So we drove and drove and then we drove some more. Let's just say it was remote. Not hard to find but definitely in the boonies. The trip was perfectly uneventful. The boy was fishing within minutes of arrival. Our site was perfectly located, it may well be the only time in my life that I actually have lakefront property.








Vermont makes for some beautiful traveling. Like Maine there's alot of distance between where you are and where you need or want to go. 10 miles for milk? What choice do you have? Somehow, I've become fairly used to it in Maine but it really left me feeling exhausted this past weekend.










Having no pets of our own left us with an empty feeling...oh, wait...was that relief? Maybe on my part but the kids adopted this guy. We spent $8.00 on peanuts. He should be set for awhile.









The view our campsite from the beach. We're to the right of the boats (those would be the red and yellow specks). If you squint you can see our tent.









And while the weather in Vermont was very nice, except for an occasional light drizzle we were just South of Boston when we were treated to a deluge. Seriously. Traffic slowed to a crawl and there was two feet of water on the ground in some places. All within minutes. Lightening and Thunder. All very cool.







See how the guardrail is only 8 inches high or so? That's because the bottom two feet and the median and passing lane are totally underwater. The other side seemed to luck out on this portion of the expressway. This much rain and what seemed to be endless grey clouds. We live about 30 minutes south of here and while it got a little overcast at one point we never got a drop of rain from this.


Okay, on to the quiz. The crowning of the winner that all of you have been waiting for.

*trumpets blaring*

It's Jennifer! She was the first to answer. She eeked out her victory by mere minutes - and because she didn't tell me how long to minus for her trip to the train station. And Kate, she got that tricky bonus question...smarty pants. Thanks to everyone that played. I made you all read those lonely little archived posts. They're very thankful.

Oh, and in trying to prevent trickery I messed with the commenting code in my template. I've gone and screwed it up. The comments for this post are actually above the header of the post below this. Dammit.

The Quiz to End all Quizzes or What to Read While Jenny's Gone Camping. Again.

Okay, so we've gone to Vermont for four days and you're all wondering..."What on earth will I do without Jenny?'' Well sharpen your pencils folks and grab a drink because you've just been selected to participate in the Blog Quiz from Hell. Not really, but sounds daunting, eh?

The answers are in my past posts. So you've got to read, read, read. Or scan quickly but I'll never know, it's not like I'll be checking my stat counter to see how long it took you guys or anything. ehem.

Here we go...

1. Total Cost of the Camping Trip from June 2004?

2. What did I make my daughter dig out of the toilet last November?

3. In July 2004 I listed Four Movies that will I never see. What are they?

4. What taxidermied critter was waiting for me in my office in March?

5. What happened when I tried to do an Audioblogger post last September?

6. Last February who did I say had the greatest smile in pro sports?

7. Which Survivor was I crushing on in April?

8. What did my son carve on his Halloween pumpkin last year?

9. Where did we travel to for Mother's Day 2005?

10. What did I get coming home from a book club meeting last July?

11. What did my husband not want my help with just before Christmas last year?

12. Which 'one of my favorite gizmos' did I have on the counter to prepare for last January's blizzard? Bonus: How much snow did my ruler say accumulated?

13. What kind of shots did I drink at my brother in law's wedding in September?

14. Who signed my hat after the SuperBowl? Bonus: What's his NAME?

15. Name three things that were in my purse last March.

16. Sometime around Labor Day 2004 I found out what Famous Leader I was most like. Who?

17. In April I said that I thought someone could be my 'fantasy grandpa'...who?

18. What two animals ate my food when I took my kids camping last August?

19. In May 2005 I discovered a most excellent cleaning product - what was it?

20. How many stars did this blog get rated on Blog Explosion last October?


Bonus Math Question for Kate: My two dogs left the house at 12:30 to run wild through the streets. They travelled 1.75 miles and ate 14 cheeseburgers, 12 orders of popcorn and 3 snowcones. How many dogs do I have?

Well. There you have it. The Jenny's Journal Quiz. You can email me your answers at littlewonder20002000@yahoo.com. I'll post the winner sometime Sunday night.

There will be prizes people. Huge valuable prizes. The first one with all of the correct answers wins and wins BIG.

I'm lying. Small, inexpensive prizes, but prizes nonetheless.

Thanks for playing guys, really.

In my world Wednesday = Friday ....phew.

Work rant: There was a little workplace venting going on earlier tonight...but theventing has been done and it's been erased. I have no interest in ever having this blog become part of some wacky workplace politics.

The dogs are being kenneled tomorrow for the first time. It's going to be ugly. Baxter tends to bark when he's locked up, away from people and comfy furniture. He tends to bark loudly and constantly. I'm worried about him.

And tomorrow, tomorrow people is the debut of my quiz. I suppose email will be the easiest way for me to determine the winner. Because quite frankly I'm expecting an onslaught of visitors to participate. Really, all nine readers and then maybe a 'Next Blog' blogger or two. How will I ever keep track? Actually email will work out better so I won't have to be embarrassed about the total LACK of participants. C'mon ..... invite your friends...

We are headed to the Green Mountain State this weekend. To CAMP.

Did I say I liked camping? Things change. That's not true, I enjoy camping, it's the packing I am hating.

Next year we were supposed to take a vacation. A real vacation, with planes and rental cars and such. I think it's been cancelled due to lack of funds so I will placate myself with a rental house within driving distance. We have good destinations here in the Northeast...Cape Cod, Maine, New York, etc... but I wanted airports and a Hertz counter. *sigh* Must. Swear. Off. Target.

I am planning a quiz for the end of the week. To test my lovely readers...all eight of you. To keep you occupied while I am otherwise occupied.

Now that I am out of the proverbial closet I may treat myself to a Flickr account. oooh the extravagance. Wasn't I just complaining about a lack of money not two paragraphs ago? Hmmm.

Oh, and Tash wants a cookout...if she gets her fanny with smoochable baby in tow over to these United States....she can name the date and the time...it's a done deal. The guest house is all yours Tash.

He leaves for training tomorrow and then leaves for Iraq in January. He's quite possibly one of the sweetest guys on the planet. And I'm not exaggerating. We really, really love him. Stay safe, Josh. 

I'm out.

Well, there's a few of you who might know this but for the multitudes that don't this blog has always been secret. My secret. Kept for myself. My husband knew nothing of the posts I've typed or the sites I read. Except for an occasional fact or story, like I hear Milwaukee has the BEST frozen custard or I bet Niagra Falls is beautiful, huh? - I never outed myself.

