Happy Halloween

We started our group trick or treating in our neighborhood in 2003. The first year we held a great party in our garage and then went trick or treating. Our group photo was taken there. The next year we began taking pictures against the red wall in my house.

Behold our photos through the years:

Halloween 2009 -  Madison was a witch and Darcy was a devil fairy. Madison used a black dress she already had and added a witch hat and carried a broom. Darcy purchased her costume online.

Halloween 2008 - Madison was a balloon girl and Darcy was a genie. Again, Madison used clothes she found digging through bins at other people's houses and Darcy purchased her costume. This year we had another kid (friend of SueG's). 

Halloween 2007 - This year we added SueG's family to our group. Madison was a nurse and Darcy was a cowgirl. Both outfits were put together with things we had in our house and dress-up box. 

Halloween 2006 - Madison was a genie and Darcy was Flora from the Winks Club. I think Madison borrowed her outfit from Sarina and Darcy's was purchased online. Sarina's costume was borrowed from Darcy's last year. A Grandma Boos' original.

Halloween 2005 - Madison was Wil from Witches and Darcy was Layla from Winks Club. Madison's costume was purchased online and Darcy's was made by Grandma Boos.

Halloween 2004 - The year of the red wall. Madison was Kim Possible (cheerleader mode) and Darcy was Annalise from The Princess and The Pauper. I think both of those outfits were Christmas presents and definitely purchased online.

Halloween 2003 - First group trick or treating. Madison was Lilo from Disney's Lilo and Stitch and Darcy was Odette from Barbie's Swan Lake. Both costumes were an online purchase. 

Out of the mouths of my babes

Me: "Today while I was in the kitchen, Elliot pulled the towel out of his crate and carried it into another room to play with it.

Madison: "He did?"

Me: "Yes! All of the way out of the crate. I mean, he pulled the entire towel out. He was playing with it when I walked in here. Oh, and he pooped on your bathroom rug."

Madison: "Well, at least he pooped in the bathroom!"

What's in there Wednesday and Wishful Wednesday

Today is "What's in your junk drawer".

I have several "junk" drawers and baskets. My main drawer is in the kitchen. Originally it contained all of my kitchen utensils, but the other drawer was too small to hold all of my junk so I had to switch the two.

There is quite a bit in this drawer. I have tried to organize it with baskets and containers. The items not restricted inside of those are collections of glasses from sunglasses to reading glasses. There is an envelope full of restaurant menus for ordering takeout and some Sudafed and eye medications.

In the drawer is a basket full of office things like tape, staplers, and pens. I have another basket with post-it notes and stamps.

Another basket has electronic stuff. We have our camera case in this drawer, some batteries, and a bunch of electronic items I haven't a clue how to use.

My second junk drawer is in my bedroom. It is the middle drawer of my dresser and holds my brush, deodorant, hairdryer, and things I don't know where else to store them. I have a basket in this drawer too to hold some hair bands, barrettes, bags of old make-up, deodorant, and some things from when the girls were in dance recitals.

This basket sits on my dresser and holds odds and ends such as my flask, a very useful object that will most likely be pulled out in time for trick or treating on Halloween!

This is Darcy's junk drawer, which never looks this clean. This was one of the drawers that I cleaned in last week's frenzy of getting ready for the baby dog. This is the middle drawer of her nightstand. Everything goes into it, and I mean everything. Pick something off the floor and don't know what it is? Throw it in this drawer. Right now she has some pens, her wallet, a notebook, a brush, some tattoo gems, a clown nose, some keys, and her goggles.

This is Madison's junk drawer. It is in the top drawer of her nightstand and for the most part, it is rarely used. I'm not sure what happens to her junk, but my guess is it ends up in Darcy's drawer. This drawer had a bookmark, a notebook, a puzzle, some stickers, and a deck of cards.

Now, I'm introducing another Wednesday Blogging Community idea. This can be found here.

