Slacking Off

I have been slacking - or ignoring this blog. But it has been a busy month!

Spent Father's Day weekend in Nevada with DD #2 - DD#1 and her family came up too!

Friday we celebrated Grandson #2's birthday a week late. They played - we went out to dinner - then back to the house for cake and a pinata. And then the 2 older boys from the CA family had a sleepover with the Nevada grands.

On Saturday we rode the steam train from Carson City to Virginia City - and back again. Most of us had fun!

No, I did not leave my bra - none of us did - mid day, no drinking, no wish to go braless on the rest of a hot day!

Yard deco....not sure about the Acme Bomb Co - did it make this deco? Or are they wishing it would blow up and take it all away?

How would you like to climb all those stairs just to bring the groceries in?

Photo op in the middle of the train ride....

June 19, 2010.....and yes, that is snow on them thar hills....

4 of the cousins....funny how they divided themselves for this photo...not sure how happy Jack is in his choice! This was just before the train ride. Since the two CA boys stayed over night with the Nevada grands, we drove them in our car to Carson Ciry cause we stayed in Fallon while DD#1 and family stayed in Fernley.

Guess they are not train lovers? Or maybe they are picture shy? But they sure were beautiful!

Lesson #1, how to embarrass your kids....go shopping at Walmart and buy matching shirts to wear...too bad it back fired and none of them were embarrassed! And too bad we didnt know that the next day was Hippy Days in Virginia City or we would have saved them to wear then!

I know I am prejudiced - but arent they beautiful!!!!!!!!

Sunday we went to a Wildlife Preserve outside of Reno called Animal Ark which was a lot of fun. Then we drove home from there since I had to work the next evening. We had a lot of fun - and it was so wonderful to have all of them together!

But the best news is....we then cancelled our plans to go to Jamestown the next weekend because we had a chance to babysit the Nevada grands! More photos to follow....

Who to be furious with? The company or the government?

A rant against the horror of the oil 'accident' in the Gulf of Mexico.....bits and pieces gathered from the Internet:

Mother Jones named BP as one of the 10 worst companies in both 2001 and 2005 based on environmental and human rights records. In 1991 it was cited as the most polluting company in the USA.

It is the hundredth largest political contributor in the US having contributed more than $5 million to both Republicans and Democrats since 1991and the company has lobbied to be exempt from US corporate law reforms.

Historical issues associated with BP include, but are not limited to:

1993 - 1995 Hazardous Substance Dumping
2005 Texas City Refinery Explosion
2006 - 2007 Prudhoe Bay
2006 - 2008 Texas City refinary fatalities
2007 Propane Gas price manipulations
2008 Oil price manipulations
2009 North Sea helicopter accident
2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill
Baku - Tbilisi - Ceyhan pipeline
Columbian pipeline
Mist Mountain project
Canadian oil sands
Refinery safety violations

Some of the names of the companies that BP owns and runs in the US:

BP
Castrol
Arco
AMPM

Memorial Day weekend Finds

It was not a great weekend for finds. Even Coarsegold Peddler's Fair was smaller than usual...
But we did find a few things.

Found the Mickey for grandkids. Not a good shot of the find I got - not sure what it is. A dough bowl on a stand....maybe a yarn bowl??? Very 50's.

Longaberger pottery for $1!!!

This was supposed to be a 2 pc set but could not find the 2d piece. It is pretty - those are black grapes and all on the little glass. This, and the mug, were from a Rummage Sale. Also got a daughter a wonderful French bread knife for 50 cents!!!

Great colander! And the bowl - I love this Fire King color. And most of the bowls I saw were $8 - $12 - smaller - and in worse shape. I got this one for $4!!!!

Homemade jams that are delicious. And I love this combo cake/pie carrier!

I also got a great vintage Cherry Ames book!!!

But none of the tools hubby was looking for.

OWWW!

You come up with these ideas to keep a retired person busy, and somehow you get roped into the work too. Oh: How a $1000 garden will result in hopefully, at least, $100 worth of vegetables!
Our supervisor worked very hard today.....this was him when we called it quits....

Look! One bed is done and ready to plant!!!

The bed to the right is the one we had last year, jsut repositioned. The one to the left is the new one hubby built this year. You would swear he was from Texas....just 'another' bed turned into a humongous bed. One that we still have to dig out. But after about 4 hours of work today we are achey. And now hubby volunteered us to babysit tomorrow.....this garden is so behind schedule becuase of all the rain we have been having!

This was the original pile of topsoil. We used about 1/3 of it for the smaller bed so should have enough for the 2d one......

And our shelving is done!!! Now the work of deciding how to fill it up......

