Some Headlines Sticking in my Head

Father Alberto Cutie joins the Episcopal Church. I first heard about this Catholic priest from CNN when pictures of him and his bikini clad girlfriend were taken of them on the beach. Scandalous! My thoughts were "dang he's a cutie." I guess if one church doesn't fit, try the next. Just to clarify, I'm being facetious.


This Chinese man pushes a suicidal man off a bridge. When I first heard about this I imagined a dangling man being pushed off a bridge falling hundreds of feet over treacherous waters. He had backed up traffic for several hours and the people were getting tired of it so a citizen decided to take matters into his own hands and it was caught on tape. Only in China.


Ugh. I'm not a huge fan of this show. I've watched it a bunch of times while staying at the lodges in Jackson Hole. It usually just gives me a headache and I wonder why I wasted an hour of my life. I've been keeping tabs on them since we found out he's been out on the town with a "friend." Geesh. To be on national t.v. during your marital problems.....what a predicament. Marriage is hard and to have to deal with all of this while millions watch. brrrrrr....gives me the shivers. Good luck Jon and Kate.

Memorial Day 09

Every year we struggle to find these graves. We go up and down the rows, reading hundreds of names until we finally find the ones we're looking for.

Can I just add the Uncle Quin is the best. We all love and adore him and are especially glad he is close by.

Goodbye Chewie

He passed away last night. We'll miss our little hamster.

Some things that make me smile....

K and the Rubiks Cube, Video editing programs, Cold Play, Chris' laugh

Field Trip to the Firestation

Munchkins this year (above)vs. last year(below)

Sprouts

I was so excited when I saw these today. I've been waiting and waiting, even replanting seeds to make sure something would come up. I was wondering if the dirt was too compact, of if the area was not getting enough sunlight or water. Now, I'm seeing the soil cracking in places as the sprouts make their way up.


These are beets that will be thinned out soon.

Strawberry patch last year at this time vs. now. I'm loving it. Hopefully we don't neglect the gardens as much as we did last year.

As a mother and as a wife I want so much to be better everyday;
I hope to be nicer, happier, funner, energetic, more giving, and especially more thankful.
You make me want to be a better person all the time.
For that, I thank you and for so much more.
Your hugs, kisses, smiles, your silliness, and sweetness make my life so bright and worth all the sacrifice and hard work.
You are the best and I'm so blessed to be a wife and a mother, especially yours.

The Grass is No Longer Greener on the Other Side

The previous owners put new sod down before they put the house up for sale. Besides the fact that the ground wasn't evened out before laying down the grass I was grateful the dead grass was replaced.

Even with the new sod, it seemed that every Spring we struggled to get our grass green. It really was greener on the other side :0). Ours would be the last to turn green but it was always this pretty, limey shade.

Over the years, you'd see me standing on the grass trying to figure out the kinks. If it wasn't the issue with limey green grass, it was dead spots, weeds, or bugs. I'd try to water out dead spots for hours while my neighbors watched. I've taken tools and poked holes in the strips that were completely dead. A simple "you've got bugs" or any other hint would have been nice thank you.

I began watching those with green, luscious grass so I could see what they were doing right and here are the things I've learned:

Fertilize in MARCH. March is the key. (We were always, always late on this)

And once again in the Fall

Spread bug killer or grubs will leave dead spots when they've eaten the roots.

Anyone have these suckers? Yup from my own yard....pretty but unwanted.

Chris has found fertilizer with weed killer in it. Yay. It helps out tons.

We still have some weeds regardless and that is when we get on our hands and knees and pick them out with this tool:

I've seen all green grass (without weeds) owners do it; I don't have to be ashamed. There really is no other way.

Don't mow too short. Longer grass keeps the moisture in better.

And this year I've discovered the best secret of all when I saw my next door neighbor tackling his grass with it:

This tool. I comb all the dead grass out. It works like a charm, opens the ground for the fertilizer to sink in. Work?!! Definitely....at least a few hours of it and a few days of physical recovery....totally worth it and a little addicting.

So there you have it: My pretty, limey, green grass (I hope it stays that way). It's darker this year and I love it. Now if I could just get my lawn mower operator to get back in town to mow it.......three weeks in Jackson one more to go. :0)

Thanks Tamiya

for all your cute comments!! Come visit us this summer! Do you have an email address? Sorry I haven't called; I don't have a cell or long distance.

The boy's first ever Horror Flick: Coraline

It is based on the book published in 2002 by a British Author Neil Gaiman. It was the only kid flick we hadn't seen yet at the dollar theater. Chris was somewhat worried that the boys would have nightmares and was leaning towards not seeing it. How bad can it be, I thought, it's just a cartoon?

However...

Someone hates kids and likes playing mean, cruel jokes on them is what my thoughts turned to when we were actually watching Coraline. It was a freaky show and definitely a Horror. I love a good one and that it was. We didn't get to watch the 3-D version but it was still really good. It reminded me of The Others and even brought up some of the feelings I had when watching Sixth Sense.

The older boys did fine. My youngest was so freaked out the whole time. However, he could only cover his eyes for so long because we ALL wanted to know what would happen next.

If you like weird, scary shows this might be a good one for you.

I'm thinking Halloween costume this year.