We were drawn from the weeds...

Good morning y'all! Happy Monday to you on this dark rainy gloomy day here in Dallas.  We soooo need the rain though. How was your weekend?  I unpacked A LOT and starting to see a light at end of the tunnel finally. I have one guest room that is pretty scary but it's not priority. I can close the door if anyone comes over.

  

I drove out to Quitman on Saturday where Nanny (grandma )  lives and it's 2 hrs one way.  We had such a great day! I left early and got there around 10:30 am. We went to a  a little hole in the wall and had a delicious country breakfast before we went to the grocery store. Nanny does not have a car  or a drivers license so one of us normally takes her so she can be stocked up. 

After we put away the groceries, we headed towards Lindale so I could go back to the Pink Pistol that's owned by Miranda Lambert.  I knew something was off when we got closer and no cars were there. Unfortunately, they had sign on door that they closed at 1pm just for that day.  I bet money that it was due to high school graduations.  I was bummed because I really really wanted to buy a skirt that I can't get out of my mind. 

On our way back to Nannys we stopped at a little flea market and I bought a cute little rolling cart and 2 mannequin heads that came from a beauty school. I will be using them for my Halloween party. LOL 

The highways were gorgeous out in East Texas. 

Sunday, I came home from church determined to get our master bedroom complete. Todd went to his office to paint  his lobby so I buckled down and got to work.  Jax is so funny because he loves to be held. He was so needy and would jump up on my legs so I can pick him up. He's actually pretty heavy when you're holding him with one arm and unpacking, sorting and cleaning with the other arm. 

I need to get one of those baby holders that I can put him in and carry him around.

 I came across one of my projects I bought recently, and changed it around. 

I had bought a summer dress that would not have fit me in the bust but would make a great skirt. I cut the whole top portion off and Wallah! I have a cute skirt. 

These are really not good pictures but notice the shoulder straps and the top bodice are missing from the photo on right. 

It's been a blah day but Ive been busy at work. Hence the late time of day I'm posting. 

Here are some cute pics of Jax that brighten my day. 

He's using his toy as a pillow. Heehee

I want to post more then once this week so let's see......

Have a great rest of your day. 

Memory triggers- flashbacks

I'm sitting here at work snacking on some smoked almonds and it's funny how a smell, taste , sound or sight can immediately take you to back in time to memory. Just silly but tasty almonds took me to Georgetown, Colorado when I was  7 or 8 yrs old, to the Red Ram Inn with my daddy.  My dad lived there for a few years and that was my first flight on an airplane from Dallas to Denver and I flew alone. Back then , you would have a flight attendant assigned to you to board with you and to see you off the plane. Dads friend was the bartender at Red Ram and we were there often to eat dinner. Hey we're talking the 70's and a single dad.  Anyways, they had a dispenser on the bar that was filled with the smoked almonds. For a quarter, you would get a hand full of almonds. I was the official almond getter once I discovered this.  I never in my life ate so many smoked almonds in a months time. 

I will ALWAYS associate smoked almonds with the Red Ram. 

Funny side note: my mom ended up living in Georgetown 20 years later for a short time.  Both parents living in the same small town at different times is so weird to me. 

When mom was pregnant with my little brother Jeremy, she craved ice cream floats made with strawberry crush soda.  It HAD to be Crush brand and my sweet grandpa would drop off cases of the soda every week for her.  So now I can't see a can of Crush ( orange, grape, etc) without thinking of mom pouring it over bluebell vanilla ice cream. 

The little creamer packets that you see jn a bowl at IHOP or Denny's , those take me to a time my Poppy let me open up at least a dozen of those at a small cafe and drink the cream from them. I was really young then probably around 6 or 7. My sweet grandpa spoiled me just a little.

To this day I am not a fan of whipped cream or cool whip from a bowl or can.  Again I was just a little girl and my great aunt was babysitting me. She let me eat cool whip out of the bowl and then also spray the whipped cream in my mouth from a can. I got soooo sick and have avoided it ever since. 

Corny dogs take me to our Texas State Fair and it has to be Fletcher's . 

There are many many many more examples of my transports in time but I only time right now to name these few. 

Do you have any specific vivid memories that something like an almond takes you to? 

