Where do you find your best buys for school?

Tomorrow is our annual sales tax holiday in the great state of NC beginning at 12:01 a.m. and ending on 11:59 Sunday August 3rd. There are lots of things I am sure I'll need to pick up for both Ryan and Jenn for school this year and some of them deal with technology. They both need flash drives, backpacks, and of course the latest gadget's accessories. Thank goodness I have a smart boyfriend in my corner! He always know that I can find the best buy at www.buy.com anytime of the year. But if you live in NC, this weekend is a great time to get stocked up on those other items, you know, like the latest fad shoes, hoodies, and other outerwear. I need to get my list together ... FAST!

The Pharmacist Suggests Alternatives

Last night I spent seven and a half hours in the emergency room. I had initially gone in to have my ankle looked at since it was swollen and it hurt to move it to the right or left. It felt a lot like a sprain but I didn't remember hurting it. By the time I was seen by the doctor, I not only had an aching ankle, I had a full blown UTI. Apparently the eucalyptus bath to relieve the swelling in my ankle didn't agree with my body. Lovely. Anyway, once I arrived at the drugstore I asked for the generics for all three prescriptions. The pharmacist gave them quick glance and knew right away that the best alternative for one of the medicines was an over the counter remedy. His advice saved me $6.00 and when you are on a strict budget, every savings helps! See, not everyone is out to take advantage of you!

A Sweet Weekend!

On Saturday we met Lisa & Steve in Roanoke Rapids, NC for lunch and to send Ryan off for his summer visit with his sister. Jenn and I headed south for a visiting, relaxing, and some work to earn money for an FFA trip Jenn wants to attend next week. It has been a wonderful visit! We actually got to fix "Mr.D" a home cooked meal, and since it had been so hot, we tried to keep it cool! We enjoyed a delicious pasta salad and a stir-fried squash (yellow and zucchini) and onion dish. We had tried to get all of the work done and dinner on the table before he arrived home from work, but alas, he arrived while we were out getting groceries for our dinner meal. Oh well, perhaps I'll get another chance to surprise him with some scrumptious delight soon!

;)

PS We are really proud of Jenn for sticking to her task! She earned $25 towards her trip and when I asked if she needed help, she insisted on doing it all by herself!

6:00 a.m. comes early!

Tomorrow morning we will rise up from a sweet nights sleep and set out on our adventure for the day. We will travel about three hours north to meet my oldest daughter and her husband. They will be taking Ryan for a two week visit, one of his adventures of his junior summer vacation. He is excited as his sister has given him a list of types of clothing to bring along for some kind of surprise. They will be making a trip to see his brother in the western part of Virginia, and may be doing some hiking, boating, or swimming. Neither one of us knows for sure since Lisa didn't tell me what she had planned for their trip.

Then Jenn and I will head southwest for a weekend of visiting with Mr.D, movies, PS2's DDR, and some odd jobs to earn her money for her next adventure with the FFA Chapter here in eastern NC. It will most likely be more visiting for her than work, but she is excited to be doing anything other than eight hours of color guard routines. Altogether, it sounds like our adventures are a recipe for summer fun! So, I will bid you goodnight, as six o'clock in the morning comes early indeed!

PS Speaking of recipes, I'm looking forward to discovering what someone's special secret is to his famous tuna melt! ;)

My Apologies

The last ten days have found us doing lots of things to keep us busy; work, color guard, movies, friends sleeping over, and a trip to the grandparents house to celebrate a birthday and anniversary. On top of all that I was having a hard time with the carpal tunnel in my wrists; it was aggravating to say the least. When it came time to sit down again and dive into typing after a seven hour day at the computer; I found it just a bit difficult to move my fingers. I'll have more to write about later on, but for now I just wanted to say thank you for stopping in to read my ramblings. It really is appreciated!

We've Got Tomatoes!

Despite the efforts of the natural enemies of the tomato plant, Jenn's plants are now producing its fruit. Check out these babies! Sure they are green right now but in about a week they should be ripe for the picking. We can hardly wait!

With the salmonella scare of late, we've been very careful eat only home grown tomatoes or produce from farmers in our local area. Now we'll have a crop of our own. Mom says they look good, no sign of blossom rot, and they are coming in quite nicely in numbers.

So, it's time to get some whole wheat bread, mayo, salt and pepper ready for that famous tomato sandwich! Thank you Jenn, for deciding to grow something we can all enjoy!

When's the Party!?

Every summer a friend of ours and "Mr.D" write scripts for two murder mystery pool parties. So far we've had a prickly pineapple luau, an 80's rock star gathering, a fashion designer's show (models included), and a pirate's treasure hunt. We've yet to hear what the theme is for this summer's parties will be, but I hope it's not anything to cumbersome like renaissance costumes.

