Friday, February 26, 2010

Against my Better Judgement....

....I will tell you this story.

We set a mouse trap.

We caught a mouse.

It was disgusting.

We caught it in one of those live sticky traps. They were cheap.

When the boys seen the mouse in the sticky trap, they immediately felt compassion. "He is so cute!" "He has no friends, he has no family."

I tried to explain that it would eat and poison all their food.

They didn't' believe one cute little mouse could do that.

They resolved that hero Daddy would understand and let them keep it. Moma just did not understand.

So, S3, ever my accident prone son, bent down to pet the poor cute mouse.

It bit him.

They decided Daddy could kill it after all.

Thursday, February 25, 2010

Bemoaning a Lost Book

I am just going to bemoan this lost book out there because I keep looking for it and can't find it so maybe if I toss it out to you, one of you will know what it is called.

I THINK it was called Barefoot to Tea. But I can't find that.

I bought it at library book sale. It was old and hard covered and hardly read, you could tell by what nice condition it was in.

And I loved it.

It told the story of a young girl who meets this exotic boy whose parents owned a tea plantation. They grow up, marry, and she moves to this tea plantation. It tells their life there on the plantation, the python she thought was a log, the fear of malaria, the grass she longed for, how she hated boots to wear when she had all fancy shoes, the making of tea etc etc. It was thrilling. It ended when there was a war, and she moved to the US. I believe it to be a true story.

And, no doubt, I lent the book out. But to whom? I don't know.

And I miss this book and have searched google, the library, amazon...can't find it.

ARGH!!!!!

So, there, I have bemoaned my lost book to you.

What Blessings Have I Missed?

Today I am over at Praise and Coffee with a post all about S3. (I really need a new photo on the blog with him and his new glasses. But currently the glasses are broke and super glued...ya'll seen that coming, didn't you?)

To anyone who is new to the blog, welcome! I am so glad you stopped by! Be sure to leave a note on Sue's blog, its such a great one!

Monday, February 22, 2010

Oh I Wish I Were in Shipsi......

I am not supposed to be writing this today. I am not suppose to be home today. I am suppose to be in Shipsiwana (Shipsi), Indiana drinking fancy spancy coffee and eating just from the oven pretzels as I wander aimlessly through truly delightful girly stores with some of my favorite girls in the world (thankfully they are my mom, my sister and my sister in law...and kids).

Yummy coffee.

Pretzels.

But instead I am home. We were dumped on with five inches of new snow (here at home) and more toward Indiana. In Indiana they had freezing rain. And I am truly stuck home because I have sick kids. As in, puking sick kids.

I don't like puke.

So, as I do mountains of laundry and dream of yummy coffee and warm from the oven pretzels I am singing in my head “Oh I wish I were in Shipsi” to the tune of “oh I wish I were in Dixie”.
Honestly, Dixie wouldn't be too bad either. It's warm in Dixie, isn't it?

I would put in Gone with the Wind but no doubt it would cause my boys to puke some more. It is sooooo a girl movie, I would be told.

Instead I am bemoaning my petty woes to all of you.

So I had better leave you with SOMETHING lighthearted...searching...searching...searching...

Got it.

Last night we took the puke bucket with us, the boys, I drove the suburban and hubby drove the secondary plow truck up to the main plow lot in anticipation for the upcoming snow. We were doing a plow driver shuffle and the truck needed to be there last minute. Really last minute. As in, all the boys were passed out sleeping soundly when we left at about 9:30 at night.

They were still sleeping when we got back home.

Hubby helped me carry in sleeping little boys while I cleaned puke (really, a funny part is coming up) and as everything got settled and everyone was tucked in I snuggled into bed thankful the end of the day.

Except I only assumed everyone was tucked in.

And I merely hoped my day was over.

Suddenly, I hear wailing from S4. I began to beg under my breath “please don't be sick again, please don't be sick...”

No, instead, I ended up laughing.

When S4 was carried into the house I thought it was odd he had gone right up to bed. And maybe he would have. But he had meant to take his coat off at the dining room table. Instead, he had laid down and fell soundly asleep, still in his coat, UNDER the table. He awoke confused. Feeling very slighted.

But all I could do is laugh.

And laugh some more.

And then Hubby, so S4 would know we really did remember we had him and truly did love him, pulled him onto the bed where he snuggled down between the two of us and was asleep in less than three seconds flat.

Precious.

Apparently God knew more than me that I needed just one more moment in my day. Thank goodness.

S1's Big Hog (Russian Boar) Hunt with His Uncle

I am turning the blog over to S1 today to tell about the hunt he just got back from with his Uncle D. When I asked him to tell me the story of the hunt for the blog, it went on and on and on for over three pages of typing. Um, I think he may have a bit of his Moma in him for that long of a story. So I asked him to give me a shorter version. This is what I got. Hope you enjoy!


For Christmas my parents booked me a hunt at the Super G Ranch for a Russian Boar hunt. After telling the class at school stories of my to be hunt and looking it up on maps, it finally happened.
February 19th, 2010

I packed up my bags and headed to my uncles to leave at 2:30 in the afternoon. We packed up the truck and headed out. When we got there, you were sure there were animals inside of the fenced in woods because of the two cow Elk as we pulled in. Whne we got done unpacking, we went to a restaurant. I got the all you can eat blue gill.