 

Wednesday's Hodgepodge

1. I've read several posts and status updates recently describing end of year school field trips. Do you remember taking school field trips as a kid? Where did you go and do you recall a favorite? For any parents responding today, have you ever chaperoned a school field trip, and if so where? I remember going to the Dallas zoo when I was in elementary, and to a very cool Spanish Missions when I was in junior high and attended catholic school in Coronado, Ca., in high school we went on trip to Austin and visited the Capital and LBJ library.

 2. What's something you're tired of seeing online? I can tell you that I am so tired of tons of my facebook connections do nothing but sell stuff- MaryKay, Pampered Ched, Scentsy, Plexus, you name it! They never post about themselves or family, etc. Just buy my crap over and over. HAHA- can you tell it annoys me?

 3. June is the month for roses. Which of the following expressions would you say has most recently applied to your life-'everything's coming up roses', 'there's no rose without a thorn', 'came out smelling like a rose', or 'wearing rose-colored glasses'? I will go with No rose without a thorn. The move is a rose to have a house, backyard, and closer to work, but as mentioned the last few weeks, lots of thorns popped up. 

 4. When grilling outdoors do you prefer gas or charcoal? Who does the grilling at your house? What's the last thing you ate that was cooked on a grill? I like charcoal but we have gas grill and my hubby does the grilling. 

 5. Are you afraid of the dark? Nope. I was always in the lead with my friends hiding behind me when we played Hide and seek outside. 

 6. Share a favorite song with a number in it's title. – Hmm, there were lots from the 80’s and I am total 80’s girl!! Here are a few that I liked: Edge of Seventeen ( Stevie Nicks –my fave), Its not in the title but everyone knows 867-5309 (Jenny), 1999 by Prince, I cant drive 55 (Sammy Hagar), Summer of 69 ( Bryan Adams). 

 7. "Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves."(C.G. Jung). Do you agree? Why or why not? I do agree. I’ve always believed that the very things you like about a person can be the things that drives you crazy about them. My example is that Hubby always loved my brutal honesty and non-sugarcoating and now that we’re married, he said he’s not a fan of it so much. Hmm. 

 8. Insert your own random thought here. I really am not ready to give up blogging but I have lacked either time, topics, or energy to truly blog lately. Next week, Joyce will be on a break so there wont be a Hodgepodge. I’m challenging myself to blog at least twice next week. In other news- PRAISE GOD for insurance because I have my second diamond from jewelry store. They sent my ring off and matched it as close as possible to my lost diamond. No extra fees at all. It’s the same but different. No 2 diamonds are the same so I cant expect for it to be exact. The prongs are different this time and it looks as if it doesn’t sit up as high. Oh well, I’m beyond grateful and its still beautiful for sure! 

Thank you so much for sticking with me during my slow moments. 

Jax is loving his back yard. He has a stick  in his mouth. Any one else's dog likes to eat sticks and pull bark off trees? 

This week's Hodgepodge

1. What news story are you following right now? I cant help but watch the news on the shooting in California. Its so sad and unnecessary. We have to pay more attention to mental health people!

 2. What's the last thing you wanted but didn't get? I wanted a Starbucks this morning but decided I’d rather have it on Friday. I can only afford it once a week.

 3. May 28th is National Hamburger Day...when did you last have a hamburger? Other than your own kitchen or BBQ grill, where is your favorite place to go for a hamburger? And for all you non-meat eaters out there...when you're invited to a cookout what is the one side dish you hope is on the menu? I had a few burgers last weekend . When I was in Florida last week, I had dinner at a friends house and she made the most amazing burgers on the grill. The patties were stuffed with either bacon or blue cheese. Yumm! We have a small chain around Dallas called Snuffer’s and they have great burgers. They also have the best cheese fries in town too. I love burgers and honestly we have too many places that have delicious burgers; Fuddruckers, Twisted Root, Club Schmitz, In and Out….

  4. How have your priorities changed over time? I feel the most drastic was getting married. My priorities now have to include my husband and my puppy and I’m ok with that. Being single and self-sufficient most of my life, my priorities would have been more around only me. Age and experience have changed my priorities as well. Several years ago I got laid off for a few months before I was offered an opportunity to transfer to another department. I didn’t handle that well at all and completely freaked out at thought of being unemployed. Going thru this huge merger now, I find myself much calmer and confident than I used to be. My faith is stronger and I feel that whatever happens is in God’s plan and to just do the best I can do every day. 

