The Shakespeare Project - Act 4

I come to you today with a light heart and a heavy bowl of power oatmeal :-D

Less than three hours until liftoff.....Indiana and Ontario, here I come!

The bag is packed, my vitamins are safely sealed in separate ziplocks, and most importantly, there's a smokin' hot bag of unopened dark chocolates, sitting in my purse.

Speaking of which, what say we have one last OMTANMe (One Month to a New me) Report :

Today's weigh-in showed a loss of 1.5 pounds!

That makes a total loss of 4.5 pounds over 5 weeks :-)

Not stunning, but sustainable, even given the weekend of wild frivolity to come.

Ma is quite pleased.

When I return, there will be a new short-term goal, but in the meantime, I'm planning to enjoy myself, just not every meal.

All that's left to do is school with the boys, shower, pack a lunch, and throw last minute things in the car.

I even have TWO alarm clocks, so there's no doubt about getting up at 3:30, tomorrow morning.

Don't know how much computer access there will be, but I should be able to check in at Sharon's this evening.

Bon voyage :-D
 

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The Long, Hard Day of Getting Readiness

I've checked everything off today's list:

--school
--mowing
--laundry
--supper
--baking 8 loaves of chocolate chip banana bread
--extra dishes (see above)
--boiled eggs for one of Ethan's meals
--wrote out recipes/instructions
--packed

The mowing was rather difficult...guess I'm either getting old (that can't be, can it?) or the ground was extra lumpy.

Had an interesting occurrence when one of the Rugosa Rose bushes reached out and yanked the fuel line off. Fortunately, my alert eyes notices gasoline pouring out of the tank. I cleverly turned off the mower, pushed it over to the driveway--leaking fuel, all the time--tipped it up and discovered the problem, sticking the little hose/thingy back on the spoutchamacallit.

(sorry for all the technical language, but this is what happens when one is an expert in the operation of mechanical devices)

Now I'm feeling rather fatigued, and it's not all physical.

The boys and I seem to have been rubbing each other the wrong way of late, and I'm starting to feel like a really bad mother.

They bombard me with questions and sometimes I answer too quickly and then realize a different approach would be better, and brother, if they think you are changing the rules, watch out. They will pounce on you for any perceived inconsistency, real or imagined. It's starting to feel like a planned attack.

Another slight problem is that they mumble, and when I have them repeat it two or three times, they get upset.

So, I do think getting away from each other might be helpful, all around. 8 to 13-year-old boys seem to chafe at the mother role more than girls of the same age.

Mostly though, I missed my nap.
 

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Shakespeare Countdown - 1.5 more days!

• The menus are planned and assigned...just have to write out a few instructions
  
• Shopping is finished...well, except for the cheese I forgot to buy...have to run in and get that, PLUS, stop at the Waterloo Goodwill one more time on my way to Indiana...(don't ask, it's complicated)
  
• Lists are finished, including the most important one, which details who gets the mail what day, who does breakfast dishes, who gets to sit by Carolyn for evening book reading, who gets to be sung to first....*rolls eyes*...trust me, it saves a LOT of hassle
  
• bought another alarm clock, so I can set TWO on Friday morning when I have to get up at 3:30am (sorry about that, Sharon)
  

Still to do:

--finish mowing lawn

--laundry

--make sure Ethan does the boys' laundry

--lay out Sunday clothes for Trevor and Nolan

--pack

--try not to look too eager

But first, I have to survive the rest of this evening.
 

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The Shakespeare Project - Act 3

Starting to get excited, folks!

But not overly exuberant...don't want to discourage the chillins, or let them think I'll enjoy being by myself, heh, heh.

I have my schedule all printed out. We leave from the Grace campus on Friday at 5:00 in the morning!

Someone's gonna need to get up by at least 3:30. Maybe I should just stay up all night...

Friday
--arrive Strattford at 1:30
--see first play at 2:00 (As You Like It)
--check into lodging at 4:30
--eat at restaurant - 5:30
--evening play at 8:00 (Kiss Me Kate) possibly dessert, afterward

Saturday
--breakfast 8:15-9:00
--9-noon sightseeing in Strattford
--noon - lunch
--leave at 1:20
--arrive Warsaw around 10:00

Also have the restaurant website ("Othello's"), and am perusing the possibilities.