That night, we watched bear hunting videos and sat around a big table and talked. I tried not to loose any sleep that night although I did fall asleep at around ten.

The next morning, we again sat around the table and talked and then breakfast arrived from the owner's wife. After breakfast, we put on our gear, loaded up the four wheelers and headed off. We went down the trail aways when we saw a great big bull elk, some water buffalo, and buffalo. We kept on going until one of the guys shouted “I saw a head stick up!” We headed down to see the boar. When we finally down there we saw it was nothing but a pot bellied pig. I said “we are not hunting for potbellied pigs but Russian Boars.”

We headed back to the four wheelers and kept on driving. Then we saw a bunch of hogs in some cattails and we accidentally scared them away. So we asked some of my uncle's hunting partners to hop on the quads and drive them our way. We sat over by a big down tree stump that had brought in the dirt on the roots. Then there came the boars, there were about six of them in the group. I kept my gun steady as they charged our way. My uncle said “Don't shoot yet!” They came across the creek right in front of us and they ran right between the two of us. They may have gotten away from us that time but I still got my boar.

We kept on going, we met up with the four wheeler guys, they asked if we saw the boars. We said “we more than just saw them.”

We kept on going and some of the guys who were going to go shoot goats came back and said “there are a couple boars out there. They are just standing still, why don't you go and check them out?”

We drove the four wheelers straight toward the way that the hunters told us to go. We got off the quads and walked over to get a closer look and a better shot right when they were walking away. I tried the old country deer bleat and it didn't stop them. My uncle said “they aren't going to stop to that.” So we immediantly jumped on the quad and headed toward the boars. We stopped at the trail, got off, and right when they were crossing the creek one of them was standing straight up high. That was my chance.

I put the gun on the shooting stick and took aim. The shot was a good 80 yards away. I put the cross hairs right behind the hogs shoulder. I took my shot and it looked good. The hog ran about twenty yards, did a summer sault and there he laid. It was the happiest moment I had ever had. I had shoten my very first big game animal, a wild Russian boar.

It weighed in about 150 to 200 pounds. I can't wait to go back again!

Saturday, February 20, 2010

Friday Night Hockey Game

Friday night we took the boys (minus S1, who was off hunting) to the local minor league hockey game. We had no idea who was playing them, we had no idea how they were doing but we were ready to go and have a great time.

It was dollar beer and hotdog night. This made Hubby giddy. That's a lot of hotdogs you can feed the family with. We loaded up before we sat down to enjoy the game.

The problem with it being dollar beer night...there are some crazy people (mostly guys) by the end of the game. Just take my word for it.

Hubby was surprised I was so “into” the game. Hey, all I had to do is sit and watch and since I had no jumping up to get something done it WAS fun. A lot of fun!

The boys really didn't remember going before. Our seats were about four rows up from the ice and we were right next to the locker room so when the team came on or off the ice, S2 was leaning as far down as he could to get high fives or touch the players sticks.

He was in his glory.

When he realized he could act like a crazy cheering fan with awesome dance moves and maybe make an appearance on the jumbo screen, he went insane. He made the screen. He was ecstatic.
During the period breaks, they have fun games or what not to watch. The first period break it was synchronized girl skating team from a local college. S4 was NOT impressed. Girls were not suppose to be skating at a BOY game. At all.

To add insult to injury they played Miley Cyrus's song “Party in the USA”. Sad as it is, I really like this song. S4 cannot STAND this song. Moma moving her hips and another girl insult was almost enough to make it an awful night to S4. There was soon a hockey fight in the next period so he guessed it was an alright night.

S3 was transfixed. By the game...sorta. A girl in front of us had one of those little hand-held video gamey things and he nearly fell on her once he was so intently watching the little screen. On our way out of the game (that they lost by one, but it was thrilling all the same), S3's glasses fell from his face. They were promptly stepped on. I will be at the eye doctors' next week getting them bent back into place. Thankfully the glass did not break.

Even with that, it was terrific night by all. Truly a great time. So great, all three boys fell sound asleep on the way home so Hubby and I could sorta pretend it was date...which meant we talked uninterrupted. That was worth the trip right there!

Friday, February 19, 2010

Prayers Answered for a Ten Year Old S1

For Christmas, S1 was given a calendar only. Bless his heart, he was happy with the calendar of hunting scenes. Truly, he is a terrific young guy!

But, on February 19th we wrote “WILD BOAR HUNT”. From January 1st to that date I had a countdown written down for him.

He was more ecstatic than I could ever hope to put into words.

So imagine his complete anguish when he woke up on February 18th with the flu. And not any flu bug, a doozy of the flu. All week he had been worried this might happen as more and more kids from his class were sent home sick.

He was sicker than he has been in years.

Laying on the couch he began to have tears literally drip down his face. “Does this mean I can't go on the hunt?”

Oh, just break my heart into a million little pieces.

