drive

My twice weekly commute to my real job is hardly cause for bells and whistles, nor looked onto with much anticipation.  I find driving itself to be mundane, boring, useless really.  Well, it's not useless, it gets you from point A to point B.  I remember as a child thinking it would be great to teleport yourself instantaneously from one place to another.  I also held the notion that when I was 40 (which I am) we would be flying around in rocketships.  The mind of a child, eh? 

So I drive.  Left turn signal on.  Blink. Blink. Blink.  Pass this enormous tractor trailer that is causing my van to shake and shiver uncontrollably in it's backdraft.  Right turn signal.  Blink.  Blink.  Blink.  Back to cruise control at 70, hands at ten and two.  Blurred images of green whizzing by my windows, unseen, unnoticed, intent only on my destination. 

Blink, blink, blink.  Off the interstate and onto the long winding country road littered with homemade signs telling us to "repent and sin no more" and letting us know that "Jesus is lord".  Farther down the road are crude signs made of rotted wood offering up home-cooking and fresh sweet corn for our taste buds.  Tall white steeples attached to formal churches and not so formal churches, converted buildings offering  us the chance to speak, hear and feel God nearly every mile or so.  Lawn ornaments, old and new, flocks of squirrels, flamingo's and rabbits standing lifelessly in an overgrown yard.  The pigs peering through the thick metal fence at the pile of rotting apples, surrounded by a swarm of gnats.  Longing, waiting for their owners to come and throw a few over the fence for them to devour.  Toppled lawn chair watching upside down for the "one that got away" out over an old wooden pier.  I laugh every time I pass the dilapidated trailers in a make-shift lot with a sign that reads "we sell only quality homes". 

I watch as a small wren flies near straight at my windshield, only to turn suddently, showing me the gentle arc of it's wings and flutters off.  Look left, to a rusted swing set sitting among weeds.  It's still smiling plastic horse askew on a broken chain, a violent crack near it's neck, clearly the cause of it's death.  Forgotten by a child who has outgrown it's pleasure or moved onto a more complicated toy. 

Main street, quiet and sweltering in the late afternoon sun.  Devoid of people, noise and cars.  Families tucked into their quaint homes being cooled by giant metal boxes outside their home.  Instant relief from this unrelenting heat.  Stark metal robots blink their red eyes high above the train tracks in town.  A stark contrast to the green fields below.  Rows and rows of corn, soy and peanuts stood quard over by strong silent white planks, saved from the desolate heat by the barely noticable metal mother that feeds them cool streams of water, spraying a gentle mist through the air and sucked up anxiously by this dry hard clay. 

This is my drive. 

sf6/14/11

avacado's and summer rain

mr. stinky sam on the brink of sleepyville...ainat he so cute?

(he's be cuter minus that diaper)

breakfast in bed...lazy girl!

its' official!  we r rednecks....lol!

of course, sam already was...check out that hair!

my goal this week is to cut out sugar..hello equal!

our trees have arrived!  one pear and one apple from Lowe's.  I think we have a Cleveland flowering pear and a Dodson apple tree.  I have to get a pollinator tree for the apple, not sure what to get but

I know i didn't want a crabapple, which is the only other one that Lowe's had (and it's not on the list for a pollinator anyway)  Now, to dig the holes!

can't wait to see the blooms next year!!!

pretty little dainty flower growing in my yard...just thought it was sweet :)

AVOCADO

So, I was making avacado/corn salad the other day and when i pulled the pit i thought....umm, wonder if i could grow an avacado tree?  Google found me an avacado site that gave me some great info.  seems you can grow a tree but it won't be fruit bearing, it would have to be grafted to another tree which is apparently really really hard to do.  so i'm just going to try to grow a non fruit bearing one anyway, just cause i think it's cool to grow stuff.  I'll keep you posted on the progress!

my still hanging around what's left of my Mother's Day flowers....loving yellow!

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sunday afternoon:

after finally waking up from a post work coma i decided to take the kids out to the pool, then i heard a low rumbling in the distance and saw this in the northern sky.....

about 20 minutes later my front yard looked like this and we had been pelted by dime sized hail....

the chickens had to be rescued from outside (which was basically me with a big beach towel over my head and a laundry basket) and they all found safe haven in the bathroom until the storm was over.

poor things they were huddled against the side of the house!

now, the aftermath of the storm left some very BIG puddles in the drive...

didnt' take long for these heathens to find them...

please notice "ms. i'm wearing a white dress" and where she is standing....

there was apparently something pretty interesting in this puddle?