*happy sigh*

The big outfit is almost assembled. Just another accessory or two :-D

While school clothes are acceptable for play attendance, I wanted something better than jeans but not quite along the lines of church (which is dowdy/modest/bordering on the unattractive).

Looks like I'll be able to squeeze in the Thursday morning school with the boys, before leaving around 11:30am. Should roll into Warsaw around 9-9:30 their time, depending on whether I pull over and take a nap, ha, ha.

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In other news, Ethan and I mowed half the lawn, today. My legs felt like rubber by the end, so I must be getting out of shape, despite walking 2 miles every morning and occasionally going 'round the block for four.

My next two afternoons will involve shopping and the last half of the lawn, so I think everything absolutely necessary will get done. The applesauce can wait 'til I get back.

I am HOPING Mr. Frey might come and harvest the field, on Friday or Saturday. 'Twould keep the boys busy and out of trouble, theoretically speaking.

Speaking of speaking, Loren is filling the pulpit for Sunday, so that should be real fun for him, without me to corral the kids.

If I were him, I'd think seriously about hiring a security guard to sit in our row for the morning service. Or perhaps one for the foyer, to make sure young lads aren't loitering in the men's room to kill off sermon time.

I'm just sayin'...
 

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It's Official

I survived the Waterloo Goodwill with five kids in tow.

Well, that's not completely accurate.

Survival doesn't count until 24 hours have elapsed.

O-KAY. In reality, when the oldest ones are 17 and 15, it's not that big of a deal.

However, there are some interesting differences in shopping personalities:

One keeps picking out shirts that are two small.

One could care less what you get.

One can be there for 2.5 hours and not find anything to buy.

One can ask to go out to the car to read, after being there 15 minutes.

One can pick out clothes without trying them on.

And one can borrow a page out of Kendra's Goodwill shopping book and take the cart right into the dressing room. (that would be me).

And have the first pair of dress slacks fit perfectly (that would be me also...a small miracle when you're short and....wide).

Then there was the person who found a beautiful, new, crocheted hoodie, with the original tags (priced $40.00) for 4 bucks...again, MEEEEEEE!

After shopping, we stopped at Culver's for ice cream, a first for four of the crew (Culver's, not ice cream).

So officially, it was a very---good---day.
 

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Yogurt and Pudding and Soup, Oh MY!

Trevor survived the great tooth pulling, today. He's been a real trooper, as a matter of fact.

He was quite excited in the morning. So much so, that when I came over to awaken the sleeping lad, he crawled out of bed, fully dressed.

He'd gotten up earlier and donned the prepared outfit, then climbed back into bed to await my groggy self.

However, after the procedure, he was rather subdued, despite having been given the nitrous oxide.

Really, REALLY quiet, as in, maybe it wasn't such a fun deal, after all. For both of us. I was starting to get worried in the waiting room by the time an hour had elapsed, but had forgotten they were doing 3 sealants as well as the extraction.

As a bonus, the dental assistant said he'd been the perfect patient.

He never complained or whined or cried, but did mention later this afternoon that he hoped he didn't have to get any more teeth pulled.

And really, judging from the x-ray, they could have pulled out a couple more. There were literally 3 teeth jammed up above the tooth-line, with no place to emerge...but I guess I'll let the dentist worry about that. It's the curse of the small, Hoyt mouth.

We stopped at the grocery and stocked up on pudding cups, yogurt and juice. Then came home and had tomato soup for lunch. There is some reward for mouth pain, and Trevor's had at least 3 pudding cups, so far. I gave Nolan one too, since I could sense he would soon be experiencing phantom pain on behalf of his brother.

Then I picked out a meal for supper that Trevor despises, figuring he won't be eating much, anyway.

Too full from pudding, for one thing, ha ha.

Unfortunately, cabbage-n-sausage is also one of Ethan's (many) food miseries, but he'll have to console himself by watching Jurassic Park II with Carolyn and I, tonight.

Makes going to the dentist look tame.
 

