I got out and about today. It started out as a nasty, cold, rainy day. It ended without the rain, but not nice. Oh Spring, where art thou? I need some warmth to lift my spirits.

I met Kit at Panera's this morning. I told the barista that their lattes's are the best, but the one she made me was below par. Oh well. Still very tasty and I didn't get to tell her no whipped cream before it was too late. The creamy goodness of that made up for the rest of the drink.

I went to my mom's to do her hair color. For a change it got done before it was terrible. My sister Lisa came over and we got to hang out, which is something we don't do often. We both had a day of not much on the agenda. Lisa even made me a grilled cheese and tomato sandwich. What a treat to have someone cook for me.

I ran to the grocery store then picked Emily up from her overnight at her friend's. The friend is here now. They're inseparable! They both got Blackjack II smartphones yesterday. I'm envious! I'm now on Emily's third discarded phone. I spent forever inputting all my phone numbers in her newest reject, and I plan to keep it for a while. Here's my latest phones:


The one on the left is the oldest and the one I switched to when I lost my phone. Notice the broken antennae? I put all my phone numbers in that one. Then Emily remembered she had a newer version. I switched to that one this week. Didn't transfer the numbers. Now that she has a new phone, I got the Razor that someone gave her. A modern phone! I also learned some texting shortcuts that I should have known about all along. It took a long time, but all my phone numbers are stored in this new phone, and now I just have to learn how to use it.

I made Fiwa's Chicken Stir-Fry for dinner tonight. Easy and delicious. I might try my hand at spaghetti tomorrow.

Well, it's late and I could use some beauty sleep. Catch ya'll later!

I'm stuck to my couch. Like a bump on a lump. I ran out of steam I guess because all I've done since getting home has been to sit here, with my laptop on my lap. I did heat up my Santa Fe Chicken, courtesy of Smart Ones. Yum! I've been catching up on blogs. I didn't walk, didn't enjoy the great weather. Haven't felt energized from the many shots of espresso I downed. I guess I need the rest.

Work was a bit stressful today. At one point I had three color clients going at once. One of them, a certain someone we know, had an unwelcome outcome that needed fixing. She was very calm about it, but agreed moss green corduroy was not a pleasing color. Fortunately the fix was easy and she left with a suitable shade of blond. Thanks Bon for being so easy. I won't forget this one.

I want to get motivated, but not sure that I will. I'll just see what develops.

A little this and that...

I've gotten really behind on reading. It's amazing how fast that happens and I can't even pick and choose because I want to read everyone.

My shoulder is so sore from Monday's power washing session. I use my arm and shoulder everyday at work but I guess I just don't use the power washing muscles. I need that shoulder back because I've got a lot more work to do.

Last night Emily had two friends sleep over. All four chairs were taken at the table. Instead of 2 pieces of lasagna being eaten, there were four. I made three lunches this morning instead of one. This must be what it's like for people that don't have 'only's. My little household is growing. Tonight all the girls are spending the night at Emily's other house (her Dad's). How fun for all of them.

Emily told me she only skims my blog and only looks for her name. So, hi Emily. I guess that means I can talk about her more as long as I don't write her name. Right.

Today seemed to last forever. Way, way too long. Some days are just like that. My last client was none other than Bonnie. I told her I wished she were cutting my hair. Just so I could relax. I'm sure it wouldn't be relaxing since she wouldn't know what she was doing. I cut her hair short, as usual, but this time all the blonde got cut out. That won't do. She's coming back on Wednesday and this time she's going really blond. I finished the haircut, then thought, photo op. So, here we are!

There's my station. My home away from home. I've got my Mary Englebreit things around me. My flowers that I buy every Tuesday from Trader Joe's. This is what I see when I work. Me and my clients in the mirror. In this case, me and Bonnie. Can you tell how big the salon is? It really was a warehouse. It's a great place to work. Here's another picture, just because we like hamming it up.


The long day ended up with some fun, which is always a good thing.

I'm heading up to bed to finish my book and relax. I'll be catching up with you this weekend. Till then...

