Zumba!

Loud music. Intense workout. Nice women. Great instructor. Jump. Shake. Move. Dance. Sing. Clap. Count. Laugh. Reach. Stretch. Roll.

Me? Exhausted.

Crazy Bachelor

It's true. It's a crazy show...."The Bachelor." It's unreal. Literally.

The Bachelor and the chosen women have ridden on elephants, in helicopters, uncovered jeeps on safari in the wild with lions and tigers. They have soaked in hot tubs, swimming pools while wearing itsy bitsy teeny weeny bikinis. They've worn strapless evening gowns and perky sundresses with high heels and sandals. They've had dinners and picnics indoors, outdoors, on cliffs and beaches. This is a reality show. I think NOT!

Is it really possible to fall in love on cue...literally? There are 20 women or so who work themselves into a frenzy for the bachelor. It seems wild that this diverse group of women each work so hard to become the woman that they think the bachelor finds special. Each woman seems to show the bachelor her best. Best everything. Not one woman seems to go to great lengths to make sure the bachelor is the kind of guy she wants or needs in her life.

It's the personalities of each individual woman and The Bachelor that have me mesmorized.

To make this guilty pleasure even more fun, some of my friends on facebook are hooked and entertained too! We are all crazy. We know it. What fun we have commenting and predicting. We understand why our husbands, children and some friends think we're crazy. We understand. We just can't understand why they don't join in the fun and watch with us. Can't wait til next week!

Fun

Changing. Always changing. There's always one. Always there. At our fingertips. Reference. Inspiration. Information. How can we live without our books?

Bookcases

I read that bookcases will someday be obsolete ...thanks to the Kindle and the i-pad. No way. Its taken me ages to get the bookcases in the order that we like! Categorized, organized and accessorized! I love the whole process...progress isn't going to take away the process. It's. way too much fun.

BOO!

We still play hide and seek......even though I'm "it" every time!

Think ahea d

Boots have been my first choice of footwear for a few months now. Warm. Dry. Insulated. Today I chose sneakers. Perhaps a bit premature? I think so.

In The Woods

As we walked along the road, Daisy gave a tug towards the trail we used to take together all of time. I was happy to take her cue. I noted the leaves spotting the trail with much of the snow melted. As we maneuvered the trail, walking in the footsteps of others that had gone before us, with more snowy patches than leaves. It was peaceful and quiet and wet. I had chosen to wear sneakers rather than boots. It was worth it.

Daisy Day

One on one time. Quality time. Daisy and I needed some alone time. We took a wonderful walk along the road...she even sported a leash! She and I loved it...Daisy was walking proud and we were both enjoying the calm. That's the way it used to be. Calm is good. We all need calm.

Remember This?

Grass. Green grass.

Good Old Days

Devil Dogs. Twinkies. On 2 silver trays. Heaven...in the old days. Plain old fashioned junk food from the days before we knew it was junk. It's nice to have a plain old fashioned treat. The adults were the ones who ate them. The kids had no idea that they were a delicacy!

Old School

We said we'd bring dessert.

Shaggy

At friends for a "Ski Week Chili Party".....we were invited with kids and dogs! Biff and I went for the hour drive together....kids and dogs stayed home
Shaggy seemed disappointed.

What's This?

This is our driveway. We haven't seen it for ages. The snow is melting.

The River Runs Through It

Our driveway.

Rainy Day

T.J

Quiet Vacation Day

Vacation Chill

Chiliin'. Watching "Top Gear"...T.J. laughs out loud. This morning, he's hangin'...chillin' watching the funny Brits on the crazy car show. Yesterday, T.J. and Biff went to their favorite 0n- track racing tracks, donned their helmets and raced their cars? carts? to beat their own best times. We all love hittin' the gas...while Grace had er big driving day so did the guys. Those race cars are so much fun. Biff had his own birthday party there with lots of friends there! T.J. had his 12th birthday there with lots of friends. Boys will be boys!

Relax

Or "chillax" as Grace and T.J say.

Daisy and Boo

A Beautiful Day

Just beautiful! As I look out the window I take note of the kitchen chairs...one missing....then I pause and wonder ....am I the only one in this house who pushes in a chair? Oh well.

Cottage Style

At least making our bed doesn't have to be perfect! Shabby or Cottage style? I call it comfortable.