I mean what if he wanted to read it? And okay, here's another tidbit, I don't like sharing. And this was mine. M.I.N.E. mine.

I recently received an offer or two that I found myself not wanting to refuse. It meant coming clean with the whole blogging/posting/commenting thing. And so I did. After thirteen months of this craziness I just said "Oh, hey I started a website". (I HATE the word blog, never know how to replace it and feel like "my site" is all pretentious for this thing. I mean, Dooce has a site. Mine is clearly a blog. And he wouldn't know what a blog was if it bit him in the ass, but I digress) He say's when'd you start that? I say, because, thirteen months sounds WAY long - awhile ago. He asks what it is, I tell him it's kind of like a journal and people can comment on it and.. then the kicker, said with not a small amount of sarcasm "People actually read it??". I'll chalk it up to not even knowing the slightest thing about the internet and NOT about the quality of my posts...especially when they're weird internet related dreams.

I show him the page, he's only mildly interested. More upset about the pic of the house - as if I'd make sure you all saw the address that is actually on my house courtesy of the cutest LL Bean sign...anyway....

I don't know if he'll ever really GET it or the whole idea of what can come of it. Whether it's a friendship or a recipe or a post that makes me laugh or cry or worry. Whatever it is I'm glad it's not a secret anymore.

Dream the Impossible Dream

So Blackbird goes away on vacation. And she lives next door. Except it's not next door to this house but the house I grew up in. And it's not the house that used to be there in real life, it's different. And on a hill. She leaves her doors unlocked while she's gone. She always does. How do I know? She blogs all about it. Funny though, even as she's living next door I only know her from her site and have never met her.

Anyway, I get yelled at for watering her flowers by this person and this girl as they pull up in a big convertible, the kind you see in Nelly videos, until I give them the secret password. "SAY LA VEE". Oh, they say...let's go inside and check out her kitchen. So we're in the kitchen and really enjoying it I might add. And then the phone rings it's my husband is telling me to come home because I have a phone call. Kate's on the phone when I get there and all I can remember is laughing (and her AHAHAHA laugh but out loud) .

And then I get woken up by the lovely sound of two children calling for breakfast. Interesting eh? No. Well, I never said it would be. I just said I would blog about it and made no promises about the quality of my post.

Last night I while looking for some frozen peas I happened upon something in the freezer. Something that generally doesn't belong there. The cordless phone.

I feel busier this summer than ever. It's taking a conshus (it's called phonics people and that's how they're teaching my kids to spell) effort on my part to slow things down. As of yet we haven't been bike riding, blueberry picking or to the beach. Things we do regularly every summer.

Pats training camp was sweltering hot. The kids didn't want to leave on the off chance that Mr. Tom Brady might sign something ANYTHING of theirs.
He signed nothing of ours - instead we were given #61 Stephen Neil (who? who cares - he was big, huge even, and the kids loved it) for autographs. But Tom Brady passed right by us and my kids, for just a moment, were breathing the same air and that was enough. At least for the boy. He's enamored.

I had the strangest dream last night. And there were guest appearances...by you guys. Welcome to my sleep, was the bed comfy? sorry if I kicked you. I'm off to the beach but will be back to rehash the dream later...

Quick - I Need Help

Okay internet, I have to write a miniature email basically telling someone that at this time I can't accept the job they've offered me. Which I've done, except for the last sentence.

I need to throw in a line about how "maybe you could keep me in mind and call me if something else becomes available".

And I need to send this email out by early tomorrow morning.

Everything I type comes out sounding totally idiotic and desperate. Wah. I'm begging you guys.

Silly Sports Stuff No One Cares About But Me

Like any addict knows, you get your fix however you can. My drug of choice? Semi-pro football. My husband's friend - Number 50 - was my in. I didn't expect to like it, mostly agreeing because Number 50 is all the talk on the team and my daughter has a huge crush on him. That and he's a sweetheart of a guy. But like it I did and now I have to weasel my way to another game without my husband thinking it's me who has a crush on Number 50.

Tuesdays fix...Patriot's Training Camp.

Seriously, I must have a screw loose. I worried, worried more than is strictly acceptable that the Red Sox would do some super secret trading with Bill Mueller and that Richard Seymour will be a big jerky holdout with the Pats.

And then I read Vanity Fair and found myself not hating Martha Stewart quite as much as I used to. And hating the War in Iraq even more.

Show and Tell Friday

The front porch for Badger and Blackbird...
except that I don't have a front porch. There is some debate in this house as to which side of the house should be referred to as the front and which side is the back. But seeing as this is my website I'll give you my version...
These are the front stairs. VERY newly constructed - note the price tag still on the wood. Not for the show and tell but for the hockey cookout. For all the work that man has done around here we kept forgeting about the front stairs as we rarely use them and only see them from that side of the house. The side of the house which faces the path to the pond. This will all change shortly as these were meant to be temporary. Yesterday, I was sitting on these steps and realized that a miniature porch might be just what I need out here. The view is not spectacular, as there is someone's house directly across from mine - but it's very quiet on this side - no swingset, no driveway, no chatty when I don't feel like chatting neighbors.

This, on the other hand, my husband and most other people refer to as the front door (even though it's on the side of the house) . This is the what you'd see as you drive up....dog included. I noticed when I was downloading these that in the very top right corner my Christmas wreath is still up...we've passed the halfway point, only five months to go...it's staying.

Finally, it's nice enough to open the windows and not melt into a frosty the snowman puddle on the kitchen floor. The newly polyurethaned kitchen floor I might add. *See tip Number 642 for "How to make peace with your wife after neglecting to help her get ready for big camping trip".

The downside to open windows...they guy working on the house next door has a nail gun *bam, bam, bam* like machine gun fire and apparently he's a huge country music fan. Hurray for Brooks and Dunne. or not.

Nozy Neighbor

The kids are better but still we're taking it easy - with an early matinee of Jaws. For whatever reason my kids are not at all bothered by a killer shark but whine like babies at nighttime after watching the cartoon Scooby Doo.

I'm spending part of today just being nozy. I'm snooping through all of your blogrolls, well not all of them because, let's just face it, I don't have THAT much time on my hands - but it's keeping me busy and therefore sane between foolish household chores like laundry and fish tank cleaning.