So, I put out a call on face book asking everyone to pray really hard.

He did not eat dinner, he took two naps, he ate about a handful of crackers, he laid listlessly all day long and when he woke up this morning, he literally was jumping up and down for joy, he felt great. Super great.

He was pacing he was so excited to get going. Afraid his appetite would reappear in the middle of the night in the hunting cabin with his uncle, I made him his favorite cookies. With more than enough to share.

On our way to my brothers to drop him off, his little legs were shaking with excitement. “Feel like you could just jump up and twirl around and leap for joy because you are so happy?”

“Defiantly.” he laughed.

Laughed. Thank you ever so much, God, for this answered prayer.

And believe me, I will let you know how the hunt goes.....

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Why I Hate Curling

As in Olympic curling.

Don't get me wrong. If I actually tried the sport I might actually enjoy it. But really, it looks super boring to watch.

Really boring.

And I should know. I watched HOURS of it last winter Olympics and I DESPISED it then too.
But I have a reason.

Four years ago, my mom, my sister, my sister in law and my soon to be sister in law were all over watching opening ceremonies with me and my three boys and my itty bitty baby boy. Itty bitty baby boy (S4) seemed to have a cough and I felt so bad for him, being all of a month old, having such an awful sounding cold.

I brought him in that next week for a check up with the pediatric office I love who has cared for all our boys and when they heard S4 do his barky cough they went from chit chat and “he's sooooo cute” to very quiet and very very very serious.

And I was very scared.

It turned out to not be just a bad sounding cough but RSV. My dear doctor looked me in the eye and told me “this is extremely serious. Only because I know you will get right back here am I letting you leave here with him. You go home, get arrangements for the boys, get what you need and immediately get right back up here. Immediately.”

And I became very very scared.

I was certain that at any moment my little precious baby would quit breathing. Forever.
My itty bitty baby was laid in a metal cage looking bed and hooked to a million (it seemed) cords where he was monitored constantly to make sure his oxygen would not dip below a safe point.

He was given masks of medicine. He was so tiny, so tiny, and locked in a big cold bed.

And then I was very very very scared.

As soon as the nurses left, I cradled him close to me and sobbed. And the only time I put him in that cold awful looking bed was when the nurses needed him to be. It wasn't too long before they just let me hold him during all the tests.

And the one and only thing on the TV the entire time I was there was curling. Hours of mind numbing curling to try to keep my mind off the fact that I was in the hospital with my very sick baby. And all I could do watching boring curling was despise it. And pray. Pray like I had never before.

We were there two nights and three days. His levels never dropped dangerously low and they sent us home wishing us the best and with lots of medicine.

And every time I see curling on the Olympics, that awful feeling in the pit of my tummy resurfaces and throughout the house all the boys here me holler about hating the sport and S4 wraps his arms around me and lets me know he loves me.

Oh, thank you God for blessings upon blessings. Even the blessing of curling, yes curling, to keep my prayers ever constant to you in my dark hours.

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

My Camera was Hijacked

Warning!!!!
DO NOT READ if you are about to eat.
Some photos are not apatizing......
Recently, S2 asked if he could borrow my camera for something really cool he had done. I recalled Ihad just let him borrow the camera a day before and he had put it back right away so I let him again. I heard giggling.
folks, this is just a SMALL preview of the photos I found later on my camera. Every picture you see here, there were at LEAST three more JUST like it. Before I deleted them all, I figured I would show you what happens when a seven year old hijacks your pink digital camera....
Here it is, the moment that started the photos. He had eaten an egg and made this heart. Ahhh, cute, yes?
Then a photo of his brother who I think, by the looks of it, wanted his photo taken.This, dear folks, is a photo of S3's lost tooth. I warned you not to be eating..........

Here is our highly ambitious dog.


The teddy bears that he needed a photo of. I think there were FIVE differant photos of this...all in the same pose. Well, except for the three photos with the truck in front of them. I thought Iwould spare you all of those.



S4, hamming it up AGAIN.

And just in case I forgot who borrowed the camera, he took a photo of himself.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Moma is a WHAT?????

On Sunday morning, the boys had crawled into bed with Hubby while I was in the kitchen getting breakfast. I figure they needed male bonding time.

S4 came running into the kitchen, hung his head for the shame he felt in telling me the awful thing that had just been uttered from Hubby's lips.

“Moma”, he said, “Daddy just called you a FEMALE for NO reason.”

It took me a moment to realize he was totally serious. He was sure it was a bad name. Somehow I kept from laughing hysterically, mirrored his serious stance and marched into the bedroom where there were boys and legs every which way watching TV with Daddy. “Daddy,” I asked firmly, “Did you call me a FEMALE for NO reason?”

“Yah,” he laughed, S1 snickering, “Because you are.”

S4's eyes got even wider. He darted his gaze between Daddy and Moma not sure what would happen next.

I smiled at S4, “Daddy is right. I am a female.”

S4 did not know what to say.

Daddy explained that they were males or boys and Moma is a girl or female. But all day long, S4 just wasn't too sure.