Let's face it, they are far to hot for the summer, and if you get thrown into the pool it could make it a bit harder to rise up from the drink! It would be ideal for a party thrown in the fall of the year. Hey, "Mr.D" do you know anyone with a birthday in October? We could forgo the pool as it might be a bit chilly?

Hmmm ... thinking ... oh, wait, that's not my job! LOL!

Summer vacations ... ahhhh the sound of silence!

My house has been silent for the past two days. No drama, well, not as much. Ryan and Jenn are both off at recreation camp this week with the FFA Chapter from their school. I said not much drama because last night around 11:00 p.m. Ryan called home to suggest that I come pick Jenn up. When I asked why, he said that Jenn (right) had claimed to be sick early in the day, and ended up hanging out with her friend Trish (left) all day. That Jenn had not participated in anything all day. He was worried about my $100 investment in the cost for the camp. I asked that he have Jenn give me a call in the morning so I could check on her health.

Not to sound sarcastic, but this sounds more like a big brother who would have preferred his younger sister had not come along on the trip. However they are both in the FFA and 1/2 of the trip was paid for by her fund raising efforts. So, he'll just have to get over it. I called him back this morning and reminded him that he needed to act maturely about this and enjoy his time at camp. As you see from their goofy picture below, Ryan and Jenn have their good moments!

As for Jenn, she called this morning and said she had "tossed her cookies" and did hang out with Trish for the day. I suggested she hang out some with the students from her school too, not necessarily her brother. This is to be a fun week with her classmates and others from around the state who share the same interests in agriculture, or at least in the FFA adventures. When I asked her why she got sick she said she was upset because her brother's girlfriend had said something to upset her. I suggested she talk to her and get it straightened out as promptly as possible. She is supposed to call me later to let me know how she is doing.

It was apparent she had an attitude, after all, who likes their older brother acting like a parent when you are on vacation?

I left a message on the teacher's cell phone to have her check on Jenn as I was concerned about her health and her participation with the group. I also mentioned why she said she had been sick. I thought I was going to get a break from the drama. So let's see if the night passes quietly.

Where do you buy your books?

About seven years ago I began a collection of a series of books after watching Oprah one afternoon. She was talking about the book titled "Men Are From Mars / Women Are From Venus" authored by John Gray. Being on a limited budget I decided to check out Amazon books online. The prices were great as long as you weren't buying new books. However, I saved lots of money by purchasing nearly new books, or slightly used books. Most of the time the shipping was more expensive than the books themselves. As for this single mom, shopping around, finding good deals, and saving up to 80% off the purchase price of books, definitely works for me!

Family Additions

During our visit in Tennessee we had the pleasure of meeting the youngest addition to Mr.D's extended family, little Miss Madison. Here she is with her mother and grandmother enjoying some "me" time. She is nearly five months old now, and is a real cutie!

Madison's mother and father are planning on adding two more to their happy family of three to make it a full house. The proud parents don't want to wait too long between each addition, hoping that the closeness will allow them more time to enjoy their children. Our best wishes to all of them as they grow and learn together.

It's hard to believe this beautiful young lady is a grandparent!

Isn't it amazing how one so small can inspire such joy?

Madison, dressed in her patriotic outfit, is ready for the fireworks!

Here they are enjoying something interesting on the television for a brief moment in time. Hopefully, these two will enjoy countless more moments together as Madison grows up. It's so nice to have family nearby when you are raising your young family. It's also nice to visit with your grandchildren, shower them with love, and then kiss them goodnight as they return home with their parents.

It was a pleasure to meet you Miss Madison!
See you on our next trip to Tennessee Ü

Modern Technology; Love it or Leave it?

Though many people complain about the advances that modern technology has made in the last few decades, one thing is for certain, it has made many long distance trips more enjoyable for everyone in the vehicle. Just recently we made a trip to Tennessee by way of Georgia, and five of the seven passengers in my van were between the age of fifteen and twenty-three. Though they found things to chat about for a bit, it didn't take long before there was complete silence from the rear. As I turned to see if they had all fallen asleep I saw at least three of them hooked up to their ipods listening to their music, while the other two read books. Ahhh ... the sweet sound of silence truly is golden. ;)

Modern technology; I love it!

Philly or Jersey?

Over the past two months my daughter has changed jobs twice now. She was waiting tables in an Italian restaurant and had been for some time when she felt the need to make a change. She chose a job closer to home, in fact, two jobs which would not end up being as lucrative as the former as a waitress. So, she set out on a quest to make the change again to a better job by filling out both Philadelphia resumes and New Jersey resumes since her home is so close to both areas. I'm not sure where her new job is, but she is happy with it for the time being. One reason, she returned to the one she where she was making a good living. We are both hoping that she will be here for the winter holidays, and she has already put in her request for the time off. I'm really excited for her!

