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  • What Up

    Every Wednesday night is Family Dinner Night.
    My niece and her kids come and my mom
    and whoever else is around is always invited.
    One week I make a kids meal with fun food for the little ones,
    the next week their mom gets to pick
    this week she picked Chicken Tortilla soup

    Recipe HERE

    A confession...
    When I am bored I take pix of myself with my phone
    and try to make them look professional.


    If I take the pic looking in the bathroom mirror
    I have to edit out blobs of toothpaste or shaving cream on the mirror.
    There are two in my hair and a few others that I missed.
     

    The Geranium House is in full bloom,

    HERE is what it looked like a few weeks ago

    My nephew comes after school once a week to kick my ass in Wii Boxing,
    sometimes I make him work before we play.
      I transplanted the Impatiens and he tagged them.

    We have fun in the greenhouse.I love my job
    and the folks I am blessed to work with

    Brag corner...
    I love to see Three Amigas all in a row on Top Blog
     

    I lost 10 lbs in the last few weeks

    working out on Wii, at the Y and
    THIS boxing video that I use.

    That is "What Up" here in Hooterville.
    How are you?

  • Scott McCreery


    I was watching
    Heart of Dixie last night on Hulu
    and I saw Scott McCreery sing a song.
    Scotty McCreery makes acting debut on 'Hart of Dixie'- See video


    I liked him, he's adorable but I had no clue who he was,

    (I've never watched American Idol)
      all I could think of was that if he was missing a tooth
    he could be on the cover of MAD Magazine.

    Does anyone else think Scott McCreery looks like Alfred E. Neuman?

    P.S.
    Out of curiousity I just googled
    "Scott McCreery looks like Alfred E. Neuman"
    and found  this video and a few websites,


    Scotty McCreery or Alfred E Neuman

    Scotty McCreery And 7 Other Musicians Who Look Like Cartoons

    and it was on  Totallylookslike too,
    it seems to be a common observation!

  • Finding Neverland in the Attic

    This is a repost ,
    I was just talking to Gabby on Facebook
    and she mentioned the glitter in the attic,
    I love this poem and story.
    I love you too Gabby!

    We kept my best friends children for 2 years
    while she was in long term rehab.
    My mom kept Henry who was 7,
    his sister Gabby, who was 9, lived with us.
    My mom lives in an apartment that was built on the side
    of our old farmhouse for my husbands grandmother years ago.
     so they were able to remain close enough to be together .
    HERE is a beautiful  story of my mom and Henry
    .
    I read this poem and it reminded me of a story about Gabby.

      Light in April

    She tucks a feather behind her ear.
    It's a magic feather, she assures me,
    does two pirouettes and a perfect
    arabesque just to prove her point.
    And now for a bit of fairy dust!
    She reaches into her purse and pulls 
    out a handful. The excess scatters
    in the breeze, the sidewalk glitters.
    That's alot of fairy dust, I observe.
    We have a long way to go, she tells me,
    and takes my hand, and holds it tight.
    Okay: think pleasant thoughts. Ready?

    Poem by@SandraErickson


    One evening towards dusk,Gabby was in the attic,
    I went up the steps to see what she was doing
    She was over by my craft supplies,
      the beautiful golden light at the end of the day
    was filtering through the windows.

     I couldn't see everything she was doing
    but by the way she cupped her hands
    I knew she had a handful of something.
    I was curious so I just watched her from the top of the stairs,

    She looked up and threw a handful of glitter high in the air.


    She watched it dance and shimmer it's way down
    in a swirl of sparkles all around her, to the floor.
    She did that again and again, I was mesmerized
    as I watched her , I believe I knew what she was doing...
    I think she  was in Neverland and her troubles were far away.
    She used my fine, expensive glitter and
    I still find glitter on the floor and in books and boxes to this day
    but for those moments when she was flying free,
    away from all the hard truths that burdened her...
    those moments were priceless.

  • Being Watched

    There are different things around here
    that make me feel like I am being watched...

    Someone hung this old clothespin bag up here,
    out of the corner of your eye it looks like someone standing there.
    I walk through this room in the dark a lot
    and always feel like someone is there.

    Someone in the greenhouse had fun putting the cowboys
    we made for the Poinsettia show around at different places,
    sometimes they startle people.

    And this pic is in the greenhouse

    This one is at the Goodwill in the dressing room at eye level,

    and every single time I go into the dressing room
      and I see that poster I think someone else is already there,
    it's like she is watching you undress.