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The OMTANMe Report

This week shows no change of weight. That might be good, since I've had considerable chocolate cravings over the past several days, making it very hard to maintain the self-control.

Moving onward, I leave for Indiana and then Canada, one week from today :-D We'll see if I can shed another pound or two by then.

At least the Honey Crisp apples have arrived at the grocery store, giving me another safe but sweet snack.

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Tomorrow morning is an early wake-up call. Trevor is scheduled to get a tooth pulled, and they conveniently made it for 8:30 in the morning.

*sigh*

Have to get up before I normally would on Sunday.

I'm sensing extra nap in the afternoon.

Trevor has a small and crowded mouth, so they are pulling out a permanent molar, due to the fact that 3 or 4 teeth are vying for the same space.

In addition, this may allow room for one of his wisdom teeth to move in and act as a back molar, preventing the need to extract it, later.

So, hopefully, the lad will come through all right, emotionally.

Nolan has already explained that he got to watch TV! The history detectives, apparently, so Trevor will no doubt put in a request for something good, like Star Wars.

____________

Tonight we finish up the 3rd Lemony Snicket book, in the Series of Unfortunate Events. It's interesting, especially if you like morose themes with impossibly discouraging circumstances. But the odd humor and continual plucky responses of the three protagonist children are most enjoyable to behold.

Carolyn got the entire set for Christmas and loves it. Trevor and Nolan don't get some of the asides but are quite wrapped up in the plot turnings. Ethan sort of likes it but reacts verbally to every misfortune or appearance of the nemesis.

Good stuff! Particularly if you enjoy alliteration.

Must go. The Baudelaire orphans await...
 

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The Great Antenna Transfer

Loren has been working on a special roof-related project, this week...moving the antenna.

It's going closer to the west, and will be stuck in a metal casing pole, so that the rotor is no longer out in the weather.

This is part of what I saw, coming in the drive with the groceries, this afternoon.


As you can see, Trevor is quite pleased to be watching Daddy.

And he was not meandering about the roof, but just sitting on the edge of a access port Loren constructed so kids could scare their mom to death he could be able to pop out to fix shingles or work on fun stuff like....the antenna.

Nolan had been sitting up there too, just so you know he isn't missing out on life's necessary experiences.

(of course, Nolan manages to squeeze in a lot of UN-necessary experiences, also...)

Ethan, who had gone shopping with me, scuttled right up to the attic where he helped from the inside.
There seemed to be some hassle about getting the pole into place, and I may have overheard someone mutter, "It'll be a miracle if this works." But hey, it worked! Enough to see most of the tribute to Pavarotti on PBS, anyway. The rotor doesn't move, but the antenna's situated fair enough for all my TV favorites, as long as it doesn't storm.

Trevor, demonstrating his ability to be all places, picture-taking-wise.


In other news, I am compelled to state that son numero uno received a perfect score on his first Physics II test :-D

I guess all those flash card drills are comin' in handy, eh, Jason? Of course, I couldn't pass a high school algebra course if my life depended upon it, but I think the important thing to remember here is that I actually know, and am related to, someone who aced his Physics test.

Well done, O Noble Sonno!
 

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Hummer Happenings

As I stated earlier, we've hardly seen anything of the hummingbirds, until just recently, when they're stoking up for the trip south.

With no obvious ruby throat, this is either a female or a juvenile male.


It's rare to see them actually drink. Most of the time they're just chasing each other off and making sure no one else gets a sip.

One did, however, slip in....Ahhh, a nice bit of nectar before the long flight to Central America.

But, what is on the other side of the feeder??

Oh of course....a frog.

Maybe it was eying the bugs in the water. I can't seem to keep them out, nor the dirt from the outside, despite washing it before every refill.

From the ground, it would have been a straight shot up, four feet, so frankly, I'm somewhat amazed.

But if you really wish to hear a good frog story, check out my SIL, Elizabeth, down in Oklahoma. Her experience this morning is a doozy!
 

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The Good, the Bad and the Weepy

It being cool and foggy, I did my pre-breakfast 2 miles on the basement treadmill.

Things went downhill from there.