In my travels I've noticed that I've been removed from someone's blogroll. Hmmm. I'm curious...was I too offensive or not offensive enough? Was I too dull? Not enough posts? Was she as sick of the blue background as I am? Ah, well, I don't really care that I'm gone - but I do wonder why.

Okay, so no lightening strike. Only now it's puking.

The children are both sick, fevery and achey and they are BOTH napping. I might be struck down by lightening in just a minute or two....but holy thank god for the quiet.

We just watched 'Are we There Yet?' If you haven't seen it - don't bother. Blech.

Well, the weekend that almost wasn't is a memory. A fairly good one actually.

I've come to realize something...

Being alone in the middle of the woods with your kids is kind of scary. Scared of bears and moose and such? Not so much. It was the sound of ATV's riding past our driveway and a large barking dog, well after dark, that kind of freaked me out. We are far off the beaten path, a mile from our nearest neighbor. If we head down this road in the other direction there is no one for miles and miles. No one with good intentions would come up our driveway at night and sound travels far and is very deceiving in this type of quiet. It's really kind of eerie. A friend of ours came out to visit on Saturday. He said he would've come up to check on us Thursday night if he knew we were here. I would've positively (and quietly so the kids won't notice) freaked if I heard some one pull up the driveway and come walking down the path to our site.

My son is in love with birds of prey, at least for now. There's an owl that lives on the property and the boy talks to him every night. We spent Thursday night post-campfire in the tent while my boy read to us from a Raptor book. I was reading this same book on Friday when my daughter fell asleep on my shoulder, something she hasn't done in years. I miss that.

There were deer flies galore, attacking us whenever we decided to do something silly, like breathe. Funnily enough they weren't at spot my parent's cabin is, just where we plan on building ours. Which is naturally where we set up camp. It was horrible and after night one we were sleeping in the cabin.


My stepfather bestowed my son with a gift last time they were in Maine. His old bb gun. It's used under the strictest of adult supervision. The look on his face when he hits the target is priceless. My boy fancies himself as a survival guide trainee. He dreams of trapping birds and hunting and fishing and living off the prey he catches. He designs lean-tos and cabins and wants to hear about the ways you can collect rainwater and such. I'm sure he will be hunting with his grandfather and cousins in a few years. He listens to stories of moose and deer and partridge with a unshakeable grin on his face and eyes like saucers.
I enjoy the woods but not like my boy. He's asked to spend the summers up there once our cabin is done. My daughter loves it too, but after four days was ready for home and all it entails. Me too. Hello? No internet for an entire summer? No netflix? I'm having the D.T.s already.







While I was gone I missed birthdays and totally horrible injuries and orthodontics, *fingers crossed* good luck and lazy summer days, a dog that *cough*fell*cough* into the ocean and a visit from a travelling friend.

If you have nothing nice to say....

Maybe I shouldn't complain about the husband. Maybe I should. Whatever. The car's almost packed and I just had one last wish before I go....

Head over here to wish Lisa a VERY Happy Birthday. All she wants is comments. That's it. I guess I'll have to return the Ipod. ;)

So, I ususally reserve this blog for happy rainbow filled thoughts.

Not today.

When I say "I'm taking the kids to Maine for four days and we're going to tent it". Maybe, JUST MAYBE I could've married someone who didn't nod their heads with a little smirk.

And lord knows I love going camping with these two but the prep work is just that....work. Buddy, I'm taking the kids away for four days could you just offer to bring the tent upstairs or empty out the cooler or ask if I need anything done. Instead of asking for me to do yet one MORE errand before I try to leave today.

There was laundry to be done, a quick trip to the grocery store and so much crap to pack. This is after I gave the girlie a bath and read her two books and put her to bed. The Red Sox weren't even on last night, what else could keep him glued to a chair with not so much as lifting a finger? Who knows. He was waiting for me to look all overwhelmed and ask for help. Not that I'm stubborn but ... well, wait - of course it's that I'm stubborn, I didn't ask. So maybe his smirk was justified because I'm not sure I'm going. There's still so much to be done and I have ZERO motivation to do it with. Well, not zero. My motivation is a.) how disappointed my son will be when I pick him up from his sleepover only to tell him we're not going and b.)to prove my husband wrong. a & b simply do not look like they will make for an enjoyable, positive attitude filled time away.

* update: I just took the dog out and checked my car. My mistake. He put the tent and a hachet in the back.


On a more lighthearted note:

This is an Interactive Internet Question Game. I got it from Blackbird.

This is how it's played:

1. If you want to play, leave a comment below saying so.
2. I'll post five unique questions to the comments section of this post.
3. You answer them in your blog.
4. In your post, you include this explanation and an offer to interview others.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

Here are my questions from Blackbird:

Jenny:

1. You can live in Siberia or the Bayou...choose. The bayou. Because even with the fear of alligators, mosquito hatred, hillbilly fears and no love of swamp water it still seems better than Siberia.

2. Would you rather be a tall, thin, blonde runway model or a Nobel Prize winner? Throwing caution to the wind I'd have to say the model. You can learn "smart".

3. You can change one thing about your appearance, without surgery...what would you change? I'd have to say my weight. So cliche and yet it's always a work in progress.

4. Do you like the circus? Except for the clowns and the guilty feeling I get when I clap for the 'balancing on a ball' elephants - yes.

5. What time do you go to bed at night? Ususally midnight.

If you leave me a comment be forewarned that I may not be back here until Sunday night at the earliest.

Go Me!!

I am the Grand Prize Winner over at MommaK's blogroll game today. *pats self on back*

So now at least my being late for work because I just HAD to finish it - totally worth it.

I have been convinced that camping in Maine, in a tent, is a good plan for a long weekend. Hey, listen, I never said I was smart. And couple 'not so smart' with 'very little backbone' and you've got.....me.

My husband is staying at home. See? See how foolish I am? Well, someone's got to watch the dogs.

Must go pack, will return later...

Well, this was the weekend of the hockey team cookout. It turned out kind of small (25 guests) and totally managable. We spent the bulk of the time at the pond watching the kids swim and a few suckers, um, dads paddleboat a slew of kids around. They have named it Camp *Insert our Last Name Here* . I always get a kick out of kids who cannot get over the fact that we live here year round, with swimming and fishing and canoeing and ice skating and such. Kids sometimes wake me up to what I know but tend to forget. We really do have it good.