Today's fill in the blank is: 

 "I wish I was six years old and going trick or treating. My costume would be...

When we went trick or treating we had those costumes from a store with the plastic masks with two eye holes and a small slit for a mouth, big enough to stick your tongue out.  Unfortunately, it was always either cold or raining on Halloween and our parents insisted we wear coats or rain gear over our costumes. We left the house like that and once out of their sight, we took them off so people could see our costumes. I can't even remember who I dressed as in those costumes, but I can remember how the world looked through the mask. I loved those costumes.

Later as we got older, my mother refused to buy the store costumes. She made us think of things on our own and put together a costume with items we already had or could borrow. She wasn't a seamstress so she couldn't make elaborate costumes so we were on our own. I can remember being a bum, a Purple Aces basketball fan, and a princess? I'm not sure what I was in the picture above when I was ten. I do, however, like the pipe my brother is smoking.

If I were six years old I would want my costume to be homemade.

Something elaborate with lots of sparkles and shimmery fabric. I would want wings and a crown and some inappropriate shoes to clomp around in up and down the street. No mask on my face, just a smile, and make-up. Or maybe I'd be a mermaid in an elaborate costume complete with a tail. I wouldn't be able to walk so I'd have a wagon decorated as the ocean and someone to pull me. 

My children have had homemade costumes made by their Grandmother Mary Anne. Now my youngest is into the store-bought variety and my older one isn't keen at all on the whole holiday. 

Perhaps this year I'll make a costume for the dog....

At home with a newborn

After taking Elliot for a walk, I stopped by the mailbox to pick up the mail, something I leave for Tom to do when he gets home at night. But I have high hopes of this being something I can send the dog out to do each day and thus I took him with me to begin his training.

Inside the box was a catalog for Bed Bath and Beyond along with more ads. Usually, these end up in the trash when they fall into Tom's hands so I happily took it the catalog poolside to peruse while Elliot chewed on things.

Inside the catalog I found all of these essential and important items that I must have:

• This is a giant cupcake mold. You pour the batter into both sides and bake and then you frost the bottom and flip up the top and frost it. It would be the hit of all the kids' parties! Price: $29.99

• And since I'm on a baking roll, how about adding this little beauty? A brownie pan where each piece is an edge? Price: Only $19.99

• I'm currently shopping for a new dining room table so these cloths and napkins should come in handy when I finally purchase one. There were some other decorative tablecloths with leaves and such, but since I'm not cooking Thanksgiving dinner I'll wait for those until next year. Price: Only $19.99 for the tablecloth and $9.99 for 12 napkins

• This was the first thing in the catalog that caught my eye. I need another strainer anyway, but how cool is this one with the cutting board over the sink. This is certainly something I need in my kitchen.  Price: Only 29.99

• Once my library is converted into a dining room I shall have to move my two reading chairs. I'm thinking I should recover them in black and gold for my next project which is converting the playroom into my She Cave Steelers room. These little slipcovers just might be the answer! Price: Only $79.99 each! 

• And wouldn't this look good in the corner of my new dining room? Although I am trying to get away from the dark wood in there. But the idea is a good one. Price: Only $99.99

• Moving into the bedroom I saw this comforter set that would SO match my decor and I've always thought it would be good to have a back-up comforter, but I've had trouble finding just the right color.  Price: Only $199.99

• And then, of course, I can't forget the new addition to the family. Once we start bathing him he will need one of these towels to dry off on. Price: Only 12.99

Total Shopping Price for today: $582.99...but the catalog also came with a 20% coupon!

Day two - Elliot

For some reason, Elliot has to eat his meals once piece at a time. This consists of him removing one piece of food from his bowl and taking it to the carpeting in our playroom where he lies down to devour it. Usually, however, the piece is more than half gone by the time he lies down and then he spend considerable time sniffing around him as if wondering what happened to the food. When he comes up empty-handed, he returns to the bowl and begins again.