 5. What's a favorite memory with your grandparents? My grandparents on my mothers side pretty much split the responsibility with my parents on raising me. I have too many memories to count and for that very reason I am so blessed. My grandma (Nanny) is 87 and is amazing. I lost my grandfather 17 years ago and I miss him so much. I had the strongest connection with Poppy and he’s the one that got me on the Harley when I was just a toddler. He took me everywhere with him and I was his sidekick. When I was young, my grandfather would plan our family vacations around his Ruidoso, New Mexico motorcycle rally. My aunts, uncles, cousins, etc would all go get cabins and have the best time. We went exploring, fishing, picked berries, watched Indian dance shows, ate fry bread, rode ski lifts, so much more. I have very fond memories of those trips.

 6. On a scale of 1-10 (with 10 being fantastic!), how good are you at multitasking? Share an example. I rate myself an 8. I can write blog posts from my phone while listening to conference calls, I can write bills and send birthday cards while holding my puppy and watching TV. I put my home phone on speaker so I can get caught up with my friends and family while also unpacking.

  7. How would you summarize your highs and lows for the month of May? I lost my wedding diamond on May 1 and that was all time low- I moved and had lots of stuff broke and that too was in the lows. I had birthday party at Club Schmitz that at very last minute got switched to Strokers and that stressed me out and some of my guests so that’s low while at same time, I had great turnout and ended up having a blast with those who did show up ( high), I got to travel to Jacksonville where I seriously have some of the most wonderful friends AND got upgraded to beach view hotel room ( high , high, high). Overall more highs than lows so I cant complain. 

  8. Insert your own random thought here. I got a lot of unpacking done this past Monday but I still have so much left to do. I am at the point now that I’m at peace with the fact I cant get it all done immediately and to just take it day by day. I cant believe May is over already. I have mentioned Club Schmitz on numerous occasions and I am so sad that after 68 years of business, they are closing their doors at the end of this month ( this weekend). My dad’s first cousins Bob and Larry owned the bar and are ready to retire. Its on a prime place of real estate in Dallas and are selling the land and getting out while its good. I am happy for them but sad for selfish reasons. I always celebrate my birthday there and we popped in quite a bit for a burger and onion rings. I bought a few t-shirts last weekend when we were in and I got the very last ones. Sad to see a Dallas icon be bulldozed and a place I literally grew up at. Its been on the news and in the papers all month and people have come from all over to go one last time. Its crazy!

Hodgepodge- better late than never . Right?

I am soooo agggravated! Just realized that this post was still in draft from last week. Poo! I've been so busy, I just noticed . Oh well.... This is from last week and will post tomorrow for this current week. Geesh....

1. Under what circumstances do you do your best thinking? I do my best thinking in the car when I’m driving to work, home, etc. I also do a lot of thinking in the shower ( when I’m not singing whatever song in my head for the moment).

  2. Are you a risk taker? What's one big risk you've taken? I believe I am a pretty big risk taker. I lump it with same category as adventurous and I’m that for sure. I’ve bungee-jumped numerous times off very high places. I’m not afraid of heights so I get dangerously close to the edges simply to look down and see everything – not trying to scare anyone. I risked a “safe” job when I interviewed for my position I have now 10 years ago. My training team was barely a year old when I applied and it was sketchy for a few years on whether our team would continue or be let go. I am so glad that I took the risk with potentially being unemployed soon after. Luckily, we are still going strong ( knock on wood) and I love every minute of my job. With the merger taking place in July, I’m a little nervous again. 

  3. Some of the most common phobias according to the National Institute for Mental Health are-fear of spiders (arachnaphobia), snakes (ophidiophobia), heights (acrophobia), fear of spaces from which escape is difficult (agoraphobia), fear of thunder and lightening (astrophobia), fear of dogs (cynophobia), injections (trypanophobia), social situations, flying (pteromerhanophobia) and fear of germs and dirt (mysophobia). True phobias affect only about 10% of adults, but of those listed which would you rate as your greatest fear? I hate snakes!! I see them often around my Dad’s ranch and they were in our pond growing up behind the house in high school, so I’m used to them- but I HATE them. I love lightening and thunder storms and we all know my love for dogs

Here's a cute one of Jax laughing 

. 4. Are you settled or do you feel the need to move somewhere new? HAHA! I am not settled and barely unpacked from my move 2 weeks ago. Unfortunately we moved into a rental home so there will DEFINITELY be another move when we buy our own house. Our plan is to buy a house and live there until we retire, then we want to move to Hill Country and retire there for good. It’s a plan at least!