I asked Hubby what had happened that night after the boys had gone to bed. He told me that they were just talking about nothing and everything and S4 mentioned something about a female elephant from the movie Ice Age 3 and Hubby had said “you're moma is a female too”.

“NO!” S4 had answered defensively, “She is NOT a female.”

Hubby had laughed at his response and told him Moma was, indeed, female.

That's when he declared he was telling Moma on him and ran from the room.

We both had laughed over it all day.

Monday, when all the boys were gone to school and Daddy was gone to work, S4 snuggled up next to me on the couch and said softly, “Moma, are you SURE you are a female?”

Friday, February 12, 2010

Between Friends, Chapter Six

Here it is, the ending of the great escapades of Flo and Joanie, Amelia and Hans. It's been tons of fun!!!! Next week we'll go back to stories from our snowed in homes.....thanks for checking in!!!!

Fern and Joanie both leaned forward to hear more. They would love to know what is going on.

“I am truly one of the “good guys”,” Hans began. “Clara has been working undercover here in Homer for quite some time. She has nearly single handily brought down these thugs, but now she is dead and we have to assume she had cracked the case.”

“Oh land sake alive, Clara broke the case. Did you hear that, Fern?” Joanie blathered.

Fern felt the need for chocolate. She would have to keep a “solving cases” supply for the next time such an occasion came up. And she desperately needed a refill of coffee. She glanced longingly at the coffee shop/tire shop as they passed. If only Amelia could see them right now......
But this was not the time to begin waning . “That does not explain what you did to Joanie here.” Fern turned her “you had better start explaining right now” dagger look right to Hans.

“I sincerely apologize about that.” Hans did look remorseful. He glanced at Joanie. “You fainted dead away when I came to the door. I had just heard the news about Clara and had come down to see what was going on,” his voice caught briefly, “But I found you at her back door in stead. When I seen you leave with the package, I had to get it back from you. But you fainted and the call came in that we thought we had the target and imagine my surprise when next I seen you up and talking with the target!”

Just then Fern's phone burst into “Don't Be Cruel”. She was able to find it in record time. “Heeeelllloooo?” she answered hoping she sounded her normal self.

“Fern? Oh, Fern! It's Amelia. I know you said you'd call back but I had to tell you...this just in, Clara was POISONED!”

“No!” gasped Fern.

“Oh, lands sake alive that doesn't sound very good.” Joanie fretted next to her.

“Yes! I'll have more for you just as soon as Clyde finds out more. Where ARE you, Fern?”
“Um, calling you back soon, Dearie,” Fern tried to sound chipper. Before Amelia could ask more, she flipped the phone shut.

“Clara was poisoned,” she reported.

“How do you know? That hasn't come across the wires to me,” Hans wanted to know.

“We have a system much faster than any FBI,” Fern informed him.

“Why was the note at the bottom of the blueberries?” asked Joanie suddenly.

“The note?” Hans asked quizzically as he turned the truck down an old rutted dirt road. There were driving further than Fern had expected them too. But then again, she really hadn't expected much more than death when she first climbed in so far all was going just peachy keen.

“Lands sake, you don't know about the note? It says “Keep your Hans off my property”,” Joanie explained.

“Dexter.....” Hans mumbled. “Clara has suspected he is just a behind the scenes player, but I think he may just be the master mind after all. We have been working undercover to find a gang of masterminds who have found a way to undetectably lace food with a severely toxic poison. I must conjecture that Clara was done in by this poison on her last trip in to the market by Dexter himself but...blueberries did you say it was?...was probably also laced when he hadn't heard that the job had been done.”

Book club blueberries?????” Joanie was incredulous.

“It's a good thing we stick to eating butter and chocolate rather than organic something or another,” Fern nodded smartly.

Suddenly, right before them, was the most peculiar sight. A man was hanging by his feet from a tree and a group of children were gathered around him. Hans slammed the truck to stop and they all piled out to look closer at the sight. The lone little girl and a fully dressed in red little boy about the age of seven, she must be about six, had a wooden homemade bow pulled back with a wooden pointed arrow right at the man. Three little boys between the ages of three and five were howling like Indians and the oldest boy, about ten, had his BB gun aimed at the man on the tree. “Dexter!” Hans cried in surprise.

“Are you the authorities?” asked the boy. “I caught this guy in my trap and he seemed suspicious to me so I radioed my Dad and he called the authorities. Are you them?”
Hans held out his FBI badge. “Good job, son!” He quickly pulled the sputtering Dexter from the tree, handcuffing him.

“I had it all planned! The shipment was headed out tonight if it wasn't for that old lady and her book clubbing posse! If they had just left this all alone, the success we would have had!”

“Lands sake, it couldn't have been much hard work on your part,” Joanie cackled to Dexter, “to be found out by some old book clubbers and bunch of Homerian children!”

Fern's phone began to vibrate but she caught it before it broke into song. “They might have the man who killed Clara treed over by the old mill road,” Amelia informed breathless.

“Well, he is caught and confessed,” Fern reported. “Case closed.”