Fun May Things

A year or so ago - this little guy was very shy! You woldnt have believed it last night when he was front row center - singing up a storm! (The little guy in the grey striped sweater)

Yes - he is wearing a sweater. It was nice and warm yesterday morning - I was wearing sandals and a short sleeve top when I went to the nursing school to do evals. Came out and it was cold and windy and off/on raining!

My first group of students gave me these as a thank you gift. Hubby wants to know if they think I am a wino or what. I just think that they thought they drove me to drink....

My second group gave me this awesome orchid. I just hope I can keep it alive! And there it is on the plant stand my daughter handed down to me! LOL!

Tonight is the Work Bonding experience at Campo di Bocce. I didnt get to go last year because I was new to my crutches....I just wish it was going to be warmer this year! But it should be fun - even tho I dont have any idea how to play!

And next week is the Pinning Ceremony for my students from last year. Alas, two of them will have to wait till next year ;-(

Now to get ready to go buy the dirt so we can hopefully get some things planted - before it freezes again!!!!

Bras For The Cause Walk 2010

Busy Busy Weekend. And I am dragging today - which is better than what I was doing yesterday! I hope everyone had a lovely weekend also. The walk was Sat evening. And guess what - I DID NOT trip!!!!!! YAY!
Walked with my son (the shy one!), my daughter, and a friend I made when her son stayed in the NICU with us a little over 2 years ago. It was an awesome night. But boy was I sore the next day - probably because I did not get much time to train due to all the rain.

Pleasanton is filled with these very realistic statues - and I think my son stopped at every one of them. Most of the pictures are on his camera tho.

This was the cutest couple! Sorry I didnt get both of them - but was trying to take photos quickly so that I could watch where I was walking!

The bra we walked under to start the walk! Glad it wasnt my bra....

It was so big I guess I wanted you to see it twice....

My shy son.....everyone loved him....he was the hit of the walk....with everyone! One family was sitting outside as we walked by and the matriarch (!!!) yelled to him "walk like you own it honey!!!!"

He discovered that the bra makes a great storage area!!!!

At the gathering after the walk, they talked about a person who had recently died from breast cancer and had been involved with the walk since its inception. And how she was an angel watching over us and cheering us on while we walked. Well, Sunday I found out a former co-worker who had fought a long and courageous battle with breast cancer died Saturday evening. I would like to think she was cheering us one too. God bless Chris....

Sunday was a lovely day - a brunch at my one daughter's house with her hubby, and their 3 sons, and her MIL and FIL. Then a quick trip to Costco. Home to veg on the couch - and feel how achy my thighs and lower back were. My ankle did great and even my feet didnt hurt past that night!

We went out for pizza and home in time to watch Tom Selleck on TV!!! This morning, well, I dont know how long the alarm was going off before I realized it was meant for me!! LOL. So I am tired, but no longer stiff and hurting!

Spring Has Sprung

So, this project for the fireplace and the shelves....will it ever be done? So the idea is to hang the TV over the fireplace. And I am getting a brand new mantel where I could actually sit things on my mantel.....but it is looking like, with the size of the TV and all, I will have this nice new wider, more useful mantel - but wont be able to put anything on it because the TV will be so low!

On my way home today - hey honey, I will be home earlier than I thought because I do not have to go back for the staff meeting....I get this ambiguous "oh ok, dont worry, everything is taken care of now and fixed".

Hubby cut the hole in the wall (which I am not happy with at all) to put the wood in to hold the mount that will hold the TV....and seems he cut thru some electrical wires that he did not know where there!

No electricution....no fire....but more money paid out to the awesome handyman who did such a great job on the tile - and whom hubby called to save his butt. Wonder if I will ever get to post completed photos of this project?

My bra for the walk. Boy, even without it being on, looks like saggy boobs! Knit the bra and it just didnt fit right. So sewed it onto the pink bra. So now it is supposed to be covered with pink ribbon charm except for the fact that I CAN'T FIND ANY!!!!!

Left it too late to order them becuase I thought there would be no problem finding them....Bought pink ribbon today to make pink ribbons to put on it....

This bell pepper is looking healthier. See the frame for the old garden there> Took it out to rototill and will put it back together along with another one!

Apparently our hot weather hasnt been consistent enough for the tomato plant to grow yet...

But we have a strawberry! I am sure not for long unless hubby listens to me and gets some type of netting over it to keep the squirrel from enjoying it!

One of my County Fair entries. A little girlie capelet - yes, it will be for Kaia after the Fair is over!

And here is my shawl. The variegated yarn does not show up well in the photo. Finally found 3 buttons for it - could find 1 or maybe 2 that I liked - finally found 3 by going to two different Joanne's Fabrics. I am not as happy with this as I thought I would be.

Now I am working on a vest for for Kaia - when she is a bit bigger. Not as happy with that as I thought I would be too....

And - the nose is fine - but my eyes are itching like crazy!!!!!!!