THURSDAY BEFORE THE BIG DAY

 Not much to do today but sit around and look at each other

fun stuff

WOOP WEDNESDAY

Oldest peep and I will meet Coach Been in Amarillo to pick up our little bride

Plans are for

manis and pedis

(I am actually going to get fancy for this shindig)

Then an early lunch at our favorite sushi bar

I hear SOME folks are getting waxed where it doesn't show...

this is when I will sneak off and

browse the wrench isle at Lowes

and I'm also in the market for a few porch light fixtures

and a gas powered leaf blower

I'm not into pain for places that don't show

TUESDAY

Tuesday will be cleaning the kitchen light fixtures to hide the fact that

when I cook I splatter grease when I'm supposed to be on a Special K Diet

oopsie

can you see past all those wonderful wedding presents stacking up in my breakfast nook?

FUN!!!

MONDAY

The countdown to wedding day begins!

MONDAY

Windows: not that any one will look out them, why do we put this kind of pressure on ourselves?

and speaking of windows...can you believe that all this glass
ALL THIS GLASS...was measured 1/4" too large?  So what would have been set Tuesday, will be set NEXT Tuesday...whoo boy, bet somebody got a butt chewin' on that one!

Laundry: remember...I still do my laundry down the street at my daughter's house...so want to get that done
Hoeing: The north side of our house is going to be our formal herb garden...weeds got out of hand last week
Light Fixtures:  not sure why I do this either..these are my brothers and sisters for heaven's sake
Well, that's about all I'm going to get done today.

On the house front, it's been a busy day.  Pool work, window framing, and roof vents.

 I got the roofers to install my copper finials

and my horse and buggy weathervane.

 I haven't driven down the street yet, so I'm not sure, but I think it's crooked.

BOOGER!

THE BEST LAID PLANS

Ok...so baby bopeep (getting married June 30), at the sake of being redundant, wore a Laker's Ensemble to her first day of school...and broke her arm on the monkey bars...


... it stands to reason that I am having a bit of a hard time trying to find a mother of the bride dress...because somewhere in the mix there is not much femininity running in the family...I'm referring to me of course because she outgrew it and her dress is beyond marvelous!

my best laid plans were this:

I knew I had over a year to get "back into" my very own wedding dress...

yeah the gold one I wore at my wedding to Brian that was maybe a size 4?  mmm hmmm

I wore it to Grace's wedding even though my mother had to whip stitch it shut (ouch)

I would have worn it to Charles and Jena's wedding but they kind of surprised us so I didn't really have time to shape up to wear it for that...

BUT...since I did know about this wedding for over a year...

my best laid plans were this

Special K
Limited Beer (whatever)
Limited Wine (whatever)
Limited Prohibition Cocktails (whatever)
Pilates
Walk 2 miles a day
Daily Gym
Swim (I would  if they'd put the dang pool in already)

and to fit into once again my lovely gold wedding size 4 dress. mmm hmmm

WHATEVER!


if I do want to wear it, the top will have to become a jacket over a white tank...whip stitch was 7 years ago...does that seem kind of trashy?

and I admit...I really did try it just for fun.hillbilly.

so

best laid plans

buy a new dress...(and I just cannot tell you how much I HATE to shop and try on fufu dresses while I have copper flux under my nails)

HATE..maybe because I'm trying on like size 12 or 14 or 16 let's be honest, no one likes that..and I'm all about comfort which means NO spanks for me before 10 PM...


I did make a trip to Amarillo and choose a few (see below)

I'm much more interested in what's on top of my armoire

or the unmade bed captured in the mirror

and all the while I was wishing I could fit into my sentimental favorite gold wedding dress

my car just kept arriving at places like

Hobby Lobby

Lowes

Pete's Greenhouse

Target (where I did look for a dress)

and Pier 1

because the best laid plans of mice and men

are

NO ONE WILL BE LOOKING AT ME!

but they might be looking at my patio!

JUNE 30

This time next week

the hands that wrote these two notes

will be exchanging wedding rings

in a little Methodist church on Haney Street

before God

and all those who love them

A CIALIS MOMENT

No, not that kind... 

