Thursday, December 20, 2012

What will they be when they grow up?



Future Animal Trainer
During the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season, one of our little darlings was struck with a cold/fever and unable to go to school. Welcoming the break of shopping, baking, decorating, and entertaining we gladly took the responsibility of caring for her for the day. Little did we know we would receive valuable information about our sweet Granddaughter #4 and her chosen career path.

While eating lunch the other day we had a conversation about school. The knowledgeable 5-year-old informed us she was going to go to 1st grade, 2nd etc. proudly counting all the way through 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th grade and then she was going to go to High School. Being the Grandmama and feeling the need once again to explain, I informed her of the nation’s education system. I explained high school IS 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th grade and after high school you go to college. Enter the career counseling conversation.

"Do I have to go to college?" She asked. My first reaction, and what instinctively came out of my mouth was, “Yes.”

"But what if I don't want to?" Not wanting to discourage her I decided it was the perfect time to have the discussion about what she wanted to be when she grows up. Besides, I needed some writing material.

She told us she wants to be an animal trainer.  Hmmmm. "What kind of animals?" We asked.

"All kinds. You know, dogs, cats, birds."  "Alright," I replied, "Then you will probably have to go to college to learn how to do that."

Fearing he might have to look at one, it was Pops that asked her about training a snake. "I can train a snake." She said with confidence. And here’s how it goes...

"Just what would you train a snake to do?" asked curious Grandmama.

"I would train it to stay away from me!!" she replied with the same confidence as usual.

Yep, I wonder at which college she will teach!

So, here’s hoping you enjoyed this story as much as we did and had a nice little break from your Christmas activities. May you all have a delightfully Merry Christmas along with a very Happy and Prosperous New Year!!


Monday, November 19, 2012

Got Milk? How to milk a cow quoted from a 5-year-old girl.


While driving through the country with our 5-year-old granddaughter, we passed a field of cows.  After Pops “I spied” something black and white and she guessed, “cow”, she started to “Mooooo”, it was all cute and we laughed.  Then, somehow, the mood turned serious. 

“I know how to milk a cow!” she exclaimed and she launched into her oral instruction manual.  “First, you get an unfilled bucket” she specifically began.  Pops interrupted, “Don’t you need a 3 legged stool?”

“No.”  Plain and simple and she wasn’t ready to go there yet.  “Then you walk around to the cow’s butt” she continued, still very serious.  “You find the cow’s ‘boobies’ and then you squeeze them,” she said a little tickled with this one.  Thank goodness she chuckled, it gave us a breather to let out a laugh too. 

“But don’t you need a 3 legged stool to sit on?” asked Pops again, determined to get this stool into the story.

“No, you just kind of squat there or you can lay on your stomach!”  Okay, she was an expert and was thinking of everything.  We weren’t finished yet.  I believe this is where something came up about a boy or girl cow.  Pops informed us there are only girl cows.  Really?  Because boy cows are called ‘bulls’.  Learned something new again today.  Then I thought about going into how cows eat the grass, it goes through multiple stomachs, they chew their cud, and the milk really should be pasteurized before drinking, etc. etc. but she was telling the story so we let it go at that.

“When you squeeze the ‘boobies’ the milk goes into the unfilled bucket” and you guess it…. “Until it’s full!”  Continuing on with her knowledgeable, skillful, method she educated us on just where milk comes from.  “Then you pour it into those little milk cartons, like we get at school, and close them up!”  End of story, back to “I Spy”.

So, the next time you’re drinking milk, think of an adorable, little 5 year old girl squatting down (or lying on her stomach) by a cow’s butt, squeezing milk out of her ‘boobies’ into an unfilled bucket!  It’ll make you chuckle.



Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Happy Thanksgiving.... Remember Elian?

Thanksgiving is upon us. Straying from the traditional posts about cooking turkey and side dishes, being thankful, family gatherings, and travel issues, I'm wondering if anyone else remembers Elian? He is the little boy from Cuba that a Florida fisherman found floating on an inner tube, clinging to life on Thanksgiving Day 1999. At 6 years old, Elian's mother took him and fled from Cuba to our great land of the free. No, this is not going political, just bear with me. Something happened. Elian was the only survivor of that fateful journey.  Anyway, for some reason (perhaps there was a subliminal message while searching the internet), I have been thinking about Elian. Speaking of subliminal, did anyone see pictures of Obama flashing for an instant during television broadcasting before Election Day? We did. So, it may have been this type of messaging, or maybe it was my father somehow connecting to me. I didn't see my Dad, or hear him, but I know he was fascinated by the story of Elian, and perhaps he put this silly notion in my head. The reason is unbeknownst to me, but just inn case any of you were also wondering... I have now peaked my husband's interest and he has googled "Cuban boy deported". Long story short, as the much publicized historical event unfolded, the boy was returned to his father in Cuba. Elian Gonzales is now 18 years old, is with his father in Cuba, and is attending a Military Academy.