Each time he goes back to the dish, he attempts to remove the silver bowl that resides inside the plastic bin. By the fifth time of this, he mastered it, trotting it into the playroom where he spilled it all. He lay down and worked his way through each piece. We were quite impressed with his simplicity.

Until he ate a few pieces then went back to the main bowl searching for more food, leaving behind destruction.

Needless to say....it was a long day today.

Day one - Elliot

• In the beginning, Elliot must've believed we lived in our van. This is because after we took him from his mother, we drove from one end of the county to another. We hit an outdoor fish fry where Elliot enjoyed the attention he received from adults and children alike. We visited a pet store which Elliot christened by peeing on the floor. Armed with toys and incidentals, we went back into the van where we then drove to view a van that Tom's co-worker is selling. Elliot offered them a gift by pooping in their yard and then he spent the rest of the time, hopping like a bunny through their high grass. Finally, we brought him home.

• He followed the girls around the neighborhood as they introduced him to the neighbors, but he was tired from his hopping around so they brought him home for a nap.

• After the nap, he greeted the neighbors and dogs with great puppy happiness. Penny, the next door dog, stood and allowed Elliot to race around her in circles, but for the most part, was unimpressed. "Not another one," seemed to be what she wasn't voicing. Coco, the dog two doors down, and the newest dog to our neighborhood sniffed him and then became frightened of our little furball. She kept backing up and hiding behind her owner.

• Inside the house once more, Elliot met all our visitors. He played with his toys and entertained everyone, playing with whoever would join him on the floor.

• He christened the house inside and out.

• He had another nap on the floor and then went on several more walks around the neighborhood, chasing Madison as she ran up and down the street.

• By 10:30 that night Elliot was out. He fell asleep outside his crate and never woke up when Darcy put him inside and shut the door. He never made a peep throughout the night and was waiting patiently this morning, sitting in his crate, when Darcy awoke at seven.

Our new addition seems to be fitting in quite well and we seem to be adapting well at our new job. Tomorrow will be the test as the girls and Tom head off to school and work. I have errands in the morning and afternoon so we shall see how our little puppy handles the crate and alone time.

Elliot is here!

We picked the puppy up at eleven-thirty this morning. Learning the ins and outs of owning a puppy from the breeder, took an hour. By the time we left, I realized we were bringing home another newborn.

• We have to brush his teeth. Eventually, his baby teeth will fall out. We must make sure that they do fall out or else his adult teeth will begin to grow sideways. (Hey, that happened with Madison so we know all about that!)

• We have to feed him puppy food for the first year of his life. They recommended a certain brand which is what Elliot has been eating. If we change it, we have to introduce the new brand slowly, a little bit each day with his old food. (Sort of like introducing new foods into the girls' lives making sure they weren't allergic!)

• We have to crate train him. The crate offers him a sanctuary. Here, he will feel secure and it will bring him peace of mind. (Like a crib!) This will also help with training and prevent unwanted chewing. When he is put in his crate at night to sleep we are to ignore him when he cries for the first 5 to 10 minutes. (I still haven't gotten over Madison's sad little cries when we let her cry through the night)

• We have to take him to monthly doctor appointments. He has vaccinations each month and we have to watch for allergic reactions. (Yep, did this with both girls...still do)

• We have to trim his nails. Not only will this protect our floors, but keeping his nails short will protect him from infections due to snagging, cuts, etc.

• We have to teach him not to bite. No one wants a dog who bites others.

• We have to make sure he doesn't eat things off the floor/ground. If he does, he will vomit or have diarrhea. 

On and on and on it went, bringing back memories of bringing home my two babies. Of them as toddlers. Of the nights without sleep, the crying, the stress of protecting them from harm.

Today we brought home another baby. Lord help us all...

Pet owners we will be

My mother wasn't one for having animals in her house. My brother and I would beg and beg for some type of pet but she would shudder to think of a stinky house with animal hair. Our one pet consisted of a turtle my brother pulled out Kentucky Lake while fishing and boy, should I blog about that animal!