Monday is always tricky, morale-wise. It's the beginning of "school" and the world looks bleak again, after those heady weekend days of freedom.

In addition, Monday brings the dreaded new spelling words, necessitating typing them into their computers.

For some reason, this task seemed insurmountable for Trevor, this morning. As in an 8-10 minute job taking 45 minutes or more, with muchos tearos.

From there it went to "too many math problems!"....*sob*...that were "too hard!"...*sob*...."It's too noisy in here!"....*sniff*...."I'll never get done!"....*sob*...*sniff"...*hiccup*...

If I didn't know better, I'd have thought he was channeling a weepy teen in the throes of hormonal implosion.

Somehow we got through the morning. Even awful flashcards, made all the harder by residual effects of two previous meltdowns.

Ma earned her afternoon nap following lunch and dishes!

Which was just about the time Loren went up in the attic to start sawing wood and pounding nails.

But it all worked out.

I got some rest AND went out on a 4-mile walk :-)

Course, then I needed another nap, but still....

Fast forward to 45 minutes ago and bedtime: "It's my turn to sit on that side of Mommy..."

"No..it's MY turn!"

(for some reason, sitting at the right hand of Mommy is a big deal)

THEN it was on to the bedroom and who got to be sung to first, Trevor or Nolan....

(BEAM ME UP, SCOTTY!!)

I opted to make everyone unhappy and not sing at all, so yeah....I think that went well.

Just another adventure from "The Good, the Bad and the Weepy."
 

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Some Kinda Day

Very chilly, here. Barely 50 degrees at the moment, with cold rains coming off and on.

Got some really good news, so listen up...!

Kendra had that long interview process today--some of which involved showing the interviewees around--and upon returning to campus, received a call in short order saying she'd been accepted!

Yay for Kendra! The PA program awaiteth :-)

Apparently, 4-5 hours of sleep and no breakfast helps to psych one up, for such an endeavor, or maybe she persevered regardless.

Anyway, that is over. Now to decide if she should keep the interview appointment for Des Moines...

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On a truly sad note, Kendra also came back to campus and was told of rather distressing news. While gone, there had been a campus-wide meeting to inform the students that a freshman girl had died during the night.

A tree branch fell on her...don't know the details, yet...and the senior she was with is in critical condition, after being air-lifted to a hospital.

So all the euphoria of her acceptance into grad school is somewhat tempered by the very serious news of the death, which happened off campus.

The freshman's name is Mallori Kastner, so please pray for her parents and family.

Also, the parents of Jeremy Mohr could definitely use prayer. He is the senior--from Iowa, by the way--who was also injured.

Thanks for praying.
 

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Oops!

I didn't mean to sleep in 'til 9:30.

Must be my weekend bonus from getting up promptly at seven, every school day.
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Kendra is involved in her very first grad school interview, even as we speak! Goes from 9-2, at St. Francis in Ft. Wayne, IN.

This is her first choice in PA programs, because they utilize a "problem oriented" approach to learning, as opposed to the standard lecture (only) format.

So I hope to get a phone call or email from her, later today (hint, hint, Kendra).
__________________

Also this past week, Loren gave a blood sample to Mayo, who in turn will send it to a private company that does genetic testing.

There are 7 types of ARVD that have been isolated for identification in the United States, and this test will check Loren for all seven. If he shows positive for one of the genes, then other people in the family can be tested for that specific gene.

Should know in 6-8 weeks.

When they took out Loren's old heart and did the pathology report, they identified his problem as ARVD, which was a big surprise to his old electrophysiologist. Loren didn't exhibit some of the classic symptoms.

Since that time, the US has been able to develop a genetic test for 7 of the identifiable types of ARVD. Apparently there are 8-12 genes that have been associated with ARVD, but American technology can only test for seven...ANYWAY, it would be very helpful if one of these seven showed up in Loren, so other family members who have shown some heart irregularities could also be tested.
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But getting back to Ft. Wayne, Carolyn and I watched Planet of the Apes last night, where Charlton Heston's character hails from that city. (Thought of you, Kendra :-)

Both the reference and the movie were interesting. And not as lame as we'd expected an old sci-fi, to be.