    I sat outside to watch the show one day after I was done shopping
     waiting for my mom.
    People open the door and then close it right away saying "I'm sorry!"
    then they realize it was not what they thought
    and peek inside to double check.

  • Little Miss Busy!

    Mildoo* watches her little Great Grand daughter
    and she has been a busy little bee!

    She was decked out for Easter the whole week of Easter
     
    She plays with little cousins


    they couldn't wait to get their shoes off, they are just like me!

    She made me a snack, she informed me that it was her own recipe,
    I believe her!

    She picked Buttercups for Mildoo

    We played with play-doh

    I made her a puppy she made the puppy a bone.

    Her best friend is a little cousin who lives across the road
    they play together everyday.

    I busted out my little erasers for them yesterday, they loved these!

    Yep, she's been busy!!

    This is her last year before school, I love to see her play so carefree.
    I remember before I went to school when I was 4,
    coloring and playing,
    watching Romper Room (I was a Do Bee )on TV.
    What do you remember from the years before kindergarten?

    *The kiddies all call my Mom Mildoo,
    her first grand child added doo to the end of every name for a while,
    my sister Sally was Sal-doo etc,
    my mom Mildred became Mildoo and she liked it so she kept the name.

  • Fitness Test and the Gym

    I did a fitness test at the Y yesterday,
    I laughed when he said I was going to do pushups and a plank ,
    I did not know what a plank was.
    Thank God he did not ask me to do a pull up, I can't do a single pull up.
    I had to do as many situps as I could do in a minute, I did 60.
    I only did 15 pushups in the minute
    and held the plank for 30 seconds out of the minute...
    that doesn't seem like a long time but I was holding a lot of weight there.
    I hope to improve all these as I go.
    I learned how to use each piece of equipment in the gym.
    I walked on the treadmill at 3.5 with a slight incline and that seemed to be good.
    If you workout, what do you do?
    If you go to the gym what equipment do you prefer to use?
  • Perspective from the Phone

    I found this photo on my phone, I was sitting at a table.
    I had just taken a pic of something and set the phone down.
    This pic is one perspective of my face that I have never seen before.
    I did not know it was me at first.
    I said "Who's this?"

     
    Every exit is an entrance somewhere else. ~ Tom Stoppard

    If you see the world in black and white,
    you’re missing important gray matter. ~ Jack Fyock

    A penny will hide the biggest star in the Universe
    if you hold it close enough to your eye. ~ Samuel Grafton

  • Happy 8-Track Tape Day and Other Odd April Holidays

    How many of you remember 8-Tracks?

    photo source

    The Eight Track tape recording system was popular from 1965 to the late 1970s. While today it has become an icon of obsolescence, it was a great commercial success and paved the way for all sorts of innovations in portable listening. The eight track tape consisted of an endless loop of standard 1/4-inch magnetic tape, housed in a plastic cartridge. On the tape were eight parallel soundtracks, corresponding to four stereo programs. For many people old enough to have owned an eight track system, it is a technology associated with the automobile and in-car listening. Ironically, however, it was first developed not by the auto industry, but by a leading aircraft manufacturer: the Learjet Corporation.
    Info Source HERE from the Recording History Website

    8-Tracks would continue to repeat until you took it out,
    after a few plays they would slur. Our neighbor went away for the weekend
    with Conway Twitty playing in his stereo,it played til he came home,
    the neighbors were ready to break into his home to turn it off!
    My Favorite 8-tracks were The Eagles,Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Browns
    and Janis Joplin

    HERE is a post with a demonstration of an 8-Track playing.
    see all bizarre April Holidays HERE
    the next few are
    April 12 is Look Up At The Sky Day
    April 13 is Blame Somebody Else Day
    April 14 is National Pecan Day
    April 15 is Rubber Eraser Day
    April 16 is National Stress Awareness Day
    and National Eggs Benedict Day
    April 17 is National Cheeseball Day

  • Joining the YMCA

    A few yrs ago I got a wii to workout and I like it,
    it is a good workout, I love the boxing!
    I box with my nephew and he kicks my arse, he is 7!
    He comes every Thursday night after school to kick my butt,it makes his week!
    I walk and bike and live on the second floor of an old farmhouse,
    I do physical work in the greenhouse too,
    so I get plenty of exercise.
    We eat right and I drink lotsa water
    I am strong, I am not "fit"
    but I can hike up steep hills and walk/bike for miles
    A few yrs ago I lost 70 lbs, gained a few and lost it again
    I get to 250/size18 and there is where I hover,
    my goal is a size 12 and maybe 170 lbs.
    I will never be a size 4, I am not built like that,
    I was a women's size 10 in 6th grade before I was even fat.
    I have always had Fred Flintstone feet and wide hands.
    People have kindly call them "man hands" for lack of a more delicate term.
    Once I made a teeny sailboat less than 1/4 of an inch high
    and the lady I gave it too said in great surprise
    "How did you make this tiny boat with those big fingers?"
    Ha
    Because I have phenomenal dexterity!