Maybe it was my mother's reaction to animals, but for some reason, I was scared of dogs. We once took in a stray cat we found in the woods behind our house in North Carolina (she lived in the garage), but I avoided dogs at all costs. Which wasn't easy seeing as how in those days no one kept their animals leashed unless they were guard dogs or vicious. Dogs roamed the neighborhood at will and neighbors knew their names and who owned them. These dogs were quite gentle and great with kids and I usually just looked at them and said, "pet, pet" before moving on.

One night I babysat for a family related to my next-door neighbors. They had spent the day at one of their kids' sporting events where they opted to take in a stray mutt who was headed for the humane society if no one stepped in. Because they were unsure of how the animal would behave in their home, they kept her cordoned off in the kitchen where she growled every time I would enter. As if she sensed my fear. I was never so glad as to see those parents return.

Then, as luck would have it, that family purchased the house next door to me from their relatives. They, and the dog, moved in. By then, I was more used to her having babysat several times prior. Her name was Cary Jane and she quickly ensconced herself into the neighborhood.

She knew all of the kids and the adults and she knew things about each of them. My dad was who she went to when she was hurting or sick. My mother grilling steaks outside meant bones later in the evening. She knew which boys were the runners she could chase, and she knew that my friend Michelle and I were good for hugs, scratches, and love.

She was such a part of our life that I forgot that I was afraid of dogs.

Then, one day a stray dog appeared in the hood. He arrived in the morning and he would disappear at night. It was odd and no one knew who he belonged to. We tried following him, but he was very sneaky and he always outmaneuvered us and we lost him. Yet, he kept returning day after day until he stopped leaving at night and lived in our garage.

We named him Oscar, and we paired him with Cary Jane. In our minds, he stayed because he had fallen in love with her. My father administered his doggy shots, tagged him, and registered him in our name, although my mother pretended he didn't exist and called him the neighborhood dog.

When Cary Jane became pregnant, we held a little marriage ceremony for her and Oscar so the puppies would have a last name. Cary Jane gave birth to three puppies on the floor of her owner's garage and I watched her deliver them with my dad.

It was a sad time when we realized the puppies would not be staying with their parents. Each one went to a good home, but Cary Jane never got over losing them. She aged before our eyes, slept quite a bit, and she could've cared less about engaging with Oscar. The honeymoon stage ended before it had really begun.

A few years later, Oscar didn't come when I called him. I can still remember the odd feeling I had that something wasn't right. I'll never forget how my mother told us he had been hit by the paperman. She waited until after my basketball game when we were driving home. My brother and I were both in the front seat with her and we were gong on and on about how touch we were. Some competitive game, I'm sure, but my mother latched on to those words.

Her: "Are you tough?"

Us: "Yes. We are the toughest kids ever."

Her: "How tough are you?"

Us: "Tough enough to handle anything!"

Her: "Are you sure?"

Us: "We're sure!"

Then she proceeded to tell us that Oscar had been found by my dad in the street. He'd been hit by the man who delivered the evening paper. He didn't make it.

I held in the tears until we got home. My dad met us at the front door and both of us dissolved in his arms in tears. We buried him at our farm. And made sure to love on Cary Jane every day.

She lived a long, long life. She eventually moved with her family, but by that time all the neighborhood children had grown and left. I think of her sometimes. She was the greatest dog ever and I suppose she, coupled with the loss of Oscar, is one of the real reasons why I've never wanted another dog. When you've had perfection, why settle for anything less?

My girls have been begging for a dog for over a year now. Like my mother, I have said no. I wasn't interested in having a smelly, hairy beast in my home. I didn't think it would be fair to a dog to live in Florida in the heat. Gone are the days of free, roaming, neighboorhood dogs. Now it is a law to have dogs leashed and owners must be on poop patrol 24/7 or risk the wrath of angry neighbors. It just wasn't for me. Suddenly my fear of dogs had returned.