Who Needs Memory Now?

Apparently, I do! After our trip to Tennessee this passed week, we headed home from Mr.D's place to finish out our camping adventure. We were about thirty minutes into the trip when I received a call from Mr.D who let me know I had left my modem to my computer. It's bad enough that I need a dell memory, but now it would seem that I need a new memory of my own. It wasn't bad enough that I forgot it, but my son saw it and thought it was a part of Mr.D's vehicle tracking equipment, and Mr.D thought it was a project he had been working on. So, I didn't feel so bad when they both told me they saw it sitting on the table and didn't think to ask about it.

Now who was it that needed more memory? ;)

PS Thank you "Mr.D" for mailing the modem, it arrived safely today as our USPS promised ... I only had to wait an hour after work for the mailman to arrive! LOL!

Speed or Skills?

In the seventies my parents were involved with a sports car club that would inspire the race car driver in me. When they started they would take part in rallies that involved scavenger hunts. These races allowed any sports car, so my parents dragged us along in the Volvo they owned. It was a lot of fun. My father would drive while my mother navigated the trip. Where most races require speed to win, but this type of race was won by how well the driver's steering racks up points assisted by the navigator. They had to work as a team, driving each leg of the race with great detail. They were equipped with a list of landmarks, distances, and time frames in which to reach their destiny and complete the course in the fastest time. Speeding was not allowed. The course had been mapped out and the timing was regulated, so arriving too soon would cost you points. Learning to read your odometer, maintain your speed, and identify your landmarks became of the utmost importance. I'm sure it helped having lots of landmark watchers along for the ride. Whether you choose a scavenger hunt or a speed skills course, both require speed and skills, just on different levels. I took the faster, sexier, I mean sportier ride!


That's right! I'll drive a 1 litre formula 3 any day!

Replacing Siding from Decades Ago

Our house is undergoing a face lift of sorts. When we moved in nearly four years ago, the landlord had renovated the inside of the house but had not done any improvements to the outside. It's a cute little dwelling but really needed to be updated with its look.

This month he decided it was time to start some much needed repairs beginning with the face lift. He had once told me that if he put siding on the house he would have to raise my rent. I assured him that if he raised it, I would have to look for other living arrangements. This house is all I can afford on my 28 hours per week, but that's another story. He also told me that if he puts in central heat and air he will do the same. My offer remains the same too!

Back to the siding. It is in sad repair, so much so that I was told by a reliable source that it was so old that there might be some asbestos in it. I'm no expert on asbestos, but isn't that what causes mesothelioma? My sources have told me that if the siding contains asbestos it cannot be removed from the building it is on, but has to be sided over in an effort to protect the installer from asbestos particles flying around in the air.

My landlord said the siding was free of asbestos but I am not so sure I believe him. Since the dwelling was probably built in the late 40's maybe early to mid 50's, it could be a possibility. Either way, he decided to replace any weakened boards and side over the existing siding. Whatever works for him.

All I know is that this little cottage of mine is looking good!

Tomato Worms?

Today when I arrived home, I checked the tomato plants to see how they were weathering the hot temperatures. To my surprise I found a beautiful 3 inch worm suspended from one of the first plants. Though its beauty is magnificent, it is a harmful predator to my garden.

I promptly ran inside to get my camera to capture this unwanted visitor. It had eaten all of the leaves off of an eight inch stem of the plant. I checked online to find out that it is what is called a "Hornworm" the common enemy of the tomato plant. One of the sites I visited had a gentleman that collects the worms, so I will check his site out and see why he is interested in these live worms.

For now it is in a container in my kitchen eating on a part of another plant that is not doing so well. It appears to have some sort of root rot or over watering problem. I'll need to look that one up online too!

Progress in the Garden

It's been about six weeks since Jenn finished planting her tomato garden and it's coming right along. You can see from the pictures below how much the plants have grown. If all goes well, we should soon have lots of red, juicy, beef steak tomatoes to share with friends and family. Like all other home grown in NC, these will not effected by the recent recall for salmonella. It's funny how Jenn chose to plant tomatoes, especially since she doesn't like them at all. The marigold didn't seem to grow much at all, but they still produced flowers. Great job, Jenn!

Tomato plants as the garden is first planted.

Those same plants four weeks later.
Wow, what growth!

I wonder if we can get a flower bed planted in the front of the house before the 4th of July?

New Plants for the Patio

On Sunday the kids and I stopped by my parents house to wish my Dad a "Happy Father's Day" and to visit. We brought with us gifts for the patio that they recently had put next to the French doors on the backside of the house. He was so surprised, and this would give him something to do to help keep him active. Both of my parents are enjoying their new patio, and they enjoy the flowering plants they have growing all around their yard. I can hardly wait to see how and where he planted the newest additions. If he hasn't gotten them in the ground before the weekend, maybe we can help.