Grace And Our Favorite Pizza Man

My hometown...Grace talked about her favorite pizza place. They still remember us when we go back! The "pizza guy" has known us since way before Grace. He has seen our kids grow up...even though we're long distance customers...."How's Boston?"..."How's Connecticut?"...."Here's the girl with the big brown eyes!" Small-town. Hometown. Nice.

Road Trippin' With My Baby!

Grace drove today....2 hours straight...highways. bridges...traffic. Phew! Awesome girl....and driver. Mom or "wheels Gramma" as Biff called her...would be proud. I this k she may have been watching over us today! Phew! Breathe.

Seemed Like A Good Idea At The Time

Cleaning the Legos in the washing machine seemed like a perfectly genius plan. This was no impulsive thought. Although I may be considered impetuous to some, I also have a compulsive side to me....maybe not a side....a part of a side....a bit of a side...oh alright! ....a tiny tidbit of me that stops to things through. Okay. Maybe not all things. Maybe I could take an extra minute or two to consider the outcome.

That sounds like a plan .....for next time. You see, we have a gazillion Legos in our house. That may be less than the number we had last year at this time ...before the flooded basement.....but a few zillion missing legos can't stop our Lego-mania! It's a numbers game.

Legos in the gazillions take huge amount of little Lego people years to dust and clean the millions of houses, castles, ships and tankers...and even bakeries and beach houses and cars. After our immense Lego collection was reduced by an act of God....and the flood cleanup company....it seemed like a great idea to start fresh. Legos, no longer being an everyday activity, seemed to be crying out for cleaning...maybe it was the little construction men or Harry Potter or the scuba diver or fireman calling to.me...it seemed like a good idea to wash them.

I thought this over...intermittently....for a few months. I bought that mesh laundry bag with the long drawstring months ago. After doing every piece of laundry in the whole house. it seemed like a good time.

This morning I took on the whole Lego army......or one eighth of the battalion anyway. I poured them frm their organized tubs...into the large mesh laundry bag and tossed them carefully into the Maytag.

Did I know the mesh bag would be speared by a Lego tree or broom or ladder...and rip the mesh holes and end up in a washing machine free-for-all?

Oops.

Out of thw House

Today. Lots of ebay work today. Driving T.J to meet friends.dogs for a ride in car, a couple of errands. Out. Dogs out. With me. Windows open. Happy.

Fluffy Not Stuffy

Who's happier than me when the laundry is clean and folded? No matter who does it! Ahhhhhh.

See Biff

See Biff. See laundry. See Biff fold laundry. My hero. My sensitive new age man. We all do stuff. I can paint, mow the lawn, move furniture, use power tools, plunge a toilette, wash dishes and scrub the dickens out of our crazy white kitchen floor. Biff can do laundry, cook dinner, wield an axe, grocery shop, vacuum and bake muffins. We each just do what has to get done. No biggie.

That's just how we do it. Somehow, we figured out what works for us. Kind of. Sometimes we overlap.

I do laundry. Sometimes I can be a bit heavy handed with the bleach....oh....and then there's the matter of the lipsticks. Yes plural. If Fitz didn't eat it, that means it may have been in my pocket ....unemptied...and tossed. inadvertently into the wash. Not once. Not twice. I imagine we're into double digits by now.

Good thing Biff does plenty of work....at the end of our last century, someone thought to call a guy like Biff "hands on." I think my sensitive new age man may just be doing defense!

See Biff

See Biff drive. See Biff drive away. See Biff hit the gas to get out if the house. See Biff very motivated to get to his office "to work." Way back when, pre-parenthood, Biff and I were visiting friends with their new baby. Their first daughter, 2 years old, asked the mom, where does daddy go?" Our friend answered, "Daddy goes on vacation at a place called Pfizer." We all laughed. Then we had kids. Now Biff and I say Biff is going on vacation whenever he goes to work, leaving me home with kids....even if they're not new babies.

See Biff.

See Biff with computer case. See Biff run. See Biff run with computer. See Griff run with computer to his office. On vacation days like this, our house is not quiet. Can I go too? Please. We are all home. All of us...mom, dad, kids, dogs, kitties and goldfish. Snow is keeping us close to home...again. After a weekend of cleaning and working on eBay, I never left the house. Really. I love being home. Although, during vacation and time off from school, it sure is nice to get away. This year we hope to ski some more this week. It's that balance again....balance of time...money....work...family. We all try our best.

It's Snow Suprise

Biff

See Biff work. See Biff work at home. See Biff work on computer. See Biff work hard. See Biff desperate to have quiet so he can work.

PeekaBoo!