 I was more than pumped up when I arrived home from shopping for my mother of the bride dress 

to see my new bathtub had arrived 

 There was a moment in early February it didn't seem so far out to think 

we could have it installed in our new master bath by June 30

 Somewhere along the way, that thought got funny

 And in about four hours....

 it hit me.... 

 I am about to have a wedding...

 and I have a big bathtub, in a crate, 

that cannot be moved without a fork lift... 

 in my driveway... 

 Cialis? 

 Calgon? 

 MIMOSA!

CARDINAL SONG

google

I love cardinals

almost everyone who knows me knows I do

Besides being so lovely,

 their call is glorious and intense

I will often sit on my porch and when I hear them near

I will mimic a whistle to them

at least that's what I thought 

until

one day not long ago

I was sitting in my unfinished room with no glass in the windows

and I hear the familiar song off in the distance

so I whistle back

(it's always fun to see if you can create a revelry)

and then

I hear footsteps crunching in the new gravel down the street

and I hear a guy, a kid really

clear his throat

and begin to 

whistle....

like a cardinal...

...almost as good as me

I know we have cardinals around, I have seen them,

but I could not help but laugh 

and wonder

if me

and this kid

have been singing to each other all along 

DON'T FORGET THE ROOF

For my birthday many years ago, my sister gave me a vintage weather vane like this

it came from an antique store in Quanah, Texas

(Yes, as in Quanah Parker...he skulked around these parts a lot)

822 will be the 4th roof on Barkley Street this vane has lived on

Before we attach it to the turret, it needs some minor tweaking to make it strong

enough for our Panhandle winds that on any given day can blow in

excess of 50 mph

I think it will look very nice with the copper balls and spires

and the two amethyst balls..one on the front porch, one on the back

that match the purple leaded glass in the porch lights

this glass has turned purple over the years

it is incredibly heavy and thick

I think they date to 1921

I kind of wish they could all stay this bright copper color

but they verdigris over time and I like that too

When hubby agreed to put them on for me

I lighted a prayer candle and swished the flame his way

and did my part to hold the ladder

and screws

It was pretty scary

in the words of our friend Mary I also told him at each peak

"don't fall down"

AND THEN

there's the purple woven water basket

found high atop a shelf on the square

clerk gets down with long stick

lands on the floor in a cloud of dust

she offers good deal because it had been there so long

considering

 back the next day to get

gone

dang

home

birthday

open gift

and there's the purple woven water basket

tricky

clandestine

thoughtful

dear

lucky

me

DOUG PORTER

This past weekend was spent with old friends in an old town.

Note to readers:  I was rated 2, so this post is just for fun..not retaliation, I swear.

We began the trip right with mimosa at breakfast, then we hit the road and librarian peep brought out a 1973 SHS Annual she'd been saving for just such an occasion.

Note to yourself:  If you donate books and such to places and such, you might want to take a browse through to make sure you haven't forever made an A$$ of yourself...and such....

In the car, one peep had already graduated and one was too young, but two of us were all over this annual, mostly because we were so popular.

The owner of the annual aka Most Studious which would explain why he had so much time to Rate His Annual showed his rating system on the hard cover.  1-5...1 being best.  Many had more elaboration in the way of SPECIAL AWARDS.  Through out the ENTIRE annual, he rated EVERYTHING.  Teachers, students, athletes, clubs, organizations and even the poor cafeteria ladies ("They Did the Best They Could Award").

I'll give him this...he was one witty guy. I confess I might have felt different if he'd given me anything below a 3.  2 it is.  Fine! I've always been kind of average whatever.

Maybe I could have come up a notch if only allowed to know him longer

He begins with a letter to "the person(s) who read this"...so it is evident that he not only was supporting a chip but was also psychic.  His short note was really a KMA essay eluding to his leaving this crummy town behind to all of us rated less than 1 me...whatever.


He left a very funny one to his girl cousin who beat him out as Valedictorian, but it was kind of long and detailed and I can't remember it because I was in high altitude on this trip. She was additionally rated a 5.  Poor thing...they were also selected Most Studious....together.  Chip.