 5. What is something you find annoying when dining in a restaurant? Kids are run wild. My mom was so strict with my brother and I that people used to compliment her when eating out on how good we were. I expect the same I guess. I understand that kids are going to cry- take them outside or in the bathroom. Don’t ruin everyones else’s experience. 

  6. Daffodil yellow, sunset orange, spring green, or sky blue...your favorite color this time of year? Um, sunset orange ALL year long thanks! 

  7. If you were going to take a holiday all by yourself, where would you go? I would most likely go to Galveston that is our closest beach 5 hours away. I would take a lawn chair and just read books all day. I travel a lot and referring to number 1 question, I’m adventurous. I’ve driven to Niagara Falls by myself, Banff, Whistler, all over LA, Boston, many more all by myself. 8. Insert your own random thought here. I’m working in Jacksonville, Florida this week and have had no time to blog. I still haven’t posted about my birthday last weekend. I’m crazy busy and wouldn’t change a thing but I do wish we had more hours in the day. I’m posting to this linkup a day late and on my lunch hour. I have such dear friends here in Jax that it feels like home here too. Speaking of orange sun- here are a few sunrises I’ve caught from my hotel .

This week's Hodgepodge

1. It's still May, right? When were you last in the middle of something that might be described as mayhem? My move last weekend. It was chaos and mayhem and my house still looks the part. 2. When did you last feel dismayed? When we turned in our keys to the apartment and I never found my diamond to my wedding ring. I cant get past it. Not sure if dismayed is the best word to describe but it works for me. 3. What's a food combination you like, but other people may find strange? I cant and wont eat eggs without mustard. It’s a family thing because my mom, brother, cousins, etc all do it. Hey if you like deviled eggs don’t turn your nose up if you put mustard in them. Delish! 4. "It is never too late to be what you might have been." Do you think that's true? Why or why not? I believe its true. I didn’t get into the corporate world until my late 20’s (27 to be exact) and now I’m a corporate trainer and love my job more than anything. I went to college to be a school teacher so its almost the same thing to train adults. 5. US News and World Report listed the best historic destinations in the US as follows-Washington D.C, Philadelphia PA, Williamsburg VA, Charleston SC, Boston MA, Richmnd VA, Savannah, GA, Santa Fe NM, Yellowstone, San Antonio TX, San Francisco CA, New Orleans LA, and Charlottesville VA. Of those listed how many have you seen in person? Which two sites on the list would you most like to see in person? I have seen all of those places but the 2 in Virginia and Savannah. My favorite 2 sites listed are Boston and San Francisco. My mom lives in Montana and there are no direct flights that exist. I ‘ve always had to fly into Jacksonhole, Wyoming and there is no other way to Moms but to drive thru Yellowstone to get to her house. Its funny that you HAVE to drive thru and works out conveniently that you get a great scenic drive each time. I live in Texas 6 hrs away from San Antonio and have been there numerous times. Its fun but I guess I take it for granted. I would like to go back to Santa Fe though and enjoy some Indian fry bread and ogle at the turquoise jewelry. Ive always wanted to go to the hot air balloon festival they have every year. New Orleans is also 8 hrs away exactly if you drive. It’s the best town for a fun weekend of great food and drinks. Love the frozen drinks on Bourbon St! 6. May is National Physical Fitness and Sports Month. If you had to participate in a single fitness activity for the next half hour, which activity would you choose? I guess I would take a long walk. You know what I wish I had? When I was a kid I had a toy called the lemon twist. It was this black rubber rope with a plastic lemon filled with rocks or something that made noise and you swung it around and jumped over it like jump rope almost. I loved the heck out of that and I could lemon twist all up and down the sidewalk. I would do that again! I also like to hula hoop. 7. What did you like best about the city, town, or neighborhood where you grew up? In elementary, I grew up in Dallas proper and loved it! I was so close to parks that I could ride my bike to and my grandparents lived 6 blocks away and would ride my bike to their house. We had a Baskin-Robbins ice cream a few blocks and a small shopping center close by. We were convenient to everything and I had tons of kids to play with and walk to school with and ride bikes with. In junior high, I lived in Northern California for a 2 years and Southern Cal for year and half. Each location was wonderful including being close to the beach. In high school, I was back in Texas and lived out in the country in East Texas. My school only had 99 graduating seniors and it was crazy small town! Everyone knew everyone which was good and bad. I skipped school once and our car broke down. We walked to the town Dairy Queen which was the mecca and point of reference for everyone and the ladies who worked there called the school. They were moms who knew the schedule and we couldn’t get away with anything. 8. Insert your own random thought here. I am so grateful for this weekly link up that Joyce hosts and she’s so creative with the questions. I’ve been very overwhelmed unpacking and still working full-time that I have lost my desire to blog on my own lately. If it wasn’t for this linkup I wouldn’t have a post. I like that I only have to think about my responses to the questions. I hate that the move stole my spunk but please bare with me on this. I cant be in this funk forever. My birthday is this weekend too and I’m excited to my friends and family on Saturday. They will cheer me up and will be good for my soul. 