To counter my fears and objections, my husband sneakily volunteered us for dog-sitting his co-workers Sheltie, Piper. We took care of her for a week. She was a great dog. She hardly barked, hardly shed, and she was sweet and kind to everyone.

By the end of the week, I was in love and willing to adopt a dog. Her. Unfortunately her owners would not part with her. She went back home but my husband and Darcy did not let up on the can we get a dog mantra.

One day he took the girls and visited the very breeder who had bred Piper. They played with her newest litter and learned about Shelties. Then he took me.  Where I admitted the newest litter was cute. Slowly, day by day my objections weren't as loud or as strong as they had once been. When the breeder had another litter, off went Darcy and Tom. Where they picked out a newborn male Sheltie.

This puppy arrives at my house tomorrow. I'm worried and nervous, but secretly, I'm sort of excited. I want my girls to have their turn. I want them to have the experiences I had with our neighborhood dogs. I only hope that he will be as great as the three dogs I've dealt with so far. I'm channeling Cary Jane and Oscar.

I never know what I will find when I clean

Each morning when I return from dropping the girls off at school I spend the next few minutes cleaning up after my youngest. Darcy leaves a trail everywhere she goes. She cannot leave a room looking the same way it looked before she entered. Each morning her pajamas are on the floor of the bathroom and the counter is cluttered with the remains of things she has used.

This morning she put on a band-aid, and despite the trash can a foot from the sink, she left the wrappings right here next to a book she was reading and a headband she probably meant to put in her hair but got sidetracked with the band-aid.

This is the area where she puts her backpack each day she comes home from school. This photo is what she left behind this morning when she went off to school. Obviously she doesn't need these items, but seriously, she can't put these things away at her own desk?

This is our puzzle table, but Darcy has managed to use it to hold her crafting items, a tissue box, and the vocabulary book I made her remove from the van last night.

Yesterday in preparation for our new arrival (more tomorrow on that) I decided to tackle cleaning Darcy's bedroom. I do this about once a month and both girls know that when I come into their rooms to do my cleaning anything goes. This means that anything could get chucked in the garbage bag. Want to keep me out of your room? Keep it clean.

I came into her room armed with a garbage bag, a duster, and a vacuum cleaner. She had not made her bed so I just stripped it to the mattress and threw it all in the laundry. I pulled her bed out from the wall and began pulling everything out from under it. I filled two garbage bags with crap that was under her bed, in her drawers and on the top of her dresser. I reorganized her closet and drawers. I dusted and vacuumed and put away all the things that belonged in other rooms of our house.

When I was finished I remade her bed and began to push it back into place. Moving from side to side so that I wouldn't break anything I heaved and pushed. As I did I noticed something white that I had missed peeking out of one end of the bed. I leaned over and pulled it out. It was a white eraser board and this is what was on it:

It says, I (heart) u Grandpa Russ! I never knew you but I did in my mind! I Love you!!! You r my best friend in my mind and that's all I need. I (heart) u Grandpa!

Grandpa Russ is my father who died before Darcy was born. I tell her that she reminds me of him quite often and perhaps that is why she thinks of him. She has always asked questions about him and sometimes writes these little gems. If she watches a television show about someone without a father, she will tell me she has been thinking about him. Little did I know that she communicates with him too.

I sat on the end of her bed and cried a little thinking about how sad it is that neither one of them will ever know each other. He would have thought her a character and would have related to her so well. She would have loved his humor and his big bear hugs, and she wouldn't have hesitated to tell him smoking cigars was yucky.

I put the board, message intact, back under her bed, pushed the bed against the wall, and turned out the lights out on her clean room all while silently thanking my lucky stars my daughter is a clutterer because otherwise I might never have discovered that whiteboard.

What's In There Wednesday

Today's topic is "What's In Your Pantry?" 

When Tom and I decided to remodel our kitchen we hired a man who was the husband of one of Tom's co-workers. He was a craftsman who worked out of his garage and when he came into our house I was at work. Every time. I never met the man. I left him drawings and notes on what I wanted and, when he saw them, he ripped them to shreds and left me a different drawing.