The new Harry Potter came in the mail yesterday. I won't start it for awhile, a few months at least. She takes a long time to write these damn things so I feel like, why rush out to read it, you just have to wait longer for the next book.

I've got my ticket for Opening Night of the Patriot's Season. I cannot believe I'm going. I only had to sell ONE of my kids to afford the ticket and if they win another Super Bowl I still have a spare to sell for next year's home opener.

Well, off to the library for the summer reading program check in. We're up to the Free Mini-Golf passes. Which is what my son has been aiming for. I have a feeling we won't get much further.

A few days ago MommaK asked how we'd fare in a crisis.

The last 'emergency type' crisis I could remember was a few years ago when my daughter fell down some granite steps and needs some stitches on her forehead. I, surprisingly, handled it with little fanfare and that was that.

Maybe it was karma, not having a crisis for so long tempted the crisis gods, or something because yesterday a mini crisis ensued.

Vet appointments. Both dogs at the same time, something I swore I'd never do again after last year. I have a over the snout collar for the lab as he tends to pull and he gets really excited at the vet's. He must sense their love of animals because he can't get enough of the place.

Anyway...the over the snout collar broke and he bolted. Down the hill and right into forty mile an hour traffic. He made it across amid the screech of brakes and then in a panic looked back up at me, 100 feet behind him up a hill in front of the vet clinic and he decides to come back. Eyes on me, right back into traffic.

He makes it between the cars to the yellow line, cars traveling in different directions and then panics and heads back across to where he was. He got hit. Thankfully, not badly. But in the midst of this chaos (me standing in one spot afraid to call his name because he might try to cross, again/the kids coming around the building with Fred in tow crying/the girl who hit Baxter stopping to apologize and cry/the vet tech from the office sprinting down the hill and after Baxter who has decided that running parallel to the busy road is a better idea than trying to cross it/the girl next door at the bank who took off running with the vet tech) I somehow cleared my thoughts and did what had to be done.

I told the girl in the car not to worry, he ran away and will be okay (a guess but I didn't want to deal with her tears), I hugged my kids quickly, reassured them and brought Fred inside for safekeeping, piled the kids into the car and took off down the road in search of my pup. I drove and drove, around parking lots and cul-de-sacs and finally found them. The vet tech, leading Baxter on a leash about a mile and a half from the accident. My dog was bleeding from some wounds around his eye and his lid was all droopy and nasty. He didn't seem to be limping but he's a strange dog who once ran around for TWO hours after cutting his leg almost to the bone on a reciprocating saw blade, so I wasn't sure.

They spent alot of time at the vet checking him out and scratching him. Not one sign of injury. Only some cuts.



So, the crisis? Not so bad. But my Fred is suffering from heart disease they think. I cried when I got home. I love these two canines. Love them ridiculously.

I'm sure you're all dying to know. Um, yeah right. Just laziness. Blog laziness. oooh, downloading pictures, fighting the firefox battle (STILL.), typing. All too tough for me, at least this past week.

I am in the purge phase of my house cleaning bulemia. Stuff is going out by the bagful. It feels good this whole 'throw it all away' feeling. Which is surprising because I'm cluttery by nature. I have stuff. Too much stuff. Stuff I usually keep for no good reason. My dad's dad was a packrat and it seems I have inherited the gene.

This past weekend I took the kids to Newport, Rhode Island for the kite festival. Free parking (a rareity) and NO admission cost were a bonus. We packed a cooler and a blanket, not sure what to expect. The park is located on a point in Newport and is literally steps away from the ocean which usually amounts to a near constant breeze. Why do I say usually? One guess. C'mon guys, it's me what else could it be but a complete lack of wind for an exceedingly long time. At a kite festival. Where hundreds of kites were strewn all over the ground for the better part of the day.

The wind picked up after awhile and the kites were out in full force. I have basically no pictures of this picture perfect activity because, kids, I was busy failing miserably at kite flying 101. It was hot. 85 and sunny. I didn't know we could bring our own kites so I sprang for a diamondy unicorn deal and began the hellacious TOSSTHEKITEPULLTHESTRINGRUNDAMMITRUNKEEPTHESTRINGTIGHT experience that ended almost every time in a 10 second flight and then a crash and burn. The one time I finally got the kite a good 80 feet up I hand over the string to the girlie. She's thrilled. I'm watching the kite to make sure it doesn't tangle with all of the others up there. Others I would have to sell my car to replace they are so damn fancy.



I see the kite soaring away. Wow, I'm thinking it's going up pretty damn fast. I look down to see the spool of string bouncing along through the field with my kids chasing after it. She let it go. It crashed on a tent set up by a Kite School. Thank god it was staffed by a giant as he was the one who untangled 100 feet of string from a nearby bunch of trees for us.

Hurray for kites. And hurray for free beach balls. They played with these things until they nearly passed out from heatstroke.



Hurray for free parking (WTF??? How lucky can I be??!?!) at a little beach and free seaglass. Thank you psychos who throw your beer bottles into the ocean. I found BLUE.

I'd post a pic of the seaglass but y'know I'm feeling a bit more of the blog laziness come over me. On the other hand I'm off to put away laundry. At 11:00 pm. My husband is going to keel over and die from lack of dust in the house. How will he find the clean clothes if they are not in laundry baskets? And clean dishes are usually kept in the dishwasher, no?

Not today, my friends, not today. Next week maybe, but not today.

Hypocrite

Why is it that when I don't want to post it's okay but when you guys don't post I'm all disappointed???

Be back later....

Okay, so I was *this* close to paying the forty bucks to Mozilla. But right now I'm a heckuva lot closer to shelling out $800.00 for my 4runner. Hey- silly charcoal fuel vapor catcher and broken rear seat belt - YOU BOTH SUCK!

I am this close to paying $39.95 for Firefox phone support. Apparently, the firefox thing crashed and I've lost all of my bookmarks and passwords rememberers. I've tried the fixes on the website and nothing doing.

Today's rainy day schedule:

Shower
Jammies
Homemade pizza for lunch
Movies
Popcorn
Games
Try to convince husband to go get Toyota from garage tomorrow instead of tonight so that I might avoid the unpleasant task of getting dressed and leaving the house.
Roast a chicken
Mash some potatoes
Steam some carrots
Watch a movie

Well, it's eleven o'clock and I'm off to task number one....

Those people in London must have been and probably still are terrified. I cannot even imagine.

Maybe the tank is cursed?