Hodgepodge...

1. Share something you appreciate (or something you appreciated as you were growing up) about your mother. I appreciate my mother’s listening ear. I’ve always been able to share with her my feelings and personal thoughts without ever fearing she would judge me. Mom has always been very supportive of all my decisions good or bad. My mom was 18 when I was born so I’ve always loved that she was younger and more cool and hip than my friends moms growing up. She taught me great appreciation of old rock-n-roll and 68 camaro’s. 

 2. A quote most commonly ascribed to Plato reads "Necessity is the mother of invention." When did this last play out in your own experience? I think I’m pretty handy and can probably come up with a few times I’ve engineered something quick to get me through but I had to be creative just this morning. My puppy stays in a kennel when Todd and I are at work and for whatever reason the gate has shifted and is hard to get the metal rod that locks it in the holes and if I can get it in , its hard to remove. Today, Todd left house before me so I have a screw driver that fit perfectly that’s holding the kennel closed. I’m pretty dang proud and wished I would have done that earlier! 

  3. Share one of the earliest memories you have from childhood. I have a very good memory. My mom is amazed of some things I remember from early age. My great-grandfather died when I was very young (3 or 4) but I clearly remember him holding me in his lap. I have so many fond memories of childhood from riding with my Poppy at age 4 on the Harley and my cousins and I playing outside in the pastures at my great-grandmas house in the country. My mom used to take me to the park every week if I got a good status report and we would also get ice cream from Baskin Robbins. 

  4. When did you last 'hit the mother lode'? What was it? Last weekend I lost my kitchen garbage can which also had my smaller bathroom trash can down in and it blew out of my truck when moving. I stopped at garage sale and bought 2 garbage cans and a vintage table lamp all for 6 dollars!! I also scored mother lode when I married my husband. Not to be sappy but seriously he’s incredible. He works so hard and was amazing during the move. I am a lucky woman! 

 5. What is/was your favorite dish mom made? Do you make that dish for your family/friends now that you're all grown up? Mom makes THE MOST AMAZING spaghetti sauce. She was taught a lot of genuine Italian recipes from an old neighbor we had over 30 years ago that was from Italy. I cant touch her spaghetti and don’t even try. One thing else I always loved was this smothered chicken breasts and rice with some special sauce that I’ve also never attempted. When she comes to visit I always ask for it.

 6. Mother May I? was at one time a popular children's game. It required no equipment or parts to play. What was your favorite childhood game where you could just turn up and play-no gear needed? I loved Simon Says, Hide and Seek, Freeze Tag, all of them. We grew up playing outside until it was bedtime. We made up games all the time. 

 7. Which TV mom (past or present) is your favorite, and why? My favorite mom from past I would say was Mom from Partridge family. How cool was it that her family was in a band and they traveled in cool painted school bus. My present mom would be on Bates Motel. She’s such a great actress and creepy.

 8. Insert your own random thought here: My move did not go well. I cried every day and we still have moving to do this week and deep cleaning our apartment. Many things broke but the very worst loss of all was that I lost my Diamond solitaire out of my ring. I didn’t wear it since last Wednesday and only wore my band. I had Dr appt on Monday and put on my rings and didn’t realize until I was driving that the diamond was missing. It was insured but its just not the same. I’ll tell you more about the move later when I can type without crying.