    I saw that the local Y  has a Boxinglates class along with
    water aerobics and a number of other classes.
    So I decided to join.
    So me and my man hands are going to be working out at the local "Y".

  • How To Wipe Yourself Properly

    There is a website for everything under the sun...
    and a few other places too.
    Last night while searching the net I came across this one

    How To Wipe Your Butt

    When it comes to universal human activities, nothing is more overlooked
    than post-defecation clean up.
    But does everyone perform this common behavior the same way?
    Of course not. So surely some techniques are more effective than others.
    Here you will find a simple method that will keep your anus

    fresh, clean, and happy every day.
    howtowipeyourbutt.com

    What's the oddest website you have come across?

  • My Testimony

    Because Christ is Risen
    I know ,that I know, that I know
    that no matter whatever happens here in this life
    I will be risen with Christ too
    That is my hope and the one thing that I hold on to
    that hope has gotten me through all the storms of life.
    it gives me strength to press on
    it calms my fears
    it lights the darkness
    it eases my burdens
    and lets me rest

    When I was little and hiding because I was afraid
    of my father's rage I thought about this hope
    the hope I have because Christ conquered death
    and a calm peace came over me
    I thought this life is what it is
    but nothing can take from me from the hope that I have in Jesus
    on that day Jesus became more real to me than all the pain and sorrow I knew
    because I understood that it could not touch my spirit
    nothing that this world could do to me could change that
    it may be the simple thoughts of a child, simple faith
    but that faith has remained
    and it is still what I know that I know


    Photo source HERE

  • For Sandra

    My friend Sandra (@SandraErickson) wrote a poem for me and posted it.
    I can't even begin to express the feelings I had as I read it,
    it was love poured over me and it touched my soul.

    written for @seedsower by Edgar Crane
    and inspired by her encounter with those dumb-ass boys at Walmart.

    NPM #5

    For Beth, Suffering Fools, Lightly

    My darling disregards all Philistines,
    a Goddess of generous heart and mind;
    what cares she if some are thoughtless and mean
    spirited; they are truly fools and blind

    to the perfection of her curves, her smile -
    those luscious lips, the sparkle in her eyes.
    She's all woman each step of every mile:
    strong and beautiful, sweet and kind and wise.

    Let me defend and hold you in my arms.
    Oh,let me be your champion, employ
    my devotion, I'll keep you safe from harm
    Forget them she whispers, they are but boys

    and you and I have better things to do;
    Oh, Beth, you are my darling and I love you.


    When we were in Jamaica on a mission trip,
    way up in the hills of St Elizabeth working at a school for deaf children
    we learned a song at the church we went to
    and I often sing it when I feel blessed.

    I am blessed
    I am blessed
    Every day that of my life I am blessed
    When I wake up in the morning til I lay my head to rest
    I am blessed
    I am blessed

    My niece and I made a little audio clip of this song,
    for Sandra as a thank you for the
    most beautiful poem, I truly am blessed with extraordinary friends.
    It's not the best quality recording and I am not a great singer
    but it is from my heart.
    Thank you Sandra, I love you too, you know I do to post this clip!
    MUAH!

  • Dumb-ass Boys in Walmart

    Late last night I went to Walmart, some older boys (maybe 19-25)
    were walking behind me discussing which one would have to f--- me
    if I was the last woman on earth,for the sake of humanity.
    (as if I would want to procreate with any of them)
    I said to them
    "Thank God, I am through menopause"

    I posted this on Facebook from my phone last night right after it happened
    and I loved the reply from Krissy_Cole
    (anyone remember her? I miss her here!)
    "I would have definitely told them that the laws of both natural selection
    an supply and demand would actually make it your decision,
    then look directly at their crotches an declare:
    looks like we are going to die.
    "

    There were a lot of other great suggestions too,
    What, if anything, would you have said?

  • Helping Aunt Bessie

    I babysat my little niece Luci last night,
    we went out to make a few Easter Planters.
     
    Luci blended right in with all the colors

    She was funny the way she figured out what I was doing
    she picked out a container and checked it out

    and then she made her own arrangement

    while I worked on mine.