MUDBOGGING

pretty Georgia moon

post mud puddle fun...all four went into the shower at once!

play-doh fun last night....cutie pie!

hope you had a muddy fun filled sunday too!

blessings

sue

Climb higher

SouleMama (having just had her baby) has many guest writers on her blog this week...check it out here and say "thank you" to your sister-mama's   http://www.soulemama.com/


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she climbs.  all day long.  onto the chairs, the table, the countertops, the couches and chairs.  I pat her bottom, put her down and say "no".  but she goes up again, doing what babies do.  exploring her little world.  so i ask, do i remove her, or let her explore?  do i reprimand her or congratulate her for being so curious?  always a stickler at this age...you want them to explore, but you want to hug them and keep them close and always out of harms way.  she's so industrious getting up there though.  she works hard at it.  i'm almost proud of her :))

two lovel children playing together...these cannot possibly be mine...lol

the three stooges sleep here.  no, just kidding.  emma has decided she like bunking in with everyone and in a way it's good because little Madi gets to sleep in and not get woken up by rambunctious little children running amok.  just for the summer...we'll let it slide....they're so cute when they head off to bed, they all climb in, get their kisses and off to sleep.  the other night i went in to check on them and they all had their stuffed pets lying on the floor next to them, tucked in with THEIR special blankies!  so cute.

good read...if i could get through it.. it's library day today!  a sweet book that will bring back memories of your grandmother's home....read it!

breakfast

while cleaning out our shed yesterday  i found the skeleton of this really yukky big spider!  gross! 

it's kind of cool though and jacobs face is priceless here...doesn't he look, well, a little unsure?  i think he still thinks it's going to wake up and bite him!  i also had a part of a hive i took down.  what a job that was....i have a pile of stuff that has to be taken do the dump now..odds and ends...the previous owner left a dresser in there though that i am going to convert into a potting table...watch for photos of that.  (i know, i promised photos of the other table i am going to redo..it's coming, it's coming!!)

with finishing out the cleaning job, i felt like i had accomplished something amid the massive list of things i have to do.  the parts came for the mower yesterday, so hopefully that will be permanently fixed and in working order.  i'm re plotting my yard plan and shifting things about.  mostly to have things near a better water source.  the pond is so low...i see the turtle almost daily.  we had a tree frog hanging out on our pool yesterday..so funny to watch!

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starting night shift again tomorrow...hubby on call all week and thankfully was home a little bit earlier last night.....kids have been missing him....hoping to have an inspiring day today...found the coolest store at the end of Burkhalter Road..looks like a mattress outlet, but's it's loaded with antiques...the wardrobes and hutches i've been looking for....yippee!!!!

check them out...http://www.dealsfurnitureofstatesboro.com/

have a happy and blessed day!

sue

mess

i'm angry because i just got an e mail from my real estate agent and some client feedback was that our neighbors house was a MESS.  Now our old neighbor and ourselves did not get along so well, but really how could you be so much of a jerk to ruin someone's hope of selling their house by not upkeeping yours.  he apparently had wanted to buy it, so we are left wondering whether he is purposely trying to sabotage any hope of an offer from someone else. 

now my yard needed a cleanup and we took care of that this week so that should be done.  his house has been a constant sore for us ever since we lived there because he NEVER took care of his house or yard. 
here's hoping and keeping fingers crossed he cleans up his act.

blessings
sue

sermons, smoothies and chickens

so today i finally got myself to church.  well, i'm thinking there was definitely a reason (from above) to get me there because the sermon was about having a relationship with God and about how we as a generation are so caught up in materialistic things and constantly searching, searching for something to make us happy.  and you know what? we never do find it.  unless we find Him.  He is the only way we will find peace in our hearts and be truly happy.  it was such a "smack me in the face" light bulb moment as i sat there in church, my arm wrapped around Jacob's shoulder.  it all made sense.  all the things i've been thinking about in the past few months, the getting rid of stuff, the need to be somewhere else, doing something well, more meaningful and closer to earth.  i guess i have somewhat been on the right path then, He's leading me somewhere so it's high time i just trust Him and let Him lead.  Brother Edminston is so funny.  He claims he's a redneck preacher, he's so down to earth and he really makes you think about where you are going and where you are coming from.  He makes you understand that its not about being a member of a church that means anything, it's whether you have accepted Him.  beautiul sermon and really quite meaningful.  i just visited a blog i read daily and she talked about getting "perspective" for her and her girls and how they are going to start volunteering.  because that's what it's about, not what you can attain for yourself...but how you can help others. 

I had something happen to me this week that really stuck in my head about how mean people are to one another.  let's just say i was somewhere and was asked to go with someone.  well, i left after i thought my services were over, and when the person came out of the place they asked me why I had left.  so i said, I'm sorry, i thought that's all you needed me for.  well apparently there was a disagreement between the two and one person wanted me there as a witness.  i geniunely thought the person had been really rude, but i didn't say that to them.  i just kept my mouth shut but i did go talk to the other person and try to make them feel better.  afterwards i thought, i should have spoke up, i should have said something, but i didn't.  it just struck me as odd that someone wanted me to stick up for their rudeness and meanness.  so i make this promise to myself to speak up next time, no matter what consequences it might have for me because it's just not right how mean people are to each other.  if more people were kinder, this would be a better place all around. 
some days i'm the pot calling the kettle black on this one though.  it's been a trying week with the kids and the hubby because well, sometimes that just happens.  i know that's one thing i should definitely add to my prayer list for the week.  patience, patience, and more patience.  Amen.

