This is a sign posted where there used to be a house, about 1/4 mile from our home. That was one of the homes destroyed by the tornado. The owners put the sign up about 2 weeks ago (it's painted on what used to be their bedroom wall), before the house was bulldozed, after they caught local teenagers sorting through their stuff and loading up a truck with whatever they thought might be worth money. Mostly scrap metal, wiring, and old pipes that can be turned in at a recycling center for money.

Sad, isn't it? These folks have already lost almost everything, FEMA has decided not to give any aid to the county or homeowners (they say the damage wasn't severe enough), and now they've got to worry about opportunists taking what they do have left.

There is one group that has benefited greatly from the tornado, however. Our local Amish and Mennonite community has made a killing. They arrived on the scene the morning after with their wagons and draft horses, volunteering to clean up all the fallen trees. In return, they get the lumber. And that's ALOT of wood. None of their homes were affected, so they got the benefits of the storm without paying for the damage.

Total change in topic.

A friend of mine is an avid hunter. Drew wants to be a hunter. Yesterday my friend shot a turkey, and called to see if Drew might like to come and check it out. I took the boys out there yesterday evening to see the turkey.



It took Drew about 5 minutes to warm up to the idea that it was dead. He was afraid it was going to bite him, or scratch him. But once he figured out that he was safe, he was pretty enthusiastic. He touched the spurs and the beard, and examined the wings and the fan. The blue head fascinated him. He says he's ready to go hunting. I figure he needs a few more years under his belt and some hunter safety classes before he goes hunting. That'll give me time to study up. Because who does he want to take him hunting? Me. Not Andy. He insists that I come with him. Says that I will be good luck. Think that'll change?

Nick didn't mind the turkey (my boys don't seem to be bothered by something that's dead. Hazards of my occupation, I guess) but he wasn't excited by it like his brother was. He spent most of his time there playing with the dog (a 6 month old lab pup) who, ironically, Drew was scared of.

Well, there are lots of ways to tell that it's almost summer.

Like, the corn is up:



The trees are full of leaves, and the algae starts to fill in the pond:



The grass in the barnyard needs to be mowed, even though it was just mowed 3 days ago:



Oh, and Alissa gets poison ivy. Happens every year, like clockwork. The stuff just finds me. I suspect I picked it up this time while I was out taking pics on Thursday evening. I've got it good, too--all over my right hand and forearm, and both ankles. Fun.

Here's Mandy and me at the Opryland Hotel yesterday. It's not the greatest picture of either of us, but the woman who volunteered to take our picture was a little unfamiliar with technology. I found out after that her camera is a Polaroid. I think it's an original Instamatic. Anyway, it's proof we were there.



The conference was great! We spent about 4 hours at the vendor faire, and then, since we still had plenty of time, we headed over to Opry Mills (BIG outlet mall) and had lunch (Sbarro--how original is that?) and did some shopping. We hit Old Navy, Fossil, Coach House gifts, American Eagle Outfitters, Gap, and Foot Locker. We both got some great deals and some really unique stuff--both scrapbook stuff and clothes. We left Nashville around 5:00, and then took our time traveling home, stopping in Clarksville on the way. Mandy needed to return some stuff at Petsmart, and while we were there we visited the new Kohls. And spent more money.

I need to get out more often. I also need to be rich.

I am off work tomorrow. YAY! I haven't had a day off in 3 months, since my old co-worker left. I really shouldn't take off tomorrow, because it'll put me way behind on Monday. But guess what? I don't care! Tomorrow I am going with a friend to the Creating Keepsakes scrapbook convention in Nashville. Did I mention I'm exctied? I've been saving back cash here and there since we made these plans back in Feb., and now I have $100 to spend on whatever I want. I can't wait! Vendor Fair, here I come!

No pics tonight. I'm too lazy to hook up the camera and upload them. How bad is that?

Drew's toe is not better. It's not worse, but it's not better. I'm giving it 'til Monday and it's back to the Dr. he goes.

First, some nice pictures. Here are the boys eating supper last night out on the deck. The weather was/is perfect for dining outside. We're going to eat out there tonight, too.





And now for the yucky stuff.

Drew woke up yesterday morning and told me he had a sore on his toe. Remember the ingrown hangnail he had a few weeks back? Well, triple that and put it on his toe. Wow. It was emptied of yuck twice yesterday, and was all icky again this morning, so off to the Dr. we went. One look and the Dr. was pretty impressed. He said normally you just take the toenail off, but he doesn't like to start with that option in little kids because it's such an incredibly painful procedure.


(ever tried photographing something like this? It's difficult. The toe is actually much redder than it appears here.)

So, we got a 7 day supply of antibiotic.