Thursday, February 11, 2010

Valentine's Day with Four Boys

Taking a short break from Flo and Joanie to talk about Valentine's Day. Valentines' Day with four boys is....an unromantic adventure.

They have to have valentine's day cards. They each have their own school party and three boys in elementary school is a lot of valentine's day cards. I have a hard time purchasing something for them that they don't care to fill out, that will just end up in the garbage at the end of the day and did I mention they just don't care?

I admire mom's who go all out for Valentine's Day. I really do. But it's one more area I fall short in the “cool mom” category. Or do I?

I do try to make the best of it. For instance, I ask them what kind of valentine's they would like...

S1 “Well, you know...anything hunting would be great.”

S2 “Red Wings. You HAVE to get Red Wings!”

S3 “Do they have blue? I want blue ones.”

S4 “You know, Moma.....LIGHTENING MCQUEEN!”

Great, the only one I have a chance of finding is for my four year old who doesn't go to school but has to have the valentine's like his big brothers.

So I headed off to the store. Obviously, they have no hunting valentines. But I found dinosaurs...which is no where close to hunting but at least it's totally boyish. I did find sports themed ones. There are no blue ones. I did find Scooby do ones though. And of course, CARS. At least one of my boys will be happy.

I looked at getting the candy ones. At least they would have candy to make up for the lack in cards but all the candy ones are soooooo expensive. They would be great if I had ONE child in school, but not three.

Why I mind buying Valentine's is because I would like the day to be special for the boys, but it's just not a boy kind of holiday. And I don't know how to make it special. Why can't we have a celebrate hunting day? THAT I could make special for my boys...then we would find hunting cards. Or, hockey appreciation day? But little boys aren't too interested in sending lovey dovey cards out. And if they were, I would be worried about them.

So I make the boys cookies. In the shape of hearts. Because the one way to make sure that my boys feel loved is a full tummy. So cookies I will make them. And why can I spend hours making special cookies for my boys? Because I LOVE my boys, but I don't' love all the kids in their classes. So, forgive me all 4th, 2nd and kindergarten classes....you just get flimsy cards my boys didn't want to fill out anyhow. But my boys will know beyond a doubt their Moma loves them, and that is more important to me by far.

Between Friends, Chapter Five

Ohhhhhhh, the Farmer's Wife hit it right on with this one! Oh, this newest chapter is thrilling!!!!! I am so regretting turning in my Alias soundtrack to the library right now, I could use it for inspiration to write the next and last chapter.

She is so brilliant with her descriptions here. It was a total blast to read this chapter!

Enjoy!

http://cohagenchronicles.blogspot.com/2010/02/between-friends-chapter-5.html

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Between Friends, Chapter Four

Be sure to check out yesterday's post first which is a visit to Cohagen's Chronicles (where the Farmer's wife and I are obviously too bored with snow to think of anything to write about with our families right now so we have turned to fiction), to catch up with our slueths Fern and Joanie before you begin reading......

CHAPTER FOUR

Fern leaped into action. She pulled the smelling salts from her zebra faux purse and began waving them under Joanie's nose. Thank goodness she had kept those in there from the last time Homer Grand Theater had shown Out of Africa...oh, that dreamy Robert Redford.

Joanie sat up with a stunned squeal.

“Mr Cuddles? Wait, FERN? Where is Mr. Cuddles and (gasp) that MAN.....”

Fern surmised she had hit her head harder than she thought.

“Joanie, I don't know where your dog is right now. You need to concentrate.”

“Dog? I don't have a dog. I have only Mr. Cuddles.”

She must have hit her head VERY hard. “Joanie...concentrate. Yes, you have a dog. Look, see all the dog toys all over the place?”

“No no no, those are Mr Cuddles' play toys. He is such a large cat.....” Just than the monstrous yellow tabby cat jumped in her lap. Fern's raised eyebrows cause Joanie to pull the behemoth cat a bit tighter to her....she had been told before that Mr. Cuddles needed to lay off the vanilla ice cream.

Fern shut the door soundly behind her. “Joanie, what happened?”

“A large super handsome, Fern, he was suuuuupppppeeeeerrrrrr handsome, man was at the door and he spoke, well, lands sake, like no one in Homer has EVER spoken.”

This was Fern's Watson?

Sherlock Fern Holmes pushed herself to her feet, helped Joanie to the table and put in her call to Amelia.

“Have you learned anything yet?” no need to chat with all these crazy happenings in her town. It appeared it was up to Fern and her book clubbers to get to the bottom of this mystery alone.

“Well, Clyde, he tells me that Clara's death seems odd, they can't really pin it on anything in particular. The coffee shop is just abuzzin over Clara's boyfriend, Hans.”

“HANS is Clara's boyfriend?” Fern plopped in the chair next to Joanie.

“You know him?” Amelia asked.

“Oh no....but I have heard tell.”

“Lands sake alive, who knew that Clara was such a cougar?” asked Joanie, fully shocked. She shuffled over to the mirror to reapply that frosted rose lipstick she always kept near her.

Fern quickly filled Amelia on the bare facts of what she and Joanie had learned, which, giving only the bare facts added up to nothing. At all. Except for the blueberries delivered to the door.

