Guest Room

More before and after pictures:

I know...just one "before" picture, but there really wasn't much to photograph. At least you can see the gray? panelling and green shag carpet.

Grandma's Chocolate Cake

I thought about my grandma a lot yesterday. Jeff had invited some friends over for hamburgers and what better reason to make a chocolate cake? When my grandma passed away several months ago, I inherited her double boiler (that's basically two sauce pans for those of you who are cullinary-challenged) and her large yellow mixing bowl. Grandma was the best chocolate cake baker I ever knew. I've used her recipe on many occasions, but yesterday was different. Not only did I have her recipe, I also had the very pans and bowl that had been used so many, many times in her kitchen. With each step, I could imagine her standing next to me, giving me little bits of advice and lots of praise. It will come as no surprise to you that the result was the BEST chocolate cake I've ever baked. I hope that when I'm gone, Lauren will want my pans and bowl and Grandma's recipe.

Ghetto Driver

The thousands of chug holes in Tulsa roads are blamed on the snowy winter we had. Hello....it's June. I hit a crater on Sunday at about 45 mph on a ramp on the expressway, doing who knows how much damage to my front end. After arriving home from bible study Sunday evening, I was walking past my kitchen window and to my surprise and dismay, saw that I was missing my front left hubcap. Erghh! Do you realize what a difference that makes to the appearance of your car????? I admit, my car is almost 10 years old, but on most days I'm not embarrassed to drive it. The Toyota dealership quoted me $57 for a new hubcap. <:0 Unwilling to lay out 60 big ones for a piece of tin, I started shopping around. Actually, I retraced my Sunday route and think I spotted it on the side of the road. Unfortunately, I only had a split second to decide if it was worth risking my life to pull over in traffic to pick it up. I decided my life was worth more than 60 bucks. Today I found "Hubcap Kingdom." They had three options for me--a new one for $45, a cheap imitation for $15, and guess what?....a used one that had JUST come in for $25. What a coincidence! I'm pretty sure I paid $25 for my OWN hubcap!

For those of you dying of suspense (or needing to make a claim with a moving company) a 23 cu. ft. side-by-side refrigerator weighs approximately 335 lbs. Thank you Carolyn.

Eric Haas Cartright

I'm relieved to say that I now can sleep at night, knowing Hoss' given name. Thank you for indulging me (you were laughing WITH me not AT me, right?). My mom was very helpful and sent me a website about Hoss. And my favorite cousin, Carolyn, telephoned to report her findings. She even went so far as to research the Vandervoorts and the "Stranger" episode. As it turns out, Hoss was name Eric, after his maternal grandfather and Adam (5 years old at the time) reminded his dad that Uncle Gunner had wanted to name him Haas/Hoss. So, wise old Ben gave him both names and said, "we'll see which one sticks." Feel free to return to your daily duties, until I need some other useless information. By the way, does anyone know how much an average side-by-side refrigerator weighs?

What's In a Name?

My latest obsession....what was Hoss Cartright's "real" first name? I know his REAL name was Dan Blocker. But on Bonanza, was he given the name "Hoss" at birth, or was that a nickname given to him later? I seem to recall one episode that Ben called him by his real name, but I can't remember what it was. Don't ask me why I'm obsessing about this, or what even brought it up, just give me the answer if you know it!!!!!

Living Room

The living room is pretty much finished. I'm not very happy with the window covering. It looked much better in my head. I'm actually thinking that I should have left well enough alone with the wood blinds, but no....I thought the hard edges needed to be softened with fabric. Do I sound like Christopher Lowell? The window will definitely change, but I'm not sure yet how. The "after" pictures are a little deceiving in color. The walls are yellower than they appear in the photos. But you get the idea.

BEFORE

AFTER

Whew!