Cozy Jinx

He's a cozy cat. He's cool. He's King of our jungle. Or he thinks he is.

The End of a Busy Day for Daisy and Fitz

Scratch Paper

Lots of paperwork to do. That's Boo helping out today. As I reached for paper towels in the pantry today I found a roll that had rolled off the shelf. I wondered how it had gotten into such rough shape. The first 3 layers were in shreads. I knew I was "on a roll" cleaning this weekend with my trusty Bounty Towels..."the quicker picker upper." While Biff and I looked at the roll we realized once again, Boo was helping out. It wasn't that hard to figure out since he left a "paper trail."

Boo In A Basket!

Life. Creatures in our home make life so much nicer. Living. Always different. Always something. Personalities. Living together with our family, our personalities and our animals have lots of personality.

Boo In A Box

We never know where we'll find this Kitty. While in the midst of a cleaning frenzy I found Boo saddled up in the box of Selzer. He loves to be a part of the action ...always. If only he would help me clean. In his own way, I suppose he thinks he does lend a helping paw. He sits in the plastic Hefty bag while I fill it. He takes naps on some clean laundry, warm from the dryer. He also has an affinity for rolls of paper towels and toilet paper. Like everyone else who helps out around the house, I don't want to do anything to discourage him.

My Daisy

Always by my side. Loyal. Loving. Gentle. What a gift for me to have her as my very first dog.

Forget-Me-Not!

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Sweet Puppy Face

That's the cute face. Don't let her fool you.

Longer Days

Daylight. Just a little more each day. I'll take it. Funny how we're teased with a few mild days....and still, the weather report is calling for snow on Sunday or Monday? Good thing we like to ski!

Coffee Break Again?

Fitz can't keep her paws off of my coffee. I'd better start drinking decaf. The last thing she needs is caffeine.

Daisy Looks The Other Way

Whose side is she on?

Lips

Ever since Fitz came to live with us, she became one of the family. As with any other new adddition we all had to adapt and make room for our second Golden Retriever. An adorable Golden with a sweet baby face and a nose for mooching, thieving and loving. The loving is easy. Except for when she becomes desperate. A desperate needy girl is not a pretty sight. She, like all of us, loves to be loved. All of the time. Sure we do. Although she has tested us from the moment the other family left her with us and peeled out of the driveway, leaving only dust and their tire marks as they screeched into gear and hit the gas! No forwarding address. They may have gone into the Witness Protection Plan in order to start a new life, post-Fitz, anonymously. We'll never know but I think they may have changed their phone number just in case. Just in case......Fitz, her new name in our family, made a swift move the first night at our busy, yet peaceful, home. Not a good move as it was the dinner of the "master of the house"...Biff. I knew she had come to create havoc in our home on that night.....as our sweet, gentle Daisy barked to warn us and Biff shouted while running, sliding and tackling our new beast! Food. That's her issue! T.V.'s Oprah says she has food "issues".....but do her dogs? I think not. It's been a few years now...maybe 3? 4? It's all a blur. We all love her. We just can't trust her. In the last week, she has eaten 1. salad from the top of the garbage in the kichen 2. half a stick of butter from the kichen counter can before I could pivot back to her 3. she drank my morning coffee while I answered the phone across the room 4. She shredded one damp paper towel used to dry my hands after washing dishes 5. Don't tell T.J. but she licked the silverware in the dishwasher as I loaded it up.....and Biff wonders why my dishwashwer organization is so random! 6. Potato chip bag left behind in the car 7. My orange juice at coffee table height 8. Coffee grounds that spilled from the Starbucks bag. 9. Red hot cinnamon candy that spilled from car to driveway on Valentine's Day 10. A Revlon lipstick that was under the driver's seat of my car There's no accounting for taste. I still love her......and I still dream that I can change her. Lord knows, the others in the family are hoping too....certainly Daisy who has always gone by the rules. Well, the first winter, it was my Ugg boots. At least after all this time, it's just food. Oh! Did I mention the vet says that Fitz has allergies? To what? Dog food?

Case in Point!

Just in case you didn't get my point! Fitz and Starbucks - to - go. After all, she leads a busy life. Daisy isn't phased by another one of Fitz's score. Of course, I don't think Daisy cares for coffee. If it had been a pork chop, Daisy might have been right in there to catch the tidbits that would fly through the air as Fitz scarfed it down. Our sweet Daisy has caught on. Now she sticks close by to takes advantage of the situation.

Happy Beach Days Are Here Again!

Fitz and Daisy