 Consider yourself as knowing the rest of the story.



Friday, October 12, 2012

Fall in the Midwest

Oh yes, it is that wonderfully, beautiful, colorful time of year! Leaf Peeping Time.  If I've heard it once, I 've heard it ten times that since we had such a dry summer there would be no color this fall.  Well, after taking a walk through my back yard, and taking a drive down the scenic Route 2, I beg to differ.  This year has been awesome with color and our leaf peeping trips have been glorious, and here is my proof. I hope you enjoy watching as much as I did making this. These are pics I took in Boone, Winnebago, Ogle, and Lee Counties with 33 Miles singing one of my favorites "There is a God"!  

Monday, October 1, 2012

RIP Lemon the Bullfrog (June 2011-September 2012)


As most of you are already aware of our loss, it is with great sadness I write this post.  The little amphibian that my daughter brought home from a fishing trip has gone to that big swamp in the sky complete with her own mud bath and crickets abundant.  Yes we know ‘she’ was a ‘she’ because of the ear circle being the same size or smaller than the eye.  This bullfrog greatly amused us with her “finger licking good” worm eating methods, which regrettably was never caught on video.  However, her favorite delicacy was definitely the cricket.  Her flitting, rolling eyes and swift snap of her tongue during the hunting process is truly a work of timing and accuracy that will be greatly missed.  Lemon, aka Miss Lemony Snicket – the frog who loved crickets, is survived by a few crickets that marginally escaped her quick action hunt, her adoptive mother who lovingly caught her, brought her home and set up a domestic habitat for her and who also, along with the surviving grandmother (aka ME) searched with a flashlight in the yard the night she escaped from a covered aquarium.  Incidentally, this was an essential search after learning certain toads and frogs can be poisonous to dogs.  It was also during this search she was almost named Houdini, however, when her little cousin was introduced to her this quickly changed.  The adorable (at the time 3 year old) tyke took one look at the bullfrog and said, “She’s yellow.  Let’s name her ‘Lemon’!”  No one could resist and now this is history.  Also survived by numerous members of the adoptive family that really could care less, may she RIP.  Private services were held for immediate family only (aka ME) with entombment in the creek.  Please, no flowers or donations.

If you would like to leave your  condolences you may do so in the comment section below.  If you missed the introduction to Lemon into the household you can recap here Meet Lemon....

Who knows, maybe there’s a career for me out there writing birth announcements and/or obituaries!

Friday, June 22, 2012

Sea Cruise

Many of you have asked to see pictures and the video.  Here it goes.... Ooooeeee Babeeeee, Won't ya let me take ya on a sea cruise!!



It was wonderful.  She had exceptional performances.  Yes, more than one.  Three to be exact.  The one you will see was her first time at Evolve Dance Studio.  It was a "mini recital" so to speak.  Just a few relatives of each of the preschool age dancers.  If you really like this one, I'll post the dress rehearsal performance on the "big stage".  It's also my first time posting a video on the blog so.... here it is!  Enjoy!

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Hot Dog and Ice Cream



Whatever happened to “the customer is always right”?  Here’s a good one for you.  While taking a ride during this beautiful holiday weekend, I decided I was hungry for some ice cream.  I thought Sam’s Drive In located in Byron would be a perfect spot to satisfy this desire so I mentioned this to my husband.  He in turn responded with, “Do you want a hot dog?”  While pondering this question he got a little huffy because there was no answer.  What he doesn’t know is that I was really thinking, “What part of ice cream do you get ‘hot dog’ out of?”  To which he would have been more than “huffy” if I would have answered that out loud and which is why I didn’t respond.  Anyway, being the kind, pleasing husband he is we continued on our drive to Byron figuring I could have either ice cream or a hot dog or perhaps even both.

We arrived at Sam’s to find a perfect spot in the shade with the speaker on my husband’s side (a win-win for me).  He quickly decided on a root beer float and I looked over the ice cream list.  Yummy.  It all looked so good.  So he pressed the button and ordered, very distinctly, “One root beer float and one small waffle cone with CHOCOLATE CHIP MINT ice cream.”  The speaker read back the order and gave the amount we would owe.  I could hardly wait.

Then IT happened.  The car hop appeared with the root beer float and waffle cone.  The waffle cone was topped with a very, very, pale green cream.  I handed the root beer float over but didn’t take the cone.  I calmly stated, “I ordered CHOCOLATE CHIP MINT.”  To which she looked at me like I was the nutcase and said, “It is.”  Oh my.  I didn’t want to argue…. yet.   I remained calm because 1.  I had sunglasses on and no spectacles and 2.  It was 90 degrees and the pale green cream was beginning to melt.  We paid and she hopped back inside.  I took my first taste, using a spoon because of the speediness required to eat this thing and quickly realized it was crème de menthe with NO chocolate.  How could she do this to me?  I fished around with the spoon, without the sunglasses on, and still…. NO Chocolate!  “Call her back!” I said. 

