Locks For Love

I made a donation yesterday. Eleven inches baby!!! All to Locks for Love... hope they can use my ratty old, too blond hair! Here is a picture of me partying with Spencer Davis a year ago... that requires an entirely different post. I think I look a little like a blond Elvira... without the cleavage.

Today I have a spiffy new hip cut, my first short do since the 70's. I feel light and free! The only downside is my son didn't recognize me and my daughter screamed, really, really loud. I'm sure they'll adjust! Hubby said it looks great, I think he means it but he IS going on another long hunting trip, again, tomorrow, did I say again?

So, how is your week going?

This One's For Deborah

Deborah is my 40 something sister. She is smart and pretty. She was a dedicated wife and mom to two boys when her hubby hit midlife and turned into a dork extraordinaire. So, with two young children and no college degree she found herself single. Her work experience always impressed me. Perfectly clean and organized home. Happy, successful children, PTA President for a LOOOOONG time and the ultimate soccer mom.

When the dweebster left she found herself in a position that seems very lonely, yet is shared by so many others. What to do? Me, I would probably curl up in a fetal position and suck my thumb for a week ... or a year. This has happened to some of the most amazing women I know. The single part, not the thumb thing.

So what did Deborah do you ask? She hit 40 and simultaneously hit the college campus. It wasn't easy, having to dedicate yourself to learning, working and still raising two children at a time in life when a lot of us are in a pretty comfortable position. I think the most discouraging part came when the 20 something college students kept asking her where the bathrooms were located, as if she worked there.

Well, Deborah has worked and persevered and is now in her last semester of Nursing School. I did this in my 20's with no kids and it was tough then, yet Deb and many of her class mates have obstacles I never dreamed of, and they are doing it! So to Deborah, who reads this blog faithfully and yet NEVER LEAVES A COMMENT, I say BRAVO. I am so proud of you and you are almost there! After your last final exam of your entire college career, this December, I will take you on this beautiful hike I did yesterday. Soon you will have the time to do this with me weekly! So sit back, relax and feast your eyes on your near future:

Get lots of rest, this too will pass and soon you can join me in my favorite pastime of guessing "What kind of animal left this turd on the trail?"

What Do You Want To Be When You Grow Up?

For me, it was always easy. When I grow Up I want to be a nurse. It is written in my school journals from the time I was in first grade. I was motivated and consistent in a way that is unusual for children. I remember having blood drawn at the lab when I was 12. The nurse told me to look away from the needle. I informed her I was going to be a nurse and wanted to watch. She was a little freaked out by all my procedural questions as the needle entered and remained in my arm.

When I was a senior in high school I took an EMT class at the local college. I began working on an ambulance in a large city shortly after my 18th birthday. Car accidents, shootings, stabbings and blood of any kind did nothing to dampen my enthusiasm. I rushed onward to my known destiny. Today I am an RN and have never doubted that it was the right choice for me.


Now I have children of my own. My oldest is 11. She told me last year that she hates blood and being around sick people. She was so afraid that I would be disappointed because, as she put it, she would NEVER, NEVER, NEVER be a nurse. She realized, as most kids do eventually, that she is not her mother. No problem at all, I remember telling her. Just find what you love and you will be happy!


Last spring she told her dad and I that she is going to take her hobby of the past several years and turn it into her career. She wants to be the best chef in the world and work in Paris. She doesn't want to play soccer, she wants cooking classes. For the magazine sales at school while most girls are ordering 'Nick Jr.' or 'Cricket', she ordered 'Bon Appetite' and 'Gourmet'.


She is a fabulous cook. Everything must be made from scratch, especially the sauces. A couple weeks ago I took pictures of her making an incredible Rosemary Garlic Foccia Bread. I don't usually care much for bread, but this was to die for!

She is only just 11. She is strong willed. She knows what she wants be when she grows up. She has a plan on how to get there. She is afraid she isn't like her mother. Silly girl.

Going Green

Sixteen years ago my hubby and I were looking for a house to buy in a rural area. We wanted out of the big city and found this idyllic little town with lots of mountains and big trees. We saw many houses and were wondering how to choose. Then I found it, the house I wanted. It had dozens of trees, shrubs and flowers. The deal closer in my mind was the little green house. It was as small as a play house but with plenty of storage space and benches. I loved my little green house. As the years went by, this little house began to rot and fall apart. Last spring my hubby tore it down. It felt like loosing a friend.

Good bye sweet little shed... I will miss you. Then my stud muffin told me he would like to build me a new greenhouse... it will be easy! I found one in a magazine that was just beautiful and showed it to my hubby. I didn't think that he would make it the way it was in the picture, I just was using it as an example of my 'dream green house.' "Sure, O.K. " he says. No way I'm thinking. But soon Tom and the kids are creating my home away from home in the yard.

It is always good to have a lot of help when undertaking such a large project. What could make a mother prouder than to see children in tool belts?

With so many hands it didn't take much time at all. O.K., so it probably would have gone more quickly without having to explain every step and help little hands pound nails, but what fun would that be?

Now, just mere months later, this beautiful little oasis is in the yard calling me to get my fingers dirty and disappear for hours on end!

Isn't it a wonder to behold? Even if you despise gardening, you must see its alluring beauty! Now to go inside and see the space and light, sigh, I'm getting all choked up, so I'll just let you see for yourselves.

He even used the leftover granite from our kitchen remodel. It makes for quite a potting bench! It feels like such undeserved opulence!

I am pretty sure I am spoiled at this point! I need to christen it in a very special way... Not that way...yet. So I let my garden kitty get totally trashed with some home grown catnip on the potting bench

How can one endure so much happiness?