But I think the moral would be: "Never go out in space, unless you're sure the airlock on your hypersleep containment center is working properly."

Or if you do, take a lot of make up.
 

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The OMTANMe Report - week 3

Ma is goin' with a Thursday weigh-in this week. And the verdict is....

Good :-) Lost another 1.5 pounds, making a total loss of 3 pounds, so far.

I will leave for Indiana and Canada, two weeks from tomorrow, and my goal is to lose 2 or 3 more pounds.

Doesn't sound like a momentous weight-loss, but at least we are going in the right direction.

In other news, I've been mystified that the hummingbirds were pretty scarce, this year.

Finally, a couple came around today. Close enough to take pictures, anyway.

They hardly ever drink the sugar water, just sit around and wait...


...or scratch those pesky bird mites.


I expect they'll be gone soon, after they tank up before heading south. Though frankly, they spend most of their time not eating, but making sure that other hummers don't get to the nectar, either.

Fierce, but not terribly smart, heh, heh.
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The second stage of Ma's 3-day birthday bash includes going out to dinner and a movie with El Hubbo, tonight :-D

Just in time, too. The youngest boys were driving me nuts, this morning. It's very hard when you have to correct them in reading, for instance. There's a constant tricky balance to be maintained between the parent and teacher role. Too much pointing out of errors and they take it personally, getting all upset and weepy. Too little and they turn into slackers.

It would probably help if I assumed an alter ego. Something along the lines of Miss Nelson/Viola Swamp.

Yep, I might wanna give that some thought...
 

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In which Ma turns 52

There was a stilled hush in the air as the sun rose. Birds ushered in the dawn with careful, reverent cheeps. Thin clouds lent a mottled, yet inspiring appearance to the sky.

Morning, again, in Ma-ville.

What to do on this day of days, this anniversary of 52 years?

All the usual stuff, apparently.

Got up.

Walked 2 miles.

Ate breakfast, including not two, but three eggs!

Why the egg exuberance, one may ask?

It's quite simple, really.

Because I can.
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It's been a good day, overall.

First off, I got on the scale and had a happy result! Now, if tomorrow doesn't stay the same or go lower, I'm sticking with today's weigh-in and changing the report day to Wednesdays.

Why? (one may ask)

Because I can.

School went well, and I even scraped together enough victuals for lunch, it being grocery shopping day.

And this brings up an amusing little occurrence.

We all have to deal with the fake "How are you?" queries from grocery personnel. I wouldn't mind one upon entering the store, such as the Wal*Mart greeter, but when every stock boy tries the ol' PR approach, it can get a little old.

Carolyn and I had just traversed the dangers of the produce section, where I personally spotted mold on a package of grapes, when I was accosted by a cheery lad stocking cans in aisle one:

"How's your day goin'?"

"Good," I mumbled, trying to get past him as quickly as possible.

I reached the aisle's end and the lunch meat counter, where I had to make an agonizing decision concerning Ethan's noon-meal-of-choice. More specifically, daring to buy an alternate brand to "King Bologna's" cherished favorite.

For most shopping trips, that experience in itself would be enough to cause mental anguish.

HOWEVER, proceeding down the second aisle, Ma chanced upon the same stock boy, shelving new items, but greeting me with the same, tired banality, "How's your day goin'?"

I did manage to suppress my outrage giggles, and continued on with purchasing life and sustenance for the fam.

As Carolyn and I entered a third aisle, whom did we see but what appeared to be the same fellow, ordering packages on yet a new shelf.

I had my reply all ready. If he dared to toss me his pretend sociability one more time, I was gonna let him have it with,

"DUDE! This is the third time. Give it a rest !"

Sadly, it was another fellow, leaving me somewhat disappointed, and the original young man free to live another day.
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As a slight birthday present to myself, I bought a clearance necklace for 3 bucks, and a neck scarf--also clearance--for three more dollars.

I'm planning to assemble a new outfit for the Shakespeare weekend, solely around that scarf :-)

Those purchases, couple with my 79 cent Planet of the Apes discovery (shrink-wrapped!) at Goodwill, made for a pretty thrilling birthday, let me tell you.