  • Busy Bee...th

    There is no end to the work in a greenhouse in spring
    Sowing seeds

    transplanting

    and now making Easter Planters


     I can never get my planting fingernail clean

    and I always have dirt in the crease in my neck

    but I am happy!
     

  • Amish Boys

    We were in Lancaster County yesterday,
    These little boys were outside enjoying the nice day.

  • I took a shower with a friend...(Spider Pic)

    and them put him out on the roof naked and wet.

  • How has Xanga changed or impacted your life?

    I have answered similar questions and posted a few different times
    about what Xanga means to me
    but when I saw this was the featured question
    I wanted to answer it.
    Xanga brought the outside world to me
    and gave me friends from across the country and all around the world.
    Some of the best friends I have ever known
    have come to me through the pages of Xanga.
    Thank you @John, @Marc, @Dan, @Bob, @Eugenia
    and the rest of @thexangateam
    for providing this site for us to come
    where we can meet others and develop our friendships.

       

    I just answered this Featured Question; you can answer it too!

  • Hate on me cuz I'm fat

    I posted before that I was walking in front of two women
    and one said to the other
    "I would rather have cancer than be that fat"
    I turned around to look at her and she was smoking and I thought
    I hope those words do not come back to bite you in the ass.

    This is my conclusion as to why people are so hard on overweight people
    No one truly wants to be fat
    and in turn they do not like fat people because fat people represent that.
    Even fat people do not like fat people.

    Everyone is afraid to get fat and they take it out on fat people.
    There are worse things to be than fat, just saying.

    What do you think,
    why do people dislike overweight people so much?

  • A Little Greenhouse for a Little Boy

    My nephew is in first grade it was his dream to have a little greenhouse
    and call it "Blooms"
    which had a double meaning since it is also his last name.
    He wants to help raise food for his family
    and maybe earn some money.

    His dad and my husband built him his greenhouse
    and he loves to sit in there with his plants.

    I asked him what he likes to watch grow and he said
    "the squashes", he's so cute!

  • Local Produce Auction

    We grow extra plants for a local produce auction,
    the auction house is situated in the middle of fields in an
    Old Order Mennonite Community

    and the drive there is lovely!


    We took plants there on Monday and here are the pix to prove it.

    We find empty carts

    My Husband Dave unloaded the plants


    I tagged them


    People walk around looking at the items up for bid


    The auction starts

    They have a food stand

    Modes of transportation for the Old Order Mennonites in the area

    Here is what I look like after a day of greenhouse work
    which includes unloading flowers at the auction and transplanting seedlings.

    It is a busy spring, with a lot more work to do!

    I wrote about this produce auction before...
    Local Produce Auction
    She's Calling the FBI!
    Mennonite Boys Being Bad on Thanksgiving 

      HERE is a blog someone else posted
    about the Kutztown Produce Auction

  • Photos of Doubles

    I saw these men last week,

    I love to similar images,
    I've posted these before

  • Scenes in the Greenhouse

    Pansies

      My nephew Joe watering plants

    Greenhouses

    Dave and Cider transporting Pansies

    Ranunculus

       

    Primroses
     

    Planters

      Impatien and Begonia plugs to be transplanted
     

    Greenhouse full of seedling trays I have sown

  • Milkcap Smile

    I love to  find faces in things,
    my husband found this one on the milkcap last night

     

  • Going to see JONAH!

    Today my niece and two nephews and I are going to see the play
    JONAH
    at Sight and Sound Theater in Lancaster,PA.

    It is part of a day trip with their Christian school,
    I am driving them there and back.
    I do not especially enjoy plays but they will never forget
    this phenomenal production!
    Sight and Sound is an amazing experience and I am so pleased that
    I can share this memory with them.

  • Stinkin' Autocorrect

    I posted a pic on Facebook from my phone that was to say
    "Three day old Mastiff puppy"
    it autocorrected it to
    "3 day old stiff puppies"

    Today I sent this photo to someone in a the text message
    that was supposed to say
    "Pansies in the greenhouse"
    my not so smartphone autocorrected it to
    "Panties in the greenhouse"
    ...only me.

     

    Gotta love autocorrect.

  • A Picture Story of Growing Up

    She grew up a lot on Saturday.
    She has been asking to have some freedoms and her dad let her cut her hair.
    I was privileged to take her on this leg of her journey to womanhood.
    She donated it to locks of love.

  • Clouds Upon the Water

    I took a walk with my mom yesterday
    and noticed that the sky fell on the mill race!