Let's see if I can creatively complain here. Is there such a thing? Warning, I'll have to make frequent stops to use the bathroom. What? Oh right, you wouldn't know that because you're not here. At the coffee shop. The fact that I'm here makes it better. I had an early morning appointment for a pelvic sonogram. In case you don't know, you have to drink lots and lots of water an hour beforehand so your abdomen gets nice and bloated. In my case, 32 oz. Not at all comfortable. You pray that they're running on time so you don't have to wait a minute longer than necessary. I made an 8:00 AM appointment; the first of the day. I drove the half-hour. I was second in line. So far so good. Till the desk staff tells me that the ordering doctor, who happens to be the owner of the busy practice I go to, failed to sign the referral. And his office wasn't open. And the imaging center couldn't squeeze me in even though the office opens at 8:30. So there you have it. My doctor made a mistake. Mistakes happen. The imaging center couldn't squeeze me in. I understand that. And there you have it. I'll be back in a moment after I use the bathroom. It takes a couple of visits for all that water to make it's way through.

So, you all know I stay busy. And I have no plans for the day. Oh, I'll go into Walmart next door to return some folders I bought for Emily that she didn't like. Next time when she says 'plain' I'll buy plain. But that's it. No movie I want to see. No shopping. No urge to clean. Nothing but the right here and now, sitting at Panera's, drinking coffee and using their bathroom.

I'll write something before work, for a change. Things have been good around the house lately. No drama for at least a week! Woohoo. What a difference that can make. Over the last month or so, Emily has become really good friends with a classmate, who's been staying over here a lot. I feel like I have two daughters instead of one. I making two lunches. Two bagels. I don't mind at all. I'm happy that Emily's not spending all of her time alone while at home. They're doing homework together. Doing each other's hair. Laughing a lot. When our kids are happy, we're happy, right? And I like to be happy. So, so far? So good.

Have a great Wednesday and I'll write more later.

It's Monday, and why I need two cans of gas.

Yes, it's Monday and I'm exhausted. What do I do when I'm tired? I generally get busy. Some people take naps. Later, when it's time for bed, I'll get my second wind. *Sigh* it just works that way for me.

I got an early start and went to Panera's. I've decided I like their lattes better than Border's or Starbucks. Plus I like that they have a frequent buyers club and you only have to purchase 6 drinks to get one free. I redeemed mine for a large caramel latte with an extra shot of espresso. I stayed for a while, then drove the mile or two to see my mom. I cut her hair then we were off to do errands. First stop, B.J.'s for a chaise lounge and two sling chairs. Next was Walmart, and I ran in to get the things on her list. After that we ate at the buffet. It was wonderful. My mother said if it weren't for me, she'd never get out to lunch. I told her I enjoy it as much as she does. I brought her home right before her show started, and went on my way. A stop at the grocery store, then I was home, and feeling very tired and sluggish. That's when I decided to try out the power washer.


Nice, huh? It belongs to my neighbor Kelly. She gave me a tutorial yesterday on how to use it. It takes a lot of gas. I borrowed it mainly to try to clean all the mildow or algae or whatever is on the siding on the side of my house. And to clean up my sidewalk. I didn't realize how dirty it was. Here's what I've done so far:


It's actually fun to use, but slow going.

While I had my camera out, I took this picture of my neighbor's forsythia. I love seeing it in other people's yards. I think it's a messy shrub, but it sure is beautiful to look at.


Talking about things in bloom, are there a lot of pear trees in your part of the country? It seems like it's the favorite tree of builders here in MD, and now there's forests of them all around. The birds must spread the seeds. They're everywhere, in full bloom.

Last picture of the day. Brad, this one's for you.

I should have posted much earlier when I wasn't so tired. I had the hardest time staying asleep last night and I'm ready for bed now. Except I just remembered I still need to make Emily's lunch for tomorrow. Her ham sandwich phase is over and it's back to PB&J. Fine with me!

I skipped the lodge this morning and hung around here. Watched TV till 10:00 AM, which made me feel quite lazy. I didn't do anything around the house. I went for gas on the way to pick Emily up from her friends, and brought along my two gas cans to fill. I'm not sure what I did wrong, but as I was filling the first one it totally back splashed on me. Gas got on my wool coat, jeans and shoes. I wasn't soaked, but totally smelly! Yuck. I read a bunch of my book this afternoon, another pleasure I rarely indulge in. Emily and I went to the movies at 5:00 to see Miss Pettigrew Lives For a Day. A client told me it was not to be missed. We went to an old stand-alone theater. One of the last few like that around here and it was filled with senior citizens. We were embarrassed to do it, but changed seats just before the movie started because someone a few rows up had a very large afro that cut into our view. I'm so used to stadium seating where every view is unobstructed. The movie was fun with great costumes and a happy ending but I wouldn't say it was a must-see.

I watched my first baseball game tonight. Ever. It was the opening game for the Nationals in their brand new stadium in DC. They won! I don't think I'll make a habit out of it, in fact I'm sure, but it was fun to watch and root for them.

