A lot has been happening in my life since my last post.
The end of June was fairly uneventful. The annual Perry 4th of July Picnic Bash went swimmingly (as always) and I even met some neighbors for the first time. We had about 15 - 17 people in the house. Aside from brief downpour where everyone pitched in and literally carried everything into the back sunroom (thankful we have the French doors in the back of the house!) the evening went perfectly.
My best friend and most excellent kitty cat, Steiny, died on July 7th. There isn't anything I want to add about that and please don't ask me to.
The garden is an explosion of life and color with exception of the peas. They aren't the heartiest of creatures and are fried to a crisp. I have tons of zucchini y yellow squash, tomatos y radishes, peppers and even two HUGE pumpkin vines. Everyone in my area code has been enjoying the shared veggies & fresh baked goods.
Chase and I went to see Harry Potter & the Half-Blood Prince on Friday night. It was excellent and appropriately scary during the cave scene.
I'm glad I haven't traveled much this summer for work but they are threatening me with a trip to Huntsville in AUGUST. Ugh. I'm melting just considering it and I live in a freaking desert.
I started playing Runescape upon Chase's request. Don't start if you haven't. It's addictive AND totally affordable. Combat: 64 - rock it!
Ashley is back in Grand Junction with her mother and finishing out her final trimester of pregnancy. Sometime in September (maybe late August) I'll be in Colorado. I'm still trying to figure out a way not to issue a literal smack down on her mother while I'm there. I have nothing nice to say about her whatsoever. I doubt Ashley will live there long since her mother is born-again and pushing Ashley hard core. It is unfortunate that people are so religiously overbearing regardless of how destructive that can be. *sigh*
ps: Stalking is pathetic. You should really look into getting help after all these years.
Monday, July 20, 2009
Monday, June 15, 2009
I think I'm Cranky Today?
But it is too early to tell... I may just really need to drink a cup of strong coffee.
The weekend was 75/25: Friday was fun; I got off work super early because the server was brought down by our ERP team. Jeff, Chase, and I started the afternoon on a mission; first we went to the sporting goods store for on a particular quest and then we went to the park nearby our house to start plotting a new Frisbee Golf (FROLF!) course since there isn't one conveniently situated to the NE Heights in Albuquerque. The closest course is in the UNM area; but it is always over run with snotty college kids or HUGE mexican family birthday parties. We managed to get the first 9 holes plotted before dark.
After dark we were able to use our newest toy purchased earlier in the day... if you don't already have one - our family whole heartedly endorses LED-lighted frisbees. *nod* We laughed and played until the mosquitos finally ran us off and then Jeff took us to Ben & Jerry's for ice cream.
Saturday I took Chase to see my stylist for a haircut. We turned off Lomas onto Gibson and ran smack into the end of the Gay Pride parade in Nob Hill. I had forgotten what day it was and had a good little laugh. Saturday is also Grill-Fest at our house. On the menu were BBQ Pork Ribs, hot rum Chicken Breasts and Beer Brats. Of course we had the regular fluffy awesome salad and melon.
Sunday it rained and was craptastic all day so we cleaned and maintained the bajillion fish tanks in our house. I'll have to post pictures of my Angel Fish tank since it has established so nicely. I have other fish in it; but Pan Fry and Goldie are the main attractions.
I do NOT want to be stuck inside at work all day - the forecast calls for 85 and not a rain cloud in sight~~~!!!
My coffee is kicking in so maybe I'm not crabby after all.
The weekend was 75/25: Friday was fun; I got off work super early because the server was brought down by our ERP team. Jeff, Chase, and I started the afternoon on a mission; first we went to the sporting goods store for on a particular quest and then we went to the park nearby our house to start plotting a new Frisbee Golf (FROLF!) course since there isn't one conveniently situated to the NE Heights in Albuquerque. The closest course is in the UNM area; but it is always over run with snotty college kids or HUGE mexican family birthday parties. We managed to get the first 9 holes plotted before dark.
After dark we were able to use our newest toy purchased earlier in the day... if you don't already have one - our family whole heartedly endorses LED-lighted frisbees. *nod* We laughed and played until the mosquitos finally ran us off and then Jeff took us to Ben & Jerry's for ice cream.
Saturday I took Chase to see my stylist for a haircut. We turned off Lomas onto Gibson and ran smack into the end of the Gay Pride parade in Nob Hill. I had forgotten what day it was and had a good little laugh. Saturday is also Grill-Fest at our house. On the menu were BBQ Pork Ribs, hot rum Chicken Breasts and Beer Brats. Of course we had the regular fluffy awesome salad and melon.