Another VBS in the books. Tonight was our final night--the hot dog cookout. This year was our biggest attendance ever! Our numbers were around the 100 mark (kids only) every night. Many of the staff were caught offguard and those of us in crafts were scouring the city for extra material. It shouldn't have been such a surprise....our Monday night prayer group had prayed for a big turnout. When will we learn to expect the unexpected? Our theme this year was "Soldiers of God" which was a HUGE success. The kids loved the military theme. Maybe I can obtain some pics to post.

On another note, Jeff returned safely from the U.K. He had an awesome trip, wonderful weather, and great travelling companions. It would have been perfect except for the problems getting through customs and the flight delay on his return. By the time they landed in KC, he had been up 24 hours. I have to say, it feels good to know he's back in the good ole US of A.

Happy Girl

Today I'm posting my first "before & after" photo of our farm house re-do. Although this was not my top priority, now that the house itself is functional and liveable, the pool was the next challenge I faced. No one lived here throughout the winter and the tarp blew into the pool during a fall storm.......needless to say, it was full of leaves, sticks, dirt, and creepy crawlies. I was seriously beginning to doubt the possibility of ever seeing the bottom of the pool. Friday, the Coral Pools technician gave me the thumbs up and after a water analysis on Saturday, we were good to go. After my CHORES were done on Saturday (I will argue with John Denver in heaven about life on the farm being "kinda laid back") and I was hot and sweaty, the cool waters of the pool were just what this tired old lady needed. I jumped in, splashed around a bit, then relaxed on my raft. Sweet!!!

Farming--Lita-Style

Just had to post this picture that my mom sent me, due to previously posted events. She took the original picture when they were here helping us move. I thought it was hilarious, and quite appropriate. This is my kind of farming. And no, we are NOT raising turtles!

Good Day

It was a good day, today. Although I still didn't manage to get to the gym (it's been over 3 weeks) I did get a lot accomplished. The pool is starting to show promise. Jeff made it safely to Manchester, England. The piece I ordered for the crib (that the movers lost) came in the mail today and I'm now prepared for Lauren. I finally caught the turtle that has been living in my pool. He looks just like the ones you see in the pet stores--only about 20 times as big. I wasn't quite sure what to do with him once I had him out of the pool. I certainly didn't want him finding his way back, so I carried him in an ice chest across the north pasture and over the fence, releasing him in the direction of the neighbors' pond. Run away Mr. Turtle, run away.

I actually did a little decorating!

Sadly, I am showing signs of acclamation to the country. I can effortlessly walk across the rocky driveway barefoot. I already have a farmer's tan. And I'm starting to take offense at Jeff Foxworthy's humor.

Jacob and Lauren stayed with Nana yesterday. My kittens, who usually stay in the chicken coop, came out to investigate. One is less fearful than the other and allowed Jacob a few seconds of holding and petting. But enough is enough and they soon found that they could safely hide under the porch, just out of his reach. He resorted to playing in the game room and found a box of GI Joe's. I had been keeping these stored away until he was old enough to enjoy them, and this seemed to be the day. With every new soldier, tank, helicopter, and jet fighter retrieved from the tin, an excited "Wow" or "that's cool" was expressed. Lauren, too, found these tiny items fascinating, and I soon realized that these were going to have to be toys saved for times when Lauren was napping or Jacob was here by himself.

In the afternoon, I was introduced to "Pool School". A technician from Leslie's Pool Service and Supply came out to show me the ropes, and although I am still not a pro, I think I have a better understanding of all the workings of the pump and vacuum. The forecast this next week is sunny and hot and hopefully I will have the pool up and running in the next few days. The new roof for the house, game room and garage are also scheduled for this week, so I'm thankful for the dry forecast.

Many who have received my email with new address info, have expressed their hope that I'm enjoying my new home.....Not yet....maybe soon. I haven't even begun to decorate...I take that back...I hung one wall hanging over my bed yesterday. I'm still working on installing toilet paper holders, towel rings, window blinds, etc. And yes, when I'm ready, I will post some pictures--before and after.