March Madness

 Liz had a concert band performance on the 8th

She performed beautifully (wish I would have rememberd my CAMERA)

The phone is good for some things, but indoor - not so much!

This beautiful shot was taken on the way home from work one afternoon... I just could NOT resist taking it.  So Pretty!!

This one was actually PRIOR to the one above, but rather than fight blogger on photo placement, we're just going to let this one go... I LIKE the first shot better regardless :o)

The sun showers we experienced when I actually GOT home taking the above shots :o)

Random sun set picture on the way to Grandma's house one evening.

The pollen - it's the price we pay for living in such a LUSH green place... I feel gritty just looking at this - and it's not rained since that sun shower above, so it's all still just blowing around the countryside - bleck!

And collecting in the pool... and this is NOT the worst of it.  I had a ring about an inch high the other day... so gross!

Weekend Work

It may not seem like a lot, but I actually got caught up a bit this weekend… I had to have a LIST for part of it, but it is now 99% complete!

It all started on Friday on the way home from work:

I got my prescription from the base (#1- from a phone in refill)

went to pay a deposit (#2 - they were closed! **later**)

went to BFK to get a check (#3)

went to bank (#4 - just BARELY made it! *funny story to follow*)

went by the doctors to pick up a prescription (#5 - they are closed on Friday – news to me!)

and the final thing on the list was (#6) go grocery shopping… sorry, but I wasn’t THAT motivated… I pooped out!

Funny story about the bank.  I had a check from a music company that I had been renting from.  I had been doing a bill pay payment for a  while through the bank, but the opportunity came up to get a step up flute for $300 instead of renting.  Her rental would have been $450 to buy with the rent to own… but why not get the step up for $300 instead?  That’s what I thought too – I bought the flute and arranged pickup.  I had looked at bill pay and noted that there had been a payment that went out the DAY I cancelled my rental.  Not knowing if I was paying a month in advance, or a month in arrears, I opted to let the payment going through – justifying that they would refund it if not needed.  So THAT was one of my checks to cash.  I sent it in and the teller nicely told me it was made out to the company from me, not vice-versa.  I assumed a mistake on their part… I spend 15 minutes on the phone with them trying to figure out what was the deal… then it finally dawned on me what she was saying – that was the check that my bank had drafted to them for me via bill pay… the BANK didn’t even recognize it for what it was…. A check from them to the company.  The company basically returned my check to show they didn’t cash the last one – too funny.  Sad that I’m too blond to catch on faster!  Ha!

Saturday, I did get up an go grocery shopping.  Even looking for good deals, I spent $200 and NO meat.  I mean, come on – really?  I NEVER spend $200.  Mostly because I shop Sam’s Club for the paper goods and meal type foods… so this is just some fluff and a few staples.  Sad.  So check #6 off the list… AND I checked #2 off the list to boot :o)

Liz also cleaned out the fridge and freezer in the house – now don’t look at the one outside!!  I stuffed all the extra out there.. and made the inside one look better.. :o)  I’ll have to share a picture of the suicidal olive jar… olives EVERYWHERE!  Oh, well, makes for a clean fridge AND a clean floor :o)

That would make me at 99% of my list!!  Whoop!  I came home and cleaned a bit on the backyard… let the little girls wash the car for me… mostly they washed themselves and the whole driveway – but they were happy and out of my hair… more power to them!  I cleaned out the hot tub and got the yellow ring cleaned out for the day… yuck - pine pollen!

Sunday… I woke up to find Butch already at work – yes, he’s working insane hours.  He said something about his time card the week prior was 100 hours… yes one HUNDRED hours of work.  Lovely, eh?  Yeah… good thing I’m independent!  I didn’t even hear him leave, so he must have been up early… I got up and Angela was getting ready to go to church with her friend…she’s such the dedicated child.  So there I sat… house quiet as the teenager will get up at the crack of noon…. Unless rattled earlier.  I made myself some eggs and toast, watched a TV show, got motivated and moved the tree in the back 40 where I wanted it (pray it survives), then put the shovel back and noticed that my Sunday paper was still in the driveway – soooo shocking!  So I sat down and read the paper and enjoyed the rest of my day J

A new found heart by Angela

then she ate it... would that be eating your heart out?

The bunny is holding a very pretty weed bloom in his paws :o)

Daffodils are my favorite.  I remember riding to the old farm house foundations up the road and picking them growing.  You knew it was spring then.  All the daffodils would come into bloom.

Success!!!!

I'm sooooo excited.  I was doing the ADD thing and pinging all over the house after watching a movie with dinner... went in to fix finances at the bank site, transfer money - while there decided to pay bills.  Once almost done, Angela came in for a request for flowers for her laptop, so I did that... then thought while I'm here, I NEED To try to do the logo's in the heat transfer vinyl I picked up in my last order and LOOK - how VERY pretty is that???? 

I'm soooo excited.  After the last few days, I was beginning to wonder about my whole existance... then I play in my cutting room and I find my mojo.

I'm not at 100% yet on the sanity level (wonder if I'm just coming down with something?)... however, much happier now that this has worked in my favor :o)

I have a few different choices in styles too.  I was looking for a whale tail, but haven't found one I like!

I'm soooo CHEAP

yes, you read correctly, I'm cheap; stingy; miserly; and if you believe the "nicer" word - frugal.  I have been soooo stressed out about buying our tickets to Alaska that I have been paralyzed with fear that I will be buy the blasted things and then they will go on sale.  So... the last few days I have been checking the tickets/flights/prices and had finally committed to getting the "best" price I can only to discover my new "travel agent" mode wasn't working so well if you don't work IN an office and have access to their internal booking system.  CRAP.  So.  I waited to the morning - and of course everything is CRAZY at work lately and there is too much going on there as well... so I get the call in at 1pm.  And they are SOLD out on that price margin on THAT day.  ARGEEEEE $%^&*() bleep, bleep, BLEEEP. 

