5-31-09 Schnupfen

Friday, I came down with a bad cold... today I've lost my voice and my runny nose is red 'n raw from running 'n blowing, so I went looking for some cream or ointment or Vaseline or something to ease the pain... all I could find is the 20+year old jar of Mary Kay Night Cream (colored, scented Vaseline)! Scary!!! I don't think they even make this stuff any more... not sure if I should still use it or not...
oh, what the heck...
I think tomorrow I'll head to the drugstore for something "fresh".

5-30-09 QCSO & Led Zeppelin

The QC Symphony Orchestra played Led Zeppelin music to a sold out house, and I was lucky enough to have a ticket! Whoo hoo!! Great stuff!!!

5-29-09 Friday Shoot Out~Water

Thought I would add a few water pix for the Friday Shoot Out!

Maya Tulum, Mexico beach where I studied Power Yoga for 3 summers:

I hope it is okay that this one is "frozen" water?!?!?

Next two are from the Nature Center in Springfield, MO:

I loved the flowering "weeds" around the Finger Lakes, MO:

and the reflection of the clouds and trees:

Yes, the water is actually this color! It comes from a natural spring at HaHa Tonka State Park, MO:

This pond had a chorus of frogs singing:

A cardinal enjoying a splish-splash in some birdbath water...

always makes me smile!

Water from the skies (St. Louis Shaw Botanical Gardens):

Thanks for looking!

Kindest regards~ OM girl

5-29-09 Random

Random layers and textures that caught my eye today...
I often wonder why different things grab my attention on different days...
sometimes it is the grandeur of vast landscape vistas...
other times there are the small things that beg for the Macro lens on my camera.
Hmmmm....?!?!?
The one on the upper right makes me feel like I am looking down at planet earth from outer space! The one on the lower right makes me feel like dancing! I like how they both have a hardness to them that balances nicely with the softness of the two on the left.

5-28-09 Satellite to Cable

Switched from satellite to cable today! YAY!
Cable was not available here when we built our house 3 years ago so satellite was our only option. Mediacom has finally extended their cable service to our neighborhood, so we're all over that!!!

5-27-09 Dandelion Moonshine!

Today was the 2nd siphoning of our
homemade dandelion wine.
After the 3rd siphoning (in another 2 weeks) we will start watching for the final "fall" and then it is ready to bottle and enjoy! Steve, do you have a NASCAR we could borrow to outrun the Moonshine Police?!?!?!

5-26-09

I'm feeling like my Mother's Day roses... old... dry... shriveled up...
but still beautiful in their own way.

5-25-09 Thrills & Spills

At the Memorial Day Criterium, thrills and spills go hand in hand!

The pace car had trouble staying ahead of these guys and gals, and the motorcycle bringing up the rear had trouble keeping up!!! These cyclists MOVE!!!

5-24-09

Today's dinner and dinner guests...
After dinner we taught Dongying how to play Spoons (the card game)...
A delightful evening!

5-23-09 Alien Insectoid

Yikes! A huge red and white alien insectoid landed across the street from our house today! My DH and I were careful not to go outside, lest it eat us!!!

5-22-09 A Bump in the Road

On my morning jog today I kept seeing these bumps in the pavement and wondered what they were all about. It soon became evident... Mother Nature was pushing through! What power there must be in those seeds and roots to push up through the pavement!!! It reminded me of the ruins of ancient cities I have seen in Mexico... how the surrounding jungles reclaim them... and the struggle it is for the locals to keep those jungles at bay! It was a wonderful reminder to me... how powerful the life force is!!!

5-21-09 iPod nano

My DH and DD surprised me with an iPod-nano today! They each have one and love using them when they workout and travel, and thought I might enjoy one too! And it's my fave color: PURPLE!!! Am I spoiled, or what?!?!? Thanks, you guys!
Gotta go download some tunes for tomorrow's workout...

5-20-09

My kitty, Barucha, in her element...

5-19-09 Money CAN buy me happiness!

Today I traded one green ($) for another green (plants) , and I have to disagree, with all due respect, with the person who said "Money can't buy you happiness." My money bought me a whole bunch of happiness today (every gardener knows what I'm talking about!): Coral bells, a money plant, strawflowers, suberbells, innocence, a tomato plant, some parsley and some rosemary. I experienced happiness as I shopped at the nursery for the plants for my small entryway garden, I experienced happiness as my daughter and I spent time together digging in the dirt and planting them, and I will continue to experience happiness every day this summer and fall, as these lovely blooms greet me each time I leave and re-enter my home! Flowers are such a blessing! Such a beautiful gift from God! And what is it about gardening that provides such joy? The promise of new life? Growth? Beauty? Being needed... to tend the plants, water them, prune them, dead-head them? The promise of a harvest? Whatever the reasons are, I plan to linger in my happiness today, and I wish you happiness too... for all too soon there will be weeds to deal with!