Sunday it rained and was craptastic all day so we cleaned and maintained the bajillion fish tanks in our house. I'll have to post pictures of my Angel Fish tank since it has established so nicely. I have other fish in it; but Pan Fry and Goldie are the main attractions.
I do NOT want to be stuck inside at work all day - the forecast calls for 85 and not a rain cloud in sight~~~!!!
My coffee is kicking in so maybe I'm not crabby after all.
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Uhm... HI
So, I've obviously been busy and tons has happened in the last month since I've posted. Here's the skinny:
Early May: Jeff quit the band.
Still getting settled into the new house. I picked a fabulous shade of sunshiny yellow to cover the hiddeous red paint that the previous tennants picked for the kitchen (it totally looked like a slaughterhouse. gross.)
Got the garden prepped and planted: Pumpkins, Cantaloupe, Cucumbers, Yellow Squash, Zuchinni, Green Pepper, Peas, Radishes, carrots, and three varieties of Tomato.
May 12-15th: My Cape Canaveral plans were cancelled (I'm still ticked about that, I missed a shuttle launch) - to answer Trusty's question I was going to provide onsite training for one of our new employee groups located on base.
I spent a week in Orlando at a software conference. Hearing the keynote speaker almost made up for missing the launch. Astronaut Jerry Linenger gave me a new perspective on the things that really matter in life. Seriously. He was THAT inspiring. I also learned some great setup tricks and public speaking tips just by interacting with a national base of my industry peers. I also saw Shamu (Ok, fine. ONE of the Shamu's.. I realize he doesn't fold space/time dimensions and still show in Texas AND California in the same day) SeaWorld was shut down specifically for our conference group and so every 100 feet or so you'd see a free bar and food. It rained for the majority of the trip but I didn't care. The hotel was beautiful and I had a blast with my coworkers. I did miss Jeff though.
May 18 - 21st: My oldest son graduated from H.S. and I flew to Kansas City to be with him. I met his girlfriend and her family and it was just an amazing trip. I don't have words to accurately describe the feelings I experienced while I was there and have had since. Parenting has been such a personal journey for me - I never know how to convey how profound certain moments are, nor have I ever felt the need to put details of this portion of my life out for the world to view. I don't think I'll start now but I will say that I was really proud of K-man :) I stayed in a lovely little Bed & Breakfast in the middle of historic Independence. The Serendipity Inn was lovely and the bed was snuggletastic.
May 22nd - 31st: I got back home and the garden had started flourishing. I get such a sense of awe when I see sproutlings reaching their way towards the sun or shying away from rain. I can't wait to eat the little creatures! ha!
My youngest son is now home for the summer and starts his JR year of HS this fall here in Albuquerque.
I spent the last two weeks of the month training and transitioning 400+ employees from our manual expense reporting onto the electronic system that I administer. I learned so much from the experience and I'm really looking forward to the next four months and the opportunities that lay ahead.
Today: I'm rather enjoying my apple and peanut butter snack.
Early May: Jeff quit the band.
Still getting settled into the new house. I picked a fabulous shade of sunshiny yellow to cover the hiddeous red paint that the previous tennants picked for the kitchen (it totally looked like a slaughterhouse. gross.)
Got the garden prepped and planted: Pumpkins, Cantaloupe, Cucumbers, Yellow Squash, Zuchinni, Green Pepper, Peas, Radishes, carrots, and three varieties of Tomato.
May 12-15th: My Cape Canaveral plans were cancelled (I'm still ticked about that, I missed a shuttle launch) - to answer Trusty's question I was going to provide onsite training for one of our new employee groups located on base.
I spent a week in Orlando at a software conference. Hearing the keynote speaker almost made up for missing the launch. Astronaut Jerry Linenger gave me a new perspective on the things that really matter in life. Seriously. He was THAT inspiring. I also learned some great setup tricks and public speaking tips just by interacting with a national base of my industry peers. I also saw Shamu (Ok, fine. ONE of the Shamu's.. I realize he doesn't fold space/time dimensions and still show in Texas AND California in the same day) SeaWorld was shut down specifically for our conference group and so every 100 feet or so you'd see a free bar and food. It rained for the majority of the trip but I didn't care. The hotel was beautiful and I had a blast with my coworkers. I did miss Jeff though.