OK, deep breath, make some calls, make some arrangements, put things on a 5pm hold with the travel agency for the ONE flight I can find in the "reasonable" range (*read in here less than $800 a body).  who's idea WAS this trip anyway?  LOL... yes, yes, yes, I know it was Dad's, and he's forgiven for this dream - it is a valid one...  and I am excited... but I'm working myself in to a tizzy because I'm CHEAP! frugal.

I find the solution after a call to Butch regarding the ppredicament I find myself in.  Turns out he has sky miles enough to get HIM there... but no-one else.  HOWEVER this is better than what I'm finding, so I call into Delta, get his tickets for him..  So.  Flights booked, rental car booked.  Sigh a bit of relief for now. 

The killer part of all this?  Our flights SUCK.  We leave here at 4pm and arrive at 11:30pm in Anchorage... then have to drive a few hours to go south.  The way home?  Oh, yeah, even more pleasant - we leave at 4pm and get home NEXT day at 7:30am.  Sucky.  However we should have a long flight from Seattle to Atlanta to get some sleep on the plane.  We're going to be miserable when we get home...    should have booked in December when I knew for sure what our dates were.. would have been ahead of the game.  Ah, well, hind sight on this trip planning is 20/20 in the rear view.  Let's pray the rest goes well.

Charleston South Carolina - Winter Break Escape!!

 The first plantation stop would have been missed if not for the need of a potty stop - it is RIGHT off the highway going up highway 17 and according to google, doesn't exist.  Weird.  Anyway it was right off the highway and more of a gift shop than a true plantation.. but still very pretty and neat to go into the house and see most of the rooms.

 As is typical this is a "girls" trip and here are the girls :o)

 This is a A joggling or jostling board there is a large workup in wikipedia on it.  Interesting and the first one we saw of MANY over the weekend :o)

Just a nice view inside the tree - as seen below with ME in the picture (thanks mom for letting the world know I went too)

 I do love the HUGE live oaks all over the southeastern seaboard... I wonder why the don't grow with long low limbs like that out here?  maybe they just didn't plant them out here?

 the view from our hotel - the standing joke is "the tides out" or in... I love tides and grass... not sure why, I just do.  I get a kick out of the tide raising and lowering.  That's charleston that you see in the distance

 Day 1 - our first tour.  We managed to see a LOT of the town this way... and figured out where we wanted to go from there :o)

 On the sea wall overlooking James Island.

 What we didn't know was that the Southeast Wildlife Expo was in town and is every Presidents day weekend - lesson learned there - this is NOT a presidents day weekend destination :o) 

http://www.sewe.com/  if you wanted more info~!

We went BACK to battery park (sea wall photo above is right next to this...) to CLIMB trees!  This is something you can NOT do in most places with the long low limbs, however, we had seen a few folks parked their bikes in the park and hung hammocks from the limbs, so fair game in my books!! 

 Angela opted to try for the lower tree.. she's not as adventurous as Liz is when it comes to putting herself in danger on limbs... she didn't get very far.  There are a couple of teenagers trying this same tree... one was farther up when I took a few of these shots - just out of range.  one was WAY in the middle of the tree.  Liz didn't get quite that far.

 gratuitous cannon shot, then we went back to the car to drive back through town and check out the "doc dogs" - however we found out the hard way that NO ONE wanted to go... I thought they wanted to go, they thought I wanted to go.  Ha!  We didn't go see the dogs, we stayed in the park to watch the sunset - per Angela's request.  So we got turned around and on the main road you can see in the background above and parked again... however, this time Mom would be able to watch the sunset from the warmth of the car :o)

 I debated putting this one in here... self portrait and a typical kid shot.. It's just so US...

Day two since we opted out of the Doc Dogs, we headed to Magnolia plantations (http://www.magnoliaplantation.com/) to supposedly take a boat tour of the swamps and bird preserves.  we were about a month too early and it's still considered winter and the boat is NOT open yet - bummer!  So we took the cart tour instead - still just as nice, but a bit chilly on the long runs...  And of course the petting zoo was a hit with the girls.  Rightly so if you can feed a bunny AND and albino peacock :o)

 On the walking tour around the house. 

 this looks out toward the river in the distance...just past the little line of trees that had a small land bridge by the river... nice peaceful walk with some of the trees just coming into bloom.. you'll see that a little farther down...

 Relaxing on the DOUBLE size porch overlooking the grounds... very nice!!

 This is a well published bridge... been in a lot of southern magazines.. have you noted that Liz isn't in any of these shots?  She went off on her own on the hiking path.. we seriously thought we had lost her for a bit there... she was about 1/2 mile away at the most... but had to RUN back to the house through the maze of trails to find us...

 speaking of mazes...this is a large hedge (topiary?) maze :o)

 on the cart headed out to the swamps and old rice areas..it's a little breezy and slightly chilly, but not bad...

 Even the gators were sunning along with the turtles :o)

Old slave cabins.

 wildlife...

 Spanish moss and low limbs...

 The house... beautiful, isn't it?

 So... after the plantation, we went to the outlet mall to shop a bit.  Found just a few things for the girls (tanks and Rue)... then went for a drive over the north side of Charleston, down to the island there.  Looked at all the ocean front homes and drooled.  Then headed back through Charleston and out the other side to Folly beach.  This is where the girls are right now... on the playground at Folly.  they went out on the beach itself to get some shells and such... then we went to a nice dinner at a sea side shack.  Good food...