Kind, pleasing husband pressed the button and reported, “She ordered CHOCOLATE CHIP MINT and she got crème de menthe.”  Once again the perky little voice in the speaker simply stated, “It is Chocolate Chip Mint.”  Husband quickly backed out before I did something I regretted.  The story doesn’t end here. 

As we women know, a craving is a craving and any ice cream will do if need be, however, there is no excuse for no chocolate.  But I ate it.  And while eating it, driving, and still using the spoon, I’m not sure if it was because we turned left or the wind shifted but in one swift move my dear, sweet, husband was wearing this pale green cream on the side of his face and down his right shoulder saying, “Could you please wipe this off of me?”  I really love him….  But I should’ve gotten a hot dog.

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Why Magnolia Buds Turn To Flowers



Granny, Granny quite uncanny
How does your Magnolia grow??
When a little boy pees,
The next day he sees,
The flowers have all bloomed in a row.

Yep.  That’s exactly what happened at Grandma Cindy’s house.  Please don’t think we are bad grandparents, besides his parents were here too, but isn’t this just another great reason to have children?

Here’s how the story goes.  Youngest grandson #5, came to visit.  Being 4 years old and not wanting to take time out from playing to go in and use the facilities, we simply said, “Go behind that big bush.”  That big bush happened to be a Magnolia, which for those of you not from the Midwest or familiar with this botanical beauty, it blooms in the springtime with gorgeous pink and/or white flowers.  Now, #5 is no stranger to gardening.  Back home in Colorado they have “lived off the land” sowing seeds, growing vegetables, and harvesting their fruits of labor.  So, while doing his thing, he noticed “little fuzzy things” on the “tree”.  Unknowing, at this time, what was going to transpire we proceeded to educate him on what exactly the “fuzzy things” were… being buds that would turn to flowers.  At this point we were very good grandparents (I was not alone in this).  It’s what came next that was questionable. 
 
“Did you know if you water them they would blossom?”  Well he did his best and low and behold…. The next day they were Flowers!!!  We told him how wonderful he was that he made our Magnolia’s bloom!!  He can turn buds into flowers!  Oh the excitement.  Who was going to be the one to steal this little boy's thunder?  Not us.  Now we just wonder what’s going to happen if he “water’s” his vegetables….. Good luck with that Mom!!  

Monday, January 23, 2012

That's Just Cold

Here in the midwest we just have to face it.  It is called winter.  There are different ways people deal with it.  The "Complain About It" people which is self explanatory and you know who you are.  This just doesn't do anyone any good.

Then we have the "Deal With It" people.   They begrudgingly wear the necessary winter coat and shovel only because they can't drive through the drifts blocking the front of your garage or concealing the end of your driveway.  This group also includes the non-shoveller because....  Their  all-wheel-drive vehicles plow through the drifts and the annoying ruts they create melt in time with everything else.  They spend alot of time indoors during this season.

Another group is the "Make The Best Of It" crowd.  This is the group I fall into.  We like our driveways and sidewalks nice and clear because our homes look "lived in" and it appears as if we are home.  We build the occasional snowperson (thus being politically correct) and toss a mischievous snowball now and again just because the snow is there and we can.  Oh, and we buy a $5.00 "snow tube" which have now replaced the toboggan and sleds of my day and the saucers my kids used.  These are blow up inner tubes with handles much like the ones pulled behind boats in the summer (for those of you who have not participated in wintry athletics lately).  Yes, they are fast and fun.... and no I did NOT hurt myself.  Even the driveway ditch or sloping terrain of the average backyard provides a toboggan run to satisfy the sledding adventures.  This group might even sport skates and take a spin around the ice rink a time or two.  

The final group are the people who "Embrace It".  They have every snow toy available.  Skis, snowmobiles, skates, snowshoes, ski pants that match their jackets, stylish hats, scarves and gloves all color coordinated.  They look good.  I applaud them.  However, also in this group I include "Ice Fisherpeople"  (again being politically correct).  Now that's just cold.  I cannot fathom trudging out onto a frozen lake dragging what looks like enough equipment needed to stay for a week, which includes something to drill a hole in the ice, and then sitting (on an upside down bucket because there was no room for a stool much less a couch)  for long periods of time.  Then there is still cleaning and cooking your catch, which I'm sure you know, doesn't come with coleslaw and waffle fries.  

Personally, if we didn't get snow for Christmas in December, I really don't care if we have it at all.   Visiting a warmer climate January through April gets more and more appealing.  Quite frankly, when temperatures dip below the freezing 32 degrees.... well that's just cold.