5-18-09 Fences

Today I enjoyed watching our backyard neighbors get a new fence installed. With 3 dogs, a toddler and a two week old baby, it will be a Godsend for that busy (and tired!) new mom!

It got me to thinking... about fences... and why we build them.
Not only in our backyards, but also in our lives.
Are we wanting to
~keep things in? (like dogs, children, and grudges)
~keep things out? (like other people, ugliness, strangers, opportunities)
~keep things private? (hiding things we don't want others to see)
~keep things safe? (like our family, our possessions, our sanity, our tranquility)...

Fences separate... and protect...
they have their place and can serve a useful function,
but I need to examine each fence I erect in my life to make sure it is for a good purpose and not detrimental to my life and joy!

What fences have you put up?

5-17-09 Sunday

Today (every 3rd Sunday) it was my turn to count the offerings at church.
This congregation is such a blessing to its members, the community, and to disaster relief worldwide! God bless these Iowa farmers! I feel blessed to worship with them. They are such good, down to earth, kind hearted people... the salt of the earth!

5-16-09 Saturday

A pastel drawing of me as a young girl...
drawn by a grizzly bear.
It's a long story.
It hangs in my parent's house in what used to be my bedroom.

5-15-09 Friday

Drove home from Nebraska to find my DD home from grad school.
Looking through our accumulated mail, we had to laugh that we both get the same catalog.

5-14-09 Thursday

View from the hospital room window...

5-13-09 Wednesday

The view on the inside...

5-12-09 Tuesday

The hospital room number where I spent the next several days, visiting someone special.

5-11-09 Monday

Saw HUNDREDS of these in western Iowa on my drive to Nebraska today.

5-10-09 Mother's Day

Almost as beautiful as the daughter who sent them!
Thank you, my dear daughter!

5-9-09

Mom, I just want to wish you a “Happy Mother’s Day” this weekend, and thank you for being such a wonderful mother! Thanks for changing all my dirty diapers as a baby, kissing all my ouchies as a toddler, sharing your hugs so freely~even to this day, providing for and feeding me (especially your “Yummy Cake” and “Banana Bread” ~ no wonder my nickname was “Butterball”) as I grew up, making me such a cute fairy/princess costume when I was little, sewing me my favorite dress EVER in grade school (the white one with the multi-colored polka-dots!!!), giving me wonderful brothers and a sister, teaching me how to share, creating happy holiday memories, spanking me when I needed and deserved it, putting up with the stray kittens that came around in CO (and I soooooo wanted to keep and feed!) and helping me learn responsibility and a love for all God’s creatures with too many parakeet pets to count, teaching me a good work ethic in my teen years as you yourself worked so hard at the Russell Stover factory, bringing me up in the Christian faith, and being such a wonderful role model of forgiveness and perseverance during the difficult and challenging times of life. You’re the best mom this girl could have asked for, and just the mom I needed! I love you! I’m so blessed to be your daughter! I’m so glad you are my mom! Happy Mother’s Day!

5-8-09

In December 2008 I had my first set of fake nails put on.
In January 2009 I had them taken off... with the resulting
grooves filed into my nails. I was curious how long it would take
to grow them out again, so here is my progress report:

1-12-09


1-28-09


3-26-09


and finally, today, 5-8-09...
there is only a tiny bit of the ridges left at the
very end of the nails, which should be grown out
in another 2 weeks or so.

I don't think I will be doing that again!
I think I prefer the low maintenance, simple, natural nails...
a lesson it took me 5 months to learn!

5-7-09

Ripe for the picking...

There's a saying, "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade!"
In that same vein, I say,
"When Spring gives you dandelions, make dandelion wine!!!"
"Cheers" to Spring, and Sunshine, and Dandelions!

5-6-09

From this morning's walk...
"He leads me beside still waters,
He restores my soul..." Psalm 23

5-5-09 Cinco de mayo

After these scenes from my morning walk today, Mother Nature/Spring Fever finally sunk her claws into me and forced me...

...to go the the local garden center to buy some flowers

to plant in my porch pots! I literally could not stop myself!!!

... y feliz Cinco de mayo!!!

5-4-09

Mmmmmmm.... nothing like the smell of bread baking!

5-3-09

Just finished watching the National Geographic special on TV about this "Ice Baby." What an amazing, amazing find!!! If you missed the TV show on NatGeo, be sure to catch it when they re-broadcast it... or check it out in their latest magazine!

5-2-09

This morning's walk ...was fragrant! ...and beautiful!
Just what I needed!