So, last week - or whenever I posted that 'Rest in Peace' picture of two fish?

At that point only one of those two fish had died.

My sons fish turned belly up today. And my son, whose fish always croaks, was pleased because we had this fish for a really long time. Two months. Maybe.

Live what?

Maybe I'm out of the loop a little bit, but this Live8 thing....huh?

I completely and totally missed it.

I'm probably better off because sanctimonious, politically correct, sunglasses all the time Bono makes me angry.

You want pictures? I got pictures.

I took these pictures of some lights we saw on the dashboard as we were leaving the New Hampshire rest area. That bottom one there, that one's my favorite. It means Total System Failure of the Skid Control Feature. It's just what you want to see when you're towing a camper. Nothing like a little vehicular panic to start off the trip.


Thankfully, it was nothing serious. Although, I can think of better ways to spend $70.00.

Camping is fun but it's work. Everything takes longer. Making beds, cooking, cleaning, all of it. Still, for whatever reason, this kind of lazy girl enjoys it.


We sprang for a picnic table on Friday. Such luxury.


My son is a firebug at heart. At dawn he rises and gets dressed and heads out to get the fire going. He saw this campfire design in a outdoor survival book he has and decided to build it. He insists that every dinner be cooked over the fire and mostly I comply. It's a little more work, hell, it's a lot more work. But he's right, somehow it just tastes better.

Friday's weather was grey and overcast with some occasional mist. We stayed at the camp clearing and burning brush piles. Saturday was just about weather perfection. We decided to check out Perham's store and one of their quarries. The map said the quarry was a 15-20 minute hike through the woods. The map lied. It would have been 15-20 minutes if it was flat ground. They failed to mention that it was up. Up a mountain. A Maine mountain, not a snow capped Rocky but still.





Lots of different rocks loaded our pockets and much to the delight of my husband, the lunch cooler. Garnets and Feldspar, Smoky Quartz and Tourmaline. The trip downhill only took 15-20 minutes, maybe that's what the map meant.

We drove off the beaten path. Literally. Dirt roads with names like Darnit. Actually, that one was asphalt. We found a house for sale out in the middle of nowhere. It is newly built, small, but beautiful. The builder came by and offered us a tour. We declined but didn't tell him that before he pulled up we had looked in all of the windows and taken a picture out on the back deck, me pretending it was my own.



We also tried to canoe this weekend. A valiant effort. First problem, I cannot lift the heavy old canoe on top of the Toyota. Second, my husband made an error in the tie the canoe to the trailer process and it fell off the trailer 3/4 of the way to the pond, breaking one of the handles off the canoe and the license plate off the trailer. Third, the entry to the pond has become very overgrown with brush. Fourth, trying to push through the brush my husband broke the paddle part of the canoe paddle right off. Fifth, the tie down strap he was counting on for the ride back broke during problem #2.


Here he is dragging the canoe back uphill to the trailer.


Here's the pond.

The drive home was uneventful, we stopped for lobster rolls and the kids changed into jammies. Seven deer were spotted and we listened to "The Trouble with Miss Switch" almost the entire way. We are still recuperating. I spent yesterday on the couch with my book club choice of the month, Good in Bed by Jennifer Weiner. It wasn't bad but I had just read Family Tree by Carol Cadwalladr and they had some erie similarities. Almost word for word in some cases. All in all, even though Family Tree was the plagerizer I enjoyed it more.

Today will be spent getting ready for tomorrow. The first day back to work for me and the first day for the kids at their once a week Kid's College place. Granted, it's also my last day of work for the week, but I find it taxing nonetheless. *sigh*

A camping we will go...

See how I'm sitting here instead of getting ready for the mammoth camping trip? That's because no posts = no readers and no readers = no comments. And just because I don't respond personally to every comment don't think I don't love them and you guys for leaving them.

I was up until way too late last night, or too early as the case may be, packing things up....five days in Maine with two dogs, two kids, a pop up camper (the guest house is hitting the road) and a canoe. Take that plus the fact that there's no electricity and no running water and you've got what amounts to alot of stuff to pack.

The fishy has been replaced. It was the girlie's that died. This time. I wasted no time in heading to Petco to pick up a new one. They're kind of a disposa-pet but I've become attached to my little aquarium. It's not like they give me any trouble. You won't for instance catch them running through the hugely expensive electric fence, yelping at the shock in mid-air, for the chance at the neighbor's cat. And then taking off to run to the park next door in the hopes of shagging a few fly balls at a little league game but instead catching the attention of a parent who calls the dog officer because he's pooped in the middle of the field and someone just might step in that. At least the dog officer waived the pick-up fee for me.

So, kiddos....I'm off. Off to Maine. I will take many pictures hopefully one that will coincide nicely with the Friday Show and Tell and hopefully it won't be as expensive as last year's trip which I chronicled for you all. I can't link to my own posts, somehow in all of the changes I've made I took out the ability to link to an individual post. Damn. But really, it was excellent reading, excellent. It's in the June archives from last year. I highly recommend checking it out.

Rest in Peace

For you, Lisa....

10 years ago .....

We had just moved back from Texas and had gotten engaged.

5 years ago....

I was 4 months pregnant with the girlie and the house was under going an almost complete reconstruction.

1 year ago...

I was just figuring out this blog thing and was getting ready for a camping trip to Maine.

Yesterday...

I was really, really hot and totally appreciated the fact that we live on a pond.

Today...

I worked, swam, ate dinner outside on the deck in dripping wet bathing suits with the kids and played some Tony Hawk Underground.

Tomorrow...

I'm bringing my 4runner to the garage because the trailer hookup that we thought worked....it doesn't. Then I'll be going grocery shopping. oooh, the excitement. The boy's got a game, so we'll cool off at the rink.

5 snacks I enjoy...

pistachios
tortilla chips and salsa
fudgsicles
popcorn (with m&m minis if I'm lucky)
club crackers

5 songs I know all the words to...

I'm not listing kid songs here but seriously, that's all I can come up with.

5 things I would do with $100,000,000...

Buy half of my neighborhood.
Probably quit my job.
Buy a small home in a tropical locale.
Visit all fifty states
Throw the hugest of parties

5 locations I would love to run away to...

Portugal
Alaska
Nice Carribean Island
Maine
Texas

5 things I like doing...

watching a good movie
reading
watching Patiots football
playing a game or something with the kids
sitting outside, having a drink or two in front of the fire.