And if it's not better by then, it's off with the toenail. That oughta be fun. Apparently it involves shots of lidocaine under and around the nail. Ever had a shot of lidocaine? To put it mildly, it hurts. Bad. I can't imagine how Drew would react to such a thing. So keep your fingers crossed for him that the meds take care of it. Especially because it would be the job of yours truly to hold him down for the procedure. I don't want to do that to him, and I don't want to do that to me.

After I finally got caught back up at work (I was gone for over 2 hours because of the Dr.), I had an appointment to get a haircut. And boy, did I get a haircut. It's, um, short. Yes, short would describe it. A little too short, actually. I'm not sure yet if I like it. I think it needs another inch or so of lenght before I'll be really happy. So no, you can't see a picture. Not until it grows some.

There is some drama going on outside in our yard.

In a tree we have this:



It belongs to this:



(that's a bluebird. couldn't you tell?)

In the birdhouse are these:



One or other of the bluebirds is usually in the house sitting on the eggs.

Enter Spot:



We can't decide if she wants to eat the parents, or if she's waiting for the babies. But she sure does spend alot of time in that tree, on a branch near the birdhouse. She can't acutally get to it, but she sure is persistent.

And the bluebirds are not happy.

Oh, we also have alot of these:



But so far, as long as we don't bother them, they don't bother us.

Ever have a day that's going really great, only to have it end on a sour note? Today was that day. Or rather, just this evening.

Today was a pretty normal Saturday for us. Errands, grocery, yardwork. Andy slept most of the day, and the boys took good naps. Andy left for work around 5, and the fun began.

The boys and I played Candy Land, and then had supper. There was some dissention in the ranks concerning the meal (I made hash brown casserole, they wanted cheetos) but all in all it was a pleasant enough meal. Then we headed outside.

First we had a photo session, and I got some really nice photos.





Of course, I also got these:





But honestly? They were fun, too. They'll make a fun scrapbook page.

Then we played in the yard. We spun until we got dizzy, and played ring-around-the-rosie. We played catch, and I pulled the boys in the wagon. We played with Spot, and watched the sky turn pink from the sunset.

About 7:15 I came inside to use the bathroom. I was in here maybe 2 minutes. When I got back outside I was greeted by my boys, holding their plastic swords and pretty excited to show me what they'd accomplished. Apparently, in 2 minutes or less, you can whack and mutilate an entire bed of iris. Reduce it to nothing but mangled green leaves and blooms ground into the grass. Yellow blooms, purple blooms, beautiful white blooms. EVERY SINGLE ONE is ruined. And not just the blooms, but the entire stems, so future blooms are ruined, too. And for some reason, they thought I was going to be proud of them.

I was not proud. I was angry. I am not pleased with the way I handled the situation. See, now that I'm not seeing red any longer, I can appreciate the fact that they're just flowers. Yes, I work hard to make the yard nice. And yes, what they did was wrong. But, I DID leave them alone. And really, while maybe they should have gotten in trouble, I think I yelled a little too much. Said some things maybe I shouldn't have said. No, I didn't hit them. But I sure thought about it.

My temper sucks. I so wish I was better at controlling it.

Anyway, I'm going in now to talk to my kids. To apologize for my overreaction. To make sure they know that I still love them. And to kiss them goodnight.

Today the boys helped me plant flower seeds. Here they are posing with a handful each of wildflower seeds:




We are working on a new bed in the backyard. Last summer was spent just trying to get all the grass out of it and prepare it for actual flowers. We have bermuda grass in the backyard, and it's awful for flowerbeds and borders. This year it's (mostly) grass free, and ready to plant. This area bakes in the full sun all day long, so not just anything will grow. I decided to go with a wildflower mix specific for full sun areas. Along the back are iris and daylilies, and along the front I planted some low-growing perennials/ground cover. I hope it all fills in quite nicely.

After the boys did their part, I turned them loose with fudgesicles (spelling?) while I finished up. Good thing they don't mind taking a bath!


And in other news... I picked up a 'kindergarten registration packet' from the elementary school today, and began filling it out. How very strange. I feel so...parental. Does this mean I'm a grown up, now that I have a child getting ready to go to school?

Right now the boys are watching their nightly movie, with strict instructions not to get up for any reason. And I'm going to curl up with a book (Savannah from Savannah, by Denise Hildreth) and catch a little quiet time. I sure don't FEEL like a grown up...

A miracle happened. I had time alone. ALONE.

So I left the house so that I wouldn't be tempted to do housework in my alone time.

This is what I did:






These pics are straight off the camera, completely unedited. I want to play with them later and see if I can't make the colors a bit more vibrant...

The boys and I went to visit my parents this weekend. Andy was unable to come with us. As usual, he had to work. But that's OK--holiday pay is nice, too...