Tomorrow Loren and I will go out for dinner and a movie, and Friday will be my birthday meal with the family.

I figured we may as well draw this out as long a possible. At fifty-two, you never know how long you have left...
 

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"Don't pick under the apple trees, with anyone else but Ma..."

Yes, it was harvest time again, at the Hoytstead.

Here we see Trevor, utilizing the step-ladder technigue, in a completely un-staged shot.


Nolan, with the monkey-method.


And Ethan's favorite, the fruit picker tool.
Unfortunately, I was too cheap to spring for this handy helper when the older kids were at home.

Later, we had to bring out the big guns ladder.


Took us a good 2.5 hours. I thought it would be less time since there didn't seem to be as many apples on the trees.

We even had to dump a wheelbarrow-full of windfalls that had blown down on a gusty day.

Still, we came up with quite a few.

As in, close to 5 bushels from just the dwarf tree.


The larger delicious trees are having problems, and only produced about 2 bushels. Still it's going to take some doing to put up sauce. I'm guessing three different days.

But first, I need to buy a few more laundry baskets.
 

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First Day of School

I wasn't looking forward to this day a couple of weeks ago, but it didn't turn out as badly as I'd feared.

Let's hear it for low expectations!

People joke about those of us who don't have high expectations, but hey...show me an optimist and I'll show you someone who is heading for a huge fall and disillusionment.

In keeping with discipline and setting a good example and all that...stuff, I decided to set a wake up and start time for the kids, and get up earlier myself, so as to partake of a bit of exercise before breakfast.

Carolyn joined me on this gorgeous morning and we walked off two brisk miles before breaking out the skillets for eggs and bagels. The bagels went in the toaster, of course, but it sounds incredibly awkward to say, "break out the toaster."

After the flurry of notebook divider organization, I did manage to get through most of the boys' schooling. Pretty good, for the first day.

Later, I realized penmanship had been forgotten, but hey, if they wanted handwriting to be perfect, they should have never invented the word processor.

That done, I received an interesting phone call from Derek, around noon. He'd been back for a post-cardioversion checkup with the good Dr. L. and was found to be in a-fib, again.

Guess it's pacemaker time. No word yet on the exact date, but already I am hoping it won't be the weekend I cam gone to the Shakespeare Festival.

(Hear that, Derek? the first weekend in Oct. is out)

To cap off this surprisingly non-horrible day, I'll share a little repartee between one of the children and myself. It occurred during the preparation of supper and nicely illustrates the difference between youthful exuberance and the resignation of old-age:

SOME-one: "When I grow up, I'm going to invent all kinds of new recipes!"

Ma: "Yeah....I used to think that, too."

SOME-one: "No, but I'm really going to..."
 

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Ma's Excellent Cedar Rapids Adventure

I have had a wonderful half-weekend, starting out on Friday afternoon when I very cleverly made it the Justin and Ardith's house without taking even one wrong turn.

Kudos for Ma!

It only got better.

After greeting the cats, Lucy and Schroeder...well, Lucy, anyway, arrangements were made for all the interested parties to meet at the restaurant, the name of which I forget, but I believe it has the initials "G C."

The interested parties included son Derek, and Josh and Anna Scholl, with cute baby Grace.

Here's a picture of Ma's flatbread pizza :-D
I could only eat approximately half, ha, ha. Good stuff! And it didn't have that many calories, so I was able to share two large pieces of YUMMY chocolate cake, with Ardith, Justin, and Derek.

The cake was super.

I ate more of it than Derek.

Ergo, I WIN.

Back at the Betz-stead, Lucy was demonstrating why she might have some "Rag Doll" cat genes, in her.

The cats are QUITE amusing.

Here are Schroeder and Lucy, perched on the lookout ledge which Justin built for them.


Ma got out for a nice walk among the hilly streets this morning, then it was breakfast and off to Half Price Books!