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emma wanted to make goldfish bowls ( i admit i knew not what she was talking about...can you say google it???) so I did and found the instructions.....everyone made a bowl and then we cut out fishies to put in them

they are all happily swimming along strung from my kitchen curtain rod!

Statesboro hosts a "first friday" event each month downtown.  we went this week, kids had a blast in the firetruck and most especially hopping till they were covered in sweat in the bouncy house.  even little madi got in on the action...they had singers, little games to play...lots of fun!

our first harvest!!!!  yeh!!  huge zucchini, two peppers and 3 pickling cucumbers!

yummy!!

oh goodness...so today we brought the chicks out to check out the yard.  i contained them in a flipped over box for a while, then got brave and decided to let them just peck about in the yard.  and guess what?  they loved it!  the kids thought it was great that they could just walk up and pet them...or poke them...or try to pick them up and needed  more than a few reminders that they were FRAGILE.

we decided on "Coraline Jones" for the black one and "LULU" for one of the yellow one's.

just to show how absurdley funny and "so ugly they are cute" they are...how's this for a closeup???

more feathers' than fuzz. 

this little chick likes to FLY.  she flew out of the pen and then flew up on

the picnic bench.  we prayed she wouldn't doo-doo on danny's shirt!

ms. sombrero had drinking her homemade vanilla/strawberry smoothie.

we also made fresh squeezed lemonade tonight.  i'm thoroughly addicted to that right now.

so delicious.  i buy lemons by the bagful.  i'm thinking i need a tree but the girls at work said

it gets to cold in the winter...but hey!  i could bring it inside right???

three amigo's chalking it up....

hope you have a wonderful start to your week...

blessings!

sue

a military card blog hop

Stephanie Howell (over at me my soldier and our four little chicks) is taking part in a military card blog hop...check it out!  she's awesome! 

http://stephaniehowell.typepad.com/my_weblog/

blessings...be back later!

sue

Memorial Day Fun

Memorial Day was a beautiful hot day..no rain in the forecast...much unlike what we usually experienced in PA!  It seems every Memorial Day it rained and spoiled the fun for our picnic or camping trip..not so here!

We talked with the kids about what Memorial Day stands for and why it's so important and we talked about how Daddy served in the Navy....a special thank  you to everyone who serves in the military...whatever branch...for the FREEDOM you continue to fight for...God Bless!

Jacob gives a big thumbs up to jello cake!!

Emma was attacked by a marshmallow...doesn't she look a little vampire-y????

sam decided just eating them right out of the bag was the way to go for him :)

as did miss madi :))

mama and sammy

DELICIOUS!

nick vs the marshmallow....(nick won)

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CHICKENS

our four little chickies are doing well and growing like crazy!!

they are losing their downy little fuzz and getting their feathers!

all the others are yellow..this is the only dark one.

they are all a little skittish when you pull them out of their cage, but

we just hold them softly,, talk to them, and pet their little heads.

sam has to work on this though, he thinks poking with his fingers equals petting!

we still need to decide on names for them all.

they are so funny...when you walk in the room, they spin their little necks around to see what you are up to!

I was clearing some leaves out behind the shed yesterday and cutting dead limbs down...there were bugs everywhere..i told danny that they would have a field day out there..he said "yeh, good luck catching them later!!"

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squash, cucumbers and pumpkins...growing great!  have two squash growing, and several small

cucumbers...can't wait to harvest!!

prettty purple flowers by the pond....saw the turtle three times yesterday!!!

someone please identify this plants for me..it's woody, like a tree but more like a bush

the bugs love it!!!

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in the words of Alice Cooper...

"Schools out for summer!!!!!"

despite that fact, school will continue here at home for the summer...

emmy and i made our flag this morning (she punched out the stars)

and we hung it on the curtain top so we can say the pledge each morning and

i'm working on daily lessons for the kids to keep them going through the summer

and get ready for school in August.

We have a summer fun list going which includes....going to the waterpark, going to visit a farm

picnics, nature hikes, zoo/aquarium field trips, and lots of other fun.  I'll post pics and keep you updated on our summer travels.  another thing I want the kids to do is write to pen pals over the summer....so if you receive a letter, please try to write back!!!

jacob spied a daddy long legger in the tree yesterday.  he borrowed a branch, went in the house and drew some spiders and glued them on.  he then parked this whole creative endeavor in a vase and is proudly displaying it in his room!  What a creative genius!

HOPE YOU HAVE A BEAUTIFUL, CREATIVE AND HAPPY DAY!

blessings,

sue