“But, well, blueberries delivered to the door? That doesn't make any sense! The Farmer's Market is to
day, those blueberries would have to show up tonight to make any sense of someone missing Clara and dropping them off.”

Fern suddenly realized they were on the trail again. “Joanie, we're going for a ride down to the Farmer's Market.” Fern went back to talking on the phone. “Amelia, we'll be checking in soon. Keep your ear open to any new news.”

Joanie made sure her lipstick was reapplied, the Mr. Cuddles knew where she was, the note from the blueberries was safelyin her rrhinestone clutch and her pep-too bismal pink scarf was securely tied around herperfectlyycoiffedd hair and when she was securely settled into thepassengerr car of the pink Honda gold wing, they were off to the Farmer's Market, completely in conspicuous.

The Homer Farmers Market was a long standing area attraction. It was held on the courthouse lawn every Wednesday and Saturday. Fern's idea was simple, she would just find a vendor that was selling blueberries and ask if they knew Clara because she just raved about the blueberries and than ask the farmer what on earth the note meant.

Simple.

Joanie was soon distracted by a little girl selling cat nip toys but Fern was not easily swayed by the flower bouquets, sweet corn and the like. She found the only friendly looking family selling blueberries and they had not sold to Clara but they were more than helpful in pointing out the vendor who did. An old man whose eyes were a bit too much like a possom's for Fern's liking. She meandered over to the conniving little man. Fern didn't recognize him from around town. And he didn't seem overly thrilled to be there.....almost like a cover of sorts.

“Do you have any blueberries?” Fern asked.

“Sure. But they are more then the farmers down the row,” he growled to her.

“Yes,” Fern nodded, a chill going through her, “but CLARA told us to see you.”

Joanie appeared at her side with a bag full of cat nip toys. “Clara, you say?”

“Oh!” chirped Joanie, “You know Clara? Then you must have dropped off the blueberries to her house.” Fern noticed his eyes darting around now. “Oh, they are fine blueberries. But lands sake, why's this in the bottom of the quart box?” Joanie began reading the now unfolded note aloud “Keep your Hans off my........”

“You two are in over your head.........” the man hissed, grabbing for the note. But just then he caught a glance at something that must have frightened him and suddenly he turned to run.

Fern looked behind her to see a perfectly handsome man, tall, built like a younger Arnold Schwarzenegger running toward her. He stopped and held his hand out to her. “hello,” his deep accented voice said, “I am Hans, Clara's boyfriend. And I believe you two are in much danger. Come with me.”

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Don't Forget to Check In.....

With Cohagen Chronicles to catch Chapter Three. Neither one of us will tell the other what we are gong to write. Here is what the Farmer's Wife added to the chapter two, now what will I write for Chapter four tomorrow????????

Hope you are having as much fun as we are!

http://cohagenchronicles.blogspot.com/2010/02/between-friends-chapter-3.html

Monday, February 8, 2010

Before Reading ANY further.....

If you have not read Chapter One of Between Friends DO NOT READ THE NEXT POST until you have wandered on over to

http://cohagenchronicles.blogspot.com/2010/02/between-friends-chapter-1.html

to read the first installment. As I have stated before, The Farmer's Wife and I are bored this winter and so we are making up a story as we go. She wrote the first chapter and did not tell me what was even about. I read it, and wrote chapter two. She will have Chapter Three on her blog on Tuesday, Chapter Four here on Wednesday, Chapter Five at her blog on Thursday and I really think she and I will work together to post the ending come Friday.....if we can end it that quickly.... :) Neither one of us has any idea what the other will write, we just have to make it work with what the other wrote.

Just something fun to do this week! Hope you enjoy!!!!!

Between Friends.....Chapter Two

“Joanie? This is Fern.”

“Lands sake, Fern, I thought you would never call me. Me and Mr. Cuddles are just stupefied. Stupefied I tell you. Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear, oh dear.”

Fern looked over to the dusty wineglasses. She was regretting the fact that she had not hidden more bon bons in the glass. Or a bottle of wine. “Joanie!” she snapped, knowing full well how long Joanie could go on and on with her “oh dears”.

“So you do think so? Oh, Fern, I was so afraid of that. I should have never told her to never step into my house again. But poor Mr. Cuddles! Just because she dislikes cats doesn't mean she had to insult my poor Mr. Cuddles! His feelings were so hurt! But I had to tell her that right in Mr. Martin's Pharmacy when I stopped in for my chocolate coke because she is so sour on poor Mr. Cuddles you know. Lands sake, I just don't know what came over me! But now she is dead and I just know they will come for me. Even you agree with me....oh, and then what will happen to my poor Mr. Cuddles when they lock me away?”

Fern was digging through every shelf in the pantry. There had to be some chocolate in there somewhere.

“Joanie...focus. Focus! No one thinks you had anything to do with Clara's death.”

“You really think so? My lands, I have been calming Mr. Cuddles telling him not to worry...”