5 things I would never wear...

mc hammer pants, ballet slippers, the winter coat my husband gave me for Christmas, a Wonder Bra and toe socks

5 recently seen movies I like...

Mean Girls
Finding Neverland
The Woodsman
Friday Night Lights
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

5 famous people I'd like to meet...

I'm way too socially inept to want to meet one famous person, much less five.

5 biggest joys of the moment...

Tomorrow is the last day of school.
Netflix is sending me three new movies.
We're heading to Maine at the end of this week.
The Jergen's Natural Glow lotion hasn't been at all streaky.
The Poison oak/sumac crap is going away.

5 favorite toys...

My cameras, this PC, the sprinkler, gameboy and legos (not for me but they keep the kids busy and quiet for hours )

5 more suckers...

I'm not punishing anyone else (ehem, Lisa!) Play along if you'd like.

My present concerns:

1. I've been blogging for a year now. Is it my one year anniversary? Well, yes. Last Friday. In my usual totally absentminded way I forgot all about it. Big deal? No, I just wanted to remember.

2. I was supposed to celebrate Fred's adoptiversary with the kids. Last Saturday. Strrrrike two.

3. I've hated the name of my blog from the minute I chose it.

4. When you're home alone at 1:00 a.m. - your dog growling and barking a few deep, warning filled barks is NOT the most relaxing sound in the world.

5. Finding Neverland. Good movie.

6. I thought I'd be happier that the house is quiet and I'm scheduleless until later tonight. *sigh*

7. My husband brought home a truckload of the most perfect sand box sand ever. There were nine kids in here the other day and this is what they built.

8. Katie Holmes, where are your parents, girl? Could Tom Cruise be ANY more ridiculous? I missed the Today show. Which in itself, isn't news since I don't watch the Today Show, but I read this and thought, "Whatinthehell?"

To do...

For the Friday Show and Tell...


Here it is...my handwriting and the list of things that need doing. I can check off Route 44, the bank, and Courtyard. That's it. And it's one thirty. Not good.

On the other hand, the house is clean, I raked out a large area in the yard and ....ate lunch. Does eating lunch count?

So my husband's taking the kids to Maine. He's on a delivery mission, bringing up the outdoor dog run that was given to us so the dogs won't become coyote food if we decide to take off for a hike or a swim. We'd keep them in the camper but the lab can open the camper door. Dumb like a fox that one.

He's leaving tomorrow and coming home Saturday evening so it's not a huge undertaking but I'm wondering how much caffiene I'd have to drink to keep myself awake for each and every hour of the peace and quiet. By Saturday around 5 p.m. I'll be impatiently looking out my kitchen window waiting for the kiddos to return. Then again, it IS only twenty four hours so maybe not.

I am so anxious to get up there this year. I'm pining for the Pine Tree State. *sigh* Only seven more days.

My son won a bike/skateboarding helmet today at school. First off, Hoo-Ray for him. He hasn't realized that the helmet he's been wearing has flowers on it. They're psychedelic flowers and kind of hard to make out. But the fact remains....they ARE flowers. Second off, thank you small town police department, you just saved me $30.00 that I would've had to spend once he wised up to the floral design.

Good Things

This is seems to be working. Somewhat.

I will listen to this. Loudly. With the windows down.

I am seriously wanting this.

My children and husband are heading here on Friday for twenty four blissful hours.

I am polishing my furniture like a crazy woman because of this. I cannot resist the smell.

Apparently the poison isn't ivy, it's sumac or something. I know... how about ITCHY. It's driving me batty.

I have all kinds of fun planned for today. The son has a dentist appointment. Always a good time but at least it's better than it was last year. It's not so cute when your seven year old covers his mouth and then hides next to his momma or under the chair (really, under the chair) when the hygenist tries to brush flouride on his teeth. Flouride. Last time he went and nearly died from embarassment when he found out just how easy it was. You would think a kid with a deep seeded fear of the dentist would actually try to brush his teeth well, but no.

I also get to spread three yards of wood chips under the swingset so that the kiddos don't get a skull fracture if they fall on the roots that are poking out. I like the spreading of stuff like wood chips and mulch - things just look better pretty much instantly. That and I get to check another thing off the giant cookout checklist.

It's Bad and I'm late.

Okay, I know I'm way late with this but I've got it. Something bad.

I couldn't get a picture because the underside of my right forearm is incredibly hard to position for the camera.

Poison Ivy.

Hurray.

Off to the races...

Too Cool for School

Not only did I skip the Friday Show and Tell but my son skipped school and we took off for the entire day doing this. Geeks? You bet.

These were all places we had been before but never with a mission. A picnic lunch at one destination, nothing but mosquito bites at another, the best frozen slushies at one place and at the next place it was a rousing game of "I hid your shoe now you go and find it". It was sunny and beautiful. The perfect day for hookie.

I checked the show and tell last night before I posted, which I don't normally do, and found out that my posting a picture of my checkbook would have been alot like Jen's bad. And my posting a picture of Fred would have been just like Blackbird's bad. Y'know Blackbird I was checking my phone bills last month and there were an awful lot of phone calls to Tuvalu. In the middle of the night. One night I woke up and I heard someone talking, a voice I didn't recognize. I thought it was the T.V. but now it all makes sense. He was saying "First, get the 'puppy eyes' thing down. After that, you're set. You can do whatever. The best way to get into the trashcan, I find, is two paws on the rim and shift your weight and SLAM - it falls and it's like freakin' Christmas. Even though at Christmas I only had to rip through a bag and girl, I ate, like, 4 goddamned pounds of lasagna and some chocolate cake thing. I was sick for two days. It was AWESOME. Anyways, the trash...when they find it and you know they will, because that's just the way they are, do the puppy eyes. Works like a charm."

I mean, how was I to know Blackbird? Sorry 'bout that. His phone privileges are taken away for ..... aw...Fredd-ie....you have the cutest little face. And those puppy dog eyes.. c'mere and let me scratch those ears... Huh? What was I saying? I forget. Oh, yeah - Show and Tell Friday. um..the checkbook...okay, anyway...I skipped.

And today I cleaned. Ho hum. And tomorrow is Father's Day. The husbands gift is sitting at the post office. How thoughtful of me, not to pick it up in time. And no, it isn't a book of stamps.
We watched Huck Finn last night starring Frodo Baggins as Huck. His eyes were creepily big back then.