There was one athlete/scholar that I so wish I could mention Scott Beedy (annual man crush) but he lives near me.  He was awarded waaaay more than a 1, and also had several special awards. He would be so proud.

Peep friend who was with me was rated a 3.  I felt so sorry for her until she explained that she was sure it was because she had taken a garage sale tennis racket to play tennis with him once.  Seems he was also an elitist in sports paraphernalia department.

I guess this is what he was wishing for on that tennis date

If I could just get my hands on that annual once more to gloat over my 2 rating I will most certainly take the time to have a post titled DOUG PORTER TWO.

It will make you laugh and you don't even know him.

son's dogs...you don't know them either but you laughed right?

so....Stay Tuned!

Note to Doug:  Oh Doug...in this post you would have only been identified as a "D" or maybe a "DP" because I'm all about privacy..but no...you were pretty clear you wanted your annual to be viewed  by all and to whom it may concern...but I bet even the psychic you are, you had no idea in 1973 the powers that would prevail in 2012...I'm just helping you get what you wanted...

and btw...

I rate you a Number 1!

MUSHROOMS

Garden Gleanings by Bob Hatton

On the HPO

we feature a master gardener who writes a weekly column

Last week it was concerning mushrooms

I had been noticing them in our yard

I think they are so darn cute

they are everywhere

This is my newest purchase..I found him in Amarillo at Pier 1

when I noticed one of the framers had a marijuana leaf tattoo on his leg

I considered suggesting to him I had a ton of mushrooms in my front yard

and decided against it...he might not be able to frame

MARVIN

Meet the framers

Marvin is #6..light blue shirt, pencil in his hat

he is a 

FREAKIN GROUCH!

Trey (red shirt) is Marvin's son and Marvin is teaching him the ropes of framing

and griping all the rest of us out

A.L.O.T.

He doesn't like my pool and told me it was a waste

it needed catfish

and they (the pool guys) were in his way

I wanted to say

"they ain't late so get to framing Marvin"

I wanted to gripe them out too...they are trampling my new grass

what a mess

Instead I baked them all some homemade sticky buns

because I learned a long time ago

sweet words are like honey

they made the roof of the turret 

special

they asked contractor if they could

besides..look at my yard

I should be the one who is 

GROUCHY

Their only job is to frame

a lot of wood

and nails

and not much relief from the heat...no wonder

By the time Marvin left

we were buds

they will be back to do another house this week coming up

I promised him catfish..mudcats in the bottom of my pool...just for him

I'm seriously considering hooking him up with my mom

they would make a real cute couple

he wouldn't know what hit him

PARIS 2008

When we left Paris so very sad on September 15, 2001, we thought we probably would never return

However, Brian's aunt and uncle were missionaries in Germany.  He was born in  Frankfurt so we planned a trip to visit them and the place of his birth.

We stayed 10 days, rented a little car and drove all through the land

Germany, France and Switzerland

my favorite way to travel

I found these photos in Mattie's album..at the time I had only a "real" camera

not a digital one...so our photos will all need to be scanned someday..what a chore!

We were there in early March...

we froze on the Eiffel Tower and in the castles...it was so cold

but stunningly beautiful

Mattie and her friends at prom...she is 5th from the left

We tease and say she flew to Paris to purchase her prom dress

(it was $109 dollars)

We were able to see the storks in the Alsace region

and my favorite story of all

We were in the Picasso Museum in Lucerne...3 stories...we were all spread out when the shrill alarms

sounded through the entire place and 

WOULD NOT STOP

it was deafening

Mattie found me on the 3rd floor, came up to me and whispered in my ear

"I did that"

it seems there was a picture that needed "straightening" so she did

and set off the alarm 

The police came, they had to do a report, interview her

I made her go to the desk and confess and apologize...alone, I was so embarrassed

but it seems she didn't mind at all as the security guard was

"pretty cute"

They probably facebook

my memories of Paris are not quite as romantic as some and surely not the dreams I had of being there

but I love my memories and I love France

My dad's twin brother is buried there (WWII) and maybe one more time

I will go

and bring his young body home