Wow. Methinks I like it even better than Goodwill :-)

Here's a list of the acquisitions:

Mystery
---two Dorothy Sayers
---two Agatha Christie
---one Alexander McCall Smith

Poetry
----Yeats...selected poems and two plays (I was a little disappointed I couldn't find Shelley and Lord Byron at a price I wished to pay)

Misc. Fiction
---4 Steven King novels
---Flannery O'Conner The Complete Stories (this made up for expensive poetry)

Classics
---Uncle Tom's Cabin (clearance...only two bucks!)
---War and Peace (clearance!)
---Stories for Christmas, by Charles Dickens (clearance, again :-) And these last three are nice hardback editions.

Pièce de résistance
---Shakespeare's Complete Works (very nice hardbound)

I needed the Shakespeare because the one I have has such fine print I can hardly read it.

There was also a book which shall remain unnamed, as it could wind up being a Christmas present.

Oh wait...one more thing: a shrink-wrapped Count Basie CD, for good measure :-D

And lest I forget, after Half Price Books, we ate out at a Sushi restaurant. My first taste of Japanese food! I had a lunch combo that was really excellent, but Justin let me taste one of his sushi pieces, so I've added another cultural notch to Ma's-belt-of-sophistication.

Welp, that's my haul of food and loot, thanks to the Ardith and Justin's gift card and introduction of eateries :-)

One of these days I should really make an organized list of all my books...
 

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Iowa in the News!

We have two great stories from the Hawkeye state, today.

The first one I saw on the KWWL news, last night. Tried and tried to find it online but they didn't post it until this morning...how a Waterloo man caught a piranha in a local river!

And those babies are even bigger than I'd imagined.
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Of even more important note, the first living recipient of the Medal of Honor--since the Vietnam war--hails from Iowa.

Congratulations to Staff Sgt. Salvatore Giunta of Hiawatha. I'll be driving right through there on my way to Cedar Rapids, in just about an hour.

Which means, I'd better get busy....
 

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The OMTANMe Report

In the past when I've tried to lose weight, people have come to expect a certain amount of whining and gnashing of teeth.

There's initial progress, followed by a slack time, followed by anger, self-loathing and the wearing of sackcloth.

Figuratively speaking.

So, taking that into consideration, one might think, "Hmmmm, I'll bet Ma has matured, by now. I imagine she will realize that one just has to stick to it, go for the long haul, and above all, not make foolish accusations aimed at an inanimate object such as a high-tech scale-with-a-lithium-battery-and-digital-readout."

They would be wrong.

This week's weigh-in showed a loss of .5 pounds.

On Friday, that is.

On Tuesday and Wednesday it showed a loss of 1.5 pounds, which one would assume would carry over through Friday.

But of course, that would be too much to expect.

Rationality.

Consistency.

Reward for denial of goodies.

I'll admit it has dimmed my outlook for the day, which revolved around the anticipation of the excursion to Cedar Rapids.

But I'll get over it.

Probably in 5 years or so, when my hormones settle down.
 

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If this is Thrusday....

...tomorrow must be....FRIDAY!

Hoo-ee, the excitement mounteth and preparations continueth.

DONE:
--Ethan and I finished the lawn, before lunch.

--Finalized and organized my list of books for the grand libro-hunt.

--Re-edited and sent off a health document for the Hoyt clan.

--Made holiday medical appts. for college-type person.


TO DO:
--cut Loren's hair

--pick out my wardrobe, ha, ha.

--weigh in tomorrow morning for the OMTANMe report

--pretend to be productive before I leave

--pretend to be sorry to leave

--LEAVE! (oh wait....I mean, "leave")
 

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Ma Eyes Friday

That's when I go down to Cedar Rapids and cash in my Half Price book card!

It was a Christmas present for Ardith and Justin, and it includes dinner at a restaurant!!

Plus an over-night!

Can you tell I am pumped?!?

I've got a working book list, of items to look for, and I should figure out what kind of food I want to eat...let's see...I'm thinking Peking Duck, but it's not set in stone.

(actually, I'd be happy to eat at Arby's or McDonald's, or a sandwich from HyVee)

With that goal in mind, and to keep up my pretense of keeping up (with chores), Ethan and I mowed half the lawn, today. Quite a bit easier without the heat advisories. With any luck, we'll only have to do it 3 or 4 more times, this year.

Then it's a matter of finishing the lawn, getting groceries and making sure we have supplies for next week, when school starts (ugh...don't want to think about it!).