Here are the boys with Chip. He and my other brother Doug were at the house when we arrived. Drew and Nick immediately began playing with them--it was like I didn't even exist for awhile. See the big wheel on the back of the golf cart? The game goes like this: Get on the big wheel and coast to the bottom of the long driveway, going as fast as you can. Chip meets you at the bottom with the golf cart, and brings you back up to do it all over again. Totally not fair. When I was a kid, #1 the driveway wasn't paved and #2, I had to push my bike back up the hill. My kids have it easy!



And here are the boys with Kellie. She's Doug's wife. Drew and Nick love Kellie better than anyone. I think the feeling may be mutual. She came out and spent the entire day with them on Saturday. We (me, Mom, the boys, and Kellie) went to Freeman lake park, and to Target, and to Chik-fil-A for lunch. It was great fun!



Then it was time to color Easter Eggs. A great time was had by all, as usual. This year there were 14 people coloring eggs. My grandpa makes the egg dye from scratch.





And then this morning the boys were excited to find that the Easter Bunny had hidden them some baskets. Candy, stickers, and a shirt.



Now we're back home. All the stuff is put away, and the boys are outside playing with their dad before he has to leave for work. Easter dinner is in the oven. Strangely, we're having turkey. That's what Andy wanted, so...

Today there was temptation everywhere. It started out with this:



Who wants to go to work on a day like this? It was 60 degrees, with this beautiful sunrise. I was sooooo tempted to stay home. But hey, I guess if you have to be up at 5:30, this is a great way to start the day.

Then, I was tempted to not work out at lunchtime, because it was so pretty outside. But I did, because I won't tomorrow.

And it's totally not fair that there's a garden center between my work and my home. And that they've got so much out. This time I gave in to temptation, just a little:



Just one little flat of plants. But I'll be back. Definitely.

Pop-Ice. First of the year. Yum.

These helicopters are parked (do helicopters park? Land? Perch? Anyway...) behind the school next door. After I took this photo they were joined by 2 more of the black ones. The governor and a state representative held a town hall meeting at the school last night to discuss tornado cleanup/hailstorm cleanup and state funding of those projects. It was very well attended--there were cars filling the lot and the grass almost halfway to our house! But here's the thing. Apparently it's not unusual to leave those black helicopters running for, oh, say, 2 hours. Ever listened to one of them? LOUD. I was tempted to go into the town hall meeting and say "excuse me, but we're trying to live over there!" Oh well, at least they left before bedtime. But they didn't do much for my headache.



The headache. I almost always have a headache. Most days, probably 6 out of 7. They're not always horrible, just nagging. But sometimes they're lay down in the dark and don't move bad. Cry it hurts so much bad. Ever tried explaining that to your kids? They don't get it. I've been to the dr. a few times. This last time we decided to go the 'chronic sinus infection/allergy' route. Today I had a catscan of my sinuses. Interesting experience. It felt like I was moving, even though I wasn't. Results by the end of this week, probably. I hope those sinus cavities are just packed with infection, because then at least there's something we can do about it. Otherwise we're back to square one.

And here's Nick flying:



You would not believe how much this child loves to do this. He begs to get tossed up, again and again. "Fly me, Daddy!" And his brother, the daredevil? Drew, who will try anything, jump off of anything, climb anything? Terrified. He won't even try it once.

And this picture has nothing at all to do with flying. But I just love it. Enjoy.

Yum! BBQ chicken (well, not MY favorite, but everyone else loves it), corn on the cob, homemade seasoned potato wedges, and tomato basil bread. That's what's on the menu for tonight's supper. All cooked on the grill, of course (except for the bread). And for dessert? Strawberries! I bought them yesterday, cut them up, and sprinkled them with sugar. They've been sitting in the fridge since then, getting all juicy and yummy. I can hardly wait. And it's been beautiful outside--I'm thinking we should eat on the deck.

It really is nice today. 64 degrees, and not a cloud to be seen. I mowed the grass earlier, and Andy ran the weed-eater and blower. The yard looks nice. And BIG, now that the tree is missing. The boys have been playing pretty hard, and we've all gotten a little sun. I know it's supposed to be horrible to get a tan (or,heaven forbid, a sunburn) but the boys and I are so fair skinned that we need a little color so that we don't look unhealthy. Last summer someone compared Drew's legs to sticks of chalk!

Tomorrow it's back to work. Ugh. I'm just not feeling it lately. It's not that we're horribly busy (most days) or that the people are terrible. I just don't want to be there. It's that simple. But I imagine I'll get over it. It is nice to be able to eat, and the $$ I make IS a necessary part of our budget. Half, really...

Anyway, here are some pics from today:



Andy looks like he's modeling for some magazine, doesn't he? Really, he was watching the boys. He didn't know I was taking his picture.



Nicky moved a TON of my mulch (last years) from one flowerbed to another.

Well, after the tornado last week, I thought everything was pretty much back to normal. No lingering effects in this house. Why would there be? We were safe. Yeah, right.