Tonight I'm assisting in the construction of a diorama for 'Fly Homer Fly'. The paint is drying. That's my high point for the evening. Watching paint dry.

Bad Mojo or Sleep Deprived?

So, tempting the fate of the internet gods might not have been such a wise idea.

Realistically, the children are just tired. Tired of school and all that it entails. Tired because we are tired of school and all that it entails. And letting them stay up way past a reasonable hour on Friday and Saturday night and kind of ignoring any prudent bed time for the past four nights.

As hot as it was it is now that cold. 50 degrees. My son wore a jacket outside this morning. WTF.

Kate's list of all things summer brought back many good memories. Jumping out of the pool and running through the neighborhood wet hair flying because you heard the ice cream man's bell on the next street. Carving your initials in the warm, soft asphalt on a scorching hot day. One last bike ride around the block. Thinking you were cool because you were allowed to mow the lawn.

Today's fun is different, but still good. The ice cream man comes to the beach - I walk, the kids run - but we always buy. We've traded the asphalt road for a dirt road - a good decision especially in the winter because the snow always sticks. We still bike ride, but there aren't as many blocks, tons of cul-de-sacs though and that depresses me a little. The son has inherited the love of lawn mowing and we smile knowingly. I love our house near the lake, I'm hoping my grandkids do to.

I spent Wednesday with a friend and just the girlie and her girls. They swam in the pool, showing off their different tricks and we went for a ride through the woods on these... so much fun. They've bushwacked a race track through their yard and then we zipped across the street to race around her inlaw's sulkie track, then through the woods, some cornfields, over a bridge or two. The girlie and I laughed for an hour straight. It's good to have friends with expensive taste.

And the Show and Tell this week? Something BAD.

New Found Glory

My kiddos. Still getting along. I realize I'm tempting the intenet gods right this very minute but I like to live dangerously. That and I'm still, after two and a half weeks, in shock.

There were arguments, lots and lots of arguments. "He pushed me", "She said she'd do XYZ and she changed her mind AGAIN", "I'm tell-ing"...you guys know how it is.

And then came the gypsy moth catepillars. They decided to catch a few and make a habitat for them. My son fancies himself to be a mini-researcher. The habitat? His radio flyer wagon, with sticks and leaves and bark and moss. Duct tape running up the sides where the wooden rails don't quite meet and two pieces of plywood for the lid. The best part, no assistance was requested by the kids for, like, two hours while they were working on it. And there was no arguing.

That was the beginning of the end. They would get up early, six a.m., and get dressed - my son picking out the girlie's clothes, and head for the great 1/4 acre wilderness we call a yard. They'd pick catepillars for the habitat or spend an hour making signs for their new catepillar business. 1 cent for the little guys and two cents for the big yucky ones - in case you're interested. I'd have to call them in for breakfast.

It has since graduated to drawing together, playing tag in the sprinkler, the boy reading to the girlie as they spend more nights than not tucked into their sleeping bags on the floor in one of their bedrooms, selling their pokemon cards to each other. That'll be two cents for Rattata, please.

They are currently in the cellar with my craft paints. Which are really not my craft paints at all, seeing as how I'm not very good at all things crafty. They are my "kids you've been good you can use MY paints today" paints.

I was reading, I think it might have been here, but I've forgotten - that her pediatrician told her that as long as the kids are good at least 60 percent of the time, they're good kids - don't expect too much. Seems a little low, but she has two young boys. A few weeks ago I would've taken the sixty percent and run with it. Before the gypsy moths, when the kids were together I was getting a solid thirty percent. Fighting and attitudes flying. The Quest for the Cup contest is still going on, but the points being minused were outweighing all of their good deeds.

We are now tipping the scales at a conservative 85 percent. Yes, it's THAT good. The rewards are small but there are rewards. They come in the form of CD's I've made for them or ice cream right after school or a pack of Pokemon cards or listening to my Green Day CD for a dance party or maybe staying up late to watch a movie. Not that we wouldn't have done those things before but certainly not with the frequency that we do them now. Those are their rewards.

And my reward? My son is the big brother my daughter has always wanted him to be. The big brother I always knew he could be. And she is his best friend.

Added after the fact because I sound like I'm living in a fantasy land:
Of course I know that they're little and this could all come crashing down around me in, say, five minutes. But the key to the success of this new found glory would be the fact that I'm not letting myself get overly worked up over a two second or five minute argument. They go to their rooms for some cooling off (or in the case of ninety degree heat - alone sweatbox time) and it ends with an apology and a handshake.

Short term memory loss

I almost forgot that only months ago we were buried, in girlie's case, up to our eyeballs in snow. Cold, wet, cold, white, cold, scrumptious and did I mention cold? snow. And some of you, you wished (and me too - but only once or twice) and wished for summer. Well, it's here. And it's sweaty and miserable. And hot and sticky. But luckily this being New England, it is scheduled to last for precisely one more day and then the temperature is supposed to drop twenty five to thirty degrees.




Also, note to anyone looking to escape the heat...sign your kids up for hockey IN THE SUMMER. Guys, it's heaven in that rink. Like 50 or 60 degrees and so damn refreshing. I can't wait to go back tomorrow night.

 

 

Two down, four hundred eighty six to go

Well, two thing are checked off the cookout to do list. My boy has been pestering us to have a big party here so he's finally gotten his wish. Albeit it was made under drunken duress, but it's been offically scheduled.

Today was hot and sticky and altogether Augusty. I'm resisting all air conditioning urges. This heat is temporary and the A.C. in the window right above this computer is permanent until we get ambitious in November and take it out. It's damn heavy.

There was much swimming and barbequeing and have I told you how well my kids are getting along? No? Well, they are. We are going on our THIRD week of wonderfully stress free living here at Casa de Jenny. I will wax poetic about this newfound bliss another time ....when it isn't midnight and I have to get ready for the usual Monday Melee.

What did I say we'd do???

Warning: Even though the Smirnoff Ice things look and taste remarkably similar to Invisible Kool-Aid they are not in fact, Invisible Kool Aid.

And while drinking copious amounts of them on a blistering hot day (mmmm, so good and icy cold) be careful that you don't volunteer to host a HUGE HUGE cookout for say, two weeks after the 4th of July without first mentally checking off all of the things you'd want done before a HUGE HUGE cookout takes place in your yard.

'Nuff said?

