After The Snow

Delightful. Sunshine and high winds. Walking the dogs. On the road. In the woods. Damp under foot. Leaves. Sticks. Branches. Tree trunks. On the trails. Across the trails.

The air is brisk. A brisk walk with the dogs always puts a smile on my face. Daisy and Fitz smile too. We occasionally slow down for a fresh scent. It's all new. Everytime. Every outing. For all of us. Outside. Outdoors. We see things differently. We have a new outlook. That changes everything. Change is good. Being open to change is better.

The Trail Less Traveled

Keep It Simple

These magazines exhaust me. The whole reason I read them is to relax. After scanning the covers, I'm exhausted. Every magazine has work for me to do...on my hair, on my thighs, my clothes, my house, my cooking, my "organization and my money.

Every magazine promises to make me better.....why can't I be happy as I am? Because they tell me I need to be happier, neater, prettier, thinner, healthier, ! It's no wonder I'm exhausted.

Shop Better

Get Unstuck

Love Your Body

Be happy!

Organize,Simplify

Magazine Mania

Cold Turkey. I stopped buying them the first of this year. I love them. I get drawn in by the covers. They all offer so many possibilities .....New. Better.Color for hair, color for big rooms, colors for small rooms, make small rooms feel spacious, make oversized rooms feel intimate, de-clutter, live clutter free, get organized....they are all the same.

I don't miss them. I save money and clutter. I read them all... in the library.

Get organized

De-clutter

Quiet

Peaceful. It's a quiet night. We all seem to be content. Even Jinx. Although, he's always rather content. Cool cat.

Tripping the Light Fantastic

Finally. We figured out a way to preserve the white lights from the naked Christmas Tree. We finagled a way to get them on the chandelier. Biff wrangled and tangled the white lights. Finally, voila! The sweet white lights are back.

Saturday Night Live

Here we are. Saturday night. March. Chilly. Damp. Kids home. I'm home. Biff is home. It's a low energy kind of day here. Low. It's kind of nice. I'd like to play a game or have one movie that we all might like. Not happening. No one here wants to play. Grace decided to bake a cake. Can't decide on a movie. Biff decided to try facebook. Now, he's busy "finding friends." Just one of those nights. Quiet. Mellow. We'll all come together eventually tonight. After all, Saturday Night Live is on in a couple of hours and we have teenagers.

Isn't it true?  It's important to stay true to ourselves.

The Teenage Playground

Random mall people

Malled Again!

At the mall. People watching at a faraway mall with 4 teenage girls. The drive here and home is why I make the trip. Malls are not my thing. So un-American of me...it seems to be the new American pastime. As though all is well at the mall. I'm not sure why. It seems to make us want more....clothes, shoes, jewery, food, coffee, gelato, Mickey Mouse....everything. Thankfully, the girls are having fun. Thankfully, I'm sitting in the mall's pre-fab living room....people watching. Young, old, strollers, crying overtired toddlers, teen girls flirting with teen boys, odd couples, grandmas and grandpas and so many more. I like the drive....listening to these cute girls and the excited 16 year old chatter about school, boys, teachers, parents, brothers, sisters and facebook...in between cranking the radio and singing at the top of their lungs, giggling and laughing hysterically. Thankfully, in the midst of this crazy changing world, some things remain the same! It's worth the trip!

I've Been Clipped

Clips and ties and scrunchies...it's time to get my hair cut or colored once I've resorted to the clip. What's a girl to do? Only the clip can save me. It's a temporary fix.

Really?

Did my hairdresser fire me today? Maybe? Or maybe it's me. Apparently I missed my appointment....I showed up at the wrong time. Not early. Late. Missed it. Do I look like I can stand to miss a hair appointment? I think not. I'm not proud...look at this picture ....do I look proud? Talk about letting yourself go. Maybe the universe is telling me something? Brown hair in January. Blonde hair in February. Gray hair in March. Hmmmmm. I'm the customer? "The customer is always...." gray? I think not. It may be time for Grace and I to move on. But where?

Same Ol'

Same ol'. Yup. That's my life. Not all of it. Just with Grace this week.  Grace doesn't like me. She "hates" me...if that's what "I HATE YOU" means.  I'm used to it now. I've heard it muttered, screamed, mumbled and squeaked through tears. Same ol'.

The first time I  heard those words I practically had to dive into bed and climb under the covers! Now, I realize it's a phase....that may last about 5 to 10 years. No worries. I still love Grace. I'll always love Grace. Sometimes it's more challenging than others. Not because of Grace....just because of her teenage ups and downs.

Oh, by the way, I've heard it from T.J. too. It's just not the same. The mother daughter thing is different. Everyone I know, who has girls, understands....if it's a normal relationship. It's actually healthy! Crazy but true. They have to separate from us somehow....if it's not this it's other stuff...sex, drugs, rock and roll? No matter what....it's always somethin'.

I'm really not o.k. with this. I pretend it doesn't hurt. It still does. I'm grateful to have so many friends going through this with their daughters.....some even have the situation with the same girl, then boy family. A friend with girl/boy twins called today...she is at the overwhelmed stage.  It's like walking a tight rope. Everyday is different....some fun, some not, some horrible...for our daughters. It takes a toll on the moms.

But, as I say to our kids. I'm the same everyday. I wake up. I'm happy. I'm grateful. Alright, some days I'm more tired than others. Some days I have better energy for it than others. I'm pretty even keel. Pretty steady. Thankfully, their ups and downs are theirs....I just try to ride the waves. On my sailboat of life, I try to keep my rudder adjusted, my centerboard down, my sails adjusted and try not to get hit in the head by the boom!

As my friend and I said today,"Don't you wish you could call your mom and tell her about this!" Yes. And I know, no matter what, she would laugh me through it and say, oh it's just a phase.

Rations

We live in a different world than the generations before us. I just heard that the last veteran from WWII died at 110 years old. He lived in a different world. Then, I found mom's ration book from 1942. Another world. Life is different today. We live in a world of conspicuous consumption. We live with desposable. Everything is instantaneous and for our instant gratification. Have we really come a long way? Did they live a simpler life? We only have their stories. I wish I knew more of their stories. If only that ration book could talk. Ask questions. Ask to hear their stories. They matter.

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!