Tomorrow is Mom day. She's badly in need of a haircut, so that will be our first order of business. Her hair is very thick and it takes a long time to cut. I earn my free lunch. She wants to go to Walmart to pick up some outdoor furniture and browse around. Afterwards we'll go to our favorite Chinese buffet. I'll make sure to have her back to the house by 2:00 so she doesn't miss Passions.

Well, I've blabbed long enough. Time to make that lunch. TTYS!

Hey Mo, this one's for you.

You

Can

Only

Type

One

Word

It's not as easy as you might think. Remember, one word answers:

1. Where is your mobile phone? near

2. Your significant other? friend's

3. Your hair? curly

4. Your mother? dear

5. Your father? compulsive

6. Your favorite thing? sunshine

7. Your dream last night? unknown

8. Your favorite drink? latte

9. Your dream/goal? happiness

10. The room you're in? family

11. Your ex? memory

12. Your fear? cancer

13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? here

14. Where were you last night? DC

15. What you're not? fit

16. Muffins? cranberry

17. One of your wish list items? SLR

18. Where you grew up? suburbia

19. The last thing you did? this

20. What are you wearing? pajamas

21. Your TV? on

22. Your pets? none

23. Your computer? companion

24. Your life? content

25. Your mood? apprehensive

26. Missing someone? no

27. Your car? Honda

28. Something you're not wearing? makeup

29. Favorite Store? Homegoods

30. Your summer? beach

31. Like someone? no :(

32. Your favorite color? limegreen

33. When is the last time you laughed? yesterday

34. Last time you cried? Christmas

35. Who will/would re-post this? Dunno

Now that you have had a peek into my world, let me know if you play along. I'd love to see your answers too.

It's almost midnight so technically Sunday, but this is my Saturday post. Work was fine but Saturdays don't fly by. All easy clients but one. This was the third time I've done her color and cut, and I still don't feel comfortable with her. She's been coming every 4 weeks, which means we see a lot of each other. Maybe next time there'll be more of a connection? She's traveling at least 40 minutes to see me. That's a lot. Anyway, I planned to be home tonight, chauffeuring Emily and her friend to and from a school dance that ended up being canceled because of poor ticket sales. Emily's spending the night with the friend instead. I called Kit and she asked me to drive with her to VA so she could see and take pictures of her condo that's been renovated in anticipation of a new renter. I was the driver. The cherry trees are at the start of their peak, and I took these pictures from my car window. Traffic was stop and go, and I was mostly stopped for them.






Kit's rental condo is probably about 45 minutes from her house. She had brand new keys for her 'new' locks. Well, the locks weren't new, and the keys didn't fit, so we never got in. We had a good time getting there, though.

We made our way back through DC to go out to dinner. Kit works in town, near all the 'hip' restaurants and we went to her favorite Indian one. We stood by the bar while waiting for a table and Kit ordered two glassed of chardonnay after glancing at the bar menu. The bartender passed us the drinks and Kit gave him a $20. He looked at it, then told her it was $30. For 2 glasses of wine! Kit had glanced at prices per glass on the menu and it looked like most of them were $8. Why ours was so much is a mystery, but it was correct and she paid. Soon after, another woman came by the bar area and Kit told her about our wine. The woman decided she'd have a blood orange martini instead for the low price of $8. I would have had one of them too, had I known. Anyway, I had no clue what to order. It turns out that although it was Kit's favorite Indian restaurant, she always went there with someone who advised her on what to order. Great...two people who didn't know what to get. Fortunately, the woman sitting next to me talked loudly. She said that the Black Cod was absolutely to die for. I decided to give it a try. It was fabulous. I don't know where the 'black' came from. The fish was pure white thick medallions of deliciousness. I would have it again. Kit had lamb with spinach that was delicious but very spicy. We split some sort apple dumpling ring and spicy ice cream dessert served with an orchid. Very pretty. All in all, an exotic evening out. I'll have to make a point of going into DC more often. It's not too far from where I live, and there's so much to see and do there.

Well, this is long enough. I'm sure I'll be writing more 'tomorrow.'

