HELP kinda

is this blog going out on email anymore?
i'm getting mine but google hasn't been friendly lately and i'm thinking that i may be receiving them because i have my gmail accounts all linked up
so could you holler if you're still getting them, pretty please???

smiles

new mexico once again

bright sun on mountain tops and a muffin in my belly.  man by my side and a puppy between us.  i didn't take very many pictures of "us" for some reason.  we were watching the landscapes go by and watching Pookie sleep "all the time".

a texas night

very dark, deserted texas.  very glad when we finally made it through texas and get to new orleans.  the mornings were always so bright and shiny and the nights were like a bad scary b movie.

Texas

this was the beginning of texas and my romance with filthy truckstops that felt safe.  although there were beautiful  reststops and well-maintained.  just not enough people after dark in my opinion.

new mexico

i  pretty sure this is new mexico.  i should have paid attention to where we were, tracked a number to a state, duh.... but i didn't

alot of it was serene but barren.  i like green stuff

ok, i have to get a set of these..... so i can COPY them and make my own

omg, i'm in love!

click here to see the heel condoms

christmas quick project

click here for the easiest and cutest ornament from craftsnob.com

porch moon & tree

from the chair i sit in when i'm on the back porch, there's a really unusual tree on the other side of the driveway.  and when the moon is out, it lands right behind it.  i will try and capture as many nights as possible.  these two were taken on 11/10

and just to be fair to my porches,

here's the front porch this morning 11/15

(Toyoji's 6th bday)!

 and here's where i want to build a two story on stilts so i'll feel like i'm in a birdhouse

and here's the other side yard, opposite the moon tree

i got yard around me!  lol

the weather is a bit strange here; okay not strange, just diff

low thirties at night and i'm layering like i can't remember when

and then in the low seventies during the day

tonight it's started to rain

i'm hoping for a rainy-jammy day with lots of rain noise, hot tea and warm socks

that's sounds good, huh?

xoxo

Monday November 14th

One lonely cloud

where do i begin chapter one

i hate to bore you with all the details of the trip but there were some highlights that you have to hear about and laugh, giggle or at least grin.

but let me walk my mind through it from the beginning.....

we did leave Monday, October 31st but about 6 hours later than we had hoped.  last minute packing was hectic to say the least and having to walk out with my swiffer vac in hand so the place was as close to "hotel guest ready" took longer than i expected.  Jme humped almost the entire place by himself.  His bro came over for the heavy, ackward stuff at the condo and Jme had one helper at the storage room, but for the most part, he did it all by himself.  whewwwww!

we didn't get to Phoenix until close to midnight to see Ashley in the street in her jammies!  we did have an early lunch with her the next morning.  and i finally got to me Jaydon!  he is incredible!

Tuesday, November 1st and long drive to El Paso.....

day one and day two

more and more to be continued......

Tuesday November first in the dark

Well we are headed to el paso tonight. And tomorrow is a heaviest driving day. Really. Check a map. We are going from el paso to Austin. Like 500 miles. Yikes. Then all days after that are around 200 miles a day. Yippee. So here's some pics. Blogging from my cell won't let me type between them so I'm going to just post them like crazy.

Last night in the west. Until we meet again

Last sunset.
Very big diesel truck.
Ava me and Alan
Pookie dog tired from napping.
And Ava me and my new friend Kathleen.

See you from the road my friends!!!

Last Buca dinner

Last chicken marsalla from Buca's for awhile and next to the last sunset. And my barren patio !

Pookie

Amy says he looks homeless

homeless Pookie

He really wasn't as sad as he looks!

He's not homeless.  he just wanted to go home and chill.

oh dear

photo shoot of Maroon 5's lead singer

campaign for testicular cancer

i'm feeling faint

four days and a wake up

and we're almost DONE!!!!!  Seriously, we are down to the wire and i think all my lists have paid off.  I will be so happy when we get there but i think i am finally starting to look forward to the driving adventure of this trip.  


Phoenix, El Paso, Austin, New Orleans, Tallahassee, Savannah and then Wilmington NC.  Whew!!!!

and on a lighter note, i am going to make these for Christmas gifts:

keepsake journals for active lives

tuck away memories to look back at and remember

smiles

and look at how cute these are!

definitely making these when i get settled in!!!!

Nicotine and caffeine.

And boxes. Lots of boxes.

i think i posted this before but...

it's worth a second hit

so i remember

HOME TIPS

Take your bananas apart when you get home from the store. If you leave them connected at the stem, they ripen faster.

Store your opened chunks of cheese in aluminum foil. It will stay fresh much longer and not mold

Peppers with 3 bumps on the bottom are sweeter and better for eating. Peppers with 4 bumps on the bottom are firmer and better for cooking.

Add a teaspoon of water when frying ground beef. It will help pull the grease away from the meat.

