Garage Sale Treasures

Some fun dresses and hats that need embellishment. Wish you were here Aubrey to help us add bows, feathers, nets, flowers....you get the picture!
Don't you love the tea pots?! The elegant one is about 100 years old. I bought it from an 88 year old lady who said it had been her grandmother's! I don't think I will be able to let the "little squees" actually pour from that one!


I picked up the pile of padded hangers thinking I could hang either dress-ups or the aprons I'm making on them. Can't you just picture some elegant cupcakes on the pretty pink glass pedestal plate? I'm almost ready to host my first "Little Squee Tea Party". Wish you were here. I could use some invitation ideas. When I finish a few more aprons (after school gets out next week) I'll post them.

You Call This a Day Off?!

I was looking forward to a day off....well at least I was looking forward to part of it. I knew I had ANOTHER dentist appointment at 2:30 but I planned on getting some of this dirty, messy house cleaned this morning. Before I dove into the fun I decided to check out Craig's List---hoping to find a scooter for Gary's birthday tomorrow. They are getting very scarce. I guess no one wants to part with them now and when one does turn up, it is gone in a matter of hours. Imagine my surprise when I saw one---freshly posted in a town only 30 minutes away from Gary's office. He was still enroute to work so I called on his cell and said, "Hey, I found you a scooter for only $350.00." Long story short: He called on it, found out it has never had a title. The guy said we didn't need one. WRONG is he! Gary called DMV to make sure. Indeed, he needs a title but the clerk there said, "No worries, as long as it is older than a 2002 (it was) they can get us a title. We just had to have the seller fill out the bill of sale that DMV provided for us. Sooooo..... I hurry to his work in my pick-up truck, we make the drive to Mineolla, get lost (thanks to mapquest), finally find the house, test drive it---discover a little problem. It carries me just fine but Gary is a wee bit heavier and it doesn't get him up the hill. The old guy (He is our age) says, the carburetor just needs some adjusting. I'll let you have it for $300.00. Well, we are all over that. We tie it in the pick-up and head for Gary's office. I trade cars so I can get back to Apopka for my dentist appointment. (Not fun--another long story. Let me just say that a deep cleaning which requires novacaine is not a pleasant way to spend your day off!) Anyway, when I get home running behind schedule, I check the answering machine. Someone from a FOOD BANK is calling to let us know that somehow the mailman got our new box of checks mixed up with the food he collected on Saturday from the big food drive. I have been wondering since Monday where the heck my checks are! So, even though I don't have time, I stop at the food bank. The lady hands me a box of checks. Already open. There are only 2 books left! I am in a panic! I say to the sweet little old lady behind the counter, in the calmest voice I could muster, "Where the HECK are the rest of my checks?!" She says, That's all there was. I nearly pass out trying to call Gary at the bank to say, "Quick, check our balance and see if our account has been cleaned out!" He says, "It's okay--I'll close out our account" I'm driving to the dentist's office --stop at a red light and for some reason decide to look at the checks. They aren't even ours! What's up with that?! Gary calls the lady back and she says, "I don't know who gave you those checks, I have yours right here in my hand. They have never been opened. " No one seems to know anything about the checks I am holding in my hand. They have no phone number on them and the guy's name isn't in the phone book. Gary refuses to try to find his house and try to explain what he's doing with 2 books of his checks-----we don't even know why we have them! He is going to take them to Bank of America and let them deal with the problem. We are just glad his were the stolen ones and not ours! Makes you feel real confident with the postman when you know that your checks wind up at a food kitchen---special delivery!

Okay, I'm almost finished. When I get out of the torture chair, I call Gary and he catches me up on the check situation. I breathe a sigh of relief. The poor guy has jumped through major hoops trying to undo the closed checking account fiasco at the same time he was trying to license the scooter. Now, with Bill of Sale in his hand, the clerk says, "Oh, I'm sorry sir. I can't find that make and model on our list. I'm afraid we won't be able to get you a title after-all." EXCUSE me? Lady, do you want to write us a check for $300.00 or will that be in cash?! What an idiot. Gary gave up on her. Called another DMV office (not conveniently located by-the-way). They are telling him to come see them tomorrow and they will find the right forms. Can't anything ever be easy! ( I know this is incredibly long. Congratulations if you made it to the end. Remember, this is my journal.)

Chicken Soup Anyone?

I always knew that big chicken costume I bought at a junk store in Mesa, Arizona would come in handy someday!
Charley D. Chicken and his little "chickies" (not exactly the kind of "chicks" Bryce wishes would follow him around!) What a good sport that boy of mine is!
I didn't know there were so many viarieties of Chicken Soup but trust the members of the Aopka Ward to come up with a Chicken Soup Feast!
This was the author's chair and the completed product on display.
What a sweet surprise! I hate birthday's! I don't know why. I just don't like being the center of attention but everyone at the activity was sure glad my friends Terry and Joe Trombley honored me with a delicious and beautiful surprise birthday!