It was a hands-on kind of day. First stop...the gynecologist. I saw a male doctor for the first time in about 14 years. He was the only one that could fit me in, and he was fine. I've been having the same abdominal pain that I had in 2007. He didn't find anything, so it's time for tests again. Oh well. On the one hand, I feel like I'm a hypochondriac. On the other, I'm being pro-active. I think that's the better of the two. I left there to have what I thought was going to be a massage at my salon for the literal 'pain in my butt' that I've been having. Wendy did an all over treatment that had something to do with fascia and connective tissue but no massage. Just tweaking something, with long periods of time in-between. Very strange. It was relaxing to lay on her table for an hour. It wasn't the massage that I'd wanted. She said I should be feeling very relaxed in a day or two. Hmmm. I'll let you know. That was part 2 of the hands-on. I met Bonnie and Karen and I think we were the first patrons at Cheesecake Factory. Here's picture #1. I think I look fat. And, that's an eggplant sandwich in front of me and I didn't eat the french fries. I'm saving my calories for the jelly beans in my locker. You know I'm a jelly bean addict, right?



We walked around the mall after lunch. Karen bought a new Vera Bradley tote for her camera. We went to the Aveda store so I could buy their Caribbean Therapy body creme. I love that stuff! I put it on my hands every night before I turn my light off. The sole clerk seemed thrilled to have our company. She served us herbal tea. We looked at the different products in the CT line, then used the body scrub on our hands. Afterwards, she massaged the body creme onto one of our hands. Not both. It felt half-wonderful! That was part 3. Karen and Bonnie bought the scrub and I got the creme. We walked through the mall with matching bags. We didn't mind.



We have our next outing planned. We're going to a wonderful nursery that has a huge gift and collectibles shop. Then we're having lunch at a great restaurant. (I like great and wonderful.) Our pattern seems to be shopping (though not for clothes...that's not for us!) and eating. Karen and Bonnie do a lot of walking so they burn off the calories. I'm going to need to get a move on, you know?


I talked to my father about the mice. He got them mail-ordered. One bag has 100 mice, the other, 50. That's a lot of shrimp mice. The snakes eat one mouse a week, each. I guess I'd be hungry for a mouse too if I only ate once a week.

Tonight's LOST and I can't wait. Hope everyone had a great Thursday!

I just finished watching Wife Swap. I don't watch much TV but I can see why people do. Wife Swap was great. The disparity between the families was outrageous, yet you can see that each wife has wisdom to impart to the other. I'd like someone to swap with me. Or a Super Nanny to move in. Yeah, I'll go with the nanny.

It was a beautiful day today. I went for a walk this morning, but totally wimped out because I was a little chilly. I might have been gone for 10 minutes, tops. Wimpy! I decided to try again after dinner. I had a great 30 minute walk through my neighborhood. I loved seeing the daffodils, budding trees, greening grass, etc... I'll let you know if it turns into a regular thing.

I made pizza again in the iron skillet. My half had onions and tomatoes. Emily's, pineapple. With the leftover dough I made a calzone. I think next time I'll stick with calzones. Or just give up and go back to Pizza Boli's. I love their pizza.



Remember my jimmy-rigged 'vintage' food processor? Here's a picture of it. See the matchbook that keeps it running?



Tomorrow I'll be meeting Karen and Bonnie at the Cheesecake Factory for lunch. I love that place, and can't wait to hang out with my friends. Look for pictures tomorrow!

So, I'm at my parent's house, looking through the freezer in the garage for something to thaw out for my mom's dinner. There's lots of pizzas, hot dogs, broccoli, bagels, and large frozen meals. I see two gallon Ziploc bags in the door with what looks like frost covered frozen shrimp. Hmmm...I wonder if I could break some off to thaw? Then I realize what I'm looking at. Frozen white mice. Lots and lots of them. For my father's two snakes. Ewwww! Now, I haven't looked at his snakes in a long time, but I'm pretty sure they're still small and skinny. They're in small aquariums on top of his dresser. It looked like there were enough mice in those bags to last a very long time. Have I mentioned my dad's a collector of things? I just didn't know it included mice.

It was a good day. I'm ready for some reading. Later!

I ate too much cheesecake. Last weekend. This week. Today. There's two more pieces in my refrigerator, and then there'll be no more for a long time. End of cheesecake story. Except for one thing. My sister made it to bring to Easter dinner and said it was fabulous and one of the best things she's ever eaten. Ever? That's awesome.


We had a relaxing time at my brother's house. There were nine of us. Very casual. Great food. It's always nice to be together and I'm glad most of my family is local. Ilene, I wish you were local too!

Well,I think it's time to relax and get back to my book. I hope everyone had a great weekend.

It's a quiet sunny morning here, but probably the calm before the storm. The teenager, you know, but that's all I'm saying.