To really make scrambled eggs or omelets rich add a couple of spoonfuls of sour cream, cream cheese, or heavy cream in and then beat them up.

For a cool brownie treat, make brownies as directed. Melt Andes mints in double broiler and pour over warm brownies. Let set for a minty frosting.

Add garlic immediately to a recipe if you want a light taste of garlic, and at the end of the recipe if you want a stronger taste of garlic.

Leftover snickers bars from Halloween make a delicious dessert. Simply chop them up with the food chopper. Peel, core and slice a few apples. Place them in a baking dish and sprinkle the chopped candy bars over the apples. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes. Serve alone or with vanilla ice cream.

Heat up leftover pizza in a nonstick skillet on top of the stove, set heat to med-low and heat till warm. This keeps the crust crispy.

Easy Deviled Eggs: Put cooked egg yolks in a zip lock bag. Seal, mash till they are all broken up. Add remainder of ingredients, reseal, keep mashing it up mixing thoroughly, cut the tip of the baggy, squeeze mixture into egg. Just throw bag away when done easy clean up.

Expanding Frosting: When you buy a container of cake frosting from the store, whip it with your mixer for a few minutes. You can double it in size. You get to frost more cake/cupcakes with the same amount. You also eat less sugar and calories per serving.

Reheating refrigerated bread: To warm biscuits, pancakes, or muffins that were refrigerated, place them in a microwave with a cup of water. The increased moisture will keep the food moist and help it reheat faster.

Newspaper weeds away: Plant your plants in the ground, work the nutrients in your soil. Then wet newspapers, put layers around the plants overlapping as you go, cover with mulch, and forget about weeds.

Broken Glass: Use a wet cotton ball or Q-tip to pick up the small shards of glass you can't see easily.

No More Mosquitoes: Place a dryer sheet in your pocket. It will keep the mosquitoes away.

To keep squirrels from eating your plants, sprinkle your plants with cayenne pepper. The cayenne pepper doesn't hurt the plant and the squirrels won't come near it.

Flexible vacuum: To get something out of a heat register or under the fridge add an empty paper towel roll or empty gift wrap roll to your vacuum. It can be bent or flattened to get in narrow openings.

Pin a small safety pin to the seam of your slip to eliminate static cling. It works; you will not have a clingy skirt or dress. Same thing works with slacks that cling when wearing panty hose. Place pin in seam of slacks.

Before you pour sticky substances into a measuring cup, fill with hot water. Dump out the hot water, but don't dry cup. Next, add your ingredient, such as peanut butter, and watch how easily it comes right out.

De-fog your windshield: Buy a chalkboard eraser and keep it in the glove box of your car When the windows fog, rub with the eraser.

Re-opening envelopes: If you seal an envelope and then realize you forgot to include something inside, just place your sealed envelope in the freezer for an hour or two. It unseals easily.

Use your hair conditioner to shave your legs. It's cheaper than shaving cream and leaves your legs really smooth. It's also a great way to use up the conditioner you bought but didn't like when you tried it in your hair.

Goodbye Fruit Flies: To get rid of pesky fruit flies, take a small glass, fill it 1/2' with Apple Cider Vinegar and 2 drops of dish washing liquid; mix well. flies are drawn to the cup and gone forever.

Wash your dryer filter: dryer sheets cause a film over filter that will burn out the heating unit. You can't SEE the film, but it's there. It builds up on your clothes and on your lint screen. The best way to keep your dryer working for a long time (and to keep your electric bill lower) is to take the filter out and wash it with hot soapy water and an old toothbrush at least every six months.

Ava! Alan! Kathleen!

i can only say that my heart is so full and warm and fuzzy after seeing Alan and his family.  Kathleen is exactly how i expected and i knew that i would love her.  Alan is a sweet man, if you believe that men are "sweet".  He has the cutest grin and his eyes are warm like his dad's.  i did real good and didn't cry... okay, i teared up once or twice but i was a big girl.  And there's the new babygirl in my life, AVA!!!

Alan reminds of Don.  They look alike obviously but there's a warm kindness in his eyes that is just like Don's.

She gave me kisses, and we danced in our chairs together and waved "hi" to each other within the first 30 minutes.  I think she likes me!!!

She sat on my lap immediately.  well it was after she bumped her noggin on the table (i hope she doesn't get too much of a goose-egg).  we talked and smiled and giggled so much that I forgot to eat my dinner but it was soooo worth it.

and here are my handsome boys waiting for Ava's arrival.  Pookie didn't like that he could see me but those darn iron bars were keeping him away.

We had a wonderful time!  I wish it could have been longer but I am so happy that I got to see them before we left the state.  I love them very much.

And here's my Pookie in his new car seat and ready for our long haul in the big truck.   He sat in the back seat all the way to Anaheim and never made a sound, but on the way home, I couldn't resist letting him sleep on my lap.  he's so warm and cuddly when he's sleeping.