I know just the person to help me, help Dad get the job done!

Vintage or Ice Age?

My teens are always teasing me about being from the prehistoric ages when the cavemen walked the earth and dragged around their women. They are too funny, or so they think they are! For instance, when a new style of vintage sunglasses comes out, they swear it's entirely new since there is no way humanly possible they could resemble those we wore in years prior to their existence.

Youth. Will they never learn that we are where we are because of our past and that our past is often repeated; even in fashion!

Paraffin or Wax?

If you had asked me a few years ago which I preferred when it comes to the type of substance my candles were made of, I would have given you a puzzled look. But today, I understand them a bit better. My daughter sells candles as a hobby, and when she told me that there was a difference in how the two burned I was surprised. I thought all candles were made of wax. Apparently not. You see if I understand it correctly, wax melts away from the flame and runs down the side of the candle as it is used up, whereas paraffin melts as the flame heats it up and it evaporates as it continues to burn. You need to make sure that your paraffin candle is in a container made for burning this type of candle as it needs a place to liquefy and then harden again after each use.

I love my paraffin candles!

Where, oh where has my vision gone?

Thursday night Jenn and I watched the movie "27 Dresses" and by the end of the movie my eyes were so strained that my vision was blurred no matter what I did. I had been sitting at an angle and squinting my eyes to see the screen, so it's really no wonder I was unable to focus. I guess now would be a good time to consider getting a new pair of eyeglasses to replace the ones I have misplaced. It's not that I need them for work, or for reading, and not for functioning as far as activities goes, but they do make it easier to watch television, and to see extreme details in the tops of tress as I drive down the road. In fact the doctor said there was literally very little change in my vision from what is normal. So, if the fund are available, and I can find a frame I like, it will be time for a new pair of glasses.

A C N E Treatment

When I was a child, no one ever had to tell me to go outside; I went. My four brothers and I played from the time we finished breakfast until the time we had to come in, bathe, and get ready for bed. We would come inside only to eat a meal, go to the restroom, or in case of threatening weather. We spent countless hours running, jumping, riding bikes, sliding, swinging, and swimming. We even spent hours exploring the natural habitat that surrounded us, and conducted our own science projects watching the growth of polliwogs.

We were fortunate to have been raised in neighborhoods where children were primarily safe from danger, and going outside as a group was both safe and common place. Today children are far less fortunate in most areas of the country. What most of those children could use is a good dose of acne treatments, A C N E treatment as in All Children Need Exercise, and I mean more than the constant repetition of their fingers on a game controller. We are raising a generation of children who don't know how to keep themselves physically fit.

Mine are more active in school these days, and those activities include physical as well as mental demands, from FFA SAE projects (developing, planting, and tending a garden) to participation on a lacrosse team (player and manager).

If your child were restricted from outdoor play within the neighborhood with a group of friends, what would you do to insure that their need for physical activity was satisfied? How do we change directions?

Wow! The Patio Looks Great!

The kids and I made a trip to my parents home to see their latest project, the new patio. Wow, what a difference it makes in the landscaping of the back yard. As you can tell by the photograph, it is in natural tones and is complimented by the patio furniture they chose to place in the center. The next part of the project is to fill those pots with flowering plants, and to nurture the growth of the grass around the outside edge of the patio. I have no doubt, that when it is all finished and in bloom, that it will bring them many years of enjoyment.

Men's Jewels

Though some men might like to read about their jewels as a subject of a blog read round the world, I would bet most don't. One such man who loved to show off his jewels, and probably still does, is "Mr.T" from the television show about four misfits trying to make right the wrongs of society. What prompts a man to talk about or wear men's jewelry the way "Mr.T" likes to?

Do you like wearing lots of gold or silver with your suits? How about a simple, but elegant watch that makes a statement about your style? You know, Father's Day is just around the corner. If that someone special is a good boy, perhaps he'll be showing off his jewels right here! ;)

Oh behave baby!

Whole or Term?

A couple of months ago I made an inquiry online to get a quote on life insurance policies. The biggest question I had was which is better to purchase after the age of 50, whole life or term life insurance policy? While whole life insurance seems to be the choice of many at an early stage in one's life, it might make more sense for someone after 50 to choose term life which might serve them better. My concern is that if longevity is predominant in our genes, then why not go for the whole life policy? My great-grandfather lived to be 97, and his daughter, my grandmother lived to be 93. That means if I chose term life it would run out when I am either 72, 77, or 82. Can you do an additional thirty years if necessary, and if so does the cost stay the same? I've not received an answer to my questions, so which one would you choose?