Has anyone seen the Macbook Air? I was checking it out at the Apple store last night and it's amazing. I imagine one day all computers will catch up with the great designs Apple comes out with. I spent the evening strolling around Annapolis Mall with Kit. We had dinner at Nordstrom Cafe and I had the best tuna melt ever!The mall was packed. It's always interesting to see the diversity of the shoppers. One part of the mall is very high-end. Another has shops like American Eagle, Hollister, Abercrombie, etc. where you'll find lots of younger people. Then there's everything in-between. The play area is SO loud. We went into a jewelry store that faces it and I asked how they put up with the noise. They said they learn to tune it out. It was nerve-wracking. We wound up in Border's with our decaf drinks. A large table next to us was taken up by a group of very nerdy kids playing some kind or game. Two of them had headbands on their foreheads with some kind of metal logo. Next to them was a table of midshipmen from the Academy in their starched uniforms doing schoolwork. The mall is a great place to people-watch. I didn't buy anything.

I made another apple almond cheescake last night and a Jello chocolate pudding pie to bring to my brother's house today. I just finished making Jello Jiggler Eggs too. I have a basket of Emily's favorite candy in her Easter basket, heavy on all things Reese's.

I hope that whatever you day holds, that it's a happy one.

Is it better to keep up with reading blogs or keep up with writing them? Right now I'll write. The weekend is a slow time and I'll catch up then. Some people read without commenting but I just can't seem to do that. So, it's Easter this Sunday. My family doesn't celebrate, except with food. That's how we do all the holidays. My brother and sister-in-law have invited the family over for Easter dinner. I made a practice cheesecake yesterday, and I'm glad I did. I'm really not much of a baker, and learned a few things. I used lemon curd instead of raspberry on top of the crust. I think I like the raspberry better. I should have made the sides of the crust thicker. The pie should have baked longer. I put my cast iron skillet with water in it on the shelf below the cake to catch drips. I wonder if that made it not cook through? It wasn't runny, just a little loose. Next time I'll use foil on the shelf below. Was it still delicious? Yes! And beautiful with all the apples and almonds on top. I'm giving most of it away, which was the idea. I'd weigh a ton if I had to eat it all. I'll know exactly what I'm doing when I make it again tomorrow.

I'm writing this at the coffee shop. It's a nice way to start my day. The place is just packed! One of the things I love about it is that although it's a chain, it really brings the community together. I'm sitting here drinking decaf. Aren't I good? I'd love nothing more than a cup of dark french roast, but my hands need to stay steady! I'm hyper enough without the added 'boost'.

Spring is popping out all over here in MD, though not to the point that people need to mow their lawns. The trees are starting to flower. The daffodils are up. The smell of mulch is in the air. The robins are everywhere. The moles in my lawn and garden are making tunnels. The weather, however, is getting colder. At least the sun is shining.

Well, I'm off to work. Have a great Friday, ya'll (Sarah S., I always think of you when I write that word!)

Part II

I thought I'd be back to write. The day flew by and it was busy, as always. Now I want more time. Wah! I'm watching LOST, so I gotta run. Tomorrow, OK?

So far it's a stay-at-home lazy day. Well, lazy for me. I took care of paperwork. Made appointments. Watched an episode of Jericho. Read the message boards for LOST to clear up some confusion from last week (Jin rushing to the hospital was a flashback). I've been upstairs making cards. If I have your address, be sure to check your mailbox soon. It feels so good to have those creative juices going again. It's good for my mental health. Plus I have a fortune in supplies and I hate to be wasteful. I came down when my doorbell rang. My new Gevalia coffee maker arrived! It makes one or two cups of coffee directly into one or two travel cups. And it was free. Thank you Gevalia! I'll be back to post later today.

Yesterday was an emotional day. It started with Emily oversleeping for school, which isn't a good start to the day for mother or daughter. That set the tone for me and it was hard to shake. I did my first new client, and that was great. Then I had my color done, and again, I did it too dark. I'm so careful when I do my client's hair, yet for my own I'll say, oh, let's just do this. Without much thought. So, my nice light highlights that fixed my formerly dark hair barely show through my dark reddish hair. It will get fixed and I won't let it happen again! Then I met my second new client. She had the worst hair! Thin, frizzy, wire-y, misshaped. I was amazed at how terrible it looked. I had to make myself not tell her too many times how much better it would look when I was finished. It looked 100% better! It transformed her. That made me (and her) very happy. Then I came home and had a bad night here with Emily. Whew.