Last night another line of storms came through our area, complete with total televsion coverage, tornado watches, flood watches, and storm spotters out prowling around. Where was I? In a near panic, pacing around the house. Looking out every window a hundred times, and changing the channel on the TV constantly to see if another station had a different report. My kids? Huddled on the couch, blankies and stuffed friends at the ready in case we had to go hide. And that wasn't my idea--Drew was in a near panic all on his own. Nick pretty much was OK, as long as I told him that he was OK.

And it wasn't just me. I had several phone calls from neighbors and friends. Not necessarily to check on me, but also to see if I knew anything that they didn't. "Someone reported a funnel at 68 and the by-pass. Can you see it?" "the wind died down here. is it calm there? isn't that a sign of a tornado?" "do you have your cell phone in your pocket? Just in case, you know..." It was crazy. Sane, logical adults acting like the world was coming to an end, just because of a little wind and rain.

I wonder how long it will be before we all calm down?

Anyway, after it had passed over and the boys were finally asleep, I ventured outside to attempt some more lightning photography. I got one decent pic:



And then today I took this. This is my ornamental cherry tree. It doesn't have a scent like the plum tree, but it has beautiful flowers:

Labels: Photography

I mentioned our tornado the other day. Well, it was 2 tornadoes (is that spelled right? it looks funny...). Sisters, they said. One F-3 and one F-2, working side by side to destroy everything in their paths for 7 miles of Christian County, KY. We were so lucky. Some people lost everything. Everything. And we were so close.

But we did have some damage. Some siding is missing from the house, the roof of my backyard storage shed is peeled back in places, the tree in the backyard fell, and the wind blew the grill into my truck and scratched it up. Oh, and due to the power being out for a long while (14 hours, I think) I lost alot of food in the freezers.

Yesterday it was time to clean up the tree. Nick was a big help:



He also offered to help the neighbors cut up their downed trees. They graciously declined, but accepted his offer of lemonade.

Drew told me the other day that he's a "good ol' boy". I'm not sure where he heard that, but he seemed to be quite proud of the fact. So, when I saw this shirt at Goody's yesterday, I just had to get it for him:



We have a houseguest this week. Meet Aurora:



She's staying with us until Sunday. She's a good little dog--we've kept her before. The boys are thrilled. The cats, not so much.

I took this picture of Nicholas on Sunday afternoon. Does he look devious or what? Shortly after this picture was taken (like, 2 seconds) he hit his brother with a bucket of sidewalk chalk.



And then there's Drew. He looks all innocent here, but don't believe it. In his hands he's holding a small, hard, rubber ball. He threw it at me immediately after I took this picture, and hit me in the head with it. I have a bruise.

Yesterday was a beautiful day, if a bit windy. It was nice enough that we ate outside for the first time this year:























Then it got a little stormy:





















Then it got alot stormy:

Tornado

It was pretty scary. We could hear the tornado from our house. I measured the distance this afternoon--1/4 mile to the first home that's destroyed. We suffered minor damage--some missing siding, a tree down, little things tossed around. We were lucky.

The boys got me this ornamental plum tree for Mother's Day two years ago. It smells heavenly.

Nick thinks he's sneaky. The pacifiers live way up high, above the TV. Nick isn't supposed to have a paci during the daytime. Yesterday I wouldn't get one down for him. I guess he thought I wouldn't notice the kitchen chair in the living room, or the stuff knocked over on the paci shelf. And when I said "Nick, what is that?" he shoved the paci behind him and said "nothin', Mom. I didn't get a paci down". And then he said "but can I keep it?" Gosh, I hate being such a mean Mama.



Last night, Drew didn't want to go to bed. He was being pretty difficult, but his arguments and stall tactics weren't anything I hadn't dealt with before. Until he came out with the mother of all cuss words. "G*d D****t, Mom, I won't go to bed". Now, I'll put up with alot, but that's one thing I won't tolerate coming out of my children's mouths. He refused to tell me where he heard it, although I do have my suspicions. But I guess it worked--he did get to stay up a bit later:



And then he had to go to bed without watching his movie.


So, I woke up this morning determined that today would be a better day. Even though it was 5:15. How is it that I can't drag Nick out of bed at 6:00 on a weekday, but on Saturday he pops up at a quarter after five, full of sunshine and happiness? Ugh. Anyway, once everyone was up and showered (and Andy was asleep) we did our usual Saturday errands. Then, as it's the most beautiful day so far this year (79 degrees, sunny, and a slight breeze) we worked outside in the yard. The boys helped me put my new fountain together (thanks, Dad!) and clean out the old one. Then, during their naptime, I mowed the yard for the first time this season. I got my exercise for the day, that's for sure!



After naptime I tried a quick photo session, but no one was very cooperative. This is the best I got. I wish it had sound--Drew saying "look at the camera, Nick!"