May 18 - 21st: My oldest son graduated from H.S. and I flew to Kansas City to be with him. I met his girlfriend and her family and it was just an amazing trip. I don't have words to accurately describe the feelings I experienced while I was there and have had since. Parenting has been such a personal journey for me - I never know how to convey how profound certain moments are, nor have I ever felt the need to put details of this portion of my life out for the world to view. I don't think I'll start now but I will say that I was really proud of K-man :) I stayed in a lovely little Bed & Breakfast in the middle of historic Independence. The Serendipity Inn was lovely and the bed was snuggletastic.
May 22nd - 31st: I got back home and the garden had started flourishing. I get such a sense of awe when I see sproutlings reaching their way towards the sun or shying away from rain. I can't wait to eat the little creatures! ha!
My youngest son is now home for the summer and starts his JR year of HS this fall here in Albuquerque.
I spent the last two weeks of the month training and transitioning 400+ employees from our manual expense reporting onto the electronic system that I administer. I learned so much from the experience and I'm really looking forward to the next four months and the opportunities that lay ahead.
Today: I'm rather enjoying my apple and peanut butter snack.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Paula's Best Banana Bread
2 c flour
1 1/2 c quick oats
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 c butter or butter flavor crisco, softened
2 ripe bananas (the blacker the better!)
1/2 c applesauce
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp coconut extract
1/2 c walnuts
1/4 c raisins
Preheat oven to 350 degrees farenheight. Grease and flour two 9" by 5" loaf pans.
Mix flour, oats, bp, salt, and bs in large plastic bowl. Cut in butter until coarse crumbs are shaped. Add walnuts and stir again.
In smaller second bowl, mix mashed bananas, eggs, applesauce, vanilla, and coconut until smooth, add raisins and stir again.
Add banana mixture into flour mix and stir just until moistened. Spread evenly into the two prepared loaf pans.
Bake 50 min on middle rack.
Cool in pans for 10 minutes then remove from pans and finish cooling on wire rack.
~~**Feel free to improve upon this recipe and post your suggestions :) I suspect the basic bread mix would be awesome with cranberries and a bit of cinnamon during the holidays.
This is a great recipe to take care of those residual left behind bananas. It never fails that Jeff will leave behind one out of a bunch. I just pop them whole into the freezer when they turn so black he won't eat them and let them thaw on a paper towel while my butter is coming to room temperature.
ENJOY!
1 1/2 c quick oats
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 c butter or butter flavor crisco, softened
2 ripe bananas (the blacker the better!)
1/2 c applesauce
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp coconut extract
1/2 c walnuts
1/4 c raisins
Preheat oven to 350 degrees farenheight. Grease and flour two 9" by 5" loaf pans.
Mix flour, oats, bp, salt, and bs in large plastic bowl. Cut in butter until coarse crumbs are shaped. Add walnuts and stir again.
In smaller second bowl, mix mashed bananas, eggs, applesauce, vanilla, and coconut until smooth, add raisins and stir again.
Add banana mixture into flour mix and stir just until moistened. Spread evenly into the two prepared loaf pans.
Bake 50 min on middle rack.
Cool in pans for 10 minutes then remove from pans and finish cooling on wire rack.
~~**Feel free to improve upon this recipe and post your suggestions :) I suspect the basic bread mix would be awesome with cranberries and a bit of cinnamon during the holidays.
This is a great recipe to take care of those residual left behind bananas. It never fails that Jeff will leave behind one out of a bunch. I just pop them whole into the freezer when they turn so black he won't eat them and let them thaw on a paper towel while my butter is coming to room temperature.
ENJOY!
Monday, April 13, 2009
stay-puft marshmallow clouds
The Sandias look beautiful today. I'm sitting at work looking out my window; admiring the view.
Even though today is Monday I feel pretty positive about the week. It sounds as though I'll be heading to Cape Canaveral very soon and that's exciting news.
The house is coming along nicely even though I've kind of lost my momentum over the last couple of weeks. I finally invested additional time into decorating my office... I hung a ceramic fish on the wall above my Angel tank and emptied more boxes. My personal book case is taking on a better persona.
My house is way bigger than I anticipated - I'm contemplating opening my home to wayward houseplants... Is there such a thing as a "green house rescue" ??
Even though today is Monday I feel pretty positive about the week. It sounds as though I'll be heading to Cape Canaveral very soon and that's exciting news.
The house is coming along nicely even though I've kind of lost my momentum over the last couple of weeks. I finally invested additional time into decorating my office... I hung a ceramic fish on the wall above my Angel tank and emptied more boxes. My personal book case is taking on a better persona.