This morning was good. I made a card for a friend. It was good to get those creative juices going early, and put me in the mood to make more. Emily and I had a fine morning. I'm ready for the day.

Guess where? Panera's at 4:00 in the afternoon, sitting by a sunny window. It's a quiet time of day here, one that I'm not usually privy to. I brought Em to her friend's house after school and this shopping center is practically right next store. Why rush home? I'll tell you about my day in backwards order. I went to Sam's Club before coming here. Their gas is $3.15 a gallon; much less than anywhere else. I went into the store thinking I might buy a $20 GO phone to put my SIM card in while trying to find a new phone that I'm ready to make a 2-year commitment to. The salesguy highly recommended the Backberry Curve 8310. The price at Sam's was ridiculously low, like $40-something dollars. I came here and checked it out on cnet, but of course can't make a decision. So, it looks like I'll holding onto Em's old phone that I very much dislike. (I made myself not say hate, Andrew!) I think I research stuff too much. Most people that know me would agree. I think there's really no consumable that doesn't have a 'con.' Anyway, I came this way after going out to lunch with my mother at our favorite Chinese restaurant. I had shrimp and broccoli and she had shrimp and lobster sauce. Their shrimp is always extra-large, not what you usually find in these dishes. I finally stopped ordering spicy dishes 'medium' and go with the heat the dish demands. It's much better that way. As usual, I was finished way before my mom and had to act content just sitting there. She asked if she ate slow. I said yes, but I eat fast, so it's OK. I don't really think I eat fast--my mother is slow as molasses. That's OK. Before lunch I went to Macy's while my mom read in my car. I went to buy my Estee Lauder cream blush that they apparently don't make anymore. I went with the powder formula, and tried to use a $25 Visa all access gift card that I've had for a while. I called from the sales register when I realized I had to activate the card. I needed to read the last 3 digits off the back of the card, and each time I gave it, I was told the number was wrong. I left my glasses in the car by mistake (I was wearing sunglasses) and couldn't see too well. The cashier tried her best to help but no number we gave worked. Then the person on the phone told me that I had been charged a $4.95 fee each month after the first 6 for an inactive account and that I didn't have any money left on the card, but she would make an exception and take all the monthly fees off. Great, but...I had to give her the 3-digit code that we couldn't read. I said I'd call back later. Geez! When I got to my parent's in the morning, I thought I'd go through the old recipe box. Since her stoke, my mother doesn't cook, and the box is crammed full. I thought I'd find the old family recipes and enter them into Word documents. It was like taking a trip down memory lane. The bittersweet part was seeing my mother's beautiful handwriting. She was left-handed, and the stroke affected her left side, so her right-handed writing is like chicken-scratch. Anything I see in her old script is a gift. I got most of the recipe box cleaned out. Most of the recipes were ones she'd cut out or been given, but never made. I need to do the same with all my recipes. (Will you prod me on Mo?) I stopped by the lodge on my way to my parent's this morning. They offered free shots of espresso as part of their Welcome Spring week. I had a small skinny caramel latte. Three shots. In my book that's a great way to start your day. And here I am, in Panera's drinking a diet caffeine-free Pepsi. Wishing it was 8:00 AM again. If this was LOST, it might be.

I'm so full! My neighbor had a going-away dinner for her sister and her partner this afternoon. There were seven of us, and we had, as always, a great time. On the menu was ham, mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, applesauce, green beans, lima beans, and rolls. All home made. I brought Banana Cream Pie and Kelly made an Almond Apple Cheesecake. (The cheesecake was one of the best I've ever had, and I just entered it into a Word document. E-mail me if you'd like the recipe.) I'm home now, but like I said, too full. I'm glad there's still a lot of hours till bedtime!

I made Emily and her friends a carb-heavy breakfast of French toast and cinnamon rolls. It was what they asked for. I brought them up fresh sliced strawberries with Redi-whip as a snack. As they were leaving for home, they said they'd be back. Next weekend. I'm sure they liked the way they were treated here. I think Emily would prefer to be at their house. I'm about taking turns.

I've had a lack-of-sleep headache all day. I just couldn't fall asleep. It was probably because the kids were still awake. I woke up at 7:30, late for me, and was out of the house before 8:00 to meet Kit at the lodge. She had lots of pictures to show me on her computer. I think I'm about up to 15 on mine. Here's one Emily took today of us in her mirror. I'm wearing my favorite denim jacket.



I think a warm bath and pajamas are in my immediate future. Some TV or time with my book. I'm making an early night of it. Happy Sunday, friends.