A few pictures of life in general

Last weekend we took our kids to a local pond to do some fishin! It was a lot of fun, a beautiful day, Lot's of sunshine. The scenery was awesome including this beautiful swan..

I was simply in awe of the beauty of such an amazing animal.....until he decided to assault me. I was fishing away....proud of the fact I had time to do some fishing now that the kids are getting big enough they can handle their own poles by themselves, when the swan decided to ask us to leave. He came barreling at me as fast as he could honking and fluffing his feathers. I yelled to my husband for help who was laughing so hard he almost fell in the drink. So I dropped my brand new pole and ran like a little girl. Nice, the kids were proud. I don't like swans. They are scary and I now need therapy! He must have been protecting a nest or something. So I went home and snuggled Brutus. He might sink in his puppy teeth once in a while but he is not scary at all a little hairy, but no need for therapy bills!

So here is a couple of pictures....happy thoughts...happy thoughts...

This is one of my tulips that I really adored. Not sure what kind it is but the edges were really cool.

This is a picture of my dad( http://bertrjones.com/) and my oldest daughter. He wrote a song for a little girl in our local area that is in need of a liver transplant when he performed a benefit for her. Our elementary school has started penny drive and arranged a bake sale that has taken in quite a sum of money for the girl and her family so, my daughter thought it would be cool to sing her song at the end of the year talent show. She had no idea that her grandpa was going to surprise her and show up to sing it with her. AWESOME!!! She was so surprised!!

The coolest grandpa on the planet, for sure.

So as were are counting down the last 2 days of school, keep your eyes peeled for swans on attack and enjoy the outdoors! Wishing you all a great day!

In Loving memory of...........

Spring.....ah what a beautiful word. Especially considering we are approaching record snowfall for the year and it is only February. I wish I could be as excited as our local weather lady. The first snowfall is always exciting and I can't wait to break out the hot cocoa for the kids and build the first snowman. Well it is February and the excitement passed a long time ago. The lost mittens(Approximately 53 pairs) the one missing boot and the "Mom, my coat won't zip" mornings are definitely taking their toll on me. That is why I LOVE SPRING! Spring is a chance to undo some of the wrongs that were made last year. A fresh start. The ambition and effort that goes into my yard and garden every year with such force that I am certain that my yard will be the prettiest on my bumpy dirt road. Only to be reminded in July that it is too stinking hot! Even with the best of intentions my garden always ends up full of weeds and it is more like a where's waldo when you are looking for the tomato plants. The yard has so many weeds that I am not sure how close to the field I should mow because you really can't tell the difference between the two. So this year It will be different. Work smarter, work harder and know that every spring I get another chance.

I have never really had great luck with plants. I make several trips to the greenhouse and pick out the prettiest. I plant them all over the yard.....aww they are so beautiful..Then in about a month when I am standing in the kitchen getting a cold glass of water thinking maybe the plants are thirsty too and by then.....too late.

So I just tell myself well I am just supporting the local business with the purchases and make a mental note next year to water the plants.

My house plants are not much better. When I moved into my new house I had several house plants. They were beautiful. I was certain I was ready for the responsibility of the new life and was so excited. The house was clean, the pool was bug free and the kids were happy and fed and I did so great watering them that they got a little droopy. So I thought okay well let's put them outside to get a little warm air to dry them out.. Well apparently they sunburn. So what is a girl to do? Too much water, not enough water.....the stress. So this year I am going to do artificial plants.....Problem solved. So this post is dedicated to the loving memory of my houseplants...may they rest in peace and I promise to never buy another one again. Amen.