In other news, the kids have gotten me to participate in their card games of "Scum," which they learned from their New Zealand cousins.

It can be fun, and I look on it as an opportunity to do something with them besides the usual. Nolan looks on it as another opportunity to get mad if he comes in last.

Ah, the joy of playing with one's children.

In other news, the well guys finally came today and changed out the pump motor. I took pictures through our dirty window, so that'll be an exciting upcoming post for the thousands of blog fans.

Maybe, if I put up photos, Loren will comment and explain what's going on. I confess to some lack of interest in motor phases and the intricate workings of the water system.

I'm just funny, that way.

However, I can really dig this eating-out-and-going-to-the-bookstore, gig.
 

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Wedding Photos, and more

Forty-seven pictures of Alina and Dusty's wedding. Remember, I'm not a professional...

Alina and Dustin's Wedding

Ma is remiss for not getting this up, sooner. I was pretty tired on Saturday, after driving to Des Moines and back, with no nap for this old lady.

Then on Sunday after church, we were getting ready for a visit from Sharon and Derek. Good times with the progeny! Now Derek is back in Cedar Rapids and Sharon is on her way to Indiana.

And I've decided to take one more week before starting school. Not even any more summer school.

I'm determined to have a little break, I am.
 

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Ma Joke # 8

(Eavesdropping on a conversation between two conservative Christian couples, chatting over coffee-time, at church....)

First man: "...and even if she was older and done raising her family, I just couldn't support a women for political office. I truly believe it goes against the Word of God."

First woman: "Oh my, yes. And we women are so emotional."....*shakes head in dismay*....

First man: "Yeah...You can't have people in leadership roles who might make a decision based on how they feel. It impairs judgment."

Second man: "Hey, not to change the subject, but did you listen to Glenn Beck, yesterday?"

First man: "You bet. That was SO encouraging. Wow...the fervor....the enthusiasm....and I thought his theme of turning the country back to God and Christian principles...it was so inspiring! Truth and integrity...I mean, that's what this country needs."

Second man: "Oh amen...amen."
 

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The OMTANMe Report

Only one week down and already I am miffed!

Of course, you expect that from women my age, right? At least, that's what I've heard.

Lost a pathetic 1 pound, so the One Month To A New Me is not exactly off to a blazing start.

I gave up bagels, chips, diet pop and large quantities of chocolate, for this?

Particularly galling is knowing the scales read lower, earlier in the week. Like I may have mentioned before, that contraption-masquerading-as-a-weight monitor is out to get me.

But it does not know the depth of my scorn and resentment! I will use this blatantly unfair readout as fuel to be tossed on the fire of my losing ambition.

It picked the wrong person to mess with.
 

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Results

I refer to the OMTANMe, or One Month To A New Me, gimmick campaign.

It's not quite time for the official report, but I can safely say, at this moment in time, that I have started to lose weight.

Plus, I walked "around the mile" with Carolyn, right before lunch. That's FOUR MILES, for people that don't live in sensible places with non-curvy roads.

My two pronged-attack involving change of diet and increased exercise, is still viable!

I like to call the food component, LCMP, which stands for Less Chocolate More Pickle.

Every time I get that ol' hankering for a toothsome morsel, I crunch on a fourth or half of a large, dill pickle. No calories!

They're fairly tasty, as long as you don't indulge too often. However, eating several close to bedtime has the same effect as drinking too much water.

Another safe food: apples, which are just starting to ripen on the trees (must pick...soon).

For the first two days of the new regimen, I allowed myself one chocolate, each day. Since then it's been two per day.

Akin to plugging the BP leak, only more verifiable.

This Friday, we'll have the first, official weigh-in. Come on, scales...don't fail me now!

I'm still dealing with a digital readout that doesn't completely....read out, but I'm fairly certain I have it correct, thus far.

In other news, I anticipate an unenthusiastic start to the school year, since Nolan and Trevor have been working right along during the summer. It's not been every day, and it's not been for as long, each day, but it's enough for them to feel like school has never stopped. And soon, it will get even longer.

Maybe next summer we can have more of a break.

It all depends on their test results...
 

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