“And you shouldn't.” Snapped Fern. No wonder she had given up dying her hair. With friends like Joanie you were just going to go gray. She glanced at the clock. Not much more time before Days of our Lives came on. Fern suddenly remembered the stash of carmellos in the freezer and with that she began pulling out ice cube trays for her sweet tea as she tried again, with force, to reason with Joanie.

“Now Joanie, you know Clara was supposed to be bringing the dessert to Book Club Thursday night.”

“Oh my lands, oh my. Will we still have book club? Mr. Cuddles was …..."

“Yes.” Fern interrupted, sticking the Carmelo bar in the microwave and wondering at her thought process on that one. FROZEN Carmelo bar? Really. It'd take forever to thaw! “Clara, as rigid a rule keeper as she was, would prefer us to move ahead with our plans. But, Joanie, now you will have to make the dessert. And you know she was going to make us some sort of broccoli spinach surprise so you might as well go over there and find out what it was so it doesn't spoil. That would be plumb wasteful.”

“You mean,” Joanie whispered, “break in?”

“Bless her poor healthy heart, Joanie, Clara would want us to use up all her organic something or another. And it's really ours anyhow, it being for book club and all.” Fern slurped down a brick of the Carmelo bar. Once you got past the freezer burn, it was pretty good. “Now, I have to go so you call me and let me know what to expect you to bring tomorrow night at book club.” She hung up before Joanie could get another word in.

Days of our Lives was waiting.

Joanie stared ahead at the brick house on the other side of the perfectly kept hedges. Clara always kept those hedges so straight. The little brick house that had always seemed so cold seemed especially so now.

But Fern and Amelia couldn't be without dessert for book club, that would never do. She would have to go over. They were counting on her.

“Lands sake, Mr. Cuddles,” she stroked the big yellow cat in her arms, “You needn't worry so. I'll just run on over and be back in a jiffy.” She scooped a bit of vanilla ice cream out for Mr. Cuddles and put it at his place on the table. “Here now, you work on that while I am gone.”
Joanie glanced into the mirror next to the door and reapplied her passion rose lipstick before she headed out her pink door and over to Clara's.

Arriving at the back door, she knocked and waited a moment. “Lands sake,” she giggled, “I'm glad Mr. Cuddles didn't notice me doing such a thing. Knocking.” She peeked into the window but, as always, the shades were pulled tight. That Clara. She felt a bit of sadness. All that sourness had made Clara live a dull life. So rigid. Not trusting, not even of her dearest, cutest friend. Joanie tried the door, but it was locked as always. And Clara never had given her a key.

“Well, molten lava cake it will have to be,” she said aloud to herself, because the thought at being at an empty house, even a fellow book clubber, was a bit eerie. She stumbled back a bit and when she did, her foot kicked a paper bag, hidden a bit from view behind the watering can. Funny, mused Joanie, Clara had never really watered much of anything that she had noticed.
Joanie creaked down to look at the bag. “For the cobbler” read the black permanent marker. She peeked in and spied two quarts of blueberries.

“Well, I suppose molten cake will be next book club,” Joanie reasoned,, thankful she wouldn't have to break in after all to use up the organic something or another Fern was sure was there in the house. The farm market vendor must have known in advance what Clara had needed this week and dropped it off all neighborly like. “Lands sake, Mr Cuddles will be all worried over me. I best get back.”

She scurried over to her pink door and found Mr. Cuddles finishing his little scoop of ice cream. She checked her reflection in the little round mirror by the sink and reapplied her passion rose lipstick that had faded a bit.

Getting out the strainer, she dumped the blueberries in to wash them. “Lands sake, what's this?” she picked up a tiny folded note in the bottom of the quart box. “What could it be?”
She opened the note and her eyes went wide, the empty quart box dropped to the floor. Mr. Cuddles jumped at the unusual interruption of his usually docile rest on his cat nip smelling chair. Quickly, Joanie grabbed her phone. “Don't you worry, Mr. Cuddles,” she assured him and shakingly dialed Fern's number.

“Fern! Oh Fern! Lands sakes alive, the blueberries!”

A knock at the door interrupted her as she hustled over, forgetting to check her reflection before throwing open the door, very unlike her. But the note! Fern!

A deep thick voice that was dripping in foreigner accent greeted her. “Hello, Joanie is it?” A Dutch looking version of a young Arnold Schwarzenegger stood in her door way. “I am Hans, a, ah, friend of Clara's.”

The phone clattered to the floor.

Sunday, February 7, 2010

Rough Sunday ends in Much Laughter

I had a rough day, this Sunday. Sunday's are just not my favorite day of the week. It should be, I know, I wish it were, but it is too rushed and stressed and never goes smoothly. And when it is over, you only have Monday to look forward to.

Take today for instance.......

I went to start dinner first thing, a roast, potatoes...regular Sunday dinner. But Hubby was watching “America Eats” this morning. We all wanted KFC instead. And when I went to wash the potatoes, I realized the sink drain was frozen, again.

I put two french braids in my hair last night so my hair would be all cute and kinky the next morning. But one of the braids came out in the night.

So when I took a shower, the water was luke warm. Which would have been bearable but I had to wash my hair now. And by then I was cold.