For the Friday Show & Tell....my door knob. Looks like the keys have hit the door on more than one occasion, chipping the paint. It wasn't the result of THAT many drunken nights...or was it? 

The first swim. He's right...the water is cold. Not cold - can't feel your hands - just cold.The pond water level is the highest we've seen it get in the past nine years. Usually those steps aren't submerged and we have a little sandy beach. I miss the sandy little beach.

Dinner. A 29" striped bass the husband caught this weekend.

Toodie

She is the bane of my existence, this Toodie. She's poked holes in the door panels of my new-to-me 4runner with knitting needles, she's ripped ten dollar bills in half, written on the sofa and the kitchen walls, crumpled up homework and much, much more.

She is the imaginary friend of the girlie. To be fair, apprarently there is good Toodie...who plays games and dollhouse and helps with puzzles and bad Toodie who wreaks havoc with my life.

I have threatened to kick Bad Toodie out of our lives only to be met by crying and caterwauling. My son has sat on Bad Toodie and threatened her. (Which, really, this is something to see) My husband has threatened to leave her at the store or restaurant or wherever when she's causing a problem. Ripping clothes off the racks? Toodie did it. Rip open all the sugar packets at a restaurant? Damn Toodie.

I might have posted about this before but Toodie took a little sabbatical and it seems that she's returned. Seriously, people think I'm crazy when I roll my eyes and say with a sigh "Toodie" as I discover the citronella candle buckets filled with sand and dirt. Not that I'm not crazy but I try to keep it a closely guarded secret.

Well, internet friends...the J family seasonal guest house is open for business. It's been scrubbed and swept and smells like the fresh outdoors. Care to join us for a breakfast on the patio? Lunch at the pond? Dinner on the grill? Drinks by the fire? No? Well, I am kind of a stinky hostess. By day hour two I'll be telling you to help yourself to anything - because I'll be enjoying my summery drinks too much to bother with you all. But still....you're welcome anytime...


The guest house

What rhymes with Orange?

I am recovered, mostly. The kids are in bed, not bathed but eh, their teeth are brushed so that's something.

Inspired by the Friday Show n Tell I took a trip to the local Target, which for the love of Pete I will never call Tar-shey (however that might be spelled), to find a few new things. Jen's Invisible Kool-Aid check. I searched the aisles for Badger's Jergen's Natural Glow Moisturizer. No luck. I happened upon this. Sounded similar.

Editor's note: The very definition of the word similar should tip you off to just how this expedition to self tanner land ended up.

I got home, read the label again. How hard can it be? Mistake number one: Poor lighting. Mistake number two: Watching Tom Brady on Saturday Night Live at the same time as attempting self tanner application. Mistake number three: Doing this all pretty close to bed time.

I wake up, do the whole morning thing, skipping the shower because I was headed outside to spread mulch and plant flowers in ninety degree heat. I do a quick once over, not inspecting too closely. Eh, one little streak on my forearm. I congratulate myself on the wise purchase and awesome rubbing in skills I seem to have acquired since my last bout with these types of products.

I garden, get hot and drrrrrty. rowr. Really, though, just with topsoil. We head to the pond for the first swim of the year. I brave the sub zero temps up to the waist and then go sit on a towel to thaw out catch a little more sun. I look at my feet, contemplating painting my toe nails before the pool party we were attending after lunch. Wow, I'm thinking that dirt is really ground in. And kind of orange too. You SO know where this is going. Fucking streakville. My feet look like orange zebras. The back of my left calf - a nice patch a little larger than an oddly shaped quarter. The backs of my ankles, the underside of my right bicep and the side of my right calf. All patchy. Orange patchy. I scratch at the streaks on my foot, great it's SCRAPING off. This should feel good. I run to the house and exfoliate like a crazy person.

After the mad exfoliation dash I'm red but it's that temporary red you get from scraping the top eight layers of skin off. We head to the pool party where I promptly drank myself giggly, enjoyed the company of the hockey parents we can't let go of, laughed until I cried, and sat in the sun because apparently that Jergen's stuff is impossible to find.

Next time I get the urge to try the product of the week I'll go for Kate's IPod or drive forty miles for Blackbird's heavenly smelling dish soap. Either would have been preferable.

Ahhhhh, Mondays

I'm exhausted, sunburned and on my way to school, daycare, work, bus stop, daycare, homework, dinner ice skating, home. Will post later.

Two items and One Wish

For Blackbird's weekly Show & Tell.

This Method all purpose cleaner. It really doesn't get the job done like my first love, 409, - but it smells good. Like a chemically enhanced flower.

And Crystal Light on the go...because water is, well, water and crystal light actually has FLAVOR. The iced tea flavor is a little weak but this one is delicious. It may stain though, so beware.

I would like to photograph my third item of the week but I don't know where to find a 'Kill Every Damn Gypsy Moth Catepillar in the World' type of product. These things are everywhere, on the house, the kids toys, the cars, the lawn. You can no longer go barefoot, rather you can but be prepared for the ultimate in disgusting.

Fred

See how innocent I am? Soon I will be blowing winterfresh berry bubbles out of my butt, but right now I'm so cute it doesn't even matter. And you would never ever find me standing on the kitchen table licking it clean. Never. Ever. At least not today.

Baxter

I am so pathetically sick.
P.S. I also ripped apart the girlie's cup and drank her entire chocolate milkshake. Thank god it was only a kiddie size. oof.

Things I will find in the yard later this week

Depending on my dog's digestive schedule.

One pack of Winterberry Frost gum - minus the paper wrappers but the aluminum wrappers have disappeared with the gum.

The leather part of the baseball.

One glittery purple pencil - still have a piece with the eraser though.

One plastic baby bottle, one plastic cupcake and one lipgloss all left by those kids whose parents are (STILL) working next door.

And no, this is not all the work of Fred the deceptively cute beagle. The other dog, Baxter, my 'good' dog - has taken a turn for the worse...

When I told my boss that I'd lost all of the meeting stuff I didn't use any profanity. None. Do you know what she said to me??? "What? You're worried? Oh well, shit happens."

I so love my job.

My son is attending a field trip to the Zooquarium today. Part zoo part aquarium I guess. Whatever. I couldn't chaperone because I've reached my quota of one trip per school year. Apparently too many parents volunteer for these things and they only allow us one trip per year so everyone gets a fair chance to prove that they are, in fact, the best and most involved parent , eh I mean, help the teachers.