1790)

Update on the Commander.

The Commander is finally done with Ft. Bliss! He came home last Thursday night, but this morning he headed out to Camp Robinson. Boo. Hiss. Luckily, he will only be there until Thursday or Friday. Then he should be home FOR GOOD!

People have asked if he is getting out of the Army once he gets home. I don't really know. More than two years ago he told me he was retiring as soon as he had completed the assignment he had then. But nooooo. He ended up applying for the Command position of a Unit in Kansas and got it. That's when my troubles began. Army Strong. One Team, One Fight. Hooah. Etc.

I think he is waiting to see if he gets promoted to Colonel this Spring. If he does (cha-ching), he probably will stay in a little while longer. If he doesn't get promoted, he will probably retire sometime next year.

I will tell you these past two years have been really hard on me. I went on anti-depressants when he first left. Once I got over the hump of him being gone, I went off of them, but when they told him he would be staying another year, the depression came back. It wasn't as bad as it previously was and I managed to muddle through it without chemicals. There were days though, like today, I was thanking the nice folks who invented Miller Chill.

I was also very dissapointed in my church family. (The church you just joined, BGirl.)

I had one couple, just one, volunteer to come to my house and help me out. He offered to help mow (I mow about five acres) and she offered to come and help however she could. She even specifically said laundry! I never took them up on the offer because they live about 20-30 minutes away and I felt bad about them coming from so far to help. But no one else offered anything. They would all make noises asking about him or even how I was doing, but that was it. Empty gestures.

The Commander had to go to Kuwait for a meeting. He was only gone about a week, but it was nerve racking. My Pastor asked me one day how I was doing. I told him the Commander was in Kuwait and I was a nervous wreck. His answer? "That sounds nice." WTH? THAT SOUNDS NICE? My husband is in Kuwait, I am a nervous wreck and THAT SOUNDS NICE? Please.

People kept coming up to me almost every Sunday and saying, "I thought you moved to Texas." Then once when the Commander had come home on leave we had went to chuch. While we were getting ready to leave, I heard the Pastor ask the Commander, "So, did Sherry move down to Texas with you?" WHAT? I'm here every stinking week. I teach Sunday School. I go to Wednesday at the Well. What do you mean DID I MOVE?

So that was it. I rarely go to church anymore. I still go and teach Sunday School when needed, but I find if difficult to mingle with people who really don't give a flying fig. When the Commander makes it home, I will probably go more often, but I'll see.

Am I being petty?

My friend/co-worker, V, used to come mow for me, but he got a girlfriend and I ceased to exist after 5:00pm. My friend, L, came over and mowed some. Thank you both so much.

Our friends, R & D, would have us over for supper and The Amazing Race or Survivor every week. That was much needed as well.

Now I'm getting down off of my soapbox. Thanks for listening.

--------------------------

The Boy squeezed in between my chair and the wall a little while ago and rested his cheek on the wall.

Me - What are you doing?
Him - I really do not know.

Nice.

Ain't happening

The Commander was supposed to be off of active duty this week, but, surprise! surprise!, he isn't.

He is now on medical hold. He tore his rotator cuff in his left (I think) shoulder and is waiting to hear about when/where he will have surgery to repair it.

Sigh.