Dressed in my cute suit, all fashionable feeling and that, Hubby called me over to see how he was thawing the pipe for the drain. He opened the window up as I leaned over the filled with old coffee, drain water, milk from cereal....and the little cobalt blue vase hit fell off the window and splashed into the sink, soaking my now not smart looking blouse in very icky disgusting water.
The boys had no socks. Or clothes. And they were supposed to get them night before.

I never got a chance to finish my one cup of coffee I had poured for myself.

Church was so cold that my nose about froze off.

S4 decided he didn't want to go to Sunday school and sat with us. When Sunday School had ended, he burst into tears that he hadn't gone to Sunday school and was inconsolable.

When we got home, I went right to work finishing dinner while the boys thought McDonald's Mc Ribs or slow roasted BBQ was sounding better.

S4 kept running in to tell me it was like him and Daddy and the guys were at the movies it was like I was at work and when would my work be done so he could eat?

Dinner finally was done. It was good, they did eat well. Roast, mashed potatoes, beans we canned ourselves, cheesy vegetables, gravy, home made rolls. When dinner was done, Hubby told me “chop chop, this table will have to get cleared. I had a lot of dishes to do.”

I gave up. I went to bed. It was wimpy and pouty but I didn't say anything mean, I just said I was going to bed.

Laying in bed I read on my blackberry a message from my friend MP over at Cohagen's Chronicles (if I knew how to highlight the name so you just click it and go there I would do that for you but I don't....I'm sorry. Here is the address.....http://cohagenchronicles.blogspot.com/
She and I had been talking about our boring winter lives and how our blogs were lacking so she had the brilliant idea to make up a story that we would each write a part off and post on our blogs every day for a week.

She had written a doozy of a beginning.

And it was up to me to write the next installment (which will post tomorrow). It made me giggle right out loud reading it and my head was spinning with ideas.

So I headed out of the bedroom where to find the table cleared, the kitchen busy with Hubby and S1 loading the dishwasher and washing dishes and taking care of all the food.

They are the sweetest ever.

I curled up in the golden yellow chair in the kitchen and read the first chapter, and Hubby and I had all kinds of fun coming up with great ideas to take the story. Then I settled down at the computer to write. It was so much fun! I was giggling and sipping coffee and giggling some more.

The sun came out shone brightly.

The boys played out side, laughing instead of fighting.

The kitchen was clean.

I still have my beautiful bouquet from S2.

Maybe Sunday's aren't so bad after all.

A Surprise from S2

It's been an unusually rough patch with S2. He struggles with reading and while he has finally found some books he truly enjoys reading (the Henry and Mudge series by Cynthia Rylant), he still would rather play hockey in the driveway, slide down the snow banks with his cool sled, watch TV, stare into space....just about anything other than homework. This has lead to some rough nights and mornings filled with tears as he realizes he doesn't have his work done and only himself to blame.

He also is the worlds biggest cheerleader. He will clap and cheer his brothers on with everything. “Great job bringing in the groceries. Way to go.” “Man, you are doing great, Dude, clearing the table.” “That was some great work shoveling the steps.” The problem is, HE is supposed to be doing these things.

I am exasperated with him, I will admit it.


And when I don't think I can take much more he does his new favorite coolest thing ever to do. He flaps his arms and walks/hops through the house making out LOUD chicken sounds. He thinks he makes a great imitation of a chicken.


S1, always supportive, finally told him he didn't need to KEEP showing us he could do chicken sounds, we have it figured out already.

So today when he wanted to quickly pull on his jacket and run out to help his Daddy bring back all the soda cans we have been collecting the past few months, I figured he wanted to have a break from his Moma.


Imagine my surprise when he stumbled into the house, HUGE grin on his face and pushed under my nose a bouquet of flowers. “These are for you, Moma. I bought them all by myself. They were five dollars and Daddy had to give me 35 cents but they are just from me because I knew you liked them from when we went there before.”


My heart stopped a moment.


And then it totally melted.

Saturday, February 6, 2010

Back from the Brink........

I have been following blogs this past month and two weeks a bit but have had nothing of any consequence to write about. Winter does that. Do you really want to hear about every family movie we have watched? Didn't think so, because you are tired of watching your own, I am sure.
One blog in particular I have been keeping a close eye on. If SHE didn't post, well, I wasn't doing too bad. She just posted TWO blogs so now I am super behind. Why I thought this, I just don't know, but I did. And secretly, I was hoping NBC, the Hallmark Channel, Fox News...they all would be calling and saying “AHHHHH, we MUST know about the life of you and your family!!! We are DESPERATE from any word from you. Here is a years worth of coffee, and advance to the novel we will publish for you now WRITE!!!!”

Hubby would LOVE that!

But the truth is, nothing like that has happened. If you all wanted me to tell you about my imaginary life, it would be MUCH more interesting!

The truth is, the more I write the more ideas come to me so if you don't mind the mundane life of winter with four boys, well, I will be happy to share some smidgeons.

So until the adventures of spring come, I hope you continue to check in on this blog. I appreciate every one of you who do!