Thanks to the help and support of wonderful ward members, we can chalk up another successful Ward Activity. Last night we had our very first "Chicken Soup for the Apopka Ward Soul" night. For about 2 months I have collected personal stories from the members and edited and compiled them into a book for members to check-out from the ward library. An artist in our ward created a beautiful cover for the book! Everyone brought a pot of their favorite chicken soup for dinner. The ward supplied rolls and green salad. A good friend anonymously donated ice cream for dessert and the Trombley's surprised us with a birthday cake in my honor. Dinner was great but the highlight of the evening was the program. The book is divided into 7 sections and one author from each section favored us with a reading of their own story. It was wonderful. Gary was Mr. Musac and music faded in and out with each introduction. At the beginning of the program Charley Chicken gave a certificate for a free chicken Biscuit from Chick-fil-A to each person who submitted a story. We only had about 70 people, down from our usual 120-150, but lots of things were going on so we were grateful for the 70 who came. Those on the committee decided there's a bright side to having a smaller turn-out-----less chaos! And oh yes, that's newpaper pretending to be tablecloths. We loved that part of the clean-up. Each centerpeice carried out the chicken theme so we decided casual called for newspapers instead of linens! Everyone agreed they looked great!

Happy Birthday!!

This is my FAVORITE picture of mom ever! Look at the pure joy on her face!

Today I went with dad to buy mom her birthday present! Yep, a motor bike. My mama's a biker chick! She is the coolest! We surprised mom with a birthday party and her new toy and I think she loves it. I have to admit that I am now hooked. I WANT ONE TOO!! Too bad I have to wait until my kids grow up a little more so I can leave them home alone while I ride my bike to the store. Oh what happy time they will be. Until then, I just might have to go visit mom and take hers out for a joy ride! HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM! YOU ROCK!

rachels outfit!

For some reason I can only get the black and white

of this picture to load on here! I love the color version

the best - oh well!

So the otherday she said she wanted to dress pretty... I found her sitting on the stairs dressed in your outfit and singing " I am a child of God to her doll! She LOVES to play church - it cracks me up! I ran up stairs to get the headband you made, and her reply was " now it's perfect!"

What a "TECHY" way to journal!

Thanks to my computer savy girls, I no longer have an excuse to "blow-off" journal writing! I just got home from a teaching assignment at the high school and checked my blog page first thing. Surprise! Aubrey came through with pictures of our Utah grandkids! Ariann got me started and ordered Aub to contribute and she did. Thanks girls! I have the most beautiful grandchildren in the world! My life is not very exciting but once in awhile something unusual or funny happens in my capacity as a substitute teacher. I'll share occasionally, changing names to protect the innocent. Almost every day I learn a new word or two. I'm always asking the kids what an expression means but I'm careful to stipulate before they answer that I only want to know if it's clean and appropriate. Usually they just laugh at me. Yesterday they were amazed to learn that I had no idea what "sike" means. If they are being honest, it means "never mind". No kidding--sometimes, between their funny words and strange pronunciations, I have no idea what they're saying. Occasionally I can blame it on being old and hard of hearing, but when they get really close, speak really loudly and it sounds like a foreign language, I just laugh and say, "Now say it in English!" I think I need a list of the words and phrases we used in our generation so the next time they make fun of me, I can rattle off a sentence or two (in English) that leaves them just as confused as they leave me!
Yesterday I was the sub for In School Suspension. It was a piece of cake. The teacher left a great bribe for me. If they were good, I was to tell them at the end of the day that they didn't have to come to ISS tomorrow. I hung that over their heads all day and they were good as gold. I even had time to grab a book out of the library before school started. "Twilight" is the first in a series that all the kids are reading and recommending. Most of the stuff I see them reading is "XX"rated but because my early morning seminary kids were raving about it last year, I knew it was safe. I had the whole day to read it yesterday and today was another piece of cake because I was the sub in drama. They watched a video and practiced scenes from their sit-coms. I finished the book and need volume 2, New Moon. What a fun and crazy imagination Stephenie Meyer has! Oh to have her talent! I'm remembering what fun it is to read, but it's dangerous. I don't get much done when I'm engrossed in a good book! I do enjoy sewing for those beautiful granddaughters though and I have a few new ideas in mind. The fun begins with trying to find the perfect vintage fabrics. I can usually pick them up fairly reasonably (If you don't add the gallons of gasoline it takes me to hunt them down.)

One more!

I just realized rachel's face is hiding in both pictures....so I thought I'd add one more!

Thanks for all the sweet little outfits! I have "plans" for the others you've sent, but the weather isn't cooperating! Hopefully this weekend it will warm up so I can take them out in them! We sure miss you!