My house is way bigger than I anticipated - I'm contemplating opening my home to wayward houseplants... Is there such a thing as a "green house rescue" ??
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Crapadap
OK, I've just HAD IT with the freaking New Mexico spring winds.
I read somewhere on the interwebs that excessive wind wreaks havoc with a person's liver or... spleen... or chi (who knows). It's makin me CRANKAYYYYYY.
I'm stuck in the house listening to the fwappita fwappita of a piece of tin foil that was placed (by the previous house tennants) in the ceiling cooler vent. Damned Hippies. The people that lived in my house were horridly illogical and seriously non-handy. I'm going to add here that their taste in paint colors is highly questionable as well. Who conciously chooses powder blue as a living room color? Gah!
ps: KIX cereal is awesome with a sprinkle of cinnamon
pps: I'm checking out the twitter bru-ha-ha ... so far, I'm not terribly impressed.
I read somewhere on the interwebs that excessive wind wreaks havoc with a person's liver or... spleen... or chi (who knows). It's makin me CRANKAYYYYYY.
I'm stuck in the house listening to the fwappita fwappita of a piece of tin foil that was placed (by the previous house tennants) in the ceiling cooler vent. Damned Hippies. The people that lived in my house were horridly illogical and seriously non-handy. I'm going to add here that their taste in paint colors is highly questionable as well. Who conciously chooses powder blue as a living room color? Gah!
ps: KIX cereal is awesome with a sprinkle of cinnamon
pps: I'm checking out the twitter bru-ha-ha ... so far, I'm not terribly impressed.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Reap the Whirlwind
My head is still spinning.
Friends, it has been a formidable last few weeks in my little corner of the world, but I'm up to the challenges.
Sometimes it takes a good long while to let themes take root in my wee brain... I realize (with much delight) that I am not the petty woman that I was a few short years ago. I've had experiences and joys that I never dreamed possible, and certainly would have never come to fruition when I was in the phase of self destruction and denial.
Those of you that know me well are very acutely aware of the phase of which I speak - some of you saw me at my lowest point. I realize now that it must have been very difficult to watch me ignore my potential, logic, and my heart over and over.
...I digress...
This last week held quite a few jolts from my past as well as my future.
First, I FINALLY received the title to my motorcycle. I feel like a 200 lb. anvil has floated away on Angel's wings. Within a matter of hours the last tie will be cut and I'll finally be free to enjoy a preserved bit of property. I can invest time and money without risk.
Second, Friday night I found myself in a humorous position that I swore I'd avoid. Fate has a sense of humor (as do I) and it was quite poetic to kiss the blonde goodbye and go home with my sweetie.
Third, It was nice to party like a rock star... I kept my head when it would have been so easy to go off the deep end.
I felt like this last weekend really closed the book on an important chapter of my life. J and I found a beautiful house and we are moving on the 15th - so we are in the midst of a flurry of action and excitement. We are thrilled that our hard work has finally paid off, and look forward to our new home. It is time to leave this small house, and move on to new memories.
Friends, it has been a formidable last few weeks in my little corner of the world, but I'm up to the challenges.
Sometimes it takes a good long while to let themes take root in my wee brain... I realize (with much delight) that I am not the petty woman that I was a few short years ago. I've had experiences and joys that I never dreamed possible, and certainly would have never come to fruition when I was in the phase of self destruction and denial.
Those of you that know me well are very acutely aware of the phase of which I speak - some of you saw me at my lowest point. I realize now that it must have been very difficult to watch me ignore my potential, logic, and my heart over and over.
...I digress...
This last week held quite a few jolts from my past as well as my future.
First, I FINALLY received the title to my motorcycle. I feel like a 200 lb. anvil has floated away on Angel's wings. Within a matter of hours the last tie will be cut and I'll finally be free to enjoy a preserved bit of property. I can invest time and money without risk.
Second, Friday night I found myself in a humorous position that I swore I'd avoid. Fate has a sense of humor (as do I) and it was quite poetic to kiss the blonde goodbye and go home with my sweetie.
Third, It was nice to party like a rock star... I kept my head when it would have been so easy to go off the deep end.
I felt like this last weekend really closed the book on an important chapter of my life. J and I found a beautiful house and we are moving on the 15th - so we are in the midst of a flurry of action and excitement. We are thrilled that our hard work has finally paid off, and look forward to our new home. It is time to leave this small house, and move on to new memories.
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