One thing I really wanted was a pantry with a door. I explained it as sort of a closet with shelves and room to store a broom. Looking back on it, I'm not sure why the broom was so important but it was the one thing I kept insisting I needed. Room for a broom.

Instead, our craftsman told Tom that he had designed something "all housewives fall in love with" in his own version of a pantry. I gave in and the man went to work designing my kitchen to his specs and satisfaction. The end result was this:

This is a cabinet that pulls out, and after our craftsman finished building it, he made my mother climb inside it to demonstrate stability. Which he wanted her to pass on to me. I have to admit that after I saw it I did fall in love with it, despite no room for my broom.

Thus, today I shall use it for the focus of What's In Your Pantry. My "pantry" has several adjustable shelves and there is an order to my shelving.

The top shelf is for our cereal. There really isn't a box of cereal that doesn't fit in here, although we sometimes have to twist the giant "family size" boxes sideways to get them into the nook.

The second shelf is for other breakfast items such as Poptarts, instant Carnation breakfast mix, and oatmeal. Also on this shelf is the peanut butter, honey, and syrup.

The third shelf is for crackers, cookies, and snacks and the shelf below it is the Italian area with pasta, sauces, canned tomatoes, pastes, and salsa.

Below the Italian nook is the staple foods such as dry beans, varieties of rice, and bread crumbs.

The next nook or shelving is my canned goods section. I have any and all canned foods including soups, vegetables, beans, and fruits.

The seventh shelf is the baking shelf. Currently, I have box mixes for cakes and muffins along with tubs of frosting, and apparently some Mexican food. And also two bags of Chips Ahoy cookies. Not because I plan to bake them but because it was BOGO and Tom and I both made a grocery run and took advantage of that deal. I suppose the baking shelf is also an overflow area.

The last shelf is for all the extras that I buy on sale or because we will eventually run out of that item soon. I'm not sure why the Chip Ahoy cookies aren't down there, but I have ketchup, jellies, salad dressings, soy sauce, olives, and odds and ends we receive as gifts. A lot of the time, the items on this shelf get forgotten. Oh, yes, that's why the cookies are one up. I'm more likely to see them there. 

My "pantry" holds quite a lot and gets organized and cleaned about once a month. It was just done yesterday (in preparation for this blog entry), but it won't last long like this once the kids and hubby start rooting around.

It doesn't take up much space, is out of the way, and there is no door. Everyone who sees it wants one just like it, but unfortunately, my craftsman changed careers soon after he finished my kitchen. He is now a forensic crime scene technician and I try not to think how my kitchen was his last creation before changing into that career.

Oh, and we still haven't met.

Project #1- Steeler Mailbox

Each school year, I try to conjure up projects for myself to do while the girls are away at school. Every year most of them do not get finished, or for some, get started. I still have not finished Madison's baby photo album, and I've never started Darcy's.

Once I started a picture project where I sifted through my photos and boxed them according to dates and categories. I completed said task, but now there are more pictures to add, and where are they? Shoved into a drawer marked photos which, when full, they get dumped into an empty box labeled "photos to be filed."

This year my list of projects consists of finishing those baby albums, scanning all my slides, and preparing a hurricane kit. So far, I have not started any of these projects. My excuse is that I got sidetracked by this mailbox violation that I blogged about last month.

Last week my mailbox cover and flag arrived, and so today I went outside and put it all together. It took quite a bit of effort with Madison's help to get it all on straight and to get the flag attached. Once it was finished, my two neighbors, their dogs, and Madison and I stood around admiring it. But I spent too much time admiring it because I decided that the bottom half of the mailbox, nasty with rust, needed to be painted Steelers yellow. I added it for tomorrow's project. Here, for now, is what I have thus far accomplished.


Not bad for less than $25 considering the mailbox I really wanted was this one: