On Wards and Up Wards

                Saying goodbye is always hard, but I like to think of it as a see you later; and unfortunately it always seems like a must.  No matter how many times I say “see you later,” I can never help getting teary eyed, at least when it’s dealing with my loved ones. 

Saying by to my Uncle

Unfortunately I had to say bye to my family because JD and I had to continue onwards and upwards on our trip.  Of course we had to make a small pit stop to have a quick lunch with another one of my Uncles and his family.  As short as this visit was, it is always great to see them, and catch up.  It just seems like there is never enough time on a trip.

Lunch with my cousin.

                After our quick lunch we kept on with our journey until we reached JD’s parents’ house.  There we had to deal with the introduction of P to the two Pomeranians, who I shall call The King and Tripod.  I was a bit worried about P meeting The King because The King is very aggressive.  Luckily there weren’t any scuffles that a shout of “NO!” couldn’t stop. 

                Following the dogs meeting we were able to catch up with his parents.  JD and his father went off doing father-son things, where I was stuck with his step-mother to basically do whatever she had in mind; and what she had in mind was marriage talk, not just talk, but for me to try on her wedding dress.  She expressed that she would like me to wear it if the day ever comes for traditions sake.  I was taken aback at this.  I was always under the impression if I was to wear a dress out of tradition; it would be my mother’s.  Also, I am not too keen on her dress.  I’m sure every little girl dreams of her big day, and has a vision of what she is going to wear, but frankly, his step mother’s dress style has never entered my fantasies.  Don’t get me wrong, her dress is beautiful, but it is just not me.  Similarly, I felt odd trying it on; since it is the first wedding dress I have ever tried on.  His step mother is shorter than I am, so I had reservations that it would not fit, and sure enough it was a tight fit.  I felt like a sausage stuffed in casing, and couldn’t wait for her to help me out of it.

A wedding dress I saw while ordering a brides maid dress for a friends wedding.  Isn't it beautiful???  (not sure why it's posting sideways)

                Besides the talk of wedding dresses we also visited the church his parents attended for 25+ years.  They had recently added onto it, and oh my, it is beautiful.  

JD's step-mom, JD, and I posing in front of the church.

Their church felt like a mini United Nations.  There were people from all sorts of cultures there, even cultures that historically have been known to dislike one another.  It’s amazing how faith can bring people together.

A small portion of the many different cultures that attend the church.

                Well I’ll conclude this leg of the trip here.  So consider this as a “to be continued….”

Feeding Time

                It’s always great when I get to spend time at my grandma’s, you know, the cute, little, quaint farm house that I am oh so found of. 

Every time I go to visit, it seems like I have a routine of things I absolutely have to do, or else my trip just doesn’t feel complete.  I of course have to go to the lake, and hang out on the “beach,” as well as help out in the garden, go for a walk through the woods and fields, as well as go up to another lake to “feed the damn fish” as my uncle puts it.  

I know it sounds so silly.  Feeding fish?  How in the world can that be fun?  But for me, it is. 

 

I could probably spend an entire day feeding the carp and watching them jump on top of one another trying to eat the little bits of bread I throw down to them.  There’s something mesmerizing about the hundreds of fish splashing around, fighting for food, and my precious P would agree. 

Starring and pulling to get to the carp

I know it may not be everyone’s cup of tea per say, but I’ll let you judge the lake off of the photos and videos.   

If you watch the lower left hand corner you can see P trying to get to the fish.

The carp in the spill way.  This is only a small portion of how many there are in this massive lake.

Home Sweet Home

                Sorry about my long hiatus, and I do mean loooooooooong.  JM, P, and I were out visiting family while JD got to spend time at her friends and her boyfriend’s houses.  I know, it doesn’t seem fair, but since we were visiting our grandmothers it only seemed like a safe choice.  We wouldn’t want JD accidently knocking anyone over and injuring them, not that she would, but better safe than sorry.  And now that we are home, I am exhausted from the extensive amount of driving we did.  I officially feel drained.  What is it about a trip that makes it hard to get back into the swing of things?  Also, why is it when you visit your family it never seems you get to spend enough time there, but when you visit someone else’s family, you are just counting down the minutes till you return home?

                Well back to the trip, or at least the leg where we visited my grandmother.  

My grandma and I

JM was taken aback when he laid eyes on my grandma’s house, which is an old farm house (that I unquestionably love) and heard that the small town she lives in is also inhabited with the Amish.  JM grew up in the city, so country life was all new to him, and I'm not sure that this was a life style he would be willing to do for an extended period of time.

Isn’t it quaint? 

The farm house is so old that there’s even an outhouse out front.  You can barely make it out in the right hand side of the above picture. 

Of course it is no longer used, and no, it does not smell.  We just don’t want to tear a piece of history out.  

                So you may be wondering if it's an old farm house, where's the farm?  Well, there are no animals on this farm anymore, other than cats.  Having animals is just too much work for my grandma.  But here are a few pictures of the once was farm.

Above:  The barn  Below Left:  the old chicken coop  Bottom Right:  planted field

Cabin in the sky, or the deer hunting perch.

AHHH!!!  HOME SWEET HOME!

I Will See You Soon!

                I know it’s been a long while since I’ve last written about what is going on in my neck of the woods, but I am out and about on vacation and internet access is very limiting.  I had been visiting my nephews, KC, as well as my oldest brother (side note:  I am not sure if many of you know this, but I have 2 brothers.  I am the youngest of the siblings, so for blogging purposes I differentiate between my brothers by saying oldest, who is the first born, and my older brother, the middle child; kind of confusing I know, but that’s what I have always called them), and now am heading up to visit my Grandma as well as JM’s Mum-Mum.  Since both of our grandmothers are in their 80’s JM convinced me to leave JD with some friends.  His reasoning was because she is a rather large dog and the risk of her knocking over one of our grandmothers accidently is imminent, also, we will be spending part of the trip at his parents’ house and they prefer not to have a large shedding dog in their household.  As much as it pains me to take P and leave my precious JD behind, I complied.  However, the preparations for leaving JD behind were exhausting.   She suffers from separation anxiety.  I had her since the day she was born, and I’ll admit I suffer from it too.  Whenever I leave for a trip and I am unable to bring her (which is very rarely, I take her almost everywhere), she tends to go on what I call a “hunger strike.”  JD just refuses to eat.  A trip that lasts less than a week, she can lose up to 10 lbs.  That’s not healthy for a dog, or anyone for that matter.  So when I leave to go somewhere, I make sure of a few things before I leave:

1. She knows and is comfortable with the family/friends I leave her with
2. She gets along with their dogs and/or children if they have any (which is never a question since she loves kids and meeting new play pals)
3. I cook her boiled liver with brown rice.  The doggie sitter mixes about ½ cup in with her food, as an enticement to eat (I don’t want a skeleton of a dog when I get back)
4. I pack her a “doggie survival bag” with her favorite toys, treats, and any medication she could possibly need (JM has severe allergies in the spring and summer months)
5. I make sure that they will take her for walks or play fetch with her so she gets enough exercise to curb her anxiety induced chewing
6. Probably the most important, THEY LOVE DOGS! and more specifically MY dog.

                Seems like a lot of work for “just a dog” (other people’s words, not mine), but to me, she’s more than “just a dog,” she’s family and very much so worth the so called trouble.

A face I MISS! and LOVE!

P.s.  Happy late Father’s Day for all the dads out there.

Expired Warranty?

                My warranty must have been fulfilled.  Leave it to American engineers to make sure everything will last just until shortly after the guarantee of fixing runs out.  The past couple of days have just been rough.  First my car gets broken into, then JM and I get lost on our way to a friend’s going away party, then my breaks go out, then my battery core completely dies, then I got a flat, then I got pulled over being the designated driver to a bunch of drunk friends….I’m scared to see what happens next.

                Let me start from the beginning.  First, our, JM’s and I’s, vehicles got broken into.  Shortly before that, we almost got stranded in the middle of nowhere on our way to a friend’s going away party.  I had already hashed those out, so I won’t go into a whole lot of detail, but those were the start of things to come.  After those two wretched days, I go to start my vehicle to find that it refuses to turn over.  I hear a strange ticking sound coming from the circuit and relay box in the engine.  Being the savvy car expert I am (that was pure sarcasm), I begin to think I may need a new start relay or solenoid relay.  I call my daddy and a few places, and they assure me that it is in fact a bad battery.  I replace my car battery only to hear my breaks making an atrocious screeching noise later that same day.  I make another trip to Auto Zone, and find out that my rear break is cutting into my rotor and is in desperate need of replacing.  I set up an appointment with Midas to have them replaced, and while there I might as well get an oil change.  The morning of my appointment, I exit my house to see that I have a flat tire.  A completely flat tire; it is so flat that it is resting on its rim.  Great (sarcasm again).  I call road side assistance to, well, assist me in changing my tire.  The guy shows up late, an hour late, and begins to go to work on my car.  After a few minutes of tinkering, he stands up, and tells me that my tire is stuck.  Stuck you ask?  Yes, stuck.  Apparently some water got behind the wheel well or something and rusted the bolts or whatever they are that holds the tire in place.  He informs me that he could give it a few good kicks; HOWEVER it may bend my rim.  At this point I’m willing to give it a small shot and cross my fingers.  Luckily the tire comes off with no warping to the rim.  Finally a break!

                After finishing all that needed to be done on my vehicle, JM and I decided to go out with a few friends that were in town for a night of celebration.  I don’t drink, so I’m always the go to sober driver, which I don’t mind.  So JM and his friends proceed to get belligerent, and I did my best to keep four drunk grown men together in a crowded street of bikers (it was biker week, but we did not get the memo), which is easier said than done.  After closing down the bars and clubs around 3:00, it was time to head home which was an hour away.   One of JM’s friends refused to sit in his seat and crawled into the far back of my car for a nap.  JM’s friend being well over twice my size and not taking my “NO!” as an answer and does it anyways; not to mention I’m too exhausted to fight.  With fatigue creeping in on me, I accidentally ran a stop sign.  Without skipping a beat I see a cops flashing lights right behind me.  The officer asks me to step out of the vehicle, asks if I have been drinking, and is ready to give me a field sobriety test, but as luck would have it, he gets called out to a more urgent matter and lets me off with a warning.  These past few days have just been hard to say the least, but I am sure glad they are over!!!  Being the optimistic person I am, it can only go up from here….right?  Let's just keep crossing my fingers.

Kitchen Vessels

                Some days I just loathe living in a rental, but until I have a big girl job, or a career my dream home will have to wait.  Although, I have been eager to make this house my own, I have had to do it in the form of accents.  My newest venture has been the kitchen. 

Since I know most, if not all of you have never seen my kitchen or have any idea of what it is like, I’ll let you in on it.  At first I started out with a café theme which was real dark and had a lot of browns and maroons.  It’s cute, and I may keep with the theme, but most definitely will change up the art I had hanging in my cooking domain and possibly spray paint the frames; a {DIY} project that I am excited to start.  My serving platters and so forth are all white; the only splash of color comes in the form of my plates, which I am absolutely partial to, as well as the kitchen towels.

Aren't they charming?

I have had these containers sitting on my counter for years, and as much as I love them, they just are not practical.  

Sorry the picture's crooked.  

The openings are just too small for a cup let alone my hands to get into, so I have been looking for replacements.  Not actively looking, I kind of figured if I stumble upon a set that I like, then it was meant to be, and sure enough, I found these beauties.  Not only are they to die for, but they were reasonably priced!  Double the awesomeness!!!    

LOVE THEM!

                I know the white lids are a bit of a cream color and do not exactly match the whitest of whites confetti plates I own, but I am willing to over look that small detail because they just seem so perfect.  They look even better once I cleaned and filled them.  

Perfection!

                Now if only I could paint the walls, add a glass tiled back splash, put in new granite or marble counter tops, add an island, update the appliances, and re-tile the floors (because laminate floors stink).  Okay so that's more of an overhaul/renovation rather than just decorating with accents, but a girl can dream can't she?

Best Part of Waking Up.....No Strike That

                Nothing quite beats waking up at the crack of dawn to discover your vehicle has been tampered with, and by tampered with I mean broken into.  UGH!  I am having a streak of bad luck, and I hope it ends sooner rather than later.  As for my vehicle, luckily nothing was damaged, and nothing of value was stolen; mainly because I don’t have anything of value in my car.  However they did nab my owner’s manual books, registration, and proof of insurance.  When I noticed my registration was gone, I jetted to the rear of my vehicle, but {WHEW!}  The thief or thieves didn’t swipe my license plate.  I wonder what this night bandit is going to use my paperwork for.  Is there anything a person can do with just a registration paper?  I called the police and filed a report.  The officer arrived about 45 minutes later, and from what he told me, it has been a busy morning with a lot of similar type calls.  The policeman stated, “These types of things come in waves.”  Hopefully this will be the last of it, and for the rest of my time in this small town will go smoothly.  I’m going to keep my fingers crossed!