My Husband Must Love Me

My husband must love me. Yesterday afternoon, we went to a Joann's near our house which is liquidating their inventory and he bought me yarn.

For a knitter, that's LOVE!

Sutter Park Site

Its been a busy week. Bob got back Monday night at 11pm. He had a greta time visiting his family and at his reunion. He was amazed to note tat he went to school witha "bunch of old people".

My new job is going great. I am settling into the new computer system and really enjoying the people and the whole atmosphere of the office.

This morning I attended a meeting at the Carmichael Park Community Center to discuss how the Sutter Park Site will be developed. It was really nice to see a good turnout and to meet some of my neighbors. From the sounds of it, they will be adding walking trails, small picnic areas, a lawn area and a small playground (swings & a slide) as well as connecting it to the Charles Jensen Botanic Gardens. No one really wants ball fields which would bring a lot of outside leagues to take over the park. It will be so nice to have them finally utilizing this land. The Park district has owned the site for many years and this is the first time that a plan to develop has moved forward. So far the only use has been a community garden which has a great following in the community. I think the plan will definately be neighborhood and family oriented.

Its so quiet.

Its been pretty quiet around here the past few days. On Thursday, I dropped Bob off at the airport so he could fly back to Ohio for his family reunion and his *gasp* 30th High School Reunion. I did not go with him because at the time we were booking the trip, I was not working and we just could not swing it for both of us to go. He was hesitant about going at first, but I pointed out that his Mom and Uncle Tommy would be up from Florida and he should take advantage of whatever time he can spend with his Mom. He is also getting some quality time with his sons which is good for both him and his sons. I always make it a point that whenever he goes back there, even if I go with him, that he spend at least a day doing just Father/Son things.

His ex is upset with him for who knows what reason. They have not spoken for quite a while now that the boys are adults. She had him pick up Andrew from across the street because she did not want Bob in her house. We think it may have something to do with the fact that Brandon and Heather are expecting and she does not want their kids calling us "grandma and grandpa" because we are not "blood related". Bob has always considered Brandon to be his son, even though he did not come into Brandon's life until he was two. I think that Brandon & Heather's children are very lucky to have 3 sets of Grandparents to love and spoil them!

With Bob gone, and it being so quiet, I have been doing a lot of knitting. I have been making baby stuff for Lara (Bob's co-worker), due in September and need to start on stuff for Brandon and Heather. I may attempt my first sweater. I am also working on a wedding gift for Scott and Kim and some hats for Christmas at Sea . I also need to work on some Christmas gifts as well.

Of course Miss Itty Bitty and Honey Bun both miss their Daddy. Itty Bitty lays in his spot on the couch and every now and then glares at me as if to say "what did you do with him?" Honey lays outside the bedroom door. When I go to bed for the night, she runs in and puts her paws on the bed and looks very confused. The other critters could care less as long as they have food.

New Job

I started my new job today. WOW!

I was nervous about how it would go. Its been almost 4 months since I last worked. I came in and everyone was so nice and genuine. It was such a pleasure. The day flew by. I love how organized everything is. So much is done on the computer and in such a logical manner. The most complicated part is learning the new computer system, but even that does not look too difficult. Its so nice to not dread going into the office and not having to have "drama" swirling all around you like a storm.

Another added bonus is that the new office is only about 4 miles from the house. Commute is like, 10 minutes. With traffic.

Color me happy!

New Shoes?

Do you think that perhaps its time to buy a new pair of shoes? Yes, Bob is actually wearing these shoes at work. They must have great sentimental value. I am surprised he did not use duct tape.

What not to wear over 40

There is an article on AOL this morning on "What Not to Wear if You Are Over 40". I, being in that age category, thought I should peruse this to see if I am in danger of offending the Fashion Police when I go out in public.

1. Writing on your bottom: This is a no brainer. If I had something written on my tush it would probably read "Wide Load" or "Wet Paint". This is one of those fashion trends that I thought was rather ridiculous to begin with. (Of course I do tease people that I am going to get a "B" tattooed on each but cheek so when I bend over it spells my husband's name)

2. String bikini: HAHAHA! Oo! I think I ruptured something there. No one, not even me, wants to see this pasty white body in a string bikini. I burn bad enough as it is thanks to my Scandinavian background.

3. All Over Prints: Nothing says "The Circus is in Town" like an all over print.

4, Crocs: Is it just me or are these incredibly ugly shoes?

5. Leggings: These have always been in the same category as sweats to me. If you are wearing them as part of your regular wardrobe out in public, you are just to tired to care anymore. I love my sweats around the house, but I would not wear them to the store. (There are a lot of clothes I wear around the house that I would not wear in public.)

6. Backpacks: Now this is just stupid! Backpacks have a place. They are great when traveling, if you are back at school, going hiking.

and finally

7. Baby Doll Dresses: I have never liked this style. Empire waists tend to make everyone look pregnant, even the toothpick thin. They are fine of you are 5 but I think that after that, they look ridiculous.

Hot and Smoky ... again

The sky outside is a hazy yellowy brown and everything smells of grass fire smoke. It almost looks like January in the valley where everything is hidden in mist but then you step outside into an oven. It was 106 in the shade yesterday at 2pm and it had not even reached the high. Today is no better. We are staying inside and bringing the dogs in. Only Mad Dogs and Englishmen would be out there in that heat and yuck!

We did have a little scare yesterday. Firetrucks came rushing down the street and pulled around the corner to where the Community Garden is. A small grass fire had ignited. It only burned a small section of the deer fence and the garden, but burned a good chunk of the field behind. This is only about a block from the house and with it being so dry out there, its pretty scary.

We stopped by this morning to take some pictures, but of course the battery in the camera died. I noticed some smoke and Bob got one of the Gardeners to get a bucket of water and he doused a hot spot that flared up in the bark chips.

A Few Thoughts on the Fourth

There seems to be a lot of arguments lately over patriotism. Some people seem to think that patriotism is practiced by uneducated people. (These same people seem to have the same opinion about religion.) I say to be a patriot is to acknowledge that you are a part of something greater than yourself. A patriot loves his country, warts and all. No system of government is perfect because it is run by people and people are far from perfect. A patriot is proud of his country, his friends, his neighbors. America is not just a government, its a land where people of different races, creeds, values, beliefs, backgrounds, ideals can come together and co-exist. They can have a voice in their government, they can voice their opinions, they can worship their own way. Sometimes we forget that this is not always the case in other parts of the world. We have many freedoms here in this country, the greatest of which is freedom of speech. This means everyone is entitled to have their own opinion. Lets not forget another important part of freedom of speech. The comedian Gallagher reminds us that freedom of speech includes volume. If you do not like what someone else says, you don't have to listen!

I thought I would share a few quote from Thomas Paine that I thought were appropriate today:

"These are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. "

"He that would make his own liberty secure must guard even his enemy from oppression; for if he violates this duty he establishes a precedent that will reach to himself."

"When we are planning for posterity, we ought to remember that virtue is not hereditary."

"